Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1868-01-02

of slavery. half million of men iav
sprung to arms in the former cause, an
more than thrice that pumber in the latte
The four millions o. slaves, for whom nc
even the most sangiiine hoped to see cmar
cipation during the presens century, are nc
only free but hold in their hands, by tn
refusal of the late rebels 10 cooperate wit
them in the work ,of reconstruction. th
political power of the South, Virginia, ,th
great mother of Presidents, and market G
slaves, reorganizes her State government
on the basis of that rightful political equal
ity between slave and master, which Jel
ferson, her most distinguished statesman
was one of the first and foremost 10 assert
A political parry. not then in existence, ,ha
prevailed In every Northern State, rule'
the destinies of the Union for six year,
overthrown opposing institutions by dc
! crees as revolutionary OF rantecedent condi
tions as were ever issued 10y Car or Empe
ror, and enforced their changes by armie
as powerful as were swayed by an Alex
andcr, Cesar, or Napoleon, and is now re
constructing the Union on a basis of uni
versal suffrage, which secures the ascend
ancy of the same party, and of its ideas
ultimately, not merely in the transien
politics. but in the fundamental constitution
and laws of the lately slavehoiding States
Never before in the worlds history ba
there been so sublime vindicalion Of Oh,
power of an idea to mould parties, revolu
tionize governments, raise and mass armies
overthrow institutions, and change IL,
social destinies Of races. In the fulles
sense our great struggle war, Oh both sides
a war of ideas Though IL took the form
So f.x.sx-
government and rebellion. yet the rebellion
was iiseli government, as thoroughly
representative, and as skilfully organized
as the national government IL represented
the powerful ideas of the superiority of the
white race over the black of the greater
fiiness of an ar;s tocratic class 10 govern
OF the material ager4ndizement and pecu-
mary profit OF slavery; OF the sovereignty
OF each State Of the dread and supposed
danger OF setting free four millions of un-
tutored slaves, and giving them rights APP
prOximatIng those of their late masters, II
ro fully equal: and of a Christianity and
code of morals and ethics in which the
above ideas were assumed to be sound. and
in the light of which the freeing of slave
WIS on "A par with stealing n horse, and
general emancipation was deemed To he
wholesale massacre. Thcss ideas inspired
The pro slavery party. prevailed throughout
the Democracy, were endorsed in the cleo
tions of Pierce and Buchanan. and were
represented IN various degrees in IsG0, in
the nominations not only of Breckenridge
and Lane. but also OF Douglas ard John
son, and of BELL and Everett. In the ag-
gregste they polled larger popular vote
than that cast for Mr.. Lincoln. But on the
question, how these ideas could best be
made TO prevail. their upholders were di-
v;ded. The Breckenridge Lane wing said
.'Out of the UniCn." The other two fac
TORS replied, ''No; in the Union," But
otherwise the ideas that underlay the three
parties were the same.
The measures of the Republican party
were confined TO preventing the extension
OF slavery. by annexation. or in the Terri
tories. But their IDEAS were deeper, viz:
that the respects in which men are unequal.
are Incidental and secondary, compared
with the great and important senses in
which they are equal; that slavery is
wrong, unchristian. Improbable. quarrel
some, tyranDical. anti-repGblican, and bar
barous; that ii quences freedom Of speech
and of the press, suppresseS education, per
peiuates ignorance, and promotes brutality;
that il wastes land, oppresses labor de
bauches stsiosmanship, and undermines
republican government that il is Unsuitable
in lis requirements. deceptive in its sup
posed profits, Improbable and inhuman.
Thai while, for the sake Of the other in
terests involved in The Union, and peace,
il might be tolerated, i, was only as we
would tolerate the serpent coiled around
our child, fearing 10 strike il dead, not for
the sake of the serpent. but or the life it
endangered. Abolitionists and Republicans
differed only in the intensity with which
they held these ideas. These were the ideas
which obtained the sscendencyin the elec-
ton OF Lincoln. Ii was i'm vain. therefore
that Republicans pointed tOthe moderation
of their platform. The South looked be-
bind their platform, and grasped correctly
their fundamental idea, that slavery was
wrong. with this idea i'm the ascenden-
cy.' said they. platforms will advance
from the limitation TO the abolition of the
wrong" Doubtless they saw truly. Mr.
Sewarl had said at Cleaveland. many years
before, slavery must be abolished, and
you aud must do it," Mr. Lincoln en-
dorsed the doctrine OF the irrepressible con-
liict. Ii may be claimed that the anti
slavery idea barely sufiiced to elect Lin
coin, and that the idea which mustered
into the field the armies of the Union. was
the love of thu Union. and not hostility 10
slavery. This is true. But as the anti
slavery idea had first 10 obtain ascendency
in the government before slavery would
seek Ia destroy the Union, il was, after ALL
the prior triumph Of the anti-slavery idea
that arrayed the Union sentiment on the
side Of freedom. Until this triumph the
whole force of the mere Union sentiment,
in the Northern States. had been devoted
to securing concessions to the demands Of
slavery. The first political crisis of The
North. known as the Great Northern Up
rising. consisted in the accession of the
Union sentiment to the anti slavery scnfi-
ment, and their agreement to fight shoulder
la shoulder. This was characterized by
the noble stand taken by Douglas. b. T..
Butler, Daniel S. Dickinson, Edwin NJ.
S,antofi. John "A. Logan, Andrew johnson,
John A. Dix. General W. T. Sherman, ID.
L. Sickles; and large wing of the Democ-
racy, whose Unionism had previously led
them into concilliaiory policies towards
slavery
i Upon the accession of what were styled
the ''War Democrats To the Union cause.
tie allied Republican Union parties carried
on the war during the first two years The
Secession party of the South received a
similar accession from the previously Union
sentiment of that section, including such
staunch original opponents of secession as
A. III Stephens. Gilmcr. John Bell, Foote,
and. indeed, nearly every prominent South
ern Unionist except John nj. Bolts. In
both the Union and the rebellion. while the
candidates selected for the Presidency rep
resented the distinctive idea of their res
pective sections, Mr. Lincoln representing
freedom. and Davis, slavery, the candidates
for Wee President roa both sides were
chosen for'their UnionisIh, Of as represent
ing on behalf of each side The reluctance,
rather than the energy, with which il en-
tered into the contest In both the Union
and the Confederacy. also. The party oppo-
sing The war was compelled, by over
whelming pressure and force. TO cloak its
real sentiment of hostility to the war under