Year: 1861




We find in the Louisville Journal Of the
10th instant an able and eloquent letter from
the pen oi the Hon Joseph Holt, treating at
length On the exciting topics Of the day
Bringing to his subject in all its parts rare
intelligence aud candor, he urges upon the
people Of kentucky, BY every consideration
If honor, duty and safety, the policy Of
adhering to the Union III this hour Of trial
and powerfully entDrceS the obligation ot 5iy-
ing t. the Federal Government that loyal
support and generous confidence which It has
4 reht to expect Of al good citizens. Such
i calm appeal coming lIasn tilStlngli shed
Democratic statesman identified moreover
with the best interests oi tlleSonth i entitled
to great weight. and should give pause TO those
who have yielded to the drift oi' local senti
ment under the passions of tue hour We
regret that the great length oiths admirable
Letter filing as It does nearly four compact
columns Of the Louisville Journal prevents
its reproduction in our paper We can flnd
room at present for only few extracts


1T il in vain for the reyoutionstS to eS-
claim that this IS 'suhiugation. It IS 50,
precisely in the sense IN Which you and and
Ill lssw abiding citizens are snhjHaated- -
The neople of tie South are our brethren and
while we obes the laws enacted Fy our JOINT
authority. and keep compact 70 which we
Ito Ill parties we only ask that they shall bc
reauired TO do the same w believe that their
safety demands this. WeknoH that onrs does.
We impose no burden which We ourselves do
not bear: we claim 10 privilege or blessing
which our brethren Of the South shall not
ranally share Their country is our country,
and ours i theirs and that unity both Of
country and Of Government which the provi
dence Of God and the comracts of men have
created We could not ourselves, without self
immolation destroy, nor can we permit It TO
be destroyed by others


Equally vain il it for them to declare that
they only wish 10 bc lei alone, and that, 10
establishing the independence Of the seeded
States. they do those which remain in the
old Confcderacv no harm The Free States,
if allowed the opportunity Of doing 50. will
undoubtedly conceae every guarantee needed
i, afford complete protection TO the lnstltn-
tions ofthe South and to furnish assurances
Of her perfect equality IN the lmon but all
such guarantees and assurances are now openly
spulned and the only Southern right now m
sisted on is that Of dismembering the Repub-
lica 1t is perfectly certain that III the at
tempted exercise Of this right neither States
nor statesmen will be let alone. Should a
ruffian meet me in the streets, and seek with
his axe to hew an arm and leg from my
body, would not tho less resist him because,
as dishonored and helpless trunk might
perchance survive the mutilation. It is easy
to preceive what fatal results to the old Con
federacv would follow should the blow now
struck at its integrity ultimately triumph


We can we'll understand what degradation it
would bring to it abroad and what weakness
at home what exhaustion from lncessant
war and standing armies, and from the erec-
ton Of fortiG cations along the thousands
Of miles of new frontier what embarrass-
ments to commerce from having its natural
channels encountered or cut off; what ele-
ments Of disintegration and revolution would
be introduutd from the pernicious example !;
and, above all, what humiliation would cover
tho whole American people for having failed
in their great mission to demonstrate before
the world the capacity Of our race tor self