Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1864-02-11

! however, q SOlcln ODllgdtlOn 10 40 precise
ly what the gentleman thin Ks we might bet
ter forbear, to discuss such constitutional
questions as may affect the integrity and
pcrmanence of this Government to con-
tend against the advancing strides of revo-
| mtionary policy, and to invoke the atten-
! ton of our fellow-lcgislators to the consitl-
Grafton of the great principles upon which
our Government is founded; to obey the
will of our constituents by endeavoring to
promote the best and surest means of re-
| leving our bleeding country from the name
/ less horrors of civil war, and restoring to
the people of all the States and to the Gov
ernment the sacred Constitution of our
fathers and the Union as it was. In these
| disiointcd times, when the doctrines of the
republican fathers are openly impugncd and
an infringing revolution is defacing the fair
features of the peoples free Government;
when essential portions and principles of the
I Constitution are yts.d upon the table, the
conservatism which is left unfettered and
uncontaminated will not fail, in view of the
boon to be struggled for and the calamity to
! be contended against, to show its entire
front; and though the number Of its vota-
ries in the high places Of the Government
in this dark day of the Republic may be
too limited for their immediate success, yet
the trust and hope they have in truth and
. Justice will insure their incessant labor for
| the salvation Of the country until either the
wished for or the dreaded consumation shall
come.
| occasionally hdm gentlemen upon the
other side Of this House allude with appa-
rent pride and self graduation to the sue
cesses Of their party in the elections Of the
last year; in answer to all which, and to
suggest a reason for the modification of the
boast, / propose to acknowledge the right
!. fulness Of their predominancc,. when they
will show to us that upon fair, honest, and
uucoerced canvass they could have had a
majority of the votes Of freemen, qualified
and citizenizcd, in the States and precincts
where they won their victorics.
Aside from the constitutional inability Of
Congress to make and put in operation such
law as the conscription act Of 1862 would
be without the restriction OF the resolution
which was intended to restrain its scope tC
the limits of the Constitution, | am fully
persuaded that, as IA matter Of policy, it as
| sures no benefit to the Government or peo
pie to apologize for even a possible infrac
r ton of the Conititution.
, One of my worthy colleagues MIR. GAR
FIELD says ON this subject that he would
not break the Constitution ut all, unless i
should become necessary to overleap it,
= barriers to save the Government and tn,
Union. | can assure my conservative col
league that no such mOnstrous jump Is de
manded Of him. Such leaps would be dan
, gerous to him, to the government and tht
: Union--dangerous as was the fatal leap o.
l a historic man who dared to throw himscl
: G.n,n tla l;g,s, haipht of NIAGARA ! "gk
what benefit is expected to be derived to the
, Government from untying the ultraisms o
the consciiption bill, and playing fantastic
tricks with the Constitution? It's mani
fest that the effect of that bill, uniottcred
would be to put a large portion of the real
estate Of the southern States under the
! auctionecr's hammcr-ior such is the enact
mcnt bill--which might and would be
bought by the northern spectators at sucl
contemplate prices as might enrich the
spectators, but would bring but very littl,
money into the Treasury of the UniteC
: States. Yes, it would indeed be a splcndiC
!, scheme for speculation. How many for
: tunes would be made by loyal purchaser
: out of such forfeited estates, no matter how
, much Of poverty, starvation, and death i
- should OCCASION no matter how much o.
suffering may fall to the lot of the innocent
. disnhcrited child; no matter that the wal
!, of the houselcss and stricken widow shal
= pierce the air as she wandGrs away wit
! her homeless infant. These terrible consid
- erations cannot be permitted to disturb th
" success Of the speculation. Such polio
conferred by military power might perhap
) drive the southern people from the face {
~ the earth, cXtcrminating them rs India
!" tribes have sometimes been cXtermnated
y but who, in his heart, can wish for such
consumation? Desire for the success of tn
: Administration should prevent it, Love
l thn ~ and hama pf roGtnrot N
70 of the Union should appeal against it.
~ ~ is not what majority of the people of tn
y middle and western States desire. The
:, desire, in which many southern people col
VI cur, is tn have the seeded States restore
~ to the Union; to have rcinstated over soutl
~ ern people and southern soil the supremac
= ond the protection of the Government
" the United States.
" =, For this great and patriot object the bra'
- est and the most enlightened OF our soldie
!, have voluntarily imperiled their lives upC
=, ~ the battle-G field Who believes that the
y patriotic men would have voluntarily incu
y red all the dangers and hardships of Il mo
- - sanguinary war, facing the certain death
y :, so many thousands of their numbers, fl
!" the ignoble purpose of destroying larl
-. portion Of their own fair country? n
10 they volunteered by thousands from the p
y litical party to which belong, and | ga
= = my voice heartily by way of indueemen
i their only object being to execute by the
II united strength trusted and repeated pledg
~ ~ made from the highest places of authorit
;;et that their patriotism and sacrifices shou
~ inure to the desired end of a restored Unio
W when, without revolution or change of sy
W TEN, the old benign Government shou
=! sway again the North and the South
" would be a thousand times more adyantag
~ GUS TO our cause to rigidly perform ii
- pledge than to coniiscate all the property
w the seeded States,
W. ", If the foregoing suggestions are not
as germane to the subject which should alo
vi have been under discussion, that beil
-, merely constitutional question, my apol
een gy can be found only in the fact that | ha
y, WI kept within the field opened by the gent
he hhe men who support the other side of t
~, alu question.
mt The Late Gen. LytIe.
sss- A correspodent writes to the ESst
is Courier II cannot refrain from sci, Al
EN- you the following bit, an extract from a p
m yate letter received from relative of t
bic late VIM, ii, Lytle, of Cincinnati. 1t W