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Valley Spirit: March 19, 1862 Go To Page : 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |

Stirring Address from Hon. James Guthrie
(Column 1)

Summary: Reprints a speech given by James Guthrie in Louisville, Kentucky on Washington's Birthday. Guthrie advocates granting an amnesty for Confederates who give up their arms and acknowledge the supremacy of the Constitution. As for the leaders of the rebellion, he argues that he would try them before tribunals but would also act in the spirit of forgiveness. He believes that the punishment the leaders will receive from the hands of the people they tricked into joining the rebel cause will be worse than anything the courts could dole out. At the same time, he argues vigorously against a program of confiscation of Confederate property and attacks Republicans in Congress who propose such a course.

Remarks of Hon. John S. Carlisle of Va. on the Confiscation Bill in the U.S. Senate, March 11, 1862
(Column 3)

Summary: Senator Carlisle argues against a bill in the Senate that proposes the confiscation of Confederate property, particularly slaves, and the financing of a colonization effort for freed slaves. He states that the war does not suspend Constitutional guarantees of property. He believes that Northern senators who support a confiscation bill are deliberately trying to fan the flames of sectional conflict, and thus are as bad as secessionists. He also adds that he believed an amnesty for all Confederates except the leaders would end the war in ninety days.

Debate in Congress on the President's Emancipation Resolution
(Column 4)

Summary: A synopsis of the debate in Congress over Lincoln's March 6 message to Congress, which proposed that the federal government aid states in the gradual emancipation of slaves by compensating slaveholders for their losses. The main speakers featured in the debate were border state congressmen such as Crittenden of Kentucky and Crisfield of Maryland, who argued that the way to conciliate the border states was not to attack their institutions but to leave them alone.

The Union Splitters
(Column 1)

Summary: Attacks Lincoln's proposal to emancipate the slaves in border states. The Spirit believes that Lincoln virtually admitted that the Confederacy is a legitimate institution. The paper fears that the administration has thus essentially given up on the cause of reuniting the Union. It goes on to accuse the Republican Party of being satisfied with disunion and quotes a number of statements from Horace Greeley's New York Tribune that support the departure of the Southern states. Greeley's opinion can be taken to represent Republican opinion, argues the editorial, and thus voters should look to Democrats as the true party of the Union.

Full Text of Article:

The Presidents [sic] late emancipation message squints very strongly towards a recognition of the Southern Confederacy. His idea appears to be to emancipate the slaves in order to prevent the border States joining the "disaffected region" when its independence is acknowledged. That we may not be accused of misrepresentation we give his own language and if it will bear any other construction we are unable to see it:

"The leaders of the existing insurrection entertain the hope that the Government will ultimately be forced to acknowledge the independence of some part of the disaffected region, and that all the Slave States north of such parts will then say the Union for which we have struggled being already gone, we now choose to go with the southern section."

And again:

"The point is, not that all the States tolerating slavery would very soon, if at all, initiate emancipation, but that while the offer, is equally made to all, the more Northern shall by such initiation, make it certain to the more Southern that in no event will the former ever join the latter in their proposed Confederacy."

Is this not virtually admitting that the Southern Confederacy is already a fixed institution, and holding out a bribe ("pecuniary aid," the President calls it,) to prevent the Borders from going along with the Cotton States? If it has come to this that we are no longer fighting for the preservation of the Union we had better disband our armies, there is no use fighting if the restoration of the Union is not the object of the war.

