Year: 1865

ours, given 10 Us III lts Integrity oy OUT
ancestors, the constitution they made for
us shall be kept-kept in its letter and
spirit keptin Pennsy sylvaHia, and in Georgia,
and wherever the flag for which our boys
have fought throws its folds to the breeze
Shall we not say that we will keep and
preserve and maintain with our whole
power, that body of liberty aud of liberal
principles which came to US from our
ancestors those principles of English
liberty which were brought here by them,
and which have been established if not
consecrated by the most express provis-
ions of our fundamental laws?


Now, what has been our especial boast
in this country-that upon which we
have talked Sometimes, perhaps, extrava-
gantly) upon Fourth of July occasions
and gala-days We have boasted in this
wise: 1--WE ATE free people. Oh how
foolish the French are, to have an En-
peror How absurd it is that the great
British nation, with its power reaching
out 10 the islands of the sea and 10 remote
parts of the earth. should be under
the rule and dominion of woman! How
foolish, how weak, how feeble and desti-
tute of intellectual energy and power, are
the little Spanish American Countries,
which have attempted to set up
republics and have signally failed and
have proved that they are fitted only for
military governments Oh wherever we
look over this broad earth, there is mis-
government and wrong and suffering, and
the m ass of men are feeced and pluudered
and oppressed by the few. But here, in
! free America, great men built up our sys,
TEN and gave it TO Us entire and complete
And how beautifully it has operated
Here, the laboriDg man receives and en-
Joys the fruits of his toll. Here, the hum


blest man in the land lives under the be-
nign protection of the law, which follows
him to his home and accompanies him in
his iournies abroad. He is everywhere
safe. He can borrow words from the
ancient Roman, and exclaim, 81 am an
American Citizen, and that is my guaranty
against every wrong and every insult and
every species of harm: | am an Ameri-
can Citizen l belong to the land which
Washington established and to which JEFF
ferson gave a just and illustrious creed of
government in the ancient days"


Is this boasting truel Are these proud
words justified by passing occurrences
and by recent events I Are they not
falsi6ed, are they not belied by those
events, many of which have been detailed
to you at the present meetiDgl


1 propose before this meeting adjourns
to read or have read in your hearing a
speech made by man of distinction and
of great ability and independence of char
acter-a true man, although he has not
followed our party banner. 1t is an ar
gument upon the question of liberty at
the present time in the United States-an
exposition of trials by Military Courts, Of
the principles that obtain in those trials
(Which may be described as mock onesl
aud the distinctions which exist between
that system and the system established in
the Constitution and laws of the United
States and our several States. | propose
to follow that up with the addition of some
remarks to prove that this picture may be
made still more complete than he has
left it. The distinguished person to whom
aliude is my colleague in the Senate.
propose to show you and to show to the
people of this section, among whom the
volume containing our proceedings will
go, that however much other States Ofthis
Union may have been false to the faith
of our fathers-however much those
representing them may have faltered and
fallen back from the high standard of prin-
ciple. in these times of degeneracy-th
State Of Penna. has representatives in the
Senate of the U. S. who truly represent her
and stand together for the essential prin-
ciples of American Liberty; and that if
there be anything of shame or of base
ness in the recent records of tho Govern
ment, the iniquity and the crime is not up
on them.


To come back to the main point: l
repeat, the question is proposed TO the
people of this section of the country, what
course will they adopt for the future
Will they choose to say and detsrmine.that
the faith of Jefferson-the creed of prin-
ciples established by him and now held
by the Democratic party-shall be sup
ported so far as their voice can goi Cen
tlemen. you know how it is, ordinarily,
with public demonstrations in political ac-
ton. We wait until an election is al
hand, when we are much hurried, when
mems passions are warm, aud then we get
together to consider public affairs. But
at such time we are liable to go astray,
because men who are warm with passion
are not likely 10 decide with such good
judgment and so truly as at other tunes
[ believe this is one OF the very occasions
when men can fairly make up their minds
o0 public question:; now when no intense
ly exciting political campaign is pending.
now when their minds are. open, when
they are wide awake to public events,
when they recent great struggle of our
country has called their attention to the