ORATION “

OF

S. W. E. GODDARD, ESQ.  W

DELIVERED AT

 BDLoH13RToWN,

July 4=t11, 1862. V

 D SPRINGFIELD:
SAMUEL BOWLES & COMPANY, PRINTERS.
D1862.  

ORATION.

 
Mn. PRESIDENT: “ Wllell the mariner has been tossed
for many days in thick weather, and on an unknown sea,
he naturally avails himself of the first pause in the storm,
the earliest glance of the Sun, to take his latitude, and as-
certain how far the elements have driven him from his
true course. Let us imitate this prudence, and before we
ﬂoat farther, refer to the point from which we departed,
that we may at least be able to form some conjecture
where we now are.”

" This exordium, which is known by heart everywhere,‘

was pronounced by the first of American Statesmen, with
regard to a great moral conflict which then agitated our
country. Does it not contain a Valuable lesson for us to
contemplate today with reference to the bloody state of
things which exists in our once happy, but now distracted
land. ”

American Independence, though declared by ourFathers
in the year 1776, was not recognized by the world till sev-
eral years later. So that our nation is not an old one, but
on the contrary is properly and signiﬁcantly called “Young
America.” In fact our nation has scarcely yet outlived

V the brave soldiers who fought the battles which resulted

in our independence. And even the bones of our fathers
who wrote that Declaration and vindicated it to the world,
are today mouldering away by the swift action of time
and are still undissolved.

I aiﬁrm that though we have grown great, and power-
ful, and respectable, among the nations of the earth, we

s have not that experience and knowledge as a nation which

age alone aﬁbrds. ,
Nations like individuals have their infancy, childhood,

4

youth and manhood, and like individuals, are subject to
fevers, complaints, and various attacks, and according as
they possess a good constitution and a strong and manly
will to resist these inﬂuences, they may rise to greater
vigor and strength after the ordeal than before.

Though our nation is still young, her advancement in
knowledge and national experience is keeping pace with
her advancement in wealth, extent and honor, and is to-«
day passing through her last national crisis.

It has been said by one of the greatest of living states-
men that all nations have to pass through three severe
ordeals, before its national manhood is attained. First,
the achievement of its independence; second, the main-
tenance of it against foreign powers and foes; third, the
preservation of it against internal and domestic foes. We
passed the first ordeal in the war of the Revolution, the
second ordeal in the war of 1812, and we are now passing
through the third ordeal whichis civil war. And the ordeal
of civil war is the most dangerous and trying to a nation’s
existence, and is the rock upon which more than one na-
tion has split.

If we can pass this ordeal as successfully as we did the
two first, our government will be upon a stronger and
more solid basis than any other that the Sun shines upon.
For the world’s history does not present so brilliant and
glorious an exaniple of national expansion as ours does.
Our commerce, manufactures, agriculture, inventions, rail-
ways, telegraphs, systems of education, religious, chari-
table and correctionary institutions stand unequaled before
the world.

Our growth has been so great in respect to all that con-
stitutes the moral and material wealth of nations, that the
masses of other countries, particularly those of western

Europe, had begun to enquire of their Princely Rule1~s-mi

why Americans had so much more freedom, happiness,
plenty, and general information than all the rest of the

world. They did not hesitate to say that they thought it

must be in their Republican form of government. a And

these masses had become somewhat bold and clamorous“

for political reform. W‘hy, they asked, cannot Republican

5

Freedom work as well in Europe as America C’ Why can-
not our institutions be gradually assimilated to those of

_ the North American Republic with signal beneﬁt to all

but the pampered few? Are we less enlightened, less
civilized, less capable than the Americans are?

To these questions European Monarchs replied that
when civil war shall come in the Great Republic, as it
eventually must, then Popular Government will explode
like a great bauble, then you will see degradation and dis-
tress among the masses there, which corresponds to their

, greatness and prosperity now. We allow that the Ameri—~

can Republic is rising to a high elevation, that when civil
war shall come her fall may be the more signal and dis-
astrous. These awful forebodings for our Republic have
kept the popular ﬁres of the old world somewhat
smothered, although it did not prevent their emigration
hither---—-which was a great annoyance to their rulers--«until
our civil war. commenced. A
It is estimated that over ﬁve millions of persons since
1848 have emigrated to this country from the old world
and either made their homes with us or taken up one for
themselves in the wilderness of the far west. A
But now they are waiting the result. And meantime
their aristocratic and despotic governments are ﬁlling their
ears about our troubles, greatly magnifying the power of
the Rebellion, and of course doing all they can to destroy
their conﬁdence in Democracy.   t
. So anxious are they that their prophesyin gs should prove
true in respect to us, that they seem half-inclined to inter-
fere in our affairs, to insure our ruin, for disaster to us they
suppose will be security to them. And herein perhaps
they do not err. Therefore ever since our troubles com-
menced, the powers of the monarchical world have been
arrayed against us. Their statesmen and journals, with a.
few honorable exceptions, have heaped upon us the most

7 awful and unmeasured abuse. They seem to think that it

is now or never to bring shame upon Democracy and the
great Republic, and show to the world that there is no in-
herent strength and power in a popular government.

As an illustration of whatwe have ‘had to submit to

6

from the English Press—--I read a single extract from an
editorial of the London Times published not long after our
present session of Congress commenced its sittings. It is

concerning the President’s Message. It says :--—“ The

style of the American President has fallen with the for-
tunes of the Republic. Instead of the jolly, rollicking,
periods of former days, each of which seemed to suggest
a stave of Hail Columbia-—-we have now got a discursive
and colloquial essay, ill-arranged, and Worse expressed.
Nor does the matter redeem the style. It is really Won-
derful when we consider the present state of the American
Republic, how any one placed in the position of Mr. Lin-
coln could have taken the trouble to produce so strange
a medley, so incomposite a rhapsody. There are several
subjects on which we earnestly desire information and on
no one is it aiforded. The President has given us instead
of the information We desire, his opinion on the real cause
of the present war. The North, he says, are ﬁghting for
the integrity of the Union, that is——-as Lord Russell said,
for empire, to compel the South by force of arms to live
under a government which they detest. The South, on
the other hand, are ﬁghting against the rights of the peo-

ple, that is, against the rights of the people of the North

to govern them against their consent. This description
ought to put an end to the statement so often repeated,
that slavery is the main matterin dispute. But the South

has done still Worse, and not content With questioning the

right of the North to govern them, they have even gone
to the extent of questioning the Wisdom of Northern insti—
tutions. Thus persons are actually found to Wish for a
restriction of the suﬂirage, to contend in spite of the evi-
dence afforded by the North of the purity of elections and
the high moral and intellectual qualities secured by such
a process, that it is better elections should be conﬁned to
Legislatures and not extended to magistrates, and some
have been heard to pronounce the horrible name of MON-
Ascnrf’

That is true---the London Times for once is speaking
the truth. It is true the South has repeatedly expressed
a Wish for monarchy--—and"I shall undertake to show that

7

this is the true key to the ‘hostility that European mon-
archs have lately shown us.

But go on. “ No wonder that Mr. Lincoln luxuriatingl

in the Paradise to which the will of an unbridled democ-
racy has introduced him, should feel a pious horror of
those who venture to think such experience not conclusive,
and the existing constitution of the United States a little
short of perfection. But if Mr. Lincoln’s description of
the South is indeed true, if she is ﬁghting; to emancipate
herself from the blind tyranny of a degraded mob, from
Elective Judges and Elective Governors, he has given his
antagonists a better title to European sympathy than they
have hitherto possessed and thrown uponhis government
the stigma of ﬁghting to impose upon others institutions
which have already brought it to the verge of ruin.”

Now hear what an English member of parliament said a
short time ago. I These are his exact words. “This re»
bellion is, after all, a sad business for the United States,
but still I think it is much better that they should be
split up. In twenty years they will be so powerful that
they will bully all Europe.”

Listen to what another of her statesmen says. Lord
Shaftsbury speaks-——he is the great English Anti-slavery
gun. “I in common with almost every English states»-
Inan sincerely desire the rupture of the American Union.
It has been the policy of England to brook no rivally, es-
pecially in the direction of her own greatness. We justly
fear the commercial and political rivally of the United
States. With a population of thirty millions now, they
will soon if not checked overshadow Great Britain.
We cannot look upon such a monstrous growth without
apprehension.”

And I might go on if I thought it worth while and mul-
tiply indeﬁnitely these instances of insult and abuse. But
this is a fair specimen of monarchical feeling towards us,
and of Britain’s in particular.

- Now I would like to know what we have done to that
old English harlot that we should be insulted and abused
in this way. Have we not always extended to her the
most cordial and kindly feelings of sympathy and neutral-

8
ity when she has been in trouble? How long ago is it
that poor oppressed Ireland was crying and starving for
bread ? I America I heard that cry, and her heart was
touched, for she had bread enough and to spare,-‘A-—her
granaries and storehouses were unlocked and vessel after
vessel was loaded with beef and pork and ﬂour and grain
and borne with therutmost dispatch to those dying and
starving thousands. And as the old stars and stripes were
nearing the Irish shore they were greeted with the most
joyous shouts. The skies were rent by those poor Irish
men, and women, and children, while tears of joy and
gratitude were streaming down their faces as they cried,
“ God bless .America,”~——-—“ Long live the great Republic.”

