The weekly Mississippian. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1859-1864, 1860-06-13
= p E E CHI
HON. J. P. ENJAMIN,
OF LOUISIANA.
Delivered in the U. s. Senate, on the 23d ~lt

Mr.. Benjamin Mr.. President, when we
met here in December, the public mind. was
deeply stirred. 1t was stirred by an occur
renee which had taken place for the first time
IN our hiStory-the invasion of one of the
States of the Confederacy by band of fanat-
les. for the ayowed purpose Of interfering with
its domestic Institutions, and setting its slaves
at liberty. The whole country was deeply
stirred but especially stirred was the South,
and this universal excitement found immedi-
ate vent in Congress. Scarcely had we met,
when numerous resolutions were placed upon
our table by different Senators, which, on
the ID Of February, were ordered, by reso-
luton Of the Senate, to be printed together
The first was a resolution submitted by the
honorable Senator from Ohio, Dir. Pugh)
who, on the 10Th Of December, proposed that
the Committee on Territories
BE instructed To inquire into the expeden-
cy Of repeating so much of the acts approved
September 9th, 1855, for the organization Of
Territorial Governments i'll New Mexico and
Utah, as require that all the laws passed by
the Legislatures of those Territories shall be
submitted to Congress for approval or rejec-
ton"
That was offered on the 18th of December,
been organized. To that an amendment was
offered by the Senator from Iowa, (Mr. Har-
LAM which shall not read. The next was
resolution submitted on the 10th of January
by the Senator from Illinois, (Mr. Douglas)
/ in relation to instructions to the Committee on
| the Judiciary, to report bill for the protec-
| ton of the States and Territories of the Union
against invasion. Next on the 18th of jan
uary, were resolutions submitted by the Sen
ator from Mississippi, (Mr. Brown.) Next,
were amendments to those resolutions sub
mitted by the Senator from Minnesota (Mr
| WilklnSon.) Next, were the resolutions sub
mitted by the other Senator from Mississippi
| [Mr. Davis) on the I'd Of February; and final
| ly, to those resolutions amendments were Of
fered by the Senator from Delaware, (Mr
| Saulsbury.)
Here, then, was a series of propositions be-
fore the Senate, seven in number, all directed
to the question Of slavery in the States and
| Territories, and all ordered by the Senate ito
| be printed together for discussion" Under
! these circumstances it became obvious that,
unless some concert of action was had by
gentlemen who professed the same political
! principles in relation to this vital issue now
before the country, the discussion must be
confused and pointless. If every member
/ offered his own resolutions, in his own Ian
/ guage, and if there were no concert among
| those who entertained the same principles, the
| time Of the Senate would be needlessIy ex-
hausted, and we should come to no practical
| result. Under these circumstances, a sug-
| gestion was made, from what quarter know
not and certainly it is not of the slightest con-
sequence, that the members of the Democratic
party, who were supposed generally to enter
| tain sentiments in accordance with each other
should meet and should agree upon the
| phraseology Of the resolutions that they were
! disposed to support, and, after harmonizing
upon that phraseology, should agree to stand
| by it, with a view to get vote of the Senate
upon distinct propositions, as the principles of
the Democratic party, so far as the party was
represented by the Senators in Congress.
Now, Mr.. President, these resolutions be-
ing before US, the honor ,ble Senator from IL
linois (Mr. Douglas) the other day-I am
sorry that do not see him in his seat
should have waited for him, if | had the
slightest hope of seeing him in the Senate !;
he was not here yesterday; he is not here to
day; and it is impossible for any one Of US to
say when he will be here aEain-the honora-
bIs- -ssIaAtoE from illinois, one of the most
extraordinary speeches ever delivered in a de-
| Lucrative body, and which occupies over 20
| consecutive columns of the Globe, and which
was followed, day or two after, in reply to
the Senator from Mississippi (Mr Davis) by
several other columns, has undertaken what
certainly is without precedent in the history
of the country-has undertaken to defend his
| individual claims to the Presidency of the
United States and, in so doing, has divided
out his elaborateiy prepared speech into diff
| ferent portions, some of which alone shall at
tempt to answer; and | attempt this answer
because that Senator thought proper to ar
raign my State and to arraign me, with
| other Democratic States and other Demo-
cratic Senators, for daring to discuss the
| propositions and resolutions now before the
! Senate.
