The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1861-01-19
p,ssoIurros su,crpAI.

/ f.
generals and Iowa conviction. HoH could itbe
otherwise, Act instead of only thirteen, the
county is now composed of thirty-three pArts,
and the empire esmbfaces, instead Of only four
millions, no less than thirty millions of inhabi
tantsf The founders of the Constitution, more.
J over, regarded the Union as no mere national or
| American interest. On the contrary, they con-,
fessed with deep isensibiity that it seemed to
! them to have been reserved for the people of
| this country to decide whether societies of men
are really capable of estabshii g good govern
| ments upon reflection and choice, or whether
they are forever destined to depend for their po-
litical constitutions OH accident and force.
They feared, therefore, that their failure to
continue and perfect the Union would be mis-
| fortune to the nations. How much more, sir,
would its overthrow now be q calamity to man
kind9 8 e. -9t st.. 49,. ~ .5
Some form of Government is indispensable
here as elsewhere. Whatever form we have,
| every individual citizen and every State must
cede to it some natural right, to invest the Gov
| eminent with the requisite power. The simple
question:, therefore, is for now to decide, while
laying aside all pique, passion, and prejudces,
| whether it conduces more to the interests uf the
people Of this country, for the general purposes
of peace and war, commerce, inland and foreign,
postal communications at home and abroad, the
| care and disposition of the public domain, colo
| nization, the organization and admission. of new
| States, and generally the enlargement of empire,
to continue one nation under our present Con-
stitution, than it would be to divide themselves
| into separate confederacies or States. Our couu
try remains now as it was in 1887, composed not
of detached and distinct territories, but OF one
whole well connected and fertile region, living
within the temperate zone, with climates and
soils hardly more various than those of France
l ,lv eli yhf al,
| plifes manufactures and commerce. Our rivers
and valleys, as improved by art, furnish US
system of highways unequaed in the world
NO 1RREPREsslBLE CONFLICT BETwEEN FREE AND
| SLAVE LABOR
The different forms of labor, if slavery we're
not perverted to purposes OF political ambition,
| need not constitute an element of strife in the
ContedeTacy. Notwithstanding recent vehement
| expressions and manifestations of intolerance in
some quarters, produced by intense partisan ex-
citement, we are, in fact, homogeneous people,
chiefly Of one stock, with accessions well us>irn-
lated. We have practically only one language
one religion, one system of government, and
manners and customs common to ALL WHY,
| then, shall We not remain henceforth, as hither-
| to, one people?
SECURITY THE FIRST OBJECT OF SOCIETY.
| The first object of every human society is Sc
|
and they must sacrifice every other. This secu-
| rity is of two kinds; one, exemption from for
| egn aggrcssions and influence; the other, ex-
| empt from domestic tyranny and sedition. For
| eign wars come from either violations of trea-
| ties or domestic violence.
OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS.
| The Union has thus far proved itself an al
most perfect shield against such wars The U.
States, continually enlarging their diplomatic ac
quaintance, have now treaties with France, the
Netherlands, Great Britain, Sweden, Prussia,
Span Russia, Denmark Mexico, Brazil, Austria,
| Turkey, Chill, Siam, Muscat Venezuela, Peru,
Greece, Sardinia, Ecuador, Hanover, Portugal,
| New Granada, se-Cassel, Switzerland, Meek
lenberg, Schwerin, Wurtemburg, China, Bava-
| ria, Saxony, Nassau, Guatemala, the Hawaiian
Islands, San Salvador, Borneo, Costa Rica Ere-
men, the Argentine Confederation, Loo Choo,
Japan Brunswick Persia, Baden Belgium and
| Paraguay.
Nevertheless, the United States within their
entire existence under the Federal Constitution,
| have had fragrant wars with only four States two
of which were insignificant powers on the coast
OF Barbary, and have had direct hostilities
amounting to reprisals with only two or three
more, and they are now at peace with the whole
| world. ., ....-.... IL. .
DIsUNIoN WOULD GREATLY INCREASE THE DANGERS
| OF FOREIGN WAR.
If the Union should be divided into only two
Coniederacies, each OF them would need to make
az many treaties as we have now, and of course
would be liable to give as many causes for war
us we now do Bat we know, from the sad ex-
perence of other nations, that disintegration,
once begun, inevitably continues until even the
greatest empire crumbles into many parts Each
confederation that shall ultimately arise out of
the ruin of the Union, will have necessity for as
,n,,-t tpc h.. 4
bities for war as often as we now do by break
ing them. 1t is the multiplication of treaties
and the want of confederation that makes war
the normal condition of society in Western Eu-
rope and in Spanish America.
PEACE DEPENDENT ON POWER.
1t is union that, notwithstanding our world
| wide intercourse, makes peace the habit of the
| American people. will not descerd so low as to
ask whether new confederacies would be able or
| willing to bear the grievous expense of maintain
| ing the diplomatic relations which cannot be dis
pensed with except by Withdrawing from foreign
| commerce. Our Federal Government is better
able to avoid giving just cause for war than sew
eral confederacies, because it can conform the
action OF all the States to compacts. 1t can have
only one construction, and only one tribunal to
pronounce the construction of every treaty Lo-
cal and temporary interests and passions or per-
soial cupidity and ambition, can drive small con.
tederaces or States, more easily than great Re-
public, into indiscreet violations of treaties The
United States being great and formidable pow.
er, can always secure favorable and satisfactory
treaties. Indeed every treaty we have was vol
unfairly made. Small confeseracies or States,
must take such treaties as they can get and give
| whatever treaties cxacted.
| A humiIiating or even unsatisfactory treaty is
chronic cause of foreign war; The chapter of
wars resulting from urjustifable causes, would,
IN case of DIVISION amplty itself in proportion to
the number of new confederacies and their irri.
| liability.
Our disputes with Great Britain about Oregon,
the boundary of Maine, the patriot nsurrection
in Canada and the Island of San Juan, the Dor
der stries between Texas and Mexico, the incur
| sons of the late William Walker into Mexico md
| Central America; all these were cases in which
war prevented only by the impeturbabilitv
| of the Federal Government. This Government
not only gives fewer causes of war, whether lust
or unjust, than smaller confederacies would, but
it always has greater ability to accommodate
them by the exercise OF more GOODNESS and cour-
| age; the use of more various and more liberal
| means, and the display, if need be, of greater
| force. Every one knows how pacable we our
| selves are in controversies with Great Britain
| France and Spain, and yet how exacting we have
been in our Intercourse with New Grenada Par
| aguay and San Juan de Nicaragua.
THE SAFETY OF EACH OF THE STATES THE SAFETY
| OF ALL.
Mr.. President, no one will dispute our forcfa
Tiers maxim that the common safety of all is the
safety of each of the States. While they remain
united, the Federal Government combines all the
materials and all the forces of the several States
organizes their deences on one general principle
harmonizes and assimilates them with one sys-
TEN; watches for them with a single eye, which
it turns in all directions, and moves all agents
under the control of one executive head ma
ton constituted is safe against assault or even
insult War produces alw vs. speedy exhaus-
ton of money and severe strain upon credit
The treasures and credits of small confederacies
would often prove inadequate. Those of the
Union are always ample
| DOMESTIC HosrILITIEs OF THE DIsUNITED STATES.
| | have thus far kept out of view the rel tions
! which must arise between the Coniederacies
themselves They would be small and inconsid-
cradle nations, bordering each other, and
therefore, according To all political philosophy,
natural enemies In addition to the MANY trea-