Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-08-28
SPEECH OF
HON. GRO. H. PENDLETON.
AT THE
OHIO DEMOCRATIC STATE CONVENTION.

Mr. Pendleton said be would not detain the
Convention long; that this vas not the time nor
the place for such speaking; thai be would not en-
ter into details nor discuss AZ length the topics
which appropriately belong 20 this campaign. Ne
spoke of the harmony which had marked the
proceedings Of the CoDyen,ion-of the excellence
Of the ticket. aud OF the good omens which at
tended the commencement of the contest
He congratulated the Convention that AT
length grim vIssged var bath smoothed MS
wrinkled front. and the question now 70 be con
sidered belonged to the domain OF argument and
DO, arms. he congratulated the country that
the Democratic party still lives. in all its vigor,
TO confront these questions. and to put their so
luton 10 the crucial test Of those principles by
which it so long and so safely and 80 prosper
ously administered the Government.
The Democrat party is dead" say our op-
Pcnents, Let them look here upon us, this day,
and believe that in numbers at least il is for
midable. Let them look into the history of par
ties and the philosophy of the Government, and
il they answer honestly, they must say that so
long as free Government shall last, there must
be, there will be, PARTY asserting our principles
advocating our policy, and probably bearing our
name. The war IL over. Its svowed object of
breaking the military power of the South,
10 accomplished. The evacuation of Rich
mond announced it. The surrender OF Lee
confirmed it. The capitulatOn of every
armed force between the Potomac and the Rio
Grande ratified it. The march of Sherman to
W ashiDgton, the review OF the armies the mus
tering out OF regiments and brgades and divisions
and corps, establish il. And yet here and there,
and especially now, when the exigency of cleo
tons requires the exercise of arbitrary power or
the support of extreme positions, we hear from
or Major Ganaral xh NJ ant ~
shodjy contractor, whose NAV is not yet filed
OF fanatic who wants more power that the war
is not over vet. Why not? Has not the Federal
power been established7 Have not the Consti.
tuition and the laws been asserted over the sc
.ceded Statesi On the 22d day of July, 1861
the Republican party in Congress declared that
the is waged to defend and maintain the
supremacy of the Constitution. and to preserve
the Union, with all the dignity, equality and
rights OF the several States unimpaired Was
this trueI Then the objects of the war are &C
complished, its purposes are attained, and all
that belongs TO "a state of war should cease We
not be deceived. IL is false pretext to cover
over illegtimate ends. IL seeks a screen for the
of usurped power. Courts martial military
commissions, suspension of hateqs corpus, sup
preston of newspapers, interference with free
speech and free elections, these have been the
fashion for years past When we demonstrated.
we were tOIs tuey were the necessary incidents OF
a state of war, and aids to the war making power;
that when the war ceased they would cease. Then
they were maintained to support war nOtc the
war is maintained TO support them.
The is at end. Many of its effects can
never be erased The deep burrows which il
has left in cur social and governmental system
can never be smoothsd over It's influence on
the feelings and character of our people will re-
main. The relations of the people and the sec
tons can never be exactly restored. The eues-
tons which il has raised must be settled The
result which it has brought about must be &C
cepted. We cannot recall the past We cannot
undo what has been done. We cannot re estab-
lish exactly the old order OF things but we can
be just and true. We can bravely and honestly
meet new issues, and, like wise men, accepting
the unavoidable yielding to accomplished facts,
We can, as nearly as possible, adhere TO old land
marks, and thus secure 10 ourselves ell the
blessings OF good government.
Let the dead past bury its dead" Let us
forget the war, except for the lessons which it
teaches. Let Us Danish it as the memory Of
horrid calamity, in which the wicked, the unfor-
nate and the undeserving, the conqueror and the
conquered, alike suffer a common woe If any
would recall it 10 nourish hatred between the
sections or 10 excite the people of either section
against each other. let bis name and his fame be
accursed; let him be anathema maranatha.
W ueu MI l4tuCOlu uellEeTeU DIS inaugural
Address. be said. Suppose you go to war At
ter much suffering on both sides. and the advan-
tage on neither, you will have the same questions
of intercourse TO settle which YOU have now"
He was right. We have had war-we have had
much suffering-and what are the questions re
naming? The status of the negroes in the
States, and the relations of the States among
| themselves To Democrat these questions ap-
pear easy OF solution. He brings them to the
r Al. ~
clares that the powers mot delegated are reserv
ed" Ii also defines the relations of the States
No power has been given to the Federal Govern
ment, any of its departments, to interfere with
the status OF the people of Tue States or to change
define the relations OF the States to each other
1.-THE war WAS waged 10 maintain the supremacy
Of the Constitution surely the success of the war
and the attainment OF peace should not be made
the occasion of impairing it. These questions
must be left with the States themselves.
Ii the war was for another purpose If Black
Republication was all q lie if coercion was n
base preteXt, and armed revolution waz the real
design, we confront another question: What
ought 10 be. not what ia. the Constitution And
to this question We are being brought. Men
high in authority PROFOUND ii 10 US | see that
a citizen of our own State now on the stump. an
aspiring mana member OF Cong.ess-au-
nounces that he will never consent to the ad-
MISSION 10 Congress or Representatives and Sen
ators from Southern States, until they shall, by
their votes, have adopted the pending amend
ment to the Constitution, and another changing
the rule Of representation, until they shall have
shown their aptitude for free government. as be
mockingly terms it, by the facility with which
they can put their hands on their mouths and
their mouths in the dust. and, like fawning
sycophan.s, degrade themselves by base ser
Witty.
am in favor of no change in the Constitu-
ton. would leave the question of suffrage to
the States, because the Constitution leaves it
there. would recognize the right Of the South
ern States to their old position 10 the Federal
system instantly. without delay without expert
nent. without condition, save only that they &C
knowledge the supremacy OF the Constitution,
aud admit its provisions TO be the binding rule of
the State and the Federal action and this be-
cause the Constitution creates a confederation of
equal States.
Two theories have alone prevailed in this Gov
ment from the beginning. One party denied the
right of secession; the other party maintainedit.
Both agreed that il the ordinance of secession
we're invalid, il vas utter6 veid, imperative for
all purposes, ineffective upon eitbar the people
or the territory, either in their relations to the
Federal or the State Government. They also
agreed that if il were valid il severed the tie
which bound the State 20 the Union. The State