The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1863-06-27
For The Cecil Whig.
Emancipation.

issue he says, :" lid not find him early in
| 1851 III cooperation with tie Union men OF this
county," III, fact is, that ut every Union meet
ing, with one exception, held III Elion from The
FIRST on the eighth Of January, 1861, up TO and
including thar OF the 2,ird OF April, and so fur
| rs | can recuect, at all held afterwards, was
present ard gave my couniensnc, and approval.
| and Whatever influence so humble person IL
| myself could exercise, TO such measures i'll my
judgment were honestly intended 10 pre- erse
the national life. The exception to which
| refer was the meeting OF the - day Of February,
| which was convention OF Delegates from the
| several Districts to which | was not delegated,
and which was held III the Office of the School
| Commissioners while was engaged in the lial
OF an important cause in the Court Room above.
Bur at the preliminary meeting he'd to call this
! convention was present, and ASST ed to dlaw
| the circulars, and male up II list Of MINES to
whom they should be sent. Mr.. Mait Nas also
there, and lie and conferred together as TO the
best means OF cilecinig our purpose. And an.
sure Mr.. Matft does not mean to say or even
| insinuae that such was not my action during
the early part of 1861 because ior him, or any
other person, to do SO, would be to say or insili-
uae what is absolutely and unqualiiedly false
and such il not the course Of gentlemen like Mr.
Malft, but only OF very low and very vulgar
persons.
Mr.. Mafit might have said, with great truth,
that did not cooperate with many Of the pre-
tcnded Cnionists of 1861, some of whom were
| invited to the highest Seats and made the long
est and loudcst speeches in the Union meetings
Of those early days. In common with many
other Union men of the county, who were such
| from principle, and not from any dese for poll
teal preierment, | felt often very much dis
gusted with the vugalies and antics OF such
men US John b. Rowan and others who have
since found their true places, some in the army
! Of jeff. Davis, some i'll the ranks OF what Mr..
Mattit calls the Ieace men," and others as
mere grow lcrs and marplots wherever they are.
! knew too well the anecedent- of such men to
follow where they led, but as the pet pa ssion of
the hour seemed to be the patronizing of such
| political HessanS, and did not desire to be
captous, preferred to give my humble assent
to such acts as were calculated to arouse II
healthy Union sentiment, rather than 10 iuiup
lieadlong into stream OF propositions for com
promise, which knew would nevel be obtained
The sequel justified my apprehcnsons, for fail
ing to obtain these compromises, they fell away
! by scores into the nlile from which they had for
| the moment emerged
Mr.. Matfis is quite mistaken when he sup
poses that his platform Of leGl WAS ohjcciioa-
bic to me. The parts to which | referred were
those which took issue with the political views
of the President, and denounced them as sec
tional principles, and his supporters us IL Sec
tional party. had not supported Mr. Lincoln,
and this was, therefore, no ulfense to me but
did think there was no necessity in declaring
that the Union organization was IL pro-slavery
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES to declare it opposed to the
| Republican party, which was anti-sIavcry, was
in effect, 10 dp-und did know that many gen
tlencn, who had voted for Mr. Lincoln in Mary
land, We're Us good Union men as Mr. Matfit -
To denounce their principles It's sectional was
| in my Judgment an insult TO them, and MS such
| | know some of them did regard it. hut they did
! i',,,. Il.
! Of Mr.. Matit. Hence | said, B." they swallowed
the insult along with the man who gave it,
And from this argued that as anti-sayerv men
| had sacrificed 50 much hcn for unity, MI Mai
| tit and his pro-slaycry friends ought to be will
| ing 10 make similar sacrifice now | do not
desire, as am sure Mr.. Nutht does not, any
mere war of words about this matter, and am
perfectly willing to let all who feel any interest
| Ill il ludge between us on the statements which
| have been made. | am sorry to have been com
PEELED to say 50 much on points foreign to the
! question OF Emancipation, which l set out to
! argue
Nlr Nnitit is hardly ingenious in what he says
| about preventing the appropriation Of money by
| Congress to compensate the Shareholders Of
Maryland. If he misunderstood me, as his
remarks would seem to imp ", his usual shiewd-
ness was sadly at fault for once. | will rndeavor
| to make my meaning palmer The President
| recommended that Congress should make APP
| preparations to the several loyal States holding
slaves, to compensate them for the Inconvenience
OF Emancipation. He desired particularly that
this measure should be cordially responded to
by the people, and especially the members of
Congress OF said States. But the members of
Congress from Maryland, a portion of them at
least, not on y refused their assent to this
measure, but did all they could TO hinder IFS
adoption. Is it not well known that Mr. Muft
sympathized--to say the !cast-Wih these mem
bcrs Of Congress, and but for this refusal and
oppcsItou in which they were backed and
sustained by Nj. Mat!!t, Ike las. Congress would
have passed bill granting ten nif'iono of dol
lars to the STATE Of Maryland! And is not Mr.
Matht now, daily, preventing and hindering this
appropriation by eudeavoring to inculca.e the
idea that it is unconstitutional and wrong -
All the Maryland delegation had to do, was,
| unanimously 10 say, we cordially agree with the
Presidents policy, and willingly accept the
protte,ed aid; but this Mr.. Christicld, and MI
Calvert, and Mr.. Webster and Mr. May, and
Mr.. Kennedy, and Mr.. Hicks reSolutely refused
to do and were sustained by Mr.. Mat1it and
other men Vi like views, q wont say "of his
stripe " and if they Were not willing to accept,
Congress could not force this gratuity on them.
These being the facts, will any person say was
not wholly right when | declared in my first
article, that Mr., Matfi, and his friends had used
all their political power to prevent the giving of
and 10 Maryland, and is the defense which be
sets up, viz: that he had not been in Washing
ton often as | had, anything else but tims-
ness | have been in Washington three times
since the rebellion broke out. Once soon after
the commencement OF the extra session, again
in the fail OF 1861, when, in company with a
prominent gentleman Of this town, went to
procure, and did procure from the War Depart
mcnt an order to allow five or six bundled
voters from this county, then in the army, to
come home and vote the [ Mon ticket with Mr.
Matlit upon it,-and once more in TIE summer
of 1862, to secure a Through for sick friend,
which did not get. How often Mr. Matft has
been there do not know, nor do | care nor is
it at all Il question here
Nor do think that Mr.. Mafflt meets the
question of the right of Congress to make
an appropriation to compensate the State for
the Inconvenience of Emancipation in any
more condid or satisfactory manner. The
President thinks that i will in various ways
promote the general welfare Of the nation
if the Border States should abolish slavery.
He proposes to them that they shall abolish
it. Not that Congress shall do it, for Con-
gress has no right to do it but that the
domestic governments of the State shall
exercise the power which they have over it
a domestic institution, and TO compen-
safe them for any sacrifice to the general
welfare which they may make by thus
aholishing slavery, he proposes that Con
gress shall reimburse them by an appropria-
ton, to be used by them as they shall deem
proper; not necessarily to pay the masters