The Washington union., 1857-09-17
THE CANVASS IN GEORGIA. CONCLUSION OF THE
DISCUSSION BETWEEN MEssRs STEPHENS AND

lHo AuSus& luInlSnSo llc lOl
lowing abstract of the reply Of Hon. A H. Stephens
to the speech of Mr.. Miller, which closed the dis.
cussion:
Mr. Stephens, rising to reply begged that his auditors
would remain perfectly quiet, he had but short time
In which TO address the and desired that everything he
said should be heard and understood This request was
not Needed for almost every sentence he uttered
ceVed With shouts of applause and he had frequently TO
pause In the midst of sentence, and wait until the
cheering had ceased before he could proceed This reply
OF hall an hour of Mr. Stephenss happest efforts
and the feeling Of disappointment almost universal
when the chairman of the meeting announced that his
time had expired The crowd, like Oliver Twist, evi-
IDENTIFY wanted ''more."
Mr.. Stephens began his reply by defending the admin.
istration from the charge that it's history thus far had
been unmarked except by treachery to the South and
replying to Mr. Miers question what had it done he
asked what had it left undone which southern man
could with propnety ask that national administration
should dor What had Mr. Buchanan done to recon-
mend him to the confidence of southern men He had
appointed four southern members of his cabinet
and from the North he had selected three Others who had
been distinguished for their firm, unyieding and un-
selfish devotion to the constitutional rights Of the South
Two of them, Gen. Cass and Mr. Toucey had sac-sa
themselves at home and been defeat~' .-...osa s
licans because they stood --~u py piaeK-fepuo-
need, and Mr.. o Dy the South in her hour Of
tbe'~ .Sucnanan had SHOWN ms appreciation OF
broad nationality and his inclination TO protect the
northern defenders of southern rights calling them to
high Office and selecting them his cabinet advisers
What had he done He had in his inaugural address,
done more than any who had preceded him in the
presidential Office had done, in giving in his adhe
sion In advance of its delivery to the principles of the Dd
Scott decision OF the Supreme Court and procaiming as
rule for the conduct of his administration the true doc
trne of southern equality in the Territories of the Union
What had he done He had given us the whole gov
ernmental organization of the Territory OF Kansas had
recognised the laws of that Territory against which the
blackrepubcans had revoted and had placed southern
in every Office of honor influence In the Terri
tory, and had placed in Office in Kansas, any
where else who not pledged to sustain the Kansas
Nebraska act and all the other legislation of Congress
which secured to the South her rights under the const
tuition. What had he done ? What had he not done
which southern with any proprety could ask that
President of the United States should dor
Mr. Stephens then denied emphatically that he had
denounced members of the American order Inid
night assassns in any speech he had made He
had in any public speech said anything of the
bers of the American party which designed to wound
their feelings, which ought to have wounded their
feelings His best and truest friends were members of
that order No feeling with him stronger than that
of gratitude He grateful to them for their long
and nnwavering support of him. but because he was
grateful to thembecause he under obligations to
hem-because they were his friendshe had felt it his
duty to speak plainly to hem and to them of the
dangers which lay in the path they pursuing when
they connected themselves with the American order
That order he had denounced--not its members He
had denounced it in 1885, at the City Hail. in Augusta
he had denounced it when it thought to be rresist
be and he could not be expected to deny that he had
IL
itand that his honorable competitor who charged it
upon him thought that his best recommendation to the
people of this district the fact that he belong
ed to it He had denounced 1t organization tend
ing like the Jacobn clubs of France, to the subverson
of all government and the Inauguration of anarchy and
organization destructive of all the social virtues of
people, and for these reasons and in this way, he
still ready to denounce It. His opponent (AIr. Mil
ler had occasion to abandon him after supporting him
for twelve thirteen years upon the ground that he had
denounced the members of the American order because he
had not done it and in this connexion, referring to Mr.
Miers statement that he had sustained him for twelve
thirteen years. he remarked that he had represented
the eighth district only four yearshad been candidate
for Congress twice and Mr. Miller had voted for him
once and against him This illustration Of
Mr.. 1ler's loose way of stating facts.
Mr. Stephens then denied that he had said in any
public speech ''elect me and Kansas He had
never a candidate for Congress- made speech in the
place where Mr. Miller had charged that he had made
of this expression If Mr.. Jones stated that he had
Mr.. Jones mistaken, When candidate for the last
Congress- the repeal Of tho Kansas Nebraska act the
great question agtated at the North He had besought
the people of this district to stand by that act and by
those who would sustain it, but he had said select
me and save Kansas.
hr Stephens then referred to that portion of his Texas
speech which had been quoted by Mr. Miller remarking
that the Consttutionast in 1858 had published It, he
supposed in uxtaposton with the letter of Mr. Dix to
DR. Garvin not much to show that he free soier
as to show that Dix then appontee of the Pierce ad
ministation, was not The democracy about that time
could, and he thought he had given them just hard
ones in return. He nothing in the remark of the
editor of the Consttuonalst in introducing his speech
to object to. Mr.. Miller had defended him from the in
ference which he Mr Miller) had drawn from that in
PRODUCTION He cared nothing about it, It part of
the tactics of old fight which forgotten Let the
dead bury their dead and let u.s. instead fighting over
dead and forgotten issues forward everything
about moves and keep up with the living issues of the
day. Mr.. Miller had said very emphaticay that he
"a defender of slavery in the abstract He wished
to say with equal emphasis that he Slavery in
the abstract slavery considered alone independent of
circumstance and reason which might in certain cases
of slavery in the abstract would be compelled to defend
all the expressions and yrannies which had ever been
practised by white men upon white Mr. Miller had
boased that he defender of slavery in the abstract
He was not-liberty rather had charms for him he
would be glad to all the of Adam Free but he
recognised he had stated in his Texas speech facts and
circumstances connected with the African race which
justified and required its subsection to the white Georgia
not less free State less devoted to the principles of
liberty or less opposed to slavery in the ABSTRACT be-
cause it recognised the institution of African slavery II
enslaved blacks, but it still free State as Massa-
chusetts. Mr. Miller in asserting that he "a de-
fender of slavery in the abstract had asserted doc
trne which would justify the ensavement of white men,
and all the oppression and tyranny which had been
practised against them.
Mr. Stephens, after thus confoundng the defender of
slavery in the abstract called the attention of his audi
tors to the fact that Mr. Miller although attempting to
oust him from his scat in Congress- and although
quesed by him to designate the vote votes given by
him whilst representative of the eighth district of
which he or the party he represented complained had