S P E E C H
O$
H ON
$
ELLOW
-
TH
E
H EN RY W I N T
ER D A V I S
.
.
C I TI $ E N S
O$
TH
E
U N I TED S TA TE S $
T h e ele c t i on t h at i s no w p e n d i n g in Pe nn sy l v a ni a a n d t h at wh ic h
i s p e nd in g i n th e S t a t e of M a ryla n d wil l go v e ry far though p e r
h aps in v e r y un e qual degrees to determ i n e t h e P r e s i dent i al contest
of n ex t year In m y judg men t the ele c t i on of a D emo c ra tic Pr e s i
d en t or i f h e p erfe r the t e r m , a c on s er v a t iv e Pres i dent w i ll b e the
en d of t h e war an d w i t h the en d of th e war i n m y j udgment t h e
en d of th e U ni o n o f t h e s e S tat e s It w i ll b e t h e e n d l i kew i s e o f
t h at gr e a t r es u l t t h ough n ot the or i g i nal obj ect of the war— t h e
c h ange of t h e s oc i al r elat i ons i n the r e bell i ous S tates wh ic h ha v e
o cc asio n ed our present d i sturba nc es ( Applaus e )
I f it b e o f any mome n t to a n y one h e re t hat the c onduct of th e
N a t i onal a fi air s shall rema i n in the h ands of those wh o represent
th e pr i nci ples whi ch n ow pres i de o v er t heir c onduct if there b e any
on e here who thinks t hat the war ough t to be c ont i nued un ti l every
rebellious weapon s i nk s i n subm i ssi on to the N ational au t hori ty if
there b e any o n e who thinks i t i s wort h wh ile aft er having had
e xper i en ce o f the mis c h i e fs tha t grow fro m a v ic i ous soc i al organ i
z a t io n t h at w e shall not be twi c e j eoparde d by th e s ame cause when
we h a v e the opportuni ty to root i t o u t let t hat person bear in mind
that o n the v o t e o f Pennsylva ni a t h i s fall depends in a grea t mea
s u re that result ( Applause )
T he gentlem an who is competing w i th your present d i stingu i shed
and p atrioti c exe cutive for the position of G overnor o f t his Com
m o n w e al t h d oes n o t leave y o u i n t he doub t s wi t h which M r S ey
m o u r and other gentle me n less c and i d or m ore pruden t v e i l the i r
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4
Op i nio n
Here we unde r stan d our oppo n ents for mally de c lar e
tha t t he D emocra ti c par t y alon e can restor e th e Un i on ; that i t
c anno t b e res t ored by arms ; that it can o n ly b e restored by p e a ce
and c oncil i a t ion ; a n d t hat they are t he only persons who c an s o
r es t ore i t
T hey were in power when the r ebellion b roke out
W hy did they not arrest i t ? ( G reat applause ) T hey had all th e
fac ti ons that called t hemselves D emocra tic u n i ted ; could h ave pr e
v en ted the elec t ion o f t h e ge n tleman w h o t hey n ow say has broug h t
W hy d i d t hey not s ubord i nate th e ir i nternal par t y
o n th e war
di fferenc e s to the patr i otic purpose o f avert i ng an o therw i se inev i
table war ? ( Applause ) T hey s ay that t hey alone can restore th e
Union and b y pea c e T hen why d i d th e y b reak i t up ? ( T hat s
i t and appla u se ) T hey are v ery fond o f ask i ng who i s respo n s i
ble fo r the war and I t ake gr e at pleasur e in r e sponding t h e D emo
c rat i c party t h at r uled the cou n try fo r th i r ty years ( Great ap
l
au s e
A
n
d
I
say
tha
t
w
i
th
the
k
i
ndli
e
st
regard
w
i
t
h
t
h
e
utmost
)
p
r espe c t w i th the gr e atest deferenc e for the h on e st m emb ers o f that
par t y who wha t e ve r m ay h ave b een t h ei r j udg me nts befor e th e
r eb ellio n brok e o u t s aw b y the fl ames o f ci v i l war the dange r o u s
path th e y trod and j o i ned t heir life long political opponents in t h e
r i ght path
T hey who n o w a r rogate to th em sel v e s t h e r e putat i o n
a n d the n a m e of th e D em o c rat ic pa r ty a r e t h e m er e r e fus e tha t
r e m a i ned be h in d w h en the pat r i ot ic e l e m en ts w i t h drew for t h e d e
fen ce o f t h e n at i on ( Gr e at ap plause ) If w h e n n umb er i ng ma n y
o f t h e g r e at men m a n y of t h e goo d men
m any o f t h e patr i ot i c
m en m a n y of th e e m i n en t statesm e n of th e c o u ntry , w i s e i n c o un ci l
a n d fir m in a c t i o n t h e y c o uld n o t pr e v en t t h e wa r w h o w i ll b el ie v e
t h a t th i s w r et c h e d r em n ant c an stop t h e war ? ( L aug h ter and a p
l
au s e
h
e
W
hy
di
d
t
h
e
S
o
u
t
h
r
e
b
e
l
B
ec
a
u
s
e
they
h
ad
lost
?
t
)
p
m aj or i ty o f t h e N ort h T h e r e w e r e a m ajo r it y st i ll a t t h e N ort h
c alling the m s e lv e s D emocrats but t h ey w e re D e m ocrats that would
n ot do what th e S ou t h e r n me n des i r e d T h ey c om mi tted th e msel v e s
so fa r i n fa v or o f t h e S out h er n pol ic y at th e N ort h that they lost
th e confid e nce of t h e i r fello w cit i zens o f the N orth a n d w it h t h ei r
c onfi d en ce los t t h ei r v o t es ; an d when t h ey los t the i r v otes th e
S outhern m e n c ould n o long e r depend upon them to prot e ct the i r
p e cul i a r i n t erest th e y smote those t h at h ad b ee n their hum b le ser
v ants for two g e nera ti ons p ast ( Applause ) T hey taught So ut h er n
D emocrats tha t t h ey c ould ask n o humilia ti o n wh i ch would not b e
y i elded ; and th at all who were n ot D emo c rats were Aboli ti on i sts
stood compurgato r s fo r every lie an d e nabled t h e m to imprin t t hei r
hate an d fear on the minds o f the S ou t hern p e ople — an d n o w t hat
t hey ar e spurned by the i r m aste r s —n o w the wre t ched remnan t of
these discarded alli e s (laugh t er ) these worn —
out tools of a despot ic
power that has b een driven t o rebellion ; these men v en ture to as
sume to l i ft t h e mighty m a ce of t h e o l d D e mo c rat ic p ar ty , and say $
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5
We c a n r e store t h e brok en an d shatt e red Un i o n t h at all com bi n e d
c o ul d n o t preserv e
( L augh t er and applause ) W hy me n of t he
Uni t ed S t a t es what i s the re b ellio n ? T he D emocra t ic par ty in
arms i n th e Sou t h and i n sympa t hy in t he N or t h ( G rea t applause )
W hat D emo c ra t does not sym pa t hi ze wi t h his Sou t hern b r e t he rn
$
W ha t S ey mour does n o t speak of t hem as h i s friends ?
A
( p
l
au s e
T
hey
restore
the
Union
by
pac
i
fic
m
eans
T
ha
t
means
$
)
p
t hat they wil l s t op the war W e need no o n e t o tell us tha t T hey
op posed i t in i t s beg i nn i ng t hey ha v e maligned i t to t he presen t
day ; t hey have e mbarrassed i ts p rogress ; t hey ha v e v ill ifie d t hose
that conduc t i t ; they have s t ruggled against every measure essen
t i al to its conduct
Place t hem in power , would t hey no t e ffectua t e
t h ei r wn purpos e and let i t drop ? O f c ourse peace is the i r
p
pol ic
osed to t h e war 1 O f course they are J ames Buc h ana n an d
t h o s e t ha t s t oo d around h i m a n d those t h at followed him s aid
it
i s u ncons t i t u ti onal
L
augh
t
er
Are
t
hey
h
onora
b
le
men
and
)
(
c an they disavow t he words of t heir chief ; o r cons i der i ng t he value
the D emocra t s have always placed upon consis t ency when co nsis t en t
w i th t heir i n t eres t, are t hey likely to evade t he o b liga t ion t h a t t h e y
h a v e assumed t o t r ea t i t a s unconst it u t io n al , and therefore t o
st e p i t ?
W ho i s t h e i r cand i date for G o v e rn e r in O h i o ? Is V a l l an d igh a m
fo r r estor i ng the Unio n by suppress i n g th e r ebellion ? W ho was
t h e ir candida t e i n Conne c t icu t ? T he namesak e o f the N ew Y ork
S eymour and b e t ter t h a n t he n amesak e an honest avower of t he
Opin i ons which t he o t her dishones t ly concealed He said t hat peace
and n o t war t he arrest of b loodshed and n o t the suppression of
r e belli on were t h e h i ghes t purposes that any statesman could p r o
c lai m for himself W here h ave t hey elec t ed a Le g is l a t u r e t ha t has
n ot let the e l e v e n foo t a ppear ? W ha t say my fr i ends from N ew
J e rsey t hat I s e e a round me — i s G overnor Parker for t he war or
aga i nst it ? Is t he L egisla t ure o f N e w J ersey for o r agains t pea ce
res olu t ions ? Is t he L egisla t ure of Illinois for o r aga i ns t t he war ?
Is the L egislature o f Indiana for or agains t the war ? W here have
?
i
th e r e solu t ions i n favor o f an mmed i ate ar m is ti ce come from
W h e re ha v e the resolut i ons propos i ng t he meet i ng of a disloyal con
W hat grea t leading
v e n t io n i n t he ci t y o f L ouisville come from ?
m an call i ng himself a D emocrat a n d n ot now suppor t ing t he A dmin
is t r a t io n avows himself in fa v or of prosecu ti ng t he war t o t he bi t t er
end , till t he banners o f rebellion t rail in t he d us t ? L e t him b e
n a med — who is he ?
J ohn V a n Buren thought i t would be wort h while to go to Rich
m ond and t hen t o proclai m an ar mi sti ce And wha t i s t o b e done
wit h th e a rmies b eyond i t ?
T hey a ll ha v e p r ofou n d p e rfe c t c onfide nce in an amnesty A u
$
$
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6
amn e sty to m en in arms yo u r equals on the battle fi e ld a s oft e n
v ictorious a s you are inferior in num b ers and resources b ut ner v e d
to desperation i n a giga n t i c co n fl ic t $ W hat is an ar mi sti c e but so m e
thing for them t o laugh at ?
Peace l S carcely had M r S eward put forth ano t her Ci rcular of
i ll s t arred prophecies t han as i f to show y o u how far o u r South e r n
bre t hren are from dream i ng o f peace t hey rush two to one upon
Rosecrans an d m ak e h im struggle to hold his groun d even J u d ge
W oodward I suppose would appear upon the b at t le fi e l d at Cha t
t a n o o g a wi t h a laurel wreath o n his head and an ol i ve branch i n hi s
hand (laughter ) bi dd i ng back the foe from that terr i fic strife D o
they suppose gen tlemen that the Amer i can peopl e are b orn fools ?
