h an unholy cause as that in which
they are engaged now, I must confess that their true metal can never be
exhibited. _One_ man whose heart is in the war can always conquer _two_
who are fighting from some _impure motive_. And now let me candidly ask
you to as candidly tell me whether or not you _think_ after _seeing_
the thing progress thus far, and having, as you say, been, & still
continue to be, well-informed as to apper^ns on _both sides_, the North
are engaged in the cause of "Justice." Admitting that some of them are
actuated by pure and lofty motives, do you not acknowledge that the
_vast majority_ are _blinded_ by _prejudice, led on_ by a desire for
_military fame_, prompted by the _prospect_ of _plunder_, or actuated
by the still more ----? but I refrain--my very pen shudders at the
thought of expressing myself further. Yes, I think you must confess
that is the case. I refer, of course, to the Armies of Lincoln _thus
far_ made up. Are they not composed of a _Mercenary horde_, made up
generally of the lowest rabble of the Country, & thousands of those
thrown out of employment in the manufacturing cities--who have resorted
to camp-life for self-sustenance--indeed _their only resource?_ Whether
you admit this or not, it is emphatically true to a great extent, for
the Northern papers themselves have made such statements as would lead
me to believe so, & more, I have correspondents in the North, who
confirm my suspicions on this score. My own Father who does not justify
the attack on Sumter, yet denounces Lin's army as a set of _Murderers!_
He lives in Penna. & this is the opinion of many good citizens there.
And now can such men be justified in their present purposes and
activities? If so, upon what principles? We have sh^n. that it is not
in accordance with sound reason & the "inexorable logic" of the
Constitution, since that noble edifice was attacked in two points
simultaneously by the Repub^cn party: 1st. by abrogating the Fugitive
Slave Law; 2nd. by depriving the South of eq^l rights in the
Territories. These are 2 points in which the North has transgressed the
limits of immutable Justice, and nothing which is unjust can be
_reasonable_, for, they (Just. & Reas.) are twin sisters. Moreover, the
Bible justifies no war but that of self-defence. Then are the North
invaded? No, nor never will be, by the South, for all they ask is peace
within their borders. While they hold in one hand the sword of
self-defence, th