Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-02-26

and his surrender at no distant day certain and In
evitabe, Gen. Gates having been appointed in his
place, stepped IN and reaped where he had not
sown, and got al the credit of what was iustlv due
to Washington AID Schuyler for the surrender at
Saratoga. Botta says of Schuyler" SCHUYLER him
self, that able General and devoted patriot whose
long services had only been repaid by long migrate
tude, escaped not the serpentGongue OF calumny.
As the friend OF the New Workers, he was no favo-
rite with the inhabitants of New England. and the
latter were those who aspersed him with the most
bitterness. Gen. Schuyler himself in l777 wrote
to Gouverneur Norris the reason for his dispace-
ment-' My crime consists in not being New Eng
land man In principle; and unless they change theirs
hope l never shall be. Gen Gates is their idol
because he is at their directon.-SparLs' Life of
Norris, Vol. 1st p. l43.
No sooner mad Burgoyne's surrender taken place
than cabals were commenced, looking to the deposi-
ton of Washington, with the ayowed object of put
ting Gates IN his place. In Congress and through
out the Northern States, the intrigues were carried
Let US again see what Botta says of the origin
| of the luminosity towards Washington: 1t was.
| moreover, believed at the time that tie members
of Congress from Massachusetts, and particularly
| Samuel Adams, mad never been able TO brook that
the supreme command Of all the armies should have
been conferred upon Virginian to the exclusion of
Generals OF their province &c.-See Bohd Vol. I'd,
p. 399 But the army would not hear of the project
| Gen. Conway was in consequence challenged and
! shot In the mouth by Gen. Cadawalader, and
| Samuel Adams Aad to keep out of the way of the
| army. See BolG, p. 40l. Nothing, however would
do but Gates must be put in command of the South
! ern army, displacing for him the able veteran De
halb Gates thorough incompetency shown
| at Camden. where he suffered two thousand troops
to get his six thousand between two morasses, and
most signally defeat bim-De Kabl's command
standing their ground till he fell pierced with eleven
| wounds.
The writer has now before him the most interest
ing and curious Travels IN North America in the
17S0-tS1-is2 nv the MqP0uiS De (haatallux
| The Marquis Major-Gene-al in the French
| army under the Count De Rochambeau. There ia
peasanter book Of gossip and incident to be found
He shows that the antipathy between the Northern
and Southern men in the army such that sol
diers and officers from the two sections would not
mess together. And also that the same repugnance
existed among the members OF Congress- In giving
parties at Philadelphia, the Marquis at page 107,
tells US the members Of Congress divide them
selves into two sets, and as we very geographic
cally; the line Of demarkation being from East to
West" The Marquis travels were published in
l767 In note the above cited passage it said:
There is greaE probability of seeing this line Of
demarkation distinctly marked by a separation
of the Federal Union into tlco parts no very dis
tant day; but not on hostile unfriendly terms.
This was matter of frequent discussion during my
stay at Philadelphia, and seemed to be an opinion
which was daily gaining ground Indeed, it seems
to be measure which, sooner or later, must take
place, from the obvious difficulties attending the
management and operations of Confederocy
tending from Florida to Nova Scotia; country every
day increasing in population and branching out
into new States Such a division must, in my opin-
ion, give new force and energy to each part of 1t,
and produce union and activity in their coun-
cils nor do see any bad consequences arising from
such amicable separation, except in the case of
| a exactly similar to the last; which
believe every man will agree is scarcely within the
line Of possibility. Local obstacles to long con-
tnuance of the present state of things must alone
nfallibly produce it. They who are acquainted with
America will add many reasons which it is unneces
sary for me to enumerate." See TrdUeLs Of Mar>
| quis of O., p los.
1t needs not that we speak of the entire failure
of the Confederacy--of its weakness, of its utter
inability to enforce any law it might pass. Its-rad
ical defects were that acted on States only, with
| the power of coercng obedient desgnedly with
held, and also in the want of Executive head and
| Judicial hands. 1t was body without head, arms
| or legs; it could neither stand nor walk take
hold, command nor thTeaten it could only lie upon
its back supne inanty exciting the pity of friends
| the contempt and derision of enemies. That which
was established in l777 perpetual Union was
not suffered to drag out feeble existence of more
| than some ten or twelve years.
