The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1868-10-11
MIR. ADAMs' REPLY.


GENTLEMEN: Your letter of Sep
tember 22d reached me on the 26th,
and found it to require such careful
consideration, that [ have withheld
my answer until now. My first i'm
pulse was to accept your invitation
at once, and hasten to respond to
your appeal upon the instant; but q
moments reflection and a review of
your letter restrained me. am as
anxious rs you can be to see kindly
relations and fraternal feelings re-
place the sore and angry suspicion
which prevails upon both sides of
our land, nor would any labor daunt
me in such use; but I am more
powerless than you are to promote
such result. You greatly exap-
gerate any influence of mine,
misled doubtless by the accident of
an historic name. I represent moth
ing in Massachusetts but compare
lively small and very unpopular
minority, and am regarded as hardly
less Objectionable, though far more
insignificant, than yourselves by the
majority. Nothing that I could do
or say, if I visited you, would be like
~ to receive fair or candid construc-
tion. My action would be attributed
to silly or unworthy motives, and
yours tc the inveterate luminosity
which is still believed to animate the
South. In spite of any protests OF
ours it, willsbe insisted that we had
some ''disloyal" intent in our meet
ing. do not urge these apprehen-
slons as reasons for an absolute re-
fusal, for I should try to face my
share of the obloquy with such
fortitude as L could muster, if 1 saw
fair chance of aiding, be it ever so
little, better understanding between
the sections. But as you seem to
anticipate an important effect on the
North from the reception you might
offer to me, [ think it right to disa-
buse you of the error. Nor do I
think that 1 can say those things to
your people which would be delight
ful to them to hear, or pleasant for
me to speak. Your fate has been for
the present involved by the inexora-
BILE logic of events iu most bitter
political struggle. The interest, and
l doubt not the convictions, of the
dominant party will prevent any dis
passionate consideration of your case
until after the election. 1t is de-
clared, and fear it is widely be-
lieved, that the spirit of secession still
fires the Southern heart, and works
through the Democratic party. A
mass of honest men are taught and
believe that the success of that party
means the political establishment
of the genius of revolt, and the ele-
vatlon to power of the Southern
leaders in the late war. Now while I
do not believe that if the wide
spread suspicion of this intent could
be discharged from the minds of our
people here, there would be O great
difficulty in obtaining fair hearing,
it is too potent weapon of party
welfare to be relinquished during this
contest for the Presidency. If the
Democratic party is defeated in their
canvass. it will be because the people
fear its success would jeopardize the
substantial results of the late war.
Now upon this point the Northern
mind is absolutely determined, and
Ao PotU SOulo Ildlut talu 1tS6lI winch
should repndiate the war or surren-
der its acquisitions. For my own
part, L think it would be very diff
ficult to get rid of any of the logical
and Legitimate results of the war if
we tried to ever so hard; but still our
people are very sensitive on that
point. L cannot see, for instance, of
what value your pet dogma of consti-
tutlonal right to secede would be to
you, even if we granted you a dis
pensaSlon to proclaim it on the
house-tops. Constitutional or not, it
viii never again be practicable, except
in the form of revolution, and that
is an extra Constitutional right which
cannot be taken away from any peo-
pie. Slavery take to be stone dead,
for the reasons you very clearly and
| ably state in your letter to me. It
would never again be of any value to
you if you had it back, and the ghost
of it, which is SO much dreaded at
the North, the phantom of inyolunt ta-
ry servitude for poverty and color, as
a punishment for vagrancy, which
haunts 80 many well l-meaning men
among US, would speedily become o
burden SO odious and so intolerably
expensive that, if for no better rea-
son, you would be glad to drop it.
But at the same time you must Yonr.