Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1863-03-05

South And then, sir, when those men are gone,
We shall have petition Congress to raise SIX hun.
dred or eight hundred thousand more, and then be
believe in the declaration of Douglas that war is
inevitable, irrepsrable. 1t Is dsunion 30
.AI q TINS administration have been able to con-
pursuing this direction twelye months Iongerf The
and the last hope for the restoration Of
Ine onen, Is In the virtue of the people. Until
YOU eau ma the people willing to sit down upon
the same platform that they sat down upon seven
yhve years ago, it is idle to talk Of restoring the
This war Is unlike any other war that ever ak
isted-it 10 unlike foreign war. It is war among
brethren and sisters, and among fathers and moth
men who are highly educated and acute, who have
strong passions and prejudices, and who have in.
augurated system of rebellion, which, perhaps
the humber classes are not responsible for. Edu.
Gated men in the South, in the North, have Civ.
en- tone to public sentiment. The only way to re.
store the Union is to bring the people Of the South
and of the North to mingle once more together /
tell you feel it, thousands Of people feel it, that
if the people in that section once lay down their
arms, no power on the earth can ever induce them
to take them up again. When they see the graves
that they have filled, and that this is destruc-
tive to life, liberty and union every thing that is
dear to them on earth, they will acknowledge their
errors. Why the God of Nature made our country
for one republic. The rivers and the prairies have
bound US together in one bond. Nothing but the
counsels of bad men could every have separated
US. There may be time when the bonds Of union,
the bonds of concord, will not be SO strongly
pected as they were Immediately after the revolu-
ton. Rut after penitence and contritlon both
North and South, believe the people of this
public may be brought together again. II they
cannot come together in the manner contemplated
in these resolutions, they can never come together
at all because the continuance of this war is dis
union, inevitable, certain.
The gentleman from Grant (Rountree) and every
other gentleman representing that SIDE of the Ques-
tion assumes it to be fact that the Democratic
party, as q party, constantly obstructng the
progress of this war. deny it emphaticaiIy. Such
is not the case and never has been the case. At
the outset the Democratic party rallied in mass to
the support of the Union and lent to that support
all their influence and ali their money. When the
administration departed from its original profess
ions and pursued some other course, said it Was
the destruction of the Union, that it could be
restored under such lead. ask gentlemen to look
at these resolutions for a moment. Allow me to
read the preamble. Breads it,
1t would have been we'll had these ideas been fol-
lowed. We have fought long, and yet the same
questions OF intercourse are still upon And
now, as have already said, We ought to profit by
experience. No great trouble in this republic was
ever before settled except by compromise. When
the American people become so estranged that they
cannot meet upon common basis, there is no ion-
ger any hope for the Union, and when large party
at the North have said and are continually saying
that tbs uitimatum of this struggle must be to
conquer peace, 1t comes with bad grace. If
had such men now living as Daniel Webster and
Henry Clay, believe it would not yet be too late
to restore this country to the condition in which it
was. This peace never can be conquered by the
force of arms. There must be concessions from the
North and from the South, which believe both are
prepared to make, the moment they shall be in q
position to express their views. ..
The further prosecution of this war, under ex-
isting circumstances, necessarily calls upon the
people of the North to raise and a million men,
1t necessarily calls for the sending into the field az
many more men as We have already sent there
Now what We gain by the repetition of the
same course of action We have tried this plan
long enough. On southern BATTLE fields there lie
one hundred and fifty thousand of the loyal men of
the North. And one hundred and fifty thousand
more, yea two hundred tho usand more, are last on
their way to the same graves. The hospitals in
every State, and by the side of every river, are
filed with the dying and the deac-and all for
what2 All for the purpose of abolishing slavery or
of abolishing the Union. For one, am unwilling
to try this plan any longer. You have shed blood
enough at Pttsburg, orinth, Yorktown, and scores
of other battlefelds say day, standing here,
not another lite not another drop Of blood until
an effort for compromise shall prove unav ailing-
The people of both parties demand i'll kn~w it,
They have heard the wall of widows and Orphans,
and bereaved friends until the soul sickens in de-
spair. Ask the North and the South to beat their
swords into plowshares, and their spears into
pruning-hooks, and instead of drenching the
earth With human gore, turn to the Christian
pursuits OF producing cotton, and rice, and ma
lures products everywhere If alter the words of
compromise have been tried and they sail prove
unavailing, then may be willing to try war again.
