Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1890-01-21
HIsroRICAL SOCIETY MERTING.


a 4nB6xeounS k8R0X VA SA0 G0ACC
Conference OF 1861.
A meeting of the Historical society was
held in the Common Pleas court room Satur
day evening, at which the reception of
number of new articles was reported, the
most valuable being the late Rev. D. W. Ra-
vens' MSS. history of East Haven and sill
yer Phi Beta Kappa key worn by John Knapp,
class of 1900 Harvard. The new rooms of
the society in the Insurance building are
nearly arranged and will be opened to the
public in about two weeks. The society has
received much needed increase to its menu
bership since the year opened, but it is hoped
that farther accessions will enlarge the sphere
of it's usefulness.
Mr.. William W. Hoppin, jr., of New York,
read one of the most finished papers 1t has
been tho good fortune of the society to hear
this season. His subject was "The Peace
Conference of 1861" and carried many of
those present back to the stormy times pre-
ceding the breaking out of the great rebellion
and the earnest efforts made by patriotic
men to postpone war by some measure SINH
lar to the Missouri compromise The speak
er left to the future Bancroft, who shall
write the true history of the civil war, the
task Of Analysing the motive of such gath
ering at the very time when State after State
was seeding from the Union and said that
he should confine himself to the impressions
made upon q young man fresh from Yale
College. Then followed consise and bril-
liant sketches of the most prominent men,
bers of the conference-such political sages
a. Gov. Wright of Ohio, Siddon OF Virginia,
who seemed almost the incarnation of CAL
houn, Roger s. Baldwin of Connecticut,
Guthrie of Kentucky and host of others no
less distinguished. Gov. Wright called the
10 r1Ar and Nv
dent Tyler to take the chair. Tyler coun-
sellsd the delegates to triumph over party,
and in reviewing the various States repre-
scented said: Connecticut is here and she
comes, doubt not, in the spirit of Roger
Sherman, whose name has become house
hold word" John G. Wright, son of
the Governor, was appointed secretary
with four assistants, of whom the speaker
was one. Before the real work of the con-
ference began the death of Wright occurred,
and the speaker gave most impressive de-
scription of his funeral, which was attended
in a body by the members of the conference.
The assumption OF the ultra-southern men,
and the apprehensions of northern merchants
having large interests in the South, were
fiery speeches of Mason, Slidell and their
ilk were received by northern senators with
their feet quietly resting on the desks front
of them. The debates soon disclosed the
essential point of difference between the two
sections-the intensity Of free labor and the
necessity of expansion for the shareholders,
and on this rock all the schemes for compro-
mise split. The conference soon resolved
itself into three parties-the ultra-northsrD,
moderate and ultrarsouthern, the first and
last growing stronger from day to day until
. satisfactory compromise seemed impossi-
BILE. The moderates were completely silenced.
A singular fact was President Lincoln's
strong faith in the convention, and so earn
est was his desire to have no obstacle in it's
path that in his first message he advised
Congress to pass no law which would ten d t
make a conflict Of arms inevitable.
In closing Mr.. Hoppin paid fine tribute
to the southern women, 90 charming socially
and yet 80 capable to meet the bitter neces-
stiles of fratracidal war.
At the next meeting of the society paper
on the Talmud will be read by Rev. DR..
Lewis Kleeberg.