To any one who has watched the course of the Republican party it must be apparent that a dissolution of the union is the object and result for which that party has long labored and is still laboring. For years previous to the outbreak of this rebellion it made no concealment of its hostility to the Constitution and the Union. Their party shibboleth has been to "let the Union slide" unless Abolitionism can have full sway over the land. These Abolition Secessionists, under the sacred cry of preserving the Union are plotting its overthrow, and determined to drive the two sections so far apart that reconstruction will be impossible. Their very party organization, upon a sectional basis, was, as Washington foretold it would be in his Farewell Address, a proposition for the dissolution of the Union. The great head of the Republican party is an avowed secessionist. Greeley has time and again through the New York Tribune advocated the destruction of the Union. We make a few short extracts from his paper to show that we do not misrepresent him or the treasonous principles of his party:

"If the Cotton States unitedly and earnestly wish to withdraw peacefully from the Union, we think they should, and would be, allowed to do so. Any attempt to compel them by force to remain would be contrary to the principles enunciated in the immortal Declaration of Independence--contrary to the fundamental ideas on which human liberty is based."--N. Y. Tribune

We quote another specimen of the Tribune's disunion doctrine:

"If the cotton States shall become satisfied that they can do better out of the Union than in it, we insist on letting them go in peace. The right to secede may be a revolutionary one, but it exists nevertheless."--N. Y. Tribune

Here is another sample a little stronger still:

"We must ever resist the right of any State to remain in the Union and nullify or defy the laws thereof. To withdraw from the Union is quite another matter; and whenever a considerable section of our Union shall deliberately resolve to go out, we shall resist all coercive measures designed to keep it in. We hope never to live in a republic whereof one section is pinned to another by bayonets."--N. Y. Tribune.

The reader would weary if we republished one in a hundred of GREELEY'S disunion articles. We give another sample of Abolition Secessionism and that must suffice for the time:

"If it (the Declaration of Independence) justified the secession from the British empire of three millions of colonists in 1776, we do not see why it would not justify the secession of five millions of Southrons [sic] from the Union in 1861." --N. Y. Tribune

Such is the position of the Republican party. It favored secession and urged the South out of the Union until it brought about civil war, but when it found a party in the North powerful enough to resist its fiendish work, it brimmed its sails to catch the popular breeze, set up a hypocritical howl for the Union, and is now the most loud mouthed in yelping "traitor" to cover up, and draw public attention from, their own misdeeds.

We need waste no more time or space to prove the hostility of the Republican party to the Union, everybody knows that such has been the determined object of that party for thirty years past, and now having discovered that "war is disunion" it is ready to recognize the Southern Confederacy and prepare for an eternal separation. These are the traitors--and such is their treason! The only hope to save the Union is in the patriotic action of the Democratic party. That party will stand by the Constitution and the Union and crush out treason to the Government North and South. The principles that triumphed at the adoption of the Constitution are still the principles of the party--the equality of the States and their right to regulate their own domestic government. On no other ground can the Union be restored and preserved. The Republican disunionists know this, and hence their thief-cry of 'traitor' against the old life-guard of the Union--the Democratic party.

Like Master Like Man
(Column 2)

Summary: Attacks the "vile renegade" Forney for attempting to revive the split in the Pennsylvania Democrats between the Breckinridge and Douglas wings. It goes on to note that the Chambersburg Times, a "servile imitator," is faithfully following Forney's lead
(Names in announcement: Kennedy)

A Pill
(Column 2)

Summary: Insults the editor of the Transcript for his recent attacks on the Valley Spirit.

Full Text of Article:

The childish character of the articles brought forth by the imbecile editor of the Transcript obviates the necessity of a reply. We could not make them more ridiculous or contemptible by any process short of getting their author to re-write them. It would be cruel to inflict the castigation, he is trying to provoke, for such brainless productions. He may well cry out for a pill for he is emphatically the "sick man" of the editorial fraternity--his complaint being a chronic mental weakness, bordering on idiocy, if we may take his productions as a symptom of his malady. Nature, however, has been kind to him in one respect, it has spared him the affliction of being capable of seeing his own ignorance, which is a great blessing to those with weak intellects. We feel disposed to deal kindly with him on account of his mental infirmities, and will, therefore, dismiss him with this benediction:

"We pray the power to mend his mental flaw,
Or grant him kindest keepers and clean straw."

Generalissimo Lincoln
(Column 3)

Summary: The Spirit lavishly praises the ability and courage of General McClellan and attacks those who suggest that McClellan be removed from power to allow President Lincoln to take charge. The article cites at length an extract from the New York Tribune that questions McClellan's lavish expenditures on equipping an army that has not yet seen battle. The Tribune also claims that McClellan deserves absolutely none of the credit for any of the recent victories of the Union army.

