Virginia Declares against Submission.

SUMNER'S ANTI-COMPROMISE SPEECH.

401

Mr. Pryor caused to be read a paragraph from the Richmond Whig-called the "submission" organ, in the sense of certain gentlemen on this floor but really, in the sense of valor; the article from the Whig, while disabusing the impression abroad, as to the result of the election, says: "To suppose that she has declared to submit to a rule, according to the Chicago Platform, is a gross and pernicious error. She is determined not to remain in connection with the Northern States unless satisfactory assurance be given that every constitutional right will be recognized, and perfect equality be given, free from all equivocation."

declarations that Virginia | her own right arm, and appeal to no earthly was ready for revolt. Pryor power for aid. She has decided, by the elecprotested against the meas- tion of 120 out of 152 delegates, in favor ure of building a railroad by Government sub- of secession, unless she shall obtain ample sidies and appropriations. There was no war- guarantees by the 4th of March. This she rant for such procedure in the Constitution. has determined in the most solemn manThe entire scheme was of the most chimerical ner. character. It involved an expenditure which no contrivance of mathematic progression could ascertain. Besides, the Treasury was bankrupt, and a mendicant on the credit of the States. He moved to lay the Senate's amendment on the table, which was disagreed to. Sickles, (Dem.,) of New York, answered that, as the best scientific ability of the country had pronounced the plan feasible as the Pierce and Buchanan administrations, the President of the Southern Confederacy, and all parties, by their platforms, had declared for the construction of the railway, he thought the time for objections past. If there was a want of credit in the Government, who was responsible for it? Sickles believed, however, that as Tennessee had spoken, by fifty thousand majority, for the Union-as Kentucky was loyal-as Virginia had thrown her influence on the side of the Union-the credit of Government would be restored, energy would revive, and, with the repose of the people, would come the old prosperity of the country.

Mr.

[All of which simply proved that secession was a foregone conclusion, no matter for what the people of Virginia had voted. Providing the "Peace Congress" did not obtain a concession to all the demands of Virginia's disunion leaders, the programme was disunion.]

In the Senate, Tuesday, Mr. Crittenden presented a petition, signed by 23,500 citizens of Massachusetts, asking for favorable action on the Crittenden Compromise resolutions. Mr. Crittenden expressed much satis

of the old patriot State to the Union.

Pryor answered tartly that, once for all, he wished to tell the House and the country that Virginia had not pronounced for submission; but that, in her abundance of mag-faction at this renewed proof of the loyalty nanimity and patriotism, she will make one more effort for the preservation of the Union. Unless, however, justice and equality shall be secured to her, she will sever the bonds which now hold her to an oppressive association.

The presentation of this petition called up Mr. Sumner, (Rep.,) of Massachusetts. He said in substance:

Sumner's Anti-Compromise Speech.

"These petitioners ask, as I understand, for the passage of what is familiarly known as the Crittenden Propositions. Their best apology for this petition is their ignorance of the character of Had they known what they those propositions. were, they never would have put their names to that petition. Those resolutions go beyond the Breck

enridge Platform, which has already been solemnly condemned by the American people. They foist

into the Constitution of the United States constitutional

guarantees of Slavery which the framers of that instrument never gave-which Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, Patrick Henry, and John Jay, if we may

Sumner's Anti-Com

promise Speech. debate, that the The events now

a'but.' I remember, sir, on
the night of the passage of the
Nebraska bill, it was after mid-
night. I made the declaration in
time for compromises had passed.
taking place all verify this truth.
"It is obvious that the existing difficulties can
now be arranged only on permanent principles of
justice, and freedom, and humanity. Any seeming
settlement founded upon an abandonment of prin-
ciple will be but a miserable patch-work, which
cannot succeed. It was only a short time ago, you
will remember, sir, the whole country was filled
with shame and dismay, as the report came to us of
the surrender of Southern forts; and when it was

oredit the testimony of their Sumner's Anti-Comlives and opinions, would have promise Speech. scorned! Had any such proposition been made the condition of union, this Union never could have been formed. Mr. Madison told us in the Convention that it was wrong to attempt to put in the Constitution the idea of property in man, but these propositions propose to interpolate that idea, and, practically carrying it out, they run a black line on the latitude of 36 degrees, 30 minutes, and give constitutional protection to Slavery in all the Territory south of that line now belonging to the Republic; while, to make the case still more oppressive, and still more impossible to be received at the North, they make it applicable to all the Territory hereafter to be acquired, so that the flag of the Repub-known that Fort Sumter, too, was about to be given lic, as it moves southward, shall always be the flag of Slavery, and every future acquisition in that direction shall be Africanized, and that by virtue of the Constitution of the United States. That is about enough in this age of civilization.

