The Sun.
London, England, 1864-11-23 00:00:00

MR. SEWARD AT AUBURN.

(From the New York Times,)

AUBURN, NEW YORK, Monday, Sept. 7.

Secretary Seward, laying aside the duties of the
State Department to attend to the higher duty that
to-morrow engages the attention of the American
people, came home to Auburn on Saturday last to
cast his vote for Abraham Lincoln. This evening he
addressed an assemblage of the people of Auburn,
who crowded Corning-hall to overflowing to hear the
views of their illustrious townsman on the issue of
the hour. It has been Mr Seward's wont for many
years to speak in Auburn on the eve of election, and
these free, off-hand speeches to his friends and
neighbours have frequently been found to convey
matters of world-wide importance. The impressive
event in our national history on the very eve of
which the address was delivered gave even more
than wonted importance to the declarations of the
Secretary. It need hardly be added that speaking
to an audience of neighbours and friends, among
whom Mr. Seward has for many years lived, and
with whom acquaintance has ripened into love, he
was heard and followed with rapt attention and
rapturous applause.

Fellow Citizens,—Of course you understand that
I have come to vote. (Cheers and cries of " That's
what we want now.") To vote here for the tenth
time in ten out of the nineteen Presidential elec.
tions which the people of the United States have
enjoyed. (Applause.) A change or succession in the
executive power of a nation is always vital, and that
change in our country constitutes a perpetually re.
earring crisis. The elector is mortal. I have come
home to exercise my suffrage as heretofore with the
conviction—which I suppose you all entertain for
yourselves—that this may be my last time. (Cries
of "We hope not," and cheers.) Nations, though
usually leng.lived, are nevertheless mortal. Our
own Republic is now, confessedly, struggling for
life. This therefore may be our last Presidential
election. (Cries of "Not if our votes and arms can
save it," and cheers.) We are only tenants here.
Let us so cast our votes that if the Republic must
perish we shall be able to say that we are innocent.
(Cheers,) That if the Republic must perish we
shall yet be able to say that we have the conscious-
ness of having practised the heroic virtue which is
the duty of the citizen—(applause)—that if the Re.
public must perish we shall be able to say that
our recorded protest vein appear conspicuously
above the ruins (cheers), inviting mankind to new
and holier efforts to redeem the cause of freedom
and humanity. (Cheers_) I should be recreant if
I did not confess that I see no hope of safety for the
Union if the people tomorrow should give it over
in trust to the opponents of the present Administra-
tion. (Cries of "We won't do that.") But Ido
not forget what I say on the night before the elec.
tion will be heard on the morning after the election,
however it might result ; therefore, let no man ex-
pect to hear after an adverse result that I am
despairing, or even despondent. (Cheers.) If
the Opposition prevail, I do not now know, in-
deed, the fountain from which streams of hope can
flow in that disastrous event; bat I do know that
God has a thousand ways in saving nations, even
in their extremest peril. (Cheers.) Ido know
that nations are born to live, although they
must eventually die ; and I do know that as
my voice in the dark hours of 1861 rang
through.the world, giving reassurance to the friends
of human progress, so, if utterance shall be left to
me, it will proclaim with even greater earnestness
and energy that this Republic is not altogether lost.
(Vehement applause.) And as I speak, so ie that
fearful crisis I trust I shall be able to act. (Cries of
"That's you," and cheers.) But, fellow-citizens, our
thoughts to-night must be concentrated upon the
crisis as it is. Dangers surround 119. The civil war
confronts us in the rebel States. Foreign wars loom
over us. On all our coasts and all our borders the
fires of faction send up sulphurous smoke under our
feet. (A Voice—" Yes. Seymour and his friends.")
It would be absurd to say the country is cot in a
strait. Only two courses are open before us—the
one is perseverance in our war to suppress the re.
bellion ; the other is abandonment of those efforts.
(Cries of " We'll never abandon them," and cheers.)
Hazards attend each course. Are not hr z ards always
incident to human policy and human effort ? For my.
