Year: 1860

ly upon eltner Slde OF tue most Ques
tons and nothing is common IL many Of the
States than sudden and great revoutions in opinion
Even with the perfect certainty that ever slave State will
resist with arms any interference with its security as
connected with its slaves there topics connected with
the time and of that resistance Which might eas
P terminate very fatally and topics connected with slave
~ itself the slave trade for eIampe which the most
determined difference of opinion has manifested ITSELF
While such considerations ought TO the most up
right and sagacious public of the great danger they
in OF being deceived by party camor and ought to ter
rfy such unscrupuous they eich that, after
all the heart of the nation may be sOu1d and that
ly needs to be convinced of its peril tmay, by one
mighty outburst of patriotic enthusiasm crush every
party that has triaed with its cenvctio and oyerwhem
| every public that has betrayed it


Concerning the political relations OF slavery under the
Federal Constitution and the rights and duties Of the
slaves States in the Unisn it is perfectly mmateral
whether the institution of negro slavery it exists in
this country, is good bad and all Congressional dis
cusson of that point is as irrelevant it is ordinarily
empty. We live under written Cons 31tuon and have
for than seventy years been expoundng it, com
mentng it. and applying consta7y to the business
of life There may be topics and tht not unmportant,
upon which generation has dfer$ from another one
party from another class of ysmen, Judges, and
lawyers from another to the true sense of the Con
sttuiiOn and the weight whh interpretations of
are entitled whether those inter, relations made
by other Department of tie Government. No
doubt of late years. the tendency pf opinion has been
TO attribute far sacredness 10 judicial nterpreta-
tons than the founders Of the Republic allowed; and
! therefore witness such fierce debates as to the
true sense of the Dred Scott dec ion With all posi-
BILE veneration for the Federal Constitution, are
not TO forget that it was made for us, not we
for and with all loyalty bOtb towards the national
| and our State Governments, 1T remember that
the highest of all loyalty is to society itself which
is above every form it possibly put on Under all
forms of society," the aperyadihg questions political
questOns qestions which neyerrcan be permanently set


tied in free governments except through representative
bodies and then in accordance with the public con-
science The question Of slavery it relates to the
ton falls under these general considerations in re-
markable manner Thus in tie first place, slavery was
almost universal and the slave States the mmense ma
jorty at the formation of the rede al Constitution;
the slave States are in minority their whole population
a minority and that minority both of States and peo-
pie is steadily becoming relatively weaker. In the
ond place. there has occurred prodgOu change in the
value OF slaves and OF the proGuct OF their labor well
as in the of public opinion the subject 0i slavery
itself At the formation OF The Federal Constitution,
there particular hostility to slavery in one
ion above another and particular zeal for its extern
sion and its perpeuity in any section But ct present
the great majority in most Of e slave States, zeaousy
desire both the extension andhe perpetuy of slavery
and the amOs. unanimous pOEllaon of them all regard


as so completely involved in the very fabric Of society
that no interference with it rom without can be
dured while the great mass OF the people Of the North
consider the institution positively evil and an immense
party amongst them is organized the conviction that
the interests of the free States qnd of the white
eoparded by the claims Of the ave States and their al


legged control of the Federal Gocrnment in the interests
Of savery-the repression if mo- the total extinction Of
which is what the South understands them as seek
! ing. Now looking at the matter IN this light, and
rejecting all pretcxts the SOLITARY condition which
satisfy the North is that te South should claim
nothing under the Constitution 1tch that Constitution
fairly interpreted did not always to her And the
solitary condition which can sl ~ the vital necessities
/ Of il he 90
interpreted and the Government administered, that
il shall enjoy the peace rity and equality of
rights in the Union which it woald enjoy if it
free State What seems 10 cea az present Is that
such violation OF either OF these Ondons has vet
CURED to Justify either party proceeding .u:h
eytremijies would be u,iia5lesf il had occurred
Aud it is equally clear that the apprehension of i'm
pending violation of the rights OF eifho~ rar: b cannot
justify any Irregular much ~s auy extreme proceeding,
any further tnan may be necessary and efecua pre-
vent that impending violation Moreover, the highest
and most enduring interests Of all PARTIES conspire with
their sacred obligations binding then ac' v :nu,ra
! justice, good faith, and i0rUoaunoe But suppose the
dominant parry the North to have lready violated be-
yond endurance the solitary condition with which the
safety Of the South allows her to be satisfied then
It is the frthcs possible from being hue that the seces
sion of portion of the slave States the disruption of
the Union the slave line, IS nec,s ,ssary, wise
even allowable alternative. 1t is tue the States are
sovereign States. But is equally true that the nation
j
tions suddely disappear ike cloud OF insects
do powerful natOnaities fade in day, like the flow
of the grass Ii took the Roman Empire thousand
years to die; and the Hebrew nationality has survived
through all the possible fortune Of four thousand years


