Weekly hawk-eye and telegraph. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1855-1857, 1856-06-18
Letter from, Josiah Quincy, Senior.

The following letter, sent to the presiding Off
Ger of the Unitarian Festival, recently held in
Boston, by the venerable Josiah Quincy, Senior,
now in the eighty. fifth gear of his age, will be
read with interest: i-
E. r. Hoar, Esq: -.
Sir: have received your letter, inviting me to
attend the Unitarian Festival, and expressing
the qualification it would give you "to see and
hear me on that OCCASION" 1t would give me
great pleasure to comply with your request, did
not the very tenor ofyourlette preclude me from
it. Ipreceive that should l attend, a speech will
be expected from me. But, sir, it wonld be i'm
possible for me to utter my opinion on the SUBJ
ject with which my hearts full, without crossing
the policy of some, offending the prejudices OF
others, and making, perhaps, the whole company
apprehend that had arrived at that period of
second childhood, which sometimes incident to
old age.
Ny mind is in no state to receive peasure from
social scenes and friendly intercourse. | can think
or speak of nothing but of the outrages of slave
holders at Kansas, and the outrages of slavehol-
ders at Washing on-outraSes, which, ifnot met
in the spirit Of our fathers ofthe revolution, land
see no sign that they will be Our liberties are
but name, and our Union proves acurse. These
outrages constitute series Of iniquitously con-
trved, well-connected compact tissues, of which
The fugitive slave law was the first:
The repeal of the Missouri Compromise, the
second; ...t.--~
The invasion Of Kansas, and the taking the
balot-boxes by storm, by mob Of shareholders,
the third:
The encouragement Of this sacrigious foray
against the right of free suffrage, and the ulti-
mate support OF it by the national executive and
military arm, the fourth.
The hostile Eruption of two members of Con-
gress, into the Senate Chamber of the United
States, openly armed with deadly bludgeons and
probably secretly, according; to habits of their
breed, with bowie knives and revolvcrs; and the
prostrating on the floor with their bludgons a
Senator of the United States, sitting pcaceably
in his seat, unconscious of danger, and from his
position incapable of defence, intiicting upon
him blows, until he sunk, senseess under them,
and which, if they do not prove mortal, it was
not for want ofmagnant intent in the cowardly
assassins-and all this for words publicly spoken
in the Senate, in the course of debate, allowed
by its presiding officers to be spoken, land excee-
ding not one hairs breadth any line Of truth or
duty This is the fifth and the climax of this
series of outrages, unparalleled, netarious, and
brutal. "v
Such are the facts-sueh are the outrages-a
series of them, which ought to ring through every
city and field, through every palace and cottage
of the free states-which ought to fly like the fiery
cross on the highlands of Scotland, over the
mountains and through the valleys of the free
states, startling the sleeping, rousng the thought
less uniting the free clans, and enkindling what
ever glimmering spark yet remains of the feeling
and spirit, which in Former times, entitled the
inhabitants of the free states to the character of
pa triots, and fearless, far seeing statesmen.
But alas! sir, see no principle of vitality, in
what is called freedom in these times. l see d.
visions enough, and parties enough see every
uim setting up for itself and calling and expect
ing all the rest of the world to follow in its train.
But of thoughtful, concentrated, determined
principle of united action suited to the occasion
which spurning the desire of place and the hope
of emoumcnt and the hankcring for Office, and
actuated solely for the advance of public good
and general welfare. ! see nothing. The palsy
of death rests on the spirit of freedom in the So
called free states"
In my opinion, it's time to speak On the house
top what every man who is worthy of the name
of freeman utters in his chamber and feels in his
heart. By series of corruption, intrigue and
cunning-bribing the high by appointments of
state, the low by the hope Of emoluments; play
ing between the parties of the free states, and
counteracting one by the other; by fattering
the vain, paying the mean, and rewarding, the
subservient-the shareholders have in the the
course of fifty years, usurped the whole constiu-
tional powers Of the Union, have possessed
themselves of the executive chair, of the halls
of Congress- of the national courts of Justice and
of the military arm, leaving nothing OF the hope
| to the spirit of freedom in the free states, but
| public speech in the legislature and the ballot
box. The one Shareholders mob is crushing
in Kansas, the othera deputation from the slave
holders of the House of Representatives have at
tempted to crush by Shareholders bludgeon.
My heart is too full. III should pour forth all
that is in it, both paper and time would fail me-
Truly, am yours, JOSIAH Quincy
Quincy, 27tth May, 1856.