Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1864-08-25

men Of the loyal states by going back to the
single idea of war for the Union; or is now
too late? Have we lost irrecoverably our
hold on the affections Of our countiymcn
who were for the Union in Is6l-cvcn in
1902 Is there no way by which we could
satisfy them that VIC yet mean Union, and
not conquest and subjugation? And what
a difference in the meaning of those two
phrases! The first offers the hand of n
brother, the second threatens the yoke of
master Orare We obliged now to exchange
the hopes we had of southern Union men
for that other and miserable hope in the ne
gro? Is he all that is left of loyalty in the
South, and the only ally we can rely upon to
aid us in restoring the Union? Ye gods
what have we come to at last ? Either to
yield to an unholy rebellion, to dismembcr
an empire, or to go into national compan-
ionship with the nogrol Is this the alter
native to which our madness has brought
us?
Mr.. President, these things are enough to
drive sane man mad. After all our pre-
tensions, all our boasting, how absurd will
we appear in the eyes of all other nations if
we fail in this strugge Especially as al
most all the measures about which we have
occupied ourselves for the last three years
have been based upon our success already
assumed as fixed fact. We provided for
confiscating rebel estates before we got
possession we freed slaves before we got
them from their masters weprovided for the
disposition OF conquests we have not made
we have disposed of the skin of the bear
and the bear itself is yet uncaught. All
this we put upon the record; the statute
book will bearc witness against us in all
coming time; and we cannot escape the con-
sequences if we fail
Mr.. President, our governmentwas inten-
ded to be one of law, -cmnently of law.
There was to be nothing in the administra-
ton OF 1t left to the arbitrary will of an in
dividuals, This was its merit, or intended
so, par ercellence | am for preserving its
character i'll that respect strictly. Let no
man, from the President down to the
most petty officer, dare to do anything,
whether to friend or enemy except as war
ranted by law. Let us make war according
to law, and let us have peace according to
law. If we fight belligerent enemy, let
us do it according to the law of nations.
If we punish or restrain a refractory citizen,
let us do it by the law Of the land, 'by due
process of law" Had we had faith in our
Constitution and laws and our people, we
had not been i'll our present condition.
Had we made war and war alone, the loyal
people North and South to q man would
have been with us. The voice of the fac
ton, if not entirely hushed, would have
been harmless. The capital of the dema-
gouge would have been worthless, and the
nation would have been irresistible Had
we treated the negro as the Constitution
treats him, as person, as another man;
had we made no distinction or difference
between him and other citizens, we had not
orn,tSn1 hin, that tnrr,blo
which will be far more likely to destroy him
than false philanthropy will be likely to
elevate him in the scale of being. If he
was friendly to us the same use could have
been made of him that we have made; we
could have enlisted him in our armies now
as we have been enlisting him in our navy
for long years. We could have received
him as a volunteer, if he was ablebodie
without looking to his complexion, and we
could have drafted him without inquiring
into the relations which existed between
him and his master, any more than we in
quire into the relations of the white man of
twenty years of age with his parent or his
guardian. State laws adjust all those ques-
tions, but to the United States it made no
difference whether he owed his service to
individuals or not he owed his first duty to
the republic as military service was required.
All this was lawful, and no loyal man ever
did or would have complained of it, kindly
done in the proper spirit.
| have only to say, in conclusion, sir, that
| hope that the Joint resolution will not be
repealed, and that this and all kindred pro-
jects will fail in the future, for the simple
reason that they strengthen the rebels by
uniting their people with them, and they
weaken the Union cause by dividing its
friends and distracting them with unnecess-
ary issues, Let us unite upon the single
idea of suppressing the armed opposition to
the government. Let the energies of the
nation be devoted solely to that purpose,
and success may yet come, if success is
possible,