Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-03-03
senator wrights Address.

The hall of the House of Representatives was
crowded on Tuesday night last to hear, ac-
cording to announcement, an address from this
dies present, and every seat was occupied, and
hardly standing room left in aisles and lobby.
Senator Wright, presenting himself, said he
was no party man. He stood, in this crisis, only
for his country. Away with all party creeds and
party platforms. The time for them had passed
away. What we wanted now was an united
North, and if party creeds prevailed, we should
have war and blOOdshed in own midst. How
bitter do we become, even in ordinary times of
peace. Let the people be arrayed on party
creeds, and what man could fOreteIl the conse-
quencesI Douglas had said, forget your party
creeds and your party platforms and bring your
all to the service of your country in this dire
emergency.
His (Wright's) party platform was that the
Constitution was to be maintained as the supreme
law of the land and that the Union must be pre-
served as the only guaranty of liberty He rec
ognized but two classes nOw-the friends of the
Mon and the enemies thereof. His motto was:
maintain the Constitution, and at all hazards and
al risks, and no matter at what cost preserve
the Union.
The present deplOrable civil war was forced
upon US by the disuniOnists of the South The
waged on our part only TO maintain the
Union Ali classes of men in the North stood
upon this platform. He referred TO the resOlu-
tons Ut the Democratic Convention of the 9Th of
January, 1862 and censured them because they
did not express this: viz that the war was brought
on by the Southern disunionists. Because he
thus eensured this omission it was said he was no
Democrat In this hour of the calamity of his
country he would not shelter himself behind par
ty platforms The oth OF January platform was
Z very ingenious One-It didn't say they would
hight and it dldn tsay they wouldn't, and it wound
up with a resolution complimentary the soldiers
engaged IN the war. 1t was party platform and
nothing more.
The greatest difficulty in our present trial has
been this: divisions in the North. In this con,
nectiOn he produced a Richmond, Virginia paper
containing DavIs's speech before the 9Th of Jan
uary Convention, and commented severely upon
the declaration therein that the surrender Of Ma
son and Sdell was a greater humiliation than
would be the recognition on the part of, orr Gov
eminent OF the Southern Confedeucy Benton,
The great statesman Of Missouri, had insisted as
ionS ago as 1882 that it the settled design of
southern demagogues 70 break up the Union.
Benton repeated this time and again until il
almost appeared % him (Wright) childish But
lime had demonstrated the wisdom of his words.
Slavery was the pretext only, and was used as
such. as Benton said IL would be- but to break up
The Union was tie grand design. All their aim
was to bring about this dissolution Twenty
years ago he had said in Congress that we of the
North did not intend to interfere with the insttu
tons OF the people Of the South. In 1860 DO
htlcal revolution swept over the country Did
the ultra men then elected interfere or propose TO
interfere with Southern institutions? Two thirds
Of the free States in Congress bad offered addi-
tiOnal guarantees that slavery should not be in
any way meddled with. All these things went to
show that Benton WIS right. These demagorues
sought 70 excite one section of the country
against the other, using slavery as a pretext
They used this pretext for no other end and aim
than the dissolution Of the Union No people ON
the face of the earth were so deluded as were
these Southern men. Let any man go and talk
with the prisoners now here, and he would find it
out.
They conceived that they had come to fight
Northern Abolitionists, but they found that they
were lighting Northern Union men And the
expedition to Florence, Alabama, had demon
strated that there were Union men South Strong
was the Union sentiment this very day in the Sc
ceded States
For this Union we we're fighting, and yet there
were men who would stand on the corners of the
streets and talk 10 you about taxes. Talk about
taxes, when our brothers. sons, and even fathers
OF Indiana we're away fighting the battles Of the