New-York tribune., 1875-08-18
~ OnfTOR UHO Is Not NEEDED.

~ OEITOR UUO Is NOT NEEDED.
Amnesty ier all the criMcs and sor!ogs of
tie rebellion is an excellent thing, bn oblivion
is scarcely practicable during this generation;
ana the officers of the Winnrhago County Ag
ricut-nal Society. in Illinois, who recently
invited Mr.. jefferson Davis t. speak at their
Annual Fair, showed very LITTLE Judgment or
knowledge OF human nature. To insist upon
fair trial for him, or, that failing, 70 insist
upon his release from prison, is a very different
matter frcIn bringing him forward to address
a respectable association ~ an l;Ohored guest.
There could be only two aV0wablc motives
for such AN invitations the first being TO make
Mr.. Davis's visit an incident of the general
progress of reconciliation and establishment of
kindly feelings among the two section, Of the
country, and the other to b.ing large crowd
together anl make a good deal Of ea-o-moncy
through the attraction Of frat rate novelty.
From both these points of view, tho CHOICE
of such IN orator WV njudicious. II il not in
sIr. Dayis's power To do anything which will
hasten the reign of good feeling 80 ardcntly
desired by us all, unless it bc for him to keep
ouct and as much ont Of sight ~ possible.
There is an old Joe Miller about Il mon who
was cursing ano,hc for his u:lne<s Can
"hrlp my looks!" mcckly asked t'ie ugly one.
"No," said the severe critic, but yU can
"stay at homc.' The gibc is applicable in
sober sadness to Mr.. Davis. For reasons over
which he has no control, he cannot appear in
public much less make speech, without Civ
ing rise to bitter and angry feeling. He las
done more harm than almost any other
man who ever figured in osr history. IIo
,ri =, a.
wicked and caUsclcss conspiracy which ended
in war He WAS the head aud front of the
rebellion a. long as it lasted. He took no
means 20 mitigate its horross, or nlicyisto
lis acrmony. Whenever he addressed an audi
cncc, lie appealed to the bittcrost and base,t
passions to rouSo them t.cain>; the people of
the North. This WAS not necessity Of his
position Abraham LincOln set him iar diff
fcrent example No man ever heard from his
lips ANYTHING ike the savage malice which
formed the staple of Dayi,s speeches. And
now that we can take somewhat caimer Wow
of the war than was possible ten years ago. we
mUSt still insist that Nr. Davis did not do all
in his power to make it "a decent and
merciful as possible. The Union prisoners,
were not treated "a wHl as they might
have been, if generous and humane
man had been President of the Con-
federacy. part at least of the herrers of
Andcrsonyile and Belle Isle can be charged to
his account. Suc, bcing his conduct during
the war; has he done anything since the wir
closed TO entitlc him to the consideration OF
well meaning and patriotic poople' If so he
has kept it a. profound secret. We are not
disposed to blame him too har-ily for this.
1t was, in the nature of the case, scarcely pos
sible for him to exert any salutnry influence
in the work of reconciliation. Ills position had
been too prominent, his attitude too consist
emily hostile to permit him to take any part
in the WORK of repairing the moral and ma
terial ravages of the war. II he h'd tllhcT IN
favor of peace and union the contrast ailiI his