Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1876-10-06
THE REPUBLIC.


American slavery was not confined to the
South. Through the various channels Of
trade, politics and religion, the North was
too intimately associated with the South to
escape pollution. The vices OF slavery
poured in through ten thousand avenues
Of social and civil intercourse, injecting
every part of the republic. Southern
members Of Congress brought their revol-
vers and introduced the code of honor.
Not merely the deaths head and bones but
the whole hideous skeleton and beastliness
OF slavery was held mp and shaken in the
face and eyes of our Legislators. Go to the
House, there was the beast glnring and
menacing. Return to the Senate the same
horrid apparition stared and threatened.
The nightmare Of slavery settled down
upon the spirit Of the nation. Men we're
appalled,; they dared not say word against
slavery. Slavery had begotten cotton, and
cotton had become a great king. Both
priest and people cried out great is king
cotton. Shareholders were exultapt. They
thought the Northerners were already sub
jugated. They began to speak of them
with contempt. "A Northern dough.face
no-back-bone can sing psalms and hymns
but can't fight" Zone Southern man can
whip five Northerncrs,"--"a set of double
fsted mechanichs, farmers and mud.sills."
"Giveus more room for our Slaves. We've
L.. l.. t.l.o tolr t1,,t
ritories. We will read the roll Of our
slaves from the top Of the Bunker Hid
Monument, aud take them with MS when
and where we please" Congress as an act
of pacifcation and condecension and sub.
mission passed the Fugitive Slave bill,
constituting the Northern people at large,
watch dogs and hounds to aid the Slave
holders in catching runaway niggers, also
forbidding any one to feed or lodge a fugi-
tive under the penalty OF fines and impris-
onment. 1t may be very nice calcula-
ton to fix the lowest degree in the scale OF
infamy. But when slayeOcracy reduced
this Yankee nation to runaway negro
hunters, we must have been very near that
degree. BE that as it may, call it honor or
infamy, this act opened the eyes of a goodly
number of Northern yeomanry whose fists
are double enough to work and earn an
honest living, to n stubborn fact, to-wit !:
That a slaveocracy and republic cannot
| exist eide by side. We warn the South
not to undertake that game again, lest they
| find themselves in the condition OF Esaw
who, after he had lost his birthright, could
| find no place for repentance though he
sought it carefully and with tears.
Although slavery has met with a heavy
check and the republic has gained some
| decided and important victories, a states
man cannot fail to see that the situation is
critical. judging from the past we have
reason to suppose that the majority Of the
people are loyal to the union and like our
fathers, to sustain it, would pledge their
| lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
But the enemies of the Republic are nu-
merous, MS we'll as INSCRIPTIONS, and have
large resources at their disposal. Out OF
the furty-six millions of Inhabitants in
| the Southern Confederacy with its North
ern allies would claim twenty millions
leaving six millions not very strongly at
tached to either political party to swell the
majority of one or the other according to
circumstances. Or if we take one-fifth or
one-sixth Of the whole population as voters
the proportion would be the same. Unless
special efforts to prevent fraud and intim-
idation are made at the South, the loyal
vote will be nearly or wholly lost. AT
the North, judging from the past, the whis-
ky rings, repeaters, and journalistic lies
will damage the republic to their utmost.
The disposition of parties to blacken the
character and reputation of public men
has nearly or quite destroyed the faith oi
the parties in each other and il has become
exceedingly difficult to refute slander and
to contract ;he desolating influence OF false
hood. Now when a man tells the truth
especially ii he is a politician, the people
are rather suspicious that he is telling g
falsehood for,his own sake or for his party
And when n man becomes a candidate fol
some responsible place OF public trust, thai
fact Of itself however honest he may have
heen, excites at least transient idea tha
he may have some evil design on the Uni
ted States treasury, or means to rob gooC
honest old Uncle Sam in some way OF other
The age in which we live seems to have
become so sordid that it is impossible tC
turn the eyes OF the people to any subject
whatever, so as to lead them to lose sigh
Of the Almighty Dollar. The financial
political, clerical and latter day Saints, al
though they do not all live near Salt Lake
nor wear white robes, nor orofess to come
to us down along the line of Apos
tolic succession, nor have ever exposed tC
view cloven foot, yet are all supposed tC
be at least slightly acquainted with th'
black art, if they have not covertly formed
some sort of copartnership with His Sa
tanic Majesty. In brief, mankind are ter
ribly suspicIous of each other and are a
their wits end to invent a safe that burg
lars cannot open. And still they come
tyrants, robbers and murderers, long line
We need standing army to keep the peace
Can the republic survive? This remain
to be seen. NINDEx.