Year: 1861

country, although they have now nine million
of people, and two-'hirds of the population of
the United States reside in the free States
Why, sir. during the seventy-two years of our
political existence under the Constitution OF
1881 they have had control of the Government
for forty nine years and three months. They
have bad eight Southern Presidents and seven
Northern Presidents. The Northern Presi-
dents have had control of the Government but
twenty years and nine months. For over two
thirds of the time since its formation, this
Government has been administered by gentle
men the direct representatives of those States.
| allege that, so far as my observation has
gone, the purposes the only purposes in the
carrying ont, if not in the Inauguration of this
war, are those which the majority of this body
have, by their votes, unmistakably Indicated
not to deprive the people of the South of their
property not to wage crusade against the
institution of slavery not, under the banner
of the Union, to seek to deprive these men of
their property but, as Democratic General
from Massachusetts said, it is by the strong
arm of the Government to enforce law among
both the black and the white population in the
States now in rebellion against your Govern
ment.


| Yet, sir, we are told that for the sake Of
humanity" we must acknowledge the rights of
any one State thinking itself aggrieved, with
out regard to the States that are left-without
consulting the happiness of the millions OF
Others constituting those States-to secede at
will; acknowledge their entire independence
and right to make treaties offensive or deien-
sive with the enemies of the country their
right to form alliance with foreign powers, and
pass laws jeopardizing our very existence as a
nation-al this under the sanction of the Con-
stitution of the United States that the eight
million people northwest of the Ohio river are
to be shut off from the use OF the Mississippi
river the natural outlet for pouring into the
lap of the civilized world their commerce
that we are to be hemmed in, curtaled and
thrown back in the great expansive ideas the
people of this country have been struggling
|
and all this, under the plea that our fathers
who founded this Republic have thus construc-
ted its Government and institutions.


Sir, if this is the doctrine, the sooner the
people of this country know it the better. If
this is the principle by which we are to bo
governed, then instead of singing triumphant
peans, instead of leading the memory Of the
great and the good who have laid broad and
deep, and wide, our foundations, we should ex-
ecrate their memory as giving US, instead Of a
vital Government a rafting, useless skeleton.
If it is so, the people now standing by to sup
port with arms and meaus, desire to know ii.
They wish the trial to be made in the face Of
the civilized world. They have intelligence
enough still left never to suffer military des-
potsm never to allow the seizure of their po-
litical rights and guarantees but approaching
their destiny, they will make Government
strong enough and powerful enough to conduct
US in our onward career, until we shall be as
Rome when her imperial eagles hovered around
the pillars Of Hercules


l desire to call the attention of the Senate
one moment before l close to fact the census
OF 1860 discloses as to the institution Of sla-
very in the Southern States. BY the census
of 1860, the population of the South is 9.000,-
900 white and 100000 slaves. Seven million
and half Of the white population ofthe South
have no interest whatever in slavery The
same relative proportion exists between the
showing of the census of 1850 and lS60 Not
having the exact figures for 1860, | refer to the
census Of 1850, which shows that out of
population of 6,000,000, which the Southern
States then had, the number Of Shareholders
was bat 1855, as the heads of families rep
resenting 100000 people; and the numbtr
of slaves at that time over 100000. OF the
number of shareholders 6S,S29 had but one
slave each 1861 ,683 had under FIVE slaves
each ia SOB owners OF slaves held but 1885,
500; while 1902 persons held the rest of
the slaves, amounting to 2,Sl8444.


Now, sir, assert, and future history will
show how true it is, that whenever you bring
the line of Canada down TO Mason and Dixons.
whenever by necessity (f it should so happeu)
our Government is broken up and two confed-
eracies formed whenever it shall be recog-
nzed principle, as it will be, that the moment
that slave touches the soil Of the " Northern
Confederacy' he is free when, sirs. you have
given unbr died license to sectional fanaticism
in permitting John Brown raids, followed by
retaliatory outrages of clipping Of ears shaving
of heads. and tarring and feathering citizens
! you will, from that very moment, have doomed
the institution Of slavery. Our Southern pco-
pie, who have now raised themselves in rebellion
to your Government will then see they have
committed a great folly of their lives The
people of these United States desire no such
results They desire its territory to remain
intact. They desire the people to live in bap-
piness, in the enjoyment of their property, and
in the full possession Of all the civil and reg-
ious liberties which it has been our pride
heretofore to possess.


The GREAT UNION Guy.-The large RI
fled cannon " TTnion ~ noru Of Eorfrass Mon