 This joy and gratitude amply rewarded us forour pains

in this great work of charity.

My countrymen--—-welhave used England the best, but
she has treated us the worst. I dislike France-—-—but I
hate I England. God knows my heart, I do desire to live
long enough to see her humiliated. I want to see her bite

" the dust, and then I will say asrdid one of old——--—“ N ow

Lord, let thy servant depart in peace.” i But justice com-
pels me to say that there are some honest Englishmen.
John Brigh t, amember iof'Parliament, though a Democrat
at heart, has dared to speak the truth in regard to us.
Not along ago when speaking of the cause of our rebellion»
he said--4-“In the rnultitude of “articles which have been
brought before us in the newspapers within the last few
months, I have no doubtyou have seen, as I have seen it
stated, that this rquestion was very much like that upon
which the colonies originally revolted against the crown
of England. It -isramusinig however, how little many
newspaper writers know, and how little they think’ we
know. I I I

“ When the war of independence commenced in Amer-
ica ninety years ago or more, there was no representation
there at all. The question was whether a minority in
Downing street and rat corrupt and burrough-mongering
Parliament at Westminster should impose taxes upon three
millions of English subjects who had lefttheirrcountry and
established themselves in North America.“ But now the

9

question is not of under-representation or of no represen-
tation, because as is perfectly notorious, the representa-
tion of the South is not only complete, but in excess, for
in distributing the number of representatives to the num«
ber of people, which is done every ten years in the United
States, three out of every ﬁve of the slaves are counted
for the South, as if they were white men and free men,
and the number of members given to them is so much
greater than it would be if the really free men and white
men were only counted !---—and it has followed from that,
that the South has had in the House of Representatives
about twenty members more than it ought in right to
have upon the principles upon which members were appor-
tioned to the northern and the free states. Therefore you

will see that there is no kind of comparison between the

state of things when the colonies revolted, and the state
of things now when this fearful and wicked insurrection
has broken out.”

And in closing his speech and to show the real cause of
all this English hostility towards us----he says :--—-“ There
may be persons in England who are jealous of the United
States. There may be men who dislike democracy and
who hate a Republic. There may be those whose sympa-
thies warm towards the slave oligarchy of the South. But
of this I am certain that only misrepresentation the most
gross, or calumny the most wicked, can sever the tie
which unites the great mass of the people of this country
with their friends and brethren beyond the Atlantic.”

This is the most signiﬁcant statement of all. The grand
secret is, England is jealous of the United States-—-dislikes
democracymhates a republic and her sympathies warm to~—
wards the slave oligarchy of the South. These words of
honest John Bright have an immense meaning.

The spirit of hatred that England is displaying towards
us to-day is the same-—though in a less belligerent form--—
that she displayed towards France near the beginning or
the present century. Then France in the exercise of her
natural and God-given rights had “ renounced the mo-
narchial form. of government and established aRepublic.
For centuries uncounted, voluptuous kings and licentious

2

10

nobles had trampled the oppressed millions into the dust.
But now these millions had risen in their majesty and
driving the king from his throne, and the nobles from
their wide domains, had taken their own interests into
their own hands. ‘*3 *5 * * * The kings of Europe con-
templated this portentous change with in expressible alarm.
In consternation they witnessed the uprising of the
masses in France, and saw one of their brother monarchs
dragged fromhis palace and beheaded upon the guillo-
tine. * * * * * There was no alternative for these
monarchs but to crush this new power or perish before it.”

As a consequence England proposed to the rest of the
European brethren that they form a great monarchical al-
liance to crush Republican France and re-establish the old
Bourbon Dynasty there. The allied kings claimed that
they would be justiﬁed by the world in waging such a

_war for these reasons-———First and most important they

would be defending their own kingdoms against the in-
vasion of Republican principles. Second, they would be
punishing the French People for deposing their king---a
thing they had no right to do, the king being answerable
for his tyranny to God alone. p

This was the basis for a declaration of war by these ty-
rants against Republican France. Humanity wasnever
so disgraced by human folly and wickedness.

At a given signal they hurled their combined armies
against that poor bleeding Republic. The , earth was
never so drenchedwith human blood. ,

The world never witnessed so terrible a conﬂict as when
these old bloated and bald-headed monarchs undertook
to ride the young Napoleon. And if I ever had sincere
joy it was in contemplating the young Republican chas-
ing them into their hiding places and upsetting their old
rotten thrones. He taught monarchs not to triﬂe too
freely with the feelings, of the people. .And since their
wars with Republican France, and the American Colo-
nies, they have been a little careful how they have picked
quarrels with .,.Republics. i They .don’t care to grapple
again with another Napoleon or another Washingtotn.

 But be it saidto the everlasting shame of r the world,

11

that though Napoleon was for a While more than a match
for the combined monarchs of Europe, at last they pre-
vailed. Theysucceeded in demoralizing poor France,
which compelled her to return to monarchy with N apole»
on at her head. i The immense shock which she had sus-
tained from so many armies could scarcely have had any

other effect. Had the French People been left alone, it i

is the judgment of one of the most eminentof American
historians,‘ that “the successful establishment of the
French Republic would very probably have driven every
King in Europe from his throne.” T Butt monarchy had
triumphed in having prevented a great Republic spring-
ing up in their midst; and as if this was not triumph
enough, they would not let Napoleon alone until they had
driven him into banishment. They could not rest easy
While one who rose from the ranks of the people was pre-
siding over the destinies of an old monarchy.

Now the reason why England sympathizes with the
South is, that it has openly expressed a desire for some
forms of monarchy. In fact monarchy exists there in
form to-day if not in name. Society is as much classiﬁed
in the cotton States as it is under the most despotic gov-
ernment of Europe. ~ So that it does not seem strange
that monarchs sympathize so strongly with this rebellion
--——-for it is a rebellion to establish monarchy. They sym-
pathize with itifor the same reason that We deeply sympa-
thized with the Grecian Rebellion of 1824-—--and the
Hungarian Rebellion of 1849—-for thesewere inaugurated
to secure the right of self-government. To me this king-
ly sympathy seems perfectly natural.

r Now then if the great Republic can be split up and one
half of it become a monarchy, as it undoubtedly will if
therebellion succeeds, it will be an immense triumph for
Kings, and a corresponding shame for Republics.

And while the J eff. Davis Rebellion is doing its Worst
to disgrace democracy, and clismember the great Repub-
lic, the sly, cowardly oldmonarchs of Europe have stolen‘
down into poor -distracted Mexico and are to-day laying‘
there the foundation for still another moanarchy in America.

England, France, Spain, and Austria, , are in the plot.

12

Their intentions are as apparent as though written in
the Heavens. Shall we lay supinely upo11 our backs
while this stupendous fraud is being committed upon the

rights of man ? Shall we hug the delusive phantom, that  

some how or other, without any sacriﬁce or activity on
our part, our good government will eventually triumph--
if such is the case, our condition is truly perilous.

If monarchy is to triumph, which God forbid, we shall
have on all sides of us despotic powers, England, Cotton-
dom, and probably Austria. Monarchy will then have a
strong hold on American soil.

The Republic of the United States stands alone in the
world. ‘ There is no other great Republican power to re-
buke the sneers and arrogance of insolent Kings-—-sym-
pathize with us in our embarrassments—--encourage us to
preserve our nationality and sustain the great doctrine of
popular government, but we are left to work out our own
salvation, unaided by any foreign inﬂuence or power.

Our government is a government by the people, and
the time has come for them to show to the world whether
they understand that responsibility and know how to dis—
charge it. If our government goes down, it will be be-
cause the people will not sustain their own government-—--——-
because they are insensible and careless to the duties
which they owe to themselves, their posterity and the
world, and because a people are too weak and unsteady
to discharge so high a trust.

To-day our good government is calling loudly for more
help, shall it be furnished or shall it be basely withheld ?
Shall we bring shame upon ourselves and our cause, or
shall we forever bless mankind by our generous sacriﬁ-
ces? Must freemen be compeﬂecl to maintain their liber-

Q ties ? Conscription is an institution of despots----it is a

sin against democracy. Here every voter is a sovereign
and if his country is disgraced he is disgraced too. Then
let us be re-assured on this birth day of our Republic that
it is our ﬁ1‘St duty to strengthen the arm of our good and
free government, and withhold nothing of our money or
ourselves that will contribute to“ a-«speedy and successful
prosecution and termination of this war.

