The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1864-09-01

| II rom your SCanQ-pOlnL, Cnere is force IN
, what you say, replied the Colonel. ''But
we did not come here to argue with you,
Mr.. Davis We came, hoping to.fnd some
honorable way to peace; and | am grieved
to hear you say what you do When / have
Iseen your young men dying on the battle
field and your old men, women, and children
Istarving in their homes, have felt l could
risk my life to save them. For that reason 1
am here and am grieved that there is no
Hope"
81 know your motives, Colonel Jaquess,
and honor you for them but what can l
do more than am doing would give my
poor life, gladly if it would bring peace aud
good will to the two countries ;bnt it would
not. 1t is,with your own people you should
labor. 1t is they who desolate our homes,
burn our wheat fields, break the wheels of
our wagons carrying away our women and
children, and destroy supplies meant for our
lsick and wounded, At your door lies all the
misery Of this war-and it is fearful, fear
ful account"
''Not all of it, Mr., Davis Iadmit fear
full account, but it is not all at our door.
The passions of both sides aroused. I'm
armed men are hanged, ..and prisoners are
shot down i'm cold blood, by yourselves.
Elements of Barbarism are entering the war
lon both sides that should make us-you and
me- as Christian men-shudder to think Of
In Gods name, then, let us stop it. Let us
do something, concede something to bring
about peace You cannot expect with only
fonr and a half millions as Mr. Benjamin
says you have, to hold out forever against
twenty millions"
Again Mr.. Davis smiled.
'Do you suppose there are twenty millions
of the North determined to crush us 2,
81 do to crush your Government. A small
number of our people, e. very small number,
are yonr friends secessionists The rest
differ about measures and candidates. and
are..united in the declaration to sustain the
Union. Whoever is elected in November he
must be committed to a vigorous prosecu-
ton of the war"
| Mr.. Davis still looking incrednIous. re-
marked
at is so, sir. Whoever tells you other
wise decei yes you. think know north
ern sentiment, and assure you it is SO.
You know we have system of lyceum-lec-
turing in our large towns At the close of
these lectures it is the custom of the people
to come upon the platform and talk with
the lecturer. This gives him an excellent
opportunity of learning public sentiment.
Last winter | lectured before nearly hun
dred such associations all over the North
from Dubuque to Bangor-and took pains
ascertain the feelings of the people. | found
unani nous determination to crush the re-
bellion and save the Union at every sacri-
fee. The majority are in favor of Mr.. Lin
coin and nearly all of those opposed to him
are opposed to him because they thinkhe does
not fight you with enough vigor. The rad
zeal Republicans, who go for slave suffrage
and thorough confscation are those who
will defeat him if he is to be defeated.
But if he is defeated before the people
| the House will elect a worse mani mean
worse for you. 1t is more radical than he
is-you can see that from Mr.. Ashley's re-
construction billiard the people are more
radical than the House. Mr.. Lincoln /
know, is about to call out five hundred
thousand more men and | cant see how you
can resist much longer: but if you do you
will only deepen the radical feeling of the
Northern people. They will now give you
fair honorable, generous terms, but let them
suffer much more, let there be a dead man
in every house as there is now i'll every vii
lage, they will give you no terms-they
will insist Oh hanging every rebel south
of--Pardon my terms. | mean no Of
Tense" a G
"You give me no offense," he replied
smiling very pleasantly. 81 wouldn't have
you pick your words This is frank, free
talk, and like you the better for saying
what you think Go on"
81 was merely going to say that, let the
Northern people once really feel the war
they do not feel it yet-and they will insist
on hanging every one of your leaders"
"WeII, admitting all you say, / can't see
how it affects our position. There are some
things worse than banging or determination.
We reckon giving up the right of self-gov-
eminent one of those things.
''By self-government you mean disunion
Southern independence.
''Yes'
'And slavery, you say, is no longer an ele-
ment in the contest?''
mo, it is not; it never was ali essential
element. 1t was only means Of bringing
other conflicting elements to an earlier cul-
mnation. 1t fired the musket which was al
ready capped and loaded. There are essen
tial differences between the North and the
South that will, however this war may end
make them two nations" e1.
You ask me to say what 1 think. Will
Won allow me to say that know the South
pretty well and never observed those differ
ences."
'Then you have not used your eyes My
sight is poorer than yours, but | have seen
them for years."
The laugh was upon me, and Mr.. Benja-
min enjoyed it.
swell sir be that as it may,if ! under
stand you, the dispute between your gov
eminent and ours is narrowed down to this:
Union or disunion"
Eyes; or put it in other words: Indepen-
dence or subjugation."
'1hen the two governments are irrecon-
cilabe apart They have no alternative
but to fight it out. But it il not so with
the people, They are tired of fighting and
want peace; and as they bear all the burden
and suffering of the war, is it not right they
should have peace and have it on such terms
as they lilSe?'
81 don't Understand you Be alittle more
explicit"
''Well, suppose the two Governments
should agree to something like this, 10 go
to the people with two propositions say,
peace with disunion and Southern indepen-
dence, as your proposition and peace with
union. emancipation, no confiscatioh, and UNI
versal amnesty as ours Let the citizens of
all the United States Gas they existed before
the WAR vote ''Yes'' or ssNo," on these two
propositions, at a special election within sixty
days If majority votes disunion, our Gov
ernment to be bound by itand to let you
90 in peace If majority votes
Union, yours TO be bound by itand to stay
in peace. The two Governments can con-
tract in this way, and the people, though CON
stitutionally unable to decide on peace or
war, can elect which of the two propositions
shaIl Govern their rulers. Let Lee and
Grant Gran meanwhile agree to an armistico.
This would sheath the sword, and if sheath
ed once Il would never again be drawnby
this generation" TO
cine plan is altogether impracticable: II
tbe south were only one State, IL might
work; but, as it is, if one Southern state OBJ
iected to emancipation it would nullify the