Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1864-03-21

rction who shall secure t.eir triumph M "a
party purposes must b. 81 aside p'rs NAL
ami inon 10. eotn a. and the mind OF the nation
fixed upon this one central id.a.
We believe that the two object we nave
named-tha Iesurn to the national csuse OF ne
Ioya mass. OF The south, AID an almost d
broken MI IN the Nor.h-mN he eo.a,nsa , ns
placing before the people. in pr oper form, tue
evidences uf the true nature OF the CONTEST In
wficu we are involved 1t Is not merely
PARTISAN uar. Ii is not merely a sectionai Ear
IL i not merely q wsr OF slavery But In
broader a. q deeper Gems :, IL Is aWar against
the democratic i'd q in evil government. All
the en- hitiors OF designing lsadsrs-ail the
piai e hey have elaborated through "a long Sc
ries If years-ail tie hopes they have ant'r-
t,ip,d, t,l,ect around this fundamental pur
Tose. II is war TO replace democratic pftyt-
ieg.s with aristocratic pr erments-fO crusn
cut popular government with centralized
powers Cesuty oSern mentln which Tree
later lie th' tom d"tion, the pillar, the polished
capital ard III. IaGiant dome, and substitute
anoIher, in " kich the labor OF the slave sha all
be the cor ser. Il Ne, and tue rewards OF oppres.
SIGN the tlnseI which shall adorn the timer
cham bers OF popular ignorance and degTada'
ton.
Various seceasicptst leaders are quoted from
to show that they 81 orn the rights Of tn. people
and rspt d!tite 1.-THE anipg naxims CT dem.
cci attic ins titutioIs jeff. Davis himself Is
quot d rs dsciaimins against the despotism OF
Hsmore satisfactory proof o, the ,ru. mo.
ii, es OF the reneilion can be required than is
the lea0iI e c ors i'll It's scenes. Slavery was
u part Of the lloi,it al system by wn,ch they
aimee to buiid up their nristocracy, aud 10 de-
Or. ss and egradt the masses They alously
atci ed and resi- t. d all the T. ndenciss to De.
NICE cy, through a long series OF years, and
wee reconC leo to them only because they OBJ.
served II Growth in the system Of slavery. and
a change OF pub lc opin ion i'll its favor. Under.
Iy ins all their loud professions OF Democracy,
elaborated INTO a well-compactad scheme OF
ueasch against free govtrnn enf. Knit and In.
terwoven in secret conspirsces was q bold
and peIsiSts Mt resolve TO overthrow Demoera-
The address concludes as follows:
his, then. is the contest in which we are
TIE leaders in the south have attempted to
shake our foundation, and destroy our fabric.
They have attempted to lay another founda-
non, upon which they hoped to recoEstru It,
out OF Ihr partisan folly OF tne North, the com
mercial considerations Of the people, and the
Decentralization OF the masses, q new political
fabric, whose corner stone should be the dead l.
]y foe OF liberty. We cannot-aS workingmeu,
cherssbing a love for our free institutions, va
will rot-cor sent to barter our privileges for
the promises OF men who boldly tell US that
they ale struggling 70 rob rs OF our rights.
We come 20 you, Mr.. Pres ident, with no W I'D
scheme of "a oical folIi-s We come with 40
absurd projects OF reckless aquarium sm
We come with 10 revolutionary demands OF
an impracticable reform. But we ask you TO
take into cons Iteration this broad view of our
Lational struggle, -rd to LEND Us you: infln-
ence in presenting The issue 10 the Anne. lean
people. PartIsans may labor for the a GO n
phsl ment OF some narrow end. Opponents
may seek to array party against YOU Or minor
qu' stions. But the fa!ty tnaf 81 Ill have uha
moral hardlb God TO go before the people as tie
aCNo ca'ts Of I oIisarchy and an aristDcracv
PLEDGED TO OVERTHROW DEMOCRACY. will
specially find It's place in the grave where all
IN. an'agoninms OF FREEDOM must surely liz.
Herewith We tender to you the only test
moNy OF cur regard v hich il is now in our
POWER 10 Offer r. quest that you will permit
us &c add .ycur name 10 the list of Honorary
Members Of our Association, in the hope that
We shall not be altogether unworthy of this
dis junction.
BY order of the Exc cut,vc committee
Very respectfully, your obedent servants,
JonN !. RssD, Pres Ident.
WIN. b. TAYLos, Rec. Secretary.
N GLAND BOURNE, Cor. Secretary.
Nhw YORK, Jan. S, 1864.
REPLY CT PRESIDENT LINCOLN
The President made the following reply:
Gentlemen Of the Committee The honorary
membership in your association, as generous
~ tendere 10 erat, fully accepted.
You comprehend, as your address shows.
that the existing rebellion means more and
terds to more than the perpetustion OF Afri-
can siavery-that 1t is In fact q war upon tn 9
rights OF all working people. Partly to shs "
that this view has not escaped my attention,
and partly that cannot better express myself.
/ read passage from the message to Congress
in December, 1861:
silt continues to develop that the In surrec.
ticn Is largely, II not exclusively, war upon
the first principle Of popular government-the
rights OF people Conclusive evidence Of this
Is found In the most grave and maturely con
tone OF the insurgents. In those documents
we find the abrIdament OF the existing righ' s
CT suffrage, and the denial to the peopls OF all
right to participate In the selection Of public
0ticarS. 1s.1iA h-,@d lx a
GATED, With labored arguments to prove that
large control OF the p-opie in government is
the source CT all political evil. Monarchy
Itself is sometimes limited at as a possible ref.
uge from the 20 wer OF the people.
''ln my pIrsent position, could scarcely be
justified were / 10 omit raising warning
voice against tina approach OF returning des-
potism.
cit is not needed, nor fitting here, that
general argument should be made in favor OF
Popular institutions; but there is one point,
with its connections, not 90 hackneyed as ra oss
others, 10 which ASK brief attention. 1t is
me ef1crt 70 place capital on au equal footing,
ment. 1t is assumed that labor Is available
only in connection with capital; that nobody
labors unless somebody else, owning capital,
somehow by the use Of II, induces him to labor.
This sse umad, 1t Is next considered whether
1t is best that capital shall hire laborers, and
thus inc nee them to work by their own con-
sent, or buy them. and drive them to it without
their consent. Having preceded So far, it il
naturally concluded thai all labOrers are either
AIRED latoTaIs, or what we call slaves. And,
further. il IS assumed that whoever is once q
hired laborer, IL fixed IN that condition for life
Now there is no such relation between capital
and labor AZ assumed, nor is there any such
thing as \ free man being fixed for life n the
condition Ct hired laborer. Both these as
sumptions are false, and all differences from
them are groundiess.
Labor is prior to, and Independent OF, cap
ital. Capital is only the fruit OF labor, aud
could never have existed il labor had not first
existed. Labor is the superior OF capital, and
deserves much the higher consideration. Gap.
it'll has lite Fights, which are rs worthy Of pro.
lection az any other rights. Nor is it denied
that there is, and always will be, a relation
betwefn apital and labor, producing mutual
benefits. The error Is in assuming that the
whole labor OF community exists within that
relation. A few men own capital. and that few
avoid labor themselves, and, with their capital,
hire or buy another few to labor fer them. A
large majority belong to neither class-neIther
work for others, nor have others working for
them. In most OF the southern States majority
OF tie " hole people, OF all colors, are neither
slaves nor mastsrsi while, in the northern, q
large Majority are neither hrers nor hired
Men With their faniies-wives, sons, and
dsuRhtars--wNrkf for themselves, on their FARMS,
kS,alt h. -,>S, hi