Year: 1865

uodTU, tEcy Ulsliko 49,


Labolitionists, fearing they may be requires
! in following your illustrious example, to
deal harshly with those who, from false
sense of shame are still unwilling, by turn
ing aboitionists, to incur the rebel re.
proach of apostaey. They urge that they
dislike to be called Judases and yet they
"wish to be with you, and at rest" Hence
the struggle between their old party and
rebel pride, and their love for you; their
dire necessities and lqye for cash. With
al such I adopted this mode Of reasoning:
That the popular Judgment is often wrong
md tTaditionary and hereditary prejudices
rarely right For example, / would take
two celebrated cases, those of PLATE and
Judas, that the Christian world Affect
ed, nay, felt great horror of their names
and characters, that they were asso-
ciated with the murder of our Saw
iour, and therefore, no one supposed it
possible to find anything in their natures
to extenuate tho severe Judgment of man
kind; whereas, in fact, PLATE was bitterly
opposed to our Saviour's prosecutions and
ignominious death, and protested that he
"found no fault in him." while the mob
(may Heaven protect your excellency from
all msbs y hurried him away to execution,
without even the dignity of military ar
rest that Judas, from all We had been
able to ascertain in regard to his character,
was very unobtrusive, reticent man, bet
ter fitted by nature for trade agent or
. contractor than disciple; that, though
he "turned his back upon his friends"
nay, betrayed them, he was neither the
first nor the last who had yielded to temp
tation; that his reward was hard money
thirty huge pieces long before Chase
had inflated the currency, or California had
augmented the coin that he was man
of sensibility, that he repented, and 80
suffered from remorse that he burst his
bowels. ! assured the secessionists and
ofice-seekers, however, that they need not
wait for quarantine before joining the army
of Sumner and John Brown; that you had
done so, turned your back upon them
betrayed them; and that, although the
official health bulletin repr esented you in
a precarious condition, l had yet seen no
mention of any morbid distension of your
bowels. Nor did l fail to remind the au-
dience of the radical change in your opin-
ions of John Brown and Mr. Seward, since
you denounced the one as "murderer, a
robber, a thief and a traitor" and the
other as his political tutor. l pointed to
the remarkable case and elegance with
which you now fraternize with the original
Browns; how you now piously regarded
bis gallows as only less sacred than the
cross of Christ; how benignantly you
smiled at bis apotheosis; and how divinely
you could sing:


"John Browns body lies mouldering in the


dust"


In the foregoing / can give you only a
brief outline Of that portion of my speech
which was devoted especially to yourself
] rose doubtless "to the full height Of the
great argument" and many of your old
secesh friends pronounced my speech truly
eloquent and convincing. Several are
known to have declared positively, for
you and Brownlow, whole, among the Of
fee seekers, trade agents, and those who
have "lost fortunes by the war;" there
seemed to be general inclination to join
the grand army of universal freedom 30
bravely led by yourself ! found none re-
luctant to do 30 except few original un-
ion men who still declare themselves ar
dent supporters of "the union of the con-
stitution." Ordinary compassion requires
me to say, in their behalf that they read
but few newspapers, and do not know
that old fogy parchment is wholly 'splayed
out"


Now for this elogium upon your life,
character and public services-and because
the union men Of that portion of the state
in which I live have nominated me for
OongresslI am held, Ike Napoleon, .