Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1862-10-11
@Ottester 4aiIg SPY
SPEECH OF CHARLES SUMNER,
At the Hampshire County agricultural Soci
ety, at northampton, Oct. Sd.

tune, present at the annual festival of the
Hampshire Agricultural Society, in North
ampton, last week. where, after a feictous
introduction by Hon. Erastus Hopkins, he
made the following admirable speech
cannot forget the first time that looked
upon this beautiful valley, where river, mead
ow, and hill, each contribute to the charm. 1t
was while was a youth in college. With
several of my classmates made pedestrian
excursion, as it was called, through Massa-
chusetts. Starting from Cambridge we went
by way of Sterling, and Barre, and arrived at
Amherst weary and footsore, where we re-
freshed ourselves by prayer in the college
chapel From Amherst we walked to North
ampton, and without delay ascending Mount
Holyoke, we saw the valley of the Connecti-
cut spread out before us, with its river of sill
yer winding through its meadows of gold. 1t
was scene of enchantment, of which time
has not weakened the impression. From
Northampton we walked to Deerfeld, where
we slept near Bloody Brook, and then to
Greenfield, where we turned off by Coleraine
through dark woods and over hills, to Ben
nington in Vermont. The whole excursion
was deeply interesting, but no part more so
than your valley. Since then l have been
traveller at home and abroad; but know of
no similar scene of greater beauty | have
seen the meadows of Lombardy; and those
historic rivers, the Rhine and the Arno, and
that stream of Charente which Henry ".
called the most beautiful of France, also those
Scottish rivers so famous in legend and song;
and the exquisite fields and sparkling waters
in lower Austria; but my youthful joy in the
scene which | witnessed from the neighboring
hill top has never been surpassed in any kim
dred scene. Other places are richer in the
associations of history; but you have enough
already in what nature has done without wait
ing for any further illustration.
There is another feature in the life of the
farmer which is to me more interesting still.
The farmer is patriotic and liberal. Depend
ent upon Nature, he learns to be Independent
of man. If not less than Others under the in
f1uence of local prejudices, he is at least re-
moved from those combinations which are en-
gendered by the spirit of trade. He thinks for
himself and acts for his country. | do not
venture to say that he is naturally reformer;
but l think the experience of our country at
tests that he does not set himself against the
ideas of the age.
There are men who plant themselves on the
ancient ways and vainly exalt all that has been
done by our ancestors as beyond addition or
amendment. They are well described in the
early verse:
Some there be that 10 defye
All that is and ever do crye
The old is better; away with the newe
Because it is false and the old is true.
And again they are described in the CONVEX
sation between two eminent English ecclesias-
tics. ''Brother of Winchester" said Gran
mer to Lord Chancellor Gardiner ''you like
nothing new unless you be yourself the au-
thor of it." ''YOur Grace wrOngeth me, re-
piled the hard conservative, 81 have never
yet been author of any one new thing, for
which l thank my God" Men of this
stamp there doubtless are among us, but
very few, l rejoice to believe among farmers,
who believe that our duty can be best accom-
plished by standing still. For myself, be-
leve that it can be completely done only by
an incessant advance in all things-in knowl-
edge, in science in art, and lastly in govern
ment itself, destined to be the bright consum-
nation on earth of all knowledge, all science
and all art.
And now, since l have made these allus-
ions, allow me to go one step further. There
is no change SO reasonable or so necessary as
not to provoke opposition. When Sir Sam
uel Romilly proposed tOsabolish the punish
ment of death for stealing pocket handller-
chief, the commons of England consulted GER
tain officials of the law, who assured the house
that such an innovation would endanger the
whole criminal law of the land And when
this illustrious retormer and model lawyer
(for of all men in the history of the English
law, Romilly is most truly the model lawyer
afterward proposed to abolish the obscene pun
ishment for high treason, requiring the Of
fender to be drawn and quartered and his
bowels to be thrown into his face while yet his
body paTpitated with life, the attorney general
of the day, in opposing this humane amend
ment, asked, ''Are the safeguards, the ancient
landmarks, the bulwarks of the constitution,
to be thus hastily removed" Which gave
occasion to the appropriate exclamation in re-
ply :-"What to throw the bowels of an Of
fender into his face one of the safeguards of
the British constitution! l ought to confess
that until this night | was wholly ignorant of
this bulwark." Thus were these benefcent
efforts opposed.
| rejoice to believe that there is no such
hide bound indifference to liberal ideas among
our farmers. But just in proportion as the
farmers are numerous, intelligent, powerful,
and liberal, do they constitute an arm of
strength to our country. Pardon me if now
more than ever l see them in this character ;
when | appeal to them for the sake of our
country, make no appeal inconsistent with
the proprieties of this occasion. Our country
is in peril, and it must be saved. This is
enough.
Under G cd our country will be saved through
the united energy, the we-compacted vigor
of the people, directed by the president of the
United States. Our first duty is to stand by
the president, and to hold up his hands, There
must be no hesitation or timidity. If he calls
for troops he must have them. If besides
calling for troops, he enlists other agencies for
the suppression of the rebellion, he mnst be
sustained precisely as in calling for troops.
Thus far the main dependence has been up
on troops to which our honored Commonwealth
has made generous contributions. No part of
the country has suffered more in gallant Off
GERS, youthful, and highly instructed, than
Massachusetts,. This neighborhood has its
story of sorrow. Amherst has buried the pure
and patriotic Stearns, and only within few
days here in Northampton, you have received
from the field Of death the brave and accom-
plished Baker.
And now at last new agency is invoked,
refer, of course, to the recent proclamation of
the president. By this proclamation all per-
sons held as slaves January LIST, 1868, within
any state or designated part of state, the
people whereof shall then be in rebellion a.
gainst the United States, shall be then, hence
forward and forever free; and the executive
government of the United States including mil
itary and naval authority eofwill recognize
and maintain the freedom of such persons or
any of them in any efforts they may make for
their actual freedom. But beyond these most
effective words which do not go into operation
before the new year, there are other clauses
of immediate operation, constituting a present