D o t hey suppose t hat t he i r word instigated by t he desire t o atta i n
p ower will make the people believe wha t e v ery man i n all t he re b el
region in e v ery place o f author it y lo u dly denies V al l an d igh a m
told us t hat everywhere in his progress through the nether regions
h e h eard n othing but cr i es o f peace and union W hy did he not
n ame t he m an i n authority t h at h i nted at any terms t hat they were
willing to accept or even to c onsider ? D id he n ot know from the
t emper o f t he people o f this c ountry the i r earnest des i re for peace
t heir wear i ness o f the war the exhaus t ion of t heir resources the
harrowing of t heir a ffec ti ons b y the desolat i o n of the fam i ly circle
that any m an who would g o to the Sou t h and b ring back t erms of
peace of any kind e v en to u ching on and bordering upon hum i l i a
t ion would receive the acclaim of two t hirds o f the A merican peo
ple ? W ould he b e now skulking over t he border i n C an ada o r
would he n o t ra t her b e treading tri umphantly over the heads o f
t housands o f a dmiring fellow citiz ens as t hey hail him t he harbinger
o f t he peace t hat he procla i med
His s i lenc e i s the falsification o f
his wre t ched i nvention ( A pplause )
S om e bo dy whispered over the R a p p ah a n n o ck the other day th a t
peace was near T hey found o u t t he only o ffi cer that had b een
upon the b ank s th at day an d l anguage canno t ex cee d the ep ithe t s
of s corn and h atre d wi t h which he received t he m ere s u gges t ion o f
peace — ex cep t up on terms that e v ery D em ocrat is willing to r e
coivo to morrow ( L augh t er an d appl ause ) T he line of t he O hio
and t h e M ississippi and the Potom ac the p aymen t o f the e xp enses
of t he war an d dam ages for our ou t rages — who is ready for th at
?
— the surrender o f W estern V irgini a
here
—the yielding of $ en t ucky
and her heroic l oyalists ?
th at t hey h ave i ns olently called a mem b er o f t heir C onfederacy
t hough no o fficer would dare set foot w ithin her loyal limi t s — the
re t urn of the disenthralled an d rescued mar t yrs of Eastern Te n
—
ne s s e e ?
o
n
G
reat
appl
ause
n
ow
th
at
daylight
is
dawning
(
)
N o rth Al a b am a and N or t h G eorgia the plunging them i nto hope
less and endless night— the r e tur n o f M issour i to the domin atio n
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that undertook t o dr i v e her fro m the ae gis o f the Union
T hese
are the terms and the only terms any m an has ever heard uttered
ab ove a whisper wi t hin the S outhern country ? If J udge W ood
war d an d his like m ean that i n t he face of these terms t hey are
r eady to s t e p the war then eternal will b e the disgrace of Penn
sylvan i a if kn owing that she el ect him for her Chief M agis t ra t e
( Appl ause ) If he do not mean t o accep t these the only terms
t hat ha v e e v er b een uttered then the p eople o f Pennsyl v ania de
serve to b e pl aced in th ei r own hosp i tals i f they accep t a man t o
regul ate and go v ern the i r C omm onwealth who says he is for peace
and an armis t i ce when thes e are the only terms that are p ossi b le
( A pplause ) A n armistice for what purpose ? T o argue wi t h
maniacs t o de b ate on the field o f b attle or to reali z e the darling
i dea o f the D emocratic disunionists to palsy the arm o f the Uni t ed
S tates t o arrest th e i mpetus o f its onward advance t o g i v e the
people i n re b ellion tim e t o breathe the men s t ricken t o the k nee
t ime to gain the i r feet the m en whose resources are exhaus t ed an
opportunity t o repla ce them t o b reak up the b lockade to open
their p orts t o for e ign comm erce to give them the recogni t ion t h a t
coul d n e v er b e w it hdr awn not merely of b elligerents b ut of par t ies
holding a po s i t i on competent to deal o n equal terms wi t h t he
United S ta t es How long after an armistice w oul d the recogni t ion
o f the S outhern C onfederacy b e delayed by E ngland or $ r a nce ?
H ow woul d they remain idle during t he conferen ces h o w lo n g del ay
to m ak e their arrangem ents not m erely t o media t e b etween Powers
b ut to i ntervene i n arm s ? T he mere prop osal o f the armis t ice
re v eals t he traitorous purpose that remains b ehind it
A
t
this
p
oint
the
fli
r s and m en stationed at Camp Ca d w a l a
o
c
e
$
der being t hose de t a i led from t he A rmy o f the Potoma c to l ook
afte r conscr i pts en t ered th e room bearing fl ags designating their
resp ective regiments T heir app earance was hailed b y a tremeu
dous outburst of enthus i asm T he ban d played Y ankee D oodle
and the audien ce rose t o their feet an d cheered vociferously fo r
several m i nutes W hen silence was restored M r D avis resumed
M y $ riends the recept i on that y o u ha v e given o ur soldiers o f
the A rmy o f the Potomac shows t hat you at least are for n o armis
t ice ( great applause ) that you a t leas t appreciate wi t hou t t he
necessi t y of argumen t from m e that an armis t ice is equivalent t o
the end o f the war and t hat t he end o f the war leaves t he Sou t h
i ndep endent W e can all now see where o u r Opponents stand
T hey are oppo sed to e v ery measure for conducting the war A h
they are Opp osed to the C onscrip t ion Act ; yet t hey d o n o t v o l u n
t eer How can we get sold i ers ? T hey are opp osed to t he $ 3 0 0
clause i n i t ; yet they ha v e generally pa i d the $ 30 0 ( L augh t er )
T hey are oppose d to negro soldiers ; yet negro sold i ers are t he
p oor m an s subst i tute w h o c annot pay the $ 30 0 ( A pplau e )
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8
T hey ar e oppos e d to co n fiscation ; y e t confiscat i o n al on e c an br e ak
the power o f the lead e rs of S ou t hern politics ( A ppl ause ) T hey
Oppos ed t o eman cipation ; yet emancipat i on alon e c an break
t he oligarchy that has brought o n the w ar ( Great appl ause and
T hree cheers fo r
T hey ar e oppose d to d i s
cretionary arrests which they call ar b itrary arres t s
T hey
opposed t hem first b ecause the President coul d not su spen d the
wri t of h a bea s corp u s — whi ch was all true T hey oppose th e m
now though C ongress h as s uspen de d the wr i t o f h a bca s c orp u s
which n o b ody denies the i r right to do ( Cheers and appl ause )
T hey opp ose d t hem n o t b ecause they were ille gal nor because they
were a r b i t rary but b e cause though l egal t he dis cretion of the
President might think re b el symp a t hi z ers s u S p ic io u s chara c ters
Cheers
and
applause
(
)
T hey are then opp osed to all the m eans of condu c ting the war ;
they are t hen in plain E nglish opp osed to the furt h er c onduct of
t he war T hat m eans that they are in fa v or whenever and where
ever they can get in p ower of t hrowing themselves against the
Government i n the conduct of the war T hey attempted in Ill i
nois t o t ak e the m i litary p ower from the hands o f a loyal G over n or
T hey ha v e a tt emp te d everywhere t o elect d i sloyal G overnors
pledged to em b arrass the Un i ted S tat e s i n the enfor cement o f t he
laws
S eymour k now i ng t hat the r i ot woul d e m b arrass the
governm en t of the Unite d S tates stood p aralyz ed an d p owerl ess
b efore his friends
L
a
T
hey
dis
cussed
the
propr
i
ety
u ghter
(
)
o f reca l li n g from t he army the contingen ts of the var ious S tates
T he candida t e for G overnor o f M aine lately s o overwhelmingly
beaten b y that p a t r i o ti c S tate ( appl ause ) was ask ed whe t her in
the event of his election he would recall from t he armies the
troops o f M a i ne Instead o f repelling with i ndignat i on a ques ti on
which was a humiliation to any m an e xcept a traitor h e said
W hen G o v e rnor S eym our recalls t he troop s of N ew Y ork and
the G overnor o f N e w J ersey r ecalls the troops o f N ew J ersey
t hen I a m r eady to re c all the t roops o f M a i ne
T hat m ark ed
him fo r a traitor ; b ut he i s mistaken in sup posing tha t any regi
me n t o r any company o f the troops o f M a i ne wo uld ob ey his illegal
a n d t reasona b l e order
Great
applause
D
oubtless
he
th
ought
(
)
they woul d o b ey and that order woul d have been issued the day
a ft er his election
T he people took c are that he should n o t have
t h e opp ortunity
( L aughter and applause ) L et t hem g e t the
c ontrol b y any a c cident by any thoughtlessness b y any cowardice
or timi di t y b y any wea r in ess o f t he war o r impatience of taxa t io n
in t h e House o f Representatives an d i ns t antly every war me asure
will be cl ogged in tha t House ; appropriations will b e resisted ;
cond i t i ons w ill b e annexed ; t he repeal o f th e l aws that they have
b een as sailing will b e compelled by r e fus i ng s u ppl i es t o t h e
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9
Government ; t h e G overnm ent will stan d para l yz ed in t he pre
sen ce o f i t s armed enemies
If t hese are t heir p urposes then h o w are we t o tre a t t hem and
h o w are we t o conduct the G overn m ent ? In my j u d gmen t fell w
ci t i z en s o f t he Uni t ed S tates w e all have a common in t e r r t i n
th i s great s t ruggle and wha t i s t he in t eres t o f P e nnsylvania is t he
i n t erest of M arylan d ( Applaus e ) T he l i ne t hat so l on g h a s
b een o f ill omen I tak e i t w as a b olished b y the day of G e ttys
burg ( G rea t appl a use )
T he c urren t O f events i s daily sweeping away th e only mark of
disunion b etween Pennsylvania and M aryland — thei r in t e rn a l
recogni t ion o f sl avery o r their refusal t o rec ogni z e slavery W e
stan d togethe r and ought t o stan d t ogether as o n e m an in main
t aining t he integr i ty o f the Governmen t wh i ch more en t irely
c rushed us than any other p ortion o f the C onfederacy if i t fall in
r uin ab out o u r ears H o w th en shall i t b e main t ained ? I say
first by fill ing up the deplet e d rank s o f the army of t h e Po t oma c
( G rea t appl ause ) W hether the Government see i t o r no t from
the beginning o f the w ar t o this day there has been b ut one
dec i sive p oint upon which o ne decis i ve b attle could end t he w a r
an d that has been V irgini a I t has ne v er been a question of
m archi n g t o Richm ond ; it has b een a ques ti on o f dispersing an d
destroyin g the army o f Gen L ee an d that has never b e e n di lfi
cul t t o find W hat th e Government has n eeded is a singlen e ss o f
p urpose b end i ng its unbroken energies t o the annihila t ion o f t ha t
army a n d w it h i t would crum b le the S ou t hern Republic ( A p
l
au s e
ictories
on
other
points
are
victories
o f detail ; vi c t ory
V
p
)
on that p oint is dec i siv e final and overwhelming Peace will fol
low th e destruction O f th at army ; the war will en dure until t h a t
An arm is t ice will n o t annihilate i t ; a media
a r m y is des t roye d
t io n will not paraly z e it ; no election of a D emocrat will d o any
t h ing except accompl ish i ts purposes wi t hout b l oodshed for i t
T he war drags its leng t h n ow along be cause a Pres i den t i al elec
t i on is only a year o ff an d the re b els of the S outh coun t o n ha v
ing t he i r fr i ends i n O ffi ce ( N ever
If t he y have t o
m ake terms they know the t erms will b e better wi t h a D em ocra t
than w i th men who are devoted t o the i ntegr i ty and t he p ower
and the p erpetuity o f th e Rep ublic ; an d therefore t hey m e a n s o
l ong as t here i s a man left in t he S ou t hern country an d a s much
as in them l i es that there sh all n o semblance o f peace ap pea r
u ntil a D em ocrat mount th e Presidential chair
T he way to p ea c e therefore fellow c i ti z ens i s over t h e
b attle fi e l d an d t here i s n o othe r p ath If a lion l i e in that p a t h
that yo u are afrai d to m eet or one too powerfu l for you to mee t
If y o u are unwilling to m ak e t hat adm i s
t hen gi v e up the war
s i o n , then pros e c u t e i t w i th e v e ry en ergy that yo u c a n summon of
.
