The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1862-07-04

Interview with the President on Eman-
clpatl0n.

Interview with the President on Eman-
cipation.
e 9 as'as WASHINGTON, June 20, 1862.
Correspondence of New York Tribune.
A delegation from the Religious Society
OF Progressive Friends, consisting OF Thos.
Garrett, Alice Eliza Hambleton, Oliver
johnson, Dlnah Mendenhall, VIM. Barnard,
and Eliza Agnew, appeared before the Pres
ident this morning to present memorial,
praying him to decree the emancipation Of
the slaves. The deputation was introduced
by Senator Wilmot, and accompanied by
Meesrs. Kelley, Davis and Campbell OF the
Pennsylvania delegation in the House. Mr..
Wimot having announced the objects of
the deputation, Oliver johnson said:
MIR. PRESIDENT We appear before you
by your kind permission, not to solicit Office
for ourselves or our friends, nor to ask for
any party or personal favor, but in the in,
terest of the country and of humanity.
Our clients are 4,O00,OO slaves, who cam
not speak for themselves, but only lift up
their chained hands in mute but agonizing
supplication for the freedom which it is in
your power in this solemn crisis of the "a.
TONS safe to confer upon them.
Mr.. johnson then read the memorial,
which set forth that slavery was the cause
of the rebellion, &c. The memorial concludes
as follows
That in his speech delivered at Springfield,
before his election to the Office of Chief Mags.
trate, the President expressly declared-''A
house divided against itself cannot stand. l
believe this Government cannot endure per.
manently half slave and half free. do not
expect the Union to be dissolved-I do not
expect the house to fall-but do expect it
will cease to be divided. 1t will become all
one thing or all the other"
That this Society therefore urgently unites
with widespread and constantly increasing
sentiment in beseeching the President, as the
tional power in such a fearful emergency to
suppress the rebellion effectuaily by the re.
moval of its cause, not to allow the present
golden opportunity to pass without decreeing
the entire abolition of Slavery throughout the
land, as measure imperatively demanded by
safety and happiness of the people, the pre-.
servation of free institutions, and by every
consideration of justice, mercy and peace.
Otherwise, we have fearful reason to appre
bend that blood will continue to flow, and
fierce dissensions to abound, and calamities to
increase. and fiery judgments to be poured
out. until the work of national destruction is
consummated beyond hope of recovery.
The President said that as he had not
been furnished with copy of the memorial
10 advance, he could not be expected to
make any extended remarks. 1t was a re-
lief to be assured that the deputation were
not applicants for Office, for his chief troub-
lie was from that class of persons. The next
most troublesome subject was slavery. He
agreed with the memorialists, that slavery
was wrong, but in regard to the ways and
means of its removal, his vieaos probably Diff
tered from theirs. The quotation in the
memorial from his Springfield speech was
incomplete. 1t should have embraced ana
other sentence, in which be indicated his
views as to the effect upon slavery itself of
the resistance to its extension.
The sentiments contained in that passage
were deliberately uttered, and he held them
now. If a decree of emancipation could
abolish Slavery, John Brown would have
done the work efectually. Such decree
surely could not be more binding upon the
South than the Constitution, and that can
not be enforced in that part of the country
now. Would proclamation be any more
effective?
Mr.. johnson replied as follows:
True, MIR. President, the Constitution can
not now be enforced at the South, but you
do not on that account intermit the effort to
enforce it, and the memorialists are sOlemnly
convinced that the abolition of Slavery is
indispensable to your success.
The President further said that he felt
the magnitude of the task before him, and
hoped to be rightly directed in the very
trying circumstances by which he was sur
rounded.
VIM. Barnard addressed the President in
few words, expressing sympathy for him
in all his endorsements, and an earnest
desire that he might under divine guidance,
be led to free the slaves and thus save the
nation from destruction. In that case ma.
lions yet unborn would rise up to call him
blessed, and, better still, he would secure
the blessing of God.
The President responded very impress
lively, saying that he was deeply sensible of
his need of Divine assistance. He had
sometime thought that perhaps be might be
an instrument in Gods hands of Occomp
fishing great work, and he certainly was
not unwilling to be. Perhaps, however,
Gods a0ay of accomplishing the end a0hich
the memor6alists haze IN 1ieao may be di6er-
emit from theirs. 1t would be his earnest
endeavor, with a firm reliance upon the
Divine arm, and seeking light from above,
to do his duty in the place to which be had
been called.
The deputation thereupon withdrew,
much gratifed by the character of their
reception.
General Burnside was recently sailing
outside Fort Macon in yacht, when he
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