The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1867-10-19
Tho GaImana.

| Besides the Inauguration festivities ut their
new hall, mentioned elsewhere,) the Germans
of this county held convention ut the new
Turner Hall in the beginning of the week, the
proceedings of which we publish under the
proper heading. The resolutions are simple
protest against the "puritanical Legislation"
with which radicalism threatens to overthrow
the country. 1t is true, they specify only
Sunday and sumptuary laws, but to be consis-
tent, the protest must include the whole radi-
cal platform, for all of it is simple New Eng
land Puritanism. What spirit but that of
Puritanism pervades the Legislation of Con-
gress, in maintaining military despotism over
fallen foe a long time after that foe has ack-
nOwledged himself beaten and expressed his
willingness to submit to every reasonable de-
mand? A high protective tariff is also based
on the purely puritanical ida that New Eng
land is SO superior in morality wisdom and
skill, that all the country should pay tribute
to her. The democratic party, thirty years
ago, by promptly sustaining Col. Richard NJ.
Johnson's report, defeated the Sunday mail
law. In a country which invites all nations
and creeds to an asylum within its borders, to
enjoy free speech and free conscience, the
democratic party can see no consistency in
compelling the Jew to change his Sabbath to
the Christian Sunday, or the Mahomedan to
keep Sunday instead of Friday as his holy
day. To be candid, our religious ideas will
not permit us the same latitude in reference to
the observance of Sunday as prevails generally
among Germans or those who come here from
continental Europe; but while we should OBJ
ject strenuously to being compelled to keep
Sunday in their way, we can see no more jus
tice'in compelling them to keep Sunday in orr
way. Nor are we the enemy Of temperance,
nor do we believe the Germans are, in the alb
stract; but we do strenuously object, as they
do, to having a puritanical nosing committee
come into our DINING room or kitchen and
dictate to us what we shall eat or what we
| shall drink. =.
The temporary union Of the Germans and
puritans in one political party in this country
| was purely accidental, and grew out of mis-
apprehension. Coming hither with all that
love of freedom for which many of them had
been prosecuted in the old world, and finding
here two political parties, one furiously OppOs-
ing, and the other apparently supporting hui
man slavery, nothing was more natural than
that the Germans should join the ''party of free
dom," falsely so called. They overlooked, or
were probably not aware Of the fact, that the
democratic party of the north, as body, were
as earnestly opposed to slavery as the puritans
were, and that their apparent support of the
institution was but the support of the consti-
tuition by which slavery was authorized
There were but two ways in which slavery
could be destroyed: one was, to amend the
constitution, which involved the consent of
the southern states; and the other, to trampe
the constitution under foot, and drench the
| country with fratcrnal blood. Radical dog
gcdness and southern heat forced us into the
latter alternative, every horror of which dem
| Ocratic statesmen had accurately toretold and
though it may well be doubted whether the
destruction of slavery was not purchased at
fearfully disproportionate price, yet that it is
accomplished, it is undeniably true that the
straitest radical cannot be more sincerely re-
joiced than the democracy of the north are,
that all our calamities of the last five wears
have brought at least this one compensatory
good-the destruction of slavery.
T,,rD