up, a cry went forth from the heart of the people, by which that fortress was saved, at least, for the present. Propositions are now made and brought forward by the Senator from Kentucky, and now enforced by a petition from the people of my own State, calling upon the North to surrender its principles-to surrender its impregnable principles of human rights, which constitute our Northern forts. It is even proposed now to surrender the principle of freedom in the Territories-the Fort Sumter of the North. I trust, sir, they will yet be saved; and as their safety depends upon the President, I trust that the cry will go forth from the people like that which went forth from them a few days ago, to save that other Fort Sumter when it was menaced. For myself, if I stand with many, or with few, or alone, I have but one thing to say- no surrender of the Fort Sumter of the North-no surrender of any of our Northern forts. No, sir, not one! But the bankers and merchants throw out their fears, and they tell us the Government shall not have money if we do not surrender our principles. Then, again, sir, I appeal to the people. I believe the American people are not more unpatriotic than the French, and only want the opportunity to show it-to come forKen-ward and relieve the necessities of the Government, as the French people recently, at the hint of Louis Napoleon, came forward with a loan composed of small sums. Our Government stands upon the ag gregate virtue and intelligence of the people, and it only remains now that we should make an appeal to the aggregate wealth of the people-the farmer, the laborer, the mechanic. Every man who truly loves his country will be willing to give of his earnings to uphold the Constitution and the national flag; and out of these small earnings, inspired by a genuine patriotism, we shall have a full Treastry. There is but one thing now for the North to dothat is, to stand firm in their position. They may be guided by one of the greatest patriots of the age

“But that is not all. Still further, they insist upon guarantees to Slavery in the National Capital, and in other places within the Federal jurisdiction. Nor is this all. As if to make it especially offensive to the people of the North, and to the people of Massachusetts, they propose to despoil our colored fellow-citizens of their political franchise, a long time secured to them by the institutions of that honored Commonwealth. Sir, it is for these things that these petitioners now pray. They insist they shall be interpolated in the Constitution of the United States. I have an infinite respect for the right of petition, and I desire always to promote the interests, and to carry forward the just and proper desires, of my fellow-citizens. But I must express my regret that these gentlemen have missed the opportunity, after uniting in such numbers, of calling plainly and unequivocally, as savers of the Union of their fathers, for two things-two things all-sufficient for the present occasion, and with regard to which I should expect the sympathies of the Hon. Senator from tucky: First, the Constitution of the United States, as administered by George Washington, to be preserved intact and blameless in its text, without any tinkering or patching; and, secondly, the verdict of the people last November, by which Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States, to be enforced without price or faltering. There is a ground upon which every patriot and loyal citizen of the land can stand, and he has over him then the Constitution and the flag of his country. You had better have that, sir, than any scheme, device, jugglery, or hocus pocus called a compromise.' On such ground, all men who really love the Union and the country can take their stand without an 'if' or

that the Clark Resolution covered the ground. private claims of a few dollars, it is then proposed [See page 184.]

Green's Pronuncia

mento.

States has to Fort Sumter, and as much right to attack it; and he pledged one feeble arm to act in the contingency which might arise. He commended the forbearance of South Carolina. He had feared she would be too hasty. He wanted all the States to act. He knew Missouri to be for

Yancey are for Union, but he meant a Union which would give protection to all. He was tired of all these petitions for Union. He wanted a Union about which there would be no quarreling, and which would give rights to all, or else he wanted no Union but separation. He said this was not a mere question of Slavery, but it affects every property-holder of the North. Missouri, though slow, would act; but the action of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia has been disastrous. If the Border States had acted

both Houses, in counting the electoral vote. [See Chapter XXVII.]

In the Senate, Thursday, Mr. Bingham, (Rep.,) of Michigan, presented the joint resolutions of the Michigan State Legislature, expressing the adherence of Michigan to the

Michigan Sentiment.

the Union. Even the supporters of Rhett and Union; offering the military force of the State to the Federal Government, and asking that no concessions be made to traitors. Mr. Bingham said that these resolutions had passed with great unanimity, and he thought they expressed the feeling of the State. He said that they would adhere to the Constitution as it is, and that they had no sympathy with treason, or those in the Government who took measures to destroy it. He hoped his Southern friends would yet come to see that the best way for them was to submit to the beneficent rule of the Government; but if not, and they persisted in their efforts to destroy it, they must take the

with the South, we would have had peaceable sep

ration. Every one of the Slaveholding States ought
to have gone out together. As sure as no adjust-

ment was made, all would go but Delaware, Mary-
land, and Virginia. He was afraid of Virginia, she
was so slow. Arkansas, Missouri, and Kansas would
go out. [Laughter.] He said Kansas, after the hot-responsibility.
house plants of emigration die out, would fall back
into the arms of Missouri. He contended that
the secret object of the Republican party was
to circumscribe Slavery, so as to extinguish it.

