Year: 1861

Mr.. Crittenden ON the Union.


The following is the conclusion of Mr..
Crittenden's speech, delivered in the Senate
on the 18th of December, on the occasion
of the introduction of his proposed COM
promise of the slavery question:


You think, perhaps, or some of you, that
there is no danger, that it will but thunder
and pass away. Do not entertain such
fatal delusion. tell you it is not so. I
tell you that as sure as we stand here dis
union will progress. / fear it may swallow
up even Old Kentucky in its vortex-as
true state to the Union as yet exists in
the whole Contederacy-unless something
be done; but that you will have disunion,
that anarchy and war will follow it, that
all this will take place in six months, l
believe as confidently as believe in your
presence. I want to satisfy you of that
fact.


Mr.. President, 1 rise to suggest another
consideration. have been surprised to
find, upon a little examination, that when
the peace of 1888 was made, which recog.
nized the independence of this country by
Great Britain, the states north of Mason
and Dixon's line had but territory of one
hundred and sixty.four thousand square
miles, while the states south of Mason and
DixOn's line had more than six hundred
thousand square miles. 1t was so divided.
Virginia shortly afterwards ceded to the
United States all that noble territory
northwest of the Ohio river, and excluded
slavery from it. That changed the relative
proportion of territory. After that, the
North had four hundred and twenty-five
thousand square miles, and the South three
hundred and eighty-fve thousand. Thus,
at once, by the concession of Virginia, the
North, from one hundred and sixty-four
thousand, rose to four hundred and twenty.
five thousand square miles, and the South
fell from six hundred thousand to three
hundred and eighty-6ve thousand square
miles. By that cession the South became
smaller in extent than the North. Well,
let US look beyond. intend to take up as
little time as possible, and to avoid details;
but take all your subsequent acquisitions OF
Florida, of Louisiana, of Oregon, Of Texas,
and the acquisitions made from Mexico.
They have been 60 divided and so disposed
of that the North has now two million two
hundred thousand square miles of territory,
and the South has less than one million.


Under these circumstances, when you
have been so greatly magui6ed-I do not
complain of it / am stating facts-when
your section has been made so mighty by
these great acquisitions, and to great ex.
tent with the perfect consent of the South,
ought you to hesitate now upon adopting
this line, which Will leave to you on the
north side of it nine hundred and odd square
miles, and leave to the south only two hun
dred and eighty.6ve thousand? 1t will give
you three times as much as it will give her.
There is three times as much land in your
portion as in hers. The south has already
occupied some of it and it is in States but
altogether the south gets by this division
two hundred and eigbty-6ve thousand
square miles, and the north nine hundred
thousand. The result of the whole of it is,
that the north has two million two hundred
thousand sqaare miles, and the south only
one million.


I mention this as no reproach, as no up
braiding, as no complaint-none at all. l
do not speak in that spirit I do not ad.
dress you in that temper. But these are
the facts, and they ought, it seems to me, to
have some weight; and when we come to
make peace Offering, are we to count it,
are we to measure it nicely in golden scales?
You get price, and the dearest price, for
all the concessions asked to be made; you
have the firmer establishment of your Union;
you have the restoration of peace and tram
guilty, and the hopes of mighty future,
all secured by this concession. How dearly
must one individual or two individuals, value
their private opinions, if they think them
more important to the world than this
mighty interest: Of, the Union aqd govern
ment Of ihe UIiited:States!. - -.


Sir; it'is cheap 'sacrifce 1t is a glo-
.pious sacrifice; .'Thia Union.' cost q great
deal to establish it it cost the yielding Of
much Of public opinion and much Of policy,
besides the direct or indirect cost Of it 10
all the war to establish the independence of
this country. When it was done, General
Washington himself said, Providence has
helped US, or we could not have accomplished
this thing. And this gift of our wisest |
men, this great work of their hands, this
work, in the foundation and the structure of !
which Providence herself, with her benig-
nant hand, helped-are we to give it all up
for such small consideration =? The press
ent exasperation, the present feeling of dis.
union, is the result OF long continued con-
troversy on the subject OF slavery and Of
territory. / shall not attempt to trace that
controversy it is unnecessary to the occa-
sion, and might be harmful. In relation to
such controversies I will say, though, that
all the wrong is never upon one side or all
the right on the other. Right and wrong
in this world, and in all such controversies,
are mingled together. a 9m II


I forbear, now, any discussion or any
reference to the right or wrong Of the contro-
L. ovkv~ l,,k =