The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1865-05-28

for dinner, on ress .embling in tSe sf
ternoOn Mr.. Hood resumed:
Ma. SPEAKER I regret the absence n
some OF the meU Ibers. as I shall Motto
arguments they nave used on this Aoor
l think, as a susl thing, it is not \
manly course 20 attack positions taken
by gentlemen. when thev are not pres
emit Inc people sent their representa-.
tlVes here 30 attend to the business OF
the State, if they are not doing so the
fault IS not mine When the House
adjourned, l was about 10 refer to some
arguments advanced by the friends of
the minority bill ] had expressed nv
non-concurrence with some of their
views. now propose to explain, brief
ly, my own course, and to point ont
what | consider TO be errors on the part
OF those who have been-and | hope
viii still act with me The gentlemen
from Anderson, (Mr. Dougberty) in
whom l recognize an able and earnest
advocate of the radical policy, tells Us
that We have concluded a bloody war
OF four long years duration, during
which he was exposed to the frosts and
SHOWS of the mountains He saws the
government, by the exercise fthe war
power, has vindicated its supremacy.
and he now calls upon the friends of
the government TO use the moral now
er. l agree with him in that, l join in
thestep, but say we should not'only as
sert, but put into practical operation this
power; but how? By fercely asserting
II No, sir, but by going among the
people, by meeting them face 10 face
| and demonstrating TO them that we
have been right ali the time, and that
| the leaders of the rebellion have been
wrong; leaders who, by their gross err
l.rors have brought ruin on their deIud-
ed fellow citizens leaders whose dutv
1t is to abandon for ever all future at
tempts at leadership, and leave to the
influence OF wiser counsels the people
whom they have deceived and injured.
This mode Of proceeding is what / call
using the moral power. Using,the mere
power of force ignores the fact that
thoge who have been led into this re.
bellion have souls, minds, and bodies,
and that they are men Physical force
says to them-yOu are of no more ac-
count than the cattle on a thousand
hills; it says to them-you may live
among US, but it shall be with the mark
of Cain branded upon your brow. Are
we so poor in resources; 80 spiteful in
| disposition, that we, we who have pra-
ted Of universal liberty for man, and
advocated the abolition OF human sls-
very-must stamp our erring brethren
with a stigma of jnfamy2 Shall we be
the ones to visit them with the penalty
of eternal disgrace? Shall we keen
up punishment that shall mark them
out to their children in years to come
as men separated from the exercise of
| the pToudest right Of the American cit
izen7 These men, If they had been
born north of Mason and Dixun's line,
would have been rendering good ser
vice TO the United States, and upholding
the honor of its 6ag, as devotedly, Mr..
Speaker as you, or l, or the distin-
guished gentleman from Anderson
would do
That gentleman says we must have
the rebels where they will be under
control Yes, the controlling power
was in their hands for four years, and q
pretty affair they made CT it do not
want the control to be in their hands
any more; neither do want TO have
the amendments to the State constitu-
ton made a ground on which to con~
duct war against the balances of the
radical platform. Does the gentleman
1 "A
have to vote against you, or me, or the
gentleman from Sevier2 If depriving
men of the right to vote, depriVing
them OF the power to prevent me, or
any other gentleman here, from being
elected to office-the policy is very
/ plain, but their doing 50 would not Grip
/ pie the country. We are not of so
much consequence in the worlds his
tory as we may imagine ourselves to be.
The world would get along very we'll if
every man of US were not of it. We
could die, all Ofus, and III few days wo
| should not be emissed-nOne are so great
but that they can be spared When
we have fulfilled the purposes for which
God created us, he calls US from this
sphere, and the worlds business pro
cedes unchecked in its course We see
this truth strikingly manifested in the
case of the death of our late great and
good President one Of the truest most
patriotic, and most devoted OF men
he fell by the hand Of o foul assassin
cut of in q moment of exigencY when
the very crisis of the war had culmiEa.
ted-yet the Government of the United
States went on, the flow of public bust
ness was uninterrupted. We mourn
over the body of the mighty dead, but
the republic lives, and aourishes,
even when this one Of its best and pur
est sons IS sssassinatod. .
The gentleman from Anderson say,
it is not from "a spirit Of revenge sgsins
those who kept him amid the frost anG
snow of four years that impels his &C
ton on the subject of Acknowledgement
l cannot tell where the gentleman
spent that snowy and frosty time Ger
tainly not in the mountains of Tennes
see, we have no such eternal winte
there Was he on the peaks of Etus o.
Was that celebrated stuG horseprancinj
with an his back on the lofty summit
of ChimboraZo7
Mr. Doughty; was speaking of tn,
mountains of Virginia
If the gentleman was only using
figure Of speech, give him the bene6
of the fact The gentleman says il W,
do not pass this bill, all the blood tina
, has been split in this war will hsv,
been shed in vain that all the resis
tance of the government to the rebel
will have been q failure. Now, Mr.
Speaker, don'tyoU think there is mis-
take here2 Let US contemplate
the matter calmly, for a moment, with
out reference to which of the two bill
this House should adopt Don't yoI
think the gentleman uses pretty stronl
language Do you think the govern
ment has failed Let the rebels ge
the power to vote; let them kick u
their maddest pranks and do their verl
worst, and what would il all amour
to ? Does the gentleman suppose tina
we are blind to the condition of thing
! as they exist around us2 Does he sur
pose that we do not hear each OF thes
rebels and guerTIllas acknowledgin
that they are whipped that they ar,
whipped, that they have no hope 0
gaining their Object2 What can the,
do then2 They may give a maioris
for 3 rebel at some electiou-wha
then He will 80 10 Washington
what then What2 why he will hsv
to come back again, minus his expen
ces. Does the gentleman imagine ths
the members of Congress are Wors
Judges Of this matter than sfe tn
members Of this House Good unio
men elected to that body will find it n
easy task to get their congressioua
seats, as we very well know. In tn
face Of all this, viii the rebels 20 I
| Washington and claim admission {
: Congress IL they Go, they will max
nothing by the move. Lei them II
lleiF besL and we can defy them, 70
! We can always have RECOURSE 10 tia
: power which has never failed, the pov
, er Of the United States. | now leav
the gentleman from Anderson 10 cult
: vste some Of that arid and frosty land
on whose irhuspitahle acres he speI
I &C.,. 1g..,s~ j IL.