Year: 1863

ed to extenuate or excuse the wickedness
of the secessionists. Bad and impolitic
as was the policy of the Northern radicals,
it furnished no sufficient reason for seces.
sion, rebellion and war; but I believed
most sincerely then as do now, that the
acceptance of Mr.. Crittenden's proposition
by one-third of the Republicans in Con-
gress, at the right time, would have bro
ken down secession in nearly all the States
now claiming to be out of the Union; and
it might have been accepted without any
sacrifice of honor or principle So far as
the common territory of the United States
was concerned, it proposed an equitable
partition, giving the North about goo, 900
square miles, and the South about 30O,-
600. No umpire that could have been
selected would have given the North
more.


Ii, then, it was material interest and
value we are contending for, it gave us
our full share; it was for the application
OF political principle the Republicans
were struggling for, it allowed the appli-
cation of their doctrine to three -fourths of
the estate that belonged to all the States
and all the people. 1t expressly exclu-
ded slavery from 100000 square miles,
and allowed it in the remaining 100000.
The Republicans, it is true, had just elect
ed President, and were about to take
possession of the Government; but still
the popular vote in the several States
showed that they were over a million
of votes in the minority of the electors of
the United States. Being million in
the minority, if they secured the applica-
ton of their principles to three-fourths of
the territory, was that not enough p
Could they not on that have boasted of q
great triumph?


For time these arguments and con.
siderations seemed to have weight with
the more moderate and conservative of
the Republican Senator's Indeed at one
time had strong hopes of settlement
But the radicals rallied in force, headed
by Mr.. Greeley, and the current was
changed. We were then met with the ar
gument that the people, in the election of
Mr.. Lincoln, had decided to exclude
slavery from all the territory, and the
members of Congress dare not attempt to
reverse that decision. We then deter
mined to 60 step further and endeavor
to overcome that obstacle; and it was to
this end, after consultation with Mr.. Crit
tenden and others, that I myself intro
duced bill into the Senate providing for
taking the sense of the people of the seve-
raj States on the Crittenden proposition,
for the direction of members Of Congress
voting for or against its submission for
the ratification of the States, as an amend
ment to the Constitution.


This was an appeal to the source of all
political power, and would have relieved
the members of all serious responsibility
The vote of the representative would have
been in accordance with the votes of his
constituents, either for OF against the pro-
position. The only objection made was
that it wes somewhat irregular and extra
ordinary. But the same men could not
make that objection at present Too
many extraordinary things have since
been done by their chosen agents I be-
lieved with the Senator from Ohio, as T
believe still, that the proposition would
have carried majority in nearly all the
States of the Union, but it shared the fate
Of all other efforts for settlement Would
to God our country was now in the condi-
tion it then was, and that the people could
be allowed to settle the controversy for
themselves, under the lights of eighteen
months experience of war and carnage,
and countless sacrifices of national strength
and character.


Very truly, your obed't servant,


WILLIAM BIGLER.