New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1862-03-25
Seward and his Diplomacy.


=, from ,hr Charleston coasier, March l7thl 20
/. When the Southern States seeded, Mr. Buchan-
an was still In Office, and IT became bis duty to an
nou1ce That fact to the world He did so in 9 dis
own style, both Of thought and expression, although
formally signed, Of course, by Judge Black, his
Gu the 25th February Judge Black addressed all
the Ministers Of the United States abroad as fol-
lows: ~ fs~@E y ;
"'sar--You are, OF course aware that the election
of last November resulted in the choice Of Mr.
Abraham Lincoln; that he was the candidate of
the Republican or anti slavery partyp that the pres
eeding discussion had been confined almost en-.
tirely to topics connected directly or indirectly
with the subject of negro slavery; that every
Northern State cast its whole electoral vote (e1-
cept three in New JeSseylf Mr.. Lincoln while
IN the whole sonth the popular sentiment against
MN y % almost universal, Some of the Southern
States Immediately after the election took measures
for separating themselves from the onion. and
others soon followed their example. Conventions
have been called in South Carolina, Georgia :,
Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas,
and those Conventions, aafi except the tlastnamed
State, have passed ordinances declaring their se
cession from the Federal Government. A Congress
composed of representatives from the six first
named States has been assembled for sometime at
Montgomery, Alabama. BY this bedy a Provisional
Consultation has been framed for what itstyles the
Confederate States OF kmeriea.' ---- so,
=" 1t ID not improbable that persons claiming to
represent the States which have thus attempted
to throw off their Federal obligations will seek
recognition of their independence by the - of
-. In the event of such an effort being made,
you are expected by the President to. use such
means IS may, in your Judgment, be proper and
necessary to prevent its success. = s=5a
" The reasons set forth in the Presidents mes
sage at the opening Of the present session Of Con-
Eress, in support of his opinion that the States
have 10 constitutional power to secede from the
Union, are still unanswered and are believed to be
unanswerable. The grounds upon which they
have attempted TO justify the revolutionary act Of
severiDg the bonds which connect them with their
sister States are regarded as wholly insufficient.
This Government has not relinqashed its constit1-
tional Jurisdiction within the territory Of those
States, and does not desire to do SO.
F." 1t must be very evident that it il the right of
this Government to ask Of all foreign powers that
the latter shall take no steps which may tend to
encourage the revolutionary movements Of the
seceding States, or increase ahe danger Of disaec
ton in those which still remain Loyal The Presi-
dent feels assured that the Government OF -
will not do anything in these affairs inconsistent
with the friendship which this Government has
cestors. # the Independence Of the Confederate
States' should be acknowledged by the great
powers Of Eurepe,it would tend to disturb the
friendly relations, diplomatic and commercial. now
States. All these are Consequences which tRe
court of - willnot fail 10 see are adverse to the
interests of -, well as these Of this country.
Your particular knowledge OF our political in
hhuhVuh VIII thhUlu you LU eAplalH BRLl4IacEGFNY
the causes Of car present domestic troubles, and
the grounds o3the hope still entertained that entire
harmony will soon be restered.n f4- ssss
hr Black to all the Ministers Of the United
With this State paper, Mr.. Buohanan's connec.
ton with this revolution ceased. F-a,7s:3 -
On the 4th of March, Mr., Seward received the
seals OF Office, and the TRANSITION from the old ira
dltons OF t!ss Goyernment Is atonce as abrupt as
MIR. Judd, Tie Minister to Prussia in the following
spirit: g - a. NJ ~ = = ?
It mag: be we'll to caM your attention to the
fact that in that communication, well as in this
have forebone altogether from discussing the
groundiass complaints and pretexts which have
been pGi forth by the organs of disunion to Justify
the rash and perilous revolution which they are
attempting to inaugurste. have paacticed this
reticenee not because the point is unimp portant
but because the dispute is purely domestic one,
and the President would not willingly have the
archives Of our legation bear testimony to so un.
American proceeding as an acknowledgment
even by indirection, that this Government ever
consented to join issue upon purely family mat.
ter Of this kind with portion Of our own citzens
before foreign tribunal"
But the archives OF our legation do, neverthe-
lsss, in London, bear testimony undersdate Of
April 10, to the following Indictment which looks
wonderfully like an " issue upon purely family
matterH: aSif'- nT-
1.-THE Presidential election took place on the 9Th
of November last The canvass had been con.
Quoted in all she Southern orslaYe States in such
manner as TO prevent perfectly candid hearing
there of the issue involved, and SO all parties ex-
isting thers were surprised and disappointed in
the marked result That disappointment was
quickly seized for desperate purposes by class
Of persons, until that time poweTless, who had
long cherished design to dismember tie Union
and build up new Confederacy around the Gull
sf Mexico. Ambitious leaders hurried the people
| forward in factious course, observing conyen
tional forms, but violating altogether the delibera
tive spirit OF their Constitutions. When the new
Federal Administration came in, on the 4the oi
March last, it found itself confronted by an insur
reetionary combination of States, practicinp
an insidous strategy to reduce eight other States
into its councils.
| "One needs to be as oonversant with our feder
atiye system, as perhaps only American publicists
can be, to understand how effectualy, in the first
instance, such revolutionary movement must de
moralize the General Government. We are moi
only nation, bat we ere States also. All public
officers, as we'll as citizens, owe not only allegiance
to the Union but also to the States in which they
reside. In the more discOntented States, the loca
magistrates aud other officers cast off at once thei
Federal allegiance, and conventions were held
which assumed to absolve their citizens from tn
| same allegiance. Even Federal Judges. Aarshals
clerks and revenue officers resigned their trusts
Intimidation deferred loyal persons from accept
ing the offices thus rendered vacant. So, The mos
important faculties of the Federal Government il
those States abruptly ceased. The resgning Fed
eral agents, if the expression may be used, al
| torned to the revolutionary authorities, and de
iyered up to them public funds and other propert.
and possessions Of large value. The Federal Gov
ernment had, through long series of years, beer
engaged in building strong f0rtiications, nav!
yard, arsenals, mints treasures and other publ,
edfces, not in any case for use against thos
States but chiefly for their protection and con
yenience These had been unsuspectingly LET
altogether or imperfectly garrisoned or guarded
and they fell with little resistance into the hand
of the revolutionary party. A general officer {
the army gave up to them large quantity of mil
tary stores and other property, disbanded tn
troops under his command, and sent them out {
the territory of the disaffected States. l's5g q
at may be stated, perhaps without giving ju!
offence, that the most popular motive in these di
, contents, was an apprehension Of&designs on tn
part of the incoming Federal Administration hosti
to the institution OF domestic slavery in the State
where it is tolerated by the local constitutions an
the laws. That institution, and the class swhie
especially cherishes it, are not confined to u
; States which have seeded, bet they exist in tt
eight other soealleds slave States and these fl
that reason sympathizeL profoundly with the rev
. utionary movement. Sympathies and apprehe
: sions of this kind have, for an indetate ,perlo
entered into the basis of political parties throng
out the whole country, and thus consideraD
masses of people, whose ultimate loyalty could d
t be doubted, were found, even in the free State
, either justifying, eXcusng or pallatng the NOV
ment toward disunion in the seeding States. II
party which was dominant in the Federal Cover
nlent during the period of the late Administrato
: embraced practically and held in unresefved COZ
5 / munion all Gsunionists and sympathiZers. 1t he