, 1860-09-06


labor, property and not liberty, il ths great In
terest Of every people, and that religion con-
yersaut only With the relations Of men 10 an u1-
seen and future world, must be abdjured in their
conduct towards each otheron earth huye finally
discarded justice aud humanity Iron, their
systems. broken up nearly all the existing com.
blnat.ons for spiritual ends, and attempted to
onduct The affairs Of government on principles
equally in violation Of tho constitution aad Of
the eternal laws Of God's Providence Ior the
regulation Of the Universe.
: MAGNITUDE or TIE IssuE.
These views Of the characters Of our modern
parties are BY no means newly conceived on my
part. In that high aud intensely exciting de-
bate in Congress- in the year 1880. which, over
ruling tho administration" OF General Taylor,
brought the two then dominating parties into Il
compromise, 1t the time soleunly pronounced
final, irrevocable mud eternal, but WHICH WAS
nevertheless scattered 10 the winds Of Heaven
only four years afterward, the great Eiatesmao
Of KENTUCKY den6 dnced party spirit as be as
suned it TO be- raging throughout the country,
pregnant with the imminent and intolerabe
disasters Of civil war and national di solution.
! rentured then to reply That, in my humble
Judgment, 1t was not cor fct Of parties that
On the contrary, 1bs agony Of distracted parties
acouvuison resulting from too narrow
foundations Of bot b Of the great .par.ie
Of the day, foundations that had be LAID in
compromise Of natural justice and human
rights that new mud great questiou-a m'rat
question transcending the Too narrow creeds OF
existing parties had arlEcn-that the public
coucience Was expanding with it, md the green
withes Of party combinations were giving way
and breatiog under the pressure-,aas It Was
not the Uaion that vas decay ing and dying. as
was supposed, of the fever OF pn:ty eplris. but
that the swo great parties were sml!ten With
paralysis. fatal indeed to them unless they
should consent to be Immediately renewed and
re.organized, borrowing need!ul elements of
health and Figor from q cordial embrace with
the humane spirit Of the age.
Bat, fellow citizens. to exempt our statesmen
by casting blame on our political parties. dues
no: reach, but only approximates, the real
source Of responsibility. All OF these parties
have been composed OF citizens, rot few but
many citizens. in the aggregate. all 'he CIT z:ns
fnl or dishonest citizens, but sincere. faithful
and useful mcmbers OF the State. The parties
Of our coustry, what are they at my time, but
ourselves, The people four country3 Thus the
faults of pas: administration, and Of course the
responsibility for existing sllF, are brought d.
recsly home 70 yourselves hnd to ny9el-'or ri' rhe
wiseat, justest and most yirtuous Of Men occa-
sionally c:rs aud has need daily ~ inpiore tue
Divine Goodness that he be not led further into
temptation; and just SO the wsest, justest and
most yirtuous nations often urcorsciously los.
aod depart from, their ancient cpproTed and So.
fer ways. ls there aay society. eTen OF Chris
practice, rstrace its too careless steps ind dis.
card heresies that have corrupted its accepted
fajthl What was ths English revolution Of
1858, but return from the dark and dangerous
road of absolutisn3 What the French r=yolu-
tion, but mighty eonyulsion, that while it car
ried a brave, enlightened, aud liberty LOVING
nation bark sard on their progress OF three hun"
which had so long postponed the needed Ieac.
tioni
A national departure always happens, when
a great emergency occurs unohserEed and
untelt, bringing the necessity for the attala-
ment Of SONS new aud important object, which
eau only be secured through the inspiration OF
srme rev but great AID generous national Ecn-
timent.
TUE DEPARTURE FROM THE TRUE PATH.
Let Us see If We Can ascertain In the preseu.
case, when our departure from the right and
safe way occurred. Certainly it Was not in the
Revolutionary age. The nation the experienc.
ed and felt stern necessity, perceived and re-
tolutely aimed at traasceudentiJ sublime Oh.
jec., aad accepted chcerfu'ly the awakening in
principle. Ths necessity Was deliyerauce from
D:iti.h oppression; the object, independence !;
the principle, the 3nalienable rights Of ran.-
The revolution WIS a success, bee iuee the C9uu-
try had in Adams and Jefferson aud Washington,
aud their associates, the leaders, and in the
Wings, the party needlul for this crisis !; aud
these were sustains by the people.
