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 ^1^'-^ '^<^WM? 
 
 A DISCOURSE 
 
 DELIVERED IN THE 
 
 SECOND PRESBYTEPdAN CHURCH, ELIZABETH, N.J. 
 
 August 6th, 1863. 
 
 OS OCCASION OF 
 
 THE PUBLIC THANKSGIVING 
 
 APPOINTED BY 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, 
 
 T(J COMMEMORATE THE SIGNAL VICTORIES 
 VOUCHSAFED TO THE FEDERAL ARMS. 
 
 n 
 
 BY 
 
 Rev. DAVID MAGIE, D.D. 
 
 PRINTED BY FRANCIS HART & CO. 63 CORTLANDT STREET 
 
 1863. 
 
 AiXL^' 
 
 -e==^
 
 I
 
 A DISCOURSE 
 
 DELIVERED IN THE 
 
 SECOND IMIESRYTERIAN CHURCH. ELIZABETH, N.J. 
 
 August Otii, 18G3. 
 
 ON OCCASION OF 
 
 THE PUBLIC THANKSGIVING 
 
 APPOINTED BY 
 
 ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 
 
 PRESIDENT OF THE V M T E U STATES, 
 
 TO COMMEMORATE THE SIGNAL VICTORIES 
 VOUCHSAFED TO THE FEDERAL ARMS. 
 
 BY 
 
 Rev. DAVID MAGIE, D.D. 
 
 f £fa-|ork : 
 
 PRINTED BY FRANCIS HART & CO. 63 CORTLANDT STREET. 
 
 1863.
 
 MA7ci 
 
 Elizabeth. August. 6, 1863. 
 Dear Sir: 
 
 The undersigned having heard, with great pleasure, the sermon 
 delivered by you this day, on the occasion of the National Thanksgiving, 
 and believing that its publication will greatly serve the cause of truth and 
 of the Union, do respectfully request a copy for publication. 
 
 Very truly yours, 
 
 F. W. FOOTE, JAMES C. WOODRUFF, 
 
 D. H. PIERSON, AUGUSTUS C. KELLOGG, 
 
 A. W. KELLOGG, M. W. HALSEY, 
 
 J. R. BURNET, J. S, CRANE, 
 
 J. W. PRICE, JOHN McCORD, 
 
 WILMOT WILLIAMS. 
 
 To the Rev. Dk. Magie. 
 
 Gentlemf.n : 
 
 Your request, though entirely unexpected, is especially pleasant to 
 me, as it represents four of the churches ot our city, and 1 accede to it, not 
 only as f am thus afi-'orded an opportunity of leaving, in a permanent Form, 
 my views of public affairs, but because 1 hope to be of some little use to 
 my fellow citizens, in removing misapprehension and preventing discour- 
 agement. 
 
 With sentiments of high regard, yours, 
 
 DAVID MAGIE. ' 
 Messrs. Foort, Pierson, &c.
 
 EEASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 The right hand of the Lord is exalted ; the right hand of 
 the Lord doeth valiantly. 
 
 Psalm cxvni: 16. 
 
 As good citizens jou have read and re-read the excellent 
 proclamation of our Chief Magistrate. It has been your 
 privilege to ponder with imdissembled gratitude to God, 
 the wonderful successes which have recently crowned 
 our arms ; mingle your sympatliies with the suiferers 
 in this needless and cruel rebellion ; offer your earnest 
 prayers that God would change the hearts of the insur- 
 gents ; and devoutly ask that the whole nation might be 
 led, through paths of repentance and submission to the 
 divine will, l)ack to the perfect enjoyment of union and 
 fraternal peace. This you have already done and are 
 daily doing, but now you are asseml^led to perform 
 the same duty in a more public manner. In conformity 
 with the President's appointment, endorsed and confirmed 
 by the Governor of our own state, we are assembled to 
 join in a more open and emphatic acknowledgment of 
 the goodness of God, and present our supjDlications for
 
 6 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 the return of trHn(|uillit>- to our bleeding and distraeted 
 eonntry. 
 
 The serviee is certainly called for, and the words just 
 repeated, " The rioht hand of the Lord is exalted, the 
 rio-ht hand of the Lord doeth valiantly." "ive iust such 
 direction to our thouohts as thev oug-ht to tak<\ Nothinff 
 could he more Ijeautiful tlian the sentiment here con- 
 veyed, and nothino- could l)e more beautifully expressed. 
 It takes the entire glory of any good achieved from the 
 creature, whose hreath is in his nostrils, and who is not 
 to be accounted of, and gives it where alone it is due, to 
 the Creator. 
 
