The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1866-03-08


following is a synopsis OF his remarks
Mr. Douglass said lie was there to
1 speak 10 them Of the assassination and
/ its lessons He would disclaim at the
I outset the Of office teacher implied in the
title of his lecture Those who knew his
history would scarcely need disclaimer,
for the school in which he had been edu-
Gated forbade the assumption implied in
that title. Great men, he said, by rea-
son of their superior mental endow
ments, have been able to derive great
results merely from the study Of princi-
/ pies and BY that sort Of dIyination have
/ been able to foreshaIow events long be
fore their occurrence. But the few only
/ have ears to hear this class of teachers
/ The most effective schoolmasters of ma
! tions are great events These teach rs
/ on a broad and grand scale those lessons
of justice and liberty, without the Oh
/ servance of which no nation can he
soundly prosperous or permanently
/ great The masses have little time to
/ give heed to theories they distinguish
/ between good and evil more By results
! they require palpablc Illustrations before
they can learn and profit by the truth
/ Our country presents US with numerous
examples Of this fact Prior to the civil
war there was apparently no danger
menacing our country, but a few far
seeing men forcsaw the calamities that
| have come upon US, and their warnings
were treated as idle talk Thus has it
always been The few listen and the
many pass on, unheeding the precipicc
over which they are being hurled. 1t
required the terrible illustration of a
desolating war 10 convince the people of
the danger Of eutrusting a republican
Government into the hands of priyl
eyed class. 1t was fondly hoped that
with the collapse of the rebellion, all
tn Sc qustions would be settled forever.
The next great event which occurred,
and of which he had come to speak, fill
ed the national heart with anguish, bit
tcrness and modification. II was the
Inauguration of a new crime-a stranger
to our latitude, an alien TO our institu-
tions-the assassination of our chief
magistrate. We had heard of such
crimes in Europe, in the monarchies and
aristocracies Of the old world; but in
this land of free speech and free ballots
we had not imagined there was anything
SO akin in character to the institutions
OF the old world, as to give birth to a
crime so stupendous We are mistaken;
for we had in our midst that out of which
the crime of all crimes, the sum
of all villainies.
We are now entering upon a new era,
and we have to consider what it has in
store for us. But Judging from the
clouds which lower on the sky. and the
Iightnings that flash from the center, we
may well apprehend that this new era
may be marked by features darker and
more calamitous than assassination or re
5ellion. There are crimes that kill the
body, and there are those that kill the
spirit, and the crime of crimes that is i'm
bending over us, strikes at the soul of the
honor. The danger impend-
ng overus is the cold, cruel, wanton Z
urrender and betrayal of our friends
nd allies-the only friends, the only al
les that the South gave us. Applause. .
IS a nation, then, we ought to be in
tructcd, if judgments heavy and terri
lie can do it. The effect of this great
vent cannot be described. 1t was As if
ONE CONFUSION had occurred in nature,
Or, had the earth opened and swallow ed /
y one of our chief cities, theconsterna-
Ionof men could not have been more pro !
ound. y hush fell upon the laud, as if .
voice from Heaven had been heard. 1t /
vas calamity so sudden, involving !
transition OF feeling so violent, that peo-
lie could not realize the dreadful It'd
ngs Richmond had fallen, Lee. the
,atrician general of Virginia, had sur !
endered his so called iuvincibIe army
o Grant, the plebean. Mobile, " lining
on were in our hands. South Carolina +
rad been properly chastised by Sher-
nan, and>the loyal black troops were
,earing aloft the star spangled banner
II Charleston, marching through the
-ery nest of rebellion 10 the tune of Old +
John Brown. Everywhere the rebels +
we're beaten, everywhere victory perch :
d upon our banners. Even at that y
line the loyal men Of the North were
to talk of our Southern enc .
mics as our Southern brothers Rebel .
! Generals, dripping III tue blood OF our .
ous and brothers. We're beginning to he !
poheu of with respect, were becoming /,
decidedly popular We seemed to lie !
.bout as thankful to Lee for surrender {,
ne as to Grant who made him surren- .
Ter. Did this magnanimity soften the
ron hand Of slavery, OF purify the
leart OF treason No. 1t did not then;
I does not now; it never will and moth .
ny but the stern hand Of justice ever .
will. Applause They seized the /.
moment when we were weary OF war, .
Inclined TO mercy. 10 deal upon the ma
ion the heaviest blow it had yet receiv-
I'll at their hands. We mourned Abra- (
nam Lincoln. not so much because the
country had lost President, but be
,ause the world had lost a man, and one
II the very best men that ever presided +.
over the destinies of 4 nation. He WAS
.ypjcal man, more SO than any one who .
lad ever preceded him in the President
al chair. More history has been made in
with his name, tGat Will Ell
iure, than any other man in America.
Ii might be asked why speak of it at
this time He would answer that he
would desire to underscore the assassin
alton. and the manner of ii, aud exhort
the nation 10 have care, lest in the
reconstruction scheme of our
present President, we may contract with
posterity for other rebelIions and assas-