Year: 1861




United States march through that portion
of the State and drive before them and out
of the country, those who are engaged in
rebellion, and leave the 'Hoyal hearts, free,
can they not act for themselves2 What,
then, is to prevent them2 Have they not
the same General Government we have r
Have they not the same Constitution that
we have 2. Have they not the same sloyal
hearts and the same wise heads that we
haye2 Ifthey have not, God help them.


Laughter.) fear that even with our eff
forts they could not be saved (Renewed
laughter.) Sir, this great movement that
is 'tworth more than an army with banners" !"
which as was well said by tue gentleman
from this city, is the movement which is to
restore the Union--this movement has to
be made, aud effected, and inaugurated,
and persisted in by the people inhabiting
and residing within the limits of the re-
spective counties that have suffered from
secessionism and rebellion. Have they not
within their midst loyal men, wise men,
men capable of being Governors and mem
bers of the Legislature If they have not
they could not send them here. They must
have members of the Legislature, aud those
members must of necessity be selected
from among their midst, and how do you
prevent their patriotic action, by either
bringing them to sit in a legislative body
at Wheeling, or allowing them to sit in one
east of the mountains? Wou,d they be
less wise or less patriotic sitting in legis-
lative body there, than they would be sit
ting in one here grant you they would
not have the benefit of our counsel, but in
days gone by they hive been unwilling to
take our counsel We have endeavored to
force it upon them, but we have always
been told in effect, to stand aside, and we
have been spoken of as the "disgraced
Northwest" And it is to these, "our
brethren who have brought upon us the
calamities under which our whole country
isreeling and tottering-who have involved
us all in one common ruin-it is tender
consideration for these gentlemen that is to
stay us in an effort made to relieve us from
dominant and arrogant governmental
majority, and place us where aud make US
what nature and nature's God designed US
to be, n free, separate, independent po-
litical community, occupying place upon
shat Tag, n star as large as either of them,
That is to be sacrificed; our material inter-
ests are not to be considered the wealth
contained within the surface of onr soil is
to remain as it has always been, undevel-
oped and weare to seek in other States and.
in other communities, that sympathy that
We should share and which we would share
in our own State, if we were not separated
rom the rest of it by natural insurtnount-
BILE bar riers.


But, sir, resolution offered by my friend
from Upshur, (Mr. Farnsworth,) at the
last session of the Convention, is referred
to as having been defeated, aud it is sought,
by constructions placed upon this and up
on the action OF the former Convention, to
deny this Convention the power TO do any
thing that will affect, in the slightest de-
gree the status of our people, or any ror-
tion of them. They deny that the object
of calling this Convention was to provide
a way by which the peopl could declare
their wishes on this subject; and then quote
resolutions, all of which go to show that
the object of this Convention was "to take
such steps and adopt such measures as will
best promote the welfare and secure the
safety" of our constituents. Now,
sir, there are some of us here fool
ish enough 10 believe that onr in
terests and welfare will be best promoted
by separation from the rest of the State.
l would like to know if we so believe, if
We have not the right, nnacr and by the
authority of those resolutions referred to,
to endeavor if possible to induce the Con-
vention to allow the people to speak their
views on this subject No definite action
under prescribed rule was laid down for
our government by the plan of any ofthese
Conventions; but when thnt very resolu-
ton of my friend from Upshur was tabled
and take ii for granted voted to table
it-wheu it was under discussion here for
two days, as mentioned by the gentleman
from the city of Wheeling (Mr. Hubbard),
/ know one member of this Convention that
did say that he opposed such propositions
then because we had no legislature that
could give the consent required by the
constitution to our separation, but who
did, in the very same speech in which he
opposed the resolution,say that ut the very
instant, as soon as could be, after we have
such Legislature, lie would be foremost
among those who sought division of the
State. He who now addresses you said
that on the 18th of June.


We knew how that resolution was ta-
bled. That vote was no expression of seu-
timent, and it was so said by men who
voted for tabliug the resolution. recol-
lect my friend from Afonongalia (Mr. Dor
sey), who came here from a county, at a
town of which eight hundred and twenty
one votes were cast on the twenty-thlrd OF
last May for division OF the State, and
but eight hundred against the ordinance of
secession. he took the very same ground
whenever he saw that there was a consti-
tutional difficulty in the way, that no good
Whatever could be accomplished by agitat-
ing the subject then, and he, with others,
voted against this proposition, and they
pledged themselves to use every effort in
their power to bring about division when
ever it could be accomplished. That is the
ground we all took, and the published de-
bates show it to be so.


Mr.. HAwxHuRsT, of Fairfax-Why then
did you invite the Union people of the East
to meet you in oonvention2


hare We arn clad to h a ra vnn with na rnn