 Only little more than three months ago, we were 
 summoned as a nation to unite in fasting and prayer. 
 Disappointments, delays and defeats had spread a degree 
 of gloom over the public mind, so that men usually 
 strong and of good courage, seemed for the time 
 depressed ; and this gloom was subsequently deepened 
 by an invasion, skilfully planned, and of most })ortentous 
 aspects. P)Ut within the last five and thiity days how 
 surprisingly has the tide of affairs turned. One exploit 
 has followed another in such ra))id siucession that every 
 patriotic bosom is filled with gratitude, and we are all 
 ready to say to each other, "O give thanks unto the 
 Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth forever. 
 Serve him with gladness and come before his. presence 
 with singing." 
 
 The message is specific, referring to the signal victories 
 which God has lately vouchsafed to our army and navy;
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING, 7 
 
 but it will not be deemed aiiiiss if, in the following 
 discourse, I take a somewhat wider rang-e. My wish is 
 to set liefore honest and thoughtful minds such reasons 
 for gratitude as are suggested by the whole subject of 
 the war. It is my design, in pursuing this course, to do 
 what in me lies to decide the doubtful, encourage the 
 timid, and lead all to see that we do well to-day to 
 enter the gates of the Lord with thanksgiving, and his 
 courts with praise. 
 
 1. The Cause in which we are embarked, we have 
 good reason to be assured, is a just and righteous one. 
 It was not to oppress our southern neighbors, or wrest 
 from them a shigle privilege guaranteed by the Consti- 
 tution, that the sword was drawn in the first instance. 
 Never was there a clearer case of simple resistance to 
 aggression. We stand, in this respect, on a noble pre- 
 eminence, and may challenge the world to prove that we 
 are wrong. Were it otherwise, had we conspired against 
 what are called the Confederate States, to arrest their 
 course in the enjoyment of life, liberty, and the pursuit 
 of happiness, or had we neglected to fulfil towards them 
 all the obligations imposed u[)on us ]jy our National 
 Compact, it would be but solemn mockery to raise a 
 voice in tliaiiksgiving to-day, no matter how great our 
 successes. Examine the Journals of Congress from the 
 beginning, including the whole history of Executive acts, 
 and see if they do not furnish a perfectly clear record. 
 Much, I know, is said by the South itself, and by south- 
 ern sympathizers, of the oppression of the North, and we
 
 8 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 need to pause, even at so late a day, to enfjuire into the 
 truth (if the constantly reiterated allcf^ations. Did tliis 
 dreadful war begin by those who struck the fatal blow 
 in defense of tlieir own ris^hts. oi- was it a wanton attack 
 on the rii^-hts of others I 
 
 You have heard the only true answer a thousand 
 times, and yet it is necessary, for the sake of disproving- 
 false assertions, to re})eat it again and again. Kecur, 
 then, to the acknowledg-ed fact, that t1i(^ control of the 
 government of the country had, for years and years, 
 been ahnost exclusively in the hands of Southern men, 
 or of those openly friendlv to Southern views and inter- 
 ests, and its patronage and j)ower were wielded very 
 much in accordance with their avowed wishes. For this 
 end, and without pretense of disguise, compromises were 
 made and compromises were annulled, lines of demarka- 
 tion were drawn, and lines were blotted out. Concession 
 upon concession was granted to soften the asperity, 
 conciliate the regard, and ])revent the execution of the 
 threats of men who were forever affirming that they 
 must have and would have what they demanded, or 
 dismember this happy and prosperous commonwealth. 
 Often was it foretold l)y the wise and the true, and now 
 it is known to be a fact, that their jnirpose was either to 
 rule or ruin, either to subject the nation to their own 
 selfish designs or destroy it. Tlie charge is a serious 
 one, and yet the testimony to substantiate it is as clear 
 as the sun in the firmament, and must ])e Ijrought for- 
 ward, for it sets the rebellion in its only fair and ]n'(^per
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. \) 
 
 light. That you may see that my language is no 
 stronger than facts justify, let me turn you for a moment, 
 to evidence furnished by a leading man of themselves. 
 Mr. 'Stephens, since made the Vice-President of the 
 Southern Confederacy, A^■arned the Georgia Convention, 
 called to consider the propriety of seceding, of the folly 
 and wickedness of any such suicidal act. " Pause, I en- 
 treat you," his very words are, "and think for a moment 
 what reasons you can give that will satisfy yourselves, 
 in calmer times, or what reasons you can give to your 
 fellow-sufferers, for the calamities which secession w^ill 
 surely bring upon us I What cause or overt act can you 
 name or point to, on which to rest the plea of justification? 
 What right of ours has the North assailed ? AYhat interest 
 of the South has it invaded I What justice has been de- 
 nied us ? What claim, founded in right, has ever been 
 withheld I Can any of you to-day, name one act, 
 deliberately and purposely done by the government at 
 Washington, of which the South has the right to com- 
 plain ? I challenge the answer. Now, to attempt to 
 overtlirow such a government, under which we have 
 lived for three-quarters of a century, and gained our 
 wealth and standing as a nation, is a height of madness, 
 folly, and wickedness, to which I can neither lend my 
 sanction nor my vote." Remember this, my friends, when 
 you hear men, northern born, and northern bred, excus- 
 ing the rebels as an oppressed and injured people, bereft 
 of their rights. 
 