Origin of Article: New York Tribune

Editorial Comment: "We give [the Tribune's] opinions of the General-in-Chief of our Army, and we can safely say that they are the opinions of the radical portion of the Republican Party. If General MCCLELLAN can withstand the assaults of the Northern rebels he need not fear any that the Southern rebels can make of him."

Advancing Backward
(Column 4)

Summary: Pokes fun at early Confederate hopes of an invasion of the North and points out that the Confederates now seem to be "advancing backward" toward the Gulf of Mexico. If they think that they are luring the Union armies into a trap, the editorial continues, they are mistaken, for "General MCCLELLAN'S 'Anaconda' is too wily a snake to walk blindly into any 'trap' that the Secesh can invent."

The Army of the Potomac
(Column 5)

Summary: Reprint of a speech given by General McClellan to his troops on March 14, informing them that movement is imminent and asking them to trust in his leadership.

The Occupation of Winchester--Enthusiastic Greeting of our Troops
(Column 5)

Summary: Describes the Union advance into Winchester, Virginia and claims that the troops were given a warm welcome by the townspeople. Two-thirds of the people in the area are supposed to be Unionist, but have been compelled to bow to secession pressure.

Ministerial Appointments
(Column 1)

Summary: The East Baltimore Conference of the Methodist Church appointed ministers for the Frederick and Carlisle Districts at a recent conference. Local clergy include William Harden, Presiding Elder of the Frederick District, George W. Cooper of Waynesboro, S. M. Hansock of Greencastle, G. W. Boyd of Mercersburg; J. S. Murray, Presiding Elder of the Carlisle District, J. A. Price of Mechanicsburg, and Allen Brittain of Chambersburg.
(Names in announcement: William Harden, George W. Cooper, S. M. Hansock?, G. W. Boyd, J. A. Price, Allen Brittain)

The 77th in a Skirmish
(Column 1)

Summary: On the morning of March 9th, General McCook's camp on the Franklin Pike south of Nashville was attacked by a company of Confederate cavalry. His unit sustained several casualties. The attack was repulsed, and was joined by men from Col. Stumbaugh's regiment, camped nearly a mile away. The Union army accumulating at Nashville is supposedly anxious for forward movement.

South Ward Meeting
(Column 1)

Summary: The Democrats of the South Ward of Chambersburg will meet at the Public House of D.W. Beaver to form a ticket for the Spring election.
(Names in announcement: D.W. Beaver)

Counterfeits
(Column 2)

Summary: Reports that 45 counterfeit notes have been put into circulation in the area and gives a lists of banks, mostly from Pennsylvania, on which they are supposedly drawn as well as a description of the notes.

Secession Repudiated
(Column 2)

Summary: Reports on a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on a bill sponsored by Mr. Ashley of Ohio, similar to one proposed by Senator Sumner, that would declare certain seceded states as non-existent and reclassify them as territories. The bill was tabled on a vote of 65 to 56. The article notes that Rep. Killinger of Pennsylvania voted with the "conservative majority," while a number of Pennsylvania Republicans voted "with the Secession minority."

Origin of Article: Patriot and Union

War News--Official Report of the Battle at Sugar Creek
(Column 3)

Summary: The report of General Samuel Curtis regarding the Confederate assault on Union forces at Pea Ridge, Arkansas. . The outnumbered Federals had received advance warning of the attack and skillfully parried the Confederate thrusts, eventually routing and scattering the attackers, who were under the command of General Van Dorn. Union losses were reported to be 450 killed and wounded, while Confederate losses were a thousand killed and wounded, including General McCullough, and a thousand captured.

The War in Virginia
(Column 4)

Summary: Previous reports of the capture of Winchester were erroneous; the Confederates still hold the town. The town of Berryville was the village discussed in the report published earlier.

