Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1860-1862, 1860-12-05
The Cr1sIs-rhe Duty of the People.

| The fol owing address was prepared by gentle
man of this city, for delivery before The meeting Of
the people, irrespective of party, called Saturday
December ISt 1s6O, the Court House in Nashville
Tennessee; but was sp ken, because the friends
Of the movement upon cons ,lta'i'n, deemed S eak
ing inadvis bele-t differences unfriendly to the pur
pose of he meeti might be deve'OpedI
| FELLOW CITIZENS The little part / have
h,r.-iofoIe taken in public affairs Is in re-
>peci unfavoTable. as it implirs nexIlerie8ce
| AID want of skill in tn m 'des of reaching
| and il fu. ncing IN" public mind. But in an
other =, spect it is favorable to the grrat pur-
pu>e | have in view. as that is to persuad''
you one and all. and the people Of the Soatb
gen. rally, If | may. TO drop your partisan
war ar. 20 thai We my be enabled To hold
Tree and fTat-rnal cOunselS with each other,
uninterrupted 10y those PARTISAN passions and
Ut, judIces which fatally interfere with our
efforts to impart or tn receive gn'd-
take il for granted that the notification.
hy some dozen of Ihe Northern States. OF the
fugitive -iave lstw, nv statute and by mob
proc dure, and the / ction OF Lincoln and
Hamliu hy an almost purely free Slate v1ie.
and on The avowal of sectional principles.
are felt by all the citizens of the South TN
States. as great and grievous evils, even il
the notification OF the fugitive slave law
were not accompanied, as in some of the free
States, 10y statutes affixing ignominious pm
altes upon any who nay dare to act the loyal
par, towards The General Government, aud
aid in the rendition of the fugitives from la
bur' from the slave States.
If am correct in the belief that all, or
nearly all, of the people of the Southern
States agree in viewing these acts of the
Northern States as trTOng-as dIsloyal to The
Grn' raj government. and unjust TO the South
III | fnnn6 a lief
We Can. as reas' nable men, abandon our an
tagOnisms aud divest ourselves of our unkind
and unjust suspicious against each other, so
that We may he enabled and inclined to
hold disp s-ionate free and fraternal Conn
sells, and thus agree upon common state
menI of our wrongs: common mode OF Sc
curing our rights. a common line OF conduct,
in the event OF failure to secure our rights,
and finally, if driven to that necessity, a
common destiny of the South, for veal or
woe.
Ii the North shall prove to be 'rremediably
blinded with fauaticIsm and drunk with the
rxcess of her recent triumph, so that she
wi rot honor herself, and The South viii b "a
-ui able response TO the demands of simple
Justice, then I shall feel like saying to The
people of the South,
..WhiIher thou goest | will go, and where
thou lOdgeSt will lodge; thy people shall
De ny ptOpi'', duu lUy OOU my OOu.
The Lord do SO to me and more also, il
aug ht but death part thee and me-"
II there cannot be an honorable union of all
the States; if after all our forbearance the
North shall insist upon violating the terms
of our compact at will, and degrading Us
from our equality, shall yet seek for fit
exercise for my loyalty to the government,
and my devotion TO my fellow man, 10 the
discharge of the duties of citizen of the
common South. f---.-
But, my cOunfrymen, it is plain and de-
mOnstrable to my understandings that we
cannot do ourselves justice, if we are Eot
agreed as to the fact of our laboring under
wrongs; or if admitting our wrongs, we are
still fatally bent upon undertaking the re-
dress of these wrongs, only a. wings, or as
drmOcrats, or in any other partizan capa-
city.
The first great question now presenting it
self to the Southern people for solution. and
which must be solved before we can accom-
plish or ought 10 attempt anything else, is
simply whether We, as people, have the vir
tue TO forget the party hatred to which par
ty training has 50 long Injured US, and re-
gard each other as brother SOutherners. re-
cipients of common wrongs, and linked to a
common destiny.
If the virtue and selfdenying spirit of the
Southern people are not equal to this task
land | grieve to admit the task is not light
one then the next wisest course for us to
adupt. is to remain. if possible. Inactive; for
in that event our party organizations will be
kept up, our party passions and prjudices
will be constantly on the alert; and what
ever is proposed on one side will be advo
eat, d with ind scrimiua ing zeal by the add
aerenis of that party, aud opposed with like
,udi iInInatiHg raIic0r uh tue other side.
Aud Ihus. la place of being able. in virtue OF
Ihe unity of "us opl'-, tie Justice OF our
cause AID he moderation uf our course, to
command tile respectful altenfion OF the
\ rIn, aud Ibe approval of just meu every
AneIe, We shalt present the piIiable specia-'
ci,. ii a p-"pie too intent upon hating each
.,Ih L. able truly 10 appr, bend or wisely
10 pc Wi the great and trying dangers
NhIcn Nv >uIrUOHd us. seElr1
So that if it shall be found We have not
tue write 10 lnrvg0 the graf 6catiUn OF our
psrtiz, pr,judiees TO sdeny ourselves The
old habItuaI luxury of haung each other,
%. cause we differ in oar parental training,
rather than our red sentiweuts.) Then il viii
riainly be shown that our eff4rts TO settle
our Disputes wiih the North, wall set Us to
cutting each oineIs Ihroat> in the South.
And it would be better that We attempt
nothing; but wait until further aggression>
from the North shall arrest our attention as
something more important than the daily
Preside political controversy with our next
door neighbors.
Let US, in that event, endeavor 10 bear
with patience. chaslisemenI in the school of
adversely, until purified, refined and reader
ed heroic like our revolutionary sires, we
shall be ready to emerge from the obscuri
ty of inaetion and take rank, as people
capable of sinking OF the felIers which pslr-
" training has so long been forging aud
fastening ABOUT Us; aud therefore, capable Of
asserting and maintaining any just principle
and only just principles. ~ease
l do not, fellow-citiZens, offer any specific
plan Tor the righing Of our wrongs and The
~ettieul, Mt of those disturbances which SO
imminensly Ikhresten the destruction of our
government, bt cause / know that while the
exis,iog party divisions aud jeaiousies contiu-
ue, that no proposition would he received
with universal or even general appreciation,
no matter hat may be the wisdom, modera-
lion. aud justice OF its terms !.
But another aud lar more Important rea-
son is. that it ihe people OF lhr South can,
In this dangerous CRISIS. irreSp. etivesof par
lies, cDnisr freely and frat rnaiiy. have NO.
ears but that 40 their united wisdom, they
VIII devise a N mn and i,fs