New-York daily tribune., 1865-10-31
sOUTEEEN UNIONISM-VIEWs Oh
HON. *. RAYNeR OF n. 4.

The North knows the Hon. KENNETH RAYHOR,
and has known him these twenty years, as one
of the most moderate and fair-minded of South
crn politicians. He stood up against the An
nexation of TeXas-condemned the rcpudiatiun
of the Missouri compact-rcgardedt the Lec0mp-
ton Constitution, with the whole series OF out
RACES whereby Kansas was sought to be dragged
into the embrace of Slavery, with undisgnised
abhorrencc-and was always less hard upon us
than q Northern doughiacc with respect to the
Right Of Petition. There was no Shareholder
III all the South who cung more tenaciously TO
the Union. or eyinced more abiding conscious
ness that Northern convictions of the righteous
ness and bencGcence Of Liberty were to be
duly regarded as well as Southern prcjudices
in behalf of Slavery, if the Union was indeed
to be preserved.
Mr.. RaynOr has Just written long and able
letter on Reconstruction, wherein be con-
firms our belief that it would have been per
lcctly safe for the North to have proposed sub
mission of the issue Of Union or Disunion to a
fair and free popular vote Of the Slave States
alone He says:
Tie hearts of the great Of the S0nthcrn people
were never in this dlsunOn movement. I'm calrghelr
State Convention. il not With the fOfogOne c0ucu
sion that disu1ion was 10 follow. II was because tie
times pefll0ps, and II was thought best 10 con
yene the sovereign power OF the States, oonsat
what was best FOR the common good In not S:ate. q
thnk) was the ordinance OF Secession ever submitted
10 tie people for their ratification rejection ii,
true that in TIE Spring OF 1861 there storm Of
feeling thai sacpi over the south--a bort Of frJorc.
growing he idea before suggested. ihat II was y
war OF vindiclveness on the part OF section,
rather than the effort Of government o enforce ITS
lgwfll authority But that tornado soon subsidized, ~
WIS eyinced by the necessity Of CoIstTptCu in
order TO keep up tic army.
"As have already said. the convention Of this state
(and far the Union element is concerned, be.
licye nay speak for tho other Stae) in voting FOR
secession, did not regard II as forcgone conclusion
shat disunon mus. follow. The friends Of tho Union
hoped that the mmiuence Of the conflict would force
q settlement of the difficulty. and even amer blood be-
gan to how they earnestly and anxiously looked for
ward day aftei day. and month after month for some
thing TO turn up that would result In the making OF
peace. and the restoration of harmony But hsIc was
their difficulty: After having placed the State in the
position where she was-Or rather, III having adopted
her TO the position in which MI buchanan had pleced
her-they felt bound as matter OF personal honor 80
sustain her in that position until reconciliation should
take Place. That was. no doubt, the moving con.
sidcralon with the members OF the Confederate Con.
gress who still had hopes Of peaceful settlement
the basis OF reconstruction But they ultimately onnd
for The tune being. under any impulse Of personal
honor and for the additional reason that the
spectacle the position Of that government the better
terms they may expect to obtain In the adjustment vi
the dficuty-that they had made the government too
strong for themselves. and thereby dSarncd them.
selves Of all power 10 restrain and control IT, Thus il
was the Union men found themselves pOwerless.
Having bundered into the difficulty, and every effort
TO get out seemed to involve q series Of additional
bunders. Finally. c0nscription habeas corpus repeal
populations tithes npressment and heavy taxation
the reign OF terror which crushed and
Frustrated and sealed the mouths Of the friends Of tie
Union throughout the South.
II speak plainly. You want the trnth and the truth
you shall have. regard II as more than idle 10
ltiempt to justify the Southern people the
,ouIse they pursued, to Justify and the Union
men Of the South for that which they onglt TO have
tone but did not do They ought to have thrown them
elves into the breach In tho first instance and have
iskcd civil at home rather than have allowed an
OF between the sections 10 have taken place
'ang to do that, they should have arrested the war
y o0unterfeyOlutiOn soon ~ they discovered thut
outbern indepOndence. as condition precedent IN a
egOiatipu for peace was impracticable aud impossi
u, Their errors wefs error, VI omission rather than