Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1863-04-02


The greatest men shared the doubt whe:h-
er England was not tottering to her de-
structien. Sir, Walter Scott wrote to q
friend: These cursed. double cursed news
from Spain have sunk my spirits so much
that am almost at disbeiieving Provi-
dencs, There is On evil fate upon Us in
all we do at home or abroad" A Letter
OF Sir James Mackintosh is still more
gloomy. a''I believe. like you," The writes
to q friend at Vienna ''in a resurrection.
because believe in the Immortality of civ
|ilization; but dark and stormy night, .
black series of ages, may be prepared for
our posterity before the dawn of a better
day. The race of man may reach the
promised land, but there is no assurance
that the present generation will not per-
ish in the wilderness.''S -e
Such is the dark valley. shadowed by
dependency, through which even the
most powerful nation, once engaged in q
great contest of life and death. must con-
sent to travel ere it emergcs to the light.
Ii we were not prepared to traverse its
depths--if we have not courage to endure
even to the end--wc ought never to have
entered upon the gloomy road at ALL
Many good men thought. at the outset,
that the wiser course was to let the delu-
ded South go 10 peace. A thousand times
better to have done this than to falter and
look back now, false to the great task we
have undertaken, recreant to the solemn
purpose on which we have lavished mill
ions OF treasure. to which we have set the
seal of our best blood. That which might
have been graceful concession two years
since, would be base submission to-day.
Base and unavailing! What are the
proposals now. rife throughout the North
west. among the friends of peace at any
price? Worst device of feeble or faithless
heads. busily echoed by thousands of faint
hearts. embodied in public resolutions.
trumpeted through hundreds of newspapers,
what is the favorite project, long matured
in secret, that is urged upon you to day
by the enemies of the war and of the Ad-
ministration that conducts it?
OF vast import is that project. yet a
few words suffice TO state it. The great.
est of human changes can be expressed in
one word-Death!
The project is, to reconstruct the Union,
leaving ont the New England States.
This plan is spoken of as a compromise
The South. abandoning her avowed inten-
tion to erect a separate purely slave-held-
ing Confsderacy. is to consent to receive
into her fellowship portion ofths North
ern States. The Northern, States in re-
turn. are to sbsndon six of their humber;
those six in which the opinions against
which the war is wsged chiefly prevail.
But this plan is no after-thought-no
compromise whatever. 1t has been in the
minds and intentions of the Southern
leaders from the very commencement of
the rebellion. isa l1rF
| vouch for the truth Of the followin ng:
Early in January, 1861. a few days after
South Carolina had seeded, and before
any other State had followed her example,
Ssnator Benjamin of Louisiana, said to
one of the Foreign Ministers: IA great
revolution has commenced. 1t will end
in the separation from the Union. either
of the slave States or New England"
Within few days Of the same time.
before Jefferson Davis had left Washing
ton. Mrs. Davis convsrsing with friend
from Pennsylvania, who had been lament
ing probable separation. replied, in SUBJ
stance: do not afflict yourself. We
shall not separate from Pennsylvania. nor
New York. nor New Jersey; they. like the
Northwest. are our nat~ral allies"
1t was the original plan, abandoned for
q time. when the entire North rose in
srms; unavowed even now; yet secretly
fomented and sanctioned ever since the
elections seemed to result adversely to
the Administration. and since meetings
and newspapers. calling themselves Demo
ocratic. have been sending forth, to an
enemy in arms, wards of sympathy and
comfort.
Well might such a plan be the first
choice of the secessionists! Well may
they intrigue with the Northwest to favor
and adopt it nowl Far better for them
than mere Southern Confederacy--never
was more speciousz nor more daring
device to uphold sinking cause!
Look at it. pray you; not vaguely or
hastily. but carefully. and in all its practi-
cal details. In the Senate, thirty South
ern votes to twenty-five Northern; in the
House, Ninety Southern votes to hundred
and thirteen Northern. One House hope
lessly gone; while twelve votes changed
would give a Southern majority in the 9TH
er. And when has Congress seen the day
when twice twelve votes could not have
been had from Northern Representatives
for any measure the Senth saw fit to pro-
pose? "a sail, ..,-.,.r. 81 4. ~ s.. -
Just North enough in the schems to af-
ford projections and support to slavery; and
not North enough to exert over it the
slightest influence or CONTROL ssst
Plausible, too! "You have majority
in one House, and we in. the other. -
What can be more fair? t
But mark the workings Of the plan! A
free State applies for admission. The
Bill must pass the Senate. Will it pass?
Shareholders have to decide that question.
Will they relinquish the balance of pow
er which they hold in their grasp? While
they retain their req son, neverl A slave
State for every free State admitted; that
will sbs the rule. The controlling majori.
ty in the Senate. therefore. perpetual.
Think. next. Of the nominations by the
Presidents President. of course, who be-
lieves In the justice. and in the, perpetual
duration. OF negro slavery none other
will be suffered to take his seat; nomina-
tions Of Cabinet officers. OF Foreign Min
o - -. n = r O.