The weekly standard., 1870-07-27
Judge Them by their Acts.

The Democrats and Conservatives are now
raising a great hue and cry against Gov.
Holden because he has resorted to military
power to suppress lawlessness and bloodshed
ain this State. They hope by piteous appeals
to gain few votes for their sinking Shipp.
But they are mistaken. The people under
stand that Gov. Holden was as much op-
posed to calling out the military as any citi
zety ef the STATE, and did.so only after the
civil authorities had failed to bring assassins
to justice or to suppress violence.
The people of North Carolina look through
these flimsy appeals to the parties making
them. And what do they see. They see as
their leader Gov. Bragg. They remember
him as jeff Davis agent in this State to keep
the writ of habeas corpus suspended. They
feelingly remember that it was he who
ground the iron heel of merciless military
despotism into the necks of loyal North
Carolinians, and they venture to ask how
long has he been opposed to military power |?
He was not opposed to it when the Union
was to be destroyed, and loyalty to the ma
tiOn punished. Neither he or his party were
opposed to military rule when Federal
General governed this State and citizens
were tried by courts martial, for when our
only escape from military rule lay through
the acceptance of our present State Constitu-
tion, the Democratic Conservative party vo-
ted IN body against it, and thus exerted
themselves to the utmost to pcrpetuatc mill
tary rule. The people remember these
things and they think it impertincnce i'll
these demagogues to pratc against military
power especially when it is used to bring
murderers and assassins to justice.
When the govanment was to be destroyed
and a slaveocracs established, military pow
er was Il glorious thing with them. When
loyal North Carulinians were to be dragged
from their homes to fight for the immaculate
jeff Davis or 90 to rebel prisons, it Has just
the thing. When men who owned fifteen
negroes could stay at h' me. while poor men
were torn from their needy families by mcr-
ciless conscription, it was all right with Gov.
Bragg and his Democratic allies When
| the war was over, and the loyal and law
abiding people of the State were heartily
sick of military rule and anxious for res
toration of civil authority, the Democratic
party said no. The Democrats denounced
the men who framed the Constitution, and
pursued every man who favored its adop-
ton, with prescription and ostracism un-
parallel in the history of civilized nations.
The Democratic party sought by denuncia-
tion and prescription, to intimidate the
{ friends Of the q Cpnstitution. and thus fasten
military rule upon the people of the State
indefinitely.
And now, when q handful of militia is
called out to arrest murderers and assassins,
these consistent Democrats raise their hands
in holy horror. Their righteous indigna-
tion is aroused, and they use it as pretext
to make votes. But they will fail. They
failed when they stove to destroy the gov
ernn ent. They failed in their efforts to es-
tablish slaveocracy. They failed to crush
out of loyal hearts in North Carolina that
love of country for which they have ever
been distinguished. They failed in their
opposition to our present noble Constitu-
ton, and III their efforts to perpetuatc mill
tary rule in the State, and they will fail in
their present efforts to carry the State in
August.
The people will remember their acts in
the past and drive them from power for
ever