The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-11-24
SPEECH or HON, PATTERSON DAVIS,
Dss@ JarEson he lid ias, 81 ns Hul a. nc Hauss
Of Representatives.

Time and disease have frosted my hair, impaired my
physical energies, aud furrowed my brow bat my heart
remains unchanged and its every pulsation is as quick
as strong and as true to your interests your honor and
fair iau.e as in the period OF my earlier years.
1t known TO many OF you that the close of the last
session u Congress- wasted by protrcted violent disease
went IN accordance with medical advice to the north
eastern coast OF the United States Against the opuion
OF my physician, had remained at Washington until
public duties were closed and then adopted the only
which, 1t believed gave reasonable hope for
final restoration to heahthnt is sought region where
should be exempt from the heat of summer and from
political excitement
In one respect, at least, this accorded with my
feelings, for physically and mentally depressed fearful
that should again be able TO perform my part in
the trials to which Mississippi might be subjected,
turned away from my fellows with such feelings the
wounded elk leaves his herd and seeks the covert TO die
alone Misrepresentation aud calumny followed me even
to the brink OF the grave aud with hyena instinct would
have pursued me beyond 1t.
| The political positions which l had always occupied
justified the expectation that in New England should be
left in loneliness. La this disappointed courtesy
and kindness met my first landing and attended
! me 70 the time Of my departure The manifestations of
comfy and hospitality given by the generous and the
noble aroused the petty hostility of the extreme of
the back-repubicans and their newspapers assaulted
with the low abuse which for years / had been
toned to receive at their hands had always despsed
their malice and defed their enmity their assaults did
not surprise me, but when found echoed in south
papers it did astonshI will confess it did pain me,
not for any injury apprehended to myself but for its evil
Was expected that to public and private manifesto
ons of kindness by the people of Maine should return
denuncation and repel their generous approaches with
epithes of abuse If they had deserved such reply
they could not merit it at my hands guest hogpi-
taby attended it would have been inconsistent with the
character of gentleman to have done less than acknow
edge their kindness, and it not in my TO feel
otherwise than grateful to them for the manly manifesto
tons OF desire to render pleasant and beneficial the
journ OF an invalid among them But they did not de-
sire It, and am happy to state as the result of my
quaintancc with them, that have large body Of
! friends among them-men who maintain constitu-
tonal rights explicitly and broadly assert
hem and who have performed this service with the fore
knowledge that they thereby to sacrifice their po-
cal prospects, at least until through years of patient
exertion they should correct error suppress anacm
and build for themselves structure on tine basis of
truths which had long been unwelcome and might not
| soon be understood.
Here the speaker went into interesting details re-
speeding the operations Of the Mississippi regiment in the
Mexican
not DISTINGUISHED and may not be a competent
! Judge, but know how thought and still believe, that
your sons, given by you to the public service in the
with Mexico have not received the full measure the
credit which their due They however received so
much that might be content rest the history as
it has been written But it constitutes reason why we
should not permit any of the leaves to be niustly
| away.
In reference to the charge that he had abandoned those
with whom he had co-opeated in 1882 the speaker said
Notwithstanding that rrefutablc answer the charge
1t has been reiterated and before located in the year
1852 1t is known to you all that discussions
in 1851 then favored convention Of the southern
States, that might take counsel together the u-
ure which to be anticipated from the legislation of
1850 The decision of the State acquiesce the
legislation Of that year. with series Of resolutions
relation 70 future encroaohens Isubmittcd to the
cision of the people, and have, in good faith, adj
hercd to the line of conduct which it imposed There
| fore in 1852 there is record from which to dis
prove any allegation but you know the charge to
be utterly unfounded and charity alone suppose
its reteration nnocenty made Neither in that year
nor in any other have advocated a dissolution
of the Union the separation of the State of Mississippi
from the Union, except the last alternative and have
not considered the remedies which lie within that
treme as exhausted, ever been entirely hopeless Of
their success. hold now announced on former oc-
casions that whilst occupying in the Senate am
bound to maintain the government Of the constitution
and in manner to work for its destruction that the
obligation OF the oath of office, Misssspps honor and
my own, require that, senator of the United States
there should be want of loyalty the constitutional
Union Whenever Mississippi shall resolve separate
from the confcderacy will expect her to withdraw her.
representatives from the general government which
they accredited II should ever whilst senator
deem 1t my duty to attitude of hostility to the
Union, should Immediately thereupon feel bound TO re-
sign the Office and return to my constituency to inform
them OF the fact II was this view Of the obligations of
my position which caused me on various occasions, to
repel with such indignation the accusation of being a
dsunionist while holding the office of senator of the Uni
ted States.
have been represented as having advocated squat-
ter sovereignty in speech made at Bangor in the State
of Maine paragraph has been published purporting
to be extract from that speech and vuperatve crit
cism and forced construction have exhausted them
selves upon it, with deductions which considered au
thorzed because they not denied in the paragraph
published
In this case, in that of the charge p relation to my
position in 1852, there Is record with which to
swer l never made speech at Bangor and O fair
mind would have sought for the speech how far
the general context explained the paragraph before in
dulgng ip hostile criticism,
Senator Douglas, IL speech at Alton, adopting the
paragraph published, and evidently drawing his opinion
from the unfair construction which had been put upon
it, claims to quote from speech made by at Bangor
to sustain the position taken by him at Freeport lie
slys
You will find in recent Speech delivered by that
able and eloquent statesman, Hon Jefferson Davis at
Bangor, Maine. that he took the view of this sub
ject that ! did in my Freeport speech. He there
said -
If the inhabitants of any Territory should refuse to
enact such laws and police regulations as would give Sc
curity to their property and his it would be rendered
more less valueess in proportion to the difficulty of
holding it without such protection In the Of prop
erty In the labor of man, what s usually called
slave property the insecurity would be great that the
could not ordinarily retain it, Therefore, though
the right would remain, the remedy being withheld il
would follow that the would be practically de-
barred, by the circumstances of the case from taking
slave property into Territory where the sense of the in
habitants opposed to its introduction SO much for
the otrepeaed allacy of forcing slavery upon any com
munty.i
Il is fair to suppose if the senator had known where