Brownlow's Knoxville Whig. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1866-1869, 1866-08-08

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Thus far l have but given expression to those
thoughts which spring up spontaneously IN every
patriotic heart among such an occasion as this
As l shall further detain you, let me direct your
minds 10 of the lessons of the war and TO the
prospects of the future.
J. One Of these lessons, and that which stands out
prominently, is that God hears and delivers the op
pressed. He may choose his own time for it. He
may wait until the fetters Tiveted; until laws
sanction the oppression; until legislatures and ma
tiOna councils, and Supreme Courts, and great p0-
litica parties ioin hands in the common iniguity;
until the press and the pulpit of whole section, in
the spirit of inhumanity, defend all this oppression,
and spit in the very face Of God, and then he meets
them in his wrath and ia the days Of Pharaoh he
seems 10 cry aloud in his Providence: Let my
people 60 that they may serve me- They may put
cotton IN their cars and shut tight their eyes, and
rush on blindly in the way they have chosen, but
God VIII settle with the oppressor now Is in the
Oden time, and let the oppressed go free With
high hand if need be, aud outstretched if il
must be, he will break every chain, and overthrow
horse and rider and chariot of war, and triumph
glOriously when Miriam with her timbrel sang Of
mis- judgments by the Red Sea- when the pomp and
ezCellency Of Egypt went down beneath the pillows
20 rise no more forever. Let the poor and the op
pressed cry unto the Lord and he will hear them
let them wait humbly upon him, and he viii deliver
them, even though il may be through The crash Of
empires, or through blood and revolution
. Another lesson of our civil strife and one often
suggested before ia that God furnishes men for
emergencies. The country was overwhelmed with
sorrow humiliation and shame at the course of Jas
Buchanan, and God brought forward from the
prRiries Of the West honest and patriotic Abraham
Lincoln. Pray for me, was the earnest wish he
made Of all good people, as he went 10 take the
Presidential chair. IF knew what God would
have me DO, l would do it. was his noble daclara-
lion when the whole burden Of the terrible rest
ed on his shoulders. The cruelty and falsehood and
treachery and calumRies Of the rebels never drew
from him an unkind or an uuguardcd word. He
moved sublimely forward as the nations chosen
leader. Diviney chosen, also, the nation thought,
as they called him second time TO the highest sta
ton they could assign him. How unselfsh, how
humane, how forgiving, how sincere, how unambi-
.ous, how patriotic how simple, and yet how su-
blime. We recognize him as instrument select
ID by Providence TO direct our nation through its
greatest perils. Whilst George Washington has
been called the father of his country, Abraham
Lincoln has been called its savior And when the
hand Of the assassin laid him low, we wept for MIN
as We had never done for any other man, and by
lis noble life and his martyr DEATH the nation pedg
"a itself that the cause he loved we'll should be
maintained. We felt that he was brought forward
IN great crisis TO achieve mighty work, and that
when he faithfully finished his course he went up to
receive q crown. Who will stand higher than he
among the great army Of wOrthies? What well
come lie must have had, as, lcittolt furnish q
slot upon his ripened fame, he passed in ful-orbed
rory 10 the unseen world the best civil ruler that
had appeared since Christ died. the model statesman
# all the ages. Such agents are surely of divine
selection: and when dd the crisis come and the man
not appear?
Was New World 10 be discovered, a Columbus
IS brought forward. Was the Reformation 10 begin,
a Luther steps upon the stage Of action. Was
man needed 10 tear up the matted fabric Of European
society, Napoleon comes rushing with his lcgions.-
Was General needed, COOL calculating, well-posed,
Of excellent courage, OF great moral worth, who
could mcUawe suborGinates and q million Of men.
md h~iu thp civ Of tn "a
,riumpha close General L. :. Grant United States
or Union Saving Grant fills the bill Il Is an IN
yaryne rule in history that God brings out the man
Tor the emergency.
g. During the war we have learned to recognize
God moving in human affairs as we never had done
before.
Days OF fasting, humiliation and prayer, in the
dark hours Of the struggle; days Of thanksgiving
and praise when grand victories were achieved and
progress made prCclamatlOnS OF Abraham Lincoln
and Andrew johnson, all grew out Of the nations
felt dependence upon the God of Providence Even
our greenbacks issued by Secretary McCalloch put
religious aspect III the last years of the contest
as manifested by the motto, In God We trust. '-
The same is stamped our coins. Is the flag 10 be
raised on Fort Sumter-the same that was so gal
antly defended by Major Anderson-through her
Executive the nation sends Rev. Henry Ward
Beecher 10 conduct appropriate religious services
While the stars and stripes hOised their place
IN Charleston h2rbor with none 10 mOCSt or 10 make
afraid. This recognition of God in human affairs
observed among all classes and conditions. II is
manifest IN our weeklios, monthcs and quarteres,
and IN cur moro permanent literature, in our public
addresses and state papers, and is more Of a staple
a the discussions Of both Houses of Congress. Il
would be happy Indication if all leading minds
deeply and earnestly felt their dependence upon the
great kuleT Of ali nations.
l. Another lesson we have learned Is that liberty
is stronger than slavery.
Twelve years ago JEFF. Davis, when Secretary OF
War ordered General Sumner TO move his troops
around the Convention assembled at Topeka, Kan
sas hoping that the free state would resist the
troops and lead to civil war. Had the strife CON-
1nencad then under Franklin Pierce with such
Secretary OF War as jeff Davis, the result might
nave been cutie different. Il delayed until the
resources OF liberty were strong enough 10 cope with
those Of slavery, and 70 dscomht them utterly On
heir Latte-helds in other ages they had grappled
with each other and The world loves to inger over
the pages that ell Of the tgiumphs in the name
of civil and religious liberty. Moore had sung:
Better 10 dwell II Freedoms hall,
With cold damp foor, and mouldering wall,
Than bow the head, and bend the knee,
In the proudcst palace Of slavery.
And Southey hstb said
Easier were 1t
IL hus. ,nU rooted mountain from its base.
Than force the yoke Of slavery on men
Determined 10 be free.
And Byron had told Us
Freedoms battle Of; begun.
BeqUeatbed from bleeding sire 10 son,
Though bahied oft is won.
And our own American poet had ezulGngly cried
0, Joy to tie world the hour is come
When the uztiUus freedom awake,
When the royalists stand agape and dumb,
And mOna-chs with terror shake
Over the walls Of majesty
lFHARsiS Is writ in words Of Ere,
Ana the eyes of the bOndsman wherever they bc,
Are III with wild desire
Soon shai the thrones that blot the world
Like the orleans into the dust be hurled,
And the word roll On like hurricane breath
Till the farthest slave hears what il saith
Isise, arise, b. FREE
The highest flights Of poetry, the proverbs of man
kind the eloquence of the forum tho historic nare
as well the pen Of inspiration all assure ne thai
freedom is the brthright and shall be the beritsoe
Of the race.
8 Another lesson suggested by our civil war Is
that republics are stronger than monarchies
A nation Of 81 600 in contest of four years
has seen over 100000 of her citizens under arms
What monarchy could rally such armies? Wehav
accumulated a debt of 5000, ,OOO 900, and the peo-
ple have come forward not only with cheerfulness
but with enthusiasm to bear the burden Accord
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