 No, it is not true, and no sophistry can make it appear 
 2 
 
 i
 
 10 llEASONS FOK THAKKSUlVIlS'G. 
 
 true, that llie Soutli is riiilit niid llie North is wrong" 
 ill till- treiiieiidoiis coiitlict, Avliii-h is iast lilliiii;' the 
 hmd with w iddws and witli orphans. Did I not l)eli( ve 
 in my lieart, that the way uii lair part is a righteoUs one, 
 entered upon strietly in self detenee, not to eneroach on 
 others, but to upliohl our very existence as a Union and 
 a constitutional <j^overnnieiit, it would be no satisfaction to 
 me to read of the glorious victories which have recently 
 crowned our arms. Success based on fraud, and secured 
 at the expense of trampling- on the most sacred oaths 
 aud obligations, may dazzle and deceive for awhile, 
 but in the end will come to nought. The people of the 
 North declared their convictions in unnn'stakable tones, 
 the moment they learned that the Hag- of the nation had 
 been insulted, its treasures seized, its forts captured, and 
 its authority set at defiance, and nothing- has occurred 
 to falsify these convictions. Not a few of those who 
 had all along acted w ith the South, and w^ere reg-arded, 
 l)y way of emphasis, her friends, were compelled now 
 by the sheer force, we trust, of honest reflection, openly 
 to change ground. Thousands of the most earnest 
 peace men were ready to say that the w icked strife 
 could never, never cease until the stars aud stripes of 
 the old union were seen to float again over every city 
 and fortress in the land. 
 
 How was this, Init from a conviction deeply fixed in 
 every bosom, that the movement of the South was a 
 rebellion of the w'orst possible sort, a rebellion against 
 the most paternal government under heaven i Subse-
 
 REASONS FOE THANKSGIVING. 11 
 
 qiient events, and especially the slow progress made in 
 subduing those who had risen up against us, united with 
 the adoption of certain measures which happened to be 
 distasteful, because they happened to strike at a few 
 bold and reckless breeders of sedition, changed the 
 opinions of some, who, perhaps, were never very hearty 
 in the cause. But could these things, however inexpe- 
 dient, change the nature of great principles, or make 
 fraud honesty ? If the war was forced upon us, as Vice 
 President Stephens in another place observes, by ambi- 
 tious and disappointed politicians, how could a few 
 incidental. stretches of power on the part of the govern- 
 ment, alter the case ? The President was elected in 
 all respects, according to due form of law, and an 
 attempt to dismember the Union because he was 
 supposed to hold particular political ojjinions, could be 
 branded by no softer name than treason. So it is 
 called by thousands of pure patriots and good men, and 
 so it will be called when this war shall only be known 
 as pages of history, on which posterity will bring in a 
 verdict. 
 
 Most fully do I believe, after looking at the subject 
 in all its lights, that it was demanded of us by a high 
 sense of duty to repel tlie attacks made, just as a man 
 ought to defend his house against the midnight plun- 
 derer. And what is there in such a contest like con- 
 scious rectitude, or as the Apostle better expresses it, 
 the testimony of a good conscience, to sustain the mind 
 in the hour of trial. " I liad rather be right than be
 
 12 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 President of the United States," was the noble remark 
 of the great Henry Clay, and if we are only right in 
 this fearful quarrel, we can bear teniporar)^ defeat and 
 disaster, assured tliat in the end God will vindicate his 
 ways to men. Is it not matter of gratitude, then, that 
 we do not wage war to destroy, but to preserve, not to 
 dismember, but to keep together, not to overturn tlie 
 government, but to uphold it? Were it not so we might 
 well hang our heads for shame, and retire from this 
 sacred place to smite upon our breasts and deprecate 
 the anger of a righteous God. 
 
