The Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1859-1865, 1863-09-17


a decent pretext for their threatened
crime against their country, was placed in
full light before the world when Alexan-
der II. Stephens spoke to the people of
Georgia those memorable words, which
history will always remember, sealing with
/ the seal of lasting condemnation this
wicked and causeless rebellion
"What right has the North assailed ?
What interest of the South has been
invaded ? What justice has been denied !?
Or what claim founded on justice or right
has been withheld? Can either of you
to-day name one governmental act Of
wrong deliberately and purposely done by
the Government at Washington of which
the South has a right to complain? 1
challenge an answerH'
| While the ablest statesmen of the South
were endeavoring with words like these to
stay the hands of traitors raised to dis
| honor our flag. to destroy our Government,
and to affiict US with the awful sufferings
or civil strife, the Honorable George w.
| Woodward, then and now Judge of the
Supreme Court OF Pennsylvania, deiiber-
ately disrobed himself of his ermine, and
walking from the seat of judgment to the
| platform of a great meeting assembled
in Independence Square, ground sacred
to freedom. spoke, and over and beyond
! his audience to the maddened partisans
of slavery, ripe for revolt and battle, these
words of sympathy with their baseless
and pretended wrongs: "Everywhere in
the South the people are beginning to
look out for the means of self
Could it be expected that they would be
| Indifferent to such scenes as have occurred?
that they would stand idle and see such
measures concerted and carried forward
for the annihilation, sooner or later, OF
their property in slaves. Such expecta-
| tions, if indulged, are not reasonable"
And these words of encouragement
exaggerating the source of strength of
which they boasted most: "When you
combine all in one glowing picture Of
| national prosperity, remember that cotton,
the produce of slave labor, has been one
of the indispensable elements Of all this
prosperity; must oe an indispensable
element in ali our future prosperity. say
it must be-"
And these sad words, sounding like an
Invitation to treason:
"The law Of seif-defence includes rights
of property as well as person, and it appears
to me there must be "A time in the progress
of this conflict, if it is indeed irrepressible,
when shareholders may lawfully fall back
on their natural rights, and employ in
defence OF their property whatever means
of protection they possess or can command.
They who push on this conflict have
convinced one or more Southern States
that II has already come"
And these sadder words of attempted
conservation Of that fearful combining of
crimes against God and all his creatures
which is called American slavery: "The
providence of that good Being who has
watched over US from the beginning, and
saved us from external foes, has so ordered
our internal relations as to make negro
slavery an incalculable blessing to US
Whoever will study the Patriarchal and
Levitical institutions, will see the princi-
pie of human bondage divinely sanctioned
if not divinely ordained"
The address thus delivered went forth
with the added weight of judicial sanction,
and, aided by many others of kindred
import, produced its Legitimate effect in
convincing the traitors who had hesitated
that large and.infuential portion of the
Northern people were heartily with them
in spirit, and only awaited fitting opportu-
nifty to become active accompliccs in their
treason. Then followed in necessary
sequence the bonn bardment of Fort Sumter
and the opening of that great historic
drama, whose shadow, after two weary
years Of sacrifice of treasure and of life,
still darkens our land; whose sorrows have
reached all our hearts, and whose terrible
consequences to the cause of American
democracy, and of Christian civilization
itself we yet very dim:y comprehend.
For those words, and only for those
words, thus early, publicly, and distinctly
spoken, rendering sympathy, encourage
ment, invitation, consecration even, to the
cause Of the rebellion, Judge Woodward /!
has beer placed in nomination as candi- |
date for Governor of Pennsylvania, and
the opinions there expressed have been
distinctly reaffirmed, and made the present |
platform of his supporters; the Hon.
Charles j. Biddle, their official represen-
tatiye, in his recent address to the people |
of the State, declaring "this speech to
have been vindicated by subsequent events
as signal exhibition of statesmanlike
sagacity."
The faction in Pennsylvania wearing |
the livery of the good old Democratic
party to aid rebellion waged in-the interest
of an aristocracy of shareholders, thus