Year: 1863

nv will. that slavery outside oil those
States should not exist antagonlstic To
free labor But with slavery in South
Carolina, we in Ohio had nothing tn do,
and | was Just as much avcrse to any in
reference with anything within the limits
of other States. Although | dislike the
institution and condemn it. yet WAS just
a, much aver~e To any interference with


IL as | should be with their interference
with our institutions here in Ohio That


was my doctrine; and so when this rebe!


lion commenced it would have been ex


tIemely agreeable to me If We could have
put our foot upon the snake mean the
/ rebellion--and crushed 1t out without any
( further trouble. But while | greatly de
sired that. and had ] been general-in-
chief | should have attempted, in an
awkward way, to accomplish 1t, still we
all know how the rebellion went on, and
assumed greater proportions. We put
greater and greater armies into the held,
but the slave population of the South was
the real prop of the rebellion-raIsingt the
provisions for the army while it was fight
ing in the field. so that they could have


pretty much all their laboring population
in the battlefield; and then have another
laboring population behind them 10 feed
and support them and therefore 1t APP
peared evident, especially as we had TO
depend upon the blacks in the South for
/ information Tor our armies, and their
whole army was so demoralized that they
were the only friends our armies could
find when they passed through. II SEEM
ed. say, perfectly clear that he had to
strike at this under prop of the rebellion;
and so, when President Lincoln thought
fit to issue his proclamation. SAID amen,
with all my heart. Tremendous ap-
plause.


| 1t was never intended to interfere with
the States that were loyal. This procla-
nation comes up as great feature in this
war. In my judgment, the proclamation
was the right thing in the right place. and
without it, am just as sure as | am OF
my own existence, that we could not have
made the progress we have made, and
hold the man who denounces the procla-
nation, either speaks ignorantly Of that
of which he knows but little or nothing,
or else he really desires that the rebellion
should succeed. Loud applause. There
is no alternative. The rebellion would
have succeeded but for the proclamation.
If. then, a man opposes the proclamation
he opposes it because he does not under
stand it, or because he wishes the rebel
lion to succeed But then. say some. you
are making war upon this people of the
South, and you will not let them come
back into the Union with their slaves
Well now, gentlemen, there are two class
es of States in the South; there is the
class of States affected by the proclama-
ton. We have simply nothing to do ex-
cept to bid God speed to the uncondition-
81 Union men of those States. They will
do their own work in their own way, and
in their own time, [applausel and all We
have to do is to stand by them. But in the
States which are affected by the procla-
nation, .he case is different. Either the
proclamation was great monstrous sham
and an imposition in the face of thewhole
world, or else that proclamation was an
effectual thing, and there are no slaves to-
day in the rebel States. Loud cheers.
They are all enfranchised by the procla-
nation, for what says it, all the slaves are
declared now and forever free, and the
executive power is pledged to the main
tenance of this freedom. If we were not
so, it would be a national imposture, and
would no more be guilty of that piece
of infamy than would steal into your
house at night and rob your pantry
Laughter and cheers.


But what have we to do with this proc
lamation in the rebellious slave States?-
1t is very simple thing. Just simply
recognize the Union men who remain in
those States. Such men as Durard, Mr..
Flanders, and Mr.. May, and whole host
of others who were known as slaveown
ers, are not satisfied that the Union men
of the South must see to it that Slavery
must never be permitted to be rs-estab-
lished in those States. Take such a man
as the Hon. Mr. Anderson: When he went
home and stood up for the Union, what
did the slave aristocracy do for him.
They drove him from the States, and his
wife and little ones were obliged to take
shelter in the bushes, and so with multi
tudas of Union men in Texas at the pres
ent day, but all of them wish 10 get back
and establish free State in Texas. be-
cause they say no other than free State
can ever protect them from the enemies
of freedom, and, was going to say, of hu
man nature. GCheers. Again, in Florida
there were many who were driven away
who are now anxious to return. Is there
a man here who wants these noble, gen.
erous Union men of the South to go back
TO be trampled under foot by restored
rebels? [Cries of No, No. Let them go
back, but let them 90 back under the
agis of the American Union, with the
protection of the Government pledged to
them, [cheers1 and then they viii take
care to settle this question of Slavery
They will amend the Constitution so as
to put the slavery question where it ought
to be. When that is done, who is going
to talk about the proclamation? You
have here my fellow citizens, an intelli-
gent statement, as it seems to me, of the
manner in which this thing can be set
tied, simply by standing by the uncondi-
tional Union men, who almost all of them
have embraced the doctrine of emanci-
patton in the border States, and standing
by the Union men in the pro-slavery
States, and letting them protect them
selves against the institution of slavery.
We have heard good deal about popular
sovereignty. Is not that the best popular
sovereignty to let the people protect
themselves against what they conceive to
be evil? How simple all things are when.
we come to test them by the plain light
of reason?


As might have been expected, this war
has attracted the attention of the whole
world. Everywhere throughout the whole
world despotism and aristocracy are in
sympathy with the rebellion. Despotism
and aristocracy do not like a great and
fiourishing republic. The English aris-
tocracy and French despotism would nat
urally like to see the country broken up.
Then there is another ground for sympa-
thy. Despotism naturally sympathizes
with despotism, aristocracy naturally sym
pathizes with aristocracy, and the despo-
tism of the whole world sympathize with
the aristocracy, and the despotism that
they expected to build up in the Southern
States. Therefore it is that they have
naturally been against US. You know
what has been done in England; you
know that great deal of sympathy has
been manifested for the South; but just
in proportion as we advance, partly thro'
the Proclamation and partly through the
S6oc fhxy hos