Evansville daily journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1863-1866, 1866-03-15
Is Treason q CrlmeY


son made Odiouss"4 So spoke Andres
johnson when the assassin hand strncl
down the noble Lincoln, and placed hin
in the Presidential Chair. And ever,
loyal heart responded Amenf How haI
that pledge been kept2 Have traitor
been punisheda Ia TREASON made obi.
ous2 10 not O premium offered for trea
SOM JEFF. Davis Is ia priaon-weII-fed
and takes his daily promenade with the
commander at Fort Monroe. No doubt
shat officer feels himself honored, The
arch-traitors--the wholesale murderers
the head and foot of the Rebellion
stalk abroad, free, -untrameled, defiant
through our land east, west, north on
south, and seem 10 pride in the leading
part they took in the late horrid drama
of blood The people Of the South fete
and applaude them-elect them to Office,
and send them with hands yet reekfnQ
with fratrieidal blood to insult a. Low al
Congress with demapds for admission
Southern papers spit forth treason as de
family as ever, and Gen. Early, the man
who ordered the burning Of Chambers
burg, goes into newspaper discussion
with Gen. Sheridan ON the merits of the
campaign in the Shenandoahf C6sscfS-
SdtdoH. thet bass and .cowardly word,
when applied 10 dealings with traitors,
has come sadly into vogue again, and
reminds us too wildly Of ine p1siIIani-
nous conduct of our rulers in the be-
ginning of '6l, when treason was boldly
proclaimed in the House aud Senate,
and in the very face Of James Bach,
anan. Thatrular was consigned 10 an
fanny for allowing Floyd, Hunter, Ma.
son, Wigfall and JET. Davis to leave their
official positions with treason on their
lips, without being arrested and tried as
incipient traitors they were
then-fullagrDwn, bloodsreG dyed and
accursed traitors they are now. They
have struck deadly Blows at the Nations
heart for four years, and slain tens of
thousands Of her noble sons. Shall
they 60 scot free, and we in orr unao
countable lethargy acqniescss in ]. this
worse than Judicial blindness, without
raising voice In protest2li e j.. &aa +
But they tell Us they have now sub
mitted and are Rpxfous to return to
their allegiance. When did they sub
mit2 When the last remnant of their
disheartened, demoralized rufians re-
fused, utterly refused, to shed any more
loyal blood. How many Of them will
own that they we're wreER How many
are truly .rspepaant2ei What prevents
Lee, Johnston, Forest or Hood from
numbering loyal men to-day2 We an
swer-want of men and means to do it'll
But mercy sEmpathy, f0rsoothi for our
erring brethresgais the eatohword nowil
For the deluded masses let .heaven-born
sympathy flow. But for knowing, edu-
Gated, premeditated, self-convicted trai.
tors and wicked fratricides, mercy is
cruelty, and Justice aatands indignant
and demandsvengeance. Have we no
filter subjects for sympathy than whole
sale murderers and semi-demons2 What
of the fathers, mothers, widows and or
phans Of the half million noble men
fallen by their hands--now left desoIate,
mourning and in want3 What of our
brothers, friends, or comrades of olr
bosoms, dead manned, diseased for
life, or starved by slow tortures in Rebel
prison. pens7 Is there no voice comes
from them to-day, asking for sympathy
ers2 One isf ence on .nelE m qa1 aIE
Capt. Wirz, q miserable compound of
ignorance and brutality. A. Fit tool b
do the helish work of JEFF. Davis.
Soldiersl comradesI for what have we
fought2 Forc what did yunr blood en-
rich the solicit she South For what
do your brothers aud comrades now lie
in bloody, hostile graves, beneath the
spurning tread OF rebels who 80 lately
fought us2 For whatHdo we groan under
our billions of taxi They told You it
was to save the Union--so restore. the
Government You thought the Union Of
paramount ihdportanre TO 9oas and the
whole people. You loved your Govern
ment better even than your life. You
went ont freely, and punished, az far as
you could those who sought its destruc-
zion. Yen killed many Of them. and
deemed oil worthy Of death who lifted
arms against your Government In
your simplicits. you imagined that trea-
SON to 90 eo0dsa Government was one Of
ths most foul and damnirg of crimes,
and would surely be puniahed an such.
You desolated the country and homes Of
traitors-pocf and fich--even of non
combatants You believed they fully
deserved Il. You punished them
as far as Jo4 could. But you could
not punien : tile aleaders--the prime (
movers and tia .eaaae Of this effort 10
destroy your Gpveepmsnt The really
guilty parties you could not reach, but
you fondly cherished the idea that time
at last makes al things sven and yon
would see these deep-dyed traitors ade-
quately punished; for you believed that
treason tCas O. crime IL aeems that you
were deludeG-mistaken. .Yoa were en-.
gagged in a cruel, unjust crusade against
an innocent peoplel Yon have given
your service and blood and treasure for
naught. Your brothers have, fallen in
vain, and theis wives and orphans mourn,
for deluded fanatics Tt seems that the !
attempt tt, destroy this Government and
break mp this Union was no wrong, and
treason 10 no. crimsE Leading traitors
Falk the land IN bIoated insoience and
he freest freedom--take pride in their
late acts--and Jour ruierss gAhab-like, 4
lake them by the hand and exclaim,
verify, &c he not my brosherT And 40
crown all, your Attorney General coolIy
ellis you that he does not see ct to try
r. " - ~ "a re 4i