Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-07-06
BY TELEGRAPH.
SYNOPSIS OF
LINCOLN'S MESSAGE.

ton, other forts were built. armies organizes
and being organized svowedly hostile. The FEEDER
al forts in these States were bsseiyed or menaced
| A disproportiOnste amount of arms and munition
had somehow found their way into the rebelliOu
| States. Accommodations Of National revenues with
| in the rebel borders had been seized. The Fedora
Navy was scattered, Federal army and Navy officers
had resigned in great numbers ordinances declaring
separation had passed, and these States under the
title of Confederates were applying to foreign pow
ers for recognition and assistance. The incoming
Administration believed it 10 be Its imperative duty
| to prevent the threatened dismembermant. The
| indispensable policy chosen was indicated in the
! inaugural address-being the exhaustion Of all
peaceful measures before resort to coercion, the
Government seeking only to hold the public
places and property unWrested, and the collection
Of its revenue, relying upon time, discussion and
the baotbox for the rest, promising, in the mean
time, a continuance of mails. Everything was for
borne compatible with keeping the Government on
foot. On the 4th Of March a letter was
received from Major Anderson, in command
Of Fort Sumter, stating that the place
could not be held. After consultation Gen. Scott
conceded that the force at the disposal of the Gov
eminent was not adequate for Sumter's relief with
out immediate victualling. The Administrations
duty was reduced to safe withdrawal of the GAR
Iison. IL was believed, however, that the abandon
ment Of Sumter would be utterly ruinOus that the
action would be misunderstood, discouraginR tie
friends Of the Union embOldening the enemy and
encouraging the recognition of the COnfederates
abroad IN fact that would be national destruction
This course was unbelievable. Previous to Sum
ters starvation, PIckens might be reinforced indi-
eating the policy of the Administration, and pre-
pairing the public mind for Sumter's evacuation as
8 military necessity Orders were Immediately
issued for the reinforcement of Fort Pickens. Or
ders impossible by land were sent by sea- The first
return 10 the order was received week before
Sumter's fall The Brooklyn, under Buchansn's
quasi armistce. refused to land troops to reinforce
Pickens. Before the crisis could be reached at
Sumter, to prevent Sumter's evacuation, and before
the reinforcement of Pickens the Government
planned expedition to victual Sumter TO be used
or not as circumstances might require. Contingent
cies required the consummatioE of the plan, and
Gov. Pickens notified that if the vietualng was
unrestricted no attempt would be made to throw in
men, arms or munitions without notice.
The fort was taken without waiting the ar
rival Of the victualing expedition, thus the
attack on Sumter was IN no sense in selfdefense.
The assaiants knew that in no event would Sumter
be mlschleVOus-were notified that relief Of hungry
men was the only object, and that the Government
only wished to maintain nominal possession of the
fort, thus preserving the Union from dissolution
trusting to time, discussion and the ballot box for
final adjustment. The fort was assailed with the
object to drive out visible Federal authority forcing
an immediate dissolution.
This the Executive understood, and having in the
inaugural said, 'You shall have no conflict without
being yourselves the aggressors," Lincoln took
pains TO keep this declaration good II the ciTcnu-
stances surrounding the Sumter affair. Then and
there the Confederates began the conflict They
have forced upon the country destructive issue of
immediate dissolution or blood. Embracing more
than the fate Of the UniOn it solves the question
whether Peoples Government can maintain the
integrity of its territory against domestic foes,
whether individuals too few to control the Admir-
istratlon by organic law can break up the Govern
ment, thus ending free Government on the earth.
Ii forces this question: must the Government be too
strong for the peoples liberty or too weak to main
tain its own existence? No choice was lef: butte call
out the war power of the Government to resist the
force employed for its destruction. The response
TO the call surpassed the most sanguine expecta-
tons, Delaware alone however, of the slave States
responding. A few slave State regiments have been
raised by individual enterprise, and accepted. The
border states were not uniform in action. The
course taken by Virginia was the most remarkable
and important. The Convention to consider this
question in session when Sumter fell, with large
Union majorty,went over and carried the State out
Ofthe Union, made extensive military Preparations,
seized Federal property, received large
bodies of Confederate troops, entered in
to treaty with the CO1federates sent
Representatives to the Confederate Councils, and
permitted the insurTecuonary government to be
transferred to Nirginia's capitol. Other Border
States favor armed neutrality. that srming TO pre-
vent Union and Disunion troops from occupying the
soil. This would b. disuniOn complete, tguratiys-
y it would be building impossible walls along the
line Of separation, yet under the guse Of neutrali
y
insurrectOniss, taking all the trouble from
sion hands except what arises from the external
blockade and would give malcOntents disunion with
out struggle of their own. ItrecOgnizes no deli-
ty TO the Constitution. No obligation to maintain
the Union, while many loyalists favor it, il is very
INJURIOUS.
Recurring to the action of the Government he
says it first called out $4,000 men, then proclaimed
q blockade. The insurrectlonists announced their
determination to prlyateer. The Government then
ILL Awa
army and navy. Measures were veEtured upon
under popular demand and public necessity, trust
ing to congressional ratification. Il soon after con-
sidered it duty to authorize the commanding Gen
era to suspend the writ Of hqbeas corpus where the
public safety required it. This was necessary to
the execution Of the laws The continuance of this
law, made in such extreme tenderness of the
citizens liberty, practically relieved more Of the
guilty than the innocent.
To state the question more directly, are all the
laws but one to be unexecuted and the Government
90 to pieces lest one be violated but it believed
that the suspension Of the hobedS corpus was not IN
constitutional. FOrbearance has been so extraor-
binary and long continued as to induce Foreign
Nations to shape their action the suppOSition Of
an early dissolution. The Administration was con-
cerned, but is now happy to state that the soYe-
reignty Of the Union everywhere is practically re
spected. Sympathy with the Government is mani
tested throughout the world. The Secretary's
will give detailed information. The Executive
essay to guide deliberations. The President
recommends the adoption of measures to make the
contest short and deeisiYe-that you place at the
Governments disposal at least 400 5000 men and
$4OO 100000 of money. That number of men
is about One-tenth of available men within the will
ling region and that sum the twenty third part of
the wealth of the men who seem to be willing to
devote their all. Six hundred millions would be a
less debt per head than the revolutionary proper
ton. Surely, the motive now is strong as it was
then. A right result now will be worth to the
world ten times the men AID ten times the money.
Legislative sanction is only necessary material for
work Is abundant.
The greatest Government perplexity has been the
avoidance of receiving men faster than prepared.
The people viii save their Government if the Gov
eminent bears its part Of the duty while percep-
tbly there is but little difference between Secession
and Revolution. the movers knew they could never
raise their treason to respectability by name i'm
plying violation of law. They could only adj
vance Indirectly in the teeth Of the noble
sentiments of the people. They commenced an
insidious debauck of public sentiment in
vented Ingenious sophisms, which, if con-
sidered logically, followed all incidents
to the destruction Of the Union. The sOphism is a
legal peaceful withdrawal without the Unions cen
sent, thus sugar-cOating rebellion. The public mind
has been drugged during 80 years. and good men
are N arms against the Government. The sOphsm
derives currency from the assumption Of some ON
nipotent supremacy Pertaing TO a State.
States have neither more nor less. than reserved
power, no one Of them being a State out of the
Union. The original ores passed into the Union
before casting off British colonial dependence and
new ones came in from condition of dependency
even Texas during her temporary independence,
was never recognized as State. The word Sow
ereign State is not in the Constitution nor as is be-
leyed in any State Constitution