The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1866-01-26

Iio"h, cA"itou iiito Insanity Wy t Hiahiy
and godly Indignation at great wrongs,
and by the impulses Of his sympathy with
suffering humanity, attempted a rebellion
in the interests of the oppressed. For
that attempt he suffered the extreme pen
atty of the law Aside from his manifest
insanity, what good reason was there why
he shonld not be punished! The end at
which he aimed could not Justify the means
which he employed-the levying of war
against recognized and established gov
ernment The blood which he caused to
be shed in that insane attempt was shed
unlawfully, and, had he not been mani
ie>tly beside himself, it would have stained
him with the guilt of murder But. sup
posing John Brown to have been sane
man, the rebellion which has now been
suppressed was in no respect less criminal
than his, while in one most important as
pcct ii is far more criminal Those great
conSpirators rebelled, not as Brown did, in
the interest OF the oppressed. but in the
interest of oppre>sors. They rebeIled for
the avowed purpose OF perpetuating
through all time, and of spreading over
the continent, a system of injustice which
was the opprobrlum OF our nation and the
abhorrence of the civilized world.
The authors OF that treason are the
guilty authors oi' the war which was nee
csSary in order TO suppress it. The guilt
OF ail the blood that was shed on both
stiles III llie four years of conflict is on
their souls. 1t has been estimated that
almost half i million of men. who were in
the full vigor of their manlincss when the
first gun WAS fired at Fort Sumter. have
died bv the casualties OF the war. Who
slew all these necd not write their
names, reserved for everlasting int;my
Their names are the namc> of murdercrS.
against Mhom the blood of every battle
field is CRYING 10 heaven for Justice. and
Whose cruetieS and deliberate atrocities
can never be adequately puni>hcd-name-
linkel forever TO the hileou> memory of
Fort Pillow. of AnderSon>ille. and of all
those prisons where men have been muir
dcrtd III scores ana thousands by the slow
iorture> OF filth. vi exposure TO cold and
heat and Storm. AMI oi' starvation.
Besides ali The slaughter OH both sides.
those great conspiratorS and traitors are
ihc guilty authors of the devastation that
has swept over the broad field OF conflict
-til tie >uiitrin. and sorrow throughout
the area OF the rebellion. Is well a> the the
incidental Siiitring> and sorrow elsewhere
the immense destruction of property
the tight OF households from their homes.
AMI their return perhaps TO tinl those
homes In a>he>-thc wall of widows and
tIthcric> children, and OF mothers weep
ln-s Tor their SonS-thc hunger. the rag.>
ia" sorrow. the despair of impoverished
thuu>and>-ihe bomhardment or contia-
GI,,.icn of citic>-ihc almost universal ru-
in-;ll iiic>c things are illustrations OF how
treat 4 crime it Is 10 a>Sail with treason
aiic violence the lie oi' the nation. On
what pages oil the worlds history can We
find 4 treason parallel 10 this in lis inex-
cu>.blcne>~. III the atrocitv of lis aim and
purpose, or III the slaughter and dcvasta-
ton which il has c:,l>ed
The question is. shall such crimes 90
unpunl>hed! Shall the very magnitude
of the crin,, now that ii has been baiilcd.
obtain Impunity ior lis authors Or
~hail il he >oIcmnlv demonstrated that
treason against the United States. ;,> de-
fined 10y the constitution. is L crime to Le
punished by the justice ol the nation