The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1880-09-02
columbus Journal
That Historic Newspaper Record.

agement to the SeceSSlOnlStS, never Op
f posed the coercion Of the seeded
States, and stood at the front i'll Ohio
encouraging enlistments and organic
ing volunteer army to crush seces
sion and maintain the Union. The
Plain Dealer appealed to history tC
sustain it's allegations, declaring thai
true history of the eventful years
1S61-'65, could be found in the files Of
any daily newspaper which printed
the proceedings of Democratic meet.
ings and conventions, and the pro.
ceedings of Congress and the State
Legislatures.
The Plain Dealer dared the Repub-
lican orators and organs to produce
anything from that true record, i'm
plicating the Democratic party, as
such, in secession, disunion or trea-
sonable acts or utterances. We ac-
cepted the challenge at the time, and
propose to present to our readers tran
scripts from the records, from time to
time.
On the 23d day of January, 1861
the Democrats of Ohio met in State
Convention at Columbus Nearly all
Of the Congressional districts and
counties were represented, not by OBJ
scure men, bummers and the like, but
by representative men Of the party.
The Convention was called for the
avowed purpose Of taking action cal
culated to influence Congress and the
Legislature of Ohio with regard to
measures then pending to organize
military forces to crush out secession.
Hon. Hugh J. Jewett-a man who
has since been esteemed by many
Democrats as worthy of the Presiden-
cy-was permanent President of the
Convention Hon. r. P. Ranney was
Chairman of the Committee on Reso-
lutions-J. F. Mckinney, w. J. Jack
son, Charles n. Allen and other now
Democratic leaders being members Of
the committee The speeches were all
of semi-secession type, except short
speeches made by Judge Warden, w.
]. Flagg and John M. Connell. Upon
taking the chair Mr.. Jewett made
speech, in which he said:
Five States have withdrawn from the Union, and
G &
very) their rights all that they hold dear are ieop
@orh Ea!1sa by anu 'he OF the
The Republicans had not at that
time passed single Congressional act,
relating to slavery, or to any other
subject, for they did not control the
Senate. Yet Mr.. Jewett refers to
present legislation as a grievance
which palliated if it did not excuse Sc
cession For some years the Southern
Democrats had been insisting upon
the passage of laws authorizing them
to carry their slaves not only into the
Territories, but also into any State in
the Union and hold them in defiance
Of local law and custom. This de-
mand the Republican House of Rep
resentatives refused even to entertain
That refusal was one Of the grounds
upon which the States had seeded.
Mr.. Jewett held, by clear implication.
that this refusal was a grievance"
which ought to be speedily redressed:
and went oa to say that such conces-
sions would probably induce the Sc
ceded States to repeal their ordinances
Of secession; and that if the Republi-
cans would not consent to such COM
promise, then let them fight the bat
ties themselves"
Hon. r. B. Warden offered the fol-
lowing as substitute for the fifth
resolution reported by the committee:
Resolrcd That whatever may be the true doctrine
as to the right secession the right coercion,
have occasion here and now to give expression
discretion Of the National Adni9istration, and pre-
and SOUTH.
That raised row in the Convention
which the President found difficulty
in suppressing, and excited speeches
were made by number of men de-
nouncing Judge Warden and his few
supporters. Finally Allen G.. Thur
man got the floor, and moved the fol-
lowing as an amendment to Warden's
substitute, which was adopted, with a
yell:
ResoEred, That the two hundred thousand Demo-
both Sorth and Sop}h greefmg and when the people
and 7 the and not til II hen
M % IT be n for them TO take Into
That resolution was the same in
substance as the fifth Of the series re-
ported by Judge Ranney, and advo-
Gated by him. Copies Of these reso-
lutions were forwarded to Congress, to
the State Legislature, and to the Gov
ernors of all the States. Everywhere
in the South they produced tremen-
dous effect-being regarded as the pro-
test Of the great commonwealth Of
Ohio against all attempts at coercion
1t was claimed then that such was
their effect as to cause the subsequent
secession of Virginia, North Carolina
and Tennessee, and to cause attempts
to be made at secession in Maryland,
Kentucky and Missouri
These, Mr.. Plain Dealer, are facts
from the record which you invoked:
and the record further shows that the
intent of the convention was to en-
barrass the Government of Ohio, and
prevent any active measures being
taken to place the militia of the State
on war footing, though the men.
who advocated and passed these reso-
lutions were then convinced that war
was inevitable, and could by no posi-
bility be STAYED off for ninety days.
The intent was also to embarrass and
paralyze the Government Of the Unit
ed States, and to give encouragement
to Jefferson Davis and his coadjutors
to persevere in their conspiracy to sub
vert the Constitution and destroy the
Union.
These acts were, moreover, the de-
iberate acts Of the Democratic party,
as party. 1t is due to Messrs. War
den, Connell and Flagg to say that