than one slave State will, ere long, contain a
majority of clear-headed, patriotic men, who will be willing to legalize
the freedom of all blacks born within their limits, after a certain
time; and if this time be placed ten years or even fifteen hence, it
will make no material difference. By that time the pressure of free
labor, and the increase of manufacturing, will have rendered some such
step a necessity. Should the payment of all loyal slave-holders, in the
border States, for their chattels, prove a better plan,--and it could
hardly fail to promptly reduce the rebellious circle to a narrow and
uninfluential body,--let it be tried. If any of the arguments thus far
adduced in favor of assuming slavery to be an institution which is
_never_ to be changed, and which _must_ be immutably fixed in the North
American Union, can be proved to be true, we would say, then let
emancipation be forever forgotten--for the stability of the Union must
take precedence of everything. But we can not see it in this light. We
can not see that peace and Union can exist while the slave-holder
continues to increase in arrogance in the South, and while the
abolitionists every day gather strength in the North. Every day of this
war has seen the enemies of slavery increase in number and in power,
until to expect them to lose power and influence is as preposterous as
to hope to see the course of nature change. Should a peace be now
patched up on the basis of _immutable_ slavery, we should, to judge from
every appearance, simply prolong the war to an infinitely more
disastrous end than it now threatens to assume. We should incur debts
which would crush our prosperity; we should bequeath a heritage of woe
to our children, which would prove their ruin. While the great cause of
all this dissension lies legalized and untouched, there will continue to
be a party which will never cease to strive to destroy it. The question
simply is, whether we will be wounded now, or utterly slain by and by.

Meanwhile let us, before all things, push on with the war! It is by our
victories that slavery will be in the beginning most thoroughly
attacked. If the South, as it professes, means to fight to the last
ditch, and to the black flag, all discussion of emancipation is
needless; for in the track of our armies the contraband assumes freedom
without further formula. But we are by no means convinced that such will
be the case. The _first_ ditches have, as yet, been b