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 S P E E O " 
 
 HON. LYMAN TREMAIN 
 
 BEFORE THE 
 
 IWION J^TATE CONVENTION, 
 
 Syracuse, September 24, 1862, 
 
 DEFINIX^G THE 
 
 POSITION OF THE UNION PARTY, AND REVIEW- 
 ING- THE SPEECH MADE BY MR. SEYMOUR 
 ON ACCEPTING HIS NOMINATION 
 FOR GOVERNOR. 
 
 Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen of the Coiq^vention : 
 
 The perilous condition of our country, the anomalous circumstances 
 attending the joint call for this Convention, and the influence which its 
 action is destined to exert upon the affiiirs of our State and Nation, 
 combine to impart rare interest to its proceedings. 
 
 History of the Origin and Objects of the Union Movement. 
 
 One year ago, the people of this State, profoundly impressed with 
 the necessity of uniting all good men for the sake of the Union, inau- 
 gurated a grand popular movement, which discarding all partisan 
 considerations, and looking only to the preservation of our Free Insti- 
 tutions, swept the Stat-e with a majority unparalleled in its political 
 history. 
 
 The Union Convention, held in this city, presented a platform at once 
 patriotic, intelligent and comprehensive. Demanding as a test of 
 fellowship, no allegiance to the obsolete or subordinate issues of peace- 
 ful and bygone days ; exacting no surrender of cherished opinions 
 upon questions that had hitherto divided the American people ; allow- 
 ing each member of the Union organization to retain his past political 
 
^^s^ 
 .^ 
 
 s 
 
 stattis, it invoked the aid and co-operation of all loyal citizens yffk& 
 would sustain the government in its efforts to overthrow the rebellion 
 which threatened it& existence. The Republican ConventioQy held at 
 the same tinse,, expressed its enth-e ajjproval of this policy,, and united 
 upon the s-anae ticket, with the exception of one candidate. 
 
 The Ur/ion Convention having omitted to appoint any committee to 
 call future conventio-ns, the Union membei-s of the last Legislature sup- 
 plied this deficiency. Having been appointed a member of this com- 
 mittee, I liave participated in its proceedings down to the present time- 
 I can spealc advisedly of the pr^riotic purposes of those with whom I 
 have had the honor to be associated upon that committee. 
 
 They desired to make the bnsis of futnre action ss broad and catho- 
 lic as it was possible for them to do consistently with their instructions. 
 Drawn from different political fcarties-, they wished to sink the differ- 
 ences of the past and to look only to the salvation of their country ire 
 this time of peril. With this end they invited the co-operation of the 
 Repxtblican, the Democratic and the Constitutional Union committees. 
 The result of their action was the rejection of their invitation by the 
 two latter, and its aeceptance by the former,, and the eo,ll by the two 
 committees for this convention. 
 
 The purpose of the committee with which I was associated was to 
 make this call liberal enough to embrace all Republicans, all Democrats, 
 and all loyal citizens who were willing to apply all their energies to the 
 noble work of suppressing the rebellion and thus restoring the Union, 
 
 These are the circumstances, fellow citizens, under which the joint 
 call was issued, by virtue of which you have assembled. The Rebellion 
 still rages with all its malignant and savage fury. The reasons which 
 prompted the formation of a great Union party last year still exist in 
 greater force, if possible, than ever. In the meantime, recent events 
 have consj^ired to give renewed importance to your action. A con- 
 vention has been recently held by a powerful political party in the 
 State, the proceedings of which have been thoroughly and intensely 
 partisan throughout, while an elaborate argument, delivered before 
 that body by its distinguished candidate for Governor, in favor of 
 keeping up broad and high, the partisan walls of distinction, has been 
 sanctioned by the convention, and the publication of two hundred 
 thousand copies for general circulation has been ordered. 
 
 Under these circumstances, the eyes of the Union men of the country 
 are turned to this convention. Their hopes for the future depend upon 
 your action. Shall they be disappointed ? Shall the proceedings of 
 this body prove that it is a Union Convention in name, but not in fact? 
 Shall it be proved by your action — action as distinguished from words 
 
^ — that all the past professions of no party Unionism, are only unmean- 
 
 ^ ing phrases, intended as a mockery, delusion and snare. 
 
