The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-06-09


wAn--A REMARKABLE ARTICLE.
from the Christian Union. edited by the Rev.
Henry Ward Eeecher.I
1t was announced from Washington q
yeekugo that on Decoration Day the friends
# ali soldiers, Union or Confederate, lying
ntricd ut Arlington. might visit their
raves and adorn them with flowers. 1t
ecmcd that the cr;t Of good feeling had
,eaHy dawncd, and all wise and tender spirits
said '.Amen." But next day 1t was reported
hat a committee of the Grand Army OF the
Republic had straightway FASTENED to the
War Department to inquire who Is to con-
;rol the ground on that occasion, and to beg
hat the "in>ult" might be arerted. Varl-
JUS Journals Fastening also to condemn this
intended kindline>s, it seems worth while to
INQUIRE whether there IS any excuse Tor
withholding 50 simple courtesy.
We recognize, Of cour:e, In The protest OF
these gentleman Il staunch loyalty to their
notion of patriotism which Is in itself ad.
mirablc. Their mistake, lis 1t seems to us. is
a misapprchension Of the conditions of the
a,r, 10th past and present. They assert,
ind with truth. that after victory so dearly
ought us ours there must Ge no taniperilis
With the spirit which 50 nearly oyercamc us.
they also assert, and with error, that honor
,llcred to our enemies dead. or cOnctliation
extended TO them living, is such tampcriuS.
And here we take issue.
There are two ASPECTS of our late melan-
| choly war which we nf the North ought
; never to forget, AMI which, practically, we
hardly ever remember. One Is the tact that,
Is a community, we did consent to the ever
glt ~ x,LI IN
war was the lugicLland inevitable end. ours
was baScr sin than that OF the South, Tor
tue South Ind taught itself to believe tlat
slavery derived lis strength from the Bl0ie,
md it planted itself on the abstract right OF
the palriarchul Institution. Supple doe
tors of divii ily supplied it with scrip
ural arguments. The churches, most Of
hem ut least, did not hesitate to TEL
nv,i,,D it The whole South, religious
Y. was as sUlidly orthodox az it WAS
;olidly silvcolaiDy. In an enormous agri-
,ult,Ir:,I county. where the masses could
neither read nor write. and where, natural
is. the newspapers had almost no part III the
ducltiun ct the people, il was inevitable that
few orator, and political managers should
control the community. 50 That slavery ana
,he CONSEQUENT secession were, toa remark
,blr decree, the honest catiSe OF the Whole
Deoplr, Aud with splendid courage ana
endurance they followed their Gi>unlon lLlS
to wounds and death, as simply aud bIHcly
IS if it had been the baBuer Of The Cross ana
they the Old Crusaders. J. hey were very
r.uorunt and wholly wrong, but they died
snr the hest cause they kUew-thelr idea ol
patriotism.
Blu, we who believed slavery to be WRONG.
who could Lot lure our conScienees To JUSTIFY
i. still accepted aud encouraged 1t through
love of cold and desire ii M ISnoDlc peace
We taught the South that 1t ccilld not Ce-
maud what wc should not TIC found ready
20 rive. And when, at last, slavery threat.
rnrd our NATIONAL life. it was the instinct OF
sell; preservation rather than any Doh!cr sen
tmcnt which prompted RESISTANCE. III thht
ridden summer of 1860 we went on gather
Ing and spendin. AMI living luxurious ilve',
careless OF the In,trnts In the SKY. In, the
ar,y sulia" 0I 1861 i; was not alone the en-
eu,ics of The Uuion who douhied is power
30 preserve its uwn Integrity. III was us
friends: the secretary Of State, lhe CON-
uander-in-c..ief of its army, The great iLer-
chapts and great lawyers, u!as, TOO oitet the
Great preachers OF the great cities lheie
| IA. ~, all; in the attitude OF the North.
a,,uos, Id 10 tic moment oi tho ,hring On
Fort Sumter, TO check tl" iuenacc OF the
south. Thee was every thing To indicate
that The Union would quietly fall apart.
| Bc-,,l,c we are by no means innocent OF
| tho year. therefore /, ncnooyes US To speak
TEMPORARILY OF or lc.o.i sinner, however
we abh,r our common sin. And we ought
never 70 have forgotten that, sharing tbe'r
nif,t. We could not shut them out from that
1edemnliyu for which we fought. 1.-THE OBJ
| ;o,.,s az the war we've not Il Sol ed and re-
,an.ruted Union, but only tie triumph OF IL
Et..roused Eorth over IN in>olent anu dei,'
am south. then their cause WAS Us !htch
,rt,er than ours as honest devotion I" ah
| ;de Il hnar,er mistaken. i better than pure
vipi,,t;yeu.ss. We have 10 moral 2ronba
to stand ui)on. but are guilty OF our Efotocra
| htood uniess we mean, 10 Clahe tn oHrrlHS
r. Cod q, our mtioua! sin, and TO free theD,
with Ourselves, from the body OF tiat de' -,
We lose. thea, the Only harvest World Tue
ro,,,;ny fam the tears aud blood ilat DOM
.idrs W pIcnli,,llv suwed if We VIII 10. SEE
nrr h-o.arr in our euemy ADD common
,,,.n,r, IN The alien sections. SOBER anu , us-
,r,I travellers in the South. men IKE bi,-
,pt ana The great Cnlel-j,istrc, not easis
,Icc.iycd., testily that they haze touhn
every where a kindlincss OF ieeiius "uiSn
would be brotherliuess II any ausMst.u ~,
kutlli,Iess encouraged it. Ii VIC are nns
yet lofty ,nouyl, TO forgive the ls, ms
| who themselves baye something io.
| give in u, lie. Us ut least lcspsGI
| the herosm and the l0uc.ty 0: 'in Geao'
| They were Of our race aud Of our kihuFeu'
they were not greatly different from our
selves. Remembering that we invited,
through cowardice or greed, the war llia'
.aey. plunged W. into through mad ialssti,
c;sm remembering that only rtaoitea
and noble Union can justify the a"iu' s1s.
Of blood anI agony, stall we refuse 10 Ivy
flowers Of kindness on the turf that eight
years of peace have nourished5 lie. US
rather heap il high with blossoms, and u VIC
lbriD. rue ior bitter mourning, iet ts i,oi
forget rosemary fcr sweet bIrsi,se, isiaa
| pIu.iss for generous thoughts.
MIR. Henry Touns, OF New YORK city; d.. oss
4 ,tfstfa lite