,
o
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s
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10
m oney a n d o f m en ; w i th n o h es i tat i on ; n o st i nt i ng ; n o cr i t i cal
S piri t ; n o i nclin atio n to find faul t ; m ourn ing errors n o t cas t in g
them in t he teeth of th ose i n author i ty c oun tenan ci n g them wi t h
your earn est supp ort w i t h the firm conviction that b e cause there
are trai t ors in the N orth every loyal m an must dou b l e himself in
streng t h e n ergy an d de v ot i on ( Appl ause ) An d when they
men ace y o u wi t h i nsurrect i o n h ere tell them t h e sooner it begins
t he s ooner it will b e en ded ( G reat appl ause ) L e t them under
stan d that it i s wholly i mmater i al to you whether they b eg i n the
civil war n o w o r tw o years h en ce , when h a v i n g under false pr e
ten o es cr e p t i nto p ower betraye d t h e n ation n egotiated a hollow
sem b l an ce o f peace with the S outhern C onfederacy and brough t
dis cor d to e v ery N orthern d oor the beg i nning o f desolation t h e
i ntroduct i on o f c i vil war th e i mpossib i li t y o f k eep ing the resi du e
o f t he S tates t ogether w i ll b e man i fest to all m en — the sooner the
b etter T hat p arty has always been m agnificent i n b ullying do
n o t be fr i ghten ed b y the i r v i olenc e ( Applause )
But how else gentlem e n shall you end the war ? M ore than a
mi llion of men of the white r ace ha v e v olunteered the i r serv i ces i n
defen ce o f Amer i can l i berty against an ol i garchy o f sl ave holders ,
and unt i l recently th e i r farms ha v e been cult i vate d i n quiet the i r
l a b orers have been u ntouche d ; they h av e suffere d by the block ade
they ha v e su ffere d by i n v as i o n when o u r armies t ouched t hem ; the
great m ass o f the i r agr i cultural labor has gone o n as regul arly as
i n th e hal cyon days when cotton was $ ing I propose to invade
this quiet real m o f the d i scrowne d $ ing ( A pplause ) T her e
are four millions of m en i n those reg i ons o n o u r s i d e ( A pplause )
W ho Opposes the arm i ng o f them e x cept the D e m o cr a tic Co n s erv a
T hey are slaves T he President h as pro claimed them
t io c e 9
free (Ap plause ) T hat p aper confers n o title ; it can only b e
m ade a ti t le by ar m s
T he negro s arm i s r ea dy to e xe cute i t
W hy shall h e n ot b e all owe d to do i t ? ( A ppl ause )
It is
humiliating to wh i te soldiers t o ser v e i n the sam e rank s w i th the
negroes I
W hat say the Army of the Potomac to fift een o r
twenty thousan d to help them i n the next great fight ? W hat
s aid G ener a l B anks at Port Hudson ? W hat s aid General G ill
m ore at $ ort W a gner
Great
appl
ause
J
us
t
what
Georg
e
)
(
W ash i ngton of the Re v olut i o n s a i d
Applause
J
ust
what
(
)
Andrew J ack son at N ew O rleans sai d ( Applause ) J ust what
Perry o n L ak e E ri e saw ( A pplause ) J ust what B arney with
h is negro m en m i ngl e d i n w i th his white men at Bladensburg saw
when other men ran away M en are men in spite o f the skin
an d deeper tha n the skin ( Appl ause ) T he first m artyr of th e
B oston M assacre in 1 7 7 0 , w as a negro sl ave leading t h e whit e
men ( A pplause ) O n e o f the h e r oes of the b attle of B unk e r
Hill li v i ng fo r e v e r in th e h i stor ic ca n v ass o f T rumb ull , an d l i v i ng
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11
m or e i m m ortally on t h e p age o f Ban c roft was a n egro ( A p
p l a u s e ) N o b attl e fi e l d of the Revolution that w as n o t s t ained b y
their b lood T he m en o f that day shrank a t first and cam e to it
aft erwards T hey formed no sep arate regimen t t hey mingled i n
w i th the rank and the platoon o f their white fellow coun t rym en
as An dre w J ackson c all e d them ( Appl ause ) $ rom t he d a ys of
th e Re v olut i on to th e days o f th e w ar o f 1 8 1 2 prej udice was silen t
b efore reason —n at i onal necess i ty an d national interest I t was
only when the cott o n ar i s tocracy arose that c ommon sense w a s
dr i v en from the m inds o f m en W hat do they fear half s o much
as a negro army m arching through the cotton field ?
Gentlemen without a n egro army an a ttempt at eman cip ation i s
i dl e T he Presid e nt h as proclaimed emancip ation A procl a m a
t i on i s a bre ath or printer s ink It dies o f i t self unless t here
b e som eth i ng living b ehin d i t
In p oint o f l aw no C ourt w ill
h old it a v alid t i tl e to freedom ; th at i s my j udgment as a lawyer
I m ay b e wrong b ut i t i s my j udgment If t he n egroes of the
S outh are to render us any m aterial aid in the suppression o f the
r ebell i o n they must have a ti t le t o freedom th a t t hey wil l u nder
stan d to b e e ffectual , an d they kn ow that the proclam a t ion is no t
e ffe c tual w i thout s om ethi n g follo w ing it —a law o f Congress an d
arms T hey must further be rel i eved from t h e idea which has
b een m os t unfortunately countenan ced i n certain high quarters
t hat after they ha v e fo ught the b attles o f liberty a n d have aide d
u s t o w i n b ack our t err i tory and consolidate our emp i re that aft e r
an indefinite p eriod o f service upon p ublic works i n the m al aria o f
the S ou t h an d o n the canal s o f the N orth west they ar e t o be
b anishe d from the l and i n which t hey were b orn and which they
h a v e aide d t o sa v e
B an ish gentlem en from your min ds t hat
h umiliating and unwor thy idea ( A ppl ause ) M ak e up yo u r minds
that if they ar e to b e s oldiers they a re t o b e freemen w i th t he
r i ghts of fr e e l ab orers pr otected b y t he l aws recogni z e d by the
United S t ates in their position guaranteed the remedies o f th e
C ourts of the Un i ted S tates an d armed and dr i lled to m ak e their
?
r ights e ffectual
Gre
a
t
applause
An
d
h
o w shall tha t be done
)
(
?
the
theory
our
conservat
i
ve
fellow
citi
z
ens
T hey say
On
of
th at true the S out h i s i n rebellion ; b ut the S tate go v ernm en t s
r ema i n the i r governments are i n existen ce ; t hey have th e r i ght ,
t he m oment they lay down their arms to b e recogn i z ed by t he
United S tates as the only persons en t itled to spe a k i n beh alf o f
t h e S outher n States ; that t he men n o w i n au t hor i ty a re th e
go v ernors t h e legislators the j udg e s the m agis t rates the s h e r i fl s
of t h e rebel S t ates ; and that what the Pres i dent shoul d do i s
m erely to o ffer an am nesty t o s cr een i ndiv i dual o ffenders and Ope n
h is arms t o r e ceive those who have j ust now h ad the sword po i nte d
at ou r b osoms , n ot m erely as c itiz ens obed i ent to the l aw , b ut as
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12
representat i ves an d C onst i tu ti onal governors of the loyal pe o
ple o f t he rebel S t a t es T hat is t he D e m o c r a t ic the ory of the
res t ora t io n of S ta t e government i n the re b ellious S t ates W here
does tha t lea d y o u ? S up p ose i t t o b e accomplished ; that is what
t hey m ean b y t h e Union as i t was w i th t he o ld coalition o f the
S ou t hern S ecess i onis t an d the N orthern D emocrat t o govern th e
c oun t ry and divi de th e spoils
T he Union as i t was i s thei r
D o they m ean that they w i ll restor e W estern V i rginia
w a t ch cry
D O they m ean that
t o E as t ern V i rginia b oun d h and and foo t ?
t h ey will rec ogni z e th e fugiti v e H arr i s as G overnor o f T ennessee
D o they m ean
a n d his scattere d l egislators as her L e g i slature ?
t hat t hey will recogni z e the m en who assume to represent $ e n
t ucky i n the S outhern C onfedera cy as the proper r epresent at i ve s
D o they m ean that they w i ll bring
o f th e people o f $ entu c ky ?
b a ck t he fugi t ive Governor o f M issour i ? T hat woul d b e the
Union as it was
T hat w oul d be t o re cogn i z e as the p arties ent i
t l e d to govern t he rebel S tates the r eb els who n ow go v ern t hem
T hey are the people who the D e m ocrats s ay a r e n o w en t itled an d
only en t itled t o b e listened t o I pr ay you pause and conside r
gravely t h i s great su bj ec t of the r e storat i o n o f S tate Go v ernm e n ts
un der the C onstitu t ion
A re the Amer i can p eopl e ready for such a restora t i o n as t h at ?
No N
Is all t hat the Union has ac com pl i shed by a hundre d
thousand of i ts dea d s on s an d hundreds of thousands o f desolate
m e n and women at hom e m ourni n g the m t o recognize a n i ns olen t
pretence whi c h never for a m oment has b een a fact ? If that b e
the Un i on a s i t was in the s ens e o f the m en wh o
n o t so then
call for it is an i m possi b ility ( A ppl ause ) T hey delude the peopl e
with vain w ords when they speak o f the Union as i t was $ C al l
t h e dead to life ; cl o t h e his b on es w i th his dissol v ed fl esh ; restore
th e soul t o the s oulless eyes o f the tho usands t hat ha v e fallen m ar
tyrs up on the b a t tle fi e l d an d the n y o u ca n res tore th e Union as
i t was ( G reat appl ause ) T he attemp t i s to b egi n a n ew c i v i l
w ar W hen you order b a ck W es t V i rg i n i a she will turn to y ou
the p oints o f he r b ayonets that ar e n o w on you r side —and j ustly
W hen you r ecogniz e the b utchers o f E ast T ennesse e for i ts Repu b
lican government the v ery ghosts o f the murdere d dead w i ll lea d
the living men t o b attl e aga i nst you ( G r e a t appl ause ) W he n
yo u talk o f r e cogniz i ng $ entucky an d M issour i as S tates o f the
r e b ellion y o u will b e overwhelm e d by r i di c ul e that no m a n can
stand up a gainst An d that i s the Un io n as i t wa s in t h e words
W hy w i ll they p erpetually c om e b efore
o f the D emo crati c orato r s
t h e p eopl e w i th a l i e i n t h e i r m o u th and delus i o n i n th ei r r i ght
h and ?