13

When I contemplate the testimony of those self-sacri-
ficing statesmen who know all about the origin and pro-
gress of this rebellion, and the demagogues that planned
it, with the object they had in view, I am deeply impress-
ed with the wisdom and justice of this war. In my
judgment there never was a more just war than that we
are waging. It is strictly a war of self-defense. The de-
fense of a free beneﬁcent government against traitors in
arms against it ;----a defense too against monarchical rule,
which has so long domineered over the world.

The Hon. Andrew Johnson, a distinguished Southern
senator, and now governor of Tennessee, says :---“If this
rebellion should succeed in destroying the government,
as I pray God it may not, then there will be established
upon its ruins either an aristocracy or a monarchy * *
The same bayonets which destroy this government will
dictate the next. ‘Instead of a constitution they will give
you swords and bayonets. * * Much ‘has been said
about compromise. , What compromise with rebels with
arms in their hands? Compromise with rebels who would
subvertyour Constitution? Do you want any better com-
promise than the constitution made by Washington and
the Patriots of the Revolution, a constitution beneath which
they lived and which they sealed with their blood? If
they don’t want to change the government, why subvert
it ? If they don’t wish to form another why destroy
this ? I ask this simple question ! If we cannot live on
terms of peace and friendship under a constitution, can
we hope so to live under a mere treaty? If the day
should ever come, and I pray God it never may, when you
shall make any other compromise than that of unquali-
ﬁed submission to the constitution and laws ; what then I
Do treaties change the geographical, commercial, and so-
cial relations ? Your treaty of peace will be one of con-
tinual war. You cannot have peace without the constitu-
tion, you must meet the question fairly now, you must
ﬁght.” Again he says :-——-“ Slavery was made the pretext
to break up our glorious Union. There was no right

violated nor never could be if the people would abide by

the constitution. But, thank God, the people of the

14.

United States did not, do not sanction this unholy rebel-
lion. The leaders of it tell. you that slavery is in danger;
but it is only arpretext to terrify you and draw you into
the yawning gulf of secession. I am a Southern ma11
sharing. the prejudices of my section and am no abolitionist
--——-but I tell you my fellow countrymen, secession has done
more harm to-day than allthe abolitionists in the country
put together, since we were a nation.” And speaking of
Jeff. Davis he continues :-—r-“ Iknow him well and his crew
of traitors. They are worse traitors and more corrupt than
theRoman Senate with Oataline at its head. Disappointed
ambition like a canker worm has gnawed at their hearts in
which there is only bitterness and hate left to dictate their
actions. They are a bogus aristocracy and could not
brook the election of a man to the l?resident’s chair be-
cause he rose from the ranks of the people, they could not
wait four years, when in the due course of things they
might have taken their chance of power, but they made
the election of Mr.Lincoln a mere excuse for their trea-
son, and if they should succeed a military despotism will
immediately take the place of this free, liberal and most
glorious government.” T

The Hon. Joseph Holt, a distinguished Southern States-
man and who was a member of Mr. Buchanan’s Cabinet
says :~-—---“ It cannot be disguised that we stand at this mo-
ment confronted by great national calamities. * * *
Nothing but the sword wielded by skillful and heroic hands
can save this country from the last catastrophe that can
befall a free people. If we falter we fail.” And again he
says :—--‘‘a This great crime (rebellion) with which we are
grappling sprang from that ‘ sin by which the angels fell,’
an unmastered and proﬂigate ambition, an ambition that
would rather reign in Hell than serve in Heaven, that
would rather rule supremely over a shattered fragment of
the Republic than run the chances of sharing with others
the honors of the whole.” And continuing he says the
rebels said to themselves after Mr. Lincoln’s election :-——-
“ Since we can no longer monopolize the great offices of
the Republic as we have been accustomed to do--——we will
destroy it, and build upon its ruins an empire that shall

15

be all our own and whose spoils neither the North, nor
the East nor the West shall share with us.” a

This is the honest testimony of distinguished witnesses
as to this rebellion. And their testimony is entitled to
the more weight as it affects injuriously their own interests
and those of their former friends. Like honest witnesses
in court who are losers rather than gainers by their evi-
dence, they do not hesitate to declare the truth, the whole
truth and nothing but the truth. And this is but a page
from volumes that might be produced. So that it seems
to me that no man, woman, or even child, can hesitate as
to what is their bounden duty in this great emergency.
If they love their country and the good government under
which we have lived so long and been prospered so well,
they will do all in their power to aid and sustain it in this
hour of its danger and peril.

The crowned heads of Europe are today hoping the
worst things for us, while we undoubtedly have the sin»-
cere prayers and tears of the masses of their subjects. To-
day let the glorious news of the restoration of the Union
and civil order be published to the world and European
Monarchs would hang their heads and look sad, while
their subjects would look brighter as they rose up to say
----Now that the storm is over and all is safe, we will em»
bark for the land of the brave and the home of the free.

My countrymen, if this rebellion succeeds, our future is
full of gloomy and dark forebodings. , Our clear country
is “lost, lost, lost.” The holy and happy memories of
revolutionary times must beforgottenl The long years
of toil, care, anxiety, privation, and hardship of our fathers
must go for nothing. This glorious day of independence,
must no longer be celebrated by the ringing of church
bells, the booming of cannon, the illuminations and merry
rattlings of ﬁre works, bands of sweet music, and the poet-
ry and eloquence of our fathers’ deeds, but a deep silence
and gloom will prevail on that day tormenting us with the
awful reﬂection that though our fathers g ve us liberty
we have basely exchanged it for slavery. VV%l1en that day
of national darkness and shame shall come upon us, for
one I will bid farewell to this dishonored land of the pil-

16

grime, and exclaim as I go, in the language of Franklin»...
“ Whe1°e liberty is there is my country.”

But the days of our glorious Republic are not numbered,
though our liberties are again being baptized in blood.
The hopes of mankind are not to be blasted so soon as this,
but a new independence-—--a new holiday is dawning
scarcely less splendid than our ‘glorious Fourth.

The immense work of crushing this unholy rebellion is

to be done by the free and loyal North. Old Massachu-

setts must perform an important part of that work. She ,

will do it as she has always done her full share. In the
eloquent words of the immortal 'Webster-——who foresaw
this struggle with a prophet’s eye, and the important part
that Old Massachusetts would act in it I

“ I see nothing about her in prospect less than that
which encircles her now. I feel that when I, and all those

= that now hear me, shall have gone to our last home, and

afterwards, when mould may have gathered upon our
memories as it will have done upon our tombs, that state,
so early to take her part in the great contest of the Revo-
lution, will stand as she has, and does now stand, like that
column which near her capitol perpetuates the memory of

 the ﬁrst great battle of the Revolution ﬁrm, erect and im-

movable. I believe that if commotion shall shake the
country, there will be one rock forever, as solid as the
granite of her hills, for the Union to repose upon, I be-
lieve that if disasters arise bringing clouds that shall ob-
scure the ensign, now over her and over us, there will be
one star that will but burn the brighter amid the dark-
ness of that night; and I believe that if in the remotest

ages--I trust they may be inﬁnitely remote--—-an occasion

shall occur where the sternest duties of patriotism are de-
manded and to be performed, Massachusetts will imitate
her own example; and that as at the breaking out of the
Revolution, she was the ﬁrst to oﬁ’er the outpouring of all
her blood, and all her treasure, in the struggle for liberty,
so she will be hereafter ready, when the emergency arises, to
repeat and renew that oﬁer, with a thousand times as many
warm hearts, and a thousand times as many strong hands.”

my HOUR:---ITS ENOOUEAGEMENTS, ITS DUTIES, ITS
I   ‘ DANGERS AND ITS LESSONS.   I

 
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DELIVERED AT

 NEW LEBANON SPEINES, N. 33.,

 
BY

H0N.SAMUELN»

 
OF

A I_ Great Barrington, MESS.

