The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1871-08-03
OPENING THE CAMPAIGN. /.
DEMOCRATIC MEETING Al
81 ASHTABULA.
SPEECH OF 5! -
COL. GEO. W, McCOOK.

The first Democratic meeting of the
Campaign was held at sAshtabula on
Tuesday, July, 25th, and was well at
tended. The meeting was held in the
North Park. w. It. Hubbard, Esq,
presided and introduced Col. McCook
who addressed the people as follows; |;
It is more than ten years since the
gun at Sumpter plunged the country
into war, always terrible, but this in
its most hideous shape, a civil war.
We were told, and doubtless those
who told us believed it, that it was to
have it's limit, like promissory note,
in go days, and was to be won by q
levy of 5000 men, and at q cost much
less than that incurred by the Mexican
war. But this war, 'disapp pointing all
expectation in its duration, expenses
and sacrifices, at last came to an end,
as all wars must come, at the moment.
of exhaustion of the weaker combat
ant, in peace peace without a treaty.
1t was only States in revolt, and it was
only on this principle that the war
could have lasted a day, and upon this
theory there was no party with whom
we could contract; peace, too, ! will
admit for the argument, without con-
dition, although I do not forget, and
history will not allow us to forget, the
terms vouchsafed by Grant to Lee and
his soldiers g that they could depart
to their homes in peace, and never be
called in question for what he had
done 5before." Peace, then, without
condition : but at cost in conducting
the war which no nation had ever
spent in any war; and in addition
leaving behind it debt which no ma
ton except one ever aggregated so
large 8 one, and in that case by hestli-
tiles of 120l years; peace, after the
lapse Of years which made the hearts
of those who had son or brother there
yearii almost to breaking at the hope
of peace deferred. But monstrous as
has been the expense to us, and to
generations yet unborn, the burthen is
insignificant compared with that cost
not to be measured, for which time
brings no restoration, of the hundreds
of thousands buried on the battlefield, ,
alas so often in unknown graves and
of the hundreds of thousands, scarcely
more fortunate, who will bear honor
able and disabling wounds; and as
MANY more, broken in health by the
| SlCkA6SS- 1lhO q par .OSOA
our camps r. AIb ~ ,l51lA 5talSa s
But notwithstanding all these losses
the country was full of hope, and when
instead of breaking up into Guerilla
bands as so many feared, involving an
expense scarcely less than actual war,
we saw that army after army surren-
dered, then hope became assurance,
and from the heart of the nation there
sprang to all lips, the sublime words
of the Christian doxology 80" Praise
God from whom all blessings how.D--
Of course there were private griefs
which could not be assuaged and sor-
rows for which in this life there could
be no cure, but the sufferers were full
of patriotism, and their losses were
not thrust in to dampen the ardor of
those who were to receive husbands
and children back again to love and
life. assrss5 ,t,,.1s Igl.r.s e-s1 sIs r.s.fts,
To thenation it gave hope, nay trust,
that with peace, the ways of peace and
| her works would return, and-now
that, war the great waster. was ended,
| financial men felt that as the strain
upon. their resources was to cease, the
nation would soon recover from the
discredit which almost crippled our
| arms, and the merchant felt that busi-
ness was no longer to be a wild and
gambling speculation, but that the
laws of trade, untrammelled, were
/ once more to have sway, and the mer-
chantman who believed that it was
only Rebel cruisers like the alabama
and her consort which kept his ship
in port, or compelled him to transfer
to foreign flag, believed that the old
times were to return with the close of
the war, that he was to have his good
deck under him once more and salute
in every foreign port the flag of our
country, and feet of American ships
manned by American seamen. There
were men of intelligence, too, many
of whom Ihope are here to-day, when
passion had cooled, began to reflect
that legal, and especially constitutional
privileges were saved, that without
obedience to them there couldbe no
Il good government, who then, in the
4 zeal of their patriotic impulses for
measures they deemed necessary to
sustain the war, unconsciously. per-
haps cafelessly, committed themselves
to violations of the constitution and
of the very principles of civil liberty,
older than constitutions, which they
now repent, and for which they will
alone, by support of tho party which