Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1866-10-12
Speech of Senator Sherman.


conservative man, has recently taken
very advanced ground, and we make the
following extract from the speech referred
to, viz:
Now my friends, this is the spectacle
presented between Congress and the Pres
ident of the United States. do think an
impartial country will reason about these
matters, not as an idle thing which does
not affect them at all, but like sober jury
men. 1t does seem that the dispassion-
ate judgment of the American people |
will be that we have done all for the South |
that we ought to do, and that they must
now come to the terms we propose to
them. They say that ! am Hunker, a
Conservative, and sometimes complain
that am little backward; SO l am, my
friends. do not deny it. / always pre-
fer to gain that which can be gained, to
seek that which is attainable; believe
that the adoption of the constitutional
amendments was just and right and
liberal. If the majority adopt them,
was willing to stand upon them. am
now. l offer them, as one of the Sena-
tors of the State of Ohio, to the people of
the Southern States, say that by their
rebellion they have been deprived of all
civil government. l say that we have a
right TO take bond from them for the fu-
ture safety of this country. say that
these amendments are just and right
and fair. Accept them if you will, come
in and be equal with US; white man in
the South equal to white man in the
North we will ask nothing of you except
the simple thing not to elect n few men
to office in little while, and in short
time | have no doubt that the requisite
two.thirds OF Congress will relieve them
of that. We give them these terms-lib-
eral, fair terms, just. Now if under all
these circumstances they should refuse tc
accept them after full and fair trial, then
my friends, there are but two courses
One is TO let these rebels take that increas
ed political power, to govern our country
again and make laws for us, or to place
the platform of the Union party upon the
doctrine of universal suffrage. [Tremen-
dous applause. My friends, l am not in
the position of the man who makes an
offer and won't give the other side fair
chance. ] hope that every northern state
will adopt the constitutional amendment.
New Jersey, the least, has taken the lead.
Let, then, the Southern States contem-
plate, for while, the spectacle; let them
look at this thing as we look at it let
them debate it among themselves-the
dominant controlling power there. Let
that offer stand as the last offer by us, and
the most liberal that will ever be made.
Let them understand that if they won't
take that, the same power that conquered
them once will impose terms upon them
that they won't like 50 well. Great APP
plause. say TO those North and South
of all political parties, l never saw man
yet who would take up these constitution.
al amendments and read them fairly, but
who said that was liberal and manly of.
fer. If it is rejected, if, by the treachery
of the man WHOM we elected to power, the
Southern people are finally led to rejec1
| that constitutional amendment, then let u.
place our superstructure on the rock o
eternal truth. where all the powers of hel
shall not shake it. Applause. They
ask you how you will do it l say we will
tell them how when the time comes
CGreat applause. The day has not ye
gone by, and i believe the solemn judg
ment and determination of the America
people will be, that if there is no othe
way TO deal with this people, that we will
take the most radical doctrine that tn
widest man in the country can think o
and adopt [great applause rather thai
to surrender again to this rebe lions peo
pie, power not only over negro population
but power over ourselves. 1t is nos
claimed that we instituted joint commit
tee of a revolutionary character. hav
been in the Congress of the United State
number of years, and there has neve
/ been a session that we have not had tw
or three joint committees. Whenever i'm
| portant and complicated questions aris,
, upon which the two Houses must act te
, gether, it is customary to organize joir
, committees. They endeavor TO cast n
: proach upon this committee as being Rae
: ical. But that it has been the most cor
servative committee that ever sat in I'll
: Congress of the United States, will,
r think, be apparent TO any one who wi
: examine impartially its acts. Itwas cor
: posed of six Senators and nine Membe
2 of the House. What Radical measur
0 did that Joini Committee Of Reconstru
i ton ever propose TO Congress? de
c these men to answer the question. II