New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-06-03
SIackers and Copperheads


Anti-conscription ideas and fashions
have changed since 1863. The large part
played by women and college students in the
protest now being made against enforced
military service shows how far we have
got along since Copperhead days. Imagine
women and unbaked college men inspiring
the draft riots which paralyzed law and
order in this city for days and were sup
pressed only when troops were sent here
from the Virginia front!
The Copperhead mob was not moved TO
break up the draft registration and to
hang negroes to the lampposts by any dilet-
tante theories of pacifsm and interna-
tional socialism. The rioters Of those days
had never heard Of either pacifsm or So
cialism. They were not resisting conscrlp-
ton because they thought military service
incompatible with ideals Of international
fraternity. They resisted it because they
hated the government which was imposing
the draft and the cause to maintain which
that government was raising armies.
The Northern Copperhead or Doughface
was moved by ingrained political prejudice.
He had fought the South's battles in poll
tics so long before the war broke out that
he could not suddenly alter his point Of
view. He abhorred the Black Republicans
who were in power at Washington, and he
hoped and prayed that their efforts to
coerce the Southern States back into the
Union would not succeed.
The Northern party to which he be-
'onged declared with jubilation in its ma
,ional platform Of 1864 that the war was
"a failure The feeling of the Copper
heads toward the Lincoln Administration
was venomous. They were traitors at
heart-just as the Tories were in the Revo-
lution-though they lacked the Tory cour-
age to go South and fight for secession.
They skulked behind the Union lines, CIV
ing aid and comfort, so far as they could,
to the cause of the Confederacy.
We have among US to-day a body of
aliens and citizens of German descent
whose sympathies are undoubtedly with
Germany. But for obvious reasons they
are not making themselves conspicuous in
the propaganda to defeat CONSUMPTION.
The leadership in this propaganda has de-
yolved to a large extent on immature con-
verts to socialism and paciism, with
philosophical adherence Of military ser
vice and, in addition, a very pronounced
personal aversion to being drafted. These
agitators are willing to engage in sedltion
in the semi-literary manner. But they are
temperamentally averse to anything as
brutal as street rioting. They are not
likely to defy the government as the mobs
of 1863 did, because they lack the flaming
hatred and the long cherished vindictive-
ress which filled the hearts Of the Civil
War Copperheads.
Most of our parlor socialists and paci-
fists are slackers first and enemies of the
government and their country afterward.
They are anemic Copperheads. The
Kaiser is not as close and respected a
figure to them as Jefferson Davis was TO
our Northern Doughfaces. They are there
fore in a less dangerous class. They may
be willing TO face arrest and the glory
among their own kind Of Jail sentence
for sedition. But they will not burn
or cut Threats. The 1917 model anti-con-
scriptionist is less militant and passionate
than the 1863 model. There are good
grounds, therefore, for thinking that the
provost marshal has less troublesome work
ahead Of him this week than he had in
1863. Our new style Copperheads may
talk, posture and martyrize-but they will
ro4 fpht