Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1868-02-06


let the Union go. or stand az the ynion
snd let The resolution go? Congress Could
MT s.aal by that pie lge. AMI i. was more
IGNORED in the breach than the o5seTy
anee." Mr. Lincoln Issued his proclana-
ii N of emancipation, setting free the slaves
OF the rebels. II was dictated u. the stern
n I'd bloody experience Of the times. Mr..
Lincoln had M choice left him. When We
began this contest no one thought we would
Use col1rcd soldiers in the war. The dis
tirgaishei Senator sitting By me here, (Alr.
Cameron when in the winter Of 1861 lie
iFst Brought forward the proposition, as
Secretary al War 10 use colared soldiers,
was greatly in advance of p1hlic opinion,
aai was thought to the visionary; but IS
M WAT progressed it became manifest to
I'll intelligent men that we must nc; only
destroy slavery but sc must avail our
Selves OF every iEstrumUaiality in our pow
-er e. fhe purpose of putting down tue
rebel ion. aud the whole country accorle Il
4. On ~ use OF co'oresi soldiers. and gallant
am glorious service they rendered. In
1851 proposition was brought forward
IN this body 10 amend the Constitution Of
The Casted States by ahnlishing slavery.
We do not think that this is very radical
HOW. bat il was very radical then: II WAS
the great measure of the age. and almost
OF m odern times, and IL was finally passed:
IN amendment setting free eYcry human
heing within the limits Of the United
States. But, sir, we were very frr then
from where we are now. al will reme-
Der the celebrated Winter Davis bill pas
sed ia June, SCI, which took tho power
Of reconstruction oat Of the hands of the
President where il did not il fat belong
before.
refer TO Mr.. Iincsin but If that bill
had passed IL would perhaps have resulted
"a the destruction OF this Government.
No can all see il now, b-t IL was then
thought 10 be the most radical measure of
The times. What did il propose? II pro-
posed to prcscribc.a plan, 10 take effect
when the war should end, by which these
rebel States should be restored. refer to
sihis bill simply 10 show how We have all
Travelled. II required but one condition or
guaranty on the part OF the South. and
that was that they should put in their con-
stitutions provision prohibiting slavery.
u required no ether guaranty. II required
no equalization of representation; no Sc
curity against rebel debts, or against pay
:aslt for emsncipaicd slaves; and il son-
fined the right OF suffrage to white men.
But il was thought TO bee n great step in
advance nj the time; and 81 il was; but
eTeuis were passing rapidly. and in 1865
the President came forward with his pro-
position. and l am stating what is true
from an examination of the documents,
when say that but for the want of pawer
with The President, lis scheme in itself
considered, vas FAR more IA licai than that
of the Winter Davis bill; but events were
rapidly teaching the statesmen of the time
49, I hat
basis.
Still Congress was not prepared TO take
a forward step until the summer of 1866,
10 the passage oflhc constitutional amend
rnent, which we now regard rs half way
measure, necessary and vital as far as
it went, but not going far enough. That
was rejected. aud we were then compelled
90 90 further, and we have now fallen, up
On the plan of reconstruction which have
becn considering. H liSs been dictated by
the logic OF events IL OvsTTities all arCu-
IHents, ovcrr:des all prejudicss, oyerrides
all thesTy, in presence OF the necessity for
preserving the life eff this nation; and if
future events shall determine that we must
go further, fer one am prepared TO say
that | will go as far as shall be necessary TO
the execution of this guaranty, the recon-
ssruciion of this Republic upon right ba-
SIS. and the successful restoration of every
part Of this Union.
Mr.. President. TIC column ofreconstruc-
ton, as | before remarked has risen
slowly. Il has not been hewn from a sin
gle stone. IL il composed ef many blocks,
painfully laid m and put together, and
ceLcntcd by the tears aud blood of the ma
ton
Sir we have done nothing arbitrarily
L. = -
aye too little for punishment Justice
las not had her demand. Not man has
Vet been executed for this great treason.
The srch fieud himself is now at liberty
on bail No man is To be punished; and
now, while punishment has gone by. as
we Oil know, we are Insisting only upon
security for the future. We are simply
asking that the evil spirits who brought
this war upon US shall not again come in
IN power during this generation, again to
bring upon us rebellion and calamity. We
are simply asking for those securities that
We deem necessary for our peace and the
peace of our pssteriiy.
Sir, there is one crea; difference between
this Union party and tho so called Demo
cratic party. Our principles are those of
humanity; they are those of Justice, they
are those OF equal rights; they are princi-
ples that appeal 10 The hearts and the cob
sciences OF men: willie on the other side
we hear appeals fo The prejudice OF race
against race. The white man is over
whclmingly in the majority in this coun-
try, and that majority is yearly increased
by half q million of white men from
abroad, and hat majority gaining in pro-
portion from year TO year until the colored
men will finally be but handful in this
cntintry; and yet we hear the preiudices Of
the white race appealed TO TO crush this
other race, and 10 prevent them from
rising 20 supremacy and power. Sir. there
is nothing noble, there is nothing generous,
there Is nothing lovely in that policy or
that appeal How docs that principle
compare with ours2 We are standing on
the bread platform &C the Declaration of
Independence. that call men a;e created
equal; that they are endowed by their
Creator with certain iualicnable rights;
that among these are life. liberty, and the
pursuit Of happiness We say that these
rights are no, given by laws; are not given
by the Constitution: but they are the gift
of God 10 every nun born in the world
Oh, sir, how glorious is this great princi-
pie compared with the inhuman-I might
cay the heaihenish--appca. TO the preju-
dice of race against race; the endeavor
further TO excite the strong against the
weak; the endeavor further to deprive the
weak Of their rights of protection against
the strong.
A philosophical Democrat Of our &C
0uaiufance suggests that the cause of the