Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1862-03-27

slstent with my duty, not only as q
member of the House; but as citizen of
the United States--one who has taken
solemn oath 10 support the Constitution,
and who, thank God, has never tainted
that oath in thought, or word, or deed.
| have had the right, and have exercised,
and as God liveth and my soul liveth,
and as lie is my judge, | will exercise it
still in the House, and out of it in vindi-
eating the right Of the American citizen;
and beyond thatI have never gone. My
sentiments will be found in the records
of the House, except as / have made
them public otherwise, and they will be
found no where else. There, sir, is their
solei repository. And forcseeing more
than year ago, but especially in the ear
ly part of December last, the magnitude
and true character of the revolution or re-
bellion into which the country was about
to be plunged, | then resolved not to
write, although your own mails carried
then the letters, nor have written one
solitary syllable or line as to the Gulf
States for months even before secession be-
gan, to any one residing ina seeded State.
And yet the gentleman avails himself
now of this paragraph to give dignity
and importance to charges of the iaIsest
and most Infamous character. Had the
letter been produced ; had the charge
come in any tangible or authentic shape ;
had any editor Of any respectable news
paper, even, indorsed the charge as spe-
cific, there might have been some apollo
gy but the gentleman knows well that
this charge was placed in the local col
umns IAN irresponsible newspaper, put
there by some person who had never seen
any such letter. ! meet the first specific
charge of disloyalty, made responsible
here-I meet it at the very threshold, as
becomes man and Representative
by an emphatic but contemptuous denial
This is due to the House; it is due to
myself.
Mr.. RICHARDSON. l hope the gentle
man from Pennsylvania will allow me to
make single remark.
! Mr.. HICKMAN. Certainly.
Mr.. RICHARDSON. Mr.. Speaker, want
to hear nothing about disloyalty on that
sido of the House who have declare that
they will vote for no propo o>ition to- carry
on the war unless it is prosecuted in a
particular line, and for the abolition of
slavery. They would subvert the Con.
stitution and the Government, and de-
nounce them as traitors, and they ought
to be brought to trial, condemnation and
execution.
Mr.. HICKMAN. Mr.. Speaker, the mo-
tives which actuated me in introducing
the resolution in question ought not be
doubted. The severe charge contained
in the article in question is made against
the gentleman from Ohio, a member O
this House. Eiyen suspicion, q mcr,
suspicion, would justify such an investi.
cation as this resolution contemplates.-
But the gentleman from Ohio, as well as
other members upon this floor, knows
that the suspicious which have existed
against him-I do not say whether justly
or iniustly-have been numerous and in
circulation Cor long time past. 1t is
the duty of this House to purge itself Of
unworthy members. do not assert
whether the gentleman from Ohio occu-
pies properly or improperly his seat up
on this floor By offering this resolution
| do not PREJUDICE him. If he were the
most intimate friend had on earth, ac-
cused as the gentleman from Ohio is in
the paragraph in question, | should deem
it my solemn duty to urge the investiga-
ton which is here suggested But, sir,
this charge does not come in very ques-
tionable shape. 1t appears in an orig
inal article in the Baltimore Clipper, and
is therefore presumed to be editorial, oil
at least under The supervision of the cdi
tor. 1t, to all appearances emanates from
responsible source.
But, sir, suggest further, that the sup
preston of the newspaper in question
: the Baltimore South, and the seizure o
its office of publication, was made under
the direct authority Of The Government
and i. is to be presumed that the effects
of the Office are at this time in the custo
dy of the Government or of the agents
of the Government, and, therefore, the
information communicated in this paper
must have come through the Government
or the agents Of the Government. 1t is
} responsible in its origin, as far as we can
Judge. Now, sir, refer the gentleman
from Ohio. as my answer to the snggcs'
tion that | was not justified in offering
this resolution under the circumstances
to page 60 of the last edition of the man
ual. The first paragraph of section thir
teen, headed Determination of Witness,
es," reads as follows;
Common fame is a good ground fol
the House to proceed to inquiry, ant
even to accusation"
This, sir, is M re than common fame
| repeat that it is, so far as it appears, {
direct charge by the editor of respon
sible newspaper. The Information comes
we must believe, through the Govern
mcnt or the agents of the Government
and it is, therefore, more than common
} fame. 1t is good ground at least for in
stituting an inquiry.
Mr.. VALLANDiGHAM. | desire to asl
the gentleman from Pennsylvania wheth
; er he does not know that this is a mer
, local item, and that the author of il does
not even pretend to have seen the letter
| Mr.. Hickman. | do not understand
| what the gentlemen means by saying tina
Q the author of the paragraphs has not seel
. them.
+ Mr.. VATLANpIGHAM. say he does no
: profess to have seen them, and know
o that he never did, for they never wer