New-York tribune., 1869-06-24
STEPHENS. Lug GUBRLOUS.

Mr.. Alex. II. Stephens is in poor health.
Things have not gone well with him of late.
He tried hard to prevent Secession, but failed.
Then he tried still harder to make Secession
success, and failed again. Then he sought Re-
construction on the same White basis that he
had commended as the chief glory of the Con-
federacy but he met with a collapse here also
Lastly he has written History of 1.-The War
"between the States" designed to prove that
Secession was a constitutional right, and
that the Southern rebels were true to 1.-THE
Union as it was" which the North warred
upon and overthrew. And even this cannot be
pronounced a decided success.
Still, Mr.. Stephens finds writing more salts
factory than fighting, and therein he evinces
perspicacity, and still he insists that he and
his kind are the defenders of "the true princi-
"ples of the Constitution" which they did not
succeed in repudiatng. Yet he no longer pro-
poses to enforce his construction of that in
strument by grape and musketry, but says;
"The only proper remedy for all existing evils and the
greater ones which appear I'm the future at the ballot
box The great Object with me IN the remnant OF my days
truths and principles are essential for the
OF our institutions handed down from the fathers. To
this course, the future Of my fe is devoted And, not
wthstandng all that Is said and has been said about the
Rebellion and the dsOyaty or the Rebels &C, Know
Of but one test OF true loyalty IN TINS country, and
that loyalty TO the principles OF the Constitution OF the
United States. In this, and IN answering devotion to
them yield TO man that ever breathed the vital air
| Of heaven"
MIR. Stephens here ignores the fact that one
| of our institutions rs handed down from the
fathers-Human Slavery to wit-has shared
the fate of the Rebellion which it melted.
| Though not particularly lovely or pleasant
in their lives, they in death were not and
| could not be, divided. But they have left here
-Four Millions of American People whom they
did their utmost to retain in lifelong bondage
and the question of their political and civil
status had to be met Their late masters said,
"Hand them over to uS-we understand them
and are used them-we will take care of them,
"as we always did, if you leave them unre-
servedly in our hands" The North didn't see
it, but insisted that honor and good faith re-
quired that the yictOrs in our late struggle
should not give up fifth of their number to
the tender mercies of those who considered
that fifth very good for slaves and good for
little else. Hence the struggle Of the last four
years, which, IN Mr.. Stephcns's view, has re-
suited so calamitously and done such deadly
harm to the Constitution. Mr. Stephens is
growing old, and is unwell; yet We hope he
may live to think better of all this. We know
| that
"An looks yellow to the jaundced eye;"
yet we trust that Mr. Stephens will yet realize
that Slavery is not now the Constitution, if it
ever was, and that our common country, despite
| her sore trials, is marching onn to n broader,
| surer freedom and To ampler securities for
personal and public rights than those he so
fondly yet weakly depores.