 . I have no fears on these points. The immense responsibilities of 
 
 ^ your position, and your own high character, as well as plighted faith, 
 
 -^ furnish sufficient guarantee that you Avill prove true to your country 
 
 s^ and to the principles of the Union organization. You are, gentlemen, 
 
 the representatives of the Union War Party of this great State. Your 
 
 war cry should be simple. Let it be — War to the Knife for the 
 
 Preservation of our Government. Yoiir policy is plain. Overthrow 
 
 the Rebellion as it is, and you restore the " Union as it was." 
 
 Every collateral question intended to divert attention from the great 
 duty of prosecuting this war for the Union, by all the means that God 
 and nature have placed in our hands, should be postponed, or laid 
 aside. Every side issue sliould be swallowed up in the all absorbing 
 purpose to maintain the constitutional authority of the Government. 
 
 Duty of Patriots in this Crisis. 
 
 My own opinion was formed at an early period in tliis war, that the 
 true course for jiatriots to pursue in the present emergency, was to 
 ignore all political divisions. To me, it has seemed quite clear that the 
 highest dictates of patriotism, tlie true interests of the nation, and the 
 triumphant success of our Government would be promoted in this 
 lime of our country's |)eril, if the people of this great State could all 
 co-operate in tlieir political action, and present an undivided front upon 
 the single platform of a vigorous prosecution of the war. 
 
 I cast my eyes over the Southern Confederacy and I find that under 
 the iron hand of governmental despotism which i:»revails, the people 
 are substantially united in supporting the miserable usurpation called 
 a government. I have longed eagerly to see the people of this great 
 State by their own voluntary action, present a united front in sustain- 
 ing our free institutions. To me it has appeared that the moral eifect 
 of such a sublime spectacle, both at home and abroad, could scarcely 
 be estimated. 
 
 I approved, therefore, of the action of the dominant political party 
 in tendering the olive branch, and inviting the Central Committee of 
 the Democratic party to such a union a year ago ; and it was with dis- 
 appointment and regret I observed that the proposal was rejected, and 
 that the committee declined to call the convention of the Democratic 
 masses at a time and place designed to promote the consideration of 
 the subject. 
 
 My views of the expediency and necessity of a great Union party re- 
 main unchanged. They are strengthened by observation and experience. 
 
Mr. Seymour's Speech. 
 
 But these sentiments are challenged by the leaders of the Democratic 
 party. Horatio Seymour, the candidate for governor, delivered a speech 
 on accepting the nomination, which assails these positions. This speech 
 is entitled to consideration. 
 
 It is an expression of the principles and views on which its author 
 will stand or fall as a candidate for popular favor. It was approved 
 with entire unanimity by the convention. It is no party utterance of 
 ill considered opinions, but it bears upon its face internal evidence that 
 it was well considered, and was prepared with much labor, care and 
 deliberation. 
 
 This speech, being the platform selected for himself, by a gentleman 
 of commanding influence in the state, its former chief magistrate, a 
 prominent leader of a powerful party, and receiving the unanimous 
 approval of the chosen representatives of that party, would, at any 
 time, command and receive the most respectful consideration. 
 
 But it derives peculiar significance from the circumstances under 
 which it was delivered. Our country is convulsed from centre to 
 circumference, by a fierce civil war, which threatens to subvert the 
 whole structure of our free institutions. At such a time, such a speech, 
 making war upon the policy of abandoning party organizations for the 
 present, and proclaiming the grounds on which the people of the most 
 important state in the confederacy are requested to pronounce judg- 
 ment, necessarily forces itself upon our attention. 
 
 I have read this speech with great care. Without intending to 
 detract from the personal worth of its distinguished author, I regret 
 that the speech was delivered, because, in my humble judgn^ent, its 
 efiect can scarcely fail to be mischievous at this time, while its approval, 
 by the verdict of the people, would be a calamity greatly to be de- 
 plored. 
 
 When a great public evil hangs over the country, which requires the 
 personal exertion of every citizen to rej)el it, the true criterion of the 
 merit which belongs to an oratorical effort is the effect which it pro- 
 duces on the public mind. 
 
