The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1870-06-03
AMNESTY.
SENATOR SAWYERs VIEWS ON THE
SUBJECT.
A Powerful Speech.

the full verb.tins report of tho hot dc.
bate in the United States Senate, on
Tuesday last, ON the subject of tni.
vcrsal amnesty. Wo take tho follow.
ing passages from tho ablc speech dc.
livcrcd on that occasion by Senator
Sawyer:
TE ISN'T AFRAID.
After alluding to Senator Dlorton's
donunciation Of. those who favored
amnesty as sound Republicans, Scna.
tor Sawyer said:
For one, recognize no mans right
to read me out Of the Republican
party until he shows that l stand on
ground which is not Republican.
Mere dcnunciation, nero assertion
that | am acting in tho interest OF
rebels OF rebellion, has no effect upon
mic. [ feel no particular anxiety to
avoid pleasing the rebels if do right
and act as a Republican. I think it
might Bc moro wise and statesman
like if some senator's should romcm-
bcr that their chief mission is not to
mako the rebels hate them. But
there aro some senator's here who
seem to conceive that consistency re-
quires them so to act that the rebels
shall entertain toward them now pre-
ciscly the same opinion that they cn-
tcrtained when tho war was fragrant.
Sir, that is not my position. When
the war was fragrant hated rebel
lion; when the war was fragrant, to
the extent of my powor 1 resisted re-
bcllion; but let mo say, Mr.. Presi-
dent, when the war was fragrant did
not hate rebels, and I do not hate re-
bells nor anybody else now. It is not
the mission of the Republican party
to hate tho men who created and who
carried on tho rebellion. 1t was the
mission of the Republican party to
suppress the rebellion and it has
heen and isyct the mission of tho Re-
publican party to rc-organize this
government on more solid and cndu-
ring basis than that upon which'it has
cvcr stood before.
SOUTHERN UNANIMITY.
But, sir, let mo tell the senator from
Indiana that tho foundation upon
Which he would re-organize this gov
Gnment, the foundation upon which
10 would reconstruct tho States lately
il rebellion, is q foundation as unsta-
lie as water. The rebellion took into
is vortex tho whole Southern popu-
lgtion, with exceptions absolutely in
significant in number. All classes
we're bound up in sympathy with it.
livery man, woman and child, tn,
al said, insignificant exceptions, had
bt one aspiration 80 far as the pollti-
CO situation was concerned; and that
W that the Southern Confcdcracy
an the cause Of tho rebellion might
triumph. Here and there man of
gecrally very slight political or So
ci. Significance among his fellows
ws, or professcd to be, a loyal man;
bu tho number was so small that to
cary on tho government in those
Sites by their ah, and by their aid
aloe, is q proposition perfectly ab-
sui to any mani who knows tho peo-
plt
!, WHAT OUGHT TO BE DONE.
can understand, too, that those
wb could govern these States as sub
.iecprovinces, who would continue to
kcp over them the strong arm of
peer, who would destroy the vital
prciple ofSthe American Republic,
wbh is local self elfgovernmcnt, admin
ist.tion of local interests by local
ag.ts-I say can understand how
the who would upset all this princi-
pl4nd theory of government, who
wdd destroy this chief element of
strtgth in tho American system,
shdd advocate the continuance Of
thasystem which :should hold the
grippon the throats of the great
MARTY Of the white population.
Th} is the only theory on which l
can nderstand it; but if our purpose
is tforget the war, if our purpose is
to cablish in the breasts Of the Sou
thcl people q love for the institu-
tionof the United States, if our pur-
poses to strengthen the government
in tIse States, and to have a real I'm
ion, re- must take tho people of those
Stas with all their; infirniities upon
then we must ineorporate,thcm into
the Idy polite of the United States,
rs ctai constituent members. We
mustecollect that man in South
Car@na, 20 citizen of. tho United
Stat, must be placed on precisely
the me platform, and covered by
the hma protection, endowed with
The lns political privileges, as man
in Mssaphusettst or Michigan. .,
f.SAt YooLisH POLICY.
WAAy yon ahut ont any one largo
sectioRaf4 the; country from all aspi-
rationffpr participation in the public
oficesSs SsheA you tell that large class
of me4thatNey must have no part
or lot r the ADMINISTRATION OF the af
fairs o the GO Enment you bid them
from be Repubft N s psrty yoo one Ses Of its Ha
greatelements oiNrdn 9Th When ]
refsd that in addf n. fo The third
claus Of the FourtE Eth amandmant
imposing these disan lea ISerast;ij
rests on the statute Soot % tha& 'snt snt
known as tho test oatf os.oS IL ~, 49, ~
I'd Of July, 1862, which Sens. s ont. I -
Federal Offices prseticall aGt an an. INV, !,
friend from Connecticut ~ e;..i:t
hundred ithousand men, or = q Khs =
thousand Of them, but q MI sy = s,s
at least ip the States lately aIs, III
lionsand lathe States, that ~;
nomfnaiiy 20 into rebellion w
reflect. that alt fhpse boys and !
men Wh9 never bad held an oAicS Y
who had NO political opinions ]!