Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1866-03-15

THE LEADING TRAITORS.
There is no one who has labored with
more earnestness than myself to have the
princi pal intelligent and conscious traitors
brought to justice, the law vindicated, and
the great fact judicially established that
treason is crime, (Applause,) but while
conscious, leading and intelligent traitors
are to be punished, should whole commu-
mites and States and people be made to
submit to the penalty of death No, no.
| have perhaps as much asperity and
as much resentment as men ought TO have,
but we must reason in great matters Of
government about man as he is we must
conform our actions and our conduct to
the example of Him who founded our ho-
ly religion, not that l WOULD make such a
comparison on this occasion in any perso-
nal aspect.
BEGINNING OF THE ADMINISTRATION.
came into this place under the Con-
stitution of the country and by the appro-
baton of the people, and what did find
| found eight millions Of people who were
in fact condemned under the law, and the
penalty was death. Was | to yield to the
spirit Of revenge and resentment, and de-
clare that they should all be annihilated
and destroyed? How different would
this have been from the example set by
the Holy Founder Of our religion, the ex-
tremities of whose divine arch rest upon
the horizon, and whose span embraces the
universe lie who founded this great
scheme came into the world and found
man condemned under the law, and his
sentence was death What was His ex-
ample? Instead of putting the world, or
even nation to death, he died upon the
cross, attesting, by His wounds and by
His blood, that he died that mankind
might live. Great applause.)
MASSES OF THE SOUTH.
Let those who have erred repent, let
them acknowledge their allegiance, let
them become loyal, willing supporters and
defenders of our glorious Stars and Stripes
and of the Constitution of our country
Let the leaders, the conscious, intelligent
traitors be punished and be subjected to
the penalties OF the law (applause), but
the great mass who have been forced into
the Rebellion in many instances, and in
others have been misled, | say clemency,
kindness, trust and confidence. (Great
applause)
THE PRESIDENTS POSITION
My countrymen, when | look back over
the history of the Rebellion, | am not
vain when ask you if l have not given
as much evidence of my devotion to the
Union as some who croak a great deal
about it; when look back over the bat
tle-fieIds of the Rebellion | think of the
many brave men in whose company | was;
| cannot but recollect that | was some
times In places where the contest was
most difficult and the result most doubt
full but almost before the smoke has pas
sed away, almost before the blood that
has been shed has done reeking, before
the bodies of the slain have passed through
the stages of decomposition, what do we
now find?
PRESENT STATE OF AFFAIRS.
The Rebellion has been put down by
the strong arm of the Government in the
field, but is that the only way in which
you can have rebellion? Our struggle
was against an attempt to dissever the
Union, but almost before the smoke of
the battlefield has passed away, before
our brave men have all returned to their
/ homes and renewed the ties of affection
and love to their wives and their children,
/ we find almost another rebellion inauou-
rated. We put down the former rebel
/ hon IN order 20 prevent the separation of
/ the States, to prevent them from flying
/ off, and thereby changing the character of
our Government and weakening its pow
/ er, but when that struggle on our part has
/ been successful, and that attempt has
/ been put down, we find now an effort to
/ concentrate all power in the hands of a
/ few at the Federal head, and thereby bring
/ about a consolidation of the Government
which is equally Objectionable with a sepa-
ration. (Vociferous applause We find
that powers are assumed, and attempted
to be exercised, Of a most extraordinary
character. 1t seems that Governments
may be revolutionized, Governments, at
least, may be changed without going
through the strife of battle / believe If
is fact attested in history that some
/ times revolutions most disastrous to the
people are effected without the shedding
OF blood. The substance of your Gov
ernment may be taken away, while the
form and shadow remain to you. What
is now being proposed
We find that in point of fact nearly all
the powers of the Government are assn
med by an irresponsible central directory.
which does not even consult the legisla-