 2. Lessons have been taught us incidentally since the 
 war began, oi great and i)ermantiit value. 
 
 Our country is now going through an experience 
 which must tell u})on us for weal or woe during ages to 
 come, and there is good reason to hope that the effect 
 will be happy. God is chastising us very severely for 
 our sins against himself, if not against our southern 
 brethren ; but it is in mercy we trust, and not in wrath, 
 lest we should be consumed. Days of severe and pro- 
 tracted trial, are often the very days which establish 
 principles, which form character, whicli correct abuses, 
 which remove prejudices, and which show men what is 
 in them of both o-ood and evil. Individual life never 
 grows into its full proportions, in the midst of ease and 
 luxury, and self indulgence; and the same is true of 
 the life of a nation. War sets hard tasks and inflicts 
 heavy penalties, but like the storms which agitate the
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 13 
 
 air and destroy noxious vapors, it prepares the way for 
 the enjoyment of a better peace, and a safer tranquillity. 
 These troubles have taught us, for instance, as noth- 
 ing else ever could, that government is of God, and that 
 to resist it is to resist one of his express ordinances. It 
 seems strange as we look back for a few months, that 
 the people should have been so perfectly asleep on a 
 point of such unspeakable importance. Up to the very 
 hour when the rebellion broke out, little was said, 
 because little was thought of the clearly inculcated fact 
 that submission to the powers which God has ordained, 
 in everything not clearly condemned by the Bible, is 
 one of the very first duties of Christians as well as citi- 
 zens. Everything was going on so smoothly, that the 
 pulpit was silent, and so was the fireside, and so was 
 the school room, and so was the lecturer's desk. The 
 ruled came into contact with their rulers at so few points, 
 and these associated with demands on the one hand of 
 so little consequence, and duties on the other so easily 
 discharged, that the authority of government, as some- 
 thing strong and tangible, and not to be resisted, was 
 scarcely realized at all by one in a hundred of the 
 people. With the single exception of making some 
 change every four years, not so much of principles as 
 of men, everything was suffered to go on very much 
 in its own way. If the mass of the community might 
 but buy and sell, and get gain, level forests, build ships, 
 and lay railroad tracks, found cities, open new channels 
 of trade, and fill still larger coffers, it seemed to be all
 
 14 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 thtat was cared for. l>ut tlie first wanton l)low at the 
 authority of the govcrmiiont, compelled the iiutting 
 forth of every latent power, in assertion of its preroga- 
 tives. Men l)egan to think that something must be 
 meant, far beyond what they had given themselves the 
 trouble to enquire into, by magistrates holding the 
 sword in such a way, as to be a terror to evil doers, 
 and a praise to those that do well. IMore has been 
 accomplished in this short space of time to educate the 
 nation in this fundamental maxim, than had ever been 
 done before. We are learning a lesson, it is hoped, so 
 as never to need a repetition, on the true limits between 
 personal liberty, and the authority which every govern- 
 ment on earth nuist exercise, or be guilty of the crime 
 of suicide. All must go by the board the moment it is 
 admitted that any one man, or au}^ combinaticm of men 
 may decide how far they shall obey, and when they 
 may begin to disobey. 
 
 Again, as tbe war progresses we are all, whatever our 
 jxditical creeds or jrreferences, fast learning to c<uTect 
 mistakes, into which all alike had fallen. Many a fond 
 tlieory has been to])|)led over into the dust by the r<>ugh 
 logic of the last two or three years' events. It was 
 imaoined at the North that tlie contest must be short, 
 inasmuch as we had a vast su])eriority in numbers nnd 
 wealth, and especially as there was a whole race in the 
 South to which war would bring, it was su]1]ios(m1 as a 
 necessary conse(pience, the ho])e of chains burst and 
 privileges of freemen enjoyed. Almost every one imag-
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. , 15 
 
 hied tliat a fow thousand sokliers summoned to the field, 
 as on a kind of dress parade, woidd set matters right. 
 Hardly could it be believed that three or four miUions 
 of people, ^vitlI a single spark of true life in them, could 
 be kept (juietly toiling- for men they called masters, 
 while those very masters were exerting every nerve to 
 esta1>lisli an empire of which the perpetuity of bondage 
 should be the chief corner-st(me. Yet, so it has been. 
 E(pially mistaken were the peojde of the South in calcu- 
 lating upon fric;nds at the North to arrest the war at the 
 very outset. It was their full belief, that they had such 
 a host of cordial sympathizers in the border states, and 
 even in New Jersey, New York, and New England, that 
 it would be im[)0ssible for the armies of the Union to 
 strike a single effective blow. How could our money- 
 loving people, said they, give up a traffic in which King- 
 Cotton figured so largely, and which was making so 
 many merchants and manufacturers rich I But these 
 illusions have been rudely swept away, on the one side 
 as well as on the other, and it is perhaps matter of 
 thanksgiving for all concerned to realize that it' is so. 
 Many a fog has been cleared off by the repeated tempests 
 of the battle-field, never to settle upon us again, it is to 
 be hoped, for generations to come. 
 