 This is illustrated by the criticism which has been pronounced upon 
 the oratory of Cicero and of Demosthenes. While the former was 
 delivering one of those masterly orations before a popular assembly, 
 which have come down to us in the classic language of old Rome, his 
 hearers said, " How beautiful !" "What polished sentences!" "What 
 flights of eloquence !" But after the great Athenian Orator had thun- 
 dered forth one of his earnest, argumentative and powerful philippics 
 
against the enemies of liis country, tlie people cried out, with one 
 voice, " We must figlit." " Lead us forth against the enemy." The 
 Aniei'ican citizen who should hear or read Governor Seymour''s speech 
 "would never feel moved by it to exclaim, " I must fight. I must now aid 
 in crushing out these southern rebels." On the contrary, his conclusion 
 would be, if I must make war at all it shall be upon the same govern- 
 ment against which Jefferson Davis is directing the thundei'bolts of 
 war. 
 
 His Position as to the Republican Party. 
 
 The favorite postulate upon which Governor Sejanour's argument is 
 based is, that the Republican Administration can never succeed in 
 crushing out this rebellion. His language is : 
 
 " For another reason we cannot disband our organization. No other 
 party can save this country. It alone has clearly defined purposes and 
 well settled principles." 
 
 " On the other hand, the very character of the Republican organi- 
 zation makes it incapable of conducting the affairs of the govern- 
 ment." 
 
 Let us see to what conclusion a belief in this sentiment would lead 
 the people. Under the Constitution, the sole power of conducting this 
 war devolves upon the General Government. It alone has authority to 
 call forth the militia for the purpose of suppressing insurrection, repel- 
 ling invasion, and enforcing the laws, A State Government, even in 
 the hands of Governor Seymour, would have no power to engage in 
 war, or to hold control over their movements one moment after the 
 militia passed beyond the State lines. Now it so happens that Abraham 
 Lincoln, a Republican, is President of the United States, and whether 
 he lives or dies, the General Government will continue in the hands of 
 a "Republican organization," until the 4th of March, 1865. If, then, 
 the Republican party can not save the country, and is incapable of con- 
 ducting its aiftiirs, and the Republican party must hold power for nearly 
 three years, why should I waste ray efforts in a vain attempt to sustain 
 such a government? Why should I spend my time and money in 
 obtaining volunteers? Why should I send my son to expose his life 
 in u.navailing struggles to save my country ? It can't be saved, accord- 
 ing to Mr. Seymour, until the Republicans go out and the Democrats 
 come in. And imder the "Constitution as it is," this millenial period 
 can not occur prior to 1865. Can volunteers be raised upon such a 
 platform? If raised, and they believe Governor Seymour, would they 
 be worth as much as the bounties which a loyal people are straining 
 every nerve to bestow upon them? 
 
6 
 
 In the meantime tlie Confederate usurpation is acquiring consistency 
 and strength by lapse of time, and the soil of loyal States is invuded 
 by the hosts of Rebellion. Treason runs riot, and the country presents 
 one gi-and carnival of crime. Hold on, loyal citizen! Restrain your 
 rising indignation ! Be patient! Don't get excited! Tlie Republicans 
 rule ! The country can't be saved by them ! Accor'ding to Mr. Sey- 
 mour, the Democratic party alone can save it. and they can't commence 
 the work of salvation until about three years hence! 
 
 Such an argument is calculated to extinguish the patriotic ardor of 
 the people. Its indorsement in this State would be something for 
 Jeiferson Davis to be thankful for in his next thanksgiving proclamation. 
 It seems to me, with great respect, to be a sentiment, which can never 
 be sanctioned, miless the people are prejiared to say that the Rebels 
 have triumphed, and the War for the Union shall be no further prose- 
 cuted. And yet this chilling assumption runs through the entire 
 speech, and constitutes one of its leading topics. 
 
 Certamly Governor Seymour cannot entertain a thought of supplant- 
 ing the constituted authorities by a Dictatorship, or any either usurpation 
 of power, No such doctrine can be found in the " Constitution as it 
 is ;" and to that venerable paper the Governor is solemnly committed. 
 
