New-York tribune., 1868-01-20
TIE OLD CRY.

Franklin Pierce, eX-PTcSldent OF tDe Ohilcu
States. wrote from this city, Jan. q, 1860, to
Jefferson Davis, then Mt Washington city, as
follows:
"wthout discussing the question OF rehtof abslract
mower To secedc-I have never believed that actua
disruption Of the Union can occur Without Doo1 hu
through the madness OF Northern AD9hllohlst', tna
dire calamity must come, the nghng WIZ nVl Dc aonb
Mason a Dxons line merely. IL VIII De within our own
citizens 20 whom have referred lh1Se VINO dyg aT
and scoid constitutional obigatons Will we ever Isaon
tho arbitrament OF arms. ind occupation enough A'
home"
After Secession had been inaugurated at
the South the Hon. John Reynolds, Democratic
ex-Gov. and cx-M. c. from Illinois, wrote to
jefferson Davis and extra-Billy Smith OF Va
Jointly as follows
"BEILEvtLLE Dec. 2s 1860.
"DEAR FRIENDS: write to you because cannot well
avoid IL. am heart and soul for The south as they
are right In the principles and possess the Constitutions
"If The public mind will bear IT. the seat Of Govern
""ghi 70 remain with Tie south and me Constitution"
see the whole Of both letters In the Amtf'od" CoV"
Vol l., p. 6l2
When Gen Mcclellan had retrcated from the
line of the Chckahominy through White YAK
Swamp To Malvern Hill, and then He'd from that
victorious field to lIarrison's Landing, he set
his name TO a letter declaring his position
critical. and lecturng and hectorng tbereupon
the President for suspected leaning to
emancipation and instructing him that
Sethcr conhscation OF property political executions
OF persons. territorial Organization OF staes nor otooe
moment Military power should not be allowed 10
interfere WIN the feCs M Sl OF the master cxcep,
or represslng disorder, as IA other cases systcn
cas- of Csflanity and freedom would receive the sup
port OF all loyal men," &C. &c
SO il was from first to last. When he
Rebellion opened fire upon Fort Sumter and
brought down the American flag from It's
| walls, expelliDg the Union garrison to make
| room for one of Rebels, President Lincoln
| called upon the Governors of all the States
| still loyal. to send militia to the defense OF
the Capital, then in imminent peril. Every
| Democratic Governor responded with denun-
citation and insult, Gov. Ellis, of North Caro-
| lima. stigmatizing the call as in violation OF
! the Constitution and a usurpation of power
q" can he no party" he continued, TO this
" wicked violation of the laws of the country
" and To this war upon the liberties of free
| people, So Gov. Letchcr denounced the Presl-
| dents call as not within the purview OF the
| &" Constitution or the act of 1705.' " You have
chosen to inaugurate civil war;" he most
falsely continued and we will meet you III
=" spirit rs determined" &c, &c. 80 Gov. &.
| f. jackson Of Missouri execrated the call as
Illegal, unconstitutional, revolutionary, lnhu-
"man. diabocaI," and falsely declared that
| mot one man. would be furnished by Missouri
| "to carry on 20 unholy crusade" SO with
| Harris of Tennessee, Magoilin of Kentucky, and
the rest of them And The NeW- York Express
which now prctends To have been loyal
| throughout tho War-thus greeted Mr. Lin
| coins call
"The south I'm self preservation has been driven 10 the
wall aud forced 10 proclaim ts independence serye
aLne satisfy the murlerous dosgns or tho Abolition
ist' The Administration egg9d ON oy .e n1o M lrcnn
airy forces 10 PICK quarrel and ontdfe ne cork ~ de'o'd
"The South can never he sublugated by the
North nor any marked successes be achieved against
them They have % a. tS%g SygT dSS
their public institutions their homes and their property
&c &c.
When we came TO fight the Shareholders
Rebellion by aiming at Slavay, Its instlgator
| and author, the circle of shriekers was widened
When it was proposed in Congress that the
slaves of active Rebels should be declared free,
Mr. Cowan of Pennsylvania (then recently chosen
to the Senate as a Republican y exclaimed:
Pass this bl and the same messenger W ho carries II
10 the South will back with the news OF ther
complete consolidation as one man We shall then nav
s Sns ina. baTs yca the Wnon We shall have rent
sacred charter and extrgused the last yes,lSe 9l az
lection Tor III III inc ShNc Sates Wy oui pHhu III" P"S
sionate folly
These are fair samples of the incessant
TRADE Of abuse, false accusation, denuncatlon,
execraton, disregarding or defying which the
Republicans have steadily upheld the author
ity and preserved the integrity of the Union,
| crushed out Secession and Rebellion, and abol-
ished Slavery. Since the term "Abolitionlst'
lost its terrors, DsuniOnisr is the current
epithet wherewth men who fought through the
war in defense of the Union are stigmatized by
those who hope to vault into power on the
shoulders Of unchanged Rebels. No matter
what we had to do, it was always "unconsti-
"tutiona" in the eyes of the COpperhead
0racles. II was unconstitutional to provision
Fort Sumter-tO defend WashingtOn-to open
q way through Baltimore-tO Invade" Vir-
ginia-to hold Kentucky and Maryland-to
refuse to return the fugitive slaves of Rebels
to proclaim Emancipation--to enlist and arm
Black s0ldiers-tO dissolve the Rebel State
organiztions-to impose conditions on their
successors-and it is, of course, frightfuy un-
constitutional to insist that loyal Blacks
shall vote in the reconstructed States as well
-. cN-Rcbcl Whites. All the fire and fury
herewith Congress is now assailed means just
tnis-The Sham Democracy cant TO make tweire
more rotten boroughs Ike Maryland and Ken
tuoky in the South by enfrdnchisina the Rebel
Whites and disfranchising the loyal Blacks, and
the Republicaps ,cont let them. That is the
whoIe story, And, though tho fools are not al