The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1868-10-29

an be you a NOrthlnan or a South
nan, in this one .view-this one hope
thank God, we all, as honest men,
AN. and do, concur. DO / hear
he lispings of every freeman, asking
it be? do I hear the young man,
the middle aged, and the ho~ary-haIr-
ed man, intermingled with the lisp
ings of our women and children--can
it be? Dol hear the spirits OF the
fallen braves call back from the
other shore-ean it be2 Can | hear
the angel that Is to preside over the
destinies-of a generation yet unborn
it be? To one and all, and
with abiding confidence in the hour
to its fullest extent, it can be,
| answer and echo, yes. AS do
1 in this the hour of mine
speaking, as in every day Of my
life, l have been Invested of all
prejudice and passion, so may L ask
that you be. While not forgetting
our deeds of Kindness one to another,
even during our iercest hour, yet,
yonder in the vast funeral pile OF hu
man passion and human shortcomings
and trailties, let US bury our mutuai
wrongs, and here tonight meet upon
the broad vantage ground or law, OF
equity and of right. attach TO US, ana
apply these great, these only rules OF
discrimination and of guidance to
human nature; nothing extenuate
or ought set down in malice. 1t
NAV be. as so often it has been said,
that a people arrayed and engaged In
sd deadly a contest as have we, can
never be reconciled to each other.
This. gentlemen, | must say, and at
the sametime recognizing the strength
of human madness and revenge, Is 1t
not true. Men are but children OF a
larger growth; the spirit of genera
tions is but foreshown in their child
hood acts. How bitter have been the
conflicts between brother aud brother,
and schoolmates, upon their play
grounds, concerning their rights as
between them, and yet how hrm
has been their after relations. They
but value each other by their bravery
and determination in battling for their
supposed rights. What is true OF
them can and will be true of US. What
is true of them is true of men, and
what is true of individuals will be
true of States.
THE STATUS OF THE LATE CoNFED-
CRATES.
| care not, and will not refer, in
this view, to the u or causes OF
our late disseverance. One thing,
however, patent to all, recognized by
all. For supposed or actual wrongs, q
great number of our countrymen, un-
der another flag, fred upon our Ma
tional banner, and placed themselves
in a state OF open revolt thereby,
That every man who engaged therein
or aided and abetted those so en-
gagged, lost whatever of political
rights with which he was clothed,
none can successfully contradict.
This, you will remember, was done by
their own act, not by any act of the
Government. If, in appealing to
arms, they expected to clOthe them.
selves with rights more potent and
congenial under another Government
of their own making, it was a risk al
their own peril. 1t was a divestipg o.
vested rights by their own wrong, anC
their failure was their misfortune
not their fault. We then find the
Government to whom they owed al
legiance, exercising a power express
ly, if L may, for the sake of entir'
fairness and for argument, say, cede(
to it by the States themselves, in sup
pressing this rebellion, and again de
handing allegiance. In plain ant
imploring terms the Government, a
a guardian, called to them time ant
again to lay down their arms and re
turn; that no institution should b.
destroyed, no right Invested. Thil
was not done. But the answer wa!
the advance of fighting columns
That they again, preferring battle
rather than to cease and accept thes
propositions; that they would risl
the chances of gaining independence
rather than tarnish their fame by &C
cepting the proposals, was an act Q
their own, and their own risk-no
that of the Government. They di
not cease their battling. There was n
pause in the rumbling and rafting q
their engines of war. Alter that, no
only to assert a lawful and heretofor
recognized authority over thes
States so wavering, but to preserv
what was left of the Government, tn
carnival of blood continued
AS a var measure, a mean
Of weakening the enemy an
of strengthening the Government
the Proclamation of Emancipatio
went forth to act and operate upo
the slaves, held and recognized by al
as property. But that is outside
Then comes the point of surrender
And right here l must state my ow
+ views Ia opposition to the general
accepted manner of receiving thu
term. 1t was a surrender, but not {
their own choosing. 1t was a u
render, but not a laying down Of the
arms. 1t was a surrender, by reaso
of their arms having been wreste
from their hands by the armed force
of the Government. If when Gale
upon by the Government, and at
time they could further have carrie
on the war with the least shade
} of hope for success. there woul
have been j laying down of arm
| then the Governmentwould have bee
obligated to have freed no slave, d
vested them of no civil or politics
right under her direct contract. Tn.
l they saw proper not to do, and the
surrender afterwards was uncond
!; tional. They had Invested then
selves-by no acts of theirs had the
applied for reinvestment. The parole
given, 1t will not be argued, reinves
ed them. 1t sheltered them corp,
, really from interruption, but granite
them no political power. It may |
asked, then of what effect, qui bonun
J | Will but refer you to the FEEDER,
docket, and l ask you to find an il
! dictment against Robert z. Lee.
| is not there; and why? His paro
. was a bar to anything of the kin
We find, then, here at this point, IL
| armies disbanded, and the soldi
, reverting to the citizen, nothing 10
2 save his political rights. Now, VIII
must be t perfect this happy rel