He was in favor of the proposition of the Senator from Kentucky, but there must be a reaction in the public mind of the North, or else these amendments would go for nothing. This thing must be settled

either by adjustment or separation. There could be

no honorable adjustment unless there was a retraction of Northern opinion. The Senate cannot amend the Constitution, and had better let the question alone and attend to the regular business, and wait for a proper adjustment. But if there was no change of Northern opinion, he would not ask for any Union. He deprecated war, and, in this civilized age of the world, he thought all the difficulties ought to be settled without recourse to arms and war. Let the whole Southern States act together, and let them negotiate with the North as equals, and if they cannot agree, then let there be peaceable and quiet separation."

The amendment, after this harangue, was passed-27 to 17. Among those Democrats who voted with the Republicans were Messrs. Douglas, Bigler, and Latham, and Johnson, (Am.,) of Tennessee—a vote which, in the estimation of the Southern interest, placed them in the category of friends to coercion. Wednesday (Feb. 13th) was consumed, in

Mr. Wilkinson, (Rep.,) of Minnesota, presented a me- Minnesota Sentiment. morial, signed by all the Repubcan and several Democratic members of the Minnesota Legislature, calling upon Congress to preserve the Constitution as it is, and to enforce the laws; also, to keep open the rivers, and to recapture all the seized forts. In presenting this memorial, the Senator remarked that, to arrive at the wishes of the mass of people, it was necessary to visit the country, and to get clear of city curb-stone influences. He said the memorial represented the feeling and spirit of the great North-west. "No menaces, no threats of war, no military display, no tramp of armed men, no glittering bayonets, would drive the people of that section from their position."

Rice, (Dem.,) of Minnesota, also presented a petition from many citizens of the same State, asking for compromise.

An unusually large number of petitions were presented by Messrs. Wade, Seward, Crittenden, and Cameron-pro and con compromise. The House, Thursday, after much time consumed in "personal explanations," resumed consideration of the Corwin Report, when Campbell, (Rep.,) of Pennsylvania, delivered his views in a speech marked with

REPORT OF THE CONSPIRACY

COMMITTEE.

405

Campbell's Speech.

follows:

Report of the Con. spiracy Committee.

a decision and force which | the facts as to an alleged
commanded attention. A conspiracy to seize the Cap-
digest of his views is as ital, reported, through Mr.
Howard, Chairman, who presented what the
Committee supposed to be a unanimous re-
port. It read as follows:

"He alluded at some length to the present state of the country—a state calculated to awaken every man to a sense of peril. If every effort at conciliation should fail, the true way was to meet the crisis as men ready for duty in a just cause--even to the laying down of their lives. If those who have seized the forts, arsenals, and other public property, surrendered them, he would hear their complaints, and, if well founded, furnish the measures of redress. What reason have the enemies of the Union to oppose the peaceful inauguration of Mr. Lincoln, who was elected strictly according to the Constitution? Though the vessel of State was now dashed about, a pilot will presently be found. He argued that our Government is a grand nation of people and not of States. It is supreme, and the heresy of Secession can make no impression on reasonable minds. Secession is rebellion. In the Se

ceded States there are men true to the Government, and who preserve their alliance to the Union. Honor and humanity demand they be protected. Any other course would sink the Government to perdition. Any Government not protecting them from persecution, confiscation, and death, is not worthy of that name. There are no grievances

which cannot be redressed in the Union. He was

willing to do something for Maryland, Kentucky, Tennessee, and other States, and for loyal citizens in Georgia and Alabama who require assistance. He argued that Mr. Crittenden's proposition, in effect, was condemned in the last Presidential election by an overwhelming majority. In the language of Clay, no earthly power should induce him to vote for a specific measure for the introduction of Slavery

where it did not before exist, whether south or north

The Committee entered upon the investigation under a deep sense of the importance and the intrinsic difficulty of the inquiry. To prove the exist ence of a secret organization having for its object the resistance to and the overthrow of the Govern ment would, in the very nature of the case, be a dif ficult task, if such an organization really existed. On the other hand, in a time of high excitement, consequent upon the revolutionary events transpiring all around us, and the very air filled with rumors, and individuals indulging in most extravagant expressions of fears and threats, it might well be

thought difficult to elicit such clear proof as would enable the Committee to pronounce authoritatively that no such organization existed, and thus contribute to the quiet of the public mind and the peace of the country. The Committee have pursued their labors with a determination on their part to ascertain the real facts, so far as possible; and if sometimes they have permitted inquiries and admitted

testimony not strictly within the rules of evidence

or within the scope of the resolutions, it is to be attributed to their great anxiety to elicit the real facts, and to remove unfounded apprehensions. The extraordinary excitement existing prior to the late Presidential election led disaffected persons of high and low positions, after the result of that election became known, to consult together on the question of submitting to that result, and also upon various modes of resistance-among other modes, resist ance to the counting of the ballots and to the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln, the seizure of the Capitol

and the District of Columbia, were discussed form

of the parallel of 36 degrees, 30 minutes. The prop- ally in this city and elsewhere; but too much diverosition of the Select Committee met his approval.sity of opinion seems to have existed to admit of the He was in favor of the passage of the resolution recommending the repeal of the Personal Liberty laws, and of the bill amendatory of the Fugitive