T he C ons t i tut i o n as i t i s an d t h e Un i on as i t was l I am for
t h e C o n st i t u t i o n as i t i s , and that h as alt e r e d t h e U ni o n fr o m w h at
the
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13
i t was and i t w i ll stay altere d unt i l etern it y ( G rea t a p pl a u e )
If the conservat i v e gentl emen attain to p ower i t w ill s t a y
altere d in fragments o f shame to us an d o u r p os t eri t y I f t ho e
who are now in p ower and t heir successors continue t o re t a in t h e
m an agem ent of th e G overnment o n its pres ent principl e s i t w il l
continue as i t is e x cep t i ng s o far as i t i s b e tt ered a cco r ding t o
the C onstitution as i t is ( Appl aus e ) An d when I S pe a k o f t h e
C onstitutio n as i t is I me an as i t came fro m the hands of G eorge
l V a s hin g t o n an d Alex ander Ham il t on and J ames M adison no t
th e wretched crippled hump b ack t hat has b een presen t e d b e fore
o u r eyes the resul t of a cross b et w een t he N orthern an d t he S ou t h
ern D emo crat , an i ll begotten an d shapeless monster tha t t hey have
contrived for their p urposes Born without arms t o use o r legs t o
m ove w i t h a n d w i th a head that c oul d only c on t rive mischief a n d
for every thing else was i mpo t ent ; b ut tha t Cons t itution i n t he full
v igor o f i ts humanity , as i t came from t he hands o f George W a h
in g t o n adequate for every contingency o f N ational life speaking
s o plainly t h a t t h o s e that run may read and only t he pervers e ly
blind can m isinterpre t ( G reat applause ) A ye t he C ons t i t u t io n
as i t i s which says that C ongress m ay c all for t h the mili t ia a n d
use the armies o f the United States t o suppress i nsurrec t ion a n d
therefore th e war i s cons t itution al according to t he le tt e r o f t h e
C onstitution as i t is T hat C onstitution says that C o ngress sh a ll
guaran t ee to every S ta t e in this Union a Rep u b lican for m of
government ; and it is under the C ons t itution as i t is t h a t t h e
armies now m arch t o remove oppression and restore repu b lic a n
l i b erty ( Gre at applause ) An d i t is t he C ons t itution a s i t is
which d e cl ares tha t Congress shall have a right to p a ss all l a ws
necessary an d prop er to carry in t o ex ecu t ion all t he p owers ves t e d
in i t o r any o ther departm en t o f t he Go vernment ; and t herefore
whatever C ongress may think in its j udgment is necessary t o res t ore
and guarantee r epu b l ican forms of government in t he re b el S t a t es
pa
m
a
that law according to the C ons t i t ution as i t is C ongress
y
e liev e
G
r
eat
applause
I
am
for
exerting
the
p
ower
I
do
no
t
b
(
)
my friends that t here is any a b it r a ry p ower vested a nywhere i n
t he G overnmen t o f the Uni t ed S t ates I think t he Con t i t u t io n a
p rovision m ade fo r t he great n ecessi t ies o f N a t ional life b y m en
who had j ust c ome o u t o f a war o f seven years an d a n a rchy o f
twelve years — wise me n who kn ew the necessi ties o f p u b l ic l ife
and were not c areful t o b ind t he arms o f t h e N a t ion w hen i t s b eing
is a t stak e ; and they p rovided t hat in t he event o f inva io n o r
r e b ellion o r p u b lic danger the w ri t of h a be a s c o rp u s migh t b e s u
p ended T hat mean t n ot t h at t he Presiden t should b e ves t ed W i t h
a n ar b itrary and reckless p ower t o arres t any m a n a t 11 1 8 w i ll a n d
pl e asure irresponsi b le t o t he people and answera b le only t o l i i m
self, but tha t th e e xigencies o f n a t ional life , in t he c ond u c t of wa r ,
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14
r en dered it im p ossibl e t o rest o n t h e m ere j ud i c i al process fo r
enforcing th e l aws It i s i m p ossible to l et the publ ic safety depen d
up o n th e p ossibil ity o f proving by l egal ev i den ce a p arti cipatio n
therefore as th e lesser o f t w o evils
w i t h p ubl ic en emies ; a n d
as a n archy stood up on th e o n e side an d discr et i on ary p ower unde r
th e gu a rdi a nship of t h e p eop l e tem por arily v este d i n their c h osen
o ffi cer by th em w a s th e only danger t o b e en coun te r e d upo n t h e
oth er as they trust the President to d eterm in e wh o a r e i n reb el
l ion an d with th e com m an d o f t h e arm ies fo r i ts suppressi on
up o n th e field o f b a t t l e an d t o sacrifice the l i v es o f thous ands
b ecause they a r e dress ed i n g r ay u nifo r m an d n o t as w e are i n
bl ue s o they give h im th e dis cre t ion ary p owe r if i n h i s j udgm ent
any o ne D em ocrat o r Republican is dange r ous t o th e p ubl i c p eace
from any r eason ; h e m ay n o t p u n is h h im n o t try him by C ourt
M a rtial n ot in car cer ate h im i n th e pen i ten t i a r y b ut h e m ay
arrest him t o prevent m i s chief an d h ol d him till th e danger is
p ast ( Great appl a u se ) T h at i s t h e Con s t ituti on as i t i s an d
n ot as the D em o crats construe i t ; and I am i n fa v or o f apply
i ng i t s p owers t o th e l etter an d i n t h e sp ir i t , an d to t h e b i tter en d
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,
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of
.
t h e w ar
,
.
I
warn e d th e G overnm ent a year b efore t h ey g o t an act o f C on
gress t o s uspen d th e w r it o f h a be a s co rp u s th at un dertak i n g to d o
i t without that authority woul d rais e a storm th at t h ey could n ot
Gen tl e m e n n o m a n depl ores m ore than I do th e accuracy
me et
o f my re ading o f t h e ten dern ess o f t h e A m er i can p eopl e for th e
form s of l aw It h as cos t us an d we are th is day su ffering from
i t th e S t ate o f N ew Y ork th e State o f Penn syl van ia l ast year th e
S t a t e o f O hio th e S tate o f In diana an d th e S tate o f Ill in ois
N o w the p ower i s up o n the j ust b asis o f l aw
R ational m en w ill
y iel d ob edien ce t o i t N on e but traitorous conservativ es will con
t in ne t o howl against it ( Great a ppl ause ) E very l oyal m an
k n ows th e P resid ent wil l n ot use i t for Oppression
I t urn t o con sider th at othe r great power an d d uty— th e gua r
an tee o f Republic a n G overnm ents to th e S tates T hat touches a
question w h ich ou g h t to h ave b een decided by t h e l a st C on gress
w hich o u r friends are s ingul arly tim id ab out m eeting
In m y
j ud g m en t the soon er i t i s m et t h e better and the soon er the
grounds u po n wh ich w e act a re ascertain ed th e bett er for a l l p a r
I regret th a t ih dealing with th e question of reorg a ni z ing
t ies
t h e S tate Go vernm ents em in en t gentl em en h ave used words wh ich
t h ey I think w ill regre t here a ft er
T h ey sp e a k of th e S outh ern
m e n i n a rms a s being a l ie n en em ies
The Pr es id en t has n ever s o
c a ll ed th em C o n gress h a s n ever s o cal led th em N o l aw upon
th e s t a tute b ook so treats th em N o o ffi cial d o cum ent h as eve r
h in te d a t th a t ch a racter T o call th em a l ien enemi es admits th a t
th ei r S e ces s io n w a s e ffectu a l to give them th e r ight o f in d e p e n d
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15
nce in t h e eye of the W orld It adm i ts th ey a re not tr a i t ors but
enem ies I say th ey a r e tr a itors an d n ot en emies ( a ppl a use
ci t i z ens un der t h e l aw agains t w h ich they are ille ga lly w a g in g
w ar n ot for eign ers w a ging a war up on even t erms w i t h m en w h o
are foreign ers to th em T hey war with th e rope around t heir
n eck s ( Applause ) T heir victory c a n b e deco r a ted by n o l a urel
i n history W here sh e sp e a ks o f their deeds o f val or i t will
a lways b e with a m el an choly tear over th e c a use i n which i t w a s
e xh ibited It will al w ays b e accomp anied wit h the bar s i n is t er t o
m ark that the caus e was ille g i t ima t e th e purpose iniqui t ous t he
o bj e ct unj ust Y ou san ctify them when yo u c a l l t h em a l ien ene
$ eep t h em to their re a l ch aracter — traitorous enemies of
m ies
t h eir country
Appl
ause
A
nd
when
the
r
ight
of
conq
uest
i
s
)
(
r eferre d to as i t h as b een by a very distinguish ed an d a ve ry a bl e
gen t l eman to fin d ou t th e m ethods o f deal ing with t h e reor ga n i z a
tio n o f th e S tate Governments I desire t o say that any m a n or
any p arty th at cl aims over th e S outhern S tates after the ins a r
r ect ion has b een r epressed— th at is th e l egal l anguage gen t l emen
o f th e statutes of the United S tates — any p a r t y that a fter t he
i nsurrection shal l h ave b een repress ed sh al l attempt to cons ider
them a con quered p eopl e th at p arty will destroy itself or if i t b e
s uccessful i t will destroy Rep ubl ican li berty It i s a d octrin e
unk nown to th e Constitution of the Un ited S tates ; it is b eyon d
th e purv i ew of Am erican p rin ciples o f Governm ent ; it recogni z es
what n o r espon sibl e statesman has h eretofore r ecogn iz ed or ought
ever t o r ecogni z e th e p ossess io n o f absol ute arbitrary despo t ic
p ower in th e Governm ent over a p ortion of th e S ta t es as th e resul t
I t pl a ces
o f i ts m ilitary op erat ion s to suppress an i nsurr e ction
the Govern m ent abo ve the l a w to enforce the l a w Th e l a w spe a k s
d iff erently ; the Constitution sp eak s di fferen tly Under them bo t h
w e have t o a c t W e o w e it to t he w isdom of our fo refa t hers t o
r e cogn iz e that they have l eft o u r h a n ds as free to de a l wi t h r ebel
l ion as W is dom wil l s an ct ion —an d every p ower in our hands w hi c h
tends to ac com pl ish t h e obj ect W e m us t d eal with i t in t h eir
m od e T he States are by reb ellion extinguished a n d becom e T er
T hen
r it o r ie s I s a ys a very distinguish ed an d eloquen t s t a t esm a n
h ow can it be th at the C onsti t ution requires Congress to gu a r a n
t ee to every S tat e a republ ican form of Go vernm en t if t h e
d estructi on of a republ ican form of Governmen t i n t h e S t a t e con
v erts it into th e con dit io n of a T erri t ory an d subj ects i t to t he a rbi
T hey did n ot so deem i t T hey re ga rd ed
