The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1861-04-13

conceded. Time has been given for reflection
Appeals have been made 70 reason and to pa
triotism The Federal Government h is unresist.
ingly allowed itself to be defed, robbed, and
even warrcd upon. Nowiwe believe we can
safely say that thenceforward il will defend itself.
Let those who resist it take the consequence
1t il time that every man should determine
where he owes his allegiance. ~ 1taf = 4aH
A Plea for the southern Confederacy. 3,
At the request of the citizens; of Savannah,
NJ. Stephens, Vice President of the Confeder-
ate States, recently delivered an address in their
city, on the merits Of the new Constitution and
the future Of the new Republic. Such an utter
ance must be regarded as important. If any can
sue cessfully plead the cause of the South, he
surely must who stands second only among her
champions, and who has played prominent
part in the scenes which preceded the ordinance
of secession, and the adoption of new Consti-
tuition With these considerations, we have
read his speech, read it carefully, thinking per-
haps something might be found in it to mitigate
the sentence Of madness and guilt 50 persist
emily uttered upon the South by men of the
North. We turn from that perusal with pro
found sorrow, aud more than ever convinced
that the men who have hurried this fair Union
to the verge of destruction, stand among the
guiltiest Of those who as betrayers Of their
country have in oil ages been regarded with
aversion and contempt. The speech of Mr..
Stephens outrages humanity, perverts or con-
tradicts inspiration, and madly contemplates q
wide and lasting future for government origi.
mating in selfish ambition and fraud, and having
as its basis, the degradation of one race to the
basest ends of another The calmness and So
briefly with which these sentiments are uttered,
prove how deep pseated the madness is The first
part of his speech was devoted to an enumera-
tion of the advantages of the new Constitution
over the old-jnvolving of course differences Of
opinion, such as more liberal tariff, more
equitable provision for internal Improvements
the right Of Cabinet Ministers, heads of Depart
ments to participate in discussions upon their va
rous policies-the extension of the Presidential
term, and the impossibility of any reelection to
that Office. He then proceeds to state the fun
damental element in the new construction. He.
does IT in terms such as would lead US to antici-
pate some glorious discovery in connexion with
human rights and liberties, lis great trmh-a
physical, philosophical and moral trpth-slow in
its development like other scientific truths, a
truth in strict conformity to Nature and the oroi
nances Of Promidsace-tbe granite 'sstonen--which
the first builders rejected, but which they have
made the "chief stone of the corner,n what is
it' It is the total and perpetual slavery of the
negror race. This is the sober announcement of
the Vice President This is the foundation, of
model Republic in the lsth Century Mr.. s
quietly assumes that the negro is inferior and
designed in the order of Gods Providence to
just such doom as he suffers at the South He
does not attempt to argue it, he does not know.
exactly how it comes to pass that one race of
men should be the slaves of the other-he sat.
isfied himself and his hearers by an indefinite
reference to some botched handiwork of nature,
and the curse pronounced on Canaan. i.t "a
Mr. s. admits that the Negro is a man. If so,
how much of man If any, he must possess
all the capabilities of a man for the present and
the future. If man, he shares in the paternal
regards of the Infinite Benefactor and lays
claim to all his temporal and spiritual benefits.
How would that Being of unfathomable love re-
gard the brutal sentiment to which the audience
gave their applause ''The civilization and chris
tainization of the tribes of Africa will never be
attained but by FIRST teaching them ''that by the
sweat Of thy brow shalt thou eat bread" How
to be taught with whips and tortues-civih.
zed by being Observation-Disclosures by be-
ing denied the power to learn and know, and
taught to herd as brutes do, so that the masters
might profit Ard this is the corner stone OF
the State We have given the Vice Presidents
own words, and in malice mistated nought--
Space forbids our commenting upon the gimpses
of the future as lie Caught them," but of this
we are sure that the world is not learning but
uslearniag tho guilty follies for which he con
tends, and that If history may be relied on as d
teacher, a state Or q nation having human
slavery as one Of its fundamental principles, is
destined to fall by internal struggles, and come
to an end full Of ignominy and blood. = 4. .'.. y.
WWe keep standing in our paper q list oi
Illinois Banks, the notes of which are received
by our Burlington Banks. As we have already
several times remarked, the Illinois currency II
not redeemable. The Banks that issue it are
not required to redeem at all in any thing
sll 100, 900 of this paper is in circulation The
only currency it has to make it GO is the fact
that Chicago and Burlington Banks and Broker
take it. But they are not under any obligationi
to take it, legal Or moral. They can only handle
it when they pay it out again. A. long as the
people take il of them and keep It a6oat all goe,
we'll. Whenever the notes Of any one or more
accumulate in their hands-whenever they car
only receive and are unable to pay out the note'
| of any.of these Banks, by reason of the public
distrust, they at once throw them out and refust
to receive tteir paper except at heavy discount
Chicago Bankers cannot Of course, carry clever
millions of irredeemable currency, nor the hal
of it. -
Oar readers see upon what slender thread
hangs all this immense amount Of currency. tn,
| only security for its redemption is the Stat.
Stocks pledged and in the custody Of the Stat.
authorities At Springfield. Nobody Is required
10 redeem this paper, Nobody is compelled t
take it. OF course it isatthe mescy-and thos,
who hold II are At the mercy Of the Brokers'
They put it Up to-day and down tomorrow.
Is q harvest for. .them.s Ofcourss they win maxi
the most Of It. Men generally pursue the oours,
thstpays the best-tlle one that yields the lArges
per centage Of profit Could they ask bsttel
| 6siA NJ otefati0ns or richer harvest? N3NH