The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1861-05-06
MESSAGE OF THE PRESIDENT
OF THE
SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY
TO Tic Special Session of the Congress Con
vened MT Montgomery, April a9ti,, 1861.

10 'he sPeeial Session of the Congress Con
Sehea "t montgomery, April 29th, 1861.
GENTLEMEN OF THE CoNGREss.
1t is my pleasing duty to announcs 70 ,,ou a.. 4,
Constitution framed for the establishment Of nrernanne @
government oil the Confederate States has been rai6rd
by IN each of States to which it was
referred. To naugurate the poyernment in its I'll @ vas
portions ana upon its substantial basis of the ponn
lar II only remains that elections should be held for
the designation of the officers to administer it '0'
e[e Is every reason believe that at no distant dav
ote in political principles and commit
nity Of interests with those which you represent will ni
thls SoheueIacy giving to its typical constellation in
creasea spehuor-toi its government Free equal and
sovereign States wider sphere of usefnIness 70 .h
enus OF liberty greater security for its
harmonious and perpetual existence "
II was not however, for the purrose of ,aLi,n ,,;
announcement that have deemed it NV duty to con
roke you at an earlier day than that fixed by yourselves
for your meeting The declaration of war made agait
TINS Goniederacy by Abraham Lincoln the Presdent of
the United states in his proclamation issued on the f
eehlh ay oil present month rendered it necessary
IN my Judgment that you should convene at the earliest
practcaoe moment to devise measures necessary for
the defence of the country 0'
me occasion indeed extraordinary one It justi-
@ % ~ olei review Of the relations heretofore exist
ing between usand the States hch now unite in warfare
against us, and in succinct statement of the events
tiT T @ Ia @ esGea IN this warfare to the end that
motives and Objects 'e 04 10
During the war waged against Great Britain by her COL
ohieS on tns continent, common danger imueied them
toa close alliance and to formation OF
ny e terms oi which the Colonies styling themselves
states entered SsreTdiy into firm league Of frAndbin
with each other for hec common refence tbe sacnrt
their oerties and their mutual general welfare hind
ing themselves to assist other against Ali orca
to- or attacks made upon them or any Of them on act
sovereignty trade other pretence what
In order to guard against any misconstucton of their
compact ihe yeral States made explicit declaration in
distinct article, that each STATE rstois tc soyar
w. freedom and Independence, every power iurisdc
uon ana right which is not by this Confederation e
PTssy Ss delegated to the United States in Congress
Under this contract of alliance the war of the reyolu
" osc & waged and resrlted in the treaty
| Independent. Oa' " Oe
The articles of confederation contained clause wbera
ny an alterations We're prohibited unless confirmed bv
the legislatures of ersry State after being agreed to b
he Congress- and in obedience this provision under
the resolution Of Congress of the FEBRUARY 1887 the
several states appointed delegates who attended con-
venon for the sole and cypress purpose of revising the
articles OF confederation reporting to Congres and
te several Legislatures, such alterations and provisions
lhereln as snail when agreed to in Congress and com
rea oy me states render the Federal Constitution ade
dua 70 M e exg ences of government and the preserva
was by the delegates chosen by the several STATES
.e utlon just quoted, that the Constitution of
t e one Sates was framed in 1857, and submitted to
he Serer't States for rat cation shown by the 7b
article, which is in these words: - viz -"
h Ihs faheatiOn the Conrenons Of nine States shall
De suclent Tor the establishment of this Constitnion
BETWEEN the States so ratfying the same.r
haEe allcized certain W rds in the quotations lust
made Tor the purpose of attracting attention to the
lar and marked caution with which the states endeayor
eu IN every possible form, the idea that the
separate anu independent sovereignty of State was
merged into one and nation snd the
earnest desire they evnced impress on the Constu
oh IN lts true characterthat of compact BETWEEN in
dependent States. "
The Constitution Of 1887 having however omitted the
clause already rcited the articles of Conederaton
which provided in explicit terms that each State retained
It's sovereignty and independence some alarm was felt in
the States when invited ratify the Constitnton st
tnis omission should be construed into an
i .ei cherished principle and they refused to be salts
fled until amendments were added to the Constitntion
placing beyond pretence doubt the reservation h
tue states OF all their sovereign rights and powersnot
tOn - ~ "0ii'Ii'u-
Strange indeed appear to the impartial obar
Ver o9t IS none the less true all these carefully
woruea clauses proved unavaing prevent the rise and
growth IN the Northern States Of a political srbnnI
(which has persstently claimed that the tl
formed was not compact bettreen States but was in %
hauoha government, set up d60re and ouer the States
An organization created by the States secure the
blessings OF f4bery and Independence against for,ion a
gresson has been gradually perverted into a chine
Tor their control in their domestic affairs: the creGts
mas been exalted above its creators; the Urnc1Is have
been made subordinate to the agent appointed bv hs
selves - H
elusive occupation agriculture, early perceived n
tendency in the Northern States to render the common
government suoservieht to their purposes by i'm
% pn commerce as Drote cton to their
uacturlng and shipping interests Long and angry CON
roVeTsy grew out OF these attempts successful tn
benefit one section of the country at the exnense of o
oter and the danger of the disruption arising from this
cause was enhanced by the fact Northern popu
ation was Increasing by other causes in
greater ratio than the population of the South Ry
degrees as the Northern States gained preponderence in
the National Congress sefn taught their people To
yed ready assent to plausible vocacy their right
10 govern the minority without
learned to listen with mpatience the suggestion of an
constitutional impeachment the exercise of their
Will and so utterly have the principles the Constitu
ton been corrupted in the Northern mind that in tho
sugural address delivered by President Lincoln in March
last he asserts as an axiom which he plainly deems to be
uhaehaoe, iat he theory of the Constitution requires
that in 81! the majority shall govern; and in ano
not hesitate to Een relations between State and
Tue states to those which exist between a county
and the State in which is by which it was
created This the lamentable Fundamental error
on which rests the policy that has eliminated in his
ciaration of war against these Confederate States
In addition to the long continued and deep-seated re-
sentmeat iet by the Southern States at the persistent
abuse OF the powers they had delegated the Congress.