More than half Of that Senator's speech
was devoted to the perfectly idle and unneces-
sary task of proving that those principles
| which he now asserts to be the true consti-
/ tutional principles under which the Terrific
ries of the United States are governed, were
advocated by him as such years and years
ago; and therefore he undertook to prove to
the Senate and to the country-to which he
| appealed so often-that there has been no in
consistency in his course, and that if he and
| his brother Democratic Senators are at issue
upon any point it is we, and not he, who have
proved inconsistent / shall return to that,
/ sir, in a moment
The next proposition of the honorable Sem
ator from Illinois was, that he was the en-
bodiment of the Democratic party, and that
all who dissented from this modest PROPOSE
| ton were rebels. He next arraigned all his
| Democratic brethren in this chamber for dar-
| ing to offer resolutions to the Senate declara-
| tory of constitutional principles; and he call
! Il thn nltrff< Laco.
| platform, which he said the Charleston Con-
vention, which represents him, treated with
the scorn and contempt that they merited.
Next he said that seventeen Democratic
States of this Union, and all his brother DEM
ocratic Senators who did not agree with him,
were disuniouists, and he arraigned them as
such. he said that they were travelling on
| the high road to the disunion Of these States
| Then IN the plentitude of his indulgence, he
told US that We were SHINING through ignor-
ance and did not know what road we were
travelling, and, with princely magnanimity
rendered his elemency and his pardon to those
who, after being enlightened by his counsel
| should tender repentance. And after having
done all that; having attacked every Demo-
cratic State in the Union and almost every
Democratic Senator in this body, he closed
was in Self-defence; that he attacked nobody,
and that the world should know, if he ever
| spoke again, it would be as he had just then
spoken, to defend himself from attack.
Now, Mr. President lest should be sup
posed to have at all exaggerated in this state
ment, what the honorable Senator from llli-
nois thought proper to say in relation to reso-
lutions involving purely constitutional and po-
litical principles, will read here and there
passages from his speech in support of the as
sertion that made In relation to the ac-
ton of his brother Senator's he says this:
''Sir, let the Democratic Senators attend to
their official duties and leave the National
Conventions to make their platforms, and the
party will be united. Where does this trou
bic come from? From our own caucus cham
bers-a caucus of Senators debating to the
people what sort of platform they shall have.
You have been told that no less than twelve
Southern Senators warned you in the caucus
against the consequences of trying to force
senatorial caucus platforms on the party. Sir,
do not know when the people ever put it in
Senator's commission that he is to get up
platforms for the National Conventions, on the
supposition that the delegates who go there
have not sense enough to do it themselves.
Although the action Of the caucus was
heralded TO the world to be, as was generally
understood, for the purpose of operating on
the Charleston Convention, it did not have its
effect. The resolutions lay still. When it
was proposed to postpone them here in the
Senate, before the Charleston Convention,
voted against the postponement wanted
to give chance for vote on them before the
party acted. did not believe the party then
would agree to the dictation. do not think
they would obey the order. Sir, the
Charleston Convention scorned it, and ratified
the old platform"
RI / appeal to the Senate whether or not this
is self-defence. Iappeal to the Senate wheth-
er or not this be, as have stated it to be, M
arraignment of the honorab-e Senator from IL
linois against the action Of almost the entire
BODY OF his broth.r Democrats--a perversion
of the truth and the facts, a misrepresentation
! Of what occurred; for this, namely, that the
meeting Of the Senators who adopted series