Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-01-25
THE RADICAL CRUsADE AGAfNsx
THE SOUTH.


control of Mr.. Lincoln immediately upon
his election, and bent as they were not
only upon destroying slavery, but of
breaking up the Union, if need be, to
control the Government, succeeded in en-
listing the people of the North of all
shades and opinion, with such singular
unanimity in support of war for car
rying out their plans and purposes. Be-
tween the election and the Inauguration
of Mr.. Lincoln a number of the ablest
and most influential journals that had
supported his election took bold and de-
cided ground in favor of letting such of
the Southern States as desired to with
draw from the Union do so, and bid them
20 in peace. This was not accepted by
those leaders who desired to break the
prosperity and power and humiliale the
people of the South and how they car
ried their point and with them the people
of the North is just beginning to be un-
dsrstood. Mr.. Thurlow Weed has
contributed an article TO the Feb
ruary number of the GALAXY which
throws food of light on this portion of
our history. The article which relates to
his interviews with Mr.. Lincoln, both at
Springfield, in the summer of 1860, and
in Washington, after his election to the
| Presidency and before his Cabinet wss
formed. OF the conversation that en-
sued between them, there is one, in parti-
cular, which shows the trick resorted to
for the purpose of enlisting the people at
the North in support of the war then
impending. The Baltimore Gazette
makes this synopsis of Mr.. Weeds con-
fessiOn: 1t now appears that Mr.. Weed
was the writer of the article in the Albany
Journal, which protested to explain the
policy aud purposes of the war. This
article tended 10 great measure 10 shape
the course of the Republican journals
1t took the ground that if war broke out
between the North aDd the South il would
be conducted, on the part of the former,
simply for the preservation of the Union,
and not for the abolition of slavery. sit
main aimed that the Radical Abolition
lists were playing into the haCds
of the disunion leaders, and
that both would become re-
spOnsible for the civil war into which we
were then drifting" Its object as Mr..
Weed subsequently explained to Mr.. Lin
coin, was to engage The support of all
classes of the Northern people in the
struggle, and he was satisfied that but for
the success of this appeal to the conser-
vstive sentiment at the North, ''lhe
Republican party would have been fatal
ly divided" He adds: 81 believed then,
as | know now, that by insisting that the
war was prosecuted TO maintain the Gov
ernment and preserve the Union, the
Democratic masses, with some Of their
leaders, would remain loyal; while, on
the other hand, if the whole Republican
party proclaimed it q war for the abolition
of slavery, united South would prove
too strong for a divided North The
''cry" thus set afloat was echoed
by the Republican press, and the
deceit was kept up by prominent
Republicans, both in and out of
Congress, for nearly two years after
the conflict had actually commenced. If
Mr.. Weed, and the party to which he
acted as fugeman, had been sincere in the
declaration thus put forth, they would
have not only been entitled to credit for
the sagacity with which they struck upon
the means of narrowing the boundaries
of ''The Rebellion" and took from it
some Of its most important clements of
strength; but they would also have been
justly worthy of praise for their opposi-
ton to Raddicalism, and for the moder-
alton of their views. IL, moreover, the
Northern delegates to the Peace Congress
had been sincerely actuated by similar
motives, the Southern States, then stand
ing on the defensive and willing to listen
10 any terms that, would admit of
an honorable adjustment of the
quarrel, might, without much diff
Guilty, have been brought back into
Union without the shedding of a single
drop of human blood. But neither Mr..
| Weed nor his party associates were hon
est in declaring that the sole purpose Of
the war ''was TO maintain the Govern
mcnt and preserve the UniOn.n They did
not want the Union preserved except at
the cost of perpetuating, for long series
OF years, their own party ascendancy,
and at the further cost of weakening and
disorganizing the South by the destruc>
ton of slavery. They knew that if the
Southern members of Congress, who had
| vacated their seats, were to come back
again, the opposition would have a ma
| iority III that body, and the schemes of
the Radicals would thus be bafllcd.
The aim of the Republicans was, there
fore, whilst protesting that they entered
upon war 'for the preservation of the
"UniOn," TO keep the Southern States
out of the Union, and, consequently, their
Representatives out of Congress: for
only by securing paramount influence
in Congress could the conspiracy against
the South be perfected and the abolition
of slavery be secured. The alleged pur-
poses of the war, so ostentatiously par
AIDED by Mr.. Weed, and SO loudly pro-
claimed by others, were, from the be-
ginning, false and hyPOcritical. What
the Radicals wanted was powcr-powcr
TO control the Government power to
humble and plumber and Cypress the
South, if successful in the con-
| tllct; or 10 assure separation
| from that hated section, if other