University of Virginia Library

33. XXXIII.

FROM Ohio to Washington! Ther is nary
peace for me! The sole uv my foot knows
no rest. Wher Democresy is in danger, ther am I.
I wuz called to Washinton to consult with the
friends uv the President in regard to the Anteetam
Dedicashun. The part his Eggslency wuz to take
in that affair — wat he wuz to say — what others
wuz to say, ez well ez who wuz to say it, wuz a
matter wich required not only profound thought,
but the most careful considerashun. Hence I wuz
called.

I found assembled the entire Cabnet, with the
addishen uv Binckley; a gentleman recently arrived

from a foreign mission, named McCracken; Gov.
Swann uv Maryland, Ex-Gov. Bradford; the poet
of the day, Gen. McPounder, late uv Lee's staff,
now uv the Maryland Melishy; Kernel Screw,
ditto, and twelve or twenty more who hed held
posishens uv trust and profit under the Confedracy,
and who wuz now holdin correspondin posishens
under the Govner uv Maryland, all of wich wuz a
discussin the various pints involved in this matter.
The President hed prepared a speech wich kivered
thirty-eight pages uv legle cap paper, and it was
segested that he reed it. In the impressive manner
for which he is celebrated he began: —

“Fellow Countrymen — ”

“I object to that fraze,” said General McPounder.
“It's liable to misconstrucshun. Sposin that upon
that stand shood be them wich, doorin the fratrisidle
struggle wich lost me my niggers, wuz in the Fedral
army? I object to bein considerd the fellows uv
sich.”

The objeckshun wuz finally got over by the President's
agreein to turn, ez he uttered the words, to
the Maryland delegashun; wich satisfied em, ez the
most ultra felt it wuz enuff ef the President shood
address himself excloosively to Maryland Dimekrats
ez his countrymen. He perceeded: —

“Gathered together onto a field wich the valor
uv loyal arms made forever memorable — ”

Gov. Swann objected. He wuz for consiliation.
How cood our Southern brethren who had taken
the oath be consiliated, ef the fact that they wuz
walloped wuz bein continually flung at em? Besides,
the word “loyal” wuz offensive to the heft uv
the Democracy. Mr. Seward thought ef references
wuz made to the late onpleasantness they ought to
be diluted. I sustained the objeckshun, and it wuz
stricken out. The President resoomed: —

“Feelin this day an uncommon solemnity, standin,
ez we do, over the mortal remanes uv the thousands
wich died in the sacred cause uv Liberty, and
in defence uv the flag uv our coun—”

“Hold!” sed the impetuous Maryland General,
“I protest. In the name of Maryland I protest.
Shel the Conservatives uv that glorious State be
insulted by alloosions to liberty uv wich they are
deprived, and to the flag wich is the symbol uv oppression,
and under wich we didn't fight?”

I sustained the objeckshun, and that wuz struck
out. He went on: —

“When I cast my eye over this field, and let it rest
for a instant on this spot where the impetuous foemen
wuz driven southward by our brave troops — ”

Gov. Swann remarked that on sich an occasion it
wood be perhaps better not to menshun the partikeler
direckshun in wich anybody wuz driven. Let it
read, I wood say, thus: “On this spot where the
impetuous foeman wuz driven by our brave troops.”
Left thus it woodent be espeshally offensive to any
body. It wood read ez well South ez North, for in
that encounter both sides wuz, at times, driven. I sustained
the amendment, and the President went on: —

“In fucher years the pilgrim to the shrine uv
Liberty will paws a moment on this spot, to drop a
tear over the graves uv them who here checked the
advance uv the hosts uv rebellion, and — ”

Gov. Swann was averse to this. It wuzn't soothin
to the party wich wuz checked. It wood be better
to reed, “drop a teer over the spot onto wich fraternal
blood wuz shed.” Seein no objection to the
amendment, I hed it done. He went on: —

“The widder in her Northern home may weep,
but she may console herself that her husband died
for his country. She may — ”

Gov. Swann broke in. “Sposn,” sed he, “you
should say, `The widder in her Northern or
Southern home, ez the case may be, may weep,'
&c. Woodn't it be better?” I thot so, and it wuz
altered accordinly. The President perceeded: —

“Here, upon this spot, the armed hosts of rebellion
were met and hurled back by — ”

Gov. Swann sejested that that be omitted. The
word “rebellion,” when applied to a brave people,
who wuz strugglin for wat they deemed their rites
wuz, to say the least, too harsh. It wuz struck out,
and the President went on: —

“Upon this spot, amid the roar uv cannon, the
rattle uv musketry, and the clash uv contendin arms,
thousands uv the brave sons uv patriotic sires gave
up their lives.”

There wuz nothin in this objectionable. It cood
apply to either side or to both, but ez everythin
before it hed been stricken out, and ez there wuz
alloosions follerin it that wood hev to be, it wuz advisable
to bust it, and accordinly I drew my pencil
over it.

The President then wanted to know wat in thunder
he shood say. Feelin that he must say suthin,
I prepared for him the follerin remarks: —

“My Fellow-Countrymen: I appear afore you,
not for the purpose uv makin any lengthy remarks:
I simply desire to express my approbashn uv the
ceremonies which hev taken place. My appearance
is the speech wich I will make. I cood make a
speech wich wood tech yoor feelins, but my thots

is in communion with the dead — uv both sides —
whose deeds we are here to commemorate. I shel
not attempt to give utterance to the feelins and emoshuns
inspired by the ceremonies uv the day. Not
any. I shel attempt no sich thing. I am here to
give countenance to the perceedins — to offishally
beam upon em — but I must be permitted to hope
that we may foller the example set us by the illustrious
dead — uv both sides — and think uv the
brave men — uv both sides — who fell in the fierce
struggle uv battle, and who sleep silent in their
graves, yes — who sleep in silence and peace after
the conflict hez ceased. Would to God that we uv
the livin cood emulate their example ez they lay
sleepin in the tombs. Wood that we cood live, ez
do the silent dead, in peace and friendship. Yes, in
peace and friendship ez do the silent dead — uv both
sides. You, my fellow-countrymen, hev my earnest
wishes, ez yoo hev hed my efforts in times gone by,
in the most tryin perils, to restore peace and harmony
to our distracted and divided country, and
yoo shel hev my last efforts in vindicatin uv the
flag uv the Republic, and the Constitooshn uv our
Fathers.”

I endeavored in this to preserve, ez nearly as possible,
the singularly beautiful and loocid style uv the

President, that the assembled thousands who shood
hear it mite recognize it to-wunst ez hizzen. The
last sentence wuz objected to. The Marylanders
didn't know whether they cood sit in silence and
hear sich talk about the “Flag uv the Republic”
and the “Constitooshun uv our Fathers.” But they
wuz overruled. It wuz held, and properly, I think,
that the Constitooshun uv our Fathers shood be
understood ez meanin that instrooment afore the
Ablishnists had knocked out uv it all that made it
lovely in the eyes of Maryland — the nigger — and
the Flag ez it wuz at that period. They wuz finally
satisfied with it, and Binckley teched up the speech
in some miner pints for delivery.

I didn't stay to the celebrashun, for I hed biznis
elsewhere. I writ the President's speech, so I knew
that wuz rite; I heard Bradford's orashen read, and
wuz pleased with it. It wuz a powerful apology
for the Northern soldiers, and must hev had a good
effeck onto the Southern mind. Feelin that it wuz
all rite, I left agin for my feeld uv labor. Wat the
President wood do without me, I don't know.