The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1865-06-04


10 be emphatic IN this matter / woult
distrsnchise myself if necessary: in or
der 70 place this question beyond th,
possibility Of doubt This IS the sniri
that l and the honorable gentlemer
! who act with me would make. and not
a VindlctiYe one Tennessee is my na,
tive State I was born upon her soil.
and hope when nay life of faith and
duty IS over to rest ia some of hel
quiet valleys. want her torn and
wasted no more with internal strife
The hand that has Just laid down the
musket should not take up the ballot
box. The war is not over, as many
dream. True, the National arms. with
irresistible force, with a gallantry and
splendOr Of action unrecOrded, with a
glory brighter than that which breaks
from antique proves, tinged and
heightened as it is with the rosy light
of early time, has defeated the rebel.
lion in the held But broader and
more perilOus battle yet awaits US. We
have only char ged the contest from
the field where musketry and artillery
do the work, to the Legislative hall
Z has simply come back % ,Cters q Isum.
The great fight in which statesman5hip
must do the work has come up, and il
must be fought ike the army, at close
quarters. Daily, truckle, falter, and we
are gone.
THE REsPECTABILITY on TREASON.
The gentleman from Bedford (Mr.
Cooper made an argument about mum
bers making a political question re-
spectacle 1t floats dimly through my
bral1, and let II pass. But numbers
really make nothing respectable No.
oh no " on may make treason shah
billy respectable by numbers. You may
conduct it again to the seat Of Justice,
but remove first the figure that stands
within the hall, sword and scales in
hand, lest il turn upon you with fierce
avenging sword You may clo.he it
with the robes Of legislative authority,
but cover up the face of the first Wash
ington, and bind anew the wounded
head Of the second, OF else it will bleed
afresh. You may take u to your homes
and plant it In your hearts, but re-
member that il Is the same treason
that was hated and lOlthed by the hu-
liesJ of our fathers-treason that be-
gan in theft and broken Oaths-that le.
galized highway robbery and murder
that massacred soldiers Of the Re-
public, alter surrender at Fort Pillow,
because they were black that starved
of war at AndersOnville and
elsawhere-that has filed the land with
the widow wall aud the orphans cry
that ran the whole catalogue Of
crimes, and ended il by assassination
say that you may take it tOyour homes
and 70 your bOsOms, but its bite viii be
sharper than aserpents tooth Its ire
syecAbi.ltv OF numbers, in that dark
and maddeniug hour, Will afford you
but the brleiest consolation IL, through
.mbec.lity or coWardioe Of this respect
ability Of numb bers we are false, and
suffer individually, We are
not 10 be pitied, but God help the poor
Union people VINO sent Us here TO pro
Uect them ] know not how others
feel, but standing IN my humble place
rs q Representative IN this first tIenev-
81 Assembly Of the free State Of Tens
nessee, L take the responsibility, / ac-
cppt the odIum, the political outlawry
that know Will follow the declaration,
that we are false 10 ourselves, false to
the country, and false 10 humanity
unless by legislative act we mark
the inianY Of treason. speak torpos-
tsritv; and there is still another class
for whom 7 would speak. On the crest
of wonder line OF blue hIll5, Glr Speaker,
rose and broke, in fiery spray, one OF
the last waves of srmed rebellion The
tumult of the dis ant Ia.tle filed
this very hall In sighJ are the
patriot dead, keeping watch and
guard sarouud the Capital of
dear and the molly dead
whose far away homes are endraped In
the shadows Of a long twilight, aud
who died in obpdience to the laws Of
their country. We crossed over their
graves to enter this house. By their
permission do we sit here to day-per-
mission of this imperia! guard Of hon
OF to the republic. And there sre 9th
ers scattered ell over the land-at Shi-
loh and Vicksburg, and in the Nelley
of the Shenandoah Yes, the imperial
guard Of honor to the republicl Com
ing up from the graves Of the 5000
dead in the battles Of Nashville, hear
a solemn protest against the Govern
ment passing into the hands Of rebels;
and, if we are false TO them, and false
to ourselves IN this great matter, rising
from their narrow beds, and seizing
once more in their skeleton hands the
weapons of war, they ought to bayonet
US in our places
We are frequently reminded on this
floor that we are making history. I
know not / would rather do my duty
than have AL that the world d enomi~
mates history. / would suggest hOwev-
er, that there are two kinds of history
one of honor, and one Of shame.
The Muse keeps two scrolis-the one
written in letters Of rosy, eternal light,
the other inscribed with figures Of the
blackness Of Erebus. Then write on
your scroll of light, oh Muse, this first
General Assembly Of the free State Of
Tennessee, by the passage of Tia is bill
of the minority, as "n95y ys1l0g for
their country