The New Orleans daily Democrat., 1880-02-29
NOTES ON MIR. sEMMEs,s SPEECH.

stand, constrain me to trouble you with fey
remarks on his beautiful and able Grafton q
the unwilling Of the monument.
Our pain at the loss OF his leadership In ou
contest for our rights, however. ID muel
greater than the hurt OF his Parthian arrow
If may call the points now deferentiall!
criticise.
Every man who loves the verities OF whicl
our institutional liberty Is composed. mus
have been panied at some OF his best sen
tences. He sees, and seems to give con
strained favor to the progressing change
from the union Of States to nation, II
which States are municipal subdivisions. II
other words, he countenances revolution, Of
seems to be reconciled to what he thinks its
inevitableness.
He would probably say: ut is begun, and
revolutions never go backwards' This
proverb is very common, but no utterer ever
gives any reason why the revolving should
not 90 backward to truth, instead Of forward
to falsehood and ruin; or why, ii the revolu-
luton be erroneous and wicked, he should not
oppose II: Or, In fine, why our system Of es-
| tablished institutions should revOlve at all
or cttadel-an impregnable defense OF our
blessings OF liberty! Interchangeable except
| by additions to tts strength!
Many orators and poets affect proverbs,
which they do over In Tupperian style, think
| Ing that thereby they have on the matter in-
volved reached the acme Of wisdom, and, In
making them attractive and tempting to the
people, they gather facts and fancles from
contiguous fields without needing bounda-
ries; they import foreign ideas and sentences,
misapplyin9 them to our affairs; they Pod
snap away, with some brilliant period the
most serious thoughts and important diff
culties; and, In fine, they often make the
multitude swallow familiar witty and pro-
verbal sayings as palatable and nutritious,
even II frauXht with error, or infused with
subtle poison.
Glorious is oratory when 1t helps truth and
justice and law and liberty; not 80 when 1t
furthers wrong and oppression, and tends to
the ruin or perntcious change OF our instittl.
tional freedom!
I will now note few seeming errors.
Our endeavors to get back to our real sys-
tenn, and re-establish ourselves on the bed
rock OF actual verify, instead Of leaving our
dictionary" !" and we are admonished that the
''anterests' which are being built upon the
hoped-for ruins OF our system will not permit
us to 60 back
The myth or falsehood called the nation.
covering and hiding from us the associated
commOnwealths, and supersedlng them, is
represented as an evolution" as, II falsehood
and death could be evolved from truth and
ulN. DbI WILL le1dCuOa uO 6uCu AOtx4s
When we point to the still subsisting union,
and the bright and precious truths Of our sys-
tenn piled up to heaven, and hope, like pa
triots, to defend them forever. this trusted
leader sneers at US In French, as those who
take their memories for their hopes-''qui ont
pris les sosrenirs pour les esperances." All!
friends, let US. despite his counsels, never
cease to remember our Inheritance, and to
hope that we shall enjoy and transmit 1t.
ln illustrating the progress of centraliza-
IrvNh hl roVyc Int rux rf0 Fr<,r
Washington "illumine" "tne most distant
and obscure corners Of our vast territory"
Why not, II they do not shine too much, and
burn things2 avoid overriding" IL q good
Let them shine, but let us stop usurpations,
excesses and abuses. This is our duty. We
want Mr.. Semmes'S aid. In further illustra-
tlon, as II to exaggerate the extent OF our loss
central judicial power" and Congress, have
acquired jurisdiction over "every important
interest we have, commercial, social or
pOliticaI'-a most extraordinary and alarm
Ing statement, which is obviously untenable.
But let US pass It by.
He seems In error as to what was included
Ia the the lost cause" States eeceded-con-
federated warred-were defeated forced
back to the Union. As they still live-have
their Union-,their Federal and home consti-
OF all their rights Threatened though these
may bel. 1t follows that the lost cause is the
loss of their separate existence as confed-
iiso arH nr"nsrty ond The morrnf, zoe Ill., y,
- war md racnnstrnction % T NV ,,nin. es
ooyn ~ mnnwao,thS than waa NJ lost uig4 r. r -.
mains for 1s tn nreserve H and eninv e'' - 20
a. Il ~ ohon,a .,ad - - 49, Eya,
etitnton tha viafor Stataa ~ wrot Unt =. co
iii thaw wantad II odd "a Io;y sid wv, w,
ran 1haw Java "a na cstuona ns.iu "a asian ano
tens,on 81 civ,i inriadict,on iaaTin1 nu as ~ tha
eIacmtive force tho aama oid Evil naoais n .no
tro"w Tic rr,nns o ,,o ho =. w.u d,,n viv
hav9 conaisto% ~ We ave ed 1nuuaeu ~ Slice
as3ministra,ion whinh a no,at henoesrts
strive tn nrevant Thau ti"w trnm the Mhiuha1 w
4" :, = b ~ r,nans uw snei
l"H M.vsnn MIn nnw o aa nant,rey pIwea p"n ,oda
M Sammes'a aInnnent anG - r"IIshod
aranhs III mera rheTnric ~ wi,f trv - pno pnnw
eehotP ~ - - o,,n,,..saI 49, ~ snuW
haaia ~ uh;ch cnnaista ~ ainrst - 5 nas aa1 naa
snenn"n disnoaai n whot - ~ anM aou
anoti"ai Ioc;ss ,vhinh ia .;n - .s
hos HaToarrat ~ ~ 1oE - oven1S
Ha +hma es.shisto. ~ I uU ~ .t,,
ne" and ali thair GoG.a,von rI~hts 'nT Tdpote pe
V6s