Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1860-07-04
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Mr. Wise, another master frOm Virginia,
Virginia, then intoryonedi saying, "Yes, this damn
al tns0loaco y ingulvrRblup FIru
vns Looking AZ him, cried ont 'panm him, rs eyes
are oa me- he shau't 80 it-damh hlm, he shSn't
These things, and much more, disclosed By MI
Fairfield ~ fopg % thtorrOgat0fies IN the House.
vero s9nhrmed by other witnesses, and Mr., Wise
himself tn apeqoh made the admission thai he was
armed with deadly weapons, saying, Il Watched 40
molten 9i that right arm, tnf the witness the ol-
bow OF which oQuld b seen by NE, and had il moved
one ii,ol NJ had died ON the spot That my de.
AN this viii he found ll the 18th volume Of the
Cogrqsionai Debates, With the evidence IN detsii
anu the discussion thefeupOn.
liere \ smother instance or similar character,
which did not occur IN committee room, but dur
mg debate Ia the senate Chamber, While the COM
hrnmise measnres were under discussion In lsiu,
hum Mississippi ln the course Of his remArs com
mcncCd personal allusion tu Mr.. BENTON This
days previously he had made this distingushed gen
ueinan tho mark cor most bitter aud ylndictiyo por
sonallisea MIR, Benton rose At once from his scat,
ana with an angry cOuntenance, bu without weap-
GUS Of any KIND IN his hand or rs Il appeared aier-
Nard bet9rg ihe e9pmitee, On his persun, advanced
ing backwards, drew irOm his pocket a fve-cham-
barred revolycr hill loaded which he cooked. Mean
while Mr. Benton, az the suggestion Of friends was
already returning 90 his seat Wnen no perceived the
pistol hAoiied gruatly by this deadly monaco he
Il am not armed 1 have no pistols. disdain 20
carry arms stand ont Of tbs way aud Dot the
Mr. Roote r,,mained standing Ia tho positiop he
had takon, with the pistol la his hand, cooked.
Suun alter says the report 0t the committee ap-
tors sumed ther seats, and order was restored I"
All th.s will 70 iound at length In Rhe 2lst Volume
Another instance which belongs TO the samo class
Is given by the llou VIM. Jay, writer OF singular
accuracy and Of the trpest principle, who has done
much To illustrate the history Of our country II is
this;
To another mcmbor the foor uf the House, and
addressed 10 him those words, If You attempt 90
speak, or rise fruI your seat, sir BY God, III cut
your throat."
: The duel, which at homo IN the Slave States Is
twin with the "struet hght IL also twin" with
hose instances IL l. constantly adopted OF at
tempted by slave mastors In Congress. But shall
not enter upon this catalogue, content myself
with showing the oponness with which in debate Il
has been mcnac,sl, imd dwihout any call Of order.
Mr.. Fo9te, the same slave master already mention
sought 10 provoke hr, Reptup. i take his words
from the Congressional gto6e, vol, p, An;
which might well relieve IA man Of honor from the
obligation to recognize him as fitting antagonist
from Missouri will degn 70 Acknowledge himself re
spoHsbis 20 the lairs ~ honor, he shall have very
early opportunity Of proving his prowess In contest
with oae over whom hold perfect eontrol or II no
ec ~ tho least degree aggreyed az anything which
has fal en- froin me, he shall demanding t, haze
fHh reiress accordoa 10 hiHi, according 10 this said
laws Of honor. 1 do not denOuuce him ~ a coward;
Untitled Tor ta NtuicuCU; hut lf he
greatly the Wane, he will certainly hare aH Gpp0r
igify 9t doing irhcRersr hq makes hs desr kaoirH
tse prclises. At present he is shielded BY his age,
his open dsrorq 9f ae ath0atorp lqirs II honor, aud
his Senatorial privileges" ="
With sw'h bitter tauDts aud reiterated prOyOca-
tOns 10 the duel was Mr. Benton pursued; but therO
was no call TO order nor any action Of the Senate
Here Is another instance. In debate in the senate
on the 27th Of February ls52, MIR. Clemens, slnye-
master of Alabama, thus directly attacked Mr.