Married
(Column 5)

Summary: John A. Smith and Anna Elizabeth Hoke, both of Peters township, were married on March 6.
(Names in announcement: Rev. John Ault, John A. Smith, Anna Elizabeth Hoke)

Married
(Column 5)

Summary: William Hoke and Harriet Dickhout, both of Peters township, were married on March 13.
(Names in announcement: Rev. John Ault, William Hoke, Harriet Dickhout)

Died
(Column 5)

Summary: James Crawford of Chambersburg died of consumption on March 11 at the age of 21.
(Names in announcement: James Crawford)

Died
(Column 5)

Summary: Helen Antoinette Carbaugh, daughter of John and Mary Carbaugh, died in Upper Strasburg at age 11 days.
(Names in announcement: Helen Antoinette Carbaugh, John Carbaugh, Mary Carbaugh)

Died
(Column 5)

Summary: Susan Cormony, widow of the late Samuel Cormony, died on March 11 at Cetre, Franklin County, at age 57 years, 3 months.
(Names in announcement: Susan Cormony, Samuel Cormony)

Died
(Column 5)

Summary: Anjeline Rosenberger, daughter of Levi and Sarah J. Rosenberger, died at age 1 year, 9 months and 15 days in Horse Valley, Franklin County.
(Names in announcement: Anjeline Rosenberger, Levi Rosenberger, Sarah J. Rosenberger)

Died
(Column 5)

Summary: Helen M. Foltz, daughter of M.A. and Charlotte S. Foltz, died at age 9 weeks in Chambersburg on March 14.
(Names in announcement: Helen M. Foltz, M.A. Foltz, Charlotte S. Foltz)

Died
(Column 5)

Summary: Miss Eliza McCarr died in Upper Strasburg on March 6 after a lingering illness at age 42.
(Names in announcement: Miss Eliza McCarr)

Negro Equality
(Column 1)

Summary: Reports on a speech by Frederick Douglass denouncing colonization, which, the article points out, means that the abolitionists would welcome the former slaves to come to the North. Douglass argues that slaves have the will and ability to become equal. The article notes that Douglass's position is not "gaining many proselytes just now."

Origin of Article: Missouri Republican

Full Text of Article:

Frederick Douglas [sic], free person of color, has been enlightening the benighted people of Boston in a lecture upon what ought to be done with the everlasting nigger. We should state the subject more properly, perhaps, by saying it was about what ought to be done with them. As, for instance, he ought not to be permitted to remain in slavery, and the government ought not to let the chance pass to proclaim liberty throughout the land to all the inhabitants thereof. But the great end of Fred. Douglass' lecture was to show that colonization was a humbug. He proved, or at least tried to prove, that colonization was unjust, impolitic and inexpedient. And this is the doctrine of the ultra abolition fanatics. They don't want the four million slaves of the south sent out of the country after being freed, but desire that they shall go north and participate in the blessings of all the civilization of that region. Fred. Douglass says that slaves have the will, the capacity and the power to rise to the highest positions among the whites, and he for one, backed by a large number of other abolitionists, is in favor of giving them a chance to exhibit their equality. These harangues don't hurt any body, and are not gaining many proselytes just now.--Missouri Republican.

From Washington
(Column 1)

Summary: A report theorizing that the Republican attempts to declare seceded states non-existent is a plot to install abolitionist territorial governments.

From Washington--Important War Orders by the President
(Column 1)

Summary: Reprints Lincoln's first three executive orders of 1862. The first set February 22 as a date of general movement of Union forces, including the Army of the Potomac, against Confederate targets. The second, dated March 8, ordered the reorganization of the Army of the Potomac. The third, dated March 11, relieved McClellan of command of departments not directly under his command. General Halleck is given command of troops west of Knoxville, Tennessee, and General Fremont is given command of troops west of the Department of the Potomac and east of Halleck's Department.

Kentucky on the War
(Column 2)

Summary: Reprint of a resolution introduced in the Kentucky House of Representatives that swears allegiance to the Union but protests any attempt to divert the war into one for the emancipation of the slaves.