  GREAT BARRINGTON, MASS.:
A CUSHING & ROGERS, PRINTERS, COURIER IOFFIOE.
1862. I _  “ — “

,SUMNEI,

 
..p { 1&4 ¢_~—-nu-pun-u-aunts‘

Ma. PRESIDENT, “Lupine .A.NDlGirENTL'EMEN'2
The rolling year has again brought round to
‘us the birthday anniversary of the American
Republic. In yourarrangements for this local
demonstration you have discovered no impro-
priety in inviting. one to address "you, whose
.,voice is the voice of a stranger, -whose home
is in another State, but whose suﬂﬁcient title,
in-common, with yours, is that of American
citizen. l ‘ ‘

Turning aside to-day from our customary
avocations, forsaking awhile the avenues of
labor and toil, and obeying a time-honored
custom, which grows dearer as the events we
commemorate recede into the past, it shall be
sell on this National Sabbath, for the people
to assemble, to extend the hand of fraternal
sympathy, to bereminded by the occasion of
the brotherhood that ‘unites us, to indulge in
grateful reminiscencesand bestow a ﬁlial trih~
ute to ancestral heroes; to listen again to that
immortaldocument whose. adoption heralded
forth to the world the dawn of anew republic;
toucontehnplate with patriotic emotion and an
honest pride, the magniﬁcent resultlof the ex-
periment of the Revolution, and to ‘uplift a
united voice of thanksgiving for the past, and

a pious invocation for the future, unto Him who

holds in His hands the destinies of nations,
and beneath whose favor we have attained a
position such as has hardly been vouchsafed to
anytpeople. , g

It is well, fellourcitizens, ever to keep a=liue.,
and to foster with a generous cultivation, the
remembrances of the past, and to gather from
them, as we may do, some new inspiration for
the enterprises and duties of the present and
the possible developments of the future, and I‘
sympathize not with that V supercilious spirit
which decries the popular celebration of a dav
likethis, and characterizes as puerile and un-
becoming, the jubilant tdemonstrations which

are wont to bail its annual return. in the

language of Webster, “Humanbeings are

composed, not of reason only, but lofimaginau
tion also, and sentiment; and that IS neither
wasted nor misapplied, which is appropriated
to thepur-pose of giving right direction to
sentiment, and of opening proper springs
of, feeling in the heart.” I trust that

‘the story of the struggle for our liberties is
too precious ever to grow old -«that the names

of the heroes who fought and bled for posterity
will be remembered by ‘a posterity that is not
ungrateful; that amid the engrossing pursuits
and wayward impulses of the present hour, We
shall neither forget, nor be disinclined to, revert
with fondness and pride to the scenes, the
characters and the associations whiehcluster
around the infancy of the American Republic
—-snay more, may. we not anticipate that as the
years roll on, and the lapse of time shall Invest
these scenes andscharacters with a more soft»
ened and mellowed light, the pensive historian
shall ﬁnd a new and exquisite pleasure in res-

cuing from oblivion many a worthy name and a

many an interesting tradition, that shall be

valued and cherished for their antiquity, al-

though in their day and generation men tailed
to discover in them the indispensable links in
the great chain of human progress. _

Next to aman"s religion, and I might ai-
most say, as a part of his religion, heshouid
-cultivate and encourage the patriotic instinct
-—,—-a love for his country-—at once broad,_hh-
eral and comprehensive. The same affection,
upon a grander scale, which he manifests for
the family hearth, the paternal roof, his house-
hold gods, the graves of his ltindreduand the

friends and associations. of childhood, 8110015

prompt him to the indulgence of emotions for

the land of his birth or adoption of the noblest

and the holiestikind. __ ‘ . _ 
This patriotic instinct is universal--it 18 a

., ‘necessary element of human nature. It fails
-not to manifest itself under every variety of

circumstance and condition. In the days of
Roman'_ ‘grandeur and greatness, when the
Eternal City sat enthroned upon her sevenhills
and from her proud position ruledthe world,
it was glory enough for one of her sons to say,
“I am a Roman citizen.” It was thought that
“to be a Roman was better than a King.”

80 every nation and race of men, whether
of high or low estate, both in ancient and
modern. times, has manifested the patriotic in-
stinct. Even the Savage, with his nomadic
habits, cherishes a fond recollection and at-
tachment for the old familiar hunting grounds,
and the streams and the lakes where years ago
he paddled his light canoe, while he employs
his pastime in detailing the traditions of his
race, narrating the prowess of his tribe, and
singing the songs which embody the history of
his fathers. To this day it is not unusual for
-the red man to leave his retreat far west of
the Mississippi and perform a pilgrimage East-
ward, to visit the-graves of his progenitors, to
look at the valley where once nestled the wig-
wam, but the traces whereof have long since
vanished before the march of civilization and
the enterprise of the pale face.

The Polander, yearning restlessly for Lib-
erty, but, overborn by .. an invincible power,
still clings with a fervent devotion to his cher-
ished fatherland, and the names of Pulaski
and Kosciuslro have a spell which can yet
weliea thrill of enthusiasm, of affection and
almost of hope in his bosom.

The Swiss mountaineer would not exchange
his Alpine home, to posses"°sa richer soil or in-
habit a kindlier clirne, nor would he barter
for the birthright of royalty.or a princely lin-
eage, the simple customs and employments that
are his own, and the pride that he shares with
a his countrymen in the fame of William Tell.

The Frenchman, with his volatile and im-
petuous nature celebrates the national holidays
with an intensity of zeal. fie listens to the
Marseillaise in a transport of emotion, and
whether he shout for the Emperor or the Re-
public. it is all one to him. It. is the same
France, the land of his fathers, the land of
Charlemagne and of Napoleon---the theatre of
many a world famed achievement-—-the spot of
earth. where are centered hispatriotism and his

Jride. , I . ,
I The Spaniard boasts a lineage and a history
not less noble than his European neighbors,
and no fame is fairer, nor is any blood purer
in his estimation than the genuine Castilian.

The Highlander lcels a magic in the sound
of Scotland. Her mountain fastnesses are
dear to him for their native wildness and gran-
deur, as_we,,ll_ as for their historic associations.

He feels proud, and justly, too, of the locali.

ties to which Walter Scott has given the at...

tractions of romance. He boasts with good‘
reason of the genius of his countrymen. He

is most at home upon. his native heath. He’

lends the richness of his broad accent to the
sweet melodies of Burns, and the Scottish sire
narratesgto his son, with a glowing enthusiasm,
the story of Bruce of Bannoclrburnt

The warm hearted Hibernian, driven h
necessity as he may be, from his Emerald Isle,
still gratefully remembers the land of the
Shamroclr, and dwells proudly on the fameof,
Emmet and O’Connell.

So everywhere, the wide world over, we

witness, in their several modes and manners, I

the (:‘X.lllbliIi.0l1 of the atriotic instinct. Is it
strange, then, that we Americans should--nay,
Would it not be passing strange if we should
not be the very l'oremost of nations in manifes-
tations of affepctioiiate enthusiasm for a country
so miraculous in itsorigin, so ‘marvelous in its
growth,_so abundant in its blessings, so amaz-
ing in its destiny. Welcome, then, as ever be

the returning anniversary of the day, . when

from the tower-.of the old Continental Congress
Hall in PhiladeIp_hia,_,the bell which ﬁrst
sounded the tocsin of American Liberty ;;

“ Whirlin g in air ts brazen goblet round‘, '
Flung from 1l3Sl31‘1Il1 the swollen ﬂoods of sound.”

But I am not so blind, fellow-citizens, to
the expectations of the hour, as to extract a
theme of discourse from the. memories of a
former age, glorious though they be, standing
as I do in -the very presence of events which,
in this place and on this day, of all others,
demand recognitionand consideration. _

‘We great this 86th anniversary of Ameri-
can Independence under circumstances unpar-
alleled in the history of the Republic. The
ordinary rhetoric of Fourth of July orations
which had become almost stereotyped, would
be, I am, very well aware, but mere mock-
ery now, when, our hearts are full_of the anxi-
eties which overshadow emotions that would
otherwise be excited on this occasion. Wear
To Do, in the living Present, is the, great prac-
tical question‘ which suggests.itself.y For long
years so smoothly had the good ship of State
pursued its way, so gentle had been the un-
dulations of the sea it rode upon, that we had
learned to think no disaster couldovertake it;
but in the course of events, and as we now
realize, aftera long series of approaches, a
disaster has befallen, so that for us in this

I generation, as for our ancestors of the Revo-
, lutionary age,,there is work to do.

Most elo-
qucntlyand_ truly has it been said by one of
our oldest statesmen, whose words I quote

- substantially :1 “There is a niche in the temple;

l with the rebel faction.

of fame. in the alcove set apart for American
worthies--a niche very nearly up alongside
that where stands the image of Washington.
He shall step into and occupy that niche,

it amid the acclamations of mankind, who shall

bring order out of the present condition of
things, and restore throughout our borders the
prevalence of universal good will, and the
blessed dominion of hoiiorablepeace.” We
do not at all doubt the ultimate success of the
Federal arms in the conflict which is pending,
but we cannot be uninindlul that when mere
brute force has accomplished its work, there is
still very much, very delicate, very responsible
business for the statesman to assume and per-
liorm. .

Let us consider the engrossing topic of the
hour, first noticing some of the encourage-
merits that suggest themselves, and then some
oi’ the duties which devolve, the dangers that
threaten and the lessons to be inculcated.

I. The encouraging signs of the times.—--
‘l‘hese are by no means few nor insigniﬁciiiit.
One of these is the immensity of resource
which our country possesses and which the
present crisis has served to exhibit.