 Let me name another lesson which loyal men, the 
 land over, are rapidly learning, and it is to look upon 
 the institution of negro slavery in its only true liglit. 
 So long as the South itself was content with privileges 
 already enjoyed, and made no encroachments and
 
 16 . KEASONS FOK THANKSGIVING. 
 
 indulged in ii<> ilireats, nineteen-twenti(4lis nf the Lest 
 people <»t tlic X<»rtli telt IxMiiid to ite silent, tlioiiji^h it 
 was ot necessity the silence oi j^riet ami tears. The 
 responsihility, more or less, was not on ns, and we could 
 not rudely linrst the l)onds of" a solemn covenant to make 
 an onset on the peace of those whom many a IwiIIowcmI 
 tradition tauoht ns to ref>'ard as iiiends. Slavery we 
 considered as stnnething local and munii-ipal, to ))e suf- 
 fered wliere it was, if so its patrons determined, hut not 
 to he spread over the land, with the pi-ivileoe of reducing- 
 every square mile into sul)serviency to itself. But we 
 have entered u])on a new era, in i-eference to the colored 
 man, and it has l)een opened, mark the mysterious prov- 
 idence of (iod, by the very men who meant not so, neither 
 did their heart tliink so. Not that we intend to become 
 constitution-breakers, and do evil that good may come, 
 but how altered is the face of things. It is a solemn 
 fact, whether contemplated with [deasure or with pain, 
 that two or three years of war liave changed more 
 minds in reference to the condition of this unlia})})y 
 people, than half a century before did. The thing is 
 done, and, what is more, the South has done it, and done 
 it in opposition to every sort of entreaty and remon- 
 strance. Many a wealthy man In Kentucky, Missouri. 
 Tennessee and North Carolina, as well as Maryland and 
 Western Virginia, has Ijeen heard to say, "Well, if it 
 has come to thi?;, that slavery or tlie countrv must i)erisli. 
 then perish slavery, root and brancii."' G<>d is working- 
 out, in his own wonderful way, a solution of the
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 17 
 
 mighty problem, and our part is to stand still and see 
 his salvation. The poor creatures, even when called free, 
 may be robbed, knocked down by bludgeons, hung upon 
 lamp posts, and consumed by fire, but as sure as there is 
 justice in heaven, these savage cruelties will hasten on 
 the arrival of a brighter day. 
 
 Such are some of the ideas impressed upon hundreds 
 and thousands of minds l^y the progress of the war, and 
 who will say they are not likely to remain ? It is im- 
 possil3le to tell what a day, much less, what a month, or 
 a year may bring forth, but thus much is certain, it will 
 be hard to recede, or fall again into practical indifference 
 as to these grand fundamental principles which must 
 affect the welfare of this nation through all future time. 
 Points have been secured, eminences occupied, vantage 
 ground gained, from which things will be looked upon 
 in new lights, and seen under new and better aspects. 
 No change of administration, no fresh combination of 
 parties, no curious freak of political lioroscoping, will be 
 likely to turn back the nation's sun-dial, for either fifteen 
 or five years. 
 
 3. Positive victories, which we hope will tend to restore 
 the blessings oi peace to our distracted country, have been 
 gained. 
 
 This is the end which every good and true man must 
 desire, and the attainment of it, upon any just and ])roper 
 basis, would fill the land with a universal outburst of 
 thanksgiving. Not only are our leading statesmen la- 
 boring to secure an object on every^ account so important, 
 3
 
 18 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 but it is tlie l)uiMleii of ten tliousaiid prayers offered ii]) 
 from tlie saered desk; it is tlie rieli hooii entreated uf 
 God at niillions of family altars, and, in closets witliont 
 number, it is soug'lit as a l)lessino- of almost ])riceless 
 value. The Countiy is agitated and needs rest; the 
 sword is drawn, but why should it devour forever I There 
 are thousands of desoLite firesides alreadv, JUid who can 
 wish them multiphed i It is solely with a view to the 
 returning quiet and tranquillity of this great and mighty 
 nation, that we can hear of success gained, amidst the 
 smoke, and carnage, and death, of dismantled forts, and 
 sunken sliips, and sLiughtered multitudes, with expres- 
 sions of ofratitude to God. The result caimot be secured 
 in any other way, it would seem, and if })eace is ever 
 enjoyed among us again, it must be purchased, sad to 
 say, with blood. 
 
