Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1864-10-26
HENRY WARD BEEOHER on
THE POLITICAL ISSUES
OF THE DAY.
THE HISTORY OF COMPROMISE.
State sovereignty a Humbug.

Mr.. Beeeher, on Sunday night, spoke on
the political topics of the day. He is thus
reported BY the Tribune:
Mr. Beecher commenced by saying that
war should not be prosecuted except at the
last extremity, but that when war has been
actually declared for the maintenance Of
great and good principles, 1t is then vain TO
have peace upon any other terms than the
acquisition of that Tor which the war was
waged. We have no right to get rid of
| difficult and embarrassing questions by
partially curing them and transmitting
them to our children If we admit of .
peace upon basis of State sovereignty,
perpetual revolution and eommotion will
be inevitable. 1t will, moreover, encourage
a most dangerous precedent. The present
| issue is life or death to the nation, and ev-
cry patriotic citizen shOula address himself
70 the political struggle now at hand
There are classes of men who are In favor
of peace Immediately, and willing to do
almost anything in order to secure pesee.
But where nations are fighting for prinoi-
piles directly antagonistic to each other,
there can be no peace through comprOm-
ise; it must be fought out. We have had
bitter experience Of only compromising
our difficulties. The time has now come
to obliterate them forever-to fight it out.
| The talk that the Union was mAde by
compromise, and that therefore it must be
reconstructed by compromise, does not sp-
ply where States have bound themselves
by an oath to Union to which each shall
owe obedience. The very formation Of
our Government, in substituting the Con-
stitution for the Articles Of Confederation,
is an argument against the destruction Of
our Government. It is to be regretted that
the Convention of 1877 left the curse Of
slavery upon the land, when it might then
aud there have obviated the necessity Of
this war. The speaker went into 3 his-
tory of the formation of the Government
at the conclusion of the Revolution,
in most able and forcible man
ner. The question Of how the smaller
States should maintain an equal position
with the larger and more influential ones
in the Union, was settled by the Just ar
rangement that each State should have
the same number Of Senators. The result
of this is, that now the question is securely
settled, and we hear nothing more of it.
There never has been word Of complaint
from Rhode Island, Delaware, Maryland,
and the othe small States on this score,
/ and question which threatened to pre-
vent the establishment of Of our Govern
ment was 50 thoroughly settled that we
never hear anything further OF 1t. Such
was the way with other questions which
threatened trouble-all except slavery
which our ancestors were unwis,
enough to leave unsettled. The
Northern States paid nearly all the
debts incurred by the Revolutionary War
beside doing the most Of the lighting
J Other questions, among which vas the
selection OF the National Capital, have
been so thoroughly settled, that few at the
present know that there ever were any
such questions agitating the public mind
If Slavery had also been settled, we should
now have no war. We have erred when
ever we have compromised with this evil
The Missouri Compromise was an error
inasmuch as it only put off the disturbance
to 8 later day. From the hour of the Mis-.
souri, Compromise, however, there has beer
a steady growth Of snti-slavery sentiment
! throughout this country. Then came tbs
Fugitive Slave Saw, which was another
and futile attempt to heal the difficulty
and such attempts only worked mischief
We tried for peace again through Mr.
Douglas and his Nebraska Bill The mex
trial was in the election Of Mr.. Buchanan
in 1856. There was never more dis
graceful Administration than that Of Mr.
acknowledgement in its cringing t
the Slave Power, and yet that did not set
tie the question of Slavery, In the pre-
sent contest God is on the one side, anC
Satan is on the other side. If we listen t
these men who cry peace peace wheI
there is no peace, we shall deserve to b,
plunged into that depth Of damnatioI
| which the destruction Of the Union in
wolves. We all want peace-all Of Us
| North and South. We are all in favor o
q peace bu. thare Is a difference of opinion
as to the method Of obtaining it. w
/, must have peace that will settle, and for
ever, the question whether minorities shsl
; or shall not submit to the will Of msjoritiec
This question is most vital, and must b
0 settled at once and for all time. TheGov
= ernment must have the power to carry ou
the decisions os the majority. To violat
this right Of majoritiss is crime agains
the progressive movement of The age. Y
peace can possibly be obtained that doe
g not firmly establish the Union and th
T Government The man who disregard
II this right Of the majority TO rule must b
0 made to know the sanctity Of this great pol
!, teal crisis This nation Is not ready for peaC
5 until it has made the right Of the majority
t rule iirmly estsblishsd--untl It has given
lesson to the traitors of the South whic
o they will never forget The very frst tim
u that the South was placed il the positio
d in which the North hsd been repeated
Of plseed-that Of being beaten il an slec.io
they rebelled; and they, therefore, Al
d responsible for all this fearful carnas
le which has ensuedE And, now that Il
war has commenced, We deserve punisl
= ment from God if we do not finish up s
ID our difficulties before we stop lighting.
is not a slight, but a grave and soleu
thing, TO 90 to war; but, when we are e
Gagged in war for vital principles, we q
weak and unwise if we do not estsbli
those principles forever. We should 4
er think of peace until We have settled {
n question Of our national life. We mi
We put the seal upon hissheresy Of State Soy