Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1867-02-28
TREASON, "SO.CALLED."

The five young men from Rome, Georgia. con-
fined in the Atlanta jail for the crime of displaying
a Confederate flag in the performance ola tableau,
have been released by order of General THOMAS.
The understrapper who wrote the letter ordering
their discharge from custody, one Gen. VIM ID.
WHIPpLE takes advantage of the occasion, to lay
down the law on the treason of such exhibitions.
1t seems that the result of the war has decided the
rebellion to have been 'huge crime, embodying
all the crimes of the decaogue," and therefore, it
becomes criminal to show any honor or respect to
it's emblems. Under this view of the wickedness
of rebellion, it is outrageous conduct in any OF its
late supporters to aunt the odous flag in the faces
of the good loyalists who fought SO hard and sut-
fered so much to conquer it. No such shocking
exhibitions of moral depravity will hereafter be
permitted
AS the indignant vindicator of loyalty has based
the criminality of rebellion upon its failure, his
logic would warrant the conclusion that rebellion
would have been all right if it had only succeeded.
In that case, the present TRAITORS would have
been patriots, and the honest wearers Of the blue
would have had the ''monstrous crime" transferred
to their loyal shoulders. This is clear reasoning,
and all rebel wretches who have been guilty of the
villainy of failing to whip out countless horde OF
patriots, many of whom could not speak the Ian
guage of the country they defended so gloriously,
must abstain from public veneration Of SO. con-
temptibe an object as conquered flag.
1t may be waste of ink to protest against the
injustice of branding our whole people as crimi-
mails, for having dared to uphold their rights by
the sword Still, it is impossible to read such a
small-soued production as Gen. WHIPPLE's letter,
without the resistess impulse to deny its TRUTH
A just cause cannot become wrong because it fails,
or might would become right; whereas, in this
sad world, these two powers are oftener opposed
than working in unison. Our dead heroes are not
criminals, because they died for ruined cause !;
nor will the world accept for them the epitaph of
'traitor," which such mushroom patriots as WHIP
PIE, would inscribe upon it.
As for the flag, on which the vials Of his wrath
are poured, it holds place in the Southern heart,
from which it is not in the power Of military sat
raps to tear it. That flag represents the blasted
hopes of eight millions of the living, and recalls
the heroism of thousands of the honored dead. 1t
floats no more in victory upon the battle cloud, but
halo of glory from scores of hard won fields sur
rounds it. Consecrated by the noblest blood of
this land, it is, and forever will be-, dear to our
hearts, however faithful we may be to the govern
ment we now acknowledge. Morris there any good
reason why its appearance upon the mimic scenes
of the stage should offend the eyes OF the sternest
loyalist that lives. The proudest of its adversa-
res was forced to respect it in the day of battle,
and we think that an honorable foe would look up
on it as memento of glorious deeds and stirring
scenes. Indeed, no Federal officer or soldier should
blush, or shrink from looking on that flag, unless
he belong to the large class of Union soldiers, to
whom the yell which heralded its approach was
usually the signal for an exhilarating footrace, in
which loyalty vigorously held the front.