The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1867-11-22
Jhe 99elfora GazEttR,
SPEECH OF SENATOR QoLIrTLz.

The following is a report of his re-
marks:-
Mr.. President and Fellow Citizens
For some months past l have been
absent from my native land. / have
been removed from the exciting scenes
of political strife. l have hardly read
the political newspapers of my own
country, but during these months /
have had leisure to reflect much upon
the situation of our beloved country.
From all the reflection and thought
which 1 could bring to bear upon it, l
have been confirmed in the belief,
which was forced upon me more than
two years ago, namely, that the policy
which was then proposed by Mr.. Lin
coin Immediately upon the surrender
of the armies of the Rebellion, to rec
OgniZe at once the States of the South,
to have them restored to all their con-
stitutiOnal rights, and to their repre-
sentation in the Union, was the only
just, the only wise, the only constitu-
tional policy (Applause.l From that
time forward | have struggled to carry
! that policy into effect l believed then,
and | am now more than ever firm in
the opinion, that if, two years ago, i'm
mediately upon the surrender of the
armies Of the Rebellion, the States of
the South had been recognized with
their constitutional rights, and admit
ted to their representation in the
Union, under the policy of Mr.. Lin
coin, all the difficulties which now sur
round us, both financial and political,
would have passed away. (Applause.) }
| believe that if, two years ago, that
policy had been fairly adopted, the
| bonds of the Government of the United
States this day, at six per cent, would
| command a premium in gold in every
money centre of the world. (Applause)
| will state this fact--Which | hope no
one present will forget-I have met no
intelligent man in Europe who has not
expressed the same opinion, that if
our States Of the South had been adj
mitted to representation in the Union,
that the whole world could see that we
were one people, one nation, with all
| the States represented and taking part
in our legislation, our six per cent.
bonds would not only be at par, but
would command premium in gold.
Why not? Why should not the Amer
at civ
mand high premium in gold, when
the English three per cents. command
ninety-three per cent. in gold? No
earthly reason can be given, except
that these States are apparently divid-
ed and discovered; that the States Of
the South are kept out of the Union
by this radical policy. l charge this
home to the leaders of that party. The
whole responsibility rests upon that
radical policy, which, trampling the
| Constitution under its feet, violating
their plighted faith and the policy of
Mr.. Lincoln, the often avOWed policy
which elected him, refused to allow to
ten States of the Union all right to
representation. (Applause.) Fellow
citizens, it is not my purpose to detain
you for any length of time. | only
wish to express in few sentences two
Or three thoughts. The great, all alb
! sOrbing idea which underlieS radical
ism, is precisely the same idea which
underlaid secession. (Applause.) VIII t
! is that idea? Let us not deceive our
| selves. Ideas rule the world. What
was the idea which led the South into
| Rebellion? 1t was this. The COnSti-
| tuition has no authority over the South
ern States against their will; they have
a right to withdraw from the author
! ity of the Constitution at pleasure, and
therefore, after the passage Of their or
! dinances of secession, the Constitution
was practically dead in the States of the
! South. The people of the South went
! to war to enforce that idea. What
did we do? We maintained precisely
the opposite idea, to Wit:-That the
! Constitution has supreme authority
! ONCI lllC hOlcllSO VI lllC ACOCilII tiS MCIl do
of the North, and that the States of
the South should be made to acknOWl-
edge the supremacy Of the Constitu-
ton. To maintain that idea we called
two millions of men to the field. We
poured out our treasure and our blood
( like water. To maintain that idea we
created this debt Of three thousand mil
lions Of dollars. To maintain that idea
five hundred thousand Of our sons went
down to battle and to death. By the
blessing of God we were victorious in
maintaining that idea of the supremacy
of the Constitution over the States of
the South when we, at length, after a
long and terrible war of four years,
compelled the South to surrender to
that idea; when we compelled the peO-
pie of those States who made their ap-
peal to the God of battles to decide the
question between us, to surrender the
controversy; when the South yielded
and acknowledged the Constitution to
be supreme and that the flag of the
United s. ates was the flag to which
they owed allegiance; then up rise
Thaddeus Stevens, Charles Sumner,
Benjamin Wade, and other radicals OF
the North, to proclaim anew the idea
e tho CopStif i'm