Rhett for undertaking settle their differences by
argument in the Senate, rather than By the duel
No man - said he with the feeling of man IN his
bosom, would have sought redress here He would
have looked for Il clsotrheTe lie now comes here
not 20 AK redress in the only way be should have
There was no cali to order. d
Here is still another In the debate Of the bill for
the improvement of Rivers and Harhors, 2gth Of
July, ls4, Congressional loie vol ~ appendix lpage
765,l the senator FROM Louisiana, lMr. Benjanin,)
who Is still a memoer of this body, ardent for sla
very, while protesting 90 avoid personal ultercatiOn
in the Senate, especially with gentleman who
derstOod the Senator from New York does proceed
ed most earnestly 70 repel an Imagined imputation
on him by Mr.. Seward, and wound up by saying:-
Il came IRON another quarter, Il lrouh H0t Be upon
this Hoor that sh0ud dns0er if, ~
And then, during the present session, the Senator
from Mississippi, llir. Davis, who speaks Oiten
for slavery In culOquy ON this floor With the SEN
ator from Vermont, (Alr. Coilamer, has maintained
the Duel as mode Of settling personal differences
and vidiCating what Is called personal honor; as If
personal honordid not depend absolutely upon what
a man does, and not what Is done to him "A gpn-
tlemnnn - saws the SENATOR has the right 10 give an
insult, Il hs feels himself bound 10 dlsirsr for u and
in reply 10 the senator from Vermont he deelhred
that IN case Of insult taking another ont and shoot
ing him might be satisfaction"
DO nOtdwell on this instance, nor any of these
instances except 20 make a single Comment
These declarations have all been made in open
Senate, without any check from the Chair. Uf
course, they are clear violations Of the first pri
ciples of Parliamentary Law, and tend directly
TO provoke p violation Of the law of the land
All duels are prohibited by solemn act of Con
greSs. (See Statutes at Large, vol 5, page SIS,
February 20, 1897 In case Of death the suryiy-
ing parties are declared guilty of felony to be
punished by hard labor in the peuitentiary and.
even where nothing has occurred beyond tho
all the parties 20 Ii, whether giycrs
receivers are declared guilty Of high crime and
mIsdemeanOr, also to be punished by hard labor
in the penitentary- OF course, every menace Of
Il duel in Congress sets this law at defiance. And
yet the Senator'S who thus openly disregard u
law sanctioned by the Constitution and com
mended by morality, presume 10 complain ON
this hOor because other Senators disregard the
Fugitive Slave bill sLatate which, according 10
the profound conviction Of large numbers IS rs
unconstitutional As il is offensive 20 the moral
sense Let Senators who are 50 ciamoreus for
Sc the enforcement of laws, - begin by enforcing
the statute which declares the duel to be felony
At least let the statute cease 10 be dead letter
in this Chamber. But this is too much to expect
while slavery prevails here, for the duel is part
of that system of violence which has Its origin in
slavery. @
But it is when aroused by the slave question in
Congress that slave masters have most truly shown
themselves and here again shall speak only of
what has already passed into history. Even in
that earliest debate, IN the first Congress after
the Constitution on the memorial of Dr. Frank
lin, simply calling upon Congress "tO step
to the verge of its powers 20 discourage every
species OF traffic In our fellOw-Inen' - the slave
masters became angry, indulged in sneers ut The
men in the gallery, being Quakers and AbO-
tiOnists, and, according 10 The faithful historian,
ilildreth, poured out torrents of abuse, - while
one of them began the charge so often since di-
rected against all anti slavery men, by declaring
his astOnishment that Dr. Franklin had given
cOuntenance to an application which called upon
Congress, IN explicit terms, TO break solemn
compact 70 which lie had himself been a party,l
when IL was obvious that Dr. Franklin had dOic
no such thing. This great man was soon suni-
mOned away by death, but not until he had fast
ened upon this debate an undying condemnation,
by pOrtraying, with his matchless pen, "a scene in
the Divan at AlgieTs, where corsuiT slave deal
er, insisting upon the enslayement of white
Christians, is made 10 repeat the Congressional
speech of an American slave master
But these displays Of violence have naturally
increased with the intensity Of the discussion
Impelled to be severe, but with little appTecia
tiOn of the finer forms of debate, they cOuld not
be severe except by violating the rules Of debate;
not knowing that there is a serener power than
amy found in personalities, and that all severity
which transcends the rules of debate, becomes
disgusting as the talk OF NahOOs, and harms him
only who degrades himself 10 be it's mouth piece.
Of course. on such occasions, the cause Ofslavery
AMIDST al seeming trluinpils, mas lost ana AfuIh
has gained.
II was against John Quincy Adams that this
violence was first directed in full force. To
character spotless as snow, and 10 universal at
taihments as a scholar, this illustTiOus citizen
added experience in all the eminent posts of the
Republic, which he had filed with an ability and
integrity, now admitted even by his enemies, and
which faithful history cannot forget Having
been President of the United States, he entered
the House Of Representatives. at the period when
the slave question IN its revival first began to
cupy the public attention In all the Completeness
OF his nature, he became the representative of
human freedom. The first struggle occurred on
the right of petition, which slave masters, with
charasteric tyranny, sought TO suppress This
was resisted by the venerable patriot, and what
he did was always done with his whole heart
Then was poured upon him abuse az from o.ITt.
Slave masters, fOaming out their shame p became
conspicuous, not less for an ayowal Of sentiments
at which civilization blushed, than for etfrOnt
cry of manner where the accidental LEGISLATOR
was lost in the natural Overseer, and the lash of
the plantation resOunded in the.Voice
In an address to his constituents, 18th Septem
Der, 1872, Mr. Adams thus frankly describes the
treatment he had experienced: I H-r.t
Il never can take part in any debate upon an
important subject, be 1t only upon mere abstrac-
ton, but pack opens upon me OF personal inyec-
tive in return. Language has no work of re-
prOach and railing that Is not hurled at me. "
And in the same speech he gives glimpse Of