 N"ow I dissent, in toto and in detail, from Mr. Seymoiir's position. 
 I regard it as unsound in itself, and highly i>emicious in its teachings. 
 And yet it is the necessary result, perhaps, of his argument in favor of 
 maintaining in these times organizations strictly partisan. The strength 
 of oiir Government is in the people, and not in the rulers. The people 
 are the source of all i^ower, and if their libei'ties are lost they cannot 
 lay " the flattering unction to their souls " that the responsibility rests 
 elsewhere than upon themselves. To say that the Republican Adminis- 
 tration cannot save the country, is another form of assuming that other 
 parties will hold themselves aloof from the work. This is all wrong, 
 wrong, wrong. Such partisan appeals I repudiate. Mr. Lincoln is the 
 President of Democrats as well as Republicans. He is the constitu- 
 tional head of the Government, and it is the duty of all citizens to 
 rally to his support in defending the Government. Of his incorrupti- 
 ble integrity and sterling honesty no doubt has ever been suggested. 
 Why, then, when the very fabric of Government is shaken to its foun- 
 dations, should efforts be made to weaken his arms by the assertion 
 that he cannot save the country ? 
 
 Party Spirit. 
 
 Any movement should be deprecated which will strengthen the 
 Rebels. Partisan discussions beget crimination and recrimination. 
 
They lead to bitter denunciations of those in power by speakers and 
 presses. They tend to divert attention from the all absorbing issue of 
 the war. Jefferson Davis rejoices to see the formation of these parties. 
 He has been deluded with the hope of dividing the people of the North. 
 
 Border State Men. 
 
 The truly loyal men of tlie Border States do not desire to see these 
 partisan controversies. Such rnen as Johnson, Brownlow, and their 
 associates, desire to see the North abandon all partisan divisions. 
 
 A Voice. How about Fernando ? 
 
 Mr. Tremain said, the last he saw of Fernando Wood he stood in 
 that hall when the Chairman of the Democratic Convention was thrown 
 from the platform. He was then making war upon Mr. Seymour's 
 party. Yet, he is now its high priest. [Laughter and applause.] 
 
 " Oh," said an educated citizen of Baltimore to me," " if the people 
 of the North only knew with what intense interest we looked for a 
 •complete union among them, they woidd, I am sure, cease their wraug- 
 lings and divisions." Such are the views of real loyalists in the Bor- 
 <ler States. 
 
 The supposed benefits of party organizations, alluded to by Mr. 
 Seymour, have little force in a crisis like the present. Mr. Seymour's 
 effort is to inflame and mcrease, rather than to mitigate, the malignity 
 of party feeling. 
 
 Washington, having reference even to times of peace, says of party 
 spirit : 
 
 " In governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged. 
 From their natural tendency, it is certain there will always be enough 
 of that spirit for every salutary j^urpose. And there being constant 
 danger of excess, the effort ought to be, by force of public opinion, to 
 mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a 
 viniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of 
 W' arming, it should consume." With what tenfold force these warnings 
 apply to the present condition of public affairs ! 
 
 Mr. Seymom''s Speech an Illustration of the evils of Party 
 
 Spirit. 
 
 It seems to me that the evils of partisanship are illustrated in this 
 very speech. The wolf howling at our doors, is the Rebellion based 
 on the infamous doctrine of Secession. Governor Sejonour devotes 
 three columns to assaults upon the Republican party, and one sentence 
 to Rebellion! In that sentence the rebellion is called "wicked," and 
 yet his heart would seem to have failed him, and perhaps he felt the 
 
"agony of remorse," for making this remark, for he adds, in the next 
 paragraph ; 
 
 "Our government and its administration are different things; but in 
 the eyes of the civilized world weakness or folly in the conduct of 
 affairs goes far to justify resistance." The speaker, having attempted 
 to show the weakness and folly of the administration, it is difficult to 
 ascertain how far short the rebellion fell from the line of a complete jus- 
 tification. The excess would seem to be all that was "wicked," in 
 the judgment of the speaker. 
 
 What an opportunity was presented to the speaker for doing good 
 and for enrolling his name among the noblest patriots of the land! 
 The convention was composed of delegates from all parts of the state. 
 They had been, not long before, associated in honorable, political fel- 
 lowship with the leaders of the rebellion. Much imperfect and erro- 
 neous doctrine had been taught concerning the right to secede and the 
 right of revolution. Mr. Seymour was learned in constitutional law, 
 and an acknowledged and trusted leader in the convention. His argu- 
 ments would be remembered and earned back, by a body of mission- 
 aries, to every part of the state. The materials for proving the wholly 
 indefensible character of the rebellion were abundant. 
 
