Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1864-04-28

he omits to do; and the reverse of the rul
IS just as true. Whenever we pass a La
which Impalrs or infringes the constitutions
right of a citizen of Kentucky, you know it
not worth the paper on which it is written
1t Is invalid, it is null and void, and give
you no right to complain whatever 1t ma
show that the public sentiment in Wisconsi
Is little disordered, but it can have no othe
effect.
But remember this revolt is not against TIL
government of the States; it is against tn,
Government of the United States. They di,
not undertake to overthrow the government
OF any of the Individual States they did mo-
propose to do it, but simply the Government
of the United States, and the Government o.
| the United States never passed any persona
liberty laws. But those men who went oui
from here to make this rebellion told Won
that the personal liberty laws had never done
any hurt and were not the cause of COMPLAINT
a REBELLION TO CRUSH OUT OPINION AND SUB
JUGATE THE NATION.
| Mr.. President, what had we done or what
had we said to give occasion for this revolt >
| The form of the Government was as perfect
as they could make it. The administration of
| the Government had been just what thew
| chose to make it. There had been no act of
which they could complain. What words had
we uttered of which they could COMPLAIN >
The President of the United States, coming
into Office On the 4th Of March, 1861, threat
ened everywhere with revolt, with war, find
ing himself surrounded by menace in everv
direction-what language did he employ to-
ward the insurgents l desired to read one
passage from the inaugural address of the
President of the United States, which I
thought had in this volume of the Globe
but do not see it, and l cannot repeat il
and | must let it pass. Sir, you remember
and | remember the language used by the
President of the United States who was call
ed upon to encounter the first effort at revolt
against the authority of the United States.
and to break up the Union of these States
His speech was very brief, but it was very
emphatic. He said: "By the Eternal, the
Union shall be preserved;" and it was. He
did not try to palliate, to excuse, or to ex-
tenuate He set himself up before the world
as the representative of the people of the
United States, and he said that every man in
and outside of the United States must respect
that authority
The language we employed in 1861 was
milder than that. The threats and the
taunts and the insults have all come from the
insurgents, and none from the authorities
against which they revolted Let me read
to you an extract from the language of one
Of the Senators from revolving State. He
had not then left the Senate Chamber, He
was still in your employ, still under your pay.
Speaking Of an event which had transpired a
short time before, and which had touched
the sensibilities of every loyal citizen of the
toto ba IN, ~,
Der, in the presence Of the representatives of
the American people, employed this singular
language:
''The Star Of the Vest staggered into Charleston
harbor received blow planted full in the face and
staggered out. Your flag has been insulted ro
dress it if you dare. You have submitted to il for
two months, and you will submit to it forever''
The Government having done no act
against which complaint could be made, hav-
ing spoken no word that was not spoken in
kindness, here was rebellion mustered, then
having gathered head in eight States: here
was man IN your council chamber preparing
to JOIN IN 1t, daring you to assert the author
lty OF the people, telling you that your flag
had been insulted, and that you dared not re-
sent 1t; rebel right here in this Senate
Chamber l remember that De Quincy, in
some essay of his, treats of murder as one of
the line arts. want to see the essayist who,
by and by, In more peaceable times, with the
light OF this rebellion before him, will under
take to treat of revolution as one of the fine
arts.
But, Mr.. President, what was the trouble
DID they go to war for nothing? Was this
revolution mustered for no purpose whatever?
by no manner of means 1t was for a very
significant purpose. The truth about was,
and you know it, sir, there was an opinion
prevailing in portion Of the States of the
Union which was very obnoxious to the men
who made this rebellion and who owned
slaves. Your Constitution was formed for
the purpose of making American opinion the
supreme law There were very few limita-
lions put upon that opinion. AS great deal
of mischief had arisen in other countries be-
cause of establishing some particular reli-
glons opinion as the legal opinion upon reli-
glous subjects in different realms, it was for
hidden that you should make any law regula-
ting worship or regulating religious opinions
1t declared American opinion to be the su-
preme law. There was necessity, you see,
that American opinion should be left perfect
ly free, that every man should be allowed to
think what he pleases on all subjects.
Now, it happened that the men who made
that Constitution were almost united in the
opinion that slavery was great wrong. Of
course they put nothing into the Constitution
to inhibit you or me Or any man from think
ing the same; and great portion Of the peo-
pie of the United States had therefore con-
tinued to hold fast to that conviction. This
rebellion was employed for the simple pur-
pose Of crushing out that opinion. The Con-
stitution had left every man free to cherish
that einion who saw fit to cherish it. 1t
could not, therefore, be put down by law
Revolution was the only force which could
put it down, and revolution was resorted to
for that purpose and for no other.
Let it be remembered by whoever under
takes to speak of this rebellion hereafter,
that when your forefathers had secured, by
revolution and by war; the right to govern
themselves, and had left opinion perfectly
free among all the people of the United
States, the first opinion which it was attempt
ed to crush out by force was that of anti-sa-
very. Understand me, then, to assert as a
fact that this rebellion is organized for no
other purpose than to crush out anti-slavery
opinion, and not anti-slavery action. Why
do l say that such is the purpose of the re-
bellion? First, because there is nothing but
opinion to rebel against. There was not an
act of, there was not defect in, the Govern
ment, as have shown. There was nothing
but an opinion to war against.
tSenator HOWE then proceeded to show, by
quotations from STEPHENS Of Georgia and
other leading Southern men, that the purpose
of the rebellion is not only to put down anti
slavery opinion, but to subjugate the nation.
The latter was shown by the attempts of the
rebels to seize the National Capital, to assas-
sinate the President, the declaration of the
commissioners sent from Mississippi to confer