Columbia Democrat and Bloomsburg general advertiser. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1850-1866, 1863-04-25
SP EC II
OF
HON. GEO. SANDERSON,
OF LAM ASTER,
Before The Democratic Cen
traI Club Of Philadelphia.
Delivered on S0urdoy Erening, Aprtl
nm, 1868.

Mr. Sandcrson, after some preliminary
remarks, addressed the Club in substance
as follows
But three brief years ago we were u
nitcd and happy pcope--a.he Constitution
everywhere ov,r our wide domain, and by
every citizen, acknowledged and respected
as the supreme law Of the land, and the
laws made in pursuance there Of enforced
without difficulty, in every State of the
Union save in one or two isolate cases in
New England. And this had been the
happy condition of things for the seventy
years preceding the acce 'sion to power
OF the present National Administrations,
'Tis true, there was hot an unbroken chain
of Democratic rule during all that long pc
riod. There had been occasional changes
from the highest to the lowest officers of
the Government; but no matter what
party, Wing or Democratic, obtained the
asceudancy, the country was considered
safe, for both were national parties, and
their adhcrcnts were counted by the thou
sands in every State of the Union. With
but solitary exception in the administra-
;ion Of our public affairs-and 10 that [
shall presently advert, the great principles
Of civi. liberty were held sacred through
out the length and breadth of the Republic
The freedom Of speech and of the prc's-
the right Of the people to be secure in their
persons and estates, from illegal and arbi-
tary arrests and seizures the righ. of
trial youchsafcd to each and every indi-
yidlal, high and low, rich and poor by.a
jury of his peers and last, but not least,
the incstimable privilege Of the great writ
Of h4Je0S cOrpuS-all these constituted the
very sub,tratum of American liberty, and
formed the foundation for the whole struc-
turc of our free Governments. We inher-
tied these rights from our British ancestors.
They are part and parcel of the Great
Charter which was extorted from an un-
willing and despotc monarch by the
barons of England, more than six hundre d
years ago, and any attempt now, Oh the
part of the Queen or her ministers, to set
chem at naught, or trample them under
foot, would at oac9 hurI them from power.
And shall, we who boast of our freedom
we, whose fathers, in yonder Hall, but 4
square distant, proclaimed, as the funla-
mental law Of the nation, the fright of the
people to be secure in their persons, hou-
ses, papers, and effects. against unreasona-
bic searches and seizures s'-and that no
person shall be "dcrrivcd Of life, liberty or
property, without due process Of law
shall we, say, be less Jealous of our rights
than they. Shall we proclaim to the world
by our acts that we have so for dcgencr-
ated from the stern virtues and unyieldng
patriotism Of the standardization of the
thirteenth century, as to unresistingy bow
our uecks to the yoke Of Tyranny which is
sought to be fastened upon US by men
clothed in little brief authority Icannot
believe it, and am very sure that speak
the sentiments Of the great mass of the
American pcople,whcn | say tint they will
not endure it. The spirit Of l77G still lin.
gers in the breast of every true hearted
American. The blood so freely shed by
our patriot forciathcrs-the tolls and pri-
vations they endured in long and bloody
war for Indopcndcncc-ar still remem-
bered by our people; and though our
dearly bought ri hts may be trampled up
on by the iron heel of despotism for sea.
son, they will sooner or later assert theil
manhood, and brighter day will again
dawn on our bleeding and distracted
country.
1t is not my purpose, fellow ct!zens
to 90 into an elaborate detail Of the un
constitutional acts OF the men now in pow
or at the seat Of Government, or OF tht
Congress Of the United States, which for
tunatcly for the country, ended its inglo
rlous career on the fourth day of Marcl
last. These have all been 80 ably exam
ined and criticised upon by the distinguish
ed and learned gentlemen who have ad
dressed you in this Hall, from time t
time, that it would be waste of time, i
not a work Of supcrcrogatlon for me now
to dwell upon them in detail or al any
considerable length. | shall, therefore
not attempt to elaborat', but only adver
to them incidentally in the further prose
cution Of my remarks, and what | shal
have to say will be rather discursive thai
otherwise,
intimatcd in the commencement Of m,
remarks that were was one other Admin
istraliou in the history Of this Govern
ment which did not hold sacred the prin
cipes of civil liberty. You will readil,
understand, in advance, that the allu
sion is to the Administration Of tn
elder Adams when it was considered trea
son to speak or publish anything dis
, respectful of the President OF the Unite
States, and when men were shot down i
cold blood, or incarceratod in the glo I'm
walls of a prison for daring to utter thei
sentiments, or assist in raising lbert
e poles, as the Democrats of that day wer
in the habit of doing. A murder Of thj
= kind was committed by Federal troops o
D an inohfcnsiyc young man in my own nj
= tive county of Cumberland. Nay, mo-
= the then Executive had the power veste
+ in him by subSeryicut Congress 10 sen
out of the country every adopted citizc