Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1861-04-04
Established in 1919.
Speech Of Judge lawrence,
.NoaallJ u e ATiTHE ,dani4slN 1Gff
Court House, EBeIleS6ntaame,
Saturday Hveninn. March o.

Noaa.di3e AT THE d1rsfrsiNi sfft
Court House, DeIIeFbmtaane.
Saturday Bvenins. March o. 4
| sIhHl Ui. 0IiiD u--e-Ai,u iNA s4ngd
After stating that the meeting was called
TO express preference for q successor to
Mr. Chase in the Senate, Judge Lawrencs
proceeded! .sasirig reb sllli "a ~
But another object Of calling this moot
ing, was to discuss the present condition q
the country, and the remedies for the dif|i.
| qtlties IN which NJ find ourselves involved,
DihcelI have had the honor Of seat on the
bench, have taken no active part In poll.
tics. and upon ordinary questions, no con,
s,deratiQn could. induce mo do "a. Hui
upon the question whether the Union oi
these States shall be preserved-whether we
shall tolerate or sanction the destruction OF
the best government the world has ever seen,
| can not remain silent in any position may
be called to occupy
These are not party questions. They are
questions in which the partizan should be
merged in the patriot, and on which we
should speak for the country, for mankind,
for humanity, for posterity. i1''
Seven States Of this Union claim to have
seeded, and have organized a revolutionary
provisional government There is no party
here in the North to argue in any form, eth
or that there was any justi6able cause for se-
cession, or that State may constitutionally
withdraw from the Union. A bare state
ment Of the alleged cause will show that il
isgroundless. We own immense territories
which are yet to be organized into States. :.
In the last Presidential election the people
were divided into five political parties unon
the subject Of slavery in these territories.
The 'Breckinridge Democracy" insisted
that the Constitution carried slavery into all
the territories andit was the duty Of the gov
ernment TO protect it there. % ~ =
The Douglas Democracy maintained that
the people ofthe Territories should far them
selves determine whether thew would or
would not have slavery during ifs territorial
condition ~ q
% The Republican" declared that slavery
could exist only by positive local law, and
that the territories while they continued as
such were free. and could not constitution
ally have slavery by any authority
The "Bell- Everett" party had for their
platform s'the constitution-the UnionNand
the enforcement of the laws" but they left
us without commentary as to slavery in the
territories. boz l'
All these parties agreed that when the
people of territory organized State. II
was right then to determine whether 4 should
or should not sanction slavery. 0'
The "Abolitiop party'' maintaining that
Congress could and should prohibit Slavery
everywhere, only had meagre existence in
two or three States. - IT''l :
Tho Republican partvrbfevafIed IN Ybse;
election. The people did not sanction the
doctrine that it was the duty of Congress- to
protect slavery in all the territories-and thus
the failure of party to defeat all Others
to have its dogmas sanctioned by the peo-
pie, is the sole cause for secession. Mr. Iyer.
son, of Georgia, SO declared in his speech in
the Senate on the 18th of December and
Mr.. Rhett, in the South Carolina Convcn-
ton, on the 2lst of December last. affirmed
the same thing. Nor need arpue that a
State has no right to secede. The Consti
tuition was made to be perpetual II CON
tains no provision for secession. Under Il
we can make no treaty or compact peaceably
to agree to a division Of the Union.
The active secession movement commenced
in December last. They might have been
defeated in sixty days by a prof1pt. faithful
and energetic administration. But with
Cobb, Floyd and hompson-ayowed seces-
sionists---in the Cabinet-with President
who in his annual message declared IL was
his duty to execute the laws II nobodw ob.
;ected and that State could not secede nm .
less thes sodnted 10 do soft isno wonder that
on the All Of March. President Lincoln
comes into power, finding a revolutionary
government Of seven seeded States orrani-
Sed, with his capitol az Montgomery. with
an army of 80, 600 men. having taken no
session of most Of the forts custom houses
and government property in those States.
but fortunately leaving our riphtful Govern,
ment in possession Of Forts Sumter and
Pickens. tSSf 80 - ~ ~ '
And now we are to consider in view Of the
present condition Of affairs, not whether we
might riohtfuliv retake our forts, custom
ho1ses and nroperty-not whether we MIGHT
riohtf,Yy anpoint Federal Jndges with an
..,,,,y q, o.os.,t "a III AZ. ,,-;,n,. S,,;L -.
arniy " 9Acouce tnoir PtvcesS, puuisn urea
son, and hang traltOrS--fOr OF this there can
| h~ no rlouht-hut what "a ax,ed;ant to doS
an II ~ - -: - y " n ~ ~
All tnlS mlgnt DC uOne In Sixty Gays II all Cne
people in the remaining States were united
in opinion, but they are not. In the "Bor-
der Slave States there is powerful minor
,tu who call this coercion and such coarc;or
| 'S wnoL SS'--.'.. ~.S", 'A"u eNon coe'Iioi
mignt precptate tne secession OF othel
States. FOR one, then, l am opposed to
TINS pohcy az lmpracucspie ana inexpedient
ana N19 as yet unnecessary. zee o. N, nl aa