At least will be found anywhere and everywhere,
where in my Judgment my action shall be for the
restoration OF the Union, and nowhere else. When
read these petitions against abolition, particular
y from the district which represent, which como
up here; know that represent the feelings of my
constituents, when oppose the policy Of the Ad-
ministration. .s.- 1893 E...
Mr.. SHABPSTEIN-Cinterr Have any De-
titons COM up here asking for resolutions of this
klnd3
Mr.. SANsORN-No, there have not but petitions
have come mere which embody the doctrine of these
resolutions. L do not attempt to lead any gentle
man. do not attempt to manufacture public SEN
timent. But hold that when petition comes
from my district, expressing in as authorize alive
language as can be used, the utter repuguance of
the people to the further prosecution of this
war; that it is my duty, representing my consttu-
ency, to take the position which I take here
stand on this floor only of the Democratic
party of this State. am only q humble individ
ual. ask no public favor or patronage-only TO
express my sentiments and the sentiments of the
people. 1t will make but little difference to me
how the Legislature vote upon this question, I
only ask that from little gathering like that of
this Assembly, there may be spark kndled which
shall blaze up among the people into the true doc
trine. we should be known in Europe as a people
not seeking to wade in human blood foreve r Hith-
erto we have been known in Europe as a people
more fond of the amenities OF peace than ony other
people upon the earth. The whole voice Of Eng
land to-day is replete with admonition against the
continuance OF tnis struggle, and they do not say
which party is most to blame. am in favor OF the
passage Of these resolutions.
Mr.. FIELD moved the previous question.
Mr.. WHITE wanted to be heard a moment
Mr.. WEBB thought that the gentleman Mr.
White) ought to be heard in the discussion of his
own resolutions.
Mr.. FIELD said he was tired of this discussion
Mr.. JONES hoped the motion for the previous
questan would be withdrawn as he was unwilling
to vote either way upon the resolutions, without
having said few words upon them,
Mr.. BARRON wished to say q few words and
thought that other members did.
Mr.. WHITE being unwilling to promise that he
would renew the motion for the previous question,
at the close of his remarks, Mr. Field insisted upon
the motion, which was seconded.
The house then agreed that the main question
should be put, which was done, with the following
vote Democrats in Italics, Republicans in Roman:
In favor Of the adoption of the resolutions:
Messrs. A6ert, Bentley, Burroughs, Brrtch
CHAPMAN, Collins, Epastcn, Hanrahan, Hide
brandt, Jones, AcCoAum, Oetlan0, O'Hara, Pert
tier, Shanahcn, Siaon, Saooer, Tao'aas, White
and ZiLlier-25.
Against their adoption
Messrs. Adams, AIcott, Barron, Bates, bingham,
Caswell, Cory, Cox, Davis, Dockstader, Douglas,
Euss, Field, FISHER, H. Foster g. II. Foster, FraxeU
Head, Hill, Flyer, Jackson, Lapham, Larkin, Me-
fdTIdnd, Miller, Monroe, Newman, Osborn, Phil
ups, Pope, Pratt, Priest, P0wers, Pullen. Rand,
Hooenson, Roths, Rountree, Hdrpstetn, ". H.
S"h spauldng, starks, Starr, st urte'ant, Taylor,
treat, Turner, Vivian, Wagner Walw0rth, Webb,
Speaker-63.
A JEFF. Davis Organ Demolished by Con-
valescent Soldiers. r..
Keokuk, Iowa, Feb. 2C.-At half past
three o'clock yesterday afternoon, about
seventy five convalescent soldiers from the
hospital marched to the Daily Constitu-