Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-02-02
count the vote must believe that the trainers

count the vote must believe that tie trainers
OF the Government meant it should perish,
when the not improbable case should arise
of division in sentiment between two Do
litieal bodies on any question of law or fact
which should arise in counting the vote.
Mr.. Speaker The act which we are
about to do will. in my judgment, be one of
the very greatest in human history. Our
annals have been crowded with great achieve
ments In war, in peace, and arts, in litera-
ture, IN commerce. Other countries, other
republics, have equalled US in those particu-
lars, but IN this great act we shall stand
without rival and without an examplc.
For thousand years, our children with
tears OF joy and pride will read that, while
In the fierce strife for executive power the
sun of other republics, alter short but
brilliant day, has gone down in darkness and
blood, IN their own country, too, the same
great peril has arisen, that their sky has
been darkened by the same cloud, that their
ship with its costly freight of love and hope
encountered the same storm and was driven
near the same rocks, but that in the midst
oi storm and darkness and conflict the aug
ust and awful figure Of law rose over the
lace OF the waters, uttering its divine con-
trolling mandate, Peace be still" TAp-
plause on the floor and in the galleries.
Speech of Mr. Hill, of sseorri..
Mr.. Hill said that when this Congress a.
sembled his mind had been filed with
apprehenslons tor the future of the country.
ihose apprehenslons had been dispslled and
had been dispelled by the pending bill and
the conviction which he entertained that it
would become law by an overwhelming
vote OF both Houses. Unsupported the bill,
first because in his judgment il was constltu-
tional IN character-wholly so; second. be-
cause in his Judgment it was wise in its
every provision-remarkably so and, third,
because it was patriotic in its every PURPOSE
-eminently so. lie predicted that the de-
cision of the high commission on every i'm
portant question submitted to it would be
unanimous, and that its decisions would be
received by both Houses of Congress. and
would give peace to the country and salts
faction to tho people. He therefore gave
to the bill not his constrained support, but
his hearty and warm approval. Speaking of
the South he said: have been a witness of
the sorrows OF that people, and a willing
sharer of all their sufferings, may there
lore be pardoned on this occasion for call
ing the attention of the House and of
the country to the spirit which has been
manifested by that derided people during
this entire controversy. On another occa-
sion l defended their manhood, their civili-
zatiOn, their humanity from what | knew
to be unjust charges. If the answer then
was unsatisfactory let the further answer be
found in the spirit which the people of the
har ii a.. 4.
days. There is scarcely a man in that
country who does not believe that the Dem
ocratic ticket is elected, and who does not
believe that what they have remaining of
property, of tight. OF justice depends upon
the Inauguration Of that ticket yet during
the whole controversy-I say it with pride
and pleasure-the South has manifested but
one spirit, and that has been the spirit of
forbearance, of kindness and of fairness with
the chains of the usurper upon her limbs,
with the greed Of the stranger riaing her
already exhausted Golfers, with the army of
the United States scattered throughout her
borders and standing sentinel for the pro-
lection of her robbers. the South utters to
those who have been her despoiers,
and who now threaten TO be the
despOilers of each other, hut one voice
that voice is Peace, peace" Civil war
redresses no wrong, preserves no right. If
you doubt, look here and be convinced. |
hope that that people will never again be de-
rided with the charges Of ''rebels" and
TRAITORS, solely for offering up their lives
in yindication of their honest belief that they
were right. Let me express the hope that
IN the future he alone will be regarded as the
chief rebel who. after the passage of this
measure of peace, shall first again whisper
the words of sectional hate. Let him be re-
garded as the chief traitor who shall again
seek to brood sectional strife. For myself |
feel pride in being able to say that can
look upon every foot of American soil and
thank God that it is part of my country.
| can look on overy person in this whole land
and say. This Is my fellow citizen, and |
can raise my vision to the uttermost bound
aries of the Republic and say. my country,
my whole country. Blessed is he who bless
ed thee, and cursed is he who cursed thee"
General applause
Mr.. Hill was warmly congratulated both
on the speech and on the fact just ascertain
ed by telegraph, that he had been elected to
the Senate