The Union. [volume] (Georgetown, Del.) 1863-1866, 1864-04-22
or sTME. MARYLAND
~ SANITARY FAIR.

Address by President A1meOhMs
BALTinoaE, April l8.AThs Inauguration
exercises Of the great Fairat Maryland In
stitute, Tonight, were very imposing. The
display was exceedingly fine, and the inn
.mense building was throngcd in every part.
President Lincoln made a speech, which con-
tanned an important reference to the Fort
Pillow massacre.
I The Presidents appearance in the hall was
greeted with tremendous applause, which
continued some moments After the .inau-
gural address of Gov. Bradford, the President
was loudly called for, and in response he pro-
ceeded to make brief address,.
lie referred to the>great change that had
taken place in Baltimore in the last three
years. Truly, he said, the world moves
At the commencement of the war the soldiers
Of the Union could not pass through Balti-
more unpublished, and now we have this largo
sssemblage of people brought together to do
them honor and to provide for their wants,
and to make them comfortable. All honor
to the brave patriots who had wrought the
change, and to the noble women who aided
them.
When this war began scarcely one indiyid7
ual supposed it would have lasted ill now.
All thought it would have ended in some way
in a mnch shorter time. Very few Of that
time thought the institution of slavery would
be very much affected by it, but those expec-
tations were not realized, and here we are
(laughter) and slavery has been somewhat
affected (great laughter)i 50 true it is, my
friends, that man proposes and God disposes.
The world, he said, had long been in want
of o correct definition of the word freedom
Whilst all professed to advocate liberty,
there was in the minds Of many very oppo-
ate view of what liberty was With one
man liberty implied to work for himself and
do as he pleased with the proceeds of his la :
b)r; while others liberty meant to do as ono
pleased with other men and their labor
One Of these two conflicting ideas would have
t give way to the other. He thought, from
some occurrences which had only lately taken
p ace in Maryland, her people w;re about to
determine which of these views of freedom
would control her destiny.
The President passed on to refer to u mat.
ter which he said he supposed was just now
agitating the minds of the people all over
the country. lie alluded to tho occur co
which is reported to have taken place at Fort
Pillow, on the Mississippi riyer-the masst.-
ere of seveI al hundred colored soldiers BY the
confedorates. Many supposed tn 1t the Gov
ernm ent did not intend to do its duty in re-
gard to the protection Of these colorod sol
diers. lie desired to say that all such were
mistaken.
When the question of employing colored
men as soldiers was loft to the government,
it rested very much with himself whether he
would make soldiers Of them or not. He
pondprad the matter carefully, and when he
lccalne conyinced that ii was duty to s9
employ fhem, Il, did net hesitate g do sa. !.
He s-tod before tho American p39plo 7ess'D-
sible for tho act resp ins,ble before the GIri@-
tan world--rcsponsibl lor ii he should s,ai,d
in the eyes Of the historian--responsihle Il L
it he stood before God, and lie did not shrink
from the decision he had made, for he be-
l:eved it was right; but when the govern
ment determined to make soldiers Of these
colored people, he thought it only just that
they would have the same protection as the
white sold .ers, (applause,) and he hesitated
not to declare that the Government would do
SO, and would protect them to the utmost of
its power. Whenever IL clear, well-authent:-
eatel case should be made out, retribution
follow. Ii had hitherto been difficult to as
certain facts with that certainty which should
govern a decision in a matter 50 serieus.--
But in the affair at Fort Pillow, he thought
they were likely TO find clear case. The
government has no direct evidence to confirm
the reports in existence relative to tue mas
sacre, but he himself feared taas The facts, as
related, were true,
) When the Government does know the facts
: from official sources, and they substantiate
the reports, retribution will surely be given.
Grea. applause. But how should That re.
! tribution be administered was question still
to be settled. Would it be just to take the
lives of prisoners in Washington, in Fort Del
aware, or elsewhere, in retaliation for acts in
which they had not share? Would it be
: right to take the prisoner captured, say al
Vicksburg, and shoot him for acts of which
I: he is not guilty, and which it will probably
: be found were the ordering Of only few in
= dividuals, or possibly of only one man?
The President reiterated that the govern
: ment woald not fail to visit rctribution when
= the facts were clearly proven. Throughout
his remarks he was warmly applauded, espe
y cially his enuncat On of a determination tC
! visit relribution for the barbarous deeds o.
he rebels, NJ