The Sun.
London, England, 1863-02-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 26, 1861

and other national highways, by which this land,
which to them is at once a land of inheritance and
a land of promise, is opened and watered.
" Even if the agents of the American people thus
exercising their power should, through fear or fac-
tion, fall below the height of national virtue, they
would be speedily, yet constitutionally, replaced by
others of sterner character and patriotism. I must
be allowed to say, also, that M. Drouyn de Lhuys
errs in his description of the parties to the present
conflict. We have here, in a political sense, no
North, no South, no Northern, no Southern States.
We have an insurrectionary party, which is located
upon and is chiefly adjacent to the shores of the Gulf
of Mexico ; and we have, on the other hand, a loyal
people, who constitute not only Northern States,
but Eastern, Middle, Western, and Southern States.

" I have, on many occasions, heretofore, submitted
to the French Government the President's views of
the interests and ideas which are at the bottom of
the determination of the American Government and
people to maintain the Federal Union. Tll. Pre-
sident has done the same thing in his Messages and
other public declarations. I refrain, therefore, from
reviewing that argument in connexion with the
existing question. M. Drouyn de Lhuys draws to
his aid the Conferences which took place between
the colonies and Great Britain in our Revolu-
tionary War. He will allow me to answer, that
aetion in the crisis of a nation, must accord with
its necessities, and therefore can be seldom
conformed to precedents. Great Britain, when
entering on that negotiation, had manifestly come
to entertain doubts of her ultimate success; and it
is certain that the councils of the colonies could not
have failed to take new courage, if not to gain
other advantages, when the parent State compro-
mised so far as to treat of peace on the terms of
conceding their independence.
"It is true, indeed, that peace:must come some
time, and that conferences must attend, if they are
not allowed to precede, the pacification. There is,
however, a better form for such conferences than
than the one which M. Drouyn de Lhuys suggests.
The latter would be palpably in derogation of the
Constitution of the United States, and would carry
no weight, because destitute of the sanction neces-
sary to bind either to the loyal or disloyal portions
of the people. On the other hand, the Congress
of the United States furnishes a constitutional
forum for debates between the alienated parties.
Senators and representatives from the loyal people
are those already fully empowered to confer, and
st ats:are also vacant and inviting the senators and
representatives of the discontented party, who may
be constitutionally sent there from the States in-
volved in the insurrection. Moreover, the con-
ferences which can thus be held in Con-
gress have this great advantage over any
that could be organised on the plan of M.
Drouyn de Lhuys—viz., that Congress, if it thought
wise, would call a National Convention to adopt its
recommendations, and give them all the solemnity
and binding force of organic law. Such conference
between the alienated parties may be said to have
already begun. Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky,
Tennessee, and Missouri, States which were claimed
by the insurgents, are already represented in Con-
gress, and are submitting with perfect freedom, and
in a proper spirit, their advice upon the course best
calculated to bring about in the shortest time a
firm, lasting, and honourable peace. Representa-
tives have been sent from Louisiana, and others are
understood to be coming from Arkansas.
There is a preponderating argument in favour of
the congressional form of conference over that which
is suggested by M. Drouyn de Lhuys,—viz , that
while accession to the latter would bring the Go-
vernment into concurrence with the insurgents in
disregarding and setting aside an important part of
the Constitution of the United States, and so would
be of pernicious example, the congressional confer-
ence, on the contrary, preserves and gives new
strength to that sacred instrument, which must
continue through future ages the sheet-anchor of
the republic.

"You will be at liberty to read this despatch to
M. Drouyn de Lhuys, and to give him a copy if he
shall desire it. To the end that you may be in-
formed of the whole case, I transmit a copy of M.
Drouyn de Lhuys' despatch.

" I am Sir, your obedient servant,
WM. H. SEWARD."

"sW. L. Dayton, Esq., &c."