Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1866-10-23
Why the Feaiaas Complain Of the Pses-
ident
From the Green Bay AdTocate1

In asking for the transfer of the
Democratic party to President John
son and his party, it is inconceivably
bare-iaced toproposc that the eal-
LIANT Fenian element shall be Sold
alongwith it to it's worst enemy.i
If President Johnson had sig.iti
ed his determination to enforce The
neutrality laws from the very stsrt,
before the tcnian Organization Nal
progressed 10 any extent, there
would have been no fault found its
members would have yielded to The
recognized authority Of this country,
! and q vast amount Of money end
many lives would have been saved.
But when the Ecnian movement
commenced, there seemed to be, an
accepted understanding evcryWhere
that it was with the Presidents iri-
vatc consent. Nothing was said, to
the contrary; and explicit state
mcnts were everywhere made 'by
leading Fenians that assurances Wpre
had from high government sources
/ that the movement would not be in
terfcred with. There is no do4bt
that that was the fact. In that tpn-
l.dence, the work Reorganization went
on with vigor Money was contrib
uted freely as the running water.
Men volunteered from every neigh
borhood in the North. Arms were
procured and distributed at convan
lent RENDEZVOUS along the trontihr
All this time no sigu from Washing
ton that it woald be interfcred with.
one w0rd from tie President h,ut '..a
1couid oppose i rjtd milltayy p0fef
uouia haze Sared al roubie No Smch
u0M UaS uttered. It Ao1c seems G$'T
he 1cere rafting for the demonStrati0n,t0
reach rs utmost magaltude 50 that ne
couid male its dyeat the greater and
more morttUng. In the meantime
recruiting went on, companies and
regiments moved forward from al
quarters aud collected on the frontier
in great strength and even at some
points penetrating Canada, holdiUg
their ground end waiting for rcin-
torcements and arms to come up
Why did they not come ? The his
tory OF those few disastrous days.is
known to all. Like a clap Of thun
der from clear sky, President John
son gave the worQ tc break up tie
movement and seize the arms and
ammunition and to arrest the FEST
ans wherever they could be found.
The gallant few who had intrenched
in the cncmy's country looked in VAN
for support, and had to fall back, only
in their own turn to be seized by the
authority which they had been lead
to believe was friendly. And so the
movement failed, with the loss Of its
money, material, and many lives.
There is no use in asking about the
legality of the Fenian movement.
That is not the question. If it was
illegal, prompt notice should have
been given that it would be suppress
sed. The excuse cannot lie given
that it was = secret movement and
40 official cognizance of it could be
taken-tor there was no secrecy
aboptit. The papers were filled wish
news Of it every day. Buffalo, st.
Adams, Ogdensburg, were being
stored with munitions Of war Tne
railways carried forward volunteers ];
and every country road was traver-
sed by marching men. The move
ment was as well known as the move
/ mont aoaipSt tho rebellion fhrDurh
all the years Of the war The qucs
ton Of its legality is not pertinent
now--it was pertinent then And
if the President regarded it Is illegal,
how easy it was to proclaim that no
such movement should be allowed 10
go on That would have been hn-
name, at least But humanity does
not seem to have been one OF his ele-
ments. lie allowed men to get
thousands Of miles away from their
homes without means to get baek-;-
the money to be expended in tke
movemcnt-even the Irish women
to sell their Jewels and to give their
small earnings in aid Of the cause
and at the very crisis Of the enter
prize, lie put his foot upon it, In all
history there is not a record of more
hcartleSs conduct. And in all his
tory therc is not a record Of more
shameless ilapndencc than the offer,
now proposed. that the FcnianS shall
enroll themselves in his support