The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1866-09-29
TConcludedl

The great body of the democratic party,
all through this war, were devoted and true
in their allegiance to the governments and
faithful to the constitution and hundreds OF
their bows in blue left and rallied round the |
flag. will DO perfectly frank when say that
l think it likely human nature is 80 organized |
that Whenever men are In very meagre |
minority in 3 locality, and their neighbors
ell turn against them and prosecute them
men thus opposed in politics, or religion, or
anything else, become exceedingly ultra, ex-
travagant and bitter. | think many persons |
In your neighhorhood are driven by that
characteristics of the human nature to be ex-
treme men, and are not fair sample of the
great body Of that party. Look over the
STATISTICS compiled by the adjutant general
of this state, and examl ne the counties
which furnished soldiers to army look
back to the election of 1860, and see the great
democratic counties pouring out their soldiers
freely, from localities where a republican
would not be found once In i've miles; and
in the same old 3lst Illinois, one of the best
regiments Of the state niue out of ten were
democrats, and their neighbors were the
same. While was in the army, | read the
newspapers, and did surely get the impress
sion that certain leaders of the democratic
party, who had influence with it, were lead
home, partly for the purpose of looking after
the affairs of Gen Wallacs's estate, and partly
to care for my daughters, who were without
protection. The reasons for my resignation
are on file in the war department, and among
them is this, that | believed that could serve
my country better in the state OF ILLINOIS, by
aiding others In keeping the democracy from
running off on q false tack as to the war,
than could by my personal service in the
EnII 7 have g no o.CF1 lat.
ing some Of my party friends on that subject.
and called on several leading men who
were, as Isupposed, copperheads and in sum-
pathy with the rebels. | found however,
when about TO begin my lecture, that they
thought substantially as | did. was de-
lighted TO find them declare to me- that they
never entertained any such sentiments. On
the contrary, they were teaching their neigh
bors ust what PROPOSED to teach then, and
found out my mistake on that subject.
found in the state a few, very few, men Ito
name whom would be invidious) who did en-
terrain heretical opinions. / can say that L
never oo-operated with them. voice
They will vote with you" L think they
will vote with US and there are also men
that will vote with you, cf no better quality.
tell you no party ever got numerous enough
to carry an election in America that did net
have great many mean men III 1t. Laugh
ter
Gen. Logan has alluded to convention,
of which he says ! was a member, and in
which certain resolution was passed con-
demning the war, in 1862. This Is mistake
There was mass meeting, not convention,
at Sprin gfeld, and l was there. Resolutions
were passed upon by committee, and L saw
the resolutions which the committee APPROX
ed. This particular resolution was present
ed before the committee, and was unanimous
~ voted down, IL slightly modified,
was again brought under consideration, and
again voted down unanimously. y third
time it was brought in and voted down, and
the committee separated. l went to the stand,
and, being requested to speak, did spe q k
to that audience of acres. In the
meantime, Singleton, the author of this reso-
luton, got hold of some OF the committeeman,
without my knowledge, and scared them, and
made them believe it would produce eohisn
If this resolution was not put in and this
part of the committee put it in, and, after my
speech was made, the resolutions were in
that form, brought IN the confusion of 40 900
men, before that moving mass of acres of
people, and in the huTreh were passed. and
it was passed with the rest, and a shout was
made that we passed that resolution l made
speeches that year ell through the state in
support of the war, and everywhere, north
and south, i repudiated that 23d resolution,
and denounced it as fraud
1t did not receive my sanction, nor did any
delegate convention from this state vote any
resolution that was anything akin to it.
There are bad men everywhere, The great
of the republican party are anxious to
DO right, but they get their light through the
channels to which they are attached, and
they are parosan channels. And so with
the great body of the democratic party
Their men are just as honest and Just as anx-
IN hpIy ri Enpf nd ~
try. And, following that OBI cot, throug h
their own channels, they are liable to be led
astray by their leaders. Their patriotism is
just 80 pure as yours, and on the one side
you have no better patriots than on the other.
They are like one Christian sect imagining
themselves to be better Christians than 9th
ers. This should not be. 1t betokens a eel
fish, narrow spirit without sufficient breadth
OF charity to elevate us to the true plane of
an American citizen. We should be charita-
bic and forgiving. General Logan ought not
to Re unf0rgiving, His political record is not
the most consistent. He never confessed tn st
be committed political sin in his life In
Latter the passage of the secession ordln-
ance, General Logan was member of con
gress. On the 4sh Of July that congress met
The war was upon us. Look over the Con-
greSSioI9GI Globe of that session and you will
ind General John A. Logan votes recorded
galnsL the passage OF
the bill for the issue OF treasury notes to fur
nlsn tins government money TO suppress this
rebeiiIon. You will find he voted with VAL
Iandlgham against the loan bill, for raisin q
money Tor the war, and against all the praoti-
Cal measures introduced for the purpose of
sLrehgthenlng the hands of the government.
NOW DO net say that he was not sincere
when he went 10 fight the rebes-not so: but
what say ls this: Gen. Logan, from the ma
tofe OF the man, Is lmpulsivo and whenever
ne gets EN- barked in cause he runs to ex
tfsmes IN that cause. He was acting with
the democratic party, fighting against the re-
puDncan party;and he ran 30 far that he said
ana oio things that were better left unsaid
ana undone. L forgive him for that but
say that man who occupies that position
ought to forgive others. It does not lie in
his mouth to say that men in the south who
were Just as good as he was, and were over
wheimed and carried into rebellion by an
overriding popular feeling about them-by
q species OF coercion; men who honestly be.
neveo they were doing right, however wrong
Iney really were,-I say it doesn't lie in his
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