t r a r y p ower o f C ongress
th e St ates as cont i nuing perpetu a l el em ents of our Union a n d
their citi z en s al w a ys b en eath th e Constitution B ut t h ey d r a w
th e b ro ad an d m ark ed discrim in a t ion b etween the indivi du a l l i g h t s
th e ex istence of the S tate a s a body p ol i t ic a n d i t s
o f the citiz en
c ap acity by reas on o f its want o f organi z a tio n to exert i t s political
e
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16
p ow ers If a m an i n S o ut h C a r ol i n a com e s t o P h i l a d el p h ia n o
l a w yer c a n pl ead al ien en emy to his sui t If I go to S out h
C a rol in a I have all th e rights of a citi z en of S outh C aroli n a T he
O ffi cers of th e United S tates t h eir Postm asters th eir C oll ec tor s
t heir M a rsh a ls are still provi ded for by l a w and som e exist ; th e
s t a t utes a re s till up o n the statute b ooks ; it i s stil l ill egal to im
p ort a nything w ith in th ose l imits w ithout p ayi ng the duties ; the
C ourts exist wherever th e President n am es $ udges T h ey ar e i n
e very particula r still un der the l aws of th e Un ited S tates d es cr i be d
i n their s t atute b ooks n o wh ere e x cept as S tates of th is U n ion
W he n m en ar e to b e t r ied for treason th ey can only b e trie d i n
t h e C our t s of th e Un ite d S t a tes according to th e l aws of th e
Un i t ed S tates by j uries summ oned according to th e l aws o f th e
Uni t ed S t ates un de r th e C onstitut i on of th e Un ited S tates But
these cl auses do n o t fetter th e h ands o f t h e Governm ent as stupi d
conservatives say w h en th ey quot e th e C ons t itutio n t o proh ibi t
th e m a rchin g of a n a rmy t o rem ove Opposition t o th e e x e cu t ion o f
th e l aws W he n th e Opp ositio n is disp ersed then th e r eign of th e
courts is res tor e d an d th e day o f punishm ent m ay com e But
w i t h r eferen ce t o th eir p oliti cal franchises the w isdom of o u r for e
fa t hers h as pl ace d th em a step furth er o ff O ur cons ervativ e
friends a r e altogeth er too e a ger to h ave th eir votes for th e n e $ t
Presiden t i al contes t when they propo se t o regard t h e e xis t ing
authori t ies i n the reb el S tate s a s en titl ed t o b e r ecogn i z ed a s t h e
auth orities o f th e S tates w i t hin th e Un ion T hat d oub t l ess
woul d b e very con veni ent if they coul d get th e votes of h alf a
d o z en o f th e S outhern S tates an d m ak e up their d eficiency o f
votes i n th e N orth i n th at way an d the r eby elect th eir c o n
s e r v a t iv e
Presiden t $ ortun a tely the l aw i s n o t so unwise
T h ere can b e n o el ectors o f Pres ident fro m any S tate unl ess the r e
b e a g o vernm en t organi z e d i n it r ecogni z ed by th e Governm ent o f
th e Un ited S t a tes whose o fli c e r s h ave sworn ob ed ien ce to th e c o n
s t it u t io n of th e Un i t ed S t a tes
A
ppl
ause
T
ill
t
hat
t
here
can
(
)
b e n o au t hori ty a ny wher e e xerted D o t h e s e m en n ow in auth e
r ity i n t h e Sou t hern S t ates consti tute th e S tate governmen ts unde r
t h e C ons t i t utio n th a t they r epudiate that th ey s a y is an null ed
t h a t t hey h a ve t ak en up arm s to destroy ? O n th e contrary
th e very first act in secess ion w as n o t t o c arry t h eir territory fro m
b en e a t h t he l a ws o f the United S ta t es b ut to te ar down th eir o w n
S t a t e g overnmen ts and i ns t itute others T hose that th ey tore
d o w n were republ ican governm en ts i n th e s ense o f th e C onsti
tuti e n T hose t hat they h a v e est a bl ishe d are a m ob i n th e form
o f t h e G o vernm en t
and th e r ebell io n or g an iz ed to ex ecu t e its
p u rpose e nti t le d to r e co g ni t ion by n ob ody T o p a rticip a te i n
t he i r g o vernm en t is by t he l aws of t h e Un ited S tat es th e crim e
Of hi g h tre a s on T heir Gove rnor by m erely accep ting his p os i
.
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18
as t h e h ead O f t h e R i c h m on d m o b t h ey tre ate d h im as th e l eade r
as a trai t or wh o h a d
o f th e Virgi nia r eb el s ; th ey treated him
pull e d down h i s o w n S tate Government an d th en un d ertook to
usurp ill eg a l auth ority over h is fellow citi z ens It is i n th at l igh t
an d that alone t h at h e stands b efo r e t h e Go v ernm ent o f the Un ite d
S t ates
N e w gentlem en l et us s ee h o w t h is wil l w ork out an d wh ethe r
t h is is n ot th e safer l aw an d the only o n e p os sibl e p ath for us who
m ean to accompl ish s omething practical p erm an ent an d bl ess e d
by th e suppression o f th e reb ellion to p ursue T he President has
procl aime d th e abolitio n o f sl a v ery ( Appl ause ) If i t rests o n
that proclamation l et us trace it o u t a l ittle S uppos e the war to
b e ended an d o u r conserva t ive fri en ds to b e in power an d
M r $ ohn L etch e r t o b e r ecogn iz e d as th e Govern or o f Virgi n ia
a nd Mr
Bonham as th e Govern o r of S out h Carolin a an d s o o n
through th e reb ell ious S tates ; the e xisting l egisl atures rem ain ;
th e ex isting distribution o f pol iti cal p owe r r em ains ; th e ex isting
S outh ern courts remain th e e x isting organizat i on o f th e S ou t h ern
m ili t ia r em ain s ; the ex i sting deb ts th e war d eb t s th at th ey h a ve
i n curred to fight us rem ain
T hey will b e at l iber ty to assum e
as m ost o f th em I b el ieve ha v e al ready done the C onfederate deb t
T h at th erefore b ecom es a p erm an ent burthen
o f the reb el S tat es
up on th e p e opl e o f th e Unite d S tate s in comm on w ith our S tat e
debts an d with o u r n at i on al d eb t Th e s e m en thus reinsta t e d i n
p ower by our act are th e only p ersons that can h ave a word to say
o n th e subj ect of wh ether the
ro
cl
am
ation
is
o r i s n o t val id as l aw
p
W h a t d o yo u suppos e th e j udges o f S outh C arolin a would s a y o n
that p oint if a n egro were to cl aim his freedom under it ? It m akes
i t at on ce a dead letter
It i s altoge the r frivolous I say fur t her
ge ntl emen i t is som eth ing very much l ik e a cow a rdly evasion wh en
m en wh o wish to avoi d th at i n evit a bl e cons equen c e o f that form of
r econs tructing the Gove r nm ents i n t h e r eb el S tates s a y
if t he
p ro cl a m atio n is val id i t will b e h el d v a l id by th e courts an d if it
i s void it cann ot b e m ade v al id
N either propositi on is of th e
courts o f t h e rebel States in the h ands of th e true If i t wer e as
v al id a s any l aw up on the st a tue bo ok of th e United S tates if i t
r em ain a m ere procl am ation a nd be l eft to th e te nder m ercies of reb el
j udges i t w ill b e annull ed an d d isregarded for they a re the only
j u dges o f wh a t is th e l aw o f their o w n S tate an d therefore whe n
yo u sh a ll h a ve t urn ed th e n egro free i f h e shoul d at t em p t t o ass ert
his freedom their process w ill h ang h im t heir p ro cess w ill sh oot
h im the ir p ro cess w ill hun t hi m down by th e bl ood hound ; thei r
p ro cess w ill dr a g him b a ck wards into sl a very If h e a t temp t t o
r ebel a nd sh ow himself too stro n g they wil l call o n the Govern
m en t of th e Un ited S t a tes to send th e army of t h e Potom ac to
r educe him t o sl a v ery unde r t h e l aws of th e S t ates ; a n d a c o n
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19
s e rv a t iv e
t u n it y
P r esi d en t woul d only b e too h appy t o h ave th e Opp e r
o f m anifest i ng i n t h at
m anne r tha t he w a s Opp osed t o
n eg r o e
q
u a lit
y
$
.
N ei th er is t he oth er hypot h es i s tru e th at i f it be inv a lid i t can
n o t be hel ped
As i t n ow s t a nds in my j ud g ment the Suprem e
Court o f t h e Un i ted S tates wil l no t recogniz e i t as l aw ; t he Uni t ed
S t ates Courts ca n not enforce i t Bu t i t c a n be hel ped by a n no t of
C ongress unde r i t s power to l egislate for t h e S ta t es pendin g t h e
e xecu t ion o f t h e guarantee ; it c a n be h el ped by an a c t of Congress
i n th e ex ecutio n of it s guarantee o f Republic a n Governmen t if it
conside r s t hat t h e con t inuan ce o f these men i n sl avery a n d t h e
p owe r o f the m a ste r s over t hem is i ncomp a t ible with a perm a nen t
consol idatio n o f Republican ins t itution s i n th e S t a tes (Appl a use )
T hat is a poli t ica l a nd n o t a j udicial question T ha t will be decided
by the Congress o f the Uni t ed S t ates an d t h e P r esiden t of t h e
Un ited S t a t es ; an d t he Cour t s o f the United S t ates will follow t he
j udgmen t o f C ongress and t h e President M ak e it an a c t o f Con
gress an d t h en y o u have m ad e i t a l a w Plac e o n t h e s t a tu t e book
j udici a l process an d t h en you h a v e gi ven t h e freedm en t he Courts
o f th e Uni ted St a tes t o protec t them a g ains t the l ocal tyr a n ny
M ake i t a l a w o f th e Uni t ed S t at es and t h en the armies of t he
Un ited S t ates s tand n o t to r etu r n t h em to t he i r m a sters but t o
Appl
a
use
r epe l th eir m asters fro m th em un der th e law
)
(
L et th e conse r vative h owl ; t h is is th e Consti t u t ion a s i t 2s ; this
i s th e e $ e cution o f t h e guaran tee th a t George W as h in g t on pl a ced
i n the Cons t i t u t ion ; this is t he co ndi t ion t o which t he S t a t es by
r ebellion h ave brough t t h emsel ves wi t h in the l e g itim a te exp r e s s
l egisl a t ive powe r o f Congre s s to de a l wi t h them and t heir proper t y
an d t h e org a n iza t ion o f t heir socie t y o n such prin cipl es as Con g res s
s hall j udge to b e n o t incom p a tible wi t h the permanen ce of Republ i
can Governm ent I t is frivolous to say t h a t we can a r m a m illion
of m e n to prost r ate h alf a m ill i on i n t h e dust takin g away precious
l ife t o r estore Republica n Gove r nmen t b u t we c a nnot res t ore free
d o m to sl a ves in t h e same cause
L ife is p r otected a g a ins t ille g al
a ggressi on in t h e Cons t i t u t ion as well as prope r t y even of t he mos t
unques t ion a bl e char a cter L ife is n o t less s a cred th an sl a very C an
W e des t roy life to repel from power t hose who h a v e usurped a power
?
