Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1866-09-07
troduced to the audience amidst tremen-
-dous cheers and spoke as follows


It seems to me that / ought not 10 have
accepted the invitation to speak before a
meeting assembled mainly to discuss State
issues, and State candidates. Being recently
from Washington, | feel it to be proper in
my first public speech to examine the State
OF National affairs; glance at some of the
acts OF the President; aud candidly and i'm
partially examine the acts and omissions OF
Congress, with view rather to the benefit OF
the Country than Of party. This will necessa-
rily make my remarks tame. The vlyaclty OF
the meeting mpst be left to younger men who
viii discuss State and local issues, and can
didates.
For the last five years the Congress of the
United States has been charged with more
difficult duties than ever fell to the lot of any
other dehberatiye body. 1t was charged with
the defense of a nation riyen, in twain by the
most gigantic rebellion, which ever happened
in a civilized nation; rebellion more form
idabe than was ever before reduced to un-
conditional submission.
The nation was found distracted by parties;
| a very considerable portion Of which North
as well as South sympathized with the
rebels who in the loyal States, if they did
! not give them material aid, encouraged them
with hopeful promises and assisted them by
voting against supplies of men and money to
carry on the war.
| But there were found brave men enough in
| Congress to overcome their oppOsition and
| there we're found brave and noble men
enough amongthe people to subdue Southern
traitors and Northern Copperheads. While
we are remembering the patriots who have
achieved these things, we must not forget the
manned ard wounded heroes who are among
us, nor the graves of those who have fallen.
| The arms of the Union triumphed. Freedom
| unfurled her banner over that land which tor
| centuries had been cursed and disgraced by
slavery
That triumph brought with it difficulties
even greater than the war itself. To rebuild
a shattered empire to remove the old toun-
dations which had become so corroded by the
sweat of slavery, as to be unfit to bear the
proud temple of universal Freedom to plant
deep and solid the corner stone Of eternal
Justice, and to erect thereon a superstructure
| Of perfect equality of every human being
before the law of impartial protection to
| every one In whose breast GoD had placed
| an immortal SOUL without regard to nation or
race or color to overcome the prejudice and
| ignorance and wickedness which resisted
such reform, required more than the wisdom
of Solon or Lycurgus, the patience of Job,
and the meekness, humility and philauthro-
ply of SOCRATES and the GREATER than
Socrates
You may perceive how difficult it was to
6nd all these qualities combined among the
recent defenders of slavery; the apologsts
of secession, the timid conservatives and the
ardent impulsiye, sincere but halting radio
ais. Notwithstanding the large majority
which the Republicans nominally had, the
unexpected apostacy of their chief perplexed
some; and the lightings which were hurled
at them from the White House shocked 9TH
ers, The jesutism, the imbecility the impu-
| md cbC Nv t1a oal,i Of
ministers perplexed, and for a while paralyzed
Congress-reluctant to make war upon the
Executive Of their choice, they sought every
expedient to avoid it. But when it became
inevitable they accepted it with courage and
unanimity, which does great credit to their
bravery and honesty. There were few
tremblers and a few apOstates but they were
| so few tEat their absence in the next Con-
gress viii not be noticed, and is very desira-
bic. Pennsylvania | think had the fewest
number.
When the war ended the work Of recon
struction would have been easy had all the
| Departments of Government confined them
selves to their legitimate spheres The reb-
els were submissive and asked only to be
| allowed their forfeited lives. Having lost all
| by treason and the fortunes of war. Having
destroyed their State governments under Tie
| Constitution and voluntarily severed their
connexion with the United States, and there
by lost all claims to protection under the con
stitution having declared themselves alien
enemies, and in that character having waged
a war of savage ferocity against the Union
+ having slaughtered nearly half a million o.
our citzeus, and inflicted a cost Of more thar
FIVE billions of dollars they were willing tC
surrender the government Of their conquered
territories to their conquerors to be governed
by such laws as they chose to impose tC
surrender their estates to reimburse the
E expenses and damages of the war to suffel
f such further fines and imprisonments as thei
great crimes deserved. The harmoniOu
action of the government would have secured
all these, so far as policy and justice
r required and by this time the several State
2 would have been in the Union with constitu
! tions perfectly free. A portion Of the prop
erty Of the great criminals would have beer
y applied to pay our national debt to pension
G our soldiers and to pay the damages suffere'
| by loyal men. Some of them would no doub
= have been in the penitentiary for term 0
S years. a few and but few would have suffered
e the extreme penalty of the law; for our law is
. mild one, and mildly administered. Th
blood of half million Of our citizens woul
hardly have been avenged but peace an
Il returning good viii would be now sprea
q over the whole land. But the ambition an
folly of a few weak and dishonest men hay
It All the powers of our government ar
Il lodged in three departments, whose dutie
are wholly distinct from each other
neither can encroach upon the othe
It without disturbing the harmony of thei
!, workings and endangering the liberty {
:, the country-The Constitution says GAL
> legislative powers herein granted shall b
't vested in Congress of the United State
which shall consist of a Senate and House
Representatives. The President is th
l. Executive but has no Legislative or Judicii
|. powers-The Judiciary must adiudge all cor
(. troYerted legal questions which arise-that
1 their whole duty.
BY the Constitution the power to Great
n and admit new states and to guarantee n
IS publican forms of government belongs to Cor
\ gress alone. Neither the President nor tn
Supreme Court can do either, or any pa
II thereof So are the decisions. No well il
:, formed man doubts it no honest man denie
!. it
II Hence il follows that to Congress alone bt
longs, not only the right, but the duty to n
build the States; to give them republica
&c governments and to admit them into I'll
d Union, if they should be judged fit, to resun
the privileges which they renoGpced an
e sought to destroy. The President as Con
mander-in Chief Of the army had right aft,
the conquest to appoint Military Governor
. and hold them in military subsection unit
: the laB-making power had an opportunit
D to act. Instead Of calling Congress togesht
f or awaiting their regular session he usurpe
al Tho 9ufiee of Aha lawn n L,inG Y,ower an