To rend nation in twain is far terrible proce
dure than for a nation TO itself by an internal
struggle. Nothing be certain thaa tnGt slave
cannot be pcrpetuated this continent by means Of
the rending Of this nation. With single nationality like
ours internal struggles matter how often they may
occur be greatly protraced and can neveria
tally the progress OF society But precisely such
i case ours, the permanent rendng os the nation is
catastrOp Oph0-the progress OF which promises nothing
assuredy as the mutual dissolution of bctl the paris
and the end of which produce nothing certain
Is than the total defeat of the avowed Obj ct of its per-
petratOn. The firm determination of every portion Of
the Union to maintain its rights within b Unjcn under
every extremity, would sooa put al cad Z. all necessity
for any portion oft to elect between terrible of
doing So IL B the holding in Of nis idea of
ding the nation il is the weakening ofthe ea of our Go
rious nationality that gives vigor if not existence 20
many idea which escape being tratOrOh sonly by de
nying that people or have any nationality. In
the restoration of that great idea there moral force
competent the country by ordinary means
in such a crisis this. Or if there is noy there is
practical force in it competent to ths country by
arms whenever law is silent and GrGs are tae only
edy IL horrible eieu that the children of the Rev
oluon might be obliged to shed each others blood
| How much more horrible to shed it IN such manner
that oceans Of it could restore what had des
rOyed while every drop OF would be eternal testi
mony against our folly


For my part am not ashamed to confess the depth Of
my love for my whole country and the mingled sorrow
and indignation with which witness every attempt to
weaken amongst the people the of wha, to
the mother OF US all. No people did anything go-
rous, who did not believe in God who were aot faithful
to oaths and who did not love their country When |
reflect on what God ha already done for u.s. and already
done by for his own glory and for the advancement OF
the human race; when consider what position and
our influence amopgtt tue nations of the earth must be
! when We BECOME hundred millions; when try to ap-
preciae the necessity Of Just such power or earh and
the majesty of It's benehcen and irresistible exercise
nv very heart throbs with overpowering Joy and exua-
ton that such destiny is reserved for my peope that
such refuge and inheritance is kept IL stoe for man


thank God continually that the dust Of my ancestors
minges with this SELL tnat the hands of my kindred have
aborsd Oh these sublime monuments that he valor of
my friends part of the cost by which al has been
secured and that the LOT of the inheritance lf my pos
terty apperains to such land and such a people As
for the South in its widest sense God Las cast my
lot there and have been loyal TO her; al the more
oyal that have been neither blind to her errors nor
ignorant Of ber perils As for Kentucky il have left
undone anything could have done for he} honor her
interests, her glory, she knows how joyfuly would
redeem that lack of service But still love my coun-
try; still | am an American citizen. AnfI deny, with
upled hands, the right of any court any President,
any Congress any State any combination q States under
Heaven abolish from amongst that highest of all
! human titles have worn il as a crown all my DAYS on
earth. And | mpore you, by our common blood and
common name by all the love so many noble hearts
bear for YOU and all the hopes they cherish concerning
YOU so to acqut yoursefn this day of trial and rebuke
that you shall bear that title proudly long after my gray
hairs are under the green sod.


Ro j. BRECKENRIDGE.
BREDALBANg, Ky., ian. ., 1860