Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-09-26
THE NORTHWEST
A MASTERLY REBuKE
From an Honest Republican Who Opposes
Forakerlsm.

Captain Alfred E. Lee, formerly |
private secretary of R. B. Hayes and
secretary of Gettysburg monument COM
mittee and formerly editor of the Ohio
State Journal, is opposed to third term
Ism Forakerism for Governor, and Hal
stead for Senator. At recent reunion of
soldiers held in Columbus, some of the
Foraker-Tanner crowd. tried to turn
the meeting into political meeting and
glorify Foraker by reviewing passions
that should sleep forever. In reply to
certain attacks made upon Captain Lee,
he says:
''The editor of the Ohio State journal
wants me to know that the rebellion
was the wickedest crime of the ages,
and he speaks of the matter, as did some
of the orators at the West Virginia re-
union, as though he had new and origi-
nal information on the subject. One
might suppose, from the tone of his re-
marks, that he had made the discovery
all himself, and was about to have it
protected by patent right. l think 1
know how much of q crime the rebellion
was as we'll as he does, and don't need
to glorify, as he does, Malone and his
fellow-rebel repudiationists in Virginia
to attest the fact. Neither do 1 need to
have any political jabber-whack inflict
upon me this stale old partisan rant at a
soldiers reunion to make the rebellion
odious to me. 1t Is not necessary for
General Gibson, Prof. Ryan, or any
other politician to howl at me for an
hour about the rebellion being a crime,
as though did not know it. Neither is
it necessary to turn soldiers reunion
or Sunday-school into party caucus
lest may forget the wickedness of the
rebellion. Denunciations of the civil
service law, and able editorials in the
Ohio State journal about the political
grandeur of Malone and Mosby, do not
help me the least bit to keep the wick
edness Of the rebellion in mind, or to
make it odious to me.
"What have objected to- and what in
spires the able editor, is not denuncia-
tion of the rebellion, but bitter, unchar-
liable, unpatriotic Trades against the
people Of the South, fully half of whom
are not guilty of the crime of rebellion,
or Of any other crime, SO far as know,
object to having parcel of political
blatherskites, each one Of whom assumes
to have put down the rebellion himself
"with his little hatchet," going about
the country teaching the young of this
generation to hate the Southern people
as class. / object to having such
blatherskites intrude their stale old rant
Upon our soldiers reunions for no pur-
pose in the world but a partisan pur-
pose. If these sky-scraping orators and
ferocious men of blood have done so
much fighting as they profess to have
done, why can't they entertain us with
some of their war "reminiscences, in
p stead of insulting us with their pre-
sumption in telling us, as II we did not
know it, that the rebellion was crime,
and admonishing US not to forget it, as
if we were in danger Of forgetting it?
II an astonished that the feeling of
hate and bitterness" which deprecate,
exist only in my imagination. I would
be glad to think SO, but when I heard
such feelings expressed at the West Vir-
ginia reunion, and saw these express
sions reported in the Ohio State Jour-
nal, knew better. 1t may be that the
expressions were intended only for po-
litical clap-trap, but if so then there are
other crimes which need denouncing as
well as rebellion. The politician or the
clergyman who raises his voice to stir
up hate between the different sections
of this country is guilty, morally, of
crime, and dishonors the bones of our
patriot dead who died to make this peo-
pie one people, and not divided people.
We fought to restore the Union, and if
we have not restored it the war was
failure. If the people Of one-half of this
country are all criminals, who have es-
capped the .gallows only BY the grace Of
tue people Of the other half, what kind
Of a country have we?
'I am proud to say that my feelings
toward the southern people are, and al
ways have been, those Of Lincoln and
Grant, and not those Of Gibson and
Ryan. Iabhor rebellion and treason as
Auch as any, body, but the rebellion has
been put down, and I don't know of any
body who is. advocating treason. Pro-
fessor Ryan says he wants the rebellion
s'made as odious as hell" Idon't. He'll
is not very odious with good many peo-
pie. There are parts of the world in
which the chief manager of that institu-
tion is looked up to, and moves in the
best society. want rebellion and trea-
son made much more odious than hell.
also want it. made odious to disturb
and destroy the feeling Of kindness and
good will-of malice toward none and
charity for all'--in which old soldiers
meet and celebrate their victories, trials
apq suferings, by partisan fdiatribes
against any law-abiding class Of the
American people. sALFIED E. LEE"
Al ~ -----ss -e------a -. ifa,
4 The Democrats Of this county should not
forget that there are land appraisers TO be
elected this year and all the nominations
should be made before the general election.