Year: 1862




ened and he thought before they would con
sent to consider this proposition they would
require to be informed on these points


The Presidentreplied that, "unless Re was
expelled by the act of God or the Confeder@
ate armies he should occupy that house for
three years. and as long as he remained there
Maryland had nothing to fear, either for her
institution or her interests, on the points re-
ferred to."


Mr.. Crisfeld Immediately added: "Mr.
President, If what you now say could be
heard by the beopIe Of Maryland they would
consider your proposition with a much better
feeling than I fear without it they viii be in
clined to do"


The President. "That meaning publi-
cation Of what he said) viii not do; it would
force me into a quarrel before the proper
time )" and, again intimating, as he had be-
fore done, that quarrel with the " Greeley
factor" was impending, he said he did not
wish to encounter it before the proper time,
nor at all if it could be avoided.


Governor Wickliffe, of KY, then asked him
respecting the consttutionality of his scheme,


The President replied i" As you may sup
pose, Ihave considered that; and the PROPOSE
ton now submitted does not encounter any
constitutional difficulty. It proposes simply
to cooperate with any State by giving such
State pecuniary aid and he thought that the
resolution, as proposed by him, would be con-
sidered rather as the expression Of senti-
ment than as involving any constitutional
question


Mr. Hall, of Mo, thought that if this pro-
position was adopted at all it should be by
the votes Of the Free States, and come as a
proposition from them to the Slave States, ai-
fOrding them an inducement to put aside this
subject Of diseord: ihasit ought not to be ex-
pected that members representing slavehold-
ing constituencies should declare at once, and
IN advance OF any proposition to them, for
the emancipation of slavery.


The President said he saw and felt the force
of the objection; it was fearful responsible
ty, and every gentleman must do as he thought
best; that he did rot know how this scheme
was received by the members from the Free
States; some of them had spoken to him
aud received it kindly but for the most part
they were as reserved and chary as we had
been, and he could not tell how they would
vote And in reply to some expression of
Mr. Hall as to his own opinion regarding
slavery, he said he did not pretend to disguise
his auti-slavery feeling; that he thought it
was wrong and should continue to think SO
but that was not the question we han to deal
with now. Slavery existed, and that, too as
well by the act Of the North as of the South
and in any scheme to get rid of it, the North,
as well as the South. was morally bound to
do its full and equal share. He thought the
institution wrong. and ought never to have
existed but yet he recognized the rights of
property which had grown out Of it, and
would respect those rights as fully as SINH
lar rights in any other property; that proper
ty can exist, and does legally exist He
thought such a law wrong, but utrights of prop
erty resulting must be respected he would
get rid Of the odious law, not by violating
the right, but by encouraging the proposition
and offering inducements to give it up.
Here the interview, so far as this subject is
terminated by Mr. Crittenden's
assuring the President that, whatever might
be our final action, we all thought him solely
moved by high patriotism and sincere deyo-
tion to the happiness and glory of his country;
and with the conviction we should consider
the important suggestions he had
made.


After some conversation on the current
war news, we retired, and I Immediately
proceeded to my room and wrote out this
paper. J. W. CRIsEIELD


We were present at the interview discrib-
ed in the foregoing paper of Mr.. Crisfeld, and
we certify that the substance of what passed
on the occasion is in the paper faithfully and
fully given. J. W. MENzIEs,


III. CRITTENDEN,


1{srcb 10 1869 r MarTopv