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The man whose name became unfortunately preeminent for disloyalty at this time was Clement L. Vallandigham, a Democrat, of Ohio. General Burnside was placed in command of the Department of the Ohio, March 25, 1863, and having for the moment no Confederates to deal with, he turned his attention to the Copperheads, whom he regarded with even greater animosity.

Rhodes, uncompromising Unionist, can write as he does upon this issue, it is plain that the opposition party cannot be dismissed as through and through disunionist. The trial of Vallandigham made him a martyr and brought him the Democratic nomination for Governor of Ohio*. His followers sought to make the issue of the campaign the acceptance or rejection of military despotism.

Certain it is, that many of these leaders, six months before, attended and addressed the great gathering from various parts of the Country, of nearly one hundred thousand Vallandigham-Anti-War Peace-Democrats, at Springfield, Illinois the very home of Abraham Lincoln which adopted, during a lull, when they were not yelling themselves hoarse for Vallandigham, a resolution declaring against "the further offensive prosecution of the War" as being subversive of the Constitution and Government, and proposing a National Peace Convention, and, as a consequence, Peace, "the Union as it was," and, substantially such Constitutional guarantees as the Rebels might choose to demand!

Do they also remember the joint delegation of Invincibles and Sons of Liberty that received Vallandigham and the Woods of New York, on their arrival in Chicago to participate in, and mould the proceedings of the National Democratic Convention? Do they further remember the remarkable speech made in their Hall during the Convention, by Capt.

Vallandigham, nominee of the Democratic party for Governor of Ohio, eloquently denounced the whole policy of endeavoring to subjugate the sovereign States of the South; and Judge Curtis, of Boston, formerly Associate Judge of the Supreme Court of the United States, published a pamphlet in which the Federal President was stigmatized as a usurper and tyrant.

The general said he had too much regard for his prisoner's life to try it; but the charm of the man had won upon him. "He don't look a bit like a traitor, now, does he, Joe?" he remarked to one of his staff, and he warmly shook hands with Vallandigham when they parted at two o'clock on the morning of May 25.

He had made his way to Canada. Thence, in the spring of 1864 he served notice on his country that he would perform a dramatic Part, play the role of a willing martyr in a word, come home and defy the government to do its worst. He came. But Lincoln did nothing. The American sense of humor did the rest. If Vallandigham had not advertised a theatrical exploit, ignoring him might have been dangerous.

James A. Wilkinson, the valorous Past Grand Seignior, has gone to look after Doolittle; Silver has gone to Canada; Strawn has turned a summerset into the Republican party; S. Corning Judd helped to convict the prisoners in Cincinnati, although called by the defense; Amos Green, the Major-General of the Order in Illinois, has quietly subsided, and is no longer belligerent; Vallandigham gives the Order the cold-shoulder, and affects pious horror upon the recital of its aims and purposes and, indeed, the whole organization, as formidable as it was in numbers, was soon in the most terrible condition, and died in great agony.

With a Copperhead platform, this Democratic Convention thought it politic to have a Union candidate for the Presidency. Hence, the nomination of General McClellan; but to propitiate the out-and-out Vallandigham Peace men, Mr. Pendleton was nominated to the second place on the ticket. This combination was almost as great a blunder as was the platform than which nothing could have been worse.

But wherefore let me then our faithful friends, The associates and co-partners of our loss, Lie thus astonished on the oblivion pool, And call them not to share with us their part In this unhappy mansion; or once more With rallied arms to try what may be yet Regained in heaven, or what more lost in hell." And so Clement L. Vallandigham became Supreme Commander of the Sons of Liberty.