New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1872-08-29

period. 1t was simply a declaration which
those accepted, | suppose, and were glad TO
accept, who wished to rid themselves of the
Union; that they might so ont in peace ;
that they would not be pursued; that war
would not follow them out; and this did n
great deal to prevent resistance on the part
of the Union men of the South at the time,
and the establishment of the de J;,cf0 GOV
eminent to which they were subjected"
And further on, Mr.. Blair said: " Words
were never uttered more fatal than these to
the peace of the country. MIR. stephens was
defeated in his effort to prevent secession IN
Georgia by few votes only, and nothing IS
more certain than that these were obtained
by Mr.. Greeley's declaration that secession
was rightiul and would be peaceablc. have
been informed that these declarations were
read in the Georgia convention rs full reply
to the warning Of Mr.. Stephens. The re-
iusal Of Georgia would undoubtedly have ar
rested the movement. Who, then, is more
directly responsible than Mr.. Greeley and
those who acted with him at the North for
the blood which has drenchcd this land :
And who is more directly responsible than
Mr.. Greeley for the yindictivc spirit which
animated the Democratic party in the pro-
scription which has pursued and is still pur-
suing the whole people of the South ?'
If the advice Of Mr.. Greeley had been
adopted at that time, if the Southern States
had been allowed to go in peace, it is very
certain that slavery would never have been
abolished The four millions of cOlOrcd pcO-
pie who are now free would be slaves. II
the Southern States had been allowed TO
secedc and to form a new cOnfederacy, the
chief cornerstone of which was to DO slavery,
according to the declaration of Mr. Stephens
then slavery would still be in full force and
81, Il.
is because the advice Of Horace Greeley,
urged from day to day and from week to
week upon the people of this country, from
tho 9Th of November, 1860, until the time of
the firing upon Fort Sumter, was not adopted.
| GREELEY AS \ sECEsSIONIsT on PRINCIPLE.
But, again, Mr.. Greeley made that declara-
| ton OF the right Of secession as one of rrin-
ciplc. lie has never taken it back. 1t stands
! there recorded, not once, but scores of times.
from his pen in the columns of his ncwspa-
per- According to that doctrine, Mr.. Gree
ley, if he were elected President of the Uni
ted States, would be bound to let the South
ern States go again in peace, should they de-
mand it. Should he be elected, and the
Southern States again assert the right of Sc
cession, he is bound by his repeated dcclara-
tons to let them go.
GREELEY BOUND TO INDEMNIFY TIE RE
BEIS FOR THEIR LOSSES.
But, again, if Mr.. Greeley was honest in
those convictions, if he was right in them.
then the nation is bound to pay the South
for all her losses, because if the South had
right to Secede we clearly had no right to
prevent her seeding. Coercion upon our
part was wrong, and all the losses that she
sustained in her slave property, property
taken and destroyed by our armies, we are
bound to pay, not only according to princi-
pies OF law, but principles Of morals. If the
nation does wrong, and individuals suffer
from that wrong, she is just as much bound
to pay for it in law and in morals as if wrong
had been inflicted by private individual.
And, according to the doctrine of Mr.. Gree
ley, those States had right, an inalienable
right, to withdraw from this nation and if he
is correct in it, and he has never acknowl-
edged his error then the United States is
bound to pay the South for the losses she
sustained. We insist on England paving Us
Tor the damage inflicted by the Alabama {?
why? because we insist that England al
lowed the Alabama to escape in violation of
her duties, in violation of our rights. Ac-
cOrding to the broad doctrine enmciated by
Mr.. Greeley, time and time again, this Gov
ernment is bound to pay the South for the
losses she sustained by the war, because we
were in the wrong in compelling her to remain
in the Union, and she was but asserting
right in attempting to get ont of it.