The Portage County Democrat. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1864-03-09

The ,pamphlet in question urges its plea
upon the ground thatif President be eligi
bic, for mere than one term he viii use the
enormous patronage of his office to secure t
another nomination. But it is very clear
that to limit the term is not to prevent his
corrupt use Of patronage. He will, in i that
case, if inclined to abuse his power, merely
turn his energies to securing the succession to
the, fayorite Of bis party, And the objection
lies against vesting patronage in any office
Whatever because, if "a President may use his
patronage to secure, a nomination, a Secretary
may ussy his to defeat the President. Take,
for Instance, the case of two nspcuous pub ]
liz. men at. this mement upon, the honorable
character of each of whom no aspersion had
been cast, even by implication, before the ap-
pearance of this pamphlet-we mean Mr..
! Lincoln, the President and Mr. Chase, the
Secretary of the Treasury. Each of them
wields enormous patronage. The President,
according to the pamphlet, should not be eli
gible for two terms lest he should misuse his
patronage. Very well. And the Secretary
of the. Treasury? If the reasoning be.
sound, he should not be eligible at all lest he
should misuse his. Is it proposed that no
officer who commands patronage shall be eli
gible to the Presidency? "a.
h4As a fact, however, the President is eligible
for two terms ard this. pamphlet wisely
onymous-therefore suggests that if Mr..
Lincoln can SO WELD his patronage at this
time as to secure his, reelection, it will be
mach easier for him, with half a million of
soldiers and enormous treasures at his com
mand, to have himself reelected from term
to term through his natural elife 1.-The au-
thor has spared us thesnecessityef of the reaae&
TO ad absuraum. s For he is speakingao Mr.
Lincoln; and unless we have entirely. niisap-.
pretended the impression he has made upon
the people, it would be as easy to persuade
them to elect Mr.. y yallandigham President as
to, believe Mr.. Lincoln to be a new Aaron
Burr. is,i5=sF; Ia * +es eeut;y d $50
/ The other argument against the re-nomina-
tionsof the President is not Theoretical, but
practical; it is, that the people are mortified,
humbled, and disappointed by the duration
of the war, for which, says the pamphlet,
nothing but the vacillating policy of the Pres
ident is responsible Yet, whoever will de-
liberately picture to- himself the condition of
the country and of the public mind at the
beginning of the war; the utter lack of gen.
eral belief that there was to be a war; the
want of an army and navy; the Indifference
and doubt. of the great. Democratic opposition
at the North; the want of sentiment of ma
tionality;s the Question as to the coercive
power of the Government; the political and
social sympathy with the rebels; the hatred
of abolitionism, and the careful excuse Of
men who said they were willing to maintain
the Union but not to touch slavery the
empty treasury; the universal seorn and ieaI-
.ousy of the Western European Powers; the
long decentralization of the public mind,
(which had beencarefully wrought by Calhoun
| and his political school, which had SO long
controlled the Government, and SO success
fully that some men now in high Office were
/ willing to- let the South go-whoever win
recall all this viii probably agree that the
President had before him a task which re-
! quired infinite sagacity, patience and modera-
ton! His success would depend upon his
I ability to interpret the real popular sentiment
and to distinguish. between enthusiasm and
conviction. If he Jagged, or went too fast,
he would equally fall. Every step he took
must seem wise to the, great public mind
whether it pleased or displeased the ardent
van of thinkers and talk rs, who are the ed
ucators, but not the representatives, of public
opinion. Elected as a Republican. known a.
1 the author of the saying in references tt
/ slavery and freedeni in this country, "a house
4 divided against itself can not stand, . supposed
i GAS he was supposed at that time) to be ruled
by the Secretary of State,s who had declared
the existence'of the ifrepressible conflict, Mr.
Lincoln knew that, whatever might be tn,
Il love of the Union-and even that was to b,
4 proved-the hate of abolitionism was practi
cally universal. His object was, it must hav.
Z been, to have a party to sustain the Govern
nnent, and that party must be, so far as prscti
cable, the undivided North. Senator Yulee
:. of Florida had openly said in Washington
f what every body feared :. I. The North vii
have enough to do to takeeare ofitseHn-
: Franklin Pierce had written to Jefferson Da
d Wis that the war would be at the North 7Ha
{ the President made a mistake, Yulee an
} Pierce would have been true prophets. 4 Ha
the President said on the 18th April, 1861
.Slavery has attacked the Union, slavery
! abolished,,n the suspicious jealousy Of the 0p
position would have burst into full cry (
> /" There we knew it.Rs He takes adyantag
f of a riot in South Carolina to everthrowsAth
: Union and plunge us into civil war" Bu
!. the President equal to his great office in tn
$ most solemn crisis of our history, said, sim
y ply, The Union and Government must b
i maintained by force;;'' and the country, wit
: its party spirit paralyzed, cried, "Amen!'',
y ss The President knew, what every thinkin
b man knew, that the terrible light of ws
d would illuminate the-whole question of il
Q origin and scope. He knew that every gu
: and rifle and pistol was a more persuasive ar
9 ti-slavery orator than had ever been heard
a that every drop of the blood of sons an
= brothers and friends would wash clear tho,
d sand eyes that had been blinded, aud that b,
+ fore long public opinion would justify and d,
y mand measures which some men then saw
IS be inevitable, but for which the country WI
lr not yet ready. Therefore, when Gener
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