Year: 1861

READ IT, PEOPLE Or VIRGINIA!!


Lomsiana Conrention-3l la day Mrch 81
Remarks cf 1Noss1s Rozier and Rose1liius ou


the adoption Of the Constitution Of the


Goafad4ute1 ,States hi Loui.sin,aa.


Mr. Rozier desired to express Ills views on
the constitution before the debate was closed
and would offer 4 substitute for the ordinance
offered BY the member from Nermillion Mr.
@ Bryan to provide for the calling Of a con
yention by the people for the adoption or re-
lection Of the constitution the Confelerated
States, and arproprating So, 900 therefor


Mr Rozier then proceeded to address the
convention at length on the question Of sub
hitting the constitution to i convention called
BY the people for that purpose. He said the
whole policy Of the secession party had been
to trampie on the rights Of the people He
reviewed the hasty action Of the convention
in passing the ordinance Of secession He
had been tauntnglv charged with not having
signed that ordinance vet, as he had said be
fore, he was ready to stand BY his State.
The ordinance declared Louisiana to be a free
sovereign and independent State Let her
remain so. But he did not wish to be forced
to transfer his allegiance from Louisiana to
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and the
other Confederated States.


He proceeds to show that Arkansas, Ten
hal l.,1t
il their course of secession lie was also in
favor Of this movement Let IL stand still
and look around US 1t was not too late to
join Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee iii
convention, and consult what was now best for
the Southern States He feared no Northern
aggression upon Us, but feared more our own
hasty action. It was not true that the CO.
opcrationsts were favorng the North AZ had
been asserted They only desired unanmity
Of action, which should reach from Virginia
to Texas


This was the time to stop and wait for the
action of the border States He read from
Mr. Stephens speech in reply to Mr.. Toombs
showing the evil effects Of hasty secession
By this precpitate action We had thrown
away everything which we still should have
clung to a. our own. BIZ an united co-opera-
tive policy we could have secured one half of
the army and navy, our part Of the public
property our part Of Cuba and our part of
the Union We should not have lost the
tomb Of Washington


Mr. Rozier proceeded to show that il case
of war no dependence was to be put in the
States Of South Carolina Georgia Or Ala
hama. to help or defend US He alluded to
the speech Of the arch paciicator Mr. Yam
cey who had told Us last October what was to
be the great commercial prosperity Of New
Orleans in case Of secession Where was the
prosperity Of New Orleans to come from with
out the sources and resources of our Western
sister States? We might pile ordinances
miles in height, but we could not divide the
people Of Louisiana from the people Of the
West The city Of New Orleans, and whole
State, was to be affected hy this precipitation
OF the cotton States in a revolution. if we
did not pause in our course before it was too
late. He again repeated that the West WAS
bound to us BY the bonds Of matrimony and
political wedlock, from which no divorce
could ever be obtained.


Mr.. Roselius having obtained the floor,
said that Louisiana had assumed the high,
free, sovereign and Independents position