to c r eate unrepublican forms o f governm ent i n t he r ebel S t a t es
a n d are we t o be t ol d if Congress sh a ll b e of t he Opinion t h a t t he con
t in u a n c e o f t h ese m en in slave r y is an insuperabl e b a rrier t o the
r es t ora t ion o f Republican Governm ent if they shall b e o f opinion
t h a t t he resources o f t he Governm en t a r e not enough to pu t down
the rebellio n wi t hout their aid if they are convi nced t ha t t hey c a n
n o t get their a id w i t hou t promising and securing t o t hem freedom
their w i ves an d t hei r
a n d t hat t hey can n ever be fre e unless
child r en , t h e i r O ld an d t h e i r young a r e fr ee wi t h t h em —are we t o
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20
b e to ld th at t h e powe r o f Con gr es s i s l i m i te d w i t h r efe r en ce to th a t
species of proper t y— t h at it must stand a perpetual Obstacl e t o fre e
?
m
overn
ent
W hy fellow citizens i t i s to construe th e Co ns t it u
g
t ion in the interest o f t he r ebellious fa c t io n t h a t b y coalition wi t h
N orthern D em ocrats h as go verned th e cou n try to i ts ruin fo r t h irty
years to a dop t it ( Applause ) T hey have always b een th e str i c t
constructionist s Geo r ge W ash i n g to n was t h e r at i on al c o n s t r u c
T h ey h ave bee n alw ays i n favor of ty i ng the Gove r nment o f
t io n is t
t h e Un ited S t ates h and and foo t becaus e they s a w tha t i t h ad strong
feet t o t r ampl e down r eb e l l i on an d l ong arms to r eac h i t ( A p
au s e
l
T
he
i
r
r
ebell
i
on
h
as
I
think
r
emo
v
e
d
t
h
e
cobwebs
fro
m
p
)
b efore t h e p eoples eyes T hey n o w begi n to see the policy tha t
l a y a t t he bo t tom o f t he s t r i ct construction o f t h e D e mo c r a t ic sc h ool
T hey begin to unders t an d t h at they were b a r r iers thrown up to p r o
teet th e i nsti tut i on o f sl ave ry T h ey begi n t o un derstand that th ey
w ere th e delibe r ately prepa r ed b ul w arks fo r a p r em editated r ebel
l ion T hey now begin to see t h at $ am es B uchan an was only
r epeatin g t h e lesson he h a d h eard from $ e ffe r son D avis wh en h e
said t here was n o p ower t o i nvad e a S tate n o power to m ak e wa r
agains t a S t a te no p owe r to coerce a S tate ; t h e S tates m us t be l eft
t o their good pl easure to do ill if th ey s o pl eased
T hat was n ot the
C onsti t u t io n t hat Geo r ge W ashington framed n o r t h e on e that t h e
e a rly m en o f t he Republic a cted u p on nor is i t t he o n e th at we n ow
in t he presence o f a gre a t N at i onal necessity will ac t upon
W e will
r es t ore it to its power and act upon t ha t O h but they s ay if y o u
r efu s e to recognize th e existing S t a te Governm ents they will refus e
to l a y down thei r arms N obody b u t a fool expects them t o l ay dow n
their a rms till t hey a r e knocked fro m the i r hands ( G r eat applause )
T hey are o u t o f E a s t ern T enn esse e n o w H o w did they get out ?
?
a
r
u
t
T hey e o u t o f W estern V i rgini a H o w cam e they o
T hey
a r e o u t o f o n e third o f th e r esidue o f Virg i n i a
H o w cam e they
o ut ?
If the r einforcemen ts pou r o n r apidly enoug h they will soon
b e o u t of Georgia and Al abam a as wel l as M ississippi ( Appl a use )
W here woul d a
conservat i ve Preside n t go to find th e Governo r
o f M iss issi pi o r L ouisian a n ow ?
W hen we are done wi t h t h e
p
r ebellion t here will b e n o governmen ts even i n form to recogn i z e
i f t he Presiden t do h is du ty ( Appl ause ) T he tra i to r s will b e
h un t ed from th eir hiding places If t he President executes his du t y
the first m e n to be sough t out and arrested are t hose who h a ve h eld
civil offi ce i n th e r ebellio u s S t ates He will seize o n t h e governo r
fi rs t a nd t he con stabl e l a st in t he order of their precedence and
when h e sh a ll send t hem t o j ail he will tell th e m n o t to s tan d upo n
t h e order of t hei r going b u t t o go a t on ce a nd go quickly ( l a ugh
ter a n d appl a use ) an d t hen t he Conserv a t ives will be in great
troubl e for t here will b e n o Go vern m en t r eb e l o r l oy a l W h a t are
T he e xecutio n o f t he m ilitary p owers o f t he P r es i
w e to do then ?
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21
bring s th e S tate s b a ck t o w h ere I s a y th ey are by la w —peo
ple forming a S t a t e w i t hou t a poli t ic a l org a niz a tion c a lled S t a t e
Governm en t T ha t th ey c a n only r ece i ve un d er the a uspices o f
C ongres s an d i n accord a nce wi t h t he forms and by the laws tha t it
a n d i t alone shall se e fi t to prescribe
( Appl a use ) W hen prope r
provision sh al l h ave been m ad e fo r thes e t hings then there w ill b e
something else n ecessa r y ; fo r to a l l liberties a guaran t ee is n ec o s
s a ry O u r grea t fo r efa t hers ha d n on e o f o u r foolish sen t imen t al
b e l ief i n the i m peccabili ty o f t he p eople —not a b i t o f i t T hey
t hough t t h at as a gen eral th i ng an d i n the l o ng r un t he gre a t
m ass and b ody o f t h e peopl e we r e wise a nd l ibe r al and h on es t a n d
would con duct the i r a ffairs well ; b u t t h ey knew t h at bad men coul d
get into power ; t h at great m a sses o f men could b e in fl am ed by pas
s ion ; t hat inj ust i ce mi gh t b e pe r pe t rated by m obs as well as by a
tyran t ; th at a R epubli c a n Governm en t coul d be ove r t h rown a n d a
d espot i c Go v ernment erected ; tha t a m ino r i t y wi t h superior arms
o r supe r io r i n tell i gence could trampl e down a m aj o r i ty dis a rme d
T hey fo r es a w a s t he
a n d o u t o f p ossession o f t h e govern m ent
p ages o f the $ e d e r a lis t w i ll p rove to any m an who h as r ead i t
w h en th ey fra m ed t h e Consti t ut i on exactly what we no w s ee with
o ur eyes in th ese d ays o f blood an d carnage t h at a gr eat in t eres t
co v e r ing a g reat r egion o f coun t ry
a ct i ng toget h e r a s a unit
to th e oth e r i n terests o f t he coun try m ight com
a n tagonis t i c
b i n e and by foreign aid and the possession o f the l ocal g overn
m en t s crea t e a g r eat r ebellion overthro w t h e Republican Govern
m en t and es t ablish s om eth ing that was n o t Republican ; and there
fore t hey c r eated t h e powe r to suppress i nsu rr ection and i m pose d
t h e du ty o n Con g ress to guaran t e e Republican Governments W e
u nlike those wh o hav e t o deal with most great r eb e l lions w i th ou t
h urting any o ne g r eat perman en t l egi ti mate i nte r es t o f socie t y c a n
He r etofo r e civil
S t rik e from un d e r th e fa ction i ts only founda t ion
s t r i fes ha v e arisen between the poor and t he r ic h ; those who have
an d those w h o h a v e n o t proper ty ; bet w ee n t hos e who a r e in powe r
a n d t h ose wh o ar e o u t o f powe r t o acqui r e w h at t h ey h a ve not
Th e se ar e r e v ol ution s di ffi cul t t o be d eal t wi t h I t is di ffi cul t to
get at th e caus e a n d to r em ove i t Y o u cannot d est r oy property
It i s di fficult t o c h ange the form o f a poli t ical organiza t ion He r e
th e foundation is a soci a l i ns t i t u t i on — t he r i gh t by la w contra ry to
t h e l aw o f n atu r e fo r o ne m a n to h old anothe r i n serv i t ud e You
c u t up t h e r oot s o f the r ebellion by s tr i king the s h ackles from t h e
s l a v e ( P r olonge d appl a use ) How sh a ll i t b e done ? Congress
p assed t w o l aws i n 1 86 2 au t ho r izi n g the Pres i dent t o use as m any
p ers ons o f Afr ican descent a s he m i g h t see fi t to ai d h i m o r gan ized
i n s uc h m a nne r a s h e m i ght t h ink bes t , to s upp r es s the r e b ell i on
—
i
n my j udg m en t m uc h l ate r
d
a
P
r
s
i
d
ent
l
i
n
t
h
e
n
a
t
Th e e
o w,
e
y
d en t
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22
th an it ou gh t to h a v e been —h a s comm en ced i n e a r nes t t h e o r gan i
z a t io n o f the n e g r o r e g im e n t s from t h e s l ave elem ent o f t he coun try
T h e conserva t ives N ort h an d S ou t h c ry a l ou d agains t i t N o
m a n who does n o t m ean to a i d t h e me b e l l io n wi ll l ay a straw acros s
t h e t ra ck o f t h a t m a rch ( Appl ause ) W e are i nfo r med slave s
cannot be sol diers I T h e r e i s migh t y l i t t l e o f t h e s l ave l eft i n t h e
m an w h o h as a m usk et upon h is shoul de r ( L aughte r and appl ause )
S l aves c a n not b e soldiers
T hey who have t a k e n leave o f
$
ab sen ce ar e l ikely t o k eep i t
Slaves cannot b e s ol diers
T h en
m ak e them free by l aw o f Congress an d l et us s t e p t he argum ent
Y
o u cannot tak e pr ivate prop e r ty for p ubl ic us e
A
ppl
ause
)
(
w ithout com p ensat ion
N o ; b ut ev ery m an in th e Un i t ed S tate s
ow es m ilitary serv ice t o t h e United S tates p a r am oun t t o all l aw s
o f th e S tates ; and i f t h e n egro owes the s ervice th e master has n o
r ight to c l aim pay for i t ( A ppl ause ) T h e b u r den p asses w it h
th e prop erty T he m aste r h as b een vo ting upo n the n e g ro s p e r
W e will l et t h e n egro fi g ht a l ittl e now
s o n a l it y for eighty yea r s
up on his p erson a l ity ( L aughter an d appl ause ) B ut it is s aid
whit e sol diers w ill n ot fight i n th e sam e r ank s with th e negro es
W here h ave th e soldiers s aid they did n o t want th ei r a i d ? W h ere
h ave they t urn ed the i r backs upon an en emy b ecaus e a n egro stoo d
facing th e sam e en emy ? W hat o ffi cers h ave thrown up the ir c o m
?
issions
b
e
cause
th
ey
are
humbled
by
b
eing
i
n
the
sa
e
rank
s
m
m
Are t h ey rather n ot r ational enough t o say that th e m us k et upo n
th e sh oul der o f th e n egro el evates h im t o t h e dign ity o f m an ?
