Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1861-02-01

land. L KNOW that you anAlOuSly ueslre
to ascertain what these rights and inter-
ests are, and hoio you can most efficient
ly guard the one and promote the other.
Under this belief | take the liberty of
presenting the following suggestions. l
hope you WILL at your earliest convent
ence, maturely consider them. If any
Of them meet your approval, | shall feel
gratified. If you differ with the views
| present, then | shall feel far less conf
dent of the correctness of my own opinions.
First.-Fivc States-South Carolina,
Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and Flo
rida-having actually seeded, and with
drawn from Congress their ten Senators
and twcnty-seven representatives, the
sectional party which elected Abraham
Lincoln have now majority in both
branches of the National Legislature,
and, after the fourth of March next, that
sectional party will have the power to
pass such laws as they may see proper.
They may abolish the present federal ju-
dietary, establish new system and APP
point new judges may abolish slavery
in the District of Columbia /; and create
a standing army of such number as they
may think sufficient to prevent Maryland
and other border slave States from re-
sisting the injustice of any part of their
anti-slavery policy
I Second. livery other southern State,
except Maryland, seems to have declared
the present to be an " extraordinary &C.
castor" which required the deliberate
action of their people to remedy present
or prevent future evils. Virginia, Ken
lucky, North Carolina, Missouri, Ten
nessee, Delaware, Arkansas, Louisiana
and Texas have all either actually called
sovereign conventions of the people, or
their Legislatures have been convened
: aud are about to call such conventions,
in order that their people may have an
f opportunity of deciding as to their own
: future destiny.
/ Third Unless Congress speedily a.
| dopts the Crittenden resolutions, or some
other plan of Cancellation of similar
: Import, it is almost certain that every
e State south Of the Ohio and Potomac
! will secede from the present Union be-
e fore the 4th day of March, 1861. There
seea's Ouch plan OF sotile@ aef success GEES
81 Of seifore, there is great danger of such
, secession of thirteen southern States.
Fourth Should Virginia, Kentucky
1 and the other States south of the Poto-
9 mac and the Ohio secede from the pre-
sent Union and form southern confcde-
: racy, Maryland will have to decide (and
promptly whether she will join such
southern confederacy, or unite herself
with the free States of the North. 1t
may happen that the separation now pro-
JaJty about to be made will not be a
peaceable one. d" Coercion seems to be
the favorite word in the most recent ca
binet councils at Springfield
Should Maryland unite her fortunes
with Mr.. Lincoln and the eighteen free
States, every citizen of our State would
owe allegiance to a nation at war with
Virginia and the rest of the South. We
would be bound, under the penalty Of a
traitors doom, to render such service as
our government might require Of us 10
the prosecution of such war The Po-
tomac would be the dividing line, and
Alarylanders would have to meet there,
sword in hand, regiments of Virgnians
men who had done them no injustice,
against whom they had no cause of com
plant, and with whom, more than any
other people, they had been most closely
allied, from the days of the revolution
to the present time, on the battle field
in business relations, and by ties Of
friendship and Of blood.
Should Maryland unite her fortunes
with the South, we may have to meet at
Mason and Dixon line, regiments Of
Pennsylvanians.
This is the alternative which may be
forced upon us.
Some timid Cor prudent) men have
suggested that due regard to her sqfefy
should require Maryland to 20 with the
North. This seems to me but super
fetal view Of the question. If, against
our wishes and prayers, the present
Union is dissolved, and war ensues be-
tween a Northern and Southern Confede-
racy, the geographical position of Mary
land makes her battle ground, whether
she joins the North or the South. The
Potomac is little more Of natural pro-
lection than Mason and Dixon's Line
and if the descendants of the old % Ma
ryland Line " (the Spartans of the Revo
lution) could stop TO debate the question
Of where was the less danger, it would be
decided by answering the inquiry whetl-
er there was the greater danger from
facing aregiment Of Pennsylyanians or
regiment Of Virginans If MARYLAND
goes with the South, the capitol Of the
Southern Confederacy may remain at
Washington. IF she goes with the
North, it will not remain there single |
year, as no nation would decide to locate
its scat Of government and its public
archives within cannon shot of hostile |
country, aud put its chief executive
whore be could not 90 to bed on any
night without fear Of finding bomb-sheil |
in his chamber before sunrise the next
morning.
Fyth.-Apart from any consideration
as to relative personal danger, the poo
pie of Maryland, in selecting between
Northern or a Southern alliance, would I
be attracted to the latter by their coas- !
mcrcidl and pec,miary interests.
Every landholder in Marylandis more
or less interested in the growth and pros
peri.y Of Baltimore Double her popu- ]