 There are those, ^vho either cannot or will not make a 
 distinction here, and l)ecause we thank God for victory, 
 they affirm that we delight in seeing the land filled with 
 desolated hal ntations and new made graves. Let me set 
 such people right, by a reference to the late Conmiodore 
 Foote, a name which will be repeated in all coming time 
 as that of a man who knew how to combine patriotism 
 and piety, and wliose loyalty to the flag of his country 
 never led him into disloyalty to the government of 
 God. I love to think of the gallant man, standing fear- 
 lessly on the deck of his vessel, amidst a hail-storm of 
 shell and ball, but I love even more to tliinlv of him, as 
 su})plying the place of a tardy preacher, rather than have
 
 REASONS FOE THANKSGIVIISG. 19 
 
 the people go away unfed with the bread of life. On 
 one occnsion, just Itefore the actual breaking out of hos- 
 tilities, the Commodore attended a religious service, held 
 with special reference to the state of our public affairs, 
 and was asked to offer the concluding prayer. After 
 presenting petition upon petition, to the Father of mer- 
 cies, that he would spare the land the horrors of civil 
 war, if consistent with his holy will, he closed with these 
 memorable words. "If thy purposes cannot otherAvise 
 be accomplished, let the sword, O Almighty God, have 
 its way." The war hastened the noble Commander to 
 his better home in heaven, Ijut his memory is embalmed 
 in myriads of grateful hearts, and will be fragrant so 
 lonof as the sun and moon endure. 
 
 Why may not a Christian minister speak of victories 
 on the field of battle, and speak of them, to a Christian 
 people, yea, and speak of them, as matters of devout 
 gratitude to the ruler of the universe ? Is there nothing 
 to be grateful for in the discomfiture of the proud con- 
 federate legions by Eosecrans in Tennessee, and in the 
 expulsion of the desperate invaders of Pennsylvania by 
 Meade, and in the opening of the great Mississippi to 
 the commerce of the West by Grant, Banks, Farragnt 
 and Porter I Are we to cherish no emotions of grati- 
 tude, when such a marauder as Morgan is caught in 
 his own net, and sent off with his whole stafi' to prison, 
 as liostages for tlie proper treatment of better men ? 
 June closed upon us with clouds of almost midnight 
 darkness, may not good people rejoice and give thanks
 
 20 KEASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 for tlie liglit wliicli l)eanipd out <i\cr tlic land as July 
 opened ' For one, 1 am free t(» .say, that I liave not so 
 read the song of Moses at the Red Sea, or the inspiriting 
 notes of tlie martial poet David, nor have I so read the 
 memoirs of our own revolutionary struggle, embracing 
 a galaxy of fair names, both in church and state, such 
 as the sun has seldom looked ujion. Hut it is said, to 
 repress our thanksgiving and al)ate our joy, have not 
 tlio.se successes been purchased at the price of de.solated 
 habitations, and maimed liml)s, and prematurely made 
 craves I Does not the wife mourn for her husband 
 and the father of her helpless babes, and the mother for 
 the son on whose arm she IiojkhI to lean in lier old age, 
 and the blushing maiden for him who told her of the 
 happy days they would have together when the strife 
 should cease ? All this is true, and true to an extent 
 which no eye but that of God can see. But yet, it may 
 be affirmed with no fear of successful contradiction, 
 that the price, large as it is, is not too large to pay for 
 the sought for blessing. Man has something to do in 
 the world besides merely building a house, and rearing 
 a family, and making a will, and lying down in the 
 grave. You reduce him to a condition of littleness and 
 insignificance, if you disjoin his heart from the land of 
 his fathers' sepulchres, and the government which pro- 
 tects him, and the church where he worships. 
 
 All this, I admit, is to be valued mainly because of 
 its anticipated connection with the return of peace ; but 
 in the mean time attendant benefits are secured of great
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 21 
 
 importance. Not to dwell on other things which must 
 occur to every thoughtful mind, is it nothing that the 
 hammer of the auctioneer in human blood and bones is 
 no lonofer heard to fall in the District of Columbia, that 
 Liberia and Hayti are recognized as kingdoms of the 
 earth, that every foot of the territory of the country yet 
 to be occupied, is to be held sacred for the , abode of 
 freemen, and above all, and more than all, that the idea 
 is at length admitted, that man is a man, without respect 
 to the color of his skin. Is it not well to know at last, 
 that God has made of one blood all nations of men, and 
 that all have one Father and one Saviour 1 These points, 
 thank God, are secured, and who will venture to affirm 
 that they are not the product of seed which nothing but 
 the storm of war could cause to germinate t Let peo- 
 ple judge as they may about the expediency of some of 
 the measures to put down rebellion, the hour is gone 
 by, not to return again, when the discussion of such 
 topics will be hindered whenever and wherever it is 
 deemed expedient. 
 
