Bloomsburg democrat. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1867-1869, 1868-08-19
Insulting the Soldiers,

1
The venal journals of the Radical party
pretend to believe that a large majority
Of the soldiers engaged in the recent war
will vote for their candidates. Their asser.
ton Of such belief is gross insult to the
intelligence Of every man who entered the
Federal army. 1t practically telling them
that they were 20 stupid that they did not
know what they were fighting for. We do
not know soldier who does not scout the
idea Of having taken up arms for any un.
lawful or reasonable purposes, and any one
capable Of reading the Constitution knows
that the acts and purposes of the managers
Of the party which has made Grant its
candidate are not only tyranuical, but they
are gross violations Of that supreme law
which every soldier has sworn to support
A more fragrant cheat was never practised
by political demagogues than that which
the Radical leaders resorted to in order to
get men to enter the army. All their pub.
lished declarations Of principles were con.
servative, and they constantly declared
their devotion to the Union now they as.
scrt that to establish negro equality at the
point Of the bayonet, and to get sham elect.
oral votes for their party in southern States,
is restoring the Union. Will they pretend
that this is what the soldiers understood by
Union when they shouldcred muskets to fight
for it? No honest man, who has we'll.
defined idea Of the difference between free
dom and military despotism, will vote for
Grant. 1t is certainly no compliment to a
soldier to intimate that he engaged in a
civil war from tho mere desire to gain mill
tary glory, without regard to the justice of
the cause for which he fought; and to say
that it was lawful or just to make war upon
the southern States for the purpose Of abol-
ishing negro slavery is, in effect, to init
mate that men are utterly ignorant of the
bond Of Union which held our States
together. There was but one object which
any one could honestly have in view in
fighting southern rebels, and that was to
compel obedience to the constitutional au-
thority of the government. All who entered
the Federal army, and fought for any other
object, were murderers, and not true SOL
diers.
1t is now plain to every one that the
Radical party did not wage war for any
lawful purpose. There is no legal authority
for inaicting any penalty upon State, nor
upon any class of citizens. Rebels were
personally responsible for what they did,
and could not justly be punished until they
we're tried by a jury. Grant, in accepting
the nominations for the Radicals, and in
exercising illegal military power, has en-
dorsed their acts, and placed himself in the
attitude Of rebel against the lawful au-
thority Of the government. The deception
which he practiced towards the President,
and bis giving up the War Office to Stanton,
were such fragrant violations Of his duty
and his word that no honorable man can
excuse his conduct.
AhS ICuCiai 0iuiy WoS iiduc up VI ueU
taken from the various trades and profes.
sions, and the mechanic arts furnished a
large part of it. Many Of those who volun-
teered were young men full of enthusiasm,
and ambitious to take part in what they
were told was grand struggle to save the
Union; and very many of them have intel
ligence enough to rebuke the charlitans who
now practically declare that the purpose of
the war was to establish military despotis,u,
to enforce negro equality, and to subvert our
free Constitution.
There is nothing brilliant enough in the
career Of Grant to excite military enthusi.
asm and admiration. WELDING q mighty
power, he crushed smaller forces but it
was at the sacrifice of vast numbers of his
own troops, and no ose who follows his
path Of blood can avoid a shudder in COLI
templating the scene Of carnage through
which his armies waded
Neither enthusiasm nor patriotism will
induce soldiers to vote for Grant. t.-Daily
Naes.
AGENTS WANTED for the Standard and
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