Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-07-08

Ifeeionl 81 its people.
Gentlemen. Il YOU viii permit me. viii take
this opportunity To indulge IA personal remark
OF tao. sm aslonislled at you. gentlemen, u
day, 10 have the boldness and daring 10 defend an
old gray haired Democrat from the charges rest
ing upon him. In vindicating myself. l will vim
dicate you. A voice, That's SOL have
been charged With not being loyal to my country.
God knows that II am not, nobody L. have
my opinions, and you might as well attempt to
consolidate into one great church all the religious
faith Of the country, 70 consolidate all the DO
litical opinions under one head, and require every
man Of every party TO believe alike. But when
pay my taxes, support the Government. When
pay for each spoonful Of sugar put in my tea.
l support my Government; aud when pay for
the tea my wife puts in her teapot, i support the
Government; when pay for my clothes. for
my winding sheet, i support my Government
But have done more: | cent one of my
into the army. and supported him tor six months
out OF my own pocket. without the aid OF dol
lar from the Government; and n son-in-law, who
married one OF my daughters-and you who have
daughters know how you are attached to them.
especially when they are left alone-was in the
taickest Of the hight, having charge OF a regi-
ment. when Lyon tell at Springfield And yet
am a traitori
Why am called a traitorf Because / be-
lieve that the doctrines which were taught me,
and which have taught To thousands OF Others,
are true and necessary To the welfare OF the coun
try. Has the Democratic party ever been untrue
to the country Several voices-Never, no,
nor will bel. They say | am a revolution
ist; SO am; was Graded by revolutionary par.
ents. But | look TO the Constitution 10 guide
me in the changes that come upon u.
There was a time when they would burn John
Rogers at tile stake, because he did not believe
IN their religion, ana there may be a time. nd
init. in all governments, when men will be pun
ished for differing with the State politics OF the
country. A vOice-"That time has arrived.
hasn't it?l / understand it has been intlmated
that this Convention could not and ought not TO
be held. For why?-Because politically we differ
with the Administration in authority. | ask you,
supposing these difficulties in the United States
had occurred when the Democrats were in pow
er. and supposng your Democratic President and
Congressman had carried on the war for the sup
preston of the rebellion contrary to the feelings
and opinions Of their political opponents, would
they not have said they disapproved OF tr Have
they not always said so, when We had a war on
handr-Let me warn you. on this 4th Of July
this Sabbath OF Liberty-that whenever the doc
trine Is preached, that during civil war all men
must close their months till the civil commotiOn
is pat down, civil liberty is IA danger. Let a ty
rant be elected, and civil commoton may be got
ten up for the express purpose of suppressng free
dom OF speech. Voices That's SO; that's the
doctrine
Were an ambitious man. like Napoleon or
Nero. and wished 10 make my people support me
at all hazards, my first object would be to get up,
either by my own efforts or by some other means,
civil cOnmotion-, that might require the peO-
pie to be unanimous in my support. / then
might not only manage that war; but i might
rob and steal to nv he.rts content, with my
minions around me. filling their purses at the ex
pense of the people, who dare not open their
mouths. A voice-'That time will never come
in this country" Another voice-"It has come
Already | say fearlessly that the truest
friend the President and the country have. is he
who will openly and boldly denounce the robbery
of the poor soldiers in the fields But the other
day, through the secret machinery OF secret opera
tions, and by the closing OF mouths. not only
here but upon the floors of Congress, grave
Senator of years standing. in the gravest body
in the world, (or it was ONCE regarded,) was
detected and exposed in selling his influence foI
S5O, 900, for securing a contract of fifty thou
sand half made muskets And yet we are told
that W, and our children aud our children's chill
dren must submit TO this robbery and indlgnity
without daring to open our mouths ut the risk of
being run off somewhere at some hour OF the
night. when neither wife nor children can sound
the alarm. Now, if there is a Repubican-so-
called-or a simon pure, unadulterated Union
man, that is too good to pray at the
feet of the old Gams,lies-if there is one
such under the sound of my voice, | ask him
if what / have said here to day in the
advocacy of free expression of right and the
condemnation of wrong, if il would not protect
him il we got IN power as much as il would pro-
tect US when you are in powerl | would scorn TO
preach that which good only for Democrats.
/ would scorn to preach doctrine that was not
as potent for the protection of my political enc
mics myself and my friends. When | bad a
little difficulty on my hands in kansas-a civil
war in miniature exhbiton-and undertook TO
settle tie troubles there aud bring society TO or
der and peace was denounced bitterly by what
was called the free State papers. And when
was asked II | saw those attacks, | would reply:
"Yes. and | have read them with interest aud
care" Every expression that gave light,
instead OF being used for the Imprisonment of the
author. would use to the best advantage, and
let the rest go.
Gentlemen, | have said enough Go on
don't stop The subject is inexhaustible.
have asked and plead for the maintenance and
continuance of the organization OF this old Dem
ocratic party that have known from nv youth.
In my study of revolutions and especially such as
this, and particularly the manner in which the
civil part prosecuted, have looked for the
time when we would be looked to and prayed To
rs the last hope of the country. If the time
never should come when we could step I'm ana
save the country, the organization would do no
harm, for it is peaceable and constitutional or
ganizltion.
There is nothing riotous in our party, there is
no thieving and lying in Us, at least beyond what
is natural to human nature. and not rs
much rs can be found H. other quarters some
times | have believed the time would come
when the whole face of this rebellion would be
changed. and il it does come, | fear you, my
Democratic friends, will be the only Union men
left in the country. A voice-They are all that
are lett now. Ii there shall be intrigues of
other nations and the authority at Washington
shall ask YOU to submit peaceably to the divi
sion OF these States. who then will be the dis
loyaIists and disunionists? But We will let that
pass. for | fear an unhappy condition not far
ahead. | received to-day most extraordinary
confidential letter, from a source bat little ex
pected. warning that the hour-not thirty
DAYS, perhaps distant, when il is believed that
proclamation will be issued from Washington.
asking us Northern PEOPLE to submit TO division
of this country. Never: not bit of il.
ask. then. ii this be the fact-and don't pretend
20 state whether il is or not-who then will be in
favor of the dissolution of the Unong The very
men with contracts in their pockets. who have
grown rich by the msfortunes OF their country in
this war; and they who hav, carried ropes 10
hang those who never breathed a disloyal breath.
will have TO give the ropes over to US. APP
plause
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