The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1864-06-08

| at war with the Democracy. 1t this wal
is right, Democracy has been wrong from
the beginning-the Declaration of Inde-
pendence was wrong, the old articles oi
confederation were wrong and the whole
system Of government established by our
fathers is wrong IF. on the orher hand,
Democracy and all these are right, then
the war is wrong, radically, totally, eter-
nally wrong 1t is the Pandora's box CT
our country aud arcanunl inperi in
which with our own help, the devils are
forging chains for our hands Mr.. Pres
ident. the Democratic party cannot afford
to become the successors of the Republi-
can party in the business of war If the
war is to go on, it must go on in the name
of its original proprietor-the Republican
party or if this crack-brained philoso-
rher. ''conservatism," this professor OF
undiscovered forces, is ambitious for 1T,
in his name-but never sir, never in the
name of the Democracy IT the thing Is
attempted, way will be found ID give
the Democratic masses who have never
been co,cardized nor shoddyized, an op-
portuDity to declare themselves in grand
Convention of their own, where the ma
nipulations of contractors, or the councils
of Office seekers shall not prevail. We
want no modified form of this disease,
which may render it chronic in our sys-
tenn. Let it exhaust itself in the iufam-
atory state. IF it must go on, the worse
it goes on the better; fer the sooner will
it come to an end, or the more complete
will be ths destruction of the party which
produced il. When this shed of despot
ism falls, as fall it must, let not Democra-
cy be found in the ruins beneath its roof.
Rather let Democracy sit there at dis
taHce, subiimely enthroned upon tho Con-
stltution, and upon the Resolutions of '98,
until such time as returning reason and
patriotism shall cause the people to fol-
lcw its lead back again to liberty and
prosperity. If Democracy yields now,
there is no NJ ore liberty. What do say
The Republic itself would be dead no
miracle could resuscitate 1T Shall we
break off all connection with the past and
abandon the free institutions established
by our fathers? Shall we stop here, and
say that the resolutions on which we have
stood ever since 1898 are lie, and that
the principles we have professed all THIS
time are a fraud and cheat Who will
say tkat Every man who supports this
war says so by his acts. Who will dare
for the first time in National Demot rat
ic Convention to offer platform which
would stamp the whole past history of the
Democratic party with the indelible marks
of delusion and crime? Or, who will be
so base a coward as to dodge the Issues
which are inevitably forced upon US p
This lodging policy not only evinces
lack of pluck and moral pith, but it be-
trays sad want of ordinary politicol sa
~ do
make the issues of this campaign. They
are already tremendously made. and il
will be as great piece of foolishness as
of cheatery to attempt to dodge them
Sir, we cannol dodge them. We must |
meet them fairly, -bravely, honestly, or
suffer the kind of defeat that will cover |
and result in the total decentralization and |
ruin of the party. But, it will be asked,
what would you do; would ycu have the |
the independence of the Southern Con-
iederacy? No, sir, 1 wou d not neither
the Administration nor the Congress has |
any such authority. The question is not
an executive nor legislative question !;
only by convention of the States, as the |
Union. Such convention would possess
the same original powers as the conven-
tion that formed the Union--it could dis
solve, alter, reconstruct or amend, it what
ever way it pleased. But nobody short OF
such a convention has any power in the
premises. Mr.. Lincoln has no right to !
acknowledge the Independence of the
Southern ConfederacY, nor has he any le-
gal powers to carry on wal against those |
States No such powers are delegated by /
the States or Federal Government. Mr. |
Lincoln has no more right to employ war
to force an unwilling State back, than he
has to do the same thing to drive will
ling State out. The question, we say, is
not executive, nor legislative, nor judicial,
but organic in its character. NIr Lin
coins crusade against those States, and |
against the sovereign dignity of the
Northern States, is at once unconstitl-
tional, revolutionary, and criminal. H4 |
is a usurper, and if he fails to overthrow
the Constitution and laws of the Repub-
lie, nothing can save him from che Just |
doom of a usurper. Nothing ought to |
save him, He has earned the extreme |
penalty due to a conspiracy to overthrow |
the Constitution and laws of his country. |
The question of what shall be done with |
the matter of the South, has for the mo-
ment become subordinate one. The |
first, the great, the overwhelming question
now is, not how many States shall COM
pose the Union, but it is shall there be
any States? The party in power does
not disguise Its designs to destroy the sys-
tenn of States as they exist under the
present Constitution. We are told that
..ve need a stronger government" What
does this mean? Why, sir, it means that
the party in power has really embarked in
destroying our present Governments for
something else, for something that suits
them better. somsthipg stronger. But,
who. has the right to make a stronger
Govetnment2 Has the President? Has
Congress- No, sir; they have not the
right to even displaoe straw in our pres