 We look in vain through this platform argument for an able refuta- 
 tion of the doctrine of secession. We find liberal quotations from old 
 newspapers, copious denunciations of the administration, apologies for 
 the rebellion, arguments in favor of keeping up party lines, lavish de- 
 clarations of future conduct, but not one single argument aimed at the 
 heart of the rebellion. Why was this ? It is easy to swim with the cur- 
 rent ; it requires boldness to encounter the frowns of an audience. But 
 Mr. Seymour is a bold man. What but the partisanship of which I 
 complain tied his tongue on this occasion ? 
 
 Foreign Hostility — its Cause. 
 
 Mr. Seymour, in his speech, furnishes an apology for the hostility of 
 foreign nations, which, I think, they do not deserve. lie says : 
 
 " The brutal and bloody language of partisan editors and political 
 preachers, have lost us the sympathy of the ci^dlized world, in a con- 
 test where all mankind should be upon one side." 
 
 The sympathy could not ho, lost if it was neyav 2)ossessed. 
 
 At the commencement of this rebellion, England insulted this nation 
 by her resolution to treat the rebels as belligerents. Suppose some of 
 England's most populous counties should rise in rebellion to overthrow 
 the Government of England. Suppose the United States Government 
 should immediately declare that the rebels should be deemed bellige- 
 
rents, thus, by the law of nations, placing them on a footing of equality 
 with the rightful Government. What would England think, and have 
 a right to think of that act ? 
 
 The sympathies of the governing classes in England with this rebel- 
 lion have been unmistakably manifested in a thousand ways. But the 
 cause lies far deeper than in our newspaper provocation. One cause is 
 the importance of cotton to her industrial interests. But a deeper 
 cause is in their jealousy and hatred of our Republican Government 
 and Free Institutions. They think they see an opportunity to break 
 in pieces the Great Republic, and thus remove a powerful rival. 
 
 Our presses have said nothing equal in bitterness and injustice to 
 numerous articles in the London Times. On the contrary, in view of 
 the causes that would produce irritation, our presses have been free 
 from insulting language, while the bitter things that have been pub- 
 lished are certainly as much in Democratic as Republican papers. 
 
 North not Responsible for this Rebellion. 
 
 Again, I take issue with Mr. Seymour in his charge that the respon- 
 sibility for this war rests upon the North, because I regard this accu- 
 sation not only as furnishing an apology for the Rebels, but also as 
 reversing all the teachings of History and Truth. His language is : 
 
 " Now my Republican friends, you know that the misapprehensions 
 of the North with regard to the South, have drenched the land Avith 
 blood." " Who stained our land with blood ? Who caused ruin and 
 distress ? All these things are within your own knowledge. Are their 
 authors the leaders to rescue us from our calamities. They shrink back 
 appalled from the mischief they have wrought, and tell you it is an 
 in*epressible conflict." 
 
 Mr. Seymour quotes with approval the eulogium of Lord Mansfield 
 upon the law, by which individuals are protected, and the state made 
 secure. That law declares, that no opprobrious words afford any justi- 
 fication for the slightest assault and battery. Will words — words 
 indulged in as freely by the South as the North, afford justification for 
 untold murders, and the rankest treason? If not, how is the North 
 the author of this mischief? 
 
 The leaders of this rebellion have been hatching out this treason for 
 more than a quarter of a century. South Carolina struck the first blow 
 in 1832, when she passed her nullification ordinance, accompanied with 
 a threat to secede from the Union. In the secession convention of 
 1860, held in the same state, her leaders declared, that the election of 
 Lincoln afforded the opportunity, but was not the cause, of carrying 
 out the long cherished purpose. 
 2 
 
10 
 
 Years ago John C. Calhoun employed the following memorable 
 language, in a conversation related by the venerable Commodore 
 Stewart : 
 
 "We are, from necessity, thrown uj^on and solemnly wedded to that 
 party, however it may occasionally clash with our feelings, for the con- 
 servation of our interests. It is through an affiliation with that party 
 in the middle and western states, we control, under the Constitution, 
 the government of these United States ; but when we cease thus to con- 
 trol this nation^ through a disjointed democracy or any material obstacle 
 in that party which shcdl tend to throio us out of that ride and control, 
 ■loe shall then resort to the dissolution of the Union.'''' 
 
