The daily Evansville journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1862-1863, 1863-09-03
Hon. Henry Secrest on the State
Sentinel.


refrain from publishing brief synopsis
of the remarks of Mr.. Secrest at the
Democratic War meeting at Indianapo-
lis, in which, among other things, he pic
lures to life the editor of the Sentinel:
After an allusion to the great pleasure
It gave him to be between the gallant Gen.
Kimball and the intrepid Gen. McCler-
nand, Mr.. Secrest said that he appeared
here to-day to do his share in removing
from the Democratic party the odium
which the treason of men calling them
selves Democrats had brought upon it.
1t had been said (by the Sentinel, and
on this very morning, that no decent
Democrat would attend such meeting.
[Derisive laughter He would COM
pare records with the editor of that pa
per. He was Democrat in 1927, and
for nearly forty years he and other white
headed Democrats whom he saw around
him, had acted with the party He had
voted unscratched tickets always How
was it with the editor? Till lS48 he was
Wing, Laughter. In 1S4S he was
an "Abolitionist Great laughter I
was an hnti-Leeompton Democrat In
two weeks he changed to a Lecompton
Democrat Laughter and cheers. In
1861 he was a war Democrat, (that
was when he was begging Governor
Morton for an Office in the army, where
he could add the stealings of the Quar-
termaster's Department to the stealings
of the State Printing.-REPoRTER), and
in 1868 he was an anti-war Democrat
Great cheering No decent Demo
crat come here! Why, all the Demo
Gratis on the ground, during the last 40
years, had not got as much money out of
the public treasury as the editor of the
Sentinel had got in the little time since
he had ceased to be an Abolitionist.
[Great laughter.
He then spoke of the uniform support
given to all wars by the Democratic par
ty. So prominently was this policy held
in the party, that in 1852 it had not only
resolved in favor of the last war, but
went on and declared that it was for the
nert acGr. daughter and cheers) Now
he was here to redeem that pledge. It
had been said that those who make the
quarrel should do the fighting, and he
recited an amusing little French song in
which this sentiment is conveyed, but he
said this, though good poetry, was not
good practice. Men must fight for their
country whoever makes the quarrel. He
could not conceive that any man who
would defend his family from a murder
er would hesitate to defend his country
(Cheers) This had been called Lincoln's
war. But it was the Governments war.
Mr. Lincoln did not own the Govern
ment (Cries of That's true.") He
was only tenant for a term of years.
If he did anything to injure the proper
ty while in possession he could be i'm
peached, and if he could not be impeach-
ed, at the end of his term he could
be turned out. But why should
we allow the rebels to destroy the Gov
ernment, because Mr. Lincoln is in tenn
porary possession of it? What would
you think of a man, who, owning the
fee simple of an inheritable estate, should
declare the title ''plaved out" and throw
the property away because he had bad
tenant on it? (Cheers.)
1t is said the Abolitionists began this
war. How did they begia.it? Did they
fire the first gun from Fort Sumpter p
Against whose authority was the rebel
lion commenced, that of Indiana? No.
Of Massachusetts? No. 1t was against
the authority of the United States. What
cause was there for resisting that author
ity? None. Mr.. Secrest then examined
briefly the various departments of the
Government-Congress, the Executive
and Judicial, and showed that in none of
them had anything been done to impair
or imperil the rights of the South. Con-
gress had given that section whatever
legislation it demanded. The Presidents
had nearly all come from it, and the Ju-
dietary, so far from impairing the rights
of the South, had given it, in the Dred
Scott decision, more than was ever claim
ed, as Mr.. Breckenridge admitted 1t
was very clear and cogent exposure of
the unprovoked character of the rebel
lion, but we have space to notice it no
further. There was, he concluded, no
cause for resisting the authority of the
United States. Individual States had
passed unconstitution laws, but that was
no just cause for war on the United
States. Indiana passed law for the re-
lief OF debtors twenty years ago, and the
Oupreine Court OF the OmteQ states held
it unconstitutional
But New York and PENNSYLVANIA,
where our creditors lived, didn't make
war on us for it Pennsylvania once
passed law that no negro should be ta-
ken out of that State without due process
of law, but the Supreme Court held that
| it conficted with an act of Congress and
was void But Maryland did not make
war upon Pennsylvania for it. There
was no cause of war in the acts of the
States, therefore the argument is COM
| plete.
Politicians have no right to stultify
themselves. When the war broke out
Mr.. Crittenden proposed a series of res
olutions in Congress declaring that the
war was begun by the South, without
cause, and those resolutions were sup
| ported by every member but two Dem
! ocrats and Republicans were committed
to them. When the Sth of January,
1852, Convention met, it adopted the
Crittenden resolutions, except that which
! declared that the war was commenced