Wilmington journal., 1871-07-07
From the Augusta (Ark.) Bulletin.
JOHN QUINCY ADAMS.
Rational 4Eaaues-Letfer OF Hos. %0hn
: Qusney Adams to J. II. Trezsv Esq.

Rational fsauss--Lesser OF Hos. 1ohn
!. Quincy Adams J. n. Trezsvant, Esq.
Some short time since we wrote o letter
to this gentleman upon political matters,
exercising. among other things, the ap
prebension that. with Grsnts vast patron
age, most unscrupulously used, he would
not yield the P:esid dential chair. even II
defeated before the people in 1872 and
that our Republic, like it's predecessors of
Old: is so rapidly drifting into the chan
nels of corruption, that the people, In
despair. may look to one military leader
as the only ans of saving them from the
utter ruin threatened by another. This
was the general scope of our letter, to
which the following is a reply. It viii! be
seen that Mr.. Adams, who represents the
auti-RadicaI party of New England. on
dorses the Valandigham policy; and the
question with thu South is, Can she save
herself if she throws off her friends in New
England, Pennsylvania, Ohio and the
other STATES ? They ''accept the situa-
tion. :" not because 1t is right and just, but
bee 4nse it is imposed upon them by
force they cannot resist. Read Mr. Ad-
am,'s letter:
QUISCY, MASS, Jaoe 5, 1871.
DEAR SIR--I cannot pass over, silently,
letter which eraufes me as much as
yours, whi Ii L received to-day ani yet
l feel shy of spe4kiag TO yoa or any Gill
zen Of the ''subject States" [ dislike 10
earn the retort-"Ob, it is very easy 10
preach but suffer as We haze and then
tell Us how you feel, and we will listen -
1 do try to take it home to myself and I
do not doubt that, in similar circum<tan
ces, 1 should be today au ''unrepeE;ant
rebel"-sore, angry, beat n aud defiant
And with me it would doubtless have been
as it has been with you, that ''the t.nder
mercies Of reconstruction had been harder
to bear than alt the horrors Uf iavaa!ve
war;" l should have been CALLED by mis-
government, robbed by ion ported kn4vury
of the pittance which the wGr had spared 4;
exaspersted 10y wilful and persistent mis-
representation aud cruelty condemned 10
hopeless impotence for the imputed guilt
OF coward, crimes l abb LOrred. / should
have been condemned, too, to hold my
personal liberty al the nod of Il merccnGry
c2rpet-b.2ger or tho wbim of military
satrap. I say that fear I shouli Eave
been en "irreconeiiable, In such a case,
l think [ ebcu!d be sakv; but know 1
should be silly if l yielded TO the feeling.
For, whence must my relief como ii my
last estate is not to become wOrse than the
FL st Is there a man outside an ssy lum
who thinks that by such course the cost
Ii
Ii by the North, believe me that the ex-
pertinent of secession has sat SIZED
US that no cause is worth a civil War.
That war has confirmed ueyond a
shadow OI turning, tie de stiuy
which decreed that there shall be but one
onfedelated people of The n yrth American
Union. No. Ret Lellou5 1 might be; but
Weak enoagu TO await the resurrection Of
s .cession | do not th nix could be. You
| I
mine are oi oae blood; we we're once ''fe!-
low citizens"; and tho olG-time kindness
must linger Jet. in sros. Oar fathers
were ''brcthren,' and that mus, count for
| something. TIE whole political problem
OF the failure tUrnS upOa the answer to the
question-''Shai we 1--we together u,
| lends or enemis ?" Now, the whole in
ecnal policy ii the present Admiiisra-
tion say s war. Reconstruction meant war;
and the KQ-Klux bail declared var. 4hls
Union is nOw held together by Iorce.-
Cert4inly, If this is to be permanent it
would have been better to have parted at
first. If The struggle to cast ou5 slavery
overthrow tho Constitution, VIA chance
l. there tor free" government, ii tho
North is TO rule the South South Car
lima l. to day the most shame ees parody
o. repu ub!ican iustisntious since republican
Il NE b, rode all The nations of tue an
C ent world, put tbe ewJ d to their throats,
stripped them bare. ana then lacked words
to laud the lovelinees Of liberty. You
cannot be subject, and We belong free.
Inc un rammel 6 exercise Of local self
government By the people of the States
IL the salt which preserves our whole
system. Take that away and our frame
of 20 lty will rapidly rot into despoiism.
Therefore it is, that, not as a partisan,
but wholly as fellow citizen, L trust that
all the good citizens Of the seeded States
will frankly and honestly accept the revo-
tutiOaary changes which have been forced
upon the Constitution, and with them
cheerfully adopt tte new relations ofaml-
ty and political aud civil equality towards
the emanci pated class which these changes
involve And therefore am glad when |
see the noble spirit of your letter perVai-
ing the Southern people as il does, des
pite the nlaignlty OF a partisan press, while
the steillng tnso of Mr. VallandIg ham has
reformed the NOrthern Democracy. Aud
Il matters not what man may DO chosen to
lead US so long as his heart is large enough
to hold his Whole cOuntry ; his soul brave
enough to embrace a Coufedera as a
brother, and his platform wide enough for
every American cit'z n to stand upon. To
compass ibis eud something of sacrIfi ;e is
rs q1lred of Us all /; much OF self control is
d. manded of the South. You aud all [
hear assure me that the attemj will be
made /; and If made honestly and in earn
est, it oanuct fail. Agun thanking you
for your letter, am,
Very re pectiully,
Your obedIent servant,
j. Q ADAMS.
10 j. L. IRRELEVANT, Esq, Augusta, Ark.