 A prominent citizen of Virginia wrote a novel called " The Partisan 
 Leader," shadowing forth this very rebellion, and accounting for it 
 upon the theory of the tariff. William L. Yancey, one of the ablest 
 leaders of the rebellion, united with two other southern commission- 
 ers, in an official letter to Earl Russell, declaring that slavery had 
 nothing to do with causing this rebellion, but that it was owing to a 
 conflict about protection, between the manufacturing North and the 
 agricultural South. 
 
 The records of this rebellion are overflowing with evidence, to show 
 that the leaders plotted this treason because of their unholy ambition ; 
 because they feared they were to be in the minority, and would thus 
 lose their political 2:)0wer ; that, to this end, they denied, to an over- 
 whelming majority of the Democratic convention, their legitimate 
 influence ; broke i;p that old party as the last bond of union, placed 
 a traitor in the field as their candidate for president, took their chance 
 of obtaining his election, and then, when defeated, forfeited their 
 honor, their manhood, their patriotism, and their allegiance to God and 
 their country, by entering on the unholy work of breaking up the 
 Union. 
 
 Is it right ; is it in accordance with the truth of history ; for a great 
 teacher of the j^eople, at a time Avhen our citizens should be stimulated 
 to the performance of their duty, to remain quiet concerning these 
 treasonable ofienses, which cry aloud to Heaven for jDunishment, and to 
 insist that the North, or any considerable party in the North, is 
 responsible for them ? Is it pati'iotic, is it right, at such a crisis to 
 expend our denunciations ujoon an administration which is engaged in 
 the work of suppressing this rebellion? Is it just, nay, is it Demo- 
 cratic, while rebel armies are thundering at our doors to ignore the 
 fact, while we employ the utmost vigor in denouncing arrests of 
 persons charged with aiding the rebels, and with discouraging enlist- 
 ments, as a " usurpation and a crime ?" 
 
11 
 
 Mansfield's Views. 
 
 Lord Mansfield is quoted to show the importance of protecting the 
 personal rights of the citizens by law and its certain administration. 
 This is well enough, but why divert attention from the great issue 
 before the country by a matter of such subordinate importance ? What 
 are the errors, or, if you please, illegal acts, committed in the loyal 
 states, in comparison with the secession in the rebellious states ? There 
 the law is entirely paralyzed ; crimes, without number, are committed 
 daily. Union men are imprisoned, shot, hung up, murdered, for no 
 other crime than their attachment to their country, and treason is the 
 order of the day. The great question is, whether this rebellion shall 
 be crushed. Suppress it, and the other incidental evils connected with 
 the efforts to overcome it, would instantly cease. 
 
 What good purpose is accomplished by impairing the public confi- 
 dence in the administration '? It is the only one we have, or can have ; 
 and the rebellion must be suppressed mider that, or not at all. If it 
 is weak, let good citizens rally to its support, and give it strength. 
 This is their right. It is their duty. 
 
 To scold at it, and grumble about it, seems hardly the noblest mas- 
 culine virtue. 
 
 Newspaper Complaints. 
 
 Nor do I see for what worthy purpose fault-finding articles, from 
 Republican newspapers, are given such prominence. 
 
 When, in the ever varying fortunes of war, disasters overtake us, 
 editors, like other people, are prone to complain. In some cases, their 
 complaints are founded upon imperfect knowledge of fixcts, and in others 
 they proceed from a desire to bring about some reform in the adminis- 
 tration of public affairs. But it is not usual, when proceeding with all 
 the " solemnity of a judicial tribunal," to rely on newspapers for evi- 
 dence. Neither individuals nor governments could defend against such 
 proofs. 
 
 Some of these editors are complaining because President Lincoln is 
 not aggressive enough on the slavery question. Does Mr. Sepnour 
 agree with them on this point ? If not, does he desire to adopt their 
 complaints founded upon their peculiar views ? Is this either logical 
 or reasonable ? 
 
 Confiscation and Emancipation. 
 
