The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1904-12-28

The ittcst place for man to die
Is where he dies for man.
In past ages not only va, these
generally plausible excuse for bloody
bcilisercncy in that .htrr ,ccmcd no
honorable alternative, but there was a
snpcrslitious belief, often IA prayer,
that the Almighty would uiraculously
intcrposc to give victory to the most
ticv"ut. Even today, with a sort Of
l.ouIl 81 picty, some nations engaged
N unjust warfare keep up that m0ck
"ry, as if by copious Embellishments
the Lord might be coaxcd into lending
a hand!
There was noimpartial umpire then.
We have one now. The Hague Tri
bunal ought soon to end both tho
bloodshcd and the blasphemy. Once
recognized az the Supreme Court Of
1hc wmld, with either party to any
international dispute at liberty TO ap.
peal to it without waiting for the con-
sent of the other, thercupon proceed
ing in it's discretion to take cosni-
zanco and jurisdiction Of tile issue:
after due invitation to all concerned,
investigating, taking testimony, scru
tiniIing the facts, weighing The argu-
ments, surely the hasty resort to hu.
man slaughter, with its csscntia! saw.
agery aud it's mocking appeals to Nc
loch, misnamcd God, would soon dis.
appear among peoples claiming to be
ahnvo th" reptile stay" in evolution
EX ffiri", such lrlhnnnl, or sn,n,
>t.l"d Congress 81 Nations, mish:
properly formulate definitions and
step by step elaborate a code. Ii
might well, for instance, decide when
rebellion becomes revolution, and
when, if ever, one government has Il
right to destroy another by force.
There is at times a sore need Of such
judicial or legislative action.
Take an Illustration from our own
history:
High authority has recently dcclar
cd that in our Civil War both North
and South were in the right, aud We
are constantly hearing that the strug
gle was entirely unavoidable, that it
was glorious to all concerned, and that
nobody was to blame. Young Amcri
cas- orators now seek to concilliate
both sides by simply boasting how
big and how brave we are. Too .often
the moral element is ignored, the vi
tai truth is unreoognized, the mind of
the masses is befogged, the public
conscience is stupifsd; as if the great
est evil war in history had no lesson
for us or for the world! It is high
time that we open our eyes and do
some careful thinking. "Against stu
pidity the gods are powerless.
One whom ell now love and honor,
by many esteemed our wipest and best
president since Washington, had re-
peatedly asserted in ,most emphatic
terms the right Of revolution. On
one occasion he spoke as follows:
"Any people anywhere, being in
clined and having the power, have the
right to rise up and shake off tho ex-
isting government and form new one
that suits them better. This is
most valuable, most sacred right,
right which we hope and believe is to
liberate the world. Nor is this right
confned to cases in which the whole
people of an existing government may
choose to exercise it. Any por.iou of
such people that can, may revolution,
izc and make their own so much terri.
tory as they inhabit."
These are the words of our truly
great and justly revercd Abraham
Lincoln. They express, too, the cen.
tral doctrine Of Jefferson. Madison
and Franklin, and of nearly all Amer
loan statesmen h"fnre orr Civil War
They show how our nation and all the
Central and South American States
sprang into existence as organized re
publics.
But when MIR. Lincoln became Pres
dent he looked at revolutionary gov
crnments from different standpoint.
lie had sworn to execute the laws; but
a new body polite had suddenly
arisen and intcrrosed to prevent. 1t
had followed exactly the process he
had clearly outlined ard sanctioned
It distinctly based its action on what
he had affirmed TO he "a most val.
liable, most sacred right" Note the
facts.
On the goth of December, 1860,
South Carolina, by unanimous vote
Of the Convention called by her Legis.
lature. passed the ordinance of seoes