East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1863-11-25

Thirteen, / present extracts from
speeches of Mr.. Douglas and Mr.. Pugh,
bearing directly on this point.
On the 3D. Of January, in the course
of an elaborate speech, Mr.. Douglas
used the following language:
eff you of the Republican side are
not willing to accept this nor the prop
osition of the Senator from Kentucky,
pray tell us what you will do? l adj
dress tho inquiry to the Republicans
alone, for the reason that the Com
mittee Of Thirteen, q few days ago
members from the South, including
those from the cotton states, (Messrs.
Davis and Toombs,) expressed their
readiness to accept tho proposition of
my venerable friend from Kentucky,
as final settlement of the controver-
sy, if rendered and sustained by the
Republican members. Hence the sole
responsibility of our disagreement,
and the only difficulty in the way of
an amicable adjustment is with the
Republican party"
These remarks were made, as well
as / remember, before very full SEN
ate, in the presence of nearly, if not
quite all, the Republican and Southern
Senators, and no one dared to dispute
] the facts stated.
Mr.. Pugh, on the % Of March, in
the course of very able speech, re-
marked
"But suppose that Senator does
promise me vote on the Crittenden
proposition L have followed him for
three months. L have followed my
honorable friend from Kentucky (Mr.
Crittenden) for three months; have
followed my friend, the Senator from
Pennsylvania, (Mr. Bigler) for three
months; l have voted with them on
all these propositions, ut q time when
there were twelve other Senators in
this chamber on whose votes we could
rely, and what came Of it all? Did
we ever get vote on tho Crittenden
propositions? Neverl Did we ever
get a vote on the peace conference
propositions Never. Did we ever
get vote on the bill introduced by
the Senator from Pennsylvania, (Mr.
Bigler) TO submit these propositions to
a vote of the people? Never. They
were not strong enough to displace the
Pacific Railroad Bill, which stood here
and defied them in the Senate for
more than a month. They were not
strong enough to set aside this plumber
bill you call tariff. They were not
strong enough to beat pension bill
one moring For three long months
have / followed the Senator and others
heesins for a vote thoso questions:
never can we get it-never and now
/ am to be deluded no further; and 1
use that word delusion certainly in no
unkind sense to my friends.
"The Crittenden proposition has
been endorsed by the unanimous vote
of the Legislature of Kentucky. 1t
has been endorsed by the Legislature
of the noble old Commonwealth of
Virginia. 1t has been petitioned for
by a larger number of electors of the
United States than any proposition
that was ever before Congress. i be-
lieve in my heart, to-day, that it would
carry an overwhelming majority Of
the people of my State; aye, sir, and
of nearly every other State in the
Union: Before the Senators from the
State of Mississippi left this chamber
| heard one of them, who now assumes,
at least, to be President Of the South
ern Confederacy, propose to accept it
and TO maintain the Union, if that
proposition could receive the vote it
ought to receive from the other side Of
the chamber Therefore, of all your
propositions, Of all your amendments,
knowing as / do, and knowing that
the historian will write it down, at any
time before the LIST of January, two
thirds vote for the Crittenden resolu-
tons in this chamber would have saw
ed every State in the Union but South
Carolina. Georgia would be here by
her representatives, and Louisiana also
those two great States, which, at
least, would have broken the whole
column of secessson.'
Mr.. Douglas, at the same time said
in reply: Il can confirm the Sena-
tors declaration that Senator Davis
himself, when on the Committee of
Thirteen; was ready at all times to
compromise on the Crittenden propo-
sition. l will go further and say that
Mr.. Toombs was also ready to do So"
But if this testimony were not in
existence at all, do we not all know
that the great State of Virginia en-
dorsed this proposition and submitted
it TO the other States as q basis of a
final adjustment and permanent peace?
1t was this basis on which the State
called for the Peace Conference which
assembled soon thereafter.
1t was also endorsed by almost the
unanimous vote of the Legislature of
Kentucky, and subsequently 10y those
of Tennessee and North Carolina
But il is useless to add testimony. The
Republicanmembers ofthe Senate were
against tho Crittenden proposition,
and the radicals of that body were
against any and every adjustment
When the Peace Conference had as
sembled, and there was some hope of
a satisfactory settlemeet, it is well
known that Mr.. Chandler, Mr.. Harlin
and others urged their respective Gov
errors, to send on impracticable fanat-
les as Commissioners, in order to de-
feat a compromise.
In what have said / have not in
tended TO extenuate or excuse the
wickedness of the Secessionists. Bad
and impolitic as was the policy of the
Northern radicals, it furnished no suf-
fcient reason for Secession, rebellion
and war; but l believed most sincere
ly then, as ! do now, that the accept
ance of Mr.. Crittenden's proposition