The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-06-09
American Wars. Re.
belIions, InSurrec-
tons, Riots, Strikes.
Gr00Deg Of ONp Doom.

lutes" of FIVE guns were fired, and thu
New England flag, having five stripes ans
five stars, was occasionally fiauntcd.
All these indications o. .discon. ent were
very alarming. but they led to nothing,
for while the Federalisrs were protesting
against the war and its disastrous effects,
that war was drawing toward a
triumphant close. The Hartford conven-
ton, which met in December, 1S14 was
not convened for the purpose of deciding
upon plan of secession, but rather with
the intent "to devise means Of security
and defense" and for the preservation
Of their resources from utter ruin
which should be consistent with the OBJ
legations of the states as members of the
Union" Yet. that the possibility OF tine
worst coming to the worst" was cocSid-
cred. is shown by the opening words OF
the report of the convention as follows:
III the Union be destined to dissolution,
by reason of the multiplied abuses OF
bad administrations, it should. if pos
sible, be the works OF peaceable TINES
and deliberate consent. Some new 10 m
of confederacy should be sustained among
those states which shall intend to main
tain q federal relation to each other But
q severance of the Union by one or more
states, against the will of the rest, and
especially in q time of war; can be justi-
fed only by absolute necessity" The re-
port concluded by advising that, If no
attention should be paid to Phe earnest
circumstances of the convention, and the
war should continue, a new convention
should be called in the following June,
with such powers and instructions as
!! the eXigency of a crisis so moment US
may require" At the very time that this
high sounding report was made public,
news was received of the conclusion of
the war by the treaty Of Client This
fact placed the proceedings Of the con-
ventioH in an absurd, not to say most
discreditable, light and. it is needless TO
say, brought to an end all vaporings
about the secession of New England"
Some thirty years later, however, when
the anti-slavery excitement began, there
was certain clique Of the extreme aooli-
tionists, which made a great pretense OF
detestation of the Union because slavery
was sanctioned by the constitution and
the laws. The L4iberator, the organ of
this faction, whose publication was be-
gun in Boston in 1881, declared the con-
stitution OF the United States to be "a
league with death and a covenant with
he'll" Early in 1912 number Of these
persons, living in Haverhiu, Mass, drew
up petition to congress praying that
measures might be taken to dissolve the
Union peaceably. They gave as their
reasons: First, because no union can be
agreeable which does not present pros
poets Of reciprocal benefits: second, be-
cause vast proportion of the resources
of one section of the Union is annually
drained to sustain the views and course
Of another section without any adequate
return; third, because, judging from the
history OF past nations, such a union, if
persisted in, in the present course Of
things, would certainly overwheIm the
whole nation in utter destruction"
This petition was sent to John Quincy
Adams to be laid before congress Mr.
Adams, who was Just then engaged in a
struggle in behalf of the right of the
people to offer any petition of any kind
whatever, agreed to bring forward The
Haverhill document. His action caused
great excitement, and 1t was moved that
he be declared guilty of high treason.
Against this charge he defended himself
oy reading the first paragraph of the
Declaration Of Independence. The oues-
ton whether the petition should be re-
ceived or not was then put 70 the house.
ard three-feurths OF the members voted
against receiving It.
No similar attempt was ever made to
test public opinion on the question OF
secession, but that a section Of the anti
slavery party in New England continued
TO favor rupture of the Union is shown
by the attitude and words of Wendell
Phillips. Holding that the constitution
was an impious compact between free
dom and slavery, Mr.. Phillips refused to
recognize 1t by voting under it, and would
not practice law because he would NOT
swear allegiance 20 it. Flbm 1910 up to
the outbreak Of the war: Mr.. Phillips
openly advocated disunton as the only
way to settle the question of slavery.
But after the war broke OUT he advocat-
&c sustaining the government. believing
that the conflict must end in freedom 20
the slaves.