self, after examination and consideration, I have
come to the conclusion that the lesser hszard is found
in the line of perseverance. And, indeed, that is the
only course that affords assurance of national in-
tegrity, which I need not say is i lentical with na-
tional independence. (Vociferous cheers.) Ytu have
already testified this is your conviction. (Cheers,
and cries of "We'll do it again to.morrow.") It
remains, then, only for us to reassure each other to-
night, so that we may advance to the polls with
decision, energy, and confidence to- morrow. You
have been surprised by the discovery of treason
lurking throughout the Free States, and even in
secret haunts in our own neighbourhood. You are
astonished at the discovery of a conspiracy of 30,000
men clandestinely armed against the Government
in the We3tern loyal States. You are thunderstruck
with the revelation of concert between Chicago, Lon- A
don, and Richmond. (Groans for Northern traitors.)
You are amazed that traitors in Sandusky, invited
by signal lights,attempt murders and robberies from
Canada, and seize a ship of war on Lake Erie, and
deliver the rebel prisoners on Johnson's Island.
(Cries of " They'll need another Perry.") (Cheers.)
You are amazed that domestic traitors prepared the
way for invaders from Canada to rob and murder
the inhabitants of St. Albans. (Groans.) And you
are still more amazed that after all these discoveries
a large class of our own citizens, with alternate ob-
stinacy and levity, still hesitate to give a full and
unreserved support to the military arm of the Go.
vernment. (Cries of " Shame !") Let me tell you,
however, that all this surprise and astonishment is
unreasonable. What we see belongs to the natural
course of events in war, especially in civil war, The
Government must suppress rebellion with all the
agencies of civil and military power. The perform.
ance of that duty stirs up discontent, opposition, re-
sistance. Opposition rises high as Government be.
comes energetic, and opposition thus exalted becomes
faction. Faction in civil war is unmitigated treason.
(Cheers, and cries of " We'll crush it out, or we'll
crush out the traitors I") Every country that has
existed, especially every free country, has passed
through the fiery furnace of civil war. Spanish
America, with all its free States, France, England,
Spain, the Netherlands, Switzerland—indeed, civil
war is chronic, and domestic harmony an abnormal
condition in most of those States. No Government
in any of those countries ever was less embarrassed
in civil war by faction than the Government of the
'United States during the last three and a half years.
None of those Governments at that same time ever
dealt with domestic faction with so much modera-
tion and humanity as this Government has practised
towards citizens who have aided and abetted, fed
and warmed, clothed and armed its open and de-
fiant enemies. (Cries of " That's so ; better if they
had hung Vallandigham and the rest of them," and
cheers.) Not one head has fallen on the judicial
block. Nor need you be alarmed at these demon-
strations of faction. The people of the United
States have had a Christian education, a political
education, a moral 'education, such as Providence
has never before vouchsafed to any nation ; and
great as the forces and facilities of faction are, the
repressive and loyal forces possessed by this people
are magnified and multiplied in proportion.
(Ce.eers.) Yuu have been surprised and alarmed
by the discovery of meditated frauds upon the bat-
lot-boxes—(groans for Seymour and his agenta)—
frauds more fraudulent in conception, more wicked
in design than we have before encountered.
(Cheers.) Do not be disheartened, however, by this
discovery ; still, I sly, fraud and treachery, like fac-
tion,
are incident to civil war. Bold and inventive
as these fraudulent conspirators are, the nation has
an intellectual education and a moral conscience
which enable it to detect and baffle them ; and, hap-
pily, the power to suppress insurrection arms the
Government with the means to bring them promptly
to condign punishment. (Cheers.) What remains
for me to say is to warn you against misrepresen-
tations of the issue. There is no question before
you of abandoning the war measures against
slavery and substituting for them a policy of cone
servation or concession to slavery. (Cheers.) Those
measures are a part of the war. (Cheers.) It is