 While Mr. Seymour complains of unconstitutional legislation on the 
 subject of confiscation and emanci})ation, he fails to point out the bet- 
 ter way which he would desire to see adopted. Nor does he give us 
 
12 
 
 any particulars of which he comphiins. The proclamtion he had not in 
 hi« mind, for that is not an act of legislation, nor is it founded on one. 
 Mr. Seymour indulges m general and indiscriminate complaint, without 
 furnishing that clear and certain specification which we would expect 
 from a statesman asking for a change of rulers. Does he complain 
 that slaves are allowed to dig ditches and thus save the lives of our 
 soldiers? Does he claim that slave property is so peculiarly sacred 
 that it should be spared from the general confiscation edict aimed 
 against rebels ? 
 
 The wisdom of the nation may well be invoked to know what is the 
 best course to pursue touching these questions, but we fail to derive 
 any light as to the true course from Mr. Seymour's speech. The true 
 statesman should not content himself with finding fa\ilt, but suggest 
 the true course of action. Is it not our duty rather as patriots to sus- 
 tain the Government in all its efforts to crush out the rebellion, and in 
 case it finds it necessary to strike at slavery in self-defense, permit it to 
 employ all the means that we possess to protect ourselves ? 
 
 Let us hope, cheerfully, that God, in his own good providence, is 
 working out the slavery problem for our nation. It may be, that in 
 His own mysteriol^s way, without violation of constitutional rights or 
 plighted faith, and by the wickedness of the friends of slavery in jDro- 
 voking this war, He is accomplishing the prediction of the poet, con- 
 cerning our country's future history : 
 
 " The nations are fallen, but thou still art young; 
 Thy sun is but rising while others have set; 
 And though slavery's cloud o'er thy morning hath hung, 
 The full rays of Preodom shall beam 'round thee yet-" 
 
 Mr. Seymour on Repudiation. 
 
 There is another topic of the speech to which I will allude. I refer 
 to the dark suggestions of repudiation, unless arrests of j^ersons charged 
 with disloyalty are discontinued. Mr. Seymour's language is this • 
 
 " The weight of annual taxation will test severely the loyalty of the 
 people of the North." "Pecuniary rights will never be held more 
 sacred than personal rights." 
 
 " The vast debt growing out of this war will give rise to new and 
 angry discussions. It will be held almost exclusively in a few Atlantic 
 states. Look upon the map of the Union, and see how small is the ter- 
 ritory in which it will be owned. "VVe are to be divided into creditor 
 and debtor states, and the last will have a vast preponderance of power 
 and strength. Unfortunately, there is no taxation upon this national 
 debt, and its share is thrown off upon other property. It is held where 
 many of the government contracts have been executed, and where, in 
 
13 
 
 some instances, gross frauds have been practiced. It is held largely 
 where the Constitution gives a disproportional share of political power. 
 With all these elements of discord, is it wise to assail constitutional 
 law, or bring authority into contemj^t ?" 
 
 The debt of the nation, to which reference is here made, was con- 
 tracted to preserve our national existence. It was contracted, to obtain 
 for every citizen and his property the protection of law and order. The 
 money has been distributed among our armies, and some of it has passed 
 into the hands of nearly every family in the loyal states. The money 
 markets of England being closed against us. Congress offered, as an 
 inducement to" capitalists, exemption on this debt from state taxation. 
 This is the " unfortunate " exemption of which Mr. Seymour speaks. 
 The Constitution declares all laws passed by Congress, supreme. No 
 nation could maintain a stand among the civilized nations of the earth, 
 whose public debt was repudiated. 
 
 That Jefferson Davis should have suggested repudiation was to have 
 been expected. He has earned undymg fame as the leading Mississippi 
 repudiator. But I am surprised that Mr. Seymour should have dis- 
 trusted the people so far as to suppose there was danger either of rejju- 
 diation, or of " new and angry discussions " concerning this debt. 
 
 The capitalists of New York have lent their fortunes to the govern 
 ment, with noble and patriotic liberality. What do they think about 
 these whispers, calculated to destroy the value of their securities ? 
 When one, skilled in predicting future events, and having a high regard 
 for an accurate reputation, foretells repudiation, the danger is, that, if 
 he has the power, he will see that his predictions are verified. 
 
 The peojile of the loyal States are the most intelligent, honest and 
 law-abiding people on earth. The East, the West, the North, and the 
 Middle States have made common cause in this war. Animated by 
 one purpose, they have contributed their men, their blood, and their 
 money to sustain this Union. In their name I repel, indignantly, the 
 imputation that they, or any portion of them, can ever be so base as to 
 repudiate this debt, or to harbor such a thought. The statesman who 
 should venture to advise it, would be swept into an ignominious oblivion. 
 
