The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1866-02-22
VIRGINIA LEGisLATIRE.
Remarks Of The President III Reply TO I'll
RESOLUTION.

Inc following Is the authentic report
OF the remarks OF President Johnson,
to thc committee which submitted to
him Tie resolutions passed by the Leg
isIaturc Of Virginia:
GENlLEMES In reply to the rcsou
tons YOU have just presented to me, and
the clear and forcible sud concise re-
marks which Won lave made In cxplana-
tion Of the position of Virginia, / shall
not attempt TO make n formal speech,
but simply enter into plain converse
ton in regard to the condition of things
in which We stand. AS 4 premise to
what ! may say, permit me first to ten
der you my thanks for this visit, and
next to express the qualification | feel in
meeting SO many intelligent, RESPONSE
bic and respectable men Of Firglnin,
bearing to me the sentiments which have
lcen expressed in the resolutions of
your Legislature, and in the remarks ac-
companying them.
They are, so far as they refer TO the
Constitution of the country, the senti
lnents and the principles embraced in
that character of the Government. The
preservation or the Union has been,
from my entrance into life, one OF my
cardinal tenets. At the very iucipiency
Of the rebellion, | set NY foot against
the dissolution Of the Union of the
States.
do not make this allusion for the
purpose of bringing up anything which
Las TRANSFERRED, which may be regarded
~ Of an unkind or unpleasant cLarac-
tea, but / believed then, - | believe now
aud as you have most Enthusiastically in
Dictated, that the security and the protec-
ton Of the rights of all the people were
TO lie found in the Union that we were
certainly safer in the Union than we were
out of it.
Irpon this conviction | based my OPP
position to the efforts which were made
10 destroy the Union. | have continued
those efforts, Notwithstanding the perls
through which ! have passed, and you
are not unaware that the trial has been
scyere one When opposition TO the
Government came from one section of
the country, and that the section in
which my life had been passed, and with
which my interests were identified, /
stood, as stand now, contending for
the Union, and assevertaing that the best
and surest way to obtain our rights and
protect our interests was to remain in
the Union, under the protection of the
Constitution.
The ordeal through which we have
passed during the last four or five years
demonstrates most conclusively that that
opposition was right, and to day, fter
the experiment has been made and has
failed after the demonstration has been
most conclusively afforded that this
Union cannot be dissolved, that it was
not designed to be dissolved, it is eN-
tremely gratifying to me to meet gentle
men a. intelligent and as responsible as
yourselves, who are willing and anxious
to accept and do accept the terms laid
down in the Constitution, and in obedl-
cnce to the laws made in pursuance
thereof
We were st one period separated the
separation WAS TO me painful in the ex-
treme; bnt now, after having gone thro'
4 struggle in which the power of the
Government have been tried. when we
have swung around to a point at which
we meet to agree, and are willing to
unite our efforts for the preservation of
the Government which | believe is the
best in the world, it is exceedingly graft
fying to me to meet You to-day, stand
ing upon common ground, rallying
around the Constitution and the Union
of these States, the preservation of
which, as | conscientiously and honest
" believe, will result in the promotion
and the advance of this people.
/ repeat, l am gratifed to meet you
to day, expressing the principles ard
announcing the sentiments to which you
gave utterance. and l trust that the oc-
casion will long be remembered. ! have
no doubt that your intention IS to csrry
out and comply with every single prin-
l., 1a;I 4
have Submitted. | know that some are
distrustful, but l am Of those who have
confidence in the judgmc at, in the integ-
ritv, in the intelligence the virtue OF
the great mass of the American people :;
and having such confidence, / am will
ing to trust them and | thank God that
we have not yet reached that point where
we nave lost all confidence in each other.
The spirit of the Government can
only be preserved, we can only become
prosperous and great as people, by mu
tual forbearanee and confidence. Upon
that faith and confidence alone can the
Government be successfully carried on.
On the cardinal principle of represen
tatiou to which you refer, | will make
single remark. That principle is in
heritent; it constitutes one of the fun
damental elements of this Government
The representatives of the State and of
the people should have the qualifications
prescribed by the Constitution of the
United States, and those qualifications
prescribed by the Constitution to fit him
to take seat in either Of the delibera-
tive bodies which constitute the Nation
al Legislature, must necessarily, accor-
ding TO the intendment of the Constitu-
ton, be loyal man, willing to abide by
and devoted to the Union and the Consti-
tuition of the States. He can not be for
the Constitution, he can not he for the
Union, he can not acknowledge obedi-
encs to all the laws, unless he is LOYAL
When the people send such men, in
COED faith, they are eutitle TO represen-
tstiCn through them.
In going into the recent rebellion or
instruction against the Government of
the United States we erred, and in re
turning aud resuruiuy our relations with