ngland. The righteous wrath was winged with stinging wit and lightened
with broad humor. He spoke for that sentiment of the new and nobler
America which abhorred slavery and detested war, and saw in a war for
the extension of slavery a crime against God and man. The politician's
sophistries, the respectable conventionalities current in church and
state, found no mercy at his hands:

Ez fer war, I call it murder,--
There you hev it plain and flat:
I don't want to go no furder
Than my Testyment fer that:
God hez sed so plump an' fairly,
It's ez long ez it is broad,
An' you've got to git up airly
Ef you want to take in God.

'Tain't your eppyletts an' feathers
Make the thing a grain more right;
'Tain't a follerin' your bell-wethers
Will excuse ye in his sight;
Ef you take a sword and draw it,
An' go stick a feller thru,
Guv'ment ain't to answer for it,
God'll send the bill to you.

Massachusetts, God forgive her,
She's a kneelin' with the rest,
She, that ought to hav' clung forever
In her grand old eagle-nest.

* * * * *

Let our dear old Bay State proudly
Put the trumpet to her mouth,
Let her ring this messidge loudly
In the ears of all the South:

"I'll return ye good fer evil
Much ez we frail mortals can,
But I won't go help the Devil
Makin' man the cus o' man;
Call me coward, call me traitor,
Jest ez suits your mean idees,
Here I stand a tyrant-hater,
An' the friend o' God and Peace."

CHAPTER IX

HOW DEAL WITH THE TERRITORIES?

Meanwhile, the American army,--accepting as its sole part to obey
orders, not questioning why,--though such officers as Grant and Lee had
no liking for the task set them,--and reinforced by volunteer regiments
from the Southwest,--was steadily fighting its way to the Mexican
capital; Taylor's force advancing from Texas, while Scott moved from
Vera Cruz. The Mexicans resisted bravely, but were beaten again and
again, and upon the capture of the city of Mexico they gave up the
contest.

Spite of the _eclat_ of victories, the war had been so little popular in
the North that the congressional election of 1846 displaced the
administration majority in the House and gave the Whigs a preponderance.
But, with the excitement of the complete victory over Mexico in the next
year, came a fresh wave of the aggressive temper. It was freely
advocate