 That a speech containing the views I have criticised, should have 
 been plausible and specious, and clothed in polished externals, only 
 serves to render it more pernicious. The hectic flush upon the cheek 
 of the consumptive bears a striking resemblance to the ruddy hue of 
 health. A skeleton may be decorated with silks and satins, and 
 adorned with diamonds and golden pendants; but the inquirer after 
 truth should not be deterred from penetrating beneath the surface by a 
 fair and pleasant external covering. 
 
14 
 
 It gives me no pleasure thus to review the position assumed by the 
 chosen standard-bearer of the Democratic party. I have been from my 
 youth a Democrat; and have been associated in i5olitical action with 
 Mr. Seymour for many years. But my Democratic principles teach 
 me that my first political duty is to sustain my Government when it is 
 in peril against all enemies at home and abroad. I learned democracy 
 at the feet, and in the school of that noble old Roman, who, when 
 President of the United States, was present at the festive board, with 
 Calhoun and other conspirators, and penetrating their secret purposes, 
 sent terror to their guilty souls, by the memorable toast and prediction : 
 "The Federal Union; it must and shall be preserved." 
 
 Obligations to the Government. 
 
 Born in humble life, I am indebted to this beneficent Government, 
 under a kind Providence, for all that I am, and all that I have. I stand 
 ready to give to its defence and support, my influence, my property, 
 my sons, and, if need be, my life. Of what value are these without a 
 country ? I desire not to live beyond that hour when my country is 
 hopelessly ruined, and this Union is broken in pieces. To sustain ray 
 partisan standing, I will never consent to furnish aid and comfort to 
 the enemies of my country. 
 
 It has been my purpose to keep within the limits of the fair and open 
 discussion invited by Mr. Seymour. My views of our duty are already 
 indicated. The Constitution demands the execution of the laws over 
 the whole Union ; and its authority can only be thrown off by au 
 amendment in the mode which it provides. We must fight. We have 
 no alternative. We are bound to fight to preserve the Union and 
 enforce its authority. 
 
 How People will Act. 
 
 The people, being compelled to choose, will be influenced by their 
 views of the war. While that lasts it will swallow up all minor 
 issues, and will control results. If the people have become tired of the 
 wai', if they desire to take the incipient steps to a separation by an 
 amendment of the Constitution, if they feel that they are incapable of 
 preserving the Union, and prefer national degradation and ruin, they 
 will vote so that these views may be carried out. But if, on the other 
 hand, they are resolved to preserve the unity of the countiy, to which 
 God and nature point, if they are true to the lessons of their fathers, 
 if they love their free institutions, if, in short, they mean^ that the war 
 shall proceed, and that there shall be no peace, except on the basis of 
 imconditional submission, then they will support that party which they 
 
15 
 
 believe to be most heartily and thoroughly in favor of carf^^^ig it 
 forward, and that will co-operate most effectually with the Nati^fiA^ 
 Administration for that purpose. 
 
 Duty of the People and Government. 
 
 In the meantime the Administration must trust in the People, and the 
 People must trust in the Administration ; for we are all in one boat 
 and must sink or swim together. The people have a right to demand 
 vigilance and economy in all the departments of Government. They 
 do demand that jealousies and bickerings shall cease. They require 
 that no officer, civil or military, shall be continued one moment after a 
 rational doubt is felt of his fitness and capacity, or of his loyalty. But 
 while that officer is continued, they require that he shall be sustained 
 by all the means necessary to render him useful and successful. 
 
 To the chilling accusation that the country cannot be saved under a 
 Repiiblican Administration, an answer is given in the fixed resolution 
 of more than twenty millions of free and loyal people, in the tread of 
 six hundred thousand new troops marching to the field to take their 
 places, to aid another army nearly equal to them in numbers ; in the 
 roar of cannon on the Upper Potomac ; in the ignommious defeat and 
 flight of the flower of the Rebel army under their ablest generals, and 
 in the glad shouts of victory coming up from McClellan's Army ; all, 
 all uniting in the sentiment that the country can and shall be saved 
 under a Republican Administration. 
 
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