, 1864-01-14

Tho statement. and argument of John
Quincy Adams on this subject has never boen
successfully answered
"Ila1 this down ~ tho Law Of nations. / say.
that military autho1itg .takss. fos he time liz
Place Of al municipal Institutions, and slavery
smong the rest: ard that, under that state, of
1lete slsssl5 ~ " e1ats hsSe :as exeias1o On Manage. mage
United States, but the Commander Of the Army.
hss ls Power to order the universal emancipation q
From tbe inetant that The esyeholalns stat.. be,
come the theatre Of war ciy1, ee1vile OF foreign,
tcna to % interference with tie Institution Il slavery s
in every way In which IT can hanteflered with IRON
to ,hs ss5a9a ef States Ta a1gs 70
I aay i il a war power: ard when or county ii
h.s to q
on the war and must carry it Oh according to the
laws Of Eur and by the laws Of war IN invaded
swept By the board. and martial power takes the
place OF them. When tEo hostile armies are set m
martial al7ay, the commanders Of both armies haze
territory"
The great error In the publ1c mind on this
subject arises from applying the provisions
designed to protect citizens In times Of peace
to tTuitors in time Of var.
The provision that no person shall be de-
prived of life without duo process of law
does not make it illegal or Unconstitutional
to Kill rebels on the field Of battle. Neither
do the provisions in regard to the security of
property, or claim to service, make it uncon-
'siitutional, under tie war power, to deprive
rebels Of their slaves.
the claim Of master to the service ofa slave
better or mort sacred than that Of master
to the service of an apprentice, or of q fathcr
to the service Of his child?- The Government
can take my son and your apprentice; can 1t
not take your slave In case of foreign
war, could not the Government conscript ev-
CRY able bodied e1ayes Can 1t not do the
eamc in d domestic war against traitors
Then It seems clear to demo onstratlon TINT tho
Government may cmancipate slavcs.
The power, then, being clear, In the name
of liberty and Of justice and humanity, let It
bc exercised. Proclaim " liberty throughout
the lind to Ill tie Inhabitants thereof"
Let us build upon this rock, and the gates
Of hell shall not prevail against us.
cannot close without offering my tFibute
Of homage to TINT great man who has given.
to the institution Of slavery the hardest blows
1t has ever received. Let Abraham Lincoln
finish the great work he has begun.
The great objects Of his life are to crush
the rebellion and eradicate slavery. His am
bition is to live on the page Of history as the
Iestorer Of the Union, the emancipator Of Ills
| country. For these great ends he has labor
ed and:toiled through difficulties and obsta~
cles fully known only to himself and to God.
The year that has just closed will live as
the ycar Of the proclamation Of emancIpa-
tiop. This act the President declared was
sincerely believed to be IN net of justice,
warranted by the Constitution upon military
necessity; and he invoked for it the consider
ate Indignant Of mankind and the gracious
| 1f fpf,f nj f1rfI1 H.
in modern civilization as clearly as the De-
edt oaipition q Of 4nusGv Mssns char:a. ar ' IS 81
history 1t will be regarded Us great
act of humanity and Justice. As matter Of
State policy, It's wisdom has already been
| indicated. This proclamation, by present.
Ing our national struggle as G clearly defined
contest between liberty and slavery, changed
the attitude Of Europe towards Us. Under
its influence md the victories achieved under
| its auspices, Ill fear Of foreign Intervention
| has disappeared. Since the day of its Issue
no more Floridas have sailed from British
waters. England's broad arrow arrests the
| rebel rams being fitted out iu her lar-
| bors. Louis Napoleon. following the cxa1a-
| Tlc Of Great britain, arrests the rebel gnn-
boats in the waters Of France. Lord Lyons
| BOW arises with alacrity to warn Mr.. Seward
! Of rebel plot in Canada.
With liberty and union thus written By the
! Presidents own hand upon cur national BAN
| ner, we have had Gettysburg, Port Hudson,
vtck1purg, Knoxville and chattanooga.
ask the ardent and impatient friends Of
Lincoln. Remember he lives for the restora-
tion Of the Union and the abolition Of slay-
| cry. Hyou deem him SLOW, or If you think
| le has made mistakes, remember how often
| time has yiudicated his wisdom.
The MASSES of the people everywhere trust
14pn Tt,o1r 1-&1n Is
| clean and his breast is pfre. The people
| know that the devil las no bribe big enough,
| no temptation of gold, or place, or power,
| which can seduce the honest heart Of Abrn-
! ham Lincoln. They know that while he is
President there Is no. danger Of a coup d'etat.
| powers the public safety may require, the
| people instinctiycly feel that their liberties
and laws are safe in his hands. They sleep
| eoundly, with no disturbing approximations,
| while he holds the rims 1mpetuous, eager,
| impatient men Gull him Glow, over cautious,
| wanting In energy Remember the times in
which We live; remember the danger of reck-
| leee energy, Of interruptions will aud passion.
You have Clief Magistrate Of clean hands
and pure heart; sagacious, firm, upright, and
true. Somewhat rude md rough, 1t may be,
but under this rough exterior Jon hare tho
rough, he is nevertheless real, with no false
| glitter or garnfsh pretcDsfon. You have In
him man Of that sobricty, Of that sclEcom-
mand, of that freedom from passion; of that
| Justice and truth, of that eonndncss OF Judge
mcnt and perfect rectitude Of Intention, that
has had, In all these attributes, no parallel,
! since The days Of Washington.
Taking the. last five cEentfu1 years, md Mr.
LINCOLN has excrted grpato1 influence upon
| the popular heart aud in forming public opin-
| ion than my other man. If slavery now reels
and staggers In Its Inst struggles, 1t is from
| the blows It hos received at bis hands. His
speeches and writings, plain, home1y, and
cume the household words of the people, and
| cr5sta1ized into the overwhelming public
sentiment which demands the extinction Of
slavery.
He Is radical-a radical from conviction,
not from PASSION. OF hatred, or reveagc. In
sharp curves, is it not better to put on the
brakes sometimes, rather than to run OF the
| track and smasA up the traine
There arc always men who nre loud, bois-
ferrous, furious, into1crant, proscriptive and
| cruel, whose hearts arc filled with hatred and
malice, and who, to eradicate one evil, are
willing to tear up the good which It has
amplc set By the greatest reforlner and most
! radical teacher who ever appeared on cartl-
the Son Of God. MT. Lincoln's whole theory
Us reformer is to do the greatest possible
amount Of good with the least possible evil
We're lie more violent, more carelcssly de-
strnctivc, did be use more vio&nt words, he
might be perhaps more the popular idol, but
less the statesman and the Christian. This
| great statesman, this simple; unpretcnding
| man, ] believe to be the instrument raised up
ty God to tc0rk out the regeneration Of the ad-
ton ty the deatA Of 4l,a'eriea" sl44nery.
England and t1,e Rebel Prsrateers.