| Show progress of opinion if we had time to think of it is is nothing so extraordinary as tile the present state of the emancipation question in the united states it is becoming plain to the dullest of comprehension sion among us that hat slavery is dead even brooks in congress give mouin ful fill assent to the fact governor hall of missouri signs tire law calling a convention in that state to bring about immediate emancipation instead of W waiting ji tiri the term of years aheady the law the now new york herald plants itself upon the emancipation policy arid and is probably as as it is capable of being in regail to anything and the national house of i representatives commands a goodly majority for every question which puts a t general or particular question of fichorn to slaves fairly on the record when we remember how stiffly this matter has haa been fought by copper heads arid and of every ipe up to tile last fow few weeks even and liow low to a recent date all the advantage arre gained in the direction of emancipation has been in the shape of secondary or incidental questions arid and not on the direct question itself it seems seem more like a dicag than a reality true it was announced in the beginning of the war that it must de troy btroy slavery but this declaration expressed more often a feeling than any distinct perception or even expectation pec tation many uttered it who meant after all to do all they could to hinder it arid and of such as hoped for its ti uth the feals of many that it would somehow low fail to prove title tine outnumbered their expectations too long had bad we been accustomed to be bullied and outraged on every question of freedom and both its friends arid and foes had bad come to consent together 6 that slavery was perpetual so far as any sure lioba ability of its extinction was concerned and in ill so far as a confide confidence existed with those who hoped to see sec the end of it it was a faith rather than a sight but the fact like old john browns soul lias has been constantly 11 matching maichin on only from the beginning be 0 inning 0 the deiy fact that the rebels had made war determined ter mined a large number on the instant general butler from casting thirty six or fifty six or possibly more consecutive ballots for jefferson jeh eison davis to be the new liew president of the united states declared that if the south made war the north would fight her arid and lie he was one of the not th and that a war would destroy slaver y arid and in a years time lie he had on the hapless ha and from the day that lie he took the sword lie lias has acted upon the theory af his prophecy but white while a multitude in the same political position went with butler a multitude hung 0 back slavery was too to sacred a thin thing 11 to be meddled with they had worshipped wor shipped the old smoky demon so long Z that it was venci able in their eyes had it not always existed in in our arid and did not our fathers arid and the blessed wa washington shihi ton himself uphold it if we hullt d that down would not the whole fabric tumble besides what was it that had been profitable if not f slavery daye iry where were cotton and sugar and the southern Sou thein trade without it and were riot not those these southern slave holders glorious fellows who would come north for travel and money spending r if their craft were broken up and then were wire not the slaves black and was not ham a vile fello fellow w arid and did not canaan get eternally cursed curbed and so between these fears and superstitions and the smell of egyptian gaelic a motley crew of old hunkers arid and silver greys and fossilized men of many persuasions have singly and in packs fought on determining that come what would the old dragon should riot not be pulled down at every shot that str struck I 1 ic k i it t they raised a howl As its logs legs and arms got bi und and the splinters flew like rain lain their frenzy was unbounded its indignities drew their curses and its misfortunes tunes their tears but neither threats curses nor tears could stop the destruction front from tile the da day y the war began slavery began to die every shell that exploded set loose a bevy of africans every minie minic bullet set a pair of black legs i anning each march ofa of an army enfranchised a district the whole 1 truly army became abolitionists to send a boy to the at aimy my was to make a wilbet force abolitionism gleamed from every bayonet arid and shone choric with every bayonet arid and spoke with every musket shot it made or orations at shiloh Shi loli and donalson and vicksburg tile the potomac at aimy my played con set dative arid and the potomic potomac at aimy my was humbled mcclellan blocked the wheels of 01 emancipation and he be got run over and poked aside lincoln held field back till lie he saw I 1 min frill in every way but that but the hour lie he uttered the t 10 n of fl eadom success pet clied dupon u poll his bann baD lICIs cis arid and lias has never left hini him till this day the path through tile the red ked sea was tile only one that was safe a and li d that has been as the dry laud land now we have got over the crest of tile the hill the crisis of emancipation as a fact is passed its enemies lie aie giving t it up and joining 0 in ill with the multitude that decree it arid and those who have watched the tides of public opinion in this country for the past twenty years will know what now to expect freedom to all black as well as white will be the most popular tiling thing the nation lias has known since tile the revolution when a great course of public policy is once under stood to be decided on oil it is won aeiful how the people of this nation will fall in with it thus thug the old whig party gave up lip ono one after adother tile great measures for which they had fought many a political campaign high tariff national bank and included thus the nation had settled on to slivery slavery though they ablio ned tile the thing by itself now then that freedom is decreed only give tile the people to see sec that it is a settled thin thing as to come as tire the dabris day is to dawn arid and those who oppose it will be as owls in the day time you yon will have to hunt bunt them in impenetrable thickets liams will be beelike belike like serpents bottled in museums flees as the tusks of wild boars baars laid and curious while up lip on oil shelves rare the woods arid and coxs will go into the 9 garret arret anion among r dry and useless herbs heaven speed the day chicago trib |
