The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-07-13
FOURTH H-OF-JULY GRAFTON.
AWRR DEMOCRAT ON the SITUATION
SPEECH OF GEN. JOHN A. LOGAN
General Logan to His Soldiers.

former comrades in arms at Salem, Illinois, on
the 4th inst. General Logan's address is too
lengthy to publish entire in our columns, but
we extract some portions relating to matters Of
current interest Our readers are aware that
General Logan was always a Democrat and an
ardent supporter of Stephen A. Douglas when
that lamented statesman was a candidate for
President.
SPEECH OF MAJoR-GKNERAL JOHN A. LOGAN.
Would you have believed two years ago, when
n certain great man of this land said that trea-
ron must be made Odious and traitors must be
punished, and not only that but that they must
be Impoverished, and that their property must
be distributed among the loyal people, that he
would declare they were entitled to representa-
ton in the United States Congress? (No) II
he did, he had very strange way of express
ing himself That is all l can say on that subject
No, sir, the work OF restoration in this country
belongs to loyal men and not to traitors. and
while loyal men are engaged in performing TINS
work and restoring this country, they must say
to these traitors: "Gentlamen we intend to con-
fer these rights upon you whenever we are
minded to. 1t is not for you to say the time
when it shall be done, but 1t is Tor us TO say. 1t
is in out hands, in our power; we have the right,
and you have no privileges in this country.n
i"GoUd, good, that's So"
But Il is said that, inasmuch as these States
have been recognized, and certain OF them have
acted on certain Subjects tnat they are fully
restored. Why, my countrymen, that is great
mistake. They are restored so far as the act that
they perform is recognized by our Government
as lawful: whether it was lawful at the start and
at the inception or not by the recognition, we
made 1t lawful. Hence, the only acts that they
can perform are such as we recognize as being
lawful by our recognition. The acts that we
say to them they shall not perform, they cannot
perform until we say they shall.
Let us, then examine the question a little
further. Oh, but some OF the opposition say,
why if you do not allow these people to be re-
presented there is one-half OF the Union unre-
presented and the laws that you pass in Con.
gress are unconstitutional because portion OF
the country is uurepresented. (Laughter)
WeR IpreSunle upon the same hypothesis all the
Ld1S that zoe passed during the J1ar are uucOnStI-
sSttlOn1t because JEFF. DdUis part or the country
S0ds mol represented. (Laughter.l So it might
be in reference to this representation II the doc
trine now enuncated by the opposition to the
Union people in this land is correct; that is,
that these people, the very moment they laid
down their arms, although they had forfeited
their lives, although they had forfeited their
property, although they had forfeited their
rights, civil and political, all those rights came
back to them, aud that they we're as fully re-
stored, as fully entitled to the rights and priv.
leges of American citizens in a representative
as well as IN any other capacity, as any other
people in this land.
Now, my countrymen that seems TO me to be
very strange doctrine. Let us see where 1t
would carry us if the Rebels the moment they
laid down their arms, had all their rights re-
stored to them. Ii the mere fact OF laying down
their arms would restore them all their rights,
then l would ask you what is there in treason
Suppose we to day just conclude here, while we
are assembled to celebrate the Fourth OF July,
that we will array ourselves against the State
Government of Illinois. We go to work and
commit treason against it. We peril our lives
and our fortunes by our acts. Well, we look
abroad and see we ate about TO be whipped. We
cannot stand it any longer; so we throw dow n
our guns, and send word to the Government,
ave stole these old muskets, they did not cost
us anything, you can take them back; we will
10 IA
affairs OF the State, Just as we ever did,"
What is the result? u puts the traitor in bet
Ter pOsttlon than the loyal man. If he goes and
makes himself a new Constitution and a new
Government, and then loses, he loses nothing
on top OF Gods earth. Now that is a strange
game 10 play at. That's heads / win tails you
lose. Laughter.) The traitor loses nothing,
the loyal man loses all His Government loses
all. 1t loses by the destruction of property; II
loses by the destruction OF life; it loses The effect
OF the law of the land; it loses the moral effect
that the enforcement of the law has upon the
people. All these the Government loses, bu
the traitor loses nothing.
/ wish our friends-Q will call them friends
because we call all our friends unless we know
they are our enemies, or you may call then
wnat you please, the people who opposed the
war are now opposing the Union organization IL
this land would tell me this: Why is it tha
they are 30 anxious to have these people repre-
sented in Congress now as soon as they Law dowL
their arms, when these people declined Tor foul
years themselves to be represented! What i!
their anxiety? What causes it? / cannot SCI
why this people on the Congress side OF the
United States should be in any hurry to require
them to be represented. They declined to b.
represented for four years, but the very momen
they laid down their arms, they say, why, W,
want members in Congress; we want a part o
the foreign missions; we want the officers of th
law to be distributed among us; we want ou
rights. They talk about rights daughter.
Weu,sso might a horse-lhiet, at the very tim
that he is being tried get up before the Judge
after the proof had been given, showing that h
had stolen the horse, and say, Judge, wan
my rights!" The Judge would say, my dea
friend, you will get them in few minutes.
think that the jury will send you to the PeniteI
tiary for twenty years." (LaughJer)
On they want their rights-rights that the
forfeited, rights that they are not entitled t
own act of treason. They tried to destroy tn
Government, and denied its authority by the
acts, and thus lost all the rights that they ha
in this land. And now instead of marching u
with pardon in one pocket aud a certificate
election in the other, demanding what they ca
their rights, what ought they to doP The
ought to be on their knees, lmploring this gre
and glorious Government to be magnanimou
and offer them that clemency which our gallan
honest and faithful President, Abraham Ii
coin, offered to them so often, and which the
so often refused.
am willing that the people shall have the
property, or the little they have got left, thoug
think they have good deal more than tht
Ought TO have unless they behave better thu
they seem to. But l care nothing about tina
If the people RIe willing, have no obiectio
do not want to be their eXecutloner: but {
want TO do few things as one OF the Americi
people, as one of the loyal citizens of this Ian
as man who has SO much right as anyoo'
else, ana no more, to claim the exercise
certain rights and nriVile0es in this count