Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1868-10-21
TIE DEFENDERS OF THE UNION
THEIR DUTY IN THE PRESENT CAN
VASS.
Stirring Address of the Soldiers, aud
Sailors Central Committee.

| COMRADES OF THE ARMY AND NAVY
The greatest political campaign of th
age approaches its termination. The DOS
itlons of the rival contending parties arr
taken, and all along the outposts resound
the clamor of strife while all available
forces of both antagonists are being mar
shalled along the lines preparatory to tn,
grand advance and victory Of the third CT
November. The position and plans OF
the enemy have been discovered, and i,
rests with you and all of us to determine
whether you will achieve triumph Sc
overwhelming that, in future, treason
shall hide It's foul head abashed and for
ever shrink away from the eyes of honest
ana courageous loyalty, or whether, en-.
couraged by partial successes it shall still
stalk abroad and thrust its hideous fea-
lures into the society of brave and law
abiding citizens It is for US, we repeat
to settle by the ballot, this fall, what we
| all supposed had been settled by the bay
onet, to secure by this means what our
arms had honorably won-the destruction
Of the heresy of seces ion which has ain
raised its envenomed tongue, the equal
rights of Union men as well as rebels un-
der the protection of the laws in all por-
tons of our common country, and that
permanent peace which is especially dear
to those who bore the privations and dan
gers aud sufferings Of a long war.
We do not appeal to you as partizans !;
We appeal to you as men, actuated as you
have often proved, by pure love Of coun-
try and free inst tutious. We appeal to
you as men who have an utter hatred of
that rebellion which would have torn our
country in fragments and offered up the
reicts upon the alter Of dcspotism as
men who have no sympathy with those
who raised their murderous hands against
the government, or with those who gave
them encouragement IN their d5vilish
Vaccinations, and at the same time at
tempted to palsy the arm Of the govern
ment by discouraging enlistment and in
citing riots IN the communities where re
sided friends, our wives and our child
ren. Let US not be deluded by fair pro,
testations into the support Of men whose
principles have not changed, nor into the
support Of party at whose every success
the rebel hosts set up The shouts and yells
OF triumph, which yeIls you heard in
front fVicksburg, Chattanooga and Rich
mond Let us remember that neither
these men nor this rarty have changed !;
that they are the same men and the same
party against which they protested while
you wore the 'blue," while they sympa-
thizcd with the gray"
Many of you remember how in 1868, a
efforts Of these men to prove the war fail
ure how they insisted tnat the Union
army was demoraized and would not
fight; how they opposed the filing up of
our declmated regiments by a draft or in
any other way; and how they urged that
Lincoln should call home his troops and
let our wayward sisters depart in peace.
v hat glorious protests poured in from
your several regiments couched in burn
ing and unnistakable terms, perhaps some
of you have forgotten, and in order to re-
fresh your memories let the following
selections from your resolutions speak for
themselves:
Resoleed, That we view with horror
and detestat}on the efforts Of traitors at the
North to divide our people and sacrifice
cur national honor at the feet of an in
iernal despotism of a Senator of our
State Sat. Clark who deliberately call
our brave commander "scoundrel, vii
han, and coward" that every member