for the purpose of enrchng the manufacturing and shin
ping classes OF the North at the of the South
there has existed for nearly half century another SUBJ
jet of discord involving interests such ranscendent
magnitude, as at all times to apprehension in
the minds of many devoted lovers the Union that its
permanence was impossible.
When the several States delegated certain powers to
the United States Congress- large portion of the labor
ing popu ation consisted of African slaves imported into
the colonies by the mother country In twelve out of
thirteen States negro slavery existed and the right Of
property in slaves was protected by law This property
was recognized in the Constitution and provision was
made against its loss by the escape the slave The in
crease in The number of slaves by further importation
from Africa was also secured by clause orbdding Con-
to prohibit the slave anterior to certain
date and in clause there he delegation
Of pow er to the Congress authorizing il in any ~
egisae to the prejudice, deimen discourse of
the owners OF that species of property excluding
from the protection Of the Government.
The climate and soil the Northern States soon proved
unpropous to the continuance slave labor whilst the
converse was the at the South Under unrestrct
ed free intercourse between the sections the Northern
States consulted their interest by selling their slaves
to the south and prohibiting slavery within their limits
The South willing purchasers property suitable
to their wants and paid the price Of the acquisition with
out harboring suspicion that their quiet possession was
to be disturbed by those who inhibited not only by
want of constitutional authority, but by good faith as
vendors from disquieting title emanang from them
selves.
AS soon, however the Northern States that prohib
tied African slavery within their limits reached
number sufficient to give their representation control
Ilne Voe III ne congress, persistent and organized
system of hostile measures against the rights of own.
ers of slaves IN the Southern States naugurated and
gradually extended. y continuous series Of measures
devised and prosecuted for the purpose of rendering
insecure the tenure OF property ID slaves anatical organ
izations supplied with money by voluntary subscrip
tons assiduously engaged in exciting amongst the
slaves spirit of discomfort and revolt were fur
nlshed or ter escape from their owners, and agents
secretly employed to entice them abcond the consti
utiona provision for their rendition was
first evaded then openly denounced violation of con-
scentious obligations and religious duty; taught
that was merit to elude disobey and violently op-
pose the execution of the laws enacted 10 secure
the performance of the promise contained consu-
tonal compact; owners of slaves mobbed and even
murdered IN open Day solely for applying to magistrate
for the arrest Of fugitive slave; the these vol
untary organizations obtained control of the a-
lures OF many OF the Northern States, and laws
passed providing for the punishment by runous
long continued imprisonment in ails and penitentaries
citizens OF the Southern States, who should dare
ask aid of the officers of the law recovery their
property Embodened by success the theatre of agta-
on and aggression against the clearly expressed cons
uonal rights of the Southern was transferred to
the Congress- Senators and Representatives were sent to
| the common councils of the nation, whose chief
title to this distinction consisted in the display of
spirit OF ultra fanaticsm, and whose bus
| mess was, not "to promote the gen
eral welfare domestic IranuuiIlity but
to awaken the berest hatred against citizens Of sis
ter States by violent denuncation institutions
the transaction OF public affairs mpeded repeated
efforts to usurp powers delegated by Constitution
for the purpose of mpairing the security property in
slaves and reducing those States which held slaves to
condition OF inferority. Finally great party
ganzed for the of obtaining the administration
the government with the avowed object of using power
for the total exclusion Of the slave States from all partic
patton in the benefits of the public domain by
all the States in common whether by conquest pur
chase of surrounding them entirely by States in which
slavery should be prohibited of thus rendering prom
erty in slaves insecure to be comparatively worth
less and thereby annhlating in effect property worth
thousands of millions Of dollars This party thus organ
lied, succeeded in the month of November last in the
election of its candidate for the Presidency United
| States.
In the meantime, under the mild genial climate of
the Southern States and the increasing and
ton for the webeng and comfort the aboring class
dictated alike by interest and humanity, African
slaves had augmented abo ut 600 900 at
the date of the adoption of the Constitutional compact
to upwards of 100000. In moral social condition
they had been elevated from brutal savages doce
intelligent civilized agricultural aborers
piled not only with bodily comforts with careful
igous instruction Under the supervision superior
their labor had been directed only allow
gradual and marked dmeoratiOn of their condi-
ton, but to convert hundreds of thousands of square
miles Of the wilderness cultivated lands covered
with prosperous people, towns and cities had sprung
into existence, and had rapidly increased in
population under the social system of the South; the
white population of the Southern saveholdng States
had augmented from about $50. coo of the
adoption OF the Constitution, to than $500 900 in
1885, and the productions of the South in cotton
and tobacco for the full development tnu
which the labor Of African slaves was and is
| indispensable, had swollen to which formed
nearly hreefOurths Of the whole United
States and had become absolutely necessary the