Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1866-10-30


ton OF disowning the cause for which his COM
rades suffered and died, by resolving and
causing others to resolve that whilst the debts
of our conquest should be sacred and inyiola-
BILE, and the invaders should be pensioned out
OF our unrepresented taxation, that our debt
of defence should be repudiated, and the wild.
oWs and orphans of our own champions shall
beg or do monial service for their daily
bread ?
That Infamous bad faith called Reputation
Is Demoralizing Devil which once let loose
will not discriminate between Confederate and
Federal, public OF private obligations. but
will devour all; and destroy not only all Gre
dit and confidence at home, but cost us count
less millions in the loss of National Charac-
ter abroad. 1t may be folly, and probably is
to urge now or ever the payment of Confed-
crate debts. They will never be due but it
was abject shame and superservicabe seryil-
lty OF submission to volunteer in their dis
honor; to join in any discrimination between
the obligations of our defence and of our in
vasion; to assent to pay for our invasion, but
to dodge their own obligations for their own
defence These graves yawn CHASTITY reprOof
at such recreancy
Would he have claimed for the Govern
ment of our Homes, the only Governments of
the Domesticity of American citizens, the
State Governments, the rights only to pre-
scribe the elective franchise and the qualif
cations OF officers and the right of representa-
ton? And to have these three rights only,
that power other than the States, antaeonis
tie to the State "a power upon which the
State was to be check;-or a nondescript
power, neither State nor Federal, ga Power
no Power" should define and prescribe the
St9F OF which the State should consist p
Should prohibit any but so>cafled LoYalsts
from Hllin,r off 80 al.
! seats of Representatives, thus excluding all
his comrades from Franchise and Eligibility.
These responses from the Spirit World of
the Confederate Dead are sad rebukes But
the Stonewa!l Example is not only admonish-
ing, 1t Is cheering aud full of hope. 1t puts
to shame not only diseased Machiayilian dog
ma that Faith, that Truth, that moral prin-
| cipls can ever or could ever be submitted to
the ''arbltrament of arms" and be conquered
by the brute force OF mere numbers of arms;
but 1t scouts that worse than immOrality-that
dlabolical despair which inaligns cause worth
Stonewail Jackson's fighting for, and worth
his dying for, by calling it "A Lost Cause"
a lost cause because its leaders and its fol-
lowers were for time seemingly overcome
by carnal weapons would have dethroned the
Rather OF Heaven, and made out that the cru
clhers of His Son, the Captain Of our Saliva
ton, were HIS CongRerers. The Son of
righteousness died that the cause of Right
eOusness might live forever! He laid down
His life and His followers theirs hat we might
all hve-and from that day TO this ''the blood
OF the martyrs has been the seed OF the
Church of Eternal Lie and Liberty! The
SEED OF Truth may be no larger than grain
of mustard seed, and like the natural seed of
grain 1t must in season fall to the ground and
he buried and apparently die, in order to
sprout again and cover the whole earth with a
crop OF New Life, giving bountful harvest,
rich and sweet and Strengthening to those
who have abiding Faith aud Hope, and who
will wait in Faith and work in Hope "a
Lost Cause" would have stfed and hushed to
| silence the Sermon on the Mount, and have
established Perpetual" cross to crush and
keep down Its OmnIpotent Truth forever !
~ Lost Cause !" 1t Lost it was false if
true it was not lost! Tlmd Traitors to Truth
may lose 1t, but they are lost, not Truth 1t
may seem ut times to be slow and to follow
long Intervals with its torches to light up the
wrecks which error has left behind - but it
Is as sure IN the stately steppings of Its march
as Providence itself, aud is certain at the pro
per time to lliumine the gross darkness be
cause Its power and movement ale Di>
vIne! Time will show who has lost and
who has gained by the war Of Truth
and Error, regardless of first apparen, victo-
ries or defeats. 1t first victorles-jf yicto-
rles throughout the war down TO the last
scenes OF physical exhaustion could win a
cause then the Confederate cause was more
than hundred times won But the one
hundred victories were not the final result of
battles There we're many errors in our ways
OF going out TO war, and Ut0se errors fell.
The truth for which we fought vet lives
and shall, in the might of moral power, vet
prevail. Whilst waiting for their Resurrec-
tiom-not ReconStruction-for they cannot be
changed Whilst waiting on Providence for
the season of their Re.coming i'm this hour
of darkness to the DOubting-to all who. re-
creant; would abandon Faith-to all who, des
pairing would abandon Hope; to all tempted,
who would resort to forbidden ways-to ali
timid, who would shamefnhy succumb-to all
who impatient eagerly cry out: ''What bet
ter can we do?"-the Stonewall Example
sternly and firmly says:-
There is a kind of pride, decent dignity
May be maintained, and CHERISHED to the LAST
Do the aged among us-thosc who remem.
Der the Golden Times" and better DAYS re-
pine aud murmur-
'.That partial nature,
rWho only favors youth, as feeble eye
Were not her offspring or below her care.
has sealed our doumi No second hope shallsp spring
To dry our tears, aud dissipate despair7''
The consolation comes up and forth from
all these graves
Let Ghosts unpardoncd. or devoted friends
Fear = ithout hope, and wall in such sad strains
But Grace defend the living from despair!
The darkest hours preccdc the rising sun,
And mercy may appear when least expected.''
In the sudden shock of this r. vOlution
with results OF such immense magnitude that
We are not at the lend of the beginning" of
ityet, it must needs be that the memories and
affections of the aged must grieve that old
things must all pass away and that all things
must become new. But then onr nd ,renL