The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1865-01-28
Peace by Conquest Only-NOuth.
ern DeIuSlOns passing away.

The New York World wants Mr.. Lincoln
to show magnanimi:y, by Offering terms to
the rebels-set aside the malign influence
of the "RadtcGls," and satisfy a million OF
people who think that the rebels are lust
ready to fall into our arms, if we only had
enough of the milk of human kindness TO
receive them. Tha. is, the World wants
revolution to go backwards; the are Of bar
barism to be restored; traitors TO &c unpun-
ished, and the terrible lesson Of blood and
sorrow to have no other effect than TO rein
state In political power gang OF conspira-
tors against their country. in comparison
with whom Burr was decent and Cataline
respectable. Is there a man in the nation
who does not know that the rebels might
have had peace from the first hour of the
war to the present time? Is there man
who does not know that for a year anil a
half they might have had peace, without
any reference to slavery? Is there man
who does not know that from the banks Of
the Ohio TO the Atlantic, in Kentucky, Ten
nessee, Georgia, Alabama, and North Car
olina, there are hundreds Of thousands OF
people who will no more treat with the
rebel Confederacy than tie radicals Of
the North will? Is there a man who knows
so little O! natural history as not to know
that the tiger cannot he nsrsed into tame
ness? II there be any suca, tie might learn
a lesson from the JACQUES and Gilmore
mission, and he may learn !. now from the
Blair mission, or he may inquire OF our
friends who have been in Salisbury prison.
Finally he may inquire Of human nature
whether men who fight for empire; who
spect Of mankind are likely 10 surrender
at will while they can ngh: battle?
The truth is We can no more trea. with
the COnfederacy than We can treat with the
fictitious man Of the moon, because both
are fictitious. A thousand men may 80 70
Richmond and talk with Mr.. and Mrs.
Davis; Mr.. Seward NAV 90 himself, bu. il!
amounts to nothing wi'hou: official action,
and inak official action we shall never take.
We have sent a Peace Commission and il
is making good progress in the work -
Sherman and Howard, Grant and Terry,
| Farragut and Porter, with other commits
sioners and secretaries have settled some
Of the most important points in a treaty OF
peace, and we have no doubt will complete
their work in a satisfactory manner. The
treaty will he one which contains very few
articles desired by the rebels and their
sympathizers. But before the Confederate
Government hesitates about the terms, and
asks for better, they best ask whether the
terms might not be much worse? IL the
mere dissolution of the Confederate Gov
ernment, and the occupation of towns by
our garrisons, the worst that could hap
pen? Such seems TO be very common
idea, but it is far from bel ng tire fact. Sher-
man occupies Savannah without any d.
| ,urbance of the persons, and property OF
the people. Peace and good order prevail.
Suppose he goes to Charleston, and burns
It. and bangs the leading men, and turns
| the people homeless, will there be no differ
ence to The inhabitants? ls there no lower
deep2 We DO not say that any such thing
ought TO be done.
| We hope that such destruction as war
necessarily involves. may pass over with
as little inhumanity as possible. But GER
tainly the question of independence is not
the only one the rebels have got TO consid-
ler. Mr.. Lincoln says that II they will re-
| turn to the Union, ard submit to the laws
OF the country, all minor things may be
arranged on liberal and humane terms
But suppose the time passes by, and there
| is a continued persistence IN war-guerril-
las are commissioned Throughout! the land
| prisoners treated with barbarous cruelty
raiders are sent from Canada, and pirates
infest the ocean is there nothing worse for
them2 We can tell them: It is quite
possible to confisccte the entire property OF
| the rebel South, and colonize the country
with new people, War stops only at re-
suits. Whoever hes studied the breaking
up of the Roman Empire or the conquest
Of England by the No-mans may under
stand something Of what conquest may do,
when the cor auerer isresirainedb by nosense
of humanity. We look to no such results
here; but, we do say, that the question q
independence is not the only one the rebe
Confederacy has now to consider. The rebe
| Government has never had any choice bu
submission or destruction. Soe far as dc.
struction takes place-it is the work O.
their own hands--it is suicide. Why wa
this suicide begnn2 Why should It no
stop, before dissolution7 The solution i,
that the governing ssixd Of the South be
longed to the age Of barbarisrn. The twt
prominent ideas in their minds were, Sla
very, and State Sovereignty. Both wer,
n tai on from tha nAlitiGa nf. the lYaeE Chr