Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1864-04-25

bayoneIs and prisons and all the tyranny which
may be imposed blythe whole power aud force of
the Administration | have deliberately uttered
my sentiments in that speech. and / will not
retFaet Que syllable OF is. ~r Fl.
am willing to trust to time. i am willing to
await ari,iirsment. II am mistaken, so much
the better for me, the gentleman and the country.
Would 10 God / was mistaken. W oUld to God
could cherish other convictions than those /
have uttered Ny earliest aspirations have been
for the glory of my country. have admired
its institutions, 1 have gloried in its statesmen;
they hive been the pride Of nv heart would
make any sacrifice to restore the Union as il was
before that unhappy day for this people when
the gentlemans party came into power and de-
stroyed The larest prospects Of liberty that Heav-
en- in its mercy ever youchsafed to man. /
would do il, SIR, TO restore the Government; but
/ cannot see restoration by the power of the bay
onet. Looking at the history OF such struggles
in the Old World, and in South America and
elsewhere, can see nothing but ruin. destruction
and the final overthrow of free government in
continuance OF our present policy. | have raised
my voice, feeble and humble as it is. against IT,.
because believe that It's continuance will de-
stroy liberty, both North and South q AIt
think, however, my colleague was not en-
tirely honest in the construction he put upon what
| said; but he may have misunderstood me- |
uttered no sentiment looking to a separation that
should be a division from the mouth of the Mis-
sissippi TO the head of the Ohio river. l uttered
no such sentiment. / gave utterance TO no such
expression. What did say-aDd what said is
written out and can be read&was, that when the
Government was formed we were not owners of
the mouth of the Mississippi and that we did not
own the territory west Of the Mississippi river. Il
did not say thatw did not own the Ohio river
and the State in which the gentleman and live;
but that we owned no territory west Of the Mis-
sissippi, and that Florida was held against US.
did then say that if, by the ehastsement Of
Heaven, we should be curtailed to our old terri
torial dimensions, we could still exist AS free
people, and have our republican form of govern
ment again supposed the gentleman was ia
miliar enough with the history of his country;
supposed that even he, although he has spent
part Of bis tine in the army and left t for seat
upon this floor, knew that the northwestern ter
ritOry extended beyond the Ohio river. was held
by Virginia. and formed part of the original ter
ritory when the Constitution was adopted /
thought, theref.re. that the gentleman did me
intentional injustice in the position he ascribed to
me. He may not have done so; but il not. he
must certainly be very ignorant of the history Of
his country and of the amount of territory we
possessed when the Government was formed.
Mr. Chairman, | have detained the House
should have been 10th to make any response to
nv colleague if he had not INDUCED IN a personal
attack upon me 1 should have been reluctant
10 detain the House at this late hour il he had not
seen proper TO do what has not been done before
on any occasion since the commencement of the
session, to get up and denounce me as,uniaithful
20 the Government. Sir, hurl back the charge
saw that the men who destroying this Gov
vernment, destroying these fair prospects OF iOer
sI.a -, fha
authors and originators of all our present diff
culties They first uttered the sentiment that
this Government could not exist as eur fathers
made it; that there "irrepressible con-
hict," which would result either in the overthrow
of the Institutions of the States On the one
side. the overthrow of the Government Of
the United States on the other. Thev inau.
gurated the conflict which has produced this
unfogtunate state of things. | have simply
recognized the work of their own hands. 1t i'll
becomes man upon that side Of the House to
assail me. That duty i'll becomes man belong
ing to party that has always taken the oath to
support the Constitution with a mental reserva-
tiOn and has declared before the country and
before God that the institutions which our fathers
established and the Government which they
founded. could not exist as they made it in the
beginning, with all its compromises. believe
that the Fathers of the Republic were as good as
we are / believe that they we're as good Chris
tians and as true patriots. They looked at the
institution of slavery not in the light in which
these gentlemen look at it now. When they
came to the communion table to partake of the
sacrament they did not push men away because
they had slaves. God prospered them in the
Revolution and in the formation of the Govern
ment. 1t was good Government, good enough
for me- good enough for my children, and | am
willing to make any sacrifices to restore it.
But, SIR we heard these gentlemen Of the Re-
publican party in this Hall the other night APP
plaudng to the echo tie sentiments of a man
George Thompson has gloried over the
tearing to pieces of our Constitution. the man
who originated this separation of the States and
this destruction of civil and political liberties
Such party must discard, who thanked God
that the hour Of compromise was passed. and that
we were freed FROM the shackles of the Constitu
ton. | will plant myself, even IL il be single and
alone, in opposition to a party which plO;s the
destruction of the Government, the overthrow Of
liberty, and which applauds George Thompson
and his sentiments. | would rather live in the
State in which the gentleman and live. with
liberty, with free Government, under the Con
sttution Of our fathers, with my rights, political.
social, and civil, than live in great empire
under overshadowing despotism. Give me
liberty, even if confined TO an island OF Greece or
canton of Switzerland, rather than an empire
and despotism, we have here to-day.