Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1879-09-24

lation of the war for the Union, and
they ought to stand. Great wars
legislate. A little more than hun
dred years ago, this land where we
now are was claimed, and held by
France. Gen. Wolfe, on the plains of
Abraham, settled that claim, and the
result was the transfer of the title and
jurisdiction of this entire section of
the country to England. For few
years its chief ruler was the English
King. The revolution followed, and
the question of its ownership was
again the subject of war legislation,
and it became a part of the United
States, no longer under a monarchy,
but under a free Republican Govern
ment.
| need not enter into any discussion
| of the causes of our civil war. We all
know that the men who planned the
destruction of the Union and the es-
tablishment of the Confederate States,
| based their attempt on construction
of the Constitution called the State
rights doctrine, and on the interest of
the people of those States in the ex-
tension and perpetuation OF slavery.
The doctrine of State rights was, that
each State was sovereign and supreme,
and might nullify the laws of the
Union or recedc from the Union at
pleasure. They held that slavery was
the natural and normal condition of
the colorcd man, and that, therefore,
slavery in this country could and
| should be the corner stone of free
| Government.
MR.. LINCoLN's OPINIONS.
No man has ever stated the issues
of the civil war more fully, more
clearly, or more accurately than Mr.
Lincoln. In any inquiry as to what
may fairly be included among the
things settled by our victory, all just
and patriotic minds instinctively turn
to Mr.. Lincoln To him, more than to
| anv other man, the cause Of the Union
and liberty is indebted for its final
triumph. Besides, with all his won
derful sagacity, and wisdom, and logi-
cal faculty, dwelling intently and
anxiously, and prayerfully, during four
wears of awful trial and responsibility,
on the questions which were contin-
ualiy arising to perplex and almost
confound him, he at last became the
very embodiment Of the principles by
which the country and its liberties
were saved. All good citizens may
now well listen to and heed his words.
None have more reason to do 1t with
respect and confidence, and a genuine
regard. than those whom he addressed
in his first inaugural speech as "my
dissatisfied fellow-countrymen." The
| leader of the Union cause was so just
and moderate, and patient and hui
name, that many supporters OF the
Union thought that he did not go far
enough or fast enough, and assailed
his opinions and his conduct, but now
all men begin to see that the plain
| people, who at last came to love him,
and to lean upon his wisdom and firm
| ness with absolute trust, were alto
gether right, and that in deed and pur-
pose he was earnestly devoted to the
welfare of the whole country and OF
its inhabitants.
Believing that Mr. Lincoln's opin-
ions are of higher authority on the
/ questions of war than those of any
other public man on either side of the
controversy, desire to present them
quite fully and in his own language.
In the third year of the war, and
while its result was still undecided,
Mr.. Lincoln made his memorable ad-
dress at the consecration of the Get
tvsburg National Cemetery, on the
10Th of November, 1868. lie was
standing on the field of the greatest
battle of the war. He was, no doubt,
deeply impressed with the heavy re-
sponsibilities which he had horne Sc
long He spoke not as partisan, en-
bittered and narrow and sectional, but
in the broad and generous spirit of
patriot, solicitous to say that which
would be worthy to be pondered by
all of his countrymen throughout all
time. in his short speech Of only two
or three paragraphs be TWICE spoke Of
the objects of the war, once in its
opening and again in its closing SEN
tence. The words have Oft been
quoted, but they cannot be too famll-
lar. They bear clearly and forcibly on
the question we are considering.
"Four score and seven years ago." said Mr..
| Lincoln "our fathers brought forth on this con-
| tinent new nation, conceived III liberty and
| dedicated to the proposition that all men are
| created equal. Now we are engaged IN great
| civil war, testing whether that nation, or any
| nation 30 conceived and 80 dedicated, can long
! endure.
| And aaaip, in closing be said at is rather
| for US that Wo here highly resoiyc
! that the dead shall not have died la vain that
| the nation shall under God have new birth
| OF freedom; and that Government OF the peo-
| pie by the people, and for the people, shall not
| perish from the earth "
| THE sTATE-RIGHTs DOCTRINE.
No statement of the true objects of
the war more complete than this has
ever been made. Il includes them all
nationality, liberty, equal rights ana
self-government These are the prin-
ciples for which the Union soldier
fought, and which it was his aim to
maintain and to perpetuate. Cheers.
r. any one supposes that the con-
structioh Of or National Constitution,
which is known as the State rightly
doctrine, is consistent with sound
principles, let him consider a few para
graphs from Mr.. Lincolns first mes
sage to Congress, at the extra session
of 1861.
Speaking of what was called the
right of peaceful secession-that is,
secession in accordance with the Ma
tional Constitution-he said
''This sophism derives much. perhaps tho
whole Of its currency from the assumption that
there is some ouipotent and sacred supremacy
| pertaining TO a State--to each State OF our Fed
| eral Union Cur s.a.ce lave neither more nor
loss power than that reserved 30 Them ia the
Union by the Constitution, no one of them ever
| having been a State out Of the Union. The
original ones passed into tho Union even before
they cast off their colonial dependence, and the