St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-09-03

From the Rutland Herald, Aug. 24th.I
On the 5th of August, 1864, the DEM
ocratic nominee for Governor, E. j.
Phelps, Esq, made long address be-
fore the Democratic Association of
Burlington. We have obtained full
report of the address, and the liberal
extracts we make may be relied upon
as entirely authentic as the report was
made geographically and the carefully
written manuscript is in our possession.
The speech opens with an eloquent
sketch of the blessed peace and pros
petty and National happiness that ex
listed prior to the election of Republi
can President in 1860, whose inaugural
ton was succeeded by the great civil
war. The orator then described the
contrast which the red letter of 1864
presents to the happy days, when the
South owned slaves and bad pack of
Federal hounds in every Northern State
to hunt them. After declaring that 1--WE
have got National debt piled up which
all are beginning to see we cannot car
ry, and nobody is going to say how we
can repudiate it," Mr.. Phelps discusses
the origin and progress of this dreadful
change from the prosperity of slavery
to the chaos of war.
You can remember as well as | how
long ago it was when there used TO he a
set of lOng-haired, miserable creatures
around the country peddling what they
called abolition Qaughter,) and a dirty
little set they were, as you ali know.
(Renewed laughter.) They would come
around the county and stick up their
dirty little handbiiis and have a meet
ing. Well, there wouid not be many
there except few stI ong- minded wo-
men. Uaughter.) We'll, they would
have a good time if they could get rid
Of the boys but they 'COWId throw rot
ten eggs, and they pOHid ride one of
them out of town once i'll Il while on 4
rail, and then there would be an awful
row about free speech being invaded,
etc. Still, we did not hear much about
it. We heard about as much about it
as you do now OF 'woman's rights"
But in process of time this thing was
taken up by set of politicians in the
State of New York, who had the sagaci-
ty to see that 10y diligently working
away they might make something out
of this. It hogan to insinuate itself into
certain class of pulpits and into Ger
tain class of religiOn-such as it was
and by and by certain set of political
managers began to say, eve must con-
ciliate these fellows we must have
their vote Said the Wings owe
must concliate these fellows or the
Democrats will get their vote" Said
the Democrats 1--WE must concliate
them or the Wings will get their vote.
Let's pass some sinking resolution, or
pass some unconstitutional liberty bill
through the Legislature, and humOr
them in that way Time and again
some men would demonstrate. They
saw that on any subject in the world
when you desert your principles You
are lost, but they were Overruled.
Well, gentlemen, it came to pass that,
in disregard of the very warning TO
which | referred little while ago, the
last words of Washington, to beware of
sectional controversy, which is a kind
of fire that once started yOu cannot
stop, disregarding that the last Presi-
Dental election saw great party ar
rayed, and saw it succeed, too, ia elect
ing a President by the votes of the
Northern States exclusively against
every individual vote cast south of Ma
son and Dixon's line. We saw party
successful and putting into the seat of
Washington and Jefferson man who
was hostile to their institutions, which
they had no authority to NEEDLE with
at all. Well, even then when Abraham
Lincoln, this twentieth back -cOun-
try attorney applause and laughter)-
the man imposed upon people who
did not know him by set of politicians
who did not know him, without one
single qualification for a statesman, not
one, not One-when he was inaugurated
and stood there on the Capitol steps
and received the oath of office at the
hands of the venerable Chief Justice, 1t
was not too late then, even though the
people of the South, excited, alarmed,
were looking this way and that, and
each one asking his neighbOr what is
going to be done Even then it was
not too late. This whole Nation hung
with painful solicitude on the 4th of
March, 1861, to hear the language of
that inaugural address, from which they
expected to augur either peace or war.
There was the time for a statesman, or
an honest man even. There was the
time for him to have poured oil upon
those waters. Well, many saw, thought
and claimed that he had. His words
were of that pOint-no-point description
that any man could interpret about as
he pleased. Every body said, 'Its all
right-we shan't have any trouble after
ALL Southern men even congratulated
each other. Well, we had war; war
that is not to be justified war in
which that Southern people who began
it committed mad anu objectionable
crime war which, besides being "a
mad crime, was great mistake
want to recall the line of policy that
was suggested by Gen. George b. Nc
Clellan in July, 1862, not when he was
Il candidate for the Presidency, but
when down at the front engaged in car
rylng on this very war. | want to read
from document which ought to be ia
miliar to all of you in this campaign,
Gen. McCIellan's report of his opera
tons when in command of the Army of
the Potomac. From his opportunities
OF knowing the sentiments of the South
ern people, he saw very plainly that If
the policy of that woodon- head (laugh-
ter) that yOu have got for n President
was adopted you would drive that peo-
pie to desperation, and that there was
no alternative but to put every one OF
them to death. 1t was under these Cir
cumstances that he sat down and wrote
letter in his tent on the Peninsular, to
the President, that will live when such