The Jeffersonian Democrat. [volume] (Chardon, Ohio) 1854-1865, 1861-03-15
STATE OF THE UNION.
SPEECH OF
Hon. Edward Wade
UF UHIU,
lN THE House. OF REPRESENTATIVES,,
Febrnuru 9Th, 1861.

tho report of tho select committee of th stty.
three
Mr.. WADE said:
MIR. SPEAKER: Among tho multitrAo Of
thnso who have been disposed 10 contfkbu,o
their mlto to tho salvation of tho couif6y,
propose to cay few words, not in bohhlf of
that fiicult. and thus far insoubie, problem.
but to nsk our friends, who arc so eager to
mako concessions and sacrifices for the
preservation of the Union. what they will
have obtained when they have saved II. Sir,
q salvation that docs not last moro than
| three, five, seven, or ten ycare, is hardly
/ worth a struggle, as 1t Seoms to mt, and no
measure which has yet been brought for
ward for saving the Union, has, in my jude
mcnt, been at all adequate to that end You
may mako all the concessions that are ask cd
for by my friend from Indiana. Mr.. Porter.
who preceded mo, rs q panacea that will
eivo health and strength and vitality to the
Union and yet, when YOU havo saved" it,
by his method, it will be really no better
than it now is. There is nothing whatever
yet proposed by any committee, or by any
individual, which strikes at the root Of the
evil, Sir, a Urion that may. at any momenr,
be destroyed by dsaffcc,ed and turbulent
men, declaring, in a convention, that the
State OF which they arc citzens Is out OF the
Union, is no Union at all. 1t does not oven
amount to as much as q tenancy at will at
common law, where tho landlord is required
to give elk months notice before tho tenancy
cau be dissolved. But this process of se-
cession Is preparatory to the destruction OF
tho most glorious and bonignaut Govern
mcnt ever formed by the genius and patriot
ism OF man. No proposition has been
| % fnr mi r6 hy nnu .f aalx 81
committees. so far rs know, that oven c0li-
templates the giving of notice of u blow
which is to blot out forever the noblest plan
ot Government ever devised by tho genius
and patriotism of tho human race. Why,
sir, we may reconstruct this Union to.
morrow, by granting all the concessions the
gentleman from indiana proposes, and ten
times more added thereto and the day
after to morrow, by convention in u slave
State the thing may be rcmorselessly disscv-
erUd and become mere dust and ashes and
| disionted bones
Mr.. PORTER. differ from my friond
Just there. think that If wo put down
these mon now who menace the overthrow
of the Union, in two hundred wears such
ano her class of men will not rise.
Mr.. WADE. Well, hope that two hun.
drcd thousand years will not produce cx-
actly such another raco. Laught,r.l
have 70 idea that tho current of nature W i'll
be changed by any of our efforts 10 prop up
this Union. When you have saved the
| Union, South Carolina will be in it again. !
suppose. II you over lived in tho country.
ynu have seen, us have, flock of unruly
| sheep bounding over fence, ono leading
| tho way at one bound. and tho whole flock
! following nf,er; and so it would DO again
with South Carolina and tho now scceded
slave States.
Now, sir, what is all this struggle for
What is it worth Ispeak to mon of judg-
nent nnd to men of sense. Why, sir. We
had salvation no longer ago than 1854
was hcrc aud was in the midst of that s,rug-
| gle to save tho Union. II was tho first OK
pcvionce had of these great strugglcs for
salvation. We were told then, that this
| Union was to be forever perpetuated; that
now this hated Missouri restriction upon
slavery north of 80 deg. 80 min., wOs re.
moved, there was to come ,nillopnium in
politics. We woro told then, by hundreds
of speakers in Congaess, and by thousands
of orators out Of Congress, that there never
was to be another inharmonious note uttered
GO far as tho safety o. tho Union was con.
cerDod. But that salvation proved vain
dUuItlDl, uuu tio NOlCe Vi anu
discomfort and unsubmissiveness rang
throughout the land. even while these songs
OF delivcranco were being sung by the party
that has been in power from that time Ia
tho present. They told US that that devil
of slavery agitation had boon cast out. And
now ask every rejecting mind to state to
us, candidy and frankly, what we are doing
OF proposing to do, that has the slightest
tendency to euro this infrmity of our old
Constitution, framed by class Of men Of
whom it may we'll be said, "there were giants
in those days !" And yet, thoy could not
framo aConstitution which We pigmies can
not tear down and scatter to tho winds in u
single month. Sir. scout this whole idoa
of compromise and concession. l can re.
member when, in my boyhood, as far back
as 1921, wo wcro assured that tho Union
was sayed-saved by concessions on the
part of tho people of tho FREQ States. / can
remember what rejoicings there wero that
tho Union was thon saved. Now, let any
man take careful Wow of the question, in
its various bearings, and ho will find that
slavery is under an eternal necessity of con.
cessiou. II cannot be preserved, or con-
| tinued, or extended, without wearing away
the foundations of freedom. When you
attempt to restrain it. you find that il is a
necessity which admits of no constraint. II
you give freedom to the press, and let it
attack slavery, slavery would bo gradually
and peacefully set aside in every slave State
Allow liborty Of speech on the subject, md
tho institution of slavery would bo under
mined, and would 60 down gradually. Nay
sir, il you allow men in the slave States IA
enjoy those rights that arc enjoyed in the
free States, slavery could not endure for 8
quarter of century. 1t would bo peace.
ably put down by tho masses, against whose
free labor tho labor of slaves comes into
ruinous competition.
Mr.. Speaker, let me speak little further
on tho right of secession; for look upon
/ that MS the Fundamental error in the theories
of our southern friends. If that right exists
at all, il exists at all times and under every
circumstance-in oyery condition of the
country. In peace and in war. And even
now, sir, wo may be in the midst of war
war that is necessary for our existence as
nation undor this pernicious dogma of the
right of secessionists aud we need all the
strength of tho whole nation to rosist our
enemies, who are practising under this great
hereSy And yet, sir, if secession DO right
it is right in time of war as much as il j:
10 time OF peace. There Is no reason why q
State may not secede and make separate
treaty with the enemy at any time; surron
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