The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1868-02-01
the highest honor and undoubted integrity.
Hear what he saws:

fIt is said by some tuot IL was hnuo ~ Aoop
down rebellion. What have the people of the
south to commences and carry on q rebellion with,
Our slaves are all set free our fields barely Guilt
waited under the new system of labor, and many
of them grown up in briars and weeds since eman-
cinxtion and almost every thing in state of d.
lsnidation and decay The cry for bread which
comes up from almost every hill and valley in
the state has scarcely ceased ringing in our ears,
and it was emily hushed by the liberal donations
from the benevolent of the north and west. No
people of the old world, in any of their long
and desolating wars ever longed for peace more
than we do. We wish to be left free to act for
ourselves, and free from the intermeddling of
those who do not live among us, but come here
to foment discord and speculate upon our troub-
les"
Sir, this is the language of one who knows
the white people of the south, and speaks
for them.
And why, sir, why should they not desire
peace? For that rebellion, into which in
an evil hour the radicals of the south plung-
ed them, they have been punished already by
the sacrifice of their slave property, valued
at three or four thousand million dollars by
the sacrifice of more than three-fourths of all
other personal property, probably two thou
sand millions more by the sacrifice OF their
public and private CREDITS at least a thous-
and millions more; by the depreciation of
the value of all their real estate at least Is
per cent, amounting probably to more than
two thousand million dollars matchmaking
in all sacrifice of property, credits, and
values in the southern states alone of at least
nine thousand million dollars.
But there is another bloody and terrible
page in this aeeount,-a page in account with
death. 1t is estimated there have persisted
in battle by disease, exposure, or other
causes incident to the war, at least 300,O
able bodied white men of the south. l take
no account ofthe unutterable Anguish of mil
lions of crushed and bleeding hearts. Nc
language can express, no figures measure
that. For that rebellio the white men OF
the south have been most terribly punished
Nine thousand millions of values are gone,
lost forever Three hundred thousand
able bodied white men of the flower and
strength of the south now lie In their bloody
or premature graves! Great God! Is not
this punishment enough? Must we go far
Their? Must we now punish the white men
of the south by placing them under the
domination of half civilized Africans? And
in order to do that shall we punish our
selves by giving over to stolid and british
ignorance the political control of one fourth
of the states, and, it may be, under the con
troll of the army, the balance OF power in the
United States? Shall we Africanize the
south and Mexicanize the whole republic
| know these measures of congress have
done much to wound, nothing to heal. Yet
Notwithstanding all that congress has done
to embitter their hatred of the radical policy
there is neither thought. nor wish, nor hope
| to restore slavery, nor to separate from the
government all evidence proves the contra
~.
In the whole rebel army which surrender
ed | challenge any senator TO point me 10 8
single instance in which rebel officer has
violated his parole; or TO a Single man, o
any position or prominence at the south, who
after taking the oath of allegiance, has viola
ted his plighted faith.
No man can more deeply feel than | DE-
the great and monstrous folly and crime o
that rebellion. whic brought so much ofag
ony and blood upon all parts of our beloved
land. which robbed us OF our sons and dear
est kindred, and threw shade of sorrow
over our hearts which will never pass away
until they cease TO beat. But now that BLOOD
has ceased 10 flow nov that three years o
peace have elapsed now that the whole
south has surrendered, and every interes
they have or can hope for Is to be found IL
the Union and under the constitution nov
that they have IN good faith pledged anew
their allegiance. and desire to join with III
IN rebuildingg the waste places overruu by
the desolating war now that they have, IL
fact, ceased to be rebels, why shall we con
| tinue to denounce them as rebels, and d.
all in our power to compel them to be rebel
and enemies forever? Is that the way Il
| restore prosperity? Is that the course o
IL. -.
nent peace?
Sir, let me put the EXTREMIST case. Sup
pose that these states of the south before tht
war had been foreign states and that we hat
conquered them by arms would not wise
statesmen adopt the policy of Cancellation
Would not they treat them as friends and
| make them fellow citizens ct the earliest pos
sible moment? How much more earnestl,
should we adopt that policy, because from
the beginning we have always declared tina
our purpose was not to subjugate, but It
maintain the Union with the equality ant
| rights of the states unimpaIred.
We had a war with Mexico. resulting il
the acquisition of people and territory
| By treaty the people were made citizens a
once, with the rights of citizens. We hav,
| had wars with Englishmen but when tn
| bloody strife was over, and peace had come
what course did our great ancestors pursue
We all know the war of the revolution was
civil war. During the strife, coniscatiol
| and disiraDchisement were the order of tn,
day. But when peace came, and the,
| sought to lay the foundations of the republic
broad and deep. what did they do? Do 20,
find in the constitution they formed, or tn
laws they passed under it, any test-oaths
any bills of attainder, any military recon
structon bills? No, sir. No; they were
too great and too wise. They had too much
faith in man, and liberty, and truth, and Got
for that. On the contrary, they declared
that no bills of attainder, no er post fact
laws should be passed no man not in tht
military or naval service should be subiec
to military trials under the arbitrary power o
the bayonet; and even for treason itsel
there should be no corruption of blood or for
fixture beyond the life of the guilty party
| and, furthermore, that no man should be con
victed except upon presentment bya grand
| jury, and after fair trial. confronting hi.
accusers, by the verdict of a jury of his peers
| In the declaration of independence, too
even IN the midst of war, reason remained
supreme over passion. They were equal tt
the grand occasion. In one of its sublimes
sentences they declared they would hold tn,
people of England, their fellow-countrymen
with whom they were then engaged in civi
war, as they did the rest of mankind, "ene
mics IN war ; in peace, friends" If we can
not equal them, may we not endeavor to fol
| low their example?
| Concluded in our next