The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1863-12-18

taDilshmeht OF permanent friendly RELATE ons witt
such OF these tribes as have been brought int
frequent and bloody collision with our outlying
settlements and emgrants. Sound policy and
our imperative duty to these wards Of the gov.
ernment demand our anxious and constant at
tention to their material well-beng, to Their
progress in the arts Of civilization, and above al
for that moral training which under the bless.
ing of Divine Providence, will confer upon then,
the elevatedand sanctifying influences, the hopes
and consultations of The Christian faith.
suggested in my last annual message the
propriety of remodeling our Indian system
Subsequent events have satisfied me Of its ne
cessitY. The details set forth in the report of
the secretary evince the urgent need for imme.
diate legislative action.
l commend the benevolent institutions estab-
lished or patronized by the government in this
District to your generous and fostering care
The attention of Congress during the last
session was engaged to some extent with prop
osition for cnlarcins the water, communication
between the Mississippi river and the northeas-
tern seaboard, which proposition however fail
ed for the timo. s0leal1 'a'svna7s cd e
Since then, uponia cali of the greatest respec-
liability, convention has been held at Chicago
upon the same subject summary Of whose
views is contained in memorial addressed to
the President and Congress, and which now
have the honor to lay before you. That this
interest is one which ere long will force its own
way, do not entertain . doubt, while it is SUBJ
nitted entirely to your wisdom as 70 what can
be done now. Augmented interest is given TO
this subject by the actual commencement Of
work upon the Pacific railroad under auspices
so favorable TO rapid progress and completion.
The enlarged navigation becomes palpable need
tc the great road
transmit the second annual report of the
Commissioner of the Department of Agricul-
ture, asking your attention to the developments
in that vital interest of tie nation.
Whc'. Congress assembled year ago the war
bad already lasted nearly twenty months. and
there had been many conflicts on both land and
sea, with varying results. The rebellion had
been pressed back into reduced limits, yet the
tone Of public feeling and operation at homo
and abroad was not satisfactory. '5i
With other signs, the popular elections, then
just passed, indicated uneasiIiess among our
selves, while amid much that was cold and
menacng, the kindest words coming from Eu-
rope were uttered in accents of pity that we
were too blind to surrender hopeless calfse.---
Ger commerce was suffering greatlyAlv, a fay.
armed vessels built upon and furnish ed from
foreign shores, and we were threatened with
such additions from the same quarter as would
sweep our trade from the sea and raise our block
ade We had failed to elicit from European
governments anything hopeful upon this subject.
The preliminary emancipation proclamation,
issued in September, was running its assigned
period to the beginning Of the new year. A
month later the final proclamation came, in
cluding the announcement that colored men of
suitable condition would be received into the
war service. The policy of emancipation, and
of employing black soldiers gave to the future
a new aspect, about which hope, and fear, and
doubt contended in uncertain conflict.
According to our political system, as mat
ter of civil administration, the general govern
ment had no lawful power to effect cmancipa-
tion in any State, and for long time it had
been hoped that the rebellion could be Suppress
ed without resorting to it as military measure.
1t was all the while deemed possible that the
necessity FOR it might come, and that if itshould,
the crisis Of the contest would then he present.
ed. 1t came, and, as was anticipated, it was
followed by dark and doubtful days.
Eleven months having now passed we are
permitted to take another review. The rebel
borders are pressed still further back by the
complete opening of the Mississippi. The coun-
try dominated by the rebellion is divided into
distinct parts, with no practicable communica-
ton between them Tennessee and Arkansas
have been substantially cleared of insurgent con-
troll, and influential citizens in each, owners of
slaves and advocates of slavery at the beginning
of the rebellion, now declare openly for eman-
cipation in their respective States.
OF those States not included in the emanci-
patton proclamation, Maryland and Missouri,
neither Of which three years ago would tolerate
any restraint upon the extension of slavery in
to new territories, only dispute now as to the
best mode of removing IL within their own lin
its.
OF those who were slaves at the beginning
Of the rebellion full 100000 are now in the, U.
S. military service, about one-half Of which
number actually bear arms in the ranks, thus
giving the iianble advantage Of taking 80 much
labor from the insurgeht cause, and supplying
the places which otherwise must be filed with
SO many white men. ~ ~ s9'1 a.l's j
So far as tested, it is difficult to aay that they
are not as good soldiers as any. No servile in
surrection or tendency to violence or cruelty
has marked the measures Of emancipation and
arming the blacks. These measures have been
much discussed in foreign countries, and con-
with such discussion the tone Of
public sentiment there is much improved.
At homo the Same measures have been fully
discussed, supported, criticized and denounced,
and the annual electious following are highly
encouraging to those whose official duty it is to
bear the country through this great trial Thus
we havcth reckoning. The crisis which threat
cned to divide tie friends Of the Union is past.
Looking now to IT., present and future, and
with reference to q resumption of the national
authority within tie States wherein that author
:kr bao hoa., I he khe,,nlt 81 n.