Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1862-01-24
INAUGURAL ADDRESS
Gentlemen of the Senate and 7r,'.'.
-.-.I. House of ReDreseRt

| 1ent(enleN or th6 Sendte ana ..
! -,-.r. House of Representatives
AS this is the first time in the history G
our State that the same person has been twic
elected to the Office, the duties of which
have for the second time just assumed, AM
as the transmission to you of Message IL
writing, communicating the condition OF tn
State and recommending such matters a
seemed to me eXpedient was among the las
of the official acts of my first term of service
it was for some time a question with M
whether it was proper for me in commencin;
my second term to conform to the custom
heretofore acted on by incoming Governor
Of delivering an Inaugural Address. Upol
reflection, did not feel at liberty to disre
gard what IS well established, and what il
considered useful cnstom.
When two years ago first assumed the
duties of my present office, saw, and in my
Inaugural Address alluded, to the bitter and
exasperatcd feelings existing in certain por-
tons Of our country, which have since re
suited in the present Rebellion, and pointed
out what seemed to me to be some of the ex'
citing causes of that feeling. The people ol
our country were then about entering upon
one of those political contests by which the
policy of our General Government is for a
time determined I expressed the belief
that this angry and excited feeling would not
result in an appeal to arms, but that peoole
taught as ours have been tG yield almost in
stinctivcly to the fairly expressed will of the
majority, would, when the feeling engendered
by its contest had passed away, again permit
tie calm dictates of reason to resume their
sway, and that we would again become con-
tented and happy nation. Time has shown
that my belief was erroneous, and yet it
seems to me it was a reasonable and just be-
lief. All men know we'll that the Govern
mcnt against which Rebellion would be made,
if raised at all, was the Government which
made the least exactions and conferred the
most benefits upon its people of any Gov
ernment in the world. All men knew well
and none Better than those now in Rebellion
that the Administration whose accession to
powe: their opponents declared they would
consider cause for revolt could rot during
their term of Office, even if so disposed, intlct
upon the defeated party any wrong. And it
seemed then, and seems yet to me to be a
reasonable and just belief that no portion of a
peoplc so intelligent as ours has claimed to
be, could revolt against Government which
had conferred upon them only benefits, and
against an Administration powerlcss to injure
them. All men know, too, that Rebellion
must bring upon those engaged in it terrible
calanites, if not sure destruction, and it did
seem reasonable and just to believe that sane
men would not bring upon themselves such
results without cause
Yet there were other things bearing upon
this question which we did not know. We
did not know-evcn although we were so told
by some far sighted men; it seemed too mon
strous for our honest and loyal hearted | CO.
pie to believe; that men whom they had de
lighted to honor, men upon whom they had
conferred the high places = even the highest
place Of honor, and profit and trust under our
govcrnment-could, whilst yet holding these
places and pledged in the sight Of God and
before men faithfully to discharge their trusts
and with professions of love and attachment
to our government yet warm upon their lips,
deliberately conspire to overthrow and des-
troy that government which they were so
strongly bound to protect and defend. re-
peat it, our honest and loyal hearted people
could not believe these things to be true;
they were to them too monstrously infamous
for their belief They had not yet learned
the better lesson that honesty, truth, good
faith and loyalty, were but mere words used
by these men as co7or uuder which to deal,
as they hoped, a fatal stab at that govern
ment from which they have derived all they
ever had of honor or importance. Had this
not been so (and although lis truth has pro-
duced such terrible results, thank God our
people could not then believe it possible am
we'll convinced we would to-day have no re-
bellion. Had the occupant of the Plesid ntial
chair Tor the year preceding the Atm day OF
March, 1861, and his advisers, been true men
and had they done their duty as such: and
stricken rebellion one honest, downright blow
when first it reared its hateful head, we would
have to-day peaceful and united nation. =
But this, unfortunately, was not so. Treason
and imbeciity sat in our high places and sur
rendered one after another the outposts of the
citadel of our strength into the hands of reb-
els, until, emboldened by success, they believ-
ed the citadel itself to be within their grasp.
In this way the rebellion was encouraged and
Strengthened, and thousands of men were in
ducea to array, themselves upon its side from
the conviction that the government was pow
eress to protect its friends or punish its enc
mics -, .s ..-.... ...a- ,es.,,.
At last, but too late came change of Ad-
ministration. Our government asserted It's
rights, and gave evidence of its will and pow
er to maintain them, and then came the clvl
war that is now upon US. .~-
need not undertake to point out to you the
primary cause which has led to this d'sas
trous issue. Although there may have been
many minor causes, all tending to the same
end. such as the disappointed ambition of ba6
men, and the lust for power, the clear, com
4 80 Ia hoe onH acppnt
ed the fact that the one great controlling cause
of this wicked rebellion, and of all the feartu
consequences which have followed and mus
follow from it, is the system OF human slave
(ry. Sophistry cannot disguise this fact, MOI
argument illustrate it. 1t is patent, tangible
and sooner or later it must be accepted by oul
\ rulers as we'll as by cur people, and acted OF
by all. This baneful system, which has
wrought such terrible result, was accepted
with great reluctance by our fathers as an ex
isting but most unfortunate fact, and its ex
istence recognized and protected by them a
such; but surrounded at the same time b.
influences such, as they confidently hoped
would soon eventuate in its total and peace
full extinction. That hope has been sadly dis
appointed. This system, so reluctantly ad
mitted into our form of government, and 81
antagonistc to its vital principles, has, like
foreign substance in the human body, been t
5 the BODY polite source of constant Irritation
!, and has been the real cause of all the heart
burnings and ill-will among our people. Cir
cumstances, not foreseen at the beginning
!, have fostercd and encouraged it. 1t has bee
defended, protected and nourished by its vc
taries with devotion almost unparalleled, ,ur
o til it has acquired strength and power
!; which enabled it, at first by stealthy ar
$ |proaches, and then by bold attack. to eseiz
the reins Of government, and control the pol
cy of our people. And when peacefully an
Q constitutionally it was driven from its usurI
ed seat of empire, and the determination e.
{ pressed that for the future it should be keE