Year: 1865




candidate. | recollect that election day
came, and that handbills were thrown in the
yards of farmers by armed soldiers passing
! by, cautioning them in reference to the APP
preaching election. | recolect that they
! had squads of soldiers around the voting
places, and that they had certain oaths stuck
up, the paternity of which belongs TO one
renowned general, who is now member of
! the other House, who has shed his blood up
on many battle-felds, and illustrated the
patriotism Of his country not by accepting
| civil position in war, hut active CAMPAIGNS
inthe fed. He was once in command of the
Middle Department. and had his headuuar-
ters in Maryland, and believe represents
or misiepresents, in part, the State of Ohio
| lecollect that Notwithstanding there was a
regular Democratic ticket in the field there
were but fourteen Democratic votes cast
and why? We had the privilege of making
ticket; but We were notified beforehand of
pains and penalties to be attached to voting
in particular way. | presume, therefore
when the Democrats 0: West Virginia had
the privilege Of making out a ticket they
had some means OF understanding that it
was not exactly safe to exercise their right


TO vote according to their own judgment


Mr.. WILEY. The Senator's supposi-
ton is entirely unfounded. There we've
scarcely any troops in West Virginia, and
no influence of the kind brought to bear up
on the people. There never was more
free or tairer election in any State in the
Union.


Mr.. SALISBURY. I understand it all.
On the occasion Of the election in my State
to which refer did not approach the polls.
thought knew the terms upon which |
could vote. have no doubt there were
Democrats in West Virginia just as intelli-
gent and who understood the whole matter
just as well as did.


have made these remarks in response 20
the playful points of order raised by the
honorable Senator from Indiana, TO assure
him that if this Administration had appoin-
ted coroner to sit over the dead Of body of
tho Democratic party he would have found
the largest corpse over which an inquest was
ever held


One remark more. sir, and I shall CON
cIude. Let the Democrats OF the country
take heart. 70 them say, though your
enemies may charge you with being dsloyal
and in favor Of disunion, with your glorious
Union record, with the vast numbers who
went to the polls, notwithstanding the arbi-
traly measures resorted to to deprive you OF
the exercise Of the highest functions of the
American citizen, when you see that you
only fell some two hundred or two hundred
and htty thousand votes behind in popular
election IN the States now in the Union and
said to be loyal, the record is most cncourag-
ing; it gives hopes of the future. Forsake
not your principles but rally around the
same old standard under which you were
wont to fight. Remember that in all your
history and throughout your entire admins
tration of national affairs no citizen ever
complained that he had been illegally arres-
ted and placed in Bastile. Remember
that you have a record which shows that un-
der your administration Of the Federal Gov
ernment no man WAS ever deprived of life,
liberty, or property, except by due process
OF law. Recollect that throughout your en-
tire history no press was forbidden 10 pub
llsh its views to the people Of the country;
that no executive hand was laid upon the
freedom of the press. cay to the members
OF that glorious party, | recollect that no
President whom you ever elevated to that
high position ever dared to claim the power
Of suspending the bulwark of liberty, the
writ OF hubcas Corpus, and then come before
the Congress of the United States asking to
he relieved from the consequences OF the
act. Recollect also that during the entire
existence of your party instead of dismem-
berment and disintegration, there was moth
ing but the addition of State after State. -
Contrast that with the record of this Re
publican party, and you have platform of
principles upon which you can safely 60 be-
fore the people of the.country, if indeed
Abraham the first Republican President is
not become Abraham the first Emperor, and
you may meet your political foes, and not
by military force or a resort to unconsttu-
tional means, but by the free exercise of
that suffrage which is secured to you by the
Constitution, Federal and State, achieve
noble triumph in the future