Truly, we are a wonderful people. This has
been the burden of discourse for Fourth oi July
craters time out of inind-—-but no such orators
I think_.in the loftiest stretch of their fancy,
ever imagined as even Yankee possibilities,
such achievements as within the year that is

past have become veritable history. Tlie civ-
ilised world has been looking on in utter

amazement at the spectacle here exhibit.ed.-—--
The opening of the present war found the loyal
States of the Union in a condition as poorly
prepared for the exigencies thrust upon them,
as the cunning iiigenuity of rebel leaders could
contrive to make them. We had literally
neither an army nor a navy. tr-i«0ur arsenals
were Well nigh empty. Our ships of war were
either stolen or uiitwailiible. A large propor-
tion of, our regular armyhiid allied theinselves
A long line 0f.:fnrtiﬁ-
cations had: been taken from our possession.-;
Public works, and buildings and territory of
immense value and ll11p0i‘lt1lIlCB'llE-1(;l" been. wrest-
ed from the control, of the {.§'O".«'£?Z‘I]l'1'llZ‘I‘ii., and
added. to this to embarrass and cririple us, and
at the same time help tlieiiiselves, the rebel

leaders and their followers adopted a general .

system of repudiatioii of the debts they owed
to loyal citizeiia. The immediate (3()I'lSt‘C_ll‘lencg-3
of this state of things was natural, and such
as might reasonably have been iinticip-.i.ted.---
‘The govei-nmeiit was for the moment pa.rul3za3d_
The North was ugliest and at it stand-still.-—
The rebel movements were so audacious, so
rnonstrously foolhardy, that we doubted almost
.r,»,i=;»ide~nn,e of our senst-s. We didnot real.-

-tW0 thousand milv-s.
scriptioiis upon their banners, such names as--. .
I-"‘oi't Royal, Newbern, Pulaski, Donelsori, Pea.

, Ridge, Shiloh, Uorintli, Norfolk and York-.

ize as we can now, that a scheme was just.
hatching which had been a good many years in
the egg. Nay, so little could we respect the
mad enterprize thus originated, that we actu-
ally waited to see the whole scheme explode or
its own accord, and shame itself to death.---

But time passed on. On the 12th of April,

A. D. 1861, commenced the bombardment of?

Fort Sumter; and then, for the first ‘time in-.
long, long years, and then, for the ﬁrst time-
by the hands of men, over whom and over
whose fathers it had never waved but as a.
symbol on land and sea of protection, the-
Arnerican flag was ruthlessly stricken from its
standard, and the ensign of a bastard confed-
eracy was elevated to its place. Then. Jona-
than’s blood was up. Tlien forbearance ceased.
to be a virtue and Northern toleration gave

instant place to a splendid wrath. The start-

ling word_s of the President fell upon» the».
country, and quick as at the sewing of the fa-.
bled dragons teeth, armed men sprang up in
vast and overwhelming; multitudes. From that
time onward, the President has had but to-
suggest a requirement, and the very genii oi?’
the “.A.rabiaii Nights” could hardly have pro-
duced so thorough and so instantaneous a. re-«
sponse. In. a word—--starting upon this enter.
prise as I have said, with every disadvantage»

at the outset--the loyal portion of the Ric-.
public have, within fifteen months, enlisted .,
led, clothed, armed and equipped upwards oi"
They ghave made-.

six hundred thousand men.
out of “whole cloth,” so to speak, a magnificent,
inavy. They have placed under elfecvtual block-.
ads a line of coast extending for more thaut
They have earned as in-.

town. ’l‘liey have nearly purged the Valley of
the Mississippi-of the atmosphere of secession,
so that the Fallier of Waters may, ere long,.
glide serenely as ever, his whole vast length
from Lake Iiaska to the (:‘ru~li'; while at the
Qresceiit City the popular refrain of the old;
ballad has, by singular coincidence, become.-
liistoric verity,‘ and “Picayune Butler” has in,
deed and truth “clinic to town .1.”

For the purpose of carrying forward this
gigantic enterprise, we liave tissumed expendi-
tures at the rate of a million of dollars a day,
and yet public coiifideiice has continued steady
and unabated, every city and village is alive-
with the liuin cl’ industry, on every hand are-
seen to flourish the arts of peace, and in all
localities not 'llTltl1t’dlall8ly adjacent to the
scenes of conflict. so slight is tl‘lGld6Viﬂ.l.l0'£t:
froufi the‘ comziioii course of things, that that
Stfttllllifel‘ who should drop down among us
w_ould_ e.n.ti.i~ely l’2J._ll.l20,. discover wha.t.we nun.

-“““““““»-»»\

1 ti aupon. their statute books.

selves do but half realize, that here is a nation
when: millionsof her own. people are waging
paricidal war against, and toggling at her Vitals
The resources of our government, as displayed‘
in this crisi’s,have extorted from the unwilling
lips of foreign lookers~on,- expressions of un~
niistakable admiration and surprise. At no
period in our history, I venture to say, has our
power been so respected abroad as it is to-day
in the light of the material strength we have
exhibited. ~

Another of the encouraging signs of the
times, is the substantial -abnegation of party
diderenoes and the cordial co-operation of the
masses -ofthe people to sustain this govern-
ment. The North is, to all intents and pur-
poses, a unit. _ We had just come out from a
bitter and exciting political sti'uggle, and it
eras conﬁdently anticipated by southern leaders
that the war, if wegetl, was to be a war on the
part of an united South against a divi-
ded North. I think it was anticipated that
the rebellion would receive aid and comfort
front the Northern Democracy. and from a
large portion of the Bell and Everett party.
N,et*eri was a more capital rnistalce. The rebels
reclaoned without their host. ’l‘.heDen1ocratic
party did not owe their southern allies much

“ love, to begin with, for as an intoortan-t part

of the secession prog;ranime it l)(.‘C3‘:l1’n‘d I'l(?C€!’:‘.~Eit:lt-
ry to immolate the Democracy at the Uharles-
ton convention. The disintarration of the
party was there effected, and the action of the
’t:5loutl1 made the election of .45-ll.l'Jl‘{3.l.ltt!I1 Lincoln
a foregone conclusion. whit that r.-'-as notall.
Mr. Lincoln was elected, ilmit; still the party
which elevated him to the Presidency, was to
the in a minority in both branches of the 
tional Congress. . What did the Southern
rnentbers do‘? Did they rernain in their seats,
and protect themselves as they niigrllt have
done, against apprehended encroacltinex:tt—s upon

their alleged constitutional rights? No; that

was not in the programme. One afteranotltier
the delegations from the several disalli.-cted
tiltates withdrawn and by their own not a,c;ain
placed in the hands of the Itepublican party
the very power tl1ey'all"ected so much to dread.

Iir3ut the Republican part.y,with a niagnanimity»

which did it credit, was by no means backward
in the employment of nieasures to bring about
.a,reconciliation. Resolutions were p€tSSt.‘tl in
Congress with wonderful unanimity, disclaim-
ing any‘ idea of meddling with the rested
rights of any State, or. any section of the
-Confederacy. Many of the Northern State-s
repealed the personal liberty laws which stood
The President, in
his inaugural, addressed the outgoing States in
the most conciliatory language. Mass meet-
ings were held in thenorthern towns and cities,

participated in by prominent men ofall parties,
and the South was given to understand, in
unmistakable terms, that her i prerogatives
should be respected. ~ All would not do. Like
our British brethren in 1776, our Southern
brethren in 1861 were “deaf to the voice of
justice and consanguinity.” Time passed on.
The fatal blow was struck in Charleston har-
bor. Now. then, what does the Democracy of
theNortb do»? A relative of mine was in the
city of Washington when the news of the fall
of Sumter was received. I had it from him,
that “the first really con.-ﬁrmato1*y report of the
facts which he gathered, was from the lips oi
an excited rn:1n,who. in front of one of the
principal hotels, on Pennsylvania Avenue, was
cngnpyecl in relating the--incident.s of the hem-
bardnient, as far as they had transpired, and
denouncln.p,r the rebels in untneasu1'ed terms.
'i‘ha~t man was Stephen A. Dot.iglas."”

The President issued his call for troops. 1
false no little pride in stating, that in a. few
hours, and foremost in the field, a brigade had
started Southrrard from my own Static of
Mussachusel.ts. \'Vlio should go forth in con}-
rnnnd of that l)1"lg‘€tLlG, but the recent Brecl:in-
l‘lt"lgG candidate l'or Grovernor, General Benj.
F. Butler 1 One of the first to otter‘ his services-

to Grovernor Andrew, was Caleb Cashing, the

;ii.‘)1‘t?SlCl€3lill. of the Brecl;inrit:lge Nzttioxittl (Jon-
vention. A mass rnerting was speedily held
in State street, Boston, to talte measures for
equipping soldilers and providing for their
families during their absence. One of the
speakers at that meeting was the American
Cicero. the Hon. Erlwaxvl Everett. Verily,
the rebels had reason to rjzicnlate in astonish»
meat, fr {Save us from our Nortliern friends I”
Since then, to say nothing of therank and file
of our army, the rebels have land the surprise
of eoni’ront.ingr such l;lr,ntocrati.c oiﬁicers as
l\l.c=.Olellan, l;iiur.nside, f;'3p,z'a_c;_,r,ue, llalleck, Rose-
crans, Shields. Fitch, V and drowns of others,
including, from your own lthnpi1*e State, Dix,
and h:leag'lter, and Sic-lites, and Colonels Coch-
rane, and Gorcuran, while first and foremost
upon the rostrum, in the utterance of his scath-
ing anuthemas agziirist the traitors, and shuts-
ing dt-fiance from his snow-white mane, was
the old bard-shell Democratic W311‘-l10!‘99a
Daniel S. Dickinson. I trust thatpby this

time, the visions of a sympatliizing Northern
tDemocracy have evacuated thediseased brains

of Soutliern traitors, and ' that that ﬂattering
unction has forsaken their souls forever.
Another encouraging; sign of the times m
us, is the demorahzed condition of the rebel
army... The great innjority of the Southern
soldiers have.no heart in this contest. Every,-
where, as ouinvictorious legions press forward.
they hear lroxn the lips of .-caaptivesand 

