Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1864-08-25

the people. Why should our govern;
ment alone of all others be denied
the right to preserve ~ 1ife,s and
maintain. its dignity and honor7---
Why should motifs citizeAs feel that
they will be protected from violence
of every kind2 The Lara are made
for all, and if one por<ion of the
country can set them aszde, what
security can they afford to'the couu-
try at large? The fundamentaf ides
of our government is not liberty
without restriction, but liberty: de-
fined, regulated, and protected. by
law. The evils of snarekx are as
much to be dreaded as tbkso of si6s-
potism. Mob Law is as-dsngerous
as arbitrary power The unrcstrain-
ed and undirected will of the crowd
is no safer than the caprice Of the
tyrant. "i
The two extremes of License and
Tyranny, alike so evil in their ten
denotes and results, were avoided
in the formation of the government,
and they must continue to be ayoi-
ded, if we wish the government to
live. Our past success is due to
the absence of one of these extrem es
as much as ofthe other. We owe as
much to the arm of Law, as to the
spirit of Liberty. Liberty, deprived
of its relations to law would amount
to nothing. Unnecessary restraint
should oe avoided, but it is equally
important that necessary restraints
should be duly regarded, The ma
ture and functions of the government
in this respect need to be clearly un-
derstood It's duty to promote the
general welfare must be attended
with the right to enforce submission
where it may be necessary to do So.
Numbers and organizations cannot
alter the essential nature of rebellion.
There is noreal difference between the
coercion of a state and the coercion
of q citizen. If we star. out with the
declaration that a state or any num-
Der of states may secede and cast of
all relations to the government, we
will soon arrive at the conclusion that
the government is a nullity, and that
20 one Is subject to its authority. But
let US look at the present case. The re-
bellion attacks not only the honor of
the government but its life. The
enemy has made war upon us, and
why may we not defend ourselves?-
The contest has been forced upon
us. We could not have avoided it
will out national suicide, we could
not have yielded to the rebels in
the beginning without recognizing
the right of secession, and we could
not have recognized the right of
secession without submitting to actual
disunion. The contest is mortal
1t is not enough to say that we can
not come out of it with honor until
the enemy is destroyed. we cannot
come out of it al all until that Is
done.
The question is not whether the
Union shall be saved by war, but
whether it shall be destroyed by war
We must look to the purpose of the
enemy If We wish to know and to do
our duty. There can be no wisdom
in binding our eyes to the exigenc-
los Of our situation
War is a necessity The Union
can be saved in no other way. The
rebellion must be put down by the
sword. The rebel leaders have
staken everything upon the result of
this contest, and we may rest assured
that they will not withdraw from it
while a trace of their power remains.
five could appeal fairly and directly
to the people of the South, moral
power aided by time would be suffi-
cient to achieve one object. But
the heart of the South cannot be
reached until the military power of
the rebellion is broken.
War is not to be advocated for its
own sake. The sacredness of our
cause alone justifies US in waging it.
The price of peace is the suppression
of the rebellion. Whatever may be
before us, our only safe course is
forward 1t is sad to contemplate
the sorrow and desolation which the
war has occasioned, but tLese should
nerve us to new and increased action.
Can we allow these sutferings and
sacrifices to fall to the ground?-
Shall it be said tat after so many
good men heve died in cause it was
abandoned and opened to the scorn
of the world? God forbid that we
should lay such a burden upon the
graves aud memory of our fallen
heroes! If we cannot repair the fear
full losses which the war has made,
we can give to every afflicted heart
this consolation. that if the lost son,
or brother, or father cannot come,
back, the cause in which he died
will triumph. Every lite that is
sacrificed should be new pledge to
the determined prosecution of this
contest until its object shall be at
tanned. From every battle field OF
the war and from the grave of every
fallen soldier comes this cry to us,
"Fight the rebellion, and keep on
fighting it through years, centuries.
ages, forever If need be until it shall
be suppresse
We have pledged ourselves to
carry this contest through. 1t was
not undertaken as an experiment to
he tried tor a time and abandoned if