Show the perplexing missouri question Ou estion als and what are arc radicals radic the the strife between cen in missouri missour I 1 lias has for termed the con at abo head of the Rome sometime time been in the Conselva conservatives tives aio gov gamble present executive and ana gen schofield Seh ofield commander odthe of the department of missouri T the lie bil original ginal cause of the difficulty was the all absolving slavery question but the most bitter 0 of f the contest has deg degenerated genc rated into personal onal and partisan partis in warfare pre president aident lincoln to death by these unfortunate has been badgered neally neaily conflicts among men who all claim to be union men the latest phase of the he t trouble was the sending to washington a large delegation of radic radicals its who presented a formal address num numerously er signed demanding the removal of gen schofield and the abolishment of the enrolled militia astern stem in the state the fine dignified and masterly response of the president has just be been en received ed and like a all 1 his productions abounds in 11 native good sense and is characterised characterized by excel excelia lent temper we have not room to print entire the presidents President lB reply but cannot refrain aloin re producing a few extracts we may premise that lie he declines peremptorily yet courteously to remove gen schofield Refer referring rim to the demands of the petitioners petition ers mr lincoln said among the reasons given enough of suffering and wrong to union men is certainly and I 1 suppose truly stated yet the whole case as presented C tit C I 1 I 1 fails to convince me that gen schofield or the enrolled militia ais is for that suffering and liong Avion 0 the whole can be explained on a more chiri charitable table and as I 1 think a more rational hypothesis we are in civil war in such cases there always is a main question but in this case that question is h a perplexing compound union and slavery it thus becomes a ques question tion not of two sides mer merely ely but at least of lour sides even among those who ire are for the union saying bothin nothing ot of those who are arc against it thus those who inho are for the union with but not without slavery those for it without but not with those for it with or without but prefer it with and those for it with or without but prefer it without among these again is a subdivision of those who are for gradual but not for immediate and those who abc a c for immediate but not for gradual extinction C of slavery it is easy to conceive that all these shades of opinions and even more may be sincerely since ciely iely entertained by honest and truthful men yet all being for the union by reason of these differences each will prefer a different dit way of sustaining hig the union at once sincerity is questioned and motives ire arc assailed as ailed actual war coining blood grow groins s lot hot and bl blood bodis is spilled Thou thought glatis is forced fiona old channels into confusion deception ard breeds L s an and d th ilves confidence dies and S aal 11 j suspicion reigns I 1 lich eich man feels an impulse to kill his neighbor rr r lest he be killed by him revenge and retaliation follow and all this as before said may be among honest men only but this is i not all every foul bird comes abroad and every dirty reptile aises up these add crime to confusion strong measures deemed indispensable indi spen q a but harsh at best such men make worse by murders for old grudges and nin minders iders for pelf proceed under any cloak that will best bead cover for the oce occasion Islon these causes amply account far what has occurred in missouri 1 without N ascribing 11 it to the av weakness ca k or wickedness of any Gen general cral the newspaper files those chroniclers of human events will how that the evils evil complained of were quite as prevalent under Fi diemont Fic mont emont hunter halleck and curtis as under schofield if the former had greater force opposed to them they also had bad greater fr force farce with which to meet it when tho the organized rebel army left the state the main federal forces had to go also leaving the department commander at home rela relatively 3 no st stronger r than before without disparaging any I 1 affirm with confidence that no commander of that department has in proportion pio portion to his means done better than gen schofield in those these plain homely yet sensible extracts the P resident president exhibits that wonderful knowledge of human nature and the secret springs ns of mens actions which have so stood him in I 1 n need during these troublous times and withal evinces a charity and that milk of human kindness for which a he be will be noted through all coming time referring to the infamous massa massacre ere at lawrence by quantrell and his band of outlaws which was made an for gen demanding Sch schofields lem demoval oval on n the score of imbecility the president says imbecility is urged as one cause for removing geneval schofield and 0 ibo late massacre at law tice S ellsas is pressed evidence as of that anibe cikity lly to my mind that fact scarcely tends to prove the he proposition plo pi posItion thit that massacre Is is only an example of what grierson john morgan andna and others othera many nv might have repeatedly done on their 9 tv active 0 iraids 17 raids but they 7 chose chiseo to incur the person re al hazard and possessed ased the fiendish hearts fo to do it t the charge is is made that gen poe to protect 10 1 the lawrence awrence siuta schofield eiers Siu on oil would pur nu Td lot allow ill lm l m to bo be pursued into missouri wi while no punishment could be too sudden S ud de n orto or too severe for murderers I 1 I 1 am nv ell sati ifield that as the jf pren of th 0 threatens thre atenO remedial raid into iS Stag mil ouri was the only safe way to avoid an rss acre there including more inn docent than IM guilty instead of probably pio bably ing SU I 1 therefore approve abit 1 A condemn understand get elti ia s1 sa that respect the ch charges argel that general schofield has bu 7 in withhold protection from loyal people 14 purposely facilitated the objects of tile tho dislo hsi a aro are altogether beyond my power of belief ii not arraign the veracity ot of gentlemen ast to facts complained of but I 1 do more than an t the judgment 11 which would infer that bat those quest r occurred in accordance with the purposes of ge f S oral eral schofield in that last sentence the president admix 1 ra I 1 a withering rebuke to those who seize every tr or weighty occurrence to attribute impure 1 worthy or criminal motives to those they ester esl their enemies the clear vision and good i s ment of mr lincoln enabled him to see sec throb i this not uncommon phrase of poor human nt na and he administers his castigation in the mild I 1 yet most pertinent and cutting phrase he concludes with the following charac terL words which denote the patriot the state statesman w a the man from time to time I 1 have done and said foj appeared to me proper to do and say the puiai 1 knows it well it obliges nobody to follow n and I 1 trust it obliges me to follow nobody I 1 T radicals and conservatives each agree with men some things and disagree in others I 1 could w both to agree with me in all things for then tie would agree with each i other and ald would be to strong for any foe fr from ont any quarter T they h ey ho hot ever choose to do otherwise and I 1 do not tte tion their riat right I 1 I 1 too foe shall do what seems to toli I 1 my duty I 1 bold whoever commands in or elsewhere responsible to me and not to eita radicals or conservatives it is my duty to hu ha all but at last I 1 must within my sphere juan what to do and what to forbear your obedient servant A LINCOLN |