The Continental Monthly, Vol I, Issue I, January 1862 | Page 5

We have a rebellion to crush,--a rebellion large in its
proportions, threatening in its aspect, but lacking in elements of real

strength, and liable to collapse at any moment. To put down this
rebellion is the sole object and purpose of the war. We are not fighting
to enrich a certain number of army contractors, nor to give employment
to half a million of soldiers, or promotion to the officers who command
them. Neither are we fighting to emancipate the slaves. It is true the
army contractors do get rich, the half million of soldiers are employed,
the officers who command them receive advancement, and the slaves
may be liberated. But this is not what we fight for. On this head the
people have made no mistake. In the outset they proclaimed that this
war was to decide the question of government or no government,
country or no country, national existence or no national existence. And
we must go straight to this mark. We have nothing to do with any issue
except how to save the nation. If this shall require the emancipation of
every negro in the Southern States, then every negro must be
emancipated. And this brings us to another proposition, to wit, that the
day is past for discussing this slave question in a corner. This bug-bear
of politicians, this ancient annoyance to the Northern Democrat and the
Southern old-line Whig, this colored Banquo, will no longer 'down.'
We can no longer affect ignorance of the spectre's presence. It is forced
on us in the house and by the way. It follows the march of our armies.
It is present at the occupation of our Southern ports and towns and
villages. Martial law is impotent to deal with it. It frightens by its ugly
shadow our Secretary of War; in vain our good President tries to avoid
it; in vain we adopt new terms, talk about contrabands, and the like; the
inevitable African will present himself, and we are compelled to
recognize him.
Notwithstanding we fight for no other end than to save the Republic,
we are absolutely driven into the consideration of the slave question,
because it involves the very existence of any republic. This question is
not whether bondage is to cease throughout the world; but whether it is
compatible with a free government, such as we claim our own to be. In
other words, is Slavery in the United States to-day on trial? We must
all abandon our morbid sensitiveness and come squarely to the
consideration of the vital point, to wit, can this great Republic be held
together while the 'peculiar system' exists in a part of it? No matter who
first posed this ugly query,--Calhoun or Garrison. We have now to

answer it. We dare not, we can not, we will not give up our country to
disunion and severance. To save it has already cost us an eye and a
hand, and now this unhappy subject must be disposed of, disposed of
honestly, conscientiously, with the temper of men who feel that the
principle of our government is soon to fail or triumph. If to fail, the
cause would seem to be lost forever. What then? Why only a monarchy
on our Southern border, insolent provinces on our Northern; Spain
strengthened in her position, and recovering her lost ground; Mexico an
empire; England audacious and overbearing as of yore, and France
joining to fill our waters with mighty naval armaments. We, having
witnessed the dismemberment of our country, and possessing no longer
a nationality, but broken into fragments, to become the jest and
laughingstock of the world, which would point to us and say, 'These
people began to build, and were not able to finish!'
How do you fancy the picture? Do you think any morbid delicacy, any
fear of giving offense to our 'loyal Southern brethren,' should prevent
our examining this slave question? We raise, be it understood, no
foregone conclusion, we do not even pronounce on the result of the
examination; but examine it we must. Not the President, with his
honest desire to preserve every guaranteed right to the South; not the
Secretary of State, who unites the qualities of a timid man with those of
a radical, and who is therefore by instinct temporizing and 'diplomatic;'
not any other member of the cabinet, dare longer attempt to slide over
or around it. We observe, we venture on no conclusion in advance. We
are not prepared to say, if the South in a body should seek now to
return to their allegiance, that they could not hedge in and save their
'institution.' But we should still desire to discuss the subject carefully.
So long as slavery was tolerated as a domestic custom long established
and difficult to deal with, it