Th e $ e d e r a l is t i n its wisdom foresaw this day in som ething o f i t s
b rightn ess wh en i t s aid th at comm otions m ight m ak e a r ace o f u n
h appy b eings em erge to t h e l evel o f m anho od ( Applause ) B ut
w e are told y o u wil l disorgan i z e your arm ies
W a s Rosecrans
army dis org a n i z ed four days ago b ecaus e n egroes h ad b e en i ntr o
T he Union m en o f the l oyal sl a v e S tate s
d u c e d in t o the army ?
wil l b e disgusted an d t h ey wil l r eb el
W he r e ? W estern Virgin i a
h as abol ishe d sl avery s i nce th i s system h a s b een i n i t i ated an d p r o
cl aim ed (Appl ause ) M i ssour i has p assed h e r act o f em an cip a
tion m a d e gradual by h er C opp er h eads b ec a use h e r l oyal m en
w oul d oth erwis e h ave m ade it p eremptory an d i mm ediate I n
M aryl a nd that su r rounds your Capital an d m ore t h an on ce has fel t
th e tram p of t h e i nvader —such is the un an i m ous s entim ent o f he r
p eopl e that her Gove r n or h a s been compel l ed t o h aste n up h is l ag
ging opinion s an d p r ocl aim h ims elf i n favor o f E m an cipation
a n d a con ven t i on n ex t yea r t o e ffect i t ; an d th e only questi on i s
w h ethe r the enl istm ent o f th e sl aves will l eave any t o em anc i pate
W
h
L
aughte
r
an
d
appl
aus
e
h
as
r
eb
el
l
e
d
W
h
o
t
h
at
w
a
s
o
?
)
(
l oy a l to the Governm ent has b ecom e d isloyal ? S omewh ere wher e
t h e n egro fe v e r h as bee n l u r k ing under th e s k i n , o f cou rs e i t h a s
.
$
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23
b r ok en o u t ; b ut t h e fe v er wa s t h ere before ; i t only r equ i red a h o t
d ay to b r ing it o u t ( L aughter ) N o s oun d l oy a l m a n h a s a
symp to m o f that in h im
B ut t h ere wil l b e se rv i l e i nsu rr e ct i on s outr a ges u pon wom en
m assacres o f m asters burn i ng down of h ous es destruc t i on o f gre a t
r egions o f country ev e r yth ing t h at th e Ap oc a l y pse d c s c r ib
b efore t h e l as t day T h at m ass o f fr e edm en h as don e n o such
i n i quity anywh er e
T h ey h a v e subm itted with m ore th a n a n g eli c
p atience t o th e torm ents o f their masters t i l l th e Uni t ed S t a t es
h as gi v en them an Opp o r tunity O f freedom ; an d th en m urderin g
n o o n e outrag i ng n o o n e i n sulting n o one th ey have m a rched
quietly through th e st r eet s o f Baltim ore to t h e n egro c a m p a nd
undertak e n the obligation s Of th e m i l i t ary oath
Appl
ause
)
(
T he guarante e that y o u wan t is enoug h o f them — tha t i s a ll
O rgani z e o n e hun dred t h ous a nd o r two hund r ed thousand or three
h un dred thousan d an d plant t h em as a beacon ligh t an d a towe r
o f strength i n th e m i ddl e o f the S outhern count r y ; a n d that w i t h
an act o f C ongr ess m ak es freedoms n ot only l aw but fa c t ; a n d
t il l th at i s d on e t h e President s proclamation i s n o t worth t h e
p ap er o n whic h i t i s written ;
T hat s so an d ch eers ) Your
declaration that you ar e going t o set th e sl aves free i s a m ere
delus ion ; th ei r rushing t o j oin t he army i s m erely prep a ri n g thei r
n eck s fo r t h e h al ter ; th e r ecognition of t h e ex i st i ng rebel na t b or i
t ies i s m erely h anding them ove r to t h e stak e an d th e tor t ure
Hum an i ty Ch r i stianity th e h ighest prin cipl es the m ost ordin a ry
h onor comb in e i n cry in g s h am e o n t hus com pl icating th e fate of
th at innocen t peopl e with yours i f you d o n ot m e a n to m a k e th ei r
fate also yo urs ( Appl ause ) L et t hem st ay at h om e doomed to
th e i nexorabl e l as h an d ete r nal l ab or rather than drag them o u t
t o i n cur the dea dly h at e an d hostili t y o f the i r m asters and the n
r etur n them defen celess to t h e i r ten der m ercies T here m a y b e
e x ec r abl e hum il i atio ns yet conn ecte d w i th t h e a dj ustm en t of t his
g reat r evol ution b ut the pen o f the h i storian will ste ep i t sel f i n
gall o f equal b itte r n ess fo r n o oth er act as fo r calling n egroes int o
t h e field an d abandoning them afterwards to sl avery T h a t fel
l o w citi z ens i s o n e o f those steps which once t a ken c an n ever b e
r ecalled
T he Union as it was can never b e a fter th a t step
But w h en t h e n egroes s h all b e organi zed armed discipl ined deco
r ated w i t h th e un iform o f th e Un i ted S tates and t a ught t h e
m an oe uvres o f th e field an act o f Congress which procl aims t h em
an d th ei r l ik e free w il l b e an act that will b e respected T hen
t h e United S tates w i l l h a v e acquired four m illion s of p eopl e i n t h e
r eb el S tates whos e l i b erty depen ds up on the p erpetui t y o f t h e
Un i on ; an d fo r th e fi r st tim e you w ill have a guar a ntee such as
you n ever h ad b efo r e Y o u will h ave conve r t ed th e el em en t o f
yo u r weakn es s into th e e l em ent o f you r s t r engt h Y o u W i l l h ave
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$
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$
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$
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24
rested t h e sword from you r antagon i st an d w i l l w i el d i t ove r h i s
defen cel ess head Your friends are cam p ed ete r n a lly am ong them
If th ey a ttem pt t o reduce
an d t h e
y are o n th eir good b eh av ior
th em to s lavery th e l aw calls th e m en o f t h e N orth to vin d ic a te
th e r ight t h ey h ave conferred n o t t o m eet i n arm s the m en th ey
h a d previ ousl y a rm ed against th e S outhe r n r eb ell i on T h a t is t h e
l egal way th at th a t pr obl em will b e accompl is h ed T hen if w e
h ear th e wretch ed cry com ing from t h e lowes t o f th e p opulace
c h ie fl y tha t whi ch fl oods us from ab r oad about n egro e q u a l ity an d
t h e i ntrusion of n egro l ab o r up on wh i te labor m ention to them on e
In th e first
o r t w o t hings wh ich m ay even m ee t thei r i n tellect
pl ace if anyb ody i s afra i d o f n egro e qual ity he is n o t far fro m i t
already ( L aughter i n t h e n e $ t pl ace if G o d h as m ade him e qual
an d only accidental cir cum stan ces h ave m ad e h im un e qual y o u
cann ot hel p i t ; and i f H e h as m ade h im un equal by th e l aws o f
n ature an d in dep en dent l y o f accidental cir cumstan ces th en n o
am ount o f d e m a go g u e is m n o amount o f ab ol it i on enthus i as m c a n
m ak e o n e h air black o r w h i te o r add an i n ch to h is statu r e intel
l ectual o r m oral W h en y o u talk ab out exp ell i ng him from th e
country you talk s i m pl e c r az i n ess E xpel fo ur m illion s o f peopl e I
W h ere are th e sh ip s
W he r e is t h e l an d th at w ill r e ceive th em ?
W here are th e p eopl e t h at will p ay th e taxes t o rem o v e them ?
?
h
o
will
cul
t
i
v
ate
th
e
deserted
reg
i
on
s
th
at
th
ey
l
eav
e
W ho
W
w ill in demnify $ ing C o t ton for the loss o f h i s subj ects ( L aughte r
— represen ted to
a nd applause
W
ha
t
w
ill
t
h
e
C
otton
pl
an
ter
do
)
you as a gen tl em an w h o l ike A p o l y o n i n the Pilgrim s Progress
c a t s an d sp outs nothing b ut fire
but y ou wil l fin d a li t tl e comm o n
s en s e at th e b ottom of it all L et him un derstan d that t h e n egr o
i s free and th at h e h as t o d eal w ith him as a fre e l ab orer o r le t
cotton g o un cultivated a n d h e w ill haste n t o p ay him wages an d
t h e n egro will b e glad to r eceive t hem (Appl a use ) But he wil l
r un up N orth say t h is same class o f p eople an d comp ete with us
for our l ab or W h o eve r hea r d Of a free negro run ning away from
w h ere h e w a s fre e ? W h o eve r heard o f a n eg r o r unning at all
i f h e coul d hel p i t ? ( L aughter )
T hey don t r u n from M aryl an d
to P e n n sy l v a n ia —why from S outh C arolin a to L ouisiana
But
they a re l azy an d idle
T hose who wan t t o keep th em as s l a v e s
s ay s o ; nob ody else W e i n M a rylan d h ave m or e e xp e r i en ce o n
that subj ect than anybody else W e h ave ab out
negroes ;
o n e h alf o f them are fre e ; th e oth er h al f are sl a v e W e fin d th at
th e sl aves are l az i er than t h e fr ee negroes W e find that the fr e e
n egroes h a ve sc h ool s educate th ei r ch i l d r en l ay up m o n ey in t h e
S avings Bank s an d d o n o t crow d th e court o f my fri end $ udge
B ond as m uch as th e c l ass o f w h ite p eopl e fr om acro s s t h e water
E verybody t alk s a g a ins t t h em who wants t o k eep t h em down b e l ow
t h e le v e l o f t h e s l a v e I t i s t h e i nte r e s t o f t h e p eop l e w h o ow n
w
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$
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,
$
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r
$
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26
aga i n cul t i vated C r us h the r eb e l l i on an d th e quest i on o f l abo r
will r ev i v e Crus h th e r eb ellion an d t h e interests o f the pl ante r
w i ll be a m atte r fo r h is conside r ation C r us h t h e r ebe l l i on an d h e
will m ake t h e bes t terms h e can w i th h i s eman cipated an d a r m ed
fellow country m en of t h e African r ace (A pplause ) And o n t h e
o t h e r hand if t h i s w r etc h ed cross eyed an d doub l e faced conse rv a
ti em (laugh ter) sha l l g e t i nto power ; if t h e m en w h o de l ude the
people and li e t o t h ei r o w n consc i ence s w h e r e t h ey a r e n o t d i s
honest shall crown themse lv e s a ga i n a s for th i r ty yea r s they h a v e
h i t h e r to c r owned them sel v es fo r ev i l w i t h th e powers of th e
Governm ent o f t h e United S tates and s h a l l p r oceed t o act o n t h e i r
v iew o f th e Con stitut i o n an d r ecognize t h e r ebel l eade r s as the
m asters o f their loya l fel l o w cit i zens w h om n o w for tw o l ong y ea rs
t hey h av e i llegally opp r essed r esto r e t h e m to t h e seats o f powe r
adm it i nto t h e Congress o f t h e United S tates t h e i r r epresentati v es
lea v e th e conduct of t h e l ocal elections un d e r th eir dictatio n and
allo w the i r arm ies to stand guar d ove r t h e ba l lo t b o $ and the i r
laws to r egulate who shall elect an d w h o s h all b e el ected an d t h ei r
C onstitution to dete r min e h ow th e b al ance o f p owe r s h al l b e dis
t r ibuted b etween t h e w h i te r egions o f t h e S tate an d t h e s l ave
r egion s o f th e State — t h en I say although th e Un ion m ay b e
resto r ed i n tha t way it will be a t the loss o f all t he fruits o f t h e
war ; the r e wil l b e n o pe r manent peace ; it w i ll be a t r eacherous
and shift ing s a n d o n wh i c h no perman en t s t ructu r e can be l aid
ove r which n o great marc h fo r improvem ent c a n pursue its u n o b
structed w a y W e m erely res tore t o power t h ose t hat h ave rebel
l ed to subj u g a te t h e N or t h by t h e o l d coalit i on to abid e their t im e
till undying hate st i ll fos t e r ed an d kept a l iv e by th e perpe t uation
o f poli t ical power s h a l l awak e a mid som e great N at i onal collision
fro m abroad ; to leave o u r ra nks in the d ay o f battl e to lift t h e
banne r o f r ebellion in th e midst of nation a l dis a ster wi t h combined
arm ies tear in pieces th e Republic t hat t h ey are now v a inly s trug
gl ing to overthrow I s a y t hat now w h en o u r a rmies h ave advanced
t o the v e r y h ea r t of t he Confederacy l et us press it hom e an d res t
n ow h ere ( G 1 e a t app la us e ) O ur a r mies n ow gird all th e r ebel
lion ; the l eaders o f t he rebell ion begin to feel t h e i n w a rd tortu r es
of consci ous guil t and t hey b egi n to feel the searchin g throes of
the fire t ha t we are h e a ping around t h em Press forw a rd only a
li t t l e mo r e an d they will be cons umed i n th e c o n fl a g ra t io n t hat
they themselves have created ( A ppl a us e ) W e h ave n o w p os
session o f th e M ississippi ; we h a ve possession o f all wes t of i t sub
s t a n t ia l l
y ; we have all o f M ississippi i n o u r possession ; w e hav e
n early all L ouis i an a i n o u r possession ; we h a v e a l l of T enn essee i n
our possession ; we h a v e one h alf of t h e S tate of Virgini a i n o u r
pos s ession ; we ha v e o n e ful l h al f of all t h e popul a tion tha t r eb elled
i n o ur pos s e s s ion ; we h a v e c r i ppl ed t h ei r r e s ou r ces i n grea t m ea
.