-O 1 it is sweet for our country to die!

era the same story. ‘ The rank and tile aresiclr,
heartily sick of i this warfare. Why should
they not ‘be? It is poor encouragement for a.

to young man to ‘go out and be shots like a dog,.
when he feels that that is the lightest part of

the retribution that overtakes him, when he
feels that after a ll, his life is worse than thrown
away, and that he only leaves behind _a memo-
-ry’ to be exccrated. To die for one’s country, in

i a_ good cause-—there is glory in that! There

need be no mourning for him whohas sacriﬁced
his life under such circumstances.‘ Indeed,he
has not sacmjiceri his life. He may have per-
ished young,but he has wrought out a glorious
work and fulﬁlled an honorable mission, and
heimay sleep well. i .

“ O I it is great for -our” country to die,.where ranks
are contending; p _
Bright is the wreath of our fame ; glory awaits us
it for ayc——— ‘
Glory,that never is dim, shining on with light never

, ending-— .
Glory that never sha1lfacle,never,0 I never away!

How softly
reposes i l _
Warrior. youth on his bier, wet by the tears of has
- i ve -- A .
Wet by a h1other’s warm tears; they crown him
with garlands of roses,
Weep, and then joyously turn, bright where he
~ triumphs above. ‘ 2 » - —r i

Not to the shades shall the youth descend who for
country hath perished ;
Hebe awaits him in heaven, welcomes him there
V with her smile '; - i ‘

There, at the banquet divine, the patriotvspirit is

cherished;
Gods lovetthc young who ascend pure fromthe

funeral pile.

Not to Elysian ﬁelds, by the still, oblivious river ;
»Not to the isles ofthe blest, over the blue, rolling

sea ; i
M But on_Olympian“heights shall dwell the devoted

_ forever,
There shall assemble the good, there the wise,
valiant‘ and free. i ,

0! then, how great for our country to die, in the
front rank to perish,
Firm with our breast to the foe, Victory’s shout
in our earl t = 4
Long they our statues shall
memory cherish ;
 ,We shall look forth from our heaven,
sweet music to hear.”

crown, in songs our

pleased the

r But, alas! for him whose ha-rd lot it is to
die inthe forlorn hope of 'bOiStBYll)fg‘ up the
pretended government of Jefferson Davis and
his‘ compeersl Such a warrior I fear will
look forth from no heaven, and fror'nwhither-

soever he. does look, will hear his name and
fa--me set to no sweet music.

And it_is this consciousness, coupled with
t':he_.eert.alnty of defeat, and the further can»

an attitude of hostility to the Union.

isiderationthat the rebel eniterpriseﬂdoes not

pay even in the poor matter of dollars and
-cents anddecent rations, which has . in great
measure demoralized, discouraged and rendered
ineﬁcient the rebel cohorts which are arrayed

l against us.

Last, and by no means least, of the encour-
aging symptoms of the hour, I would allude to
the Union feeling everywhere existing, and, as
I believe, predominant in the Southern States.

One of the most adroit of the many adroit
operations, for which we will give the rebels
credit, was the engineering, whereby States,
actually loyal, found themselves all at once in
With
but two or three exceptions, the States now
reckoned in the Southern Confederacy, had
demonstrated as far as votes
vunmistalrable popular demonstrations could
show, that for all theirgreat staple, they clzlrl
not nation to the wild scheme of secession.
great proportion of the Southern population,
were neither madman, nor disappointed politi-
cians, nor fools, and so there was no motive,
on their part, for rebellion, but the contrary.
Secession ordinances were originated in secret
conclave, and crammed down the throats of

the people by agencies and contrivanees the‘

most desperate and dishonest. ’l‘he ignorant
and credulous were misled and deluded by
barefaced misrepresentation, and others were
ovcrborne in whatever unorganized opposition
they attempted, by threats, byridicule, and in
many ﬂasrrant instances by barbarous force.
The diabolical plot seemed to work with a
niarvelous success. State after State fell into
the snare. Maryland providentially escaped,
because she happened to have a cllief magis-
trate, than whom a. braver and honester
man never lived. All honor to Governor
Hliclrs, whose indomitable will alone arrested
the mad tide of rebellion which threatened to
clasp‘ in its embrace the monumental city, and
that important eorarnercial State. Let, him
be remembered in history as having defeated
the acquisition by the traitors of so important
a stronghold, and of having thus indirectly
saved the National Capital itself.

All along, during the progress of the war,
our hearts have been encouraged while we have
noted the almost daily evidences at the South
of a strong Union sentiment,—¢——pent up by
circumstances indeed, but breaking forth into
expression and action wherever the federal arms
have opened up an opportunity. At Nash-
ville, at Norfolk, nay, even in New Orleans,
the sight of our glorious old flag, the tramp of
our victorioushosts, and the inspiriting melo-
dies of the old national airs once more burst-
ing upon the car from our regimental bands,

.have no.t failed to ﬁnd a. greeting in tearful

and other 

A. .

10

eyes, in welcoming shouts and thankful dem-
enustrations.

Several of the Southern States, claimed as
belonging to the rebel confederacy, are even
now represented in the National Congress, and
from their position andimea-ns of’inﬂuence, are
perhaps, the most efficient of any of the loyal
States in putting down the rebellion.

To the Union men at the South, who have
made themselves prominent in staying the
progress of treason, the country owes a lasting
debt of gratitude. To such men as Crittenden
and Johnson, and Polk, (‘the colonel, not the
Warrior Bishop,)= we can hardly accord enough
of praise; and when we hear the story of
Parson Brownlow, who has suffered everything
but death in defense of his country’s honor,

and the not less affecting story of Bouligney ‘

of Louisiana, who refused to vvithdravv from
Congress with the rest of the Louisiana dele-
gation, vvho,sinee his return to his constituents,
has had to ﬁght not less than eight duels with
secession champions, and whom Butlers army
found at New Or1eans,a maimed and mutilated
wreck of a once noble and manly form-—-I say,
when we hear such stories of these, fellow-
citizens, if we fail then to appreciate our
Southern allies, and to respect their rights and
privileges, verily there is reason to believe
that the madness of one section has begotten
a like madness in the other, and that amid the
prevalenceof a universal frenzy, the hopes of
our Union are indeed buried beyond the possi-
bility of a resurrection. But thisis looking
at the picture from the darkest point of view.
There is every reason, on the other hand. to
anticipate a brighter state‘ of things. The
President has thus far shown himselfthorough-
ly alive to the responsibilities of the hour.
If he continue ﬁrm, as he- has hitherto proved
himself sound, we may- hope that the ship of
State will avoid the Scylla and Charybdis of
hot-headed faction on either side, and shortly
emerge in triumph into the open sea.

ii. I come then to consider,-secondly, the
duties, which in the present crisis, devolve up-
on us as loyal citizens.

First of all, the Rebellion is to be put
down, byrall the available and necessary mili-
tary and civil agencies of the government, and
the leaders hung after themost approved»-style.
But when this is accomplished, what next‘? If
we shall have gone to all this expenditure of

blood and treasure to cbtainonly a sullen sub-

mission,-and a mere forced surrender, the gov-
ernment vvill ﬁnd itself in the condition of the
man who bought the elephant. It will require

a standing army, and a vigilant navy to hold
together a. people, which professes to be estab-
'lished~andimaintained on the basis of mutual
.9-gusset.’ ‘Foreign povvers would not belong

in making up their minds that the Republic

- was a failure, and our boasted civil liberty a

farce. All those tremendous energies which
we have exhibited in the prosecution of the war,

* would after all be characterized as but the

death throes of a mighty but a mortally smit-

ten giant. Admitting all of the glorious past,

conceding all that could be said of our won-
derful origin and growth, the humiliating fact