 Still, the question is asked, and asked with an air of 
 triumph, what has the Administration done in thirty 
 months, with all its boundless appliances, to terminate 
 the quarrel ? Less, it must be admitted in reply, less 
 than might have been reasonably expected, and much 
 less than they would have done had not our armies 
 been sometimes entrusted to unfaithful and mcompetent 
 hands, and especially had not the wheels of government 
 often been clogged by men in loyal States, with disloyal
 
 22 KEASONS KOK TIIANKSCJIVINO. 
 
 hearts. It is distressinj^- to s;i\ tliis, l>ut (nitli impels ine 
 to snv it. Let not tlw clainor of mere! impatience of 
 spoedv resnlts, or the animosity Irll Inr tlic I'resident or 
 his Cal)inet, close our cnes to tliiii«'s as thev actuallv 
 are. AVhen the war bc^'an, we had neither an armv 
 nor navy, nor treasury; a debt <»t"a luindnjd millions of 
 dollars had Ixhmi incnrnMf in a timn of profound ]ieace, 
 eleven states openly unfurled the Hag of insurrection 
 while four more were held in doubt which side to take, 
 and such was the bitterness of feeling* towards Abraham 
 Lincoln, that he had to go through Baltimore, on his 
 way to Washington, in disguise, to avoid the dirk of 
 the assassin. It was loudly and boastfully declared, 
 that the new government should never be inaugurated, 
 come what might. 15ut, behold, what has God wrought \ 
 The four doubtful States are confirmed in their prefer- 
 ence for the old Union, five of those which joined the 
 Confederacy are controlled by the presence of powerful 
 armies, and strong fortresses and footholds are possessed 
 in four more, reducing the area of actual rebellion to 
 less than one third of what it was at first. In the mean 
 time we have built up a navy able to compete with that 
 of the mightiest potentate on earth, and have an army 
 ecpial to any emergency. 
 
 If this, then, be true history, and if it be admitted 
 that our national life and honor are Av<u'lh preserving, 
 we surely can find reason for tlic licarlicst ascri[)tions of 
 praise unto God. Only let the government go on with 
 the advantage which mistakes and reverses have given,
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 2 
 
 o 
 
 in dependence on the blessing of heaven, and what may 
 we not hope for in a twelve month to come I With the 
 Confederacy as such, we have nothing- in the world to 
 do, hut with the States composing it, we may expect to 
 accomplish much. If all auguries do not fail, it w^ould 
 not be at all surprising to tind North Carolina, Louisiana 
 and even Mississippi, soon following the lead of Western 
 Virginia, and Missouri, to seek repose in the bosom of 
 a Union from which they never had an earthly reason 
 to withdraw. When that day comes^ the few remaining 
 o-uif States may be dealt with and done with as well con- 
 sidered policy shall judge wisest and best. 
 
 There is therefore nothing left us to do, but go for- 
 ward, and put down the rebellion at the earliest possible 
 moment, and in the most effectual possible way. How 
 can we falter now, when God has so manifestly answered 
 our prayers, and our brethren in the field call upon us 
 in tones of deep and tender earnestness, to share with 
 them the sufferings and the glory of bringing the quarrel 
 to a speedy close. It is the work, as I believe in my 
 inmost soul, which God gives us to do, and to pause in 
 it would prove us recreant to the best interests of the 
 land, and of the world. We have put our hand to the 
 plow, not because we delight in the scenes of carnage 
 and desolation, which always follow in the track of war, 
 but because necessity is laid upon us, and every con- 
 sideration that can be addressed to pious and jiatri- 
 otic hearts, says, go forward until tlie last vestige of 
 rebeUion is wiued out, and the Union restored in all its 
 
 1.
 
 24 KEASONS FOR TIIANK.^OIVING. 
 
 former glory and power. It is u burden imposed upon 
 us, in tlie righteous jjrovidonfc of (rod, and posterity 
 will utter no blessing on our name, if we do not bear it 
 manfully. We owe it to tiie welfare of tiie disloyal 
 States themselves, now almost utterly impoverished and 
 ruined, to hasten the blessed consunnnation l)v everv 
 effort which strength and courage shall enable us to put 
 forth. 
 
 To pause, at the present juncture, and waste golden 
 opportunities in harsh and indiscriminate condemnation 
 of men and measures, is only to prolong the conflict. 
 It is unquestionably our privilege, as American citizens, 
 to disapprove of what we honestly deem wrong, and 
 palsied be the hand that would strike this privilege 
 down, but let us not forget that there is a broad distinc- 
 tion between liberty and anarchy. A lesson has recent- 
 ly been set us on this subject, in the chief city of tlie 
 Union, which ought to suffice, for at least a century. 
 Ambitious and self-designing men may learn from this 
 new instance, that they cannot make harangues, in 
 which the Chief Magistrate of the nation, and the mem- 
 bers of his Cabinet, are abused in lano-uaiife of coarse and 
 vulgar malignity, unfit to be repeated in a bar-room, 
 without producing a woeful etfect upon the excitable 
 nudtitude. If tliey manage to keep out of harm's way 
 themselves, others are urged on to roldjery^ arson, aiul 
 murder, by the countenance thus oriven. No one can 
 sow to the wind, without reaping the whirlwind, and 
 the whirlwind once raised and started on its desolating
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 25 
 
 course, may reach the agitator, as well as the quiet, or- 
 derly citizen. Archbishop Hughes is reported to have 
 made a remark, in reference to the late riots in New- 
 York, which cannot be too seriously laid to heart. "The 
 men," said he, "who have been engaged in this work of 
 desolation, are not half as guilty as are the demagogues 
 who, night after night, have been lately addressing the 
 most inflammatory appeals to their prejudices and pas- 
 sions. " 
 
