Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-09-15
The Early Days Of Secession.

The Early Days Of Secession. -
Considerable surprise and not a little
annoyance are manifested by Repub-
lican newspapers at the statement OF
Judge Blaek. recently made public. in
reference to the attitude OF ex-Presi-'
dent Buchanan and his Cabinet toward
the secession movement during the
period intervening between the me citing
of Congress in December, 1850, and the
4th of March, 1861. These Journals
have been so accustomed to misconstrue
the motives of the deceased ex-Presi-
dent and SO assiduouslv engaged in
misrepresenting the views and actions
of his Administration in regard to the
incipient rebellion that they are as.
founded to find that their distorted and
malignant accounts of what occurred in
the sessions of the Cabinet during that
event.ul period are utterly without
foundation in fact. Judge Black was. a
member of the Buchanan Cabinet dur
inc all that time and is therefore one of
the few men yet, living, if not the only
one. who is "a competent historian of
the views and acts Of the Buchanan Adj
ministrationC during the last three
months of it's existence. Ex-Governor
Philip Francis Thomas, OF Maryland.
was associated with Judge Black in the
Cabinet as Secretary OF the Treasury
after the resignation of Howell Cobb.
and his recollection of what TRANSFERRED
in the Cabinet meetings while he was a
member of the Administration is also
entitled to belief. He has just added
his testimony to that of Judge Black
and SO far as it goes it corroborates the
statement of the latter in every partic
u]ar. {. et.x r.,, %.Ez,-.g
The marrow of Judge Blacks state
ment consists in his assertion, that he
favored, the reinforcement OF, Fort SUM
ter from the beginning. that Floyd. the
Secretary of War, failed to carry out
the understanding of the President and
Cabinet to that effect, and that after
the reconstruction of the Cabinet with
Stanton and Holt as members, General
Scott failed to send the necessary rein
forcements.. Judge Black was so en-
phatic in his expression of the opinion
that Sumter should be reinforced that
during the discussion of the, subject in
Cabinet. meeting he declared that
"there never was a time in the history
of the English Nation when Cabinet
officer could propose to give up fort
capable OF being defended without
being brought to the block Ex-Gov-
ernor Thomas states that he was present
when these impressive words were
spoken, and also declares that Judge
Black used every effort to dissuade def
ferson Davis and other secession leaders
from the course they had chosen to
pursue. So far, therefore, as Judge
Blacks position on the subject of ,se-
lcession is in question, and, indeed, so
far as the attitude of the Buchanan Adj
n.inistratfon toward the proposed rein
forcement of Fort Sumter is concerned,
the allee ations of Judge Black must be
regarded IS proved. : ~ -
That 6 eneral Scott desired to avoid
Z the necessity of sending ;nforeements
to Sumter is not at all incredible. Nor
is the statement that he endeavored to
: evade the responsibility in that regard
! to be taken as reflection upon his
patriotism, when considered in the light
of all the circumstances by which he
was surrounded. Until the overt act
of war was committed by the Secession
lists in /, firing on Sumter there was
strong hope of peaceful solution of
the difficulties which threatened the in
tegrity of the Union. At the very time
when General Scott was expected to
send troops to the relief of Major An
1derson the Peace Commission was in
session at Washington and Congress
was busily engaged in considering the
Is Crittenden Compromise as a basis
for TIE settlement of the slavery ques-
ton. 1t was almost a universal belief
then that if war came q final dissolu-
ton of the Union would cert ainly fol-
low. Stephen A. Douglas, in the United
States Senate, voiced the general senti-
ment when, in the course OF debate on
the Crittenden resolutions, he gave ut
.terance to the memorable words: ''.War
is disunion, certain and inevita-
BILE, final and irrevocable." General
Scott no doubt was influenced by the
prevailing opinion that war would be
the certain precursor OF disrniOn. Be-
sides, his political association with the
ultra free-soilers'' of the Greeley and
Sumner school, who openly encouraged
secession in order that slavery might
d, he taken out of the Union, unquestion-
ably inclined him against armed coer-
ecion of the incipient insurrection.l His
famous expression in regard to the Sc
.ceding States, Let the wayward sis
tiers depart in peace" proves that dur
ing the early days of secession he pre-
ferred peace without slavery to a Union
restored by military. conquest. But
when war did come, when the whole
country was hurled by the passion of
the time into an irreconcilable conflict,
he proved his fidelity to the cause of
the Union and died as he had lived, a
true soldier and patriot. -Harrisbatrg
pa Patriot
- - :. - -
The Recognition Of C0lored Voters.
The great phenomenon of colored
policemen in Philadelphia continues to