. would still remain, that upon the application

of the ﬁrst real test of its stability, our fabric
iiafg cgumbléd, and that a single} century had
en co to s ow, tiat no peep e iowever edu-
cated and en‘lightened', and howegver stimulated
by proud memories, by present blessings and
by alluring inducements for the future, was ca-
pable of self government. Shall we suffer this
to he said, or shall we not rather demonstrate
to the world, that while vigorous in action, We
gaenot peése i3O‘OlZ'lJeilIll:,—-—l.lliti3 nohpgestsing tex-
men ;n pr v - s ronrr enoucr o emp us
from our propriety, andbthat 2:0 provocation
can lure us aside from our singleness of pur-
pose to retaliate upon one rrreat wrong by the
commission on our part oiaanother.
We need to remind each other frequently

of the real issue involved in the present strug-

gle. Every day, as We read the dispatches, we
hear and let fall expressions, whiich do not
commend themselves to us, upon cooler and
more deliberate reflection. The conﬂict we
are engaged in is anomalous in the history of
all Warfare. There is no parallelism between
this and the wars which have left their crim-
son impress upon the records of the past.--
This is a war for the perpetuation of a brother-
hood---for the preservation in their integrity
of the Union and the Constitution. “To be,‘
or not to be; that is the question.” It is not
a war of invasion or subjugation. It is to be
prosecuted with the sword in one hand and
the olive branch in the other. .,It is a war ‘on
our part of self-defense, in the successful result
of which all good citizens, South as well as
North, are interested. It is our duty to im-
press this upon our Southern. brethren, and for
that purpose surely we need to keep -it steadily
in view ourselves. The Rebel leaders are
studiously instilling the notion that fronrthe
brginnilm; of this contest throughout, the
North» are acting the part of aggressors, and:
that an indiscriminate conﬁscation of property

and an utter disregard of constitutional rights.

of Southern people is to follow the successes.
of the Federal arms. _ Certain Northern men
and Northern presses must one day account
for having helped to -give currency to this
mistaken idea, and for having needlessly pro-
longed this war and caused a needless, sacri-
ﬁre ‘of. human life. Our armies, however, at

every advance have given the lie to, such, rep,-., .

-I nor by physical force. Moral c

resentations. The proclamations of our vie-'
torious Generals, with one or two, exceptions,
have been admirably calculated to disabuse the
Southern mind of erroneous impressions as to
the motives of the governi:nent,,and to encour-
age the Union sentiment. In the exceptional
cases, where proclamations have been issued
having a contrary tendency, the President
has been wise and brave enough to follow them
up with a prompt anddecisive repudiation.
Iknow that in. the minds of many, probably

"or most of our Northern. people, the desire is

uppermost to witness the entire extinction
within our borders of the institution of African
Slavery. ‘ I respectthat desire because I share
it. The extinction of Slavery is a more ques~

i tion of time, and if that time is now, I am re-

joiced at its c.oi:o.ing. The past few months
have done much towards that great consuma-

tion. In the District of Columbia, Slavery is

forever abolished, and. a law has already been
passed by the present G.o_ngress prohibiting
its extension into any territory hereafter ac~

I1

master and slave. None can venture to ﬁx l 

the precise moment at which either distinction
ceased. Some faint traces of the old Norman
feeling might perhaps have been found late in
the fourteenth century. Some faint traces of‘
the institution of villenage were detected by
the curious so late as the days of the Stuarts;
nor has that institution ever to this hour been
abolished by statute.”

But we need not go back beyond our own»
national history to learn that great social rev-
olutions are most safely left to the operation of
quiet and. natural causes. One by one, many
of the States now free, abolished or in some
way or other disposed of the institution within
their limits of African Slavery. Virginia her-
self long ago gave to freedom the vast territo-
ry of the Northwest, and at one time in her

‘ history had. almost resolved herself into a free

quired. Further than this, as the inevitable"

“consequence of'the~present distracted state of

things at the South, there is, and for months
has been, a stampede on the part of numbers
of the slave population in the directiontowards
free territory. Thus incidentally great strides
are beingtaken towards the fulﬁllment of our
hopes in this regard, and if as incident to the
progress of this contest still further and possi-
bly ﬁnal strides may lawfully be taken, cer-
tainly he is no lover of his country who is not
prepared to utter an enthusiastic amour. But
if any one proposes to go further than

a this, and to make this-waraof selfdefense a war
of emancipation per so, he oversteps, in my
I humble. opinion, the boundary line of his cou-

stitutional obl
him. i i  I

I repeat that the question of the entire aho—
lition of Slavery is atquestion merely of time.

igations, and I cannot go with

pp'llhetﬁe.are‘~;ciertain reat laws of human ro-
. .. . g ,
~ gress, which, like some of the great processes

of Nature are silent, but ceaseless and irresist-

. ible. “It. is remarlrable,” says Macaulay, “that

the two greatest and «most salutary social rev-
olutions which have taken place in England,
--thatrevolution which, in the thirteenth cen--
tury, put an end to the -tyranny of nation over

nation, andtthat revolutiomwhich, a few years '
« latter, pill: and end to the property of nine in
- rnan, were silently and imperceptibly effected.
: Phey struck icotemporary observers with no

surprise, and have received from historians a
very scanty measure of attention. They were
brought about neither by legislative regulation
auses noiselessly
effaced, first the distinction between Norman

I and S9~X..°1li and then‘ "the distin‘ctioni between

ﬁtate. It is a question which the political
student may ponder upon at his leisure, wheth-
er the good. work within her borders has been
accelerated or retarded by the past agitation
of so delicate a subject. y

I cannot hesitate, fellow-citizens, to urge at
this time, as the paramount duty of the hour,
the continuance of the loyal States in the
singleness of purpose with whicli they set out.
Let us cordially unite in. putting down this
rebellion, never forgetting to keep within the
just limits of the coi.istitu.tion, and fostering
that Union sentiinent at the South which, in
due time, shall restore to their old allegiance
the revolted States of our confederacy, and,
after this litful fever is over, shall present to
the world the spectacle of a re-united people,
stronger and happier than ever, and farther
advanced than ever toward. the fullzilluient of a
glorious destiny. i Cultivate the Union senti-
ment at the South. I see no star of promise
in our political horoscope, other than this.

III. Of the dangers that appertain to the
present crisis, I have already hinted at what
I consider the most proniinent, namely, that of
mistaking or ignoring the true issue.

Tliere is another daiiger which has already
developed itself somewhat, and which the
American people are naturally prone to incur.
I mean the impatience of delay~—-Llie restless

longing for a new item in these -errcitiiig times, I

I which beers with it a contagious and, not on-

lrequently, a disastrous client. This is a fast
age, and rapidly as forces have been organized
and put into operation within the last fifteen
months, there is a numerous class of individu-
als who still clamor for a swifter progress of
things. When we look back and behold what

* has been accomplished, the wonder is, as we
I have already hadoccasion to notice,.that so
* ‘great a ‘work has been performed.‘ The nation
I has astonished itself and c“o_n”fonpde‘d thellpvfree


i ldi-ctions of neigheboriag "lockers on.

‘So as we read the history of the Revolution
and see under what difﬁcultiesand embarrass
merits an army was created and maintained
andmade victorious, we reflect with a shudder
almost, how near tobeing a failure was that
memorable enterprise. How miraculous, under
all the circumstances, was the Providence by
which our independence was achieved. We

' are disposed to accord to Washington the at-
- tributes almost ei4=i€)rnnipotence——-the powe-roof

making something out of nothing. Yet how
sorely, all along through that dark period, was
the great soul of Washington tried by the
unjust criticisms of rival officers and the sneers

of men whose jealous fancies overcame for the

time the dictates of a sober judgment. “The
Modern €Ei‘ahius”——“’l‘he Fabian Policy”;-—
these were the deriding terms with which the
greatest of men and his prudent counsels were
characterized. You remember the disafi'ection
and duplicity of General Lee, and you recall,
not without a glow of indignation, the opera-
tions of the “Conway cabal.” Irving says of
it that"‘Wanting as the intrigues of the cabal
might be in plan or fixed design, they were
fraught with rnisohief to the public service,
inspiring doubts of its oominandersi and seel;-
ing to provoke them to desperate enterprises.
They harassed Washington in the latter part

-of his campaign; contributed to the dark cloud.
that hung over his gloomy encampment at

"Valley "Forge, and ‘might have effected his
downfall had he been more irascible in his
temper, more at the mercy of impulse, and less
ﬁrmly ﬁxed in the affections of the people.--
As it was, they only tended to show wherein
lay his surest strength. Jealous rivals he
might have in the army, ‘bitter enemies in
Congress, but the soldiers loved him and the
large heart of the nation always beat true to
hirn.” i

htlhese ‘comments of Irving, upon transactions
:nearly‘e century gone by, might be applied
with considerable signiﬁcance to some of the
passing events of the present clay. ; I do not
insinuate that we have in existenceany Con-—
way cabal, but I fear that too often the men
who have this great enterprise in charge are

subjected to censure and criticism. which is ‘

unfounded and unjust. There is wisdom in the

concluding line of Longf‘ellow’s Psalm‘ of
Life: ‘ g ' l e
“Learn to labor and toiiwazitﬁ’

When the rebellion first broke out, 1 heard

 , an intelligent man predict that General Scott

would «place himself at the head of _a troop of

i a -«few hundred ﬂying artillery and sweep‘ every-

thing before "him from,‘ Washington to the
mouth of the Mississippi; Another ventured

L l .Lhe.o,pinion. that, with a. dozen picket Yankees,  

he could in ten days re-take Fort Sumter and
rattle down thecity of Charleston about the
ears of its inhabitants. iBoth.of those terrible
sindividuals .have long since retired from the
kadmini-strat-ion of aii"-airs" in disgust. A A
A distinguished Massachusetts Oongressuran
in a recent speech has vvell observed ; “It is
easy to ﬁnd fault. In operations upon .-so
large a scale, requiring so many agencies, mis-
takes and blunders will be made. But a just
criticism, looking upon the Work asa whole,
cannot fail to commend the patriotism of the
people and th.e energy of the government. I
know it has been prettily said that we have
prosecuted t--his waranpon a rose-water policy fl
I do not slrnow that I fully comprehend" what

is meant, but probably the rebels, in view of in

that long blockade, with the fresh mernoriesot
Port Royal, Newborn, Pulaski, “Donelson,
Pea Ridge, Shiloh,‘the Lower Mississippi and
Yorktown, and the ever tightening folds of the
Gonstrictiou, might say, with Juliet, the

“ “rose ,_ b

By any other name would smell as sweet.”

