The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1872-10-01
/" DEAD ISSUES

As speaker at Republican meeting few
and the part the Democratic party played in
that conflict, Democrat standing near re-
marked that he was "tallsing of dead issues
We think not. As long as anything remotely
favoring the sslost cause leads to manifesto
tions of the old spirit by those lately engaged
in rebellion, we hardly think the issues are
dead, and especially while Southern speakers
still try to fire tile Southern heart with hopes
of success in the future, as they have frequent
ly done in the present campaign. The fact is,
the Hiring tissues to-day between the Re-
publican and the Democratic party are old war
issues, or those flowing from their conse-
quences. The Democratic party wishes to
"shake hands across the bloody chasm," which
is but another way of uttering the old cry of
compromise" That party " comprised y ali
manhood out of it in trucking to the South
before the war, and its present position is a
continuation of its old policy. 1t is very easy
for men who are on the same side of the chasm
to shake hands, and that accounts for the lit
tie difficulty great many of the party have
in doing it. But the Republican party see no
use in such hand-shaking They see no neces-
sity for having chasm over which to shake
hands at ALL To shake hands over this chasm
is to say in effect that the sslost cause" is
equally honorable with that of the victorious,
and that we will equally honor the rebel with
the unionist. Itmcans that our soldiers mon,l-
ments should be pulled down, that the deeora-
ton of soldiers graves shall cease, that our
living and dead heroes should cease to be men,
toned, and that we should no more call trea-
son by its right name. Is not this in effect
what is asked2 The Republican party is OPP
posed TO this. It intends to honor the living
and the dead heroes of the nation--it intends
to continue to call treason crime. But it
also intends to forgive repentant rebels, and
to punish those who defy the nations laws and
outrage the rights of its citizens.
The South appealed to the sword as the ar
bitrament of its supposed wrongs 1t was de-
feated, and when at Appomattox the final blow
fell, it ought to have wholly surrendered, and
accepted the results of its own issue. Instead
a portion of the g fire-eaters determined to
continue secretly that which they had aban-
doned openly, and Northern men were perse-
cuted and driven out, and negroes matreated
and butchered. 1t was the duty of the Gov
eminent to protect these and to punish their
assailants, and for doing this, it has been
charged with desiring to establish military
despotism "a despotism which only attempt
ed to give to its citizens the right to "life
liberty and the pursuit of happiness And
for furnishing these men, the cry of "persecu-
ton and revenge " has been raised. 1t is with
these men, still full of rebel virulence and yio-
lence, that we are asked to shake hands. We
answer no. Let those formerly in rebellion
cease their unlawful acts, submit to the laws
of the country, and accept the defeat of the
Confederacy as a finality, and there is no
chasm to shake hands across Then the war
issues will be "dcad, " and not till then.