Weekly Calaveras chronicle., 1866-05-19
Seward

- tiidt VIII Il. GJeWaIQ mas HOT
been President of the United States. At the
assembling of the Chicago Convention in
1860. it was among tine probabilities that he
would receive the Republican nomination for
President. Thank God this was spared US.
Events have proved that his nomination
there would have been equivalent to his
election. and his record since has shown that
his election would have been the death knell
of our great Republic. In the short session
of Congress intervening between the first
election and Inauguration of President Lin
coin, Mr.. Seward took upon himself to make
an exposition of the policy of the incoming
President and of the Republican party, in a
speech delivered by him in the Senate. In
that great SPEECH as it was Il en- called by
the men who have since turned out to be
rebels or copperheads. he deliberately went
back on all the principles of his party, and
he begged like spaniel of the South for the
privilege of holding the offices of the Gov
ernment for the following four years. This
was all that he asked-concede him this, and
so far as his voice and influence would go,
the SHAREHOLDERS might dictate their own
terms of compromise and the policy of the
Republican Administration. Did ever man
with SO great name prove more weak and
wanting in the hour of trial: Had he then
have-been in Lincoln's shoes what dire ca
lamity would have befallen the country
Lincoln, by his frmness, kept the law on
the side of right and liberty. Seward would
have surrendered the nation, chained and
manacled, to the tender mercies of the slave
holders conspiracy. and by the law of the
land slavery would have been the rule and
freedom the exception, and when the SIRE
pressible conflict" had come to the issue of
arms, slavery would have been backed by all
the forms of law and all the power of the
National Government and Freedom would
have been the rebel. Since March, 1861,
Seward has been our Secretary of State, and
held prominent position in the Presidents
Cabinet. His councils in our internal af-
fairs have been weakened and baleful. In
the management of our relations with foreign
powers his conduct has been mean and cow
ardly. and it would seem that he has been
experimenting with our National honor, and
puerilely trying to see how much he could
draw upon its bank without bursting it. He
enjoys the unenyiable distinction of being
the first American premier who ever apollo
gized to foreign Government for the action
of an American Congress. He opened the
gate of Mexico to the French Emperor by
furnishing his armies with means of trans
portation to invade and devastate the heart
of that unhappy country. The French ar
mics could not have reached the interior of
Mexico from the gulf ports without trans
portation, and they could not have furnished
themselves with transportation in Mexico
before reaching the interior. In this extrem-
ity the Emperor appealed to Seward. and
Seward left our armies to stick in the sacred
mud of Virginia, and supplied his Imperial
friend with the American mules which help
ed the French out of the difficulty. Let
Seward cover his tracks as he can, he is lust
ly responsible for the present complicated
condition of affairs in Mexico, and if war
with France grows out of them, it will be
! war of Stewards making. If the Monroe
Doctrine is killed he will be its murderer
1t is claimed by Stewards admirers that his
sagacious policy saved the Nation from for
eign war during the rebellion. This is not
so, but on the contrary, it came near forcing
US into war with Great Britain. When
British privateers were being fitted out OPEN
ly in every British port to destroy our com
merce, Seward ,gabbled our complaints IN
Intellectual dispatches, and the building of
privateers went on. One day President Lin
coin found our wordy Secretary absent from
the foreign Office, and he tried his hand at
writing dispatch to the British Govern
ment. That short note from Lincoln did the
business, and John Bull Immediately put an
end to fitting out prirateers in his waters. A
similar hint from the President of the United
States would speedily settle all our remain
ing difficulties with England. Stewards
garrulity never will. British newspapers
have asserted that he has played the spy
upon the Fenians, and reported their secrets
to the Queens Ministers. Whether this be
true OF false, it is certain that no one would
have dared to have told a similar story of
any of our previous Secretaries of State, for
by such stupendous sacrifices of our national
honor as those of which he has been guilty.
We extract the following, in relation to
the bombardment of Valparaiso, from the
Americin Flag:
On the 3lst, the morning of the threatened
bombardment, II. NJ. frigates Sutiej and Le-
dnder, with the Devastation and storeship
.Nereus, left the pay to take anchorage out
side the American ships also had to et,out
of the way, and at A. NJ. the enemy vessels
began to take up position over against the
town. The RESOLUTION was placed opposite
the railway station, the PILE de Madrid and
Bla,aca 200 yards from the Custom House.
the VencedOra close in shore to DESTROY
dwelling houses; and the Admiral's ship
.Numancia remained outside signalling Or
ders. At 9 A. NJ. the Blanca opened the fire
on the Custom House to the cry of 6 Iiva la
Reina - the others followed, each selecting g
some point on which tp pour its share of des-
truction
For nearly three hours the fire was kept q?
without intermission: at lO:40 A. NJ. a shell
from the pencedora set fire to the baths ad-
joining the Hotel de la Union. and the flames