Let us then be reasonable in our demands
upon the leaders of our armies, and shunning
the dangerous habit of inupatient criticism,
let us stay up their handsin the arduous»dn-
ties and responsibilities they have undertaken,
thereby most effectually hastening the time

 
when the sword shall return to its Scabbard,
-and the demon of war shall give over his era-

pire, unto the white robed angel of peace. 
IV. The lessons of the houriare manifold.
I can advert in conclusion to but few.

‘We have not failed to learn, I trust,~——unless
we are of the number of those who “rer:u'en'1-
bering everything that they should forget, and
forgetting everything that,they.lsho,uld remain-
her, learn nothing,”-—that one of the Worst ail-
ments, perhaps the paramount one thatlcan
aiiiict ..a lrepublic, is the . sufferance; withinri its
borders of parties founded upon geographical
discriminations. _ l _

One of the,hope{ul,~s_igns.oi the times,JWas
the .very general observance among us of the
last. recurring, anniversary of the birthday of
Washington, and the reverent reperusals which
were then had of the farewell address of the
i‘*I+‘ather of his Country.” To “his ever hrigh-—
tening fame asa soldier and" an statesman,
has been added that which hasvfollowjed. from
_his wisdom as a prophet. . Occupying the
-stand-point which hejdici, away baclrinl the
early days of the Republic, looking over the
iutur»e,.as he could, with calm and uubeclouded
.vision., how truly did he foresee as possibilties,
the realities of‘. the. present. Let. us be just
enough to acknowledge to day, that in . the

formation of geographical parties, there in ~

something of blame to be attached to both

sections of our: confedieracy. . ‘If we are not
thus just, the marrow will be, whenit comes to
sit in judgment upon to-day.‘ If peace shall
ever_ revisit us as a nation, let us thereafter re-
member that no politicalconsiderations,can
justify amomentary forgetlu‘ln1ess oi’ the unity
of the government, and the obligations we are
under to preserve it. I1 know it may be said,
and with what truth w.e7need”uot now stop to
inquire, that lithe? siectional feeling had its
origin at the South. But  it ‘began there, it
certainly did not" ‘end there.’ It takes two"
sides to make a q,ua,rr'el bet‘we'en communities
as well as between individuals. “ Crimination
begets reerimination. The pendulum of popu-
lar passion swings to both extremes.

For a long time, our ears have not been un—
accustomed to epithets applied to our South-
ern brethren, which toisay the least were an y-
thing but affectionate and fraternal. Epithets
not less opprobrious have been applied tons
in return, and thus for a considerable period
of time, the germ has been developing, which
was destined eventually to sprout up into a
warfare of monstrous proportions. The lesson
is to be learned, both‘ North and South, from
the experiences of the hour, that of all things
to be avoided among a people professing to be
abrotherhood, the ﬁrst and chiefest is, the

, sufferance ofﬂsectional prejudice. “It is of

inﬁnite moment,” said Washington, “that you

‘ should properly estimate the immense value of

your nationalunion to your collective and in-

dividual happiness ;: that you should cherish a -
r cordial, habitual and immovable attachment

to it; accustoming yourselves to think and

speaks-f it asvof the palladium. of your politi-~

cal safety and prosperity; watching for its
preservation. with jealous anaietyg. discou-n-
tenancing whatever may suggest even a sus-
picion that it can, in any event, be abandoned,
and indignantly frowning upon "the ﬁrst dawn-
ing of any attempt to alienate any portion of
our country from the rest, or to enfeeble the

‘sacred ties which now link together the va- ,

rious parts.”
Another lesson which we should draw from

p the present_,ex.perienrees~,< is the baneful effect

of partizan spirit upon our political morals,
and national prosperity. '

The man who could suggest a mode by which
-to do away with the intemperate party spirit
which has had such sway for years, would de—
serve to be enrolled among the most illustrious
benefactors of the age. Gov.‘ Stanley has
truly characterized this struggle as “an internal
was brought on by wicked'politioia'ns.”--:-
Politics has hecometoo much of a trade.»-
Demagogism hashecome rampant. Liberty
of speech and press has degenerated into li-»
tense, and I sometimes think that the govern-

ment of the peoplelexisis onl"yf!in nanre.-—-«~
The people at heart.
but do the people always rule? How does it
work in these latter days? Toomuch after‘
this programme :

They meet together r in secret junto-»--they

orrranize a lan of action---~---the « bu. ~'a~l ress .-—‘-:. l
s. P S’ 2

they select and instruct their lauxiliaries in’Ial"l.
the _di'ﬁerent. localit.ies* throughout the ﬁeldv of
their operationsm-tlieyl. pack conventtions, ‘ and
go there with a listzof candiclates and a string.

of resolutions in. their pockets. ‘ -‘The convene» A

tion goes through the motions, and gives a
popular look to a scheme which actually origi-
nated in some private chamber, around some
corner, several months before. Then comes-
the heavy workof the campaign. The presses

teem and the orators grow red in the face,.

with ﬁery denunciations of the other side, and‘
magniﬁcent apostrophies to the American
Eagle.

The election over, the masses go about their '

business and the wire-pullers proceed to divide
the spoils. If a war ensues, so much the
better. It makes more offices, and more plun-
der, and the longer it lasts, the richer the
speculation.

Fellow _citizens-, do I over~draw the picture 2.’
Let your own observation of the course of
things for a few years past answer the ques-
tion. ‘Why, in the early days of the Republic,
nay withinthe memory of most of us now, we
can recall that merit and not political craft
was the true avenue to high position and popu-
lar favor. Such things did happen then to a
meritorious noun, as the having an ofiice
thrust upon him. Now-a-days, ifa man would
gain position he must literally “stoop to con»
q~uer.” The mountain will not go to him,---he
must move to it--—and his nose must become
wax; in the pliant ﬁngers of those who make
and unmake heroes, as they would work out a
problem in mathematics. Let us if we can, do-
something in the future to correct this order
of things, and to consign to their proper posi-
tion the men who, for purposes of their own,

are willing to foment, on either hand, those V

deep and bitter political prejudices which are
among the most dangerous political agencies
for the overthrow of a Republican govern-v
meet.

We can hardly have mingled in the present
contest without imbibing a fresher and deeper
affection‘ for our common country. When a.
man’s privileges and possessions are placed in
jeopardy, then it is that he learns most how to

 prize and appreciate them. We have lived to

see our institutions, so dearlybought, so fondly
cherished, so invulnerable as we had come to
regard them, at last brought into sudden and

are.-always right, -

A man or set 0f‘ll'Il€!I1,l\blB-‘V
come ambitiousfor office or political influence. l

ijjtremendons peril. Surrounding nations are

looking on, some undoubtedly in profound

 sorrciw, while others -lpatronizingliy declare that
)5 a great bubble is about exploding and that
 their sage «predictions are being veriﬁed.-—
.:T;;f Shall all this serve to diminish, or shall it not
i  rether serve to stimulate and strengthen inns

 a patriotism snfﬁcient to comprehend and -work
at 3 out to successful issue the problem of the hour,

 to restore to this nation its former prestige,

'»"‘9\:,‘_‘4~‘—£~':4*.~>-_>~ t .,_.-.-,./M  ., 15;‘   . , . ,

 j and make it henceforth, as heretofore,a beacon

light throughout christendom, the great auxil—-

i la-ry of human progress, and the hope of all the
l i ends of the earth.

God-, ’neath whose watchful eye, A 

All things in earth and sky
Fulﬁll their end;

Guide Thou our Ship of State

Secure through peril’s strait";

Still grant propitious fate,
And still defendl

So shall its towering form,

Uns oath ed through wind and storm.’
Ride on its Way;

Our favored land shall be

The home of Liberty,

Her sons shall worship Thee,
And Thee obey.