The National tribune., 1893-02-09
AN ESSAY ON soLprER-HATERs.


understand the existence of those traits In
other men. They cannot comprehend how
a man should make a voluntary sacrifice for
a principle any more than wolf can under
stand why dog should guard sheep instead
of destroying them. With them everything
is for self, in the meanest pettiest, most
bloodless way. In the moral world they
are W hat the venomous snake is in the physi-
cal world, which hates the bright-plumaged
song bird for being SO much brighter and
more lovable, and, sneaking up on it, gulps
it down for dinner.
1t was this class that constituted the bulk
of the Copperheads during the war. They
had no especial affection for slavery or
the Southern Confederacy-they were too
selfloving to care for anything outside OF
their own hides. They hated the war,
because it brought sacrifices to all citizens,
and threatened their own selfish ease and
prosperity. When it began they wanted it
stopt at once, anywhere and upon any
terms. They wanted the rebels to succeed,
because that was the surest and quickest
way of ending the war. Besides, it would
bring bitter disappointment to those who
were putting them to shame by their un-
selfish devotion to the cause of the Nation
Praise of the men who enlisted to fight for
the country, and who fought and endured
with marvellous courage and fortitude,
wrought them to madness. Every word of
praise was condemnation of their own
cowardice and selfshness. It is not
strange that they were often worked up to
the point of numbering soldier, when they
could do it with safety, and that they were
constantly in plots to break down or at least
iniure those who were fighting for the
Union.
In the South soldier-haters were made.
The INSCRIPTIONS politicians who deluded
the people of that unhappy section into
making an utterly causeless war upon the
Government, inspired them with bitter
hatred of those who maintained the authority
of the Nation The events of the war intens-
fed this feeling. The terrible losses which
it became necessary to infict upon those
who were in armed rebellion naturally
3hair 70 IN
in the course of legitimate military opera
tions had to kill and wound tens of thou
sands of them, destroy their railroads, store
houses, and factories, and do other acts
necessary to destroy their fighting power.
1t is not natural to love those who chasten
US, no matter how well-deserved the chastise-
ment may be, nor how much it is for our
benefit. 1t was infinitely better for the
people of the South that they should be
defeated, but they can hardly be expected to
love the instruments of their defeat, or to
suppose that those who defeated them were
actuated by the highest patriotism.
The class which has soldier-hating thrust
upon them is large and powerful. Natur-
ally, they do not care for the soldiers one way
or another, for they are immersed in their
own schemes. But they believe that the
money paid the soldiers for pensions inter-
feres in some way with their own amassing
Of riches. If they are importers, they think
that pension paying stands in the way of
free trade. If they can secure free trade
they will control the entire business of the
country. Every pound of agricultural prod
uce raised in the country will have to come
to them to be sold abroad, and every article
bought for the farm or the household will
have to be bought abroad through them.
1t is easy TO understand why they hate pen
sons and pensioners. The clique of money
kings hate pensions, because this takes the
money of the country out of their control and
distributes it among the people. If pensions
could be abolished they would have about
in their grasp, and could make everything
90 their own way. The greatest obstacle to
their complete control of the peoples money
is the fact that every three months about
s35, 100000 are distributed throughout the
entire country.
All these classes are in the fight to down
the soldier, and the only way they can be
defeated is by solid array of veterans and
veterans friends against them. The soldiers
must stand together now for . final fight,
and neglect nothing which viii make that
fight victory for them.
Ex-REPREsEETATIvE 8. 3. Yoder has
withdrawn from the race for the Commits.
sionership of Pensions He only entered i,
unon tho urgent renreeentatiops nf his