American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1864-04-13
", PA, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 1864.
Sneech of Hon. T. K. Moorhead.

| Speech of Hon. J. K. Moorhead,
Delivered in the House of Representatives March 2e 1854
Mr. MooRHEAD said:
Mr. Chairman: My colleague from the
2lst district Mr.. Dawsonl has made con-
fessedly the ablest speech on the other side
of the House, and has stated with great
frankness and clearness the grounds of
his opposition to the war. Although it was
well answered by my colleague from the
18th district, [Mr. Schofeld, ] l feel it in
cumbent upon me togive itsome attention,
as our districts adjoin, have like interests
and feelings, and as special efforts have
been made, by the circulation of his speech
to affect the political sentiment of Western
Pennsylvania We both live at the head
of the great channels of trade formed by
the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, and their
tributaries, down which the coal, lumber,
and agricultural products, and the manu-
factures of glass, steel, iron, copper wood,
&C., of our people were accustomed before
the rebellion to float safely and without
let or hindrance, to the inhabitants of
thirteen States, and on through the Gulf
to foreign markets. Valuable as the Fed
eral Union is to the people of other States,
is is beyond all price to Pennsylvania, and
especially to his constituents and mine,
who alike love their country, are proud Of
its history, believe in free government,
hate slavery, are ready to die rather than
see their national flag dishonored at home
or abroad, and will not permit the destruc-
ton of their Government by aristocratic
shareholders, who treat and speak of north
ern people-Democrats as well as Republ-
cans-with more scorn, than they feel for
their slaves on their plantations. The
blow of the traitors who made this war,
fell first and heaviest on our constituencies,
when they closed the navigation of the Mis-
sissippi, seized and coniscated, property,
and destroyed trade more than sixty years
enjoyed, and for restoration Of the right to
which our people have been vigorously
fighting for nearly three years. do this,
Mr.. Chairman, the more readily, because
the doctrines he announces, are the very
same which brought on the war, and if not
condemned by the people, would make the
southern rebels our masters forever.
My colleague began his speech by re-
minding us in glowing terms of the hap
py and prosperous state of the country
''about eight years since" when lie left
these halls. He left two years before Mr..
Buchanan become President. What was
its condition when Mr.. Buchanan handed
the Government to Mr. Lincoln? Why
is my colleague silent as to the pregnant
fact, that when Mr.. Buchanan retired, the
gloom of that awful period was such that
its mere remembrance comes like on evil
shadow over the heart of every patriot p?
1t has been suggested he has been in a
deep sleep during the eight years he was
absent from political life. His speech fur
nshes strongevidence of it. Let me then
inform him what he should know, and
what many of his constituents do know,
that not merely are we now, "in the midst
of a revolution" but the country was in
the midst of revolution when Mr.. Bu-
chanan retired, and has been on the brink
of revolution at different times, for thirty
years.
Jackson suppressed treason in 1882.
jeff. Davis and his fellow conspirators
made some signs of beginning revolu-
tion, under old Zach. Taylor in 1850, when
California was admitted as a free State !;
but the hero of Buena Vista squelched it
by announcing that he would hang the first
rebel who dared to lift hand against the
Union, and jeff Davis we'll knew he would
do it. They prepared for it, while Pierce
lived in the White House, and Davis gov
erned the country. They ypersevered while
Buchanan was President, and Floyd con-
trolled the army until, between the 4th of
November, 1860, the day Lincoln was cleo
ted, and the 4th of March, 1861, the day
he was inaugurated, every southern fort
except Pickens and Sumter, every armory
and arsenal all the ordnance, arms, and
ammunition, all the custom-houses, post
offices, and mints, in a word all the prop
erty of the Federal Government in every
seeded State were seized by slaveholding
traitors, without blow being struck or a
shot being fired in their defense, and 30
days before Buchanan's term expired,
eight slaveholding States had openly re-
belled against the Government, east off al
legianee to it and excluded its authority,
hauled down it's flag, captured its troops,
arms, forts, ships, munitions of war as
sembled a congress at Montgomery, Ala,
adopted constitution, elected a President,
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