Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-11-10

The War-mr. Seward's Talk on the
Eve of Election with his Friends
and NeiShbOrs.
On Monday evening last, Mt. Seward
made speech to his fellow toWnsmen at
Auburn, New York, whittier he had gone to
vote. His custom has been to make them
speech on the eve of important elections
Among other remaks he discoursed to them
as follows:
Persons ask me on every hand, sis the
war to last forever 2" "How long is the
war to last? l answer the war will not
last forever, but it must continue until we
give up the conflict, or the enemy give up
the conflict. Are you prepared to give up
the confetti You say, ''No, never" why Z
Because in that case you give up the ma
tional life. [Cheers.l In any and every
event the nation must live if yon were to
give up the national life, you enter IN
the state of national death. What that
state is, God be thanked we do not certain
Iy know. He has mercitully withheld that
terrible knowledge from our keenest search
and speculation. But we do know that
national death usually consist of several
stages. The first is domestic civil war
not a civil war across a border, such as
this war is, but real civil WRr-a civil war
brought home to our own cities. to our own
affairs, to our own fresides. We know by
the experience of other countries that
with occasional respitcs resulting from
exhaustion, this aggravated form of civil
war continues until a military despot
is welcomed to arrest the etfusion OF
blood, to restore tranquility and quiet,
with the loss of civil, aud, if need be, re-
kho 0on6i-I
ton into which you rush to escape from
present civil war. Every one of the sup
porters of the Administration knows this as
we'll as do, and sees it as clearly. In
view of calamities SO far transcending
those we are now suffering, OF course the
Government will not abandon the conflict
until the majority of the people decide that
it shall be abandoned. On the other hand,
the enemy will abandon their rebellion
lust 80 soon as they shall have the IN
doubted assurance that it cannot prevail.
They will do so for two reasons: first, no
faction can. Indefinitely continue strug-
gle that is hopeless. Secondly, because
they give up no national life but they, as
well as we, save their own national exls-
tence by their defeat and overthrow, and
better national existence than in their
maddest hours of delHsion they have
ever conceived as the result Of their un-
lawful enterprise. Suppose then that the
people, as We all agree they will, support
the Administration by their suffrage to.
morrow. The rebels then have the assur-
auce of the American people, made upon
full rehearsing Of the merits of the con
troversy, upon appeal and a, full !examioa-
ton OF results thus far obtained, with the
relative forces of the parties yet remaining
| in reserve, that the conHict is not to be
abandoned Oh our part. In all our athletic
games, three times success in five trials
gives the victory-two decisions following
each other is equal to three in five. You
have already abundant evidences of the
exhaustion of the rebels, but not yet evil
dence of their consciousness of that eX-
| haustion. Those evidences will appear
| Immediately on the announcement of the
re election of Abraham Lincoln. You
| would have had those evidences earlier If
you had rendered this verdict sooner. You
will have them all the sooner after the
verdict in proportion to the unanimity and
determination with which it is spoken
The messengers who come thiIher from the
rebel regions will be different from hose
who are now lingering and lettering on
the Canada shores, to aid the execution of
the plot conceived against you at Chicago.
The messengers who come will not come
as those last mentioned, with commissions
addressed to the pusillanimous and fac.
tious minority of the North, but they will
come addressed to Abraham Lincoln, the
honored father of the American nation.
Their message will not be conceived in the
iusoIeut words. "Your war for the Union
has failed; desist from arms, and give US,
through negotiation, separate indepsn.
denoe." But it will be "Father Abraham,
We have sinned before God aud against
our brethren. We repent our error; we
disaEow and. offer up the traitors who have
led US into crime. Extend your protection
over US, and give US once more
peace and communion with you
lat our affairs and apr fresides."-
This is the way in which l think the war
is to end. know that in that way it will
end soon. l now it because few civil wars
in which a strong government and people
I defend themselves with unAnimity last so
| long as four years; and il is certain that
we are three years and q half nearer the
end of this conflict, if so maintained, than
we were when we began. Now let u take
the other view. Suppose we seek peace
under the counsel of Chicago-Whether
according TO the naked and detestable text
of the resolutions, or as eventually inter-
preted aud CLOSED by the candidate who
stands upon that platform. 1t is to seek
peace by conconciliating the rebels, and
| substituting diplomacy, or the arts eff
statesma nship for the yigor Of war
Adopt that policy and distraction in
stantly siezes the North-courage and
new resolution inspire the South-yopr
soldiers, betrayed at home, either. fall in
despair in their trenches, or, what would
be worse, irecoil before the enemy advan-
cling upon Washington aud Cincinnati.-i
Those persons are mistaken who say that
Davis would not negotiate, and that he |
would not grant us an armistice. He would |
too. with q view TO an ultimate conVen.
ton" He can afford to be very acOOmmo-
dating to cowardly antagonist he can