Year: 1861

SPEECH OF SENATOR SIMMONS OF Il. l.
CONCLUDED.


bave been to these National Conyentiors
ever since l can remember-not always as a
delegate. The first one went to Ehod, Is
land had the honor of voting for the author


United States and if the rest of them had


been as wise as we were, we should had pow


sr till this day, in my deliberate judgement.
taking what providentially happened but


we caught Tartar. l have never voted for
a President in my life since I was a voter,
when did not prefer a man born in slave


State to one born in a free State. | have


voted fer forty years or more, and | always


preferred them not because they lived there


but because they happened to have done
more for their country, in my opinion, than


the candidates in our end of the country


Whenever was in a Convention, I.".never
voted for anybody that was not born in a


Slave State and whenever there has been


any body up for President, and there wers
electors running in my State for a man born
in Slave State, / voted for him without
caring where he was born. / was for Mr.


Clay against Mr.. Adams in 1924 and if
there had been any ticket run in my State I
would have voted fer him, although Mr.. ADJ
ans was good man and gave US one Of the
best Adm Illustrations | ever knew. / never
had hnf idol onH T m
another in the shape of a man. 1t is almost
as bad as to set up cotton for King I mean
to treat this subject with all the gravity its
dimensions demand. know it is one of the
most difficult questions. have thought of
it and looked into the fire more than hun
dred hours since | have been here, not say
ing word, to try if | could see tho way
out peacea5ly /; and | am just as young as
nay youngest boy aboutit. Nobody has any
experience in such questions as this, for no
body ever dreamt that mankind would ever
have such folly as is now exhibited. What
are they quarreling about? Literally moth
ing. This Government has been in their
hands, as was said by the Senator from Ohio
(Mr. Wade), for the last eight years. Prac-
tically the South has had this Geveramen t
for sixty out of seyenty-two years; and they
talk about tionalism, and some of the
remedies to get rid of sectional party, are
to make sectional Constitution, run a line
through and give one half to one side, where
there is one-third of the people The Sena-
tor from Virginia AIr. nuuter) wants sort
of double Execuliye-after the Siamese pat
sern-a first king and second king. Laug-
ter. He wants to elect them both, and let
both have veto. We have been pestered
enough with vetoes since l have been here
aud | would rather take the veto away frcm
the one man than give it to two. You can.
no: get along with this Government, it seems
unless You let the minority rule some way
or other. That is the whole practical question
now. The minority want to rule. and they
are afraid of the people-literaly so.
wish | could see proposition that | could
hear somebody who was disaffected say wo'd
satisfy him. have not heard one Of them
say so. The Senator from Texas said if we
would would do about forty things that he
knew we would do, he would then con-
slider. That is the nearest approach to set
tlement that have heard. If we would stop
the pulpits, burn the school-houses, suppress
the newspapers, imprison the Aboltionists,
and break up this Government, everything
hot, &c IL
ing in. Laughter. lie would take into
consideration be would not pledge himself,
he said. Oh, no Laughter. Well, now,
like the Senator from Texas. like him
on account of his "better half'. She came
from Rhode Island and he will take any,
thing | bay on her account. know, without
feeling unkind to me. Mr.. President, it is
great question.


These people who have seeded will find a
bigger sum than they ever ciphered out be-
fore. I want to see how they will cipher it
out, before We move. Let those people who
are afraid take care. / am not afraid. i'll
were, should take care. l would Go any
thing in reason to remove this dissatisfac.
ton. feel mournful when think of it,
But want somebody that is troubled, and
wants it relieved, to suggest how we can re-
lieve it. Kentucky is as loyal State as
ever was in the Union, They want some
thing. know. The people have been arous-
ed by this election, as is natural. All Pres
idential elections excite great deal of feel.
ing; and for that reason it is the worst time
in the world to try to amend the Constitu-
ton. They have talked it SO long that they
Begin to believe it themselves, that the Re-
publican party means to endanger their in-
stitutions. ] said here four years ago, when
| first took my seat under new name-I
used to come under another name-I was
about the same man / was before and
said that if / found myself with party that
undertook to disturb the Institutions of the
South, | would quit that party Immediately.
So will. / have been in it now for four
years, and have yet to see or hear the first
man among our party who proposes any
such thing. Ihave no such party attach
ment as would keep me in party tnas
thought ment to break the Constitution. As
to the President elect, he is from Kentucky.
All his social ties are in K kentucky. AS bas