Our departure WIS not at the juncture OF the
establishment ofthe Constitution. The country
then had aud owned anew and oVerpowtrinE Ie-
cessity, perceived and demanded new Object,
and adopted new and most animatlng prlnci-
pie. The nt tcess!ty, the escape IRON anarchy
the otj.ct, Federal Union the principle, ira
teruity Of the American people. The Const'tu-
ton with the Ordinance Of 1is7, practically a
part Of it, was not failure, because Hamilton,
Jay and Madison were competent, and The Fed.
erai party YVES constant, and the people gave it
aconfdipg and generous support.
II was not in $500 that the rational deviation
took place. Then were disclosed new public
necessity, new object, aud new principle. 4
separation ard removal of arlstocratic cheeks
and interests from the mechanism Of our repub-
lail, because Jefferson aud George Clinton,
with their associates braved all Resistance, the
Repuo oIican party defended, and the people
sustained them.
Again the departure did not occur in 1879
Then was discovered farther nece sity, bring.
ing into view q farther object, and introducing
yet another new sud noble principle Of action
the object, freedom Of intercourse With man
kind; the principle. the defence Of our homes
and our honor. The war Of 1919 was success:
because Clay, Calhoun and Tompki's did uot
shrink from the trial, and the Republican party
app owed aud the people sustained them.
In 1920, however, the nation had unconsci
ousty reached and entered new stage IN ist
successful career, namely, that Of expansion
Dy purchases from Fr:nce and Spain it had ex
tended It's borders from the St. Mary's south
ward around the peninsula of Florida, nnc
from the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains
an exptasion to be a!terward indefinitely con
tinued- We all know the advantages oi ex
pRns;on. They are augmented wealth ant
| population. but We all know equally well, i
we will only reflect, that no new advantage i.
ever gaineo in national more than in indivldua
| lie without exposure to some new danger
| What, then, is the danger which attends expan
sion? 1t is nothing less, and can be nothing
less than an increase Of the strain upon tht
bonds OF the Union. The time had come tt
qu!red territory Of Louisiana, on principles tha
soould be applied thereafter id all cases o
further expantion. This necessity brought in
to glaring light new object, namely, since th,
only existing cause Of mutual alienation arnon}
the States was slavery, which was already care
fully cifcumscsibtd by the ordinance Of 1757
that auamalous institution must now be turlhe
!
cover the new States to be established in tbt
Louisiana purchase. To this end new ane
humane impulse naturally moved the country
namely, the freedom Of human labor.
But although statesmen qualified for the csisi
appeared, no party stood forth to suppart then
with cous'ancy, and the country, after tempo
| rary glow Of Tree soil excitement, subs,ded init
cold lnditftrence-aud 80 compromise wa
made which divided the newly acquired domain
! between free labor and capital IN slaves, be
| tween freedom and slaverr, a memorable com
promise, which, after trial of only thirty. lou
years, proved 10 be effective only IN its conces
aions to slavery, rhile its greater guarantees q
History ssys that the compromise of 1920 va
necessary to sare the Union from disruption.
do not dispute history, nor debate the settles
moral questions of the past. only lament iha
it was necessary, if indeed it was so. Hiator,
tells Us that the course then adopted was wise
do not controvert it. Ion1y mourn the Occur
renee Of eren one case, most certainly the onl
wisdom has failed to be also the ~ay Of pleas
nntnesB, and tho path Of peace. 1swas in 1S2C
therefore, that the national deviation began
We have continued ever since tie diyergen
course then 50 inronsiderats!g entered, until q
last we have reached d point, where, amid cor
fusion, bewilderment and mutual recrimins
tons, it seems alike impossible to 10 forwar
or to return. We have added territory af,e
territory, and region after region With the Gus
tomary boldness Of teebly resisted copqusror:
not merely neelecting to keep slavery cut {
our new possessions, but actually removing a
the barriers agsinstit which We found staudin
at the ,imes Of conquest. In doing this "
have deded the moral opinions Of inaokine
overturned the laws and systems Of our father,
ard d,bhorored their memories BY deciafin
TINT the unequalled and glorious Cous,itutio
which they gave us, carries with it, as it attend
our reagtes, not freedom and personal rights t
the oppressed, but slavery and hateful M
balet0l commerce in Slaves, wherever we win
conquest by sea or land oyer the whole habit.
bic globe.
Writo We must row, in Difference to histor,
| ercuse the first diYefgerce il is mnnifrs. ti,s