St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1871-01-27

c shown, less than thirty days before, ac
n ceptcd and qualified for office unde
l Abraham Lincoln. lie now appears il
the hall OF the convention at Richmond
: in full association with rebels at tie rcbt
capital, and Il Mr.. Janney, the presiding
; officer, addressed him in words of cheal
: and tulsomc rhetoric, to which Gen. LIE
responded rs follows, while the oaths o
perjury and treason still hung upon hi
lips:
"-W. President a!d Gentlemen OF M
Co"e"tion :-Profoundly impressed will
the solcmniiy Of the occasion for which
| must say, L was not prcparcd-I accy,
tie position assigned me Gy yow lrutahy.
would much shave preferred had youl
choice fallen on an ADLER man. Trusting
in Almighty God, an approving con
science, and the aid of my fellow citizens
devote myself to the service Of my ma,
tive state, in whose behalf alone | will
ever again draw my sword"
This is iniamy, blasphcmy, and trca
son made complete. The dogma of state
allegiance, aS superior to national au-
thority, was the crock ON which he
split" Floundc,ing there, he went ia
the bottom.
y few days after, when virginia had
fifty THOUSAND men under arms within
her border, he received the iolowin" or
der from the head Of The Confederate
army:
[CorY.
"MoNrGoMEEr, May 10Th, l7Gl.
ITO MAJ.-GEN. RoEEIr +. LIE:
To prevent confusion, you will assume
pntrol Of the forces of the Confederate
States in Virginia, and assign them TO
such duties as you may Indicate until
further orders, for which this shall he
your authority.
:" SIGNED.
81. i. WALKER, See. Of War"
l have thu, been particular in quutin.
the order of ;hc rebel secretary of war to
show ihu Gen. LIE did not conline HIM
self 10 the command, as has been allc.ed,
of Virginia troops; lut accepted and
followed the orders of the Confederate
authority.
In grouping loge hcr these events and
their dates, it is seen that General Lee
enjoyed peculiar advantages at Wash
ington TO possess himself of the plans
and purp ->cs of the administration TO
defend itself, ~ well as 10 put down the
Rebellion, and did not leave the service
Of the United States until he was able to
bctray those plans nnd that confidence to
the enemy. And | now declare that
such apo ta>y is the cIearcst case of trea-
son, 10 Which perjury was added. Cases
Of perjury alone have sent many Il man
to prison and dark dungeons, when the
crime injured chiefly himself. But here
is Il case Of the chicfcst of sinners, where
his crimes led 10 untold losses, both of
blood and treasure. And to these crimes
of apostasy, perjury, and treason may be
added the ba>c>t lnnratItudc: TOR he turn
cd his back upon Il country which had
honurel him; upon her schools, which
had freely educated him; and upon u
commander of whom he himself said in
his last letter to him, Il am indebted to
no one 50 much as yourself for uniform
kindness and consideration"
In these days Of "amncsty," what
shall be SAID of such criminals |, am
ncsty due 10 men of this class Shall
TO man be hung for the highest c:imcs,
while We condemn TO death, and thea
after death coniiscatc the bodies OF those
poor wrctchcs who take the life of only
one man
General Lee captured one old man,
who struggled with me in krnSas to beat
back the power of slavery from that ITS
own chosen battlefield, at time when
its invasion there mean, the surrender OF
the wholc public domain and the suhju-
CATION of the cniirc National Govern
mcnt. Old John Brown, with sixteen
white m.n and five heroes, on the 10Th
of October, 1859, captured IIarpcr's
Ferry and terrified the Whole state of
Nirginll. Gen. Robert +. Lee, with Il
regiment of marines, captured him, after
Il fight, ''whllc Governor Wise put the
whole state upon 4 war footing" For
tins that old man was taken from
Charlestown Jail to the galows, and
there died br;,vely. And shall no man
die 10 make treason odious and vinli-
cate the authority Of law! Then let the |
gallows perish from thc land Ii the
chief of sinners can 20 unwhipprl OF
Justice, in The name OF impartial justice
| plead for the least offenders.
And, while amnesty is already OK cad
ed TO the rebels generally, L protest
against its apple .ti,n to those who added
perjury To ireascn.
lie resolutions introduced TO tie :, n
ate by Mr., McCrecry, of Kentucky, have,
to my mind, a signiic ,ncc which has
been but little commented upoa. 1t was
So astounding II proposition TO restore
Arlington, with its sleeping dead, 10 the
late rebel owners, AMI was resisted with |
such patriotic icrvor in the senate, that
even the mover desired to Withdraw il.
Still, its lesson should not be forgotten.
But two years more remain of the ad- |
ministratIon of President Giant. And |
then it is graveiy proposed in some
quarters to supcrse1e him by Il triumph
of the democratic party.
Then let it everywhere be known that
this measure OF McCreery's is the first
installmcnt OF Il series OF the same sort
AS he is soon TO retire from the senate.
he had no better opportunity than to
embrace the present mOment. 1t was Il
little premature for the endorsement of
his party now. But AS truly as
Coming eventi their shadows Jeiorc,'
so certainly will this class of measures be
pressed upon Congress and the country if