The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1867-07-24
Gen. Longsaree tSand ne freeman,s Journal.

Gen. LOngstreet1and the freeman's Journal.
lncss,x EalitesS = The editor OF the New
York Frec1s Journal il his issue of tho
22d inst: in an editorial headed might doe
not make right il sosangry with Gen. Long
street as to disregara not only good manners'
but even truth itself He asserts that the
very first ssntelce Of Gen. Longstrcet's letter
to the people ftha South, does Mr.. Long
street himself irreparable damage. Q, poor
,Longsheet. S''Itfs d long lane that fhas not
a turn y gu are badly damaged. You are
only nc. Longstreet. MI Mc,,fasser has tax.
en- away your title because yousare now q
peaceablc, loya1 citizen, and exhort others to
pursue the same course re.s SKIS Il a
q Now, let us see, what this Very flanagip 81
irreparable, vile sentence isl shall set out
by assuming proposition that,l held TO- be
sefsevident, viz:gthe-highest OF human laMsss
is the law that is established by tho appeal to-
arms" Mr., Mem: finds fault with Ilcnerali
Longstreets self-esidcnt proposition-that the
appeal to arms is the highest human law, and
tells his readers that human law is the law
that man has Inherited by tradition from pri-s
nleval. revelation, made to the human race IN:
regard to law. Cicero gives us the truesidea
of this law as something that neither the Sen !.
ate nor peoplc'can absokc men from obeylng.s
Cicero says also, This law is the same at
Rome and Athens. This one, eternal, and i'm
mortal law, will keep in good order'aH Nations
forever, and will be as one common master and
ruler Of all. God himself being the author,
the Judge, and proposer of this law. Dr.: De
ILL., al;
as quoted by Lactantius, spoke Of the natural
law-and tho late Archbishop kenrick, i'll his
Moral Theology, Vol l, page 81, says: "sNul-
Ia ficri potest lcgis naturalis mutasio nam re-
ruin esssntia, rititur, ct ex Del essentia yelu-
Fiji derivatar. 'The natural law viii admit Of
mo change, for it is:founded on. the essence Of
things, and is as if derived from the essence
I Of God. St. Augustine says Ilexvero 'natd-
T rolls nihil alcnd est guam tex hofnlnl per fa-
tionem suam manifestata. The Natural law
lis nothing else than the eternal law made
known to man through his reason. 1904 IL
Now, Mr. Editor, Tshould like to knew by
what authority does the editor Of the, Erees
| man s journal call the natural law; huaaaaa
I The eternal law made known toman through
| his reason is not human law, nor cansit be
I called "a fixed result Of rcasoa," unless by is4
norant or dishonest writer's. who have bad
purposes in view We .canf easily see Mr.
McMastcr' purpose in his incollcrent shutting
exposition OF human law. He is evidently an
enemy to Reconstruction, andconsequently to
peace and order in the South. lie scannot
conceal his bad feeling, when Gen. I4ongstreet
or any other good man dares to give good adj
vice to an unfortunate, afflicted people IRA peo-
PIE who are now heart and soul peace, and
obedience to the laws Of the United States
| They have seen enough of the horrors, of war
and Of the defunct Confcderacy- they aredo-
Gle and will listen to sound friendly advice
/ from any quarter, but the bad advice, the poi
son Of Northern Copperlleadsm must keep
away. Mr.. Mem. charges Gen.. llongstreet
4 with "talking about things of which he knows
4 nothing" | deny the charge, and in sup
port oflmsy position, take tic liberty of quo
ting from st. Alphon De iiyorio, asfew sen.
fences which Will, | think, settle the dispute.
In his treatise De Legibus-l4aw is divided
into the eternal, henatural and positiee. Posi-
| tive law is divided into Divine aud human posi-
| ii, e law-and Positive human law is sub di-
vided into the Law Of Nations the Ecclesias-
teal and Civil Laws. Now let. lis see hos
I Gen. Is. condemned sentence agrees with one
of the above sub divisions of I4aws.i @sl
| Gen. Longstreet's letter vas written to a con-
quered people; people who had appealed to
the highest tribunal of Positiyc Human Laae,
the Battle feld-on that field they lost their
cause and became a cong uored people and sub
ject to the laws of war, as defined by the Law
r. J+l,. II
to arms the highest huMan 7ew, he shows that
he is better acquainted with the Homo Apos-
tolicus than Mr.. McaIaster is, and that he has
exhibited neither ignorance nor incapacity.--s
On the contrary he has shown that he read
Lgireus distinctions flaw most carefully, and
he is evidently more of a christian than Mr..
McMaster, for he is a peace maker, and s;blesss
ed is the peaee-maker." cannot concludel
without noticing among the many objsctiena-
bleexprcssions, in the above mentioned peace
hating editorial, that italcised sentence -
right OF conquest sis the right of the DeVil3's
That sentence is erroneous-it is truly Carl
{ baldian Es!4s;I tsles d saei sAsi .li
Archbishop Kenrick was ola different opin-
ion, 50 was st. Paul the former, in his .Morali
Theology, Vol. lst, page 255, where he says,
by the law Of Nations, not only the dominion,
of Jurisdiction, but also of property issgiren
TO men ouey n,cn, which thing is also ratified
BY the old law. Those taken in war were conf
monty reduced to slavery. st. Paul did not
rcprovc the slavery prevailing in most nations.
On the contrary he exhorted servants to he
lobcdicnt to their masters-as unto Christ,
Ephesians, Chapter 6, verses. The enslaFing
Of those taken in war is the right of conquest,
Or the right ofmight, # that is the aagst'. of
the DeoH. How has it come to pass that the
Bible aud Testament, and the Catholic and
Protestant Churches have sanctioned, or even
tolerated tor are the Bible and Testament,
and almost all Christian Churches cotinte-
nancing and upholding a Law of the Devil,
according to the editor ofthe Freeman's Jour-
nal WATTY COX.eh
The Poetry of the Needle.stist dis
Political news is not worthy. Of discussion ;
ssthe Situation" can not be described, there
fore we publish the following extract, from
Hawthorne, for the benefit of lazy girls @''S
',There is something extremely pleasant,
L