We intend not 70 go into any detail in regard to
| that series of compromises and concessions which
! finally enabled the Convention of 1857 TO propose
the Constitution of the United States for adoption
and ratification by the people of the various States
By locking into the Debates of that most august
body, with the greatest man that ever lived as its
CHAIRMAN, the reader Will perceive LnaL every pro-
VISION almost IN the instrument agreed upon. from
the beginning phrase, ave, the people of the United
States" to the concluding article, the ratification
of the conventions of nine States shall be sufficient
for the establishment of this Constitution between
the States so rati fying the same" met with most de-
termined opposition. Scarcely any important pro-
vision that not adopted by bare majority, ex-
cept the rendition of fugitives from service. This
was passed unanimously. 1t needs not that we ask
| how has it been iIept2
rI.,l, to frrrOA -
show that the difficulties grew out of the fixed de-
termination, on me part of the Northern members,
to agree to noth lg that would not enable them to
control the government for their interests and
to keep the South forever in subsection, possible,
to the North. This, single passage from speech
of Rufus King, delegate from Massachusetts, will
| abundantly prove. "Hc remarked that the four
Eastern States, having 100000 souls. having one
third fewer representatives than the four Southern
States. having not than 100, 600 souls, rating
the blacks as five for three. The Eastern people
will advert to these circumstances and be dssatis
fed He believed them TO be very desIrOus Of uni
ting with their Southern brethren, but did not think
it prudent to RELY far that disposition as to
subject them to any gross inequality. lie was fully
convinced that the question concerning difference
of interests did not lie where it had hitherto been
discussed, between the great and small States, but
betloeen the SGlk 5T1 and Eastern For this reason,
he had been ready to yield something in the proper
ton of representatives for the security Of the
Southern But no principle would justify the giving
them majority. Mddison'S Debates, p. 1857.
Listen also to the blunt avowal on the part of the
North, that they had wish TO form the Union but
from selfish sectional interests. Mr. Gorham, the
able delegate from Massachusetts says! "He desir-
red it to be remembered, that the Eastern
States had no motive TO a Union but COM
n1erciGI one. They were able to protect them
selves. They were not afraid of external danger,
and did not need the aid OF the Southern States =
Debates, p 1897.
And that the government they had form
ed had so many elements of discord
in it that it could not last long as they themselves
felt shall also cite another remark OF the plain
spoken Mr.. Gorham to prove. In speaking OF
the fear that Congress would become too numer-
GUS body, he said-"It is not to be supposed that
the Government will last so long as 70 produce this
effect. Can 1t be supposed that this vast country.
including the W stern Territory will, one hundred
and fifty years hence, remain one nation. -DsbGes,
p.l 263.
And how did sagacious, thoughtful members of
the Convention from the South regard the new gov
eminent? Let US see. Mr., Butler, of South Caro-
lima, sSid-"He considered the interests OF the
Southern States and of the Eastern, to be differ
ent as the intere IS of Russia and Turkey. Being
notwithstanding, DESTROYS of conciliatirg tho afeo-
lions of the East RI States, he should vote against
requiring two-thlrds instead Of majority See
Debates, p. 1853.
COL Mason of Virginia, said-"If the government
is to be lasting it must be founded in the confidence
and affections Of The people, and must be so cOnstru
ed to obtain these The majority VIII be governed
by their interests. The Southern States are in the
minority in both Houses Is to be expected that they
will deliver themselves, bound hand and foot, to the
Eastern States, and enable them to exclam in the
words of Cromwell, certain occasion-'the
Lord hath delivered them into our hands "-Sss
same page as Gbqus,
The Constitution thus formed was submitted to
the State Convention; and, meeting with violent
opposition it ratified by bare maJOriles IN each.
Had Washington not been alive, aud by tacit con-
sent understood to be the person who would be the
first President, and thereby inaugurate the expert
ment of the government, may very conf
IDENTIFY say no State would have acceded to the a
ion. But all had the most implicit confidence in
Washington, and we've willing to let him try the ex-
pertinent that ali felt must, in the end prove fail
. ure. And so, by the vote of the whole Electoral
College, he W as named first President. But that
Washington felt that the Union was detained to be
short-lived, is most patheteally evident from his
Farewell Address, SIS there doubt" he asks
"WhetheF common government can embrace Sc
large sphere? Let experience solve it. To listen
| tn mere sneculatiOn in such q were criminal