 It is impossible for the best government in the world 
 to satisfy everybody, especially at such exciting times as 
 those now passing over our heads, but surely it is wise 
 to gather instruction from what has been, in order to 
 determine what will be. Now, does not history tell tales 
 about the tories of the Revolution, and the Hartford 
 Convention men of eighteen hundred and twelve, which 
 might be read with profit in our day 1 If the Country 
 ever raises monuments for her sons, beheve me, it will 
 be for those who stood by her in the hour of peril, and 
 preferred her welfare above their chief joy, and not for 
 those who deserted her standard, and sought to hinder 
 the enrollment of her hosts. A few more well directed 
 efforts, we hope, will end the contest, and shall we let 
 the golden chance sHp, by stopping to split hairs on 
 certain minor points 1 We have had our times of ease, 
 but now the command, as it seems to me, from the Lord 
 of Hosts himself, is, "order ye the buckler and shield, 
 harness the horses, stand forth with your helmets, fur- 
 bish the spears, and put on the brigandines, and draw
 
 26 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 near to battle." There is every reason to believe, that a 
 united North would soon witness a repentant and re- 
 turning South. The people of the seceding states, as 
 a mass, had no voice in unfurling the standard of rebel- 
 lion, but we trust they Avill soon have a voice, not to be 
 disregarded, in renewing tlieir allegiance to the Stars 
 and Stripes. 
 
 There is one encouraging fact, encouraging to the 
 men at the head of our affairs, as well as to those who 
 fight our battles, and it is that the ministers of religion 
 of all denominations, are so earnest and cordial in their 
 patriotism. Never was it so before, at least to the same 
 extent. With a unanimity perfectly surprising, have 
 they sent up to the Chief Magistrate address upon ad- 
 dress, pledging themselves, before God and the people, 
 to stand by the government, in this anxious hour, and 
 give it their sympathies and prayers. If there be a few 
 dissenting voices, as I am sorry to admit there are, they 
 are only the exception to the rule. 
 
 As for myself I early took ground, as you well know, 
 which I have never since abandoned, and through the 
 whole struggle I have never lost hope as to ihe result. 
 Though the rebellion is gigantic in its dimensions, and 
 waged with the desperate fury of men who are fully 
 aware that failure will consign them to the ignominy of 
 an Arnold, it will, with the blessing of Almighty God, 
 be put down, and upon its ruins will a reinvigorated 
 Union arise, to exert a more blessed influence than ever 
 upon the destinies of the world. AVitli heart within, and
 
 4 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 27 
 
 God above, there is nothing to fear. But let the issue be 
 what it may, I am resolved, as I shall obtain help from 
 heaven, to adhere to the fortunes of my country to the 
 very last. If I leave nothing else to my descendants, 
 they shall never have it to say that their father dishon- 
 ored his gray hairs by yielding to the demands of men, 
 who, in the very face of the most solemn pledges and 
 oaths, are seeking to destroy a government which never 
 did any thing else than shed blessing on the heads of 
 its citizens. 
 
 In the mean time be careful to do nothing, by word or 
 act, which may tend to engender bitter feelings among 
 loyal men, to whatever political party they happen to 
 belong. Some of the bravest and ablest defenders of 
 the country have been from the ranks of the so-called 
 opposers of the administration. They do not style 
 themselves Eepublicans, and yet on the vessel's deck, 
 and on the field of battle, they have proved as firm as 
 rocks for the nation's honor, and the preservation of the 
 nation's boundaries. Give all such men your hands and 
 embrace them as good and tried friends. Insist upon 
 no condition but love to the union, and a determination, 
 at all hazards, to prevent its dismemberment, before 
 giving them your confidence. Only let there be now 
 a long pull, and a strong pull, and a pull all together, 
 and we shall soon have occasion to say, with an emphasis 
 to which the late signal victories have furnished a happy 
 prelude. " The right hand of the Lord is exalted, the 
 right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly."
 
 28 
 
 REASONS FOR THANKSGIVING. 
 
 This will give the wise and good of all lands fresh 
 confidence in free institutions, and from one end of the 
 world to the other, will arise a voice like the sound of 
 many waters, Lotig live the Republic af the United States ! 
 Amen and amen.
 
 I 
 
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