[untitled]
The following from
an editorial in the Army and Navy Journal, referring to the
assassination of the President, seems worth repeating. It has the
right ring, and may well be taken to heart:—
All felt that a murderous assault
upon our Chief Magistrate was a blow struck at the heart of
every loyal citizen of the United States; for in him centre
the forces that bind us together, and make us a great, because
a united, people. Whatever concerns the dignity of the President
and the inviolability of his person concerns the self-respect
of each one of us. Chosen through the methods of selection we
have approved and by the forms of law we have ourselves prescribed,
he represents to us the majesty of Law, which is the only sovereign
ruling in this country by divine right. When once the seal of
office is set upon him, he ceases to be the representative of
a party, and as the President of the whole United States justly
demands the loyalty and the respect of every citizen. . . .
All over the country in various ways the people are, without
regard to party affiliations, espousing the cause of the President.
. . . But why should we wait until the President lies at the
point of death from the assassin’s blow before we accord to
him this universal recognition of the fact that he is our President,
and that what concerns him concerns us all? Why should we not
at all times, and under all circumstances, identify ourselves
with his dignity and his security? . . . Is not the present
need of this country an increase of respect for men holding
public office, because they represent the law and are the visible
embodiment of the power and majesty of the Commonwealth?
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