The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1877-10-18
THE STANDARD
THURSDAY. - OCT. rs. 1877,


er hymn, unless IL may be the long meter
Old Hundred doxology. IL is an immor
tai strain. and stirs the soul like the sol
emn diapason of an organ in the fretted
vaults of a cathedral.
In the early days of the war | spent an
autumn night in the camp of one of the
most famous Kansas regiments. The
tents were pitched upon the eastern
slope of a grassy declivity that descended
to the wooded margin OF a slender stream,
whose meanderings were marked by an
exhalation of blue haze that extended
from horizon. to horizon. The pensive
splendor Of full moon illuminated the
alien landscapes with its melancholy glo-
ry as we sat around the glimmering en-
bers, and talked Of the great problems OF
the tremendous conflict upon which we
had entered. The murmurs of the camp
had become almost inarticuate. as night
deepened, when suddenly O single dis.
tant voice broke upon the stiffness with
the inspiring words Of that sublime mar
tial psalm. .A
JOHN BROWNS BODY
lies a moulderiDg in the gravel A bund-
red voices spontaneously swelled the rep.
etition Of the refrain. and when the
chorus was reached. II ascended in a vast
en-. solemn as death. grand with its ma
je-tic suggestions of Immortality 1t was
revelation and prophecy, and | felt
that people which could adopt such an
anthem as this for their war song must
march to victory.
During the past few years il has been
my fortune to often travel through Mary
land and Virginia, and | have never
approached Harper's Ferry by day or by
night when old John Brown did not be.
come the universal topic of conversation,
and the bridge, the engine house, and
the ruined arsenal the objects OF the most
eager interest and scrutiny Every one
feels that it is historic ground, and that
here was struck the first deadly, earnest
blow at African Slavery. From the mo-
ment that shot was fred, talk, discussion,
debates, were at on end. He who was
not for Slavery was against II. Gristle
was replaced by bone. The North became
vertebrated. The age Of compromise and
cartilage was over. Sentiments and emo
tions crystalized suddenly into stern con-
victions. Fear and rage fell upon/the
South and from the Potomac to the
Gulf
the universal host upsent
A shout that tore Hells coneave,. and
beyond Frighted the reign of Chaos and
old Night"
Seven years age the mission Of John
Brown seemed to have been fully accom-.
plished. The Declaration of Independ-
ence was
NO LONGER LIE.
Slavery was destroyed, and its further
existence inhibited by constitutional
enactment. The freedmen, by their so
briefly, their obedience to law. their de-
corous demeanor justified the temerity
OF those who had dared to maintain that
they possessed intelligence superior to
beasts aud souls that were immortal =
During centuries OF brutal and degrad-
ing bondage, they had retained the typ
ical characteristics OF their race Their
virtues were their own their vices were
the offspring Of the cruel system OF which
they had been the reluctant victims
Music and mirth enlivened the intervals
OF their unrequited toll. Loyalty and
fidelity seemed the instincts of their
nature. Patient Of labor and obedient 10
law, they witnessed the prodigious accu
mutations derived from their unpaid in
dustry, without an effort to reclaim their
own. Their local and personal attach
ments were intense. During the long
moral combat that was the vestibule oI
the war, they resisted the solicitations oil
those who believed that he who would be
free himself must strike the blow, and
continued faithful to the tyrants who
had enslaved them. During the awfu
conflict that followed. when their eman
cipation became the integer, while theiI
owners were doing desperate battle tC
rivet more firmly the letters that bound
them, they peacefully titled the fields anc
81. A. a
waiting patiently for the hour of thei
deliverance to draw nigh. II they pill
laged or plundered the estates that wer,
in their charge, or insulted or wrongeC
the helpless women and children VIII,
were at their mercy. history has failed {,
record the deed. And when at last the,
emerged from the smoke and din ant
uproar upon the high plane of
AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP,
beneath the vindicated flag that is hence
forth to be the symbol of the honor an,
the emblem OF the glory OF their country
they accepted the trusts and responsible
tiles with tranquil and orderly dignit,
that has defeated the predictions an
challenged the wonder of mankind :
They began to acquire homes and proI
erty. They filed saving banks with thei
earnings. They assumed definite domei
tic relations. They gathered about th
schoolmaster and eagerly studied th
alphabet. the primer the Bible. Thei
instincts were more infallible ethan re,
son. They voted with their friends. TIL
sudden and violent transition was accom-
panied by no social disturbance such 8
might reasonably have been anticipated
1t was a terrible test of the elasticity {
our political system. No such strain eve
fell upon a nation before. Had the free,
men been disorderly aud defiant our il
stitutions could not have survived th
shock inflicted by the introduction ,
this tremendous element of uneducate
suffrage.
The autonomy Of the States had bee
restored. The pestilent heresy OF Sta
sovereignty had been recanted, and in /
place appeared the true gospel of Amer
can nationality. The United States wei
at last a nation, and not mere aggreg
tion of detached and incoherent comm
mites The nation existed, not at a
pleasure>of a State. nor of a majority
the States, nor Of all the States, but |
virtue Of the will Of a majority of all Il
people. Citizenship was made Nation
attribute. Behind every citizen, viii
or black, at home or abroad, stood IL
Nation, bene6cent. potential energ
pledged to protect him in the full fir,
and quiet enjoyment and exercise Of q
the rights Of citizenship. No man cou
be so humble. SO obscure, so remote, as
become an alien from its blessings.
his rights under the Constitution we
infringed or abridged. and redress W
refused by the localities, he could con
IDENTIFY apply TO the Nation for restit
tion. The war was really great conve
tion to amend the Constitution, and l3t
l4th and 10Th amendments were the
suit. The
THREE IDEAS