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27
s u r e d i s o rg an i ze d o r pa r al yze d t h e i r armies ; we h a ve s ti ll fig h t i ng
to do b u t w e h a v e l ess o f i t to d o t h an we h ad a yea r a g o ; an d
now w i t h o n e comb i ne d an d ener g et i c e ffo r t if w i t h ou r fee t w e can
$
stam p down t h e conse rv at i ve re v o l ut i on ary r e action at ho me
an d launch as a b e l t o f fire upon t h e enemy o u r unbrok en r anks a
yea r mo r e an d po s s i bly we s h a l l begin to see t h e en d o f the wa r
( App l ause ) $ u t gentlemen r est a ssu r ed th at they w h o a r e r eady
t o m a k e peace fi r s t will n o t dictate t h e te r m s o f it ; r est assure d
t h a t they who a r e dete r m i n ed t o see no en d o f t h e wa r e $ ceptin g
under t h e c r own o f v icto r y will wea r that crown ( Applause ) I t
i s tenacity i t is endurance i t i s p atience i t i s t h e resolut i o n n e v e r
t o s t e p fi gh t i ng un t i l you r en emy yield s that const i tute t h e great
qualities o f n ations bo r n to r ule W e n o w a r e o n t r i al before the
nat i ons o f th e wo r ld If t h e s w o r d d r op fr om ou r weari ed b an d s
th ey w i ll say $ Go , ye n at i on o f s h op keepe r s and weavers ; w o r k
n avigate b e ingen i ous bu i l d houses wea v e fabrics ; mak e arms fo r
,
th e r est of t h e wor l d lea v e othe r m en to bear an d wield th em $
You are n o t t h e l egitimate descenden t s o f t h e m en w h o wreste d
t h ei r indepen dence from t h e powe r o f Grea t Br i t a in
M aintai n
you r powe r int a ct scout down an d s t a mp dow n any m a n who speak s
of any terms o f peace at all ( Great appl ause ) T ell him t h at
this i s n o fo r eign war to b e t e r min ated by a t r ea ty ; i t i s a dom es
tic r ebell i on t o b e s tam ped in th e ea r th and the only tr e aty i s t h e
C on stitut i on o f t h e Uni t e d S tates as it i s an d as w e cons t r ue it ;
f
f
o
grea
applaus
e
th
e
only
pr
i
vileges
the
r
ebels
ar
e
th
e
laws
t
o
(
)
Congres s as we h a v e p a s sed t h e m an d w i ll execu t e them o v e r th em
t ill t hey subm i t ; thei r only r ight is to a l eg a l t r i a l an d m ercy
aft e r wards if the Presiden t s ees fit ( Applaus e ) T hey are n o t
alien en em i es they are tra i to r s w h ose l ives are fo r feited W hen
we deal wi t h th em ge n tleme n o n th ese te r ms t h ey wil l unde r
stan d that they h a v e begun a work which they k no w now i s n ot
easy , they w il l then k now i s impossible ; th ey wil l find t h at they
se t out to aver t d eat h i n o l d age and they encountere d suicide at
t h e t h r es h old ; t h ey will begin to unders t an d wh at migh t th e r e
slumbers i n the hea r t o f th e Am e r ican people wielded by wisdom
backe d by energy an d resolu ti on and by t ha t instinc t wh ich is n eve r
wan t i ng to any p eopl e des t i ned to g r ea t ness — th e ins t inc t of powe r
t hat l eads the m n ever to y iel d as long as a m a n o r a dollar r em ain
a s long as th ere is an acre to be defended o r an inc h to b e r es tore d
t o t h ei r dom ination
N e v e r allow t he G o d T erm inus t o r ecede
a cros s the boun dary o f any State — l e t t hat b e t he wa t chword of
t he Ame r i can Republi c
T hen i t will b e as grea t as gl orious a s
b e n e fi ce n t as lon g l ived yea more long l ived th a n t he i mmor t a l
e xample o f Republican gove r nm ent th e Rom e of t h e anc i en t worl d
O n t hes e te r m s we sh all stand r espected b efo r e t h e n a t i on s o f the
wo rl d
,
,
$
,
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$
.
,
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-
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28
E v e r y desp ot ih Eu r op e cur l ed h i s l ip s w h en t h e r ebe l l i on b r oke
wretched v a cil a t in g d i lap i dat ed go v ernm ent
o u t at th e feebl e
that unde r took to r estore its author i ty o v e r this i mmense an d m ag
W hen t h e m e n o f t h e N o r t h and of th e l oyal
n ifi c e n t region
sl ave S tates commen ce d to de v el op e th ei r p owe r , they pause d i n
their determ ination t o r ecogn i z e they p a use d i n their m ore t h an
h al f form ed r esolut i on to i ntervene an d thr ow th e weight o f the i r
arms o n the other s ide W hen o u r arms we r e at a l o w ebb a yea r
a n d a hal f ago L ou i s N a p ol eo n t h o ug h t it a con v enient o p p o r
t u n it y to m arch in an d tak e p oss ess i on o f M e $ i co ; to l im i t o u r
expans ion He woul d n o t do it to day ; an d by th e blessing of
G o d when th i s r ebe l l ion shal l b e supp r essed I tak e i t th ere is a
long accoun t to settle wit h t w o great n ations o f th e Eur opean
wo r ld ( L ong continued app l ause ) I n e v e r s ai d a word my
friends to anybody i n this h ouse o n that subj ect b efor e b ut I knew
what I thought an d I guessed w h at e v ery Am e r i can t h ought
Great
T
h
e
sailing
a pplause
o f th e A l ab am a an d the $ lorida
(
)
t h e organi z ation of comp an ies to supply arm s to s hoot down our
brethren —th e organ iz e d attempt to break t hr oug h t h e blo ckade
w i th every m ateri a l o f war an d every comfort o f l ife fo r o u r en e
m ie s un der t h e disgu i s e o f a n eutral ity v iolate d at e v ery step
the m oral p ower an d fo r ce g i ven to the r eb ell ion by t h e c o u n t e
n a n ce o f th e go v e r nm ents o f $ r an ce an d E ng l an d w h ose fea r o f
alon e p r e v ente d fo r m al int r usion i nto o u r
t h e consequen ces
domestic quarrel — th e t h orn i n o u r s ide o f N ass au — th e p r ying
eye that w a tched o u r e v ery m o v em ent at Hal ifa $ — th e l on g th orn e
t hat $ rance h a s pl anted i n o u r s ide i n M ex i co — t h ese thi ngs fester
a n d w ra n k l c til l th e day o f a ccount
G
r
eat
appl
ause
I
us
ed
)
(
t o b e Opp osed to foreig n conquest Opp os e d t o the acquisitio n o f
territory Oppos ed to fore i gn wa r I have l earne d som eth ing in
two years I tak e it that the s ail ing o f t h e A lab am a h as unset
t l e d t he N orth easte r n fr ontier
Appl
aus
e
I
tak
e
i
t
that
th
e
(
)
i ntrusio n o f a monarc h ial p ower into M e x i co h as m ad e us feel t h at
M ex ico i s a Republic and o u r s afe t y r equires its expulsion ( T re
m e n d o u s cheering )
I t a k e i t t ha t we feel uncomfortably b oun d
in b y th e Baham a Islands and t h at h ereafte r N assau wi l l n ot b e
the pirate s nest to prey o n u s ( Great appl aus e ) W hen th is
gi a n t sh a ll h ave recovered th e use o f all his faculties n ot n ow l ik e
a m a n clove n from head t o foot
an d wiel ding s car ce any o f h is
native power but restored to h i s w h ol e m anhoo d united i n his
a b solute vigor I l ook w ith glorying t o t h e day when the black
regim en ts shal l s tream to the cap i t a l of th e M o ntez umas w h il e the
a rmy o f th e Potomac beco m i ng the army o f the S t L awrence
s h a l l m arch to $ uebec a n d M ontre al ( E nthusias t ic applause
w i t h great che er i n g an d w a ving of hats ) An d if by the bl essing
o f G o d and th e w isdo m t h at shal l p r es ide o ver th e N a v y D ep art
,
,
,
,
.
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-
.
-
,
-
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-
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.
,
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,
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-
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$
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29
na v y shall reach the m agnifi cent proport i ons of o u r
an d the navy of E ngland shall m e e t her equal on the seas
all only b e the W i ll of G o d that th e N at i on s great A dmiral
t s h al l l i v e to l ea d i t o n th e o ce an ( appla u se ) the n I trus t
to hear of the e xp l os i on o f the b ombshells over the dome o f
ul s an d of th e ar c h e s o f L ondo n b r i dge s e nt i nto th e a i r
applaus e )
o ur
,
$
,
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,
$
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,
.