Year: 1862

gdrueu Dy the ADOHtlOniSC>, anu tne ADOlluOn
party continued to teach its reasonable doc
trines, and to preach its crusade against the
South and its institutions.


The results so wisely foretold, necessarily
followed The denunciation of the South at
the North, was met by denunciation of the
North at the South. Hostility in the North
to the institutions of the South provoked hos
tility in the South to the people of the North.
The great mass Of the people of the South
were loyal to the Union; but a class of pub
lie men in the South had for some time been
: tainted with disloyaIty, and aimed to separate
all the Southern States from the Union,
whenever an opportunity should arise TO carry
the people of the South with them. These
men zealously contributed to foment the Alb
clifton excitement at the North, and exagger-
ated its power and Importance at the South.
Thus faction begot faction; and the Abolition
party at the North produced the disunion
party at the South. The spirit of Northern
Abolition and of Southern disunon insensibiy
grew together for years, until the period of
the last Presidential election, when bitter
animosity existed between large and power
full factions in the North and in the South.


In the meantime, in 1876, the Wing
party most unhappily abandoned its organiza-
tions, and the present Republican party was
founded on the basis of the old Abolition
party. The best and most enlightened pa
triots of the Wings refused all alliance with
the new sectional party; but the vast body of
the Wings surrendered their national politics
to its narrow and sectional bigotry. The
great leaders OF the Wing party were gone.
The mighty voice of Webster, which always
spoke for the whole country, and never utter
ed sectional dogma, was silent forever. The
great head and heart of Clay, whose states
manship had served to save the Union from
more than one peril, and was as broad as the
Union itself, lay low In death. Had these
great lights of the Wing party survived, we
fully believe that they would have saved their
party from the shame of prostituting itself in
the unhoiy embraces of sectional and revO-
tionary organization. But they were gone !;
pigmies sat in the seats of giants; the Whig
party went out of being, and the Republican
party was ingrafted on the Abolition party.


1t is true that the Republican party avows
its abolition tendencies less manfully than the
old Abolition party. They assume to inter-
fere with slavery in the Territories and other
places subject to the jurisdiction of the United
States only, and not in the States. This thin
disguise of their real policy, is fully exposed
| by the uniform tone of their discussion of
slavery, by their resistance of the fugitive
slave law, by their avowal of an irrepressible
conflict between the Institutions of the North
and the South, and by the whole tenor of
| their legislation wherever and whenever they
have been in power. That large and re-
spectacle body of the party have no sympathy
with its abolition proclivities Is perhaps true ;
but there is no room for doubt that the aboli-
ton element in that party is is largest most
energetic, and influential element


With the strength and influence of the Re-
publican party, grew the strength and infu-
ence of the party of secession. Both were
sectional; both were revolutionary.


1t would be idle to show the revolutionary
character of the secession party. Its revolu-
tionary purposes were avowed. The Repub-
lican party was no less revolutionary, though
its revolutionary tendencies were less manifest.


1t is evident, from what has already been
seen, that Washington and jackson. fit repre-
sentatives of the sages and patriots of the
revolutionary and succeeding eras, regarded
sectional parties as revolutionary. Under
our system they essentially so; for no sec
tional party could accomplish any end, except
by the severence of the bonds of fraternity
and unity between the different parts of the
country upon which the Union rests. 1t is
not we who say, 1t is the sages and patriots of
the past who have said that in American pol
itics every sectional party is essentially dis
loyal to the Union.


In almost every State of the Union, in
which the Republican party had the power,
they enacted laws impeding the execution of
the laws of the United States. Such laws
were passed by them in this State. A Re-
publican judiciary for this State nullifed acts
of Congress, assumed to overrule the decis-
ions of the Supreme Count of the United
States in cases arising under the Constitution
and laws of the Union, disobeyed its man.
dates, and sanctioned by Judicial decision the
forcible rescue of prisoners held under the
judicial process of the United States. But
not content with this measure of disloyalty,
the Republican Legislature of this State
passed in 1859, and has ever since refused to
rescind, resolutions setting at defiance the au-
thority of the United States, and asserting
the doctrine of secession as broadly as it has
ever been asserted by any Southern State.
This is well understood at home, by Demo-
crats and Republicans; but to avoid the sus
picion of exaggerahOn abroad, we here insert
two of these resolutions in full:


"ReSoiced, That the Government formed
by the Constitution O = n ed States was





the extent of its powers delegated to itself;
but that, as in all other cases of compact
having no common judge, each party has an
equal right TO Judge for itself, as well of in
fractions as of the mode and measure of RE-
/ DRESS.


"ReSolved, That the principle and construc-
ton contended for by the party which now
rules in the councils of the nation, that the
General Government is the exclusive Judge
of the extent of the powers delegated to it,
stop nothing short of despotism, since the dis
cretion of those who administer the Govern
ment, and not the Constitution, would be the
measure of their powers; that the several
States which formed that instrument, being
sovereign and independent, have the unques-
tionable right to judge of its infraction; and
that a poSitiUe defiance of those soveregnties,
of all unauthorized acts done or attempted
to be done under color of that instrument, is
the RIGHTFUL REMEDY"


These resolutions had relation, not TO the
acts of the executor of the United States or
even of Congress, but to a solemn decision of
the Supreme Court of the United States upon
the Constitution and laws of the United
States. This is the doctrine caught from Sc
ceding. South Carolina by Republican Wis
consin, and repeated by the Republican party
of Wisconsin, in full communion with the Re-
: publican party of the north, to justify seces-
sion in every disloyal State in the South.


Thus the Republican party, as well as the
secession party, was revolutionary. And
these revolutionary parties grew in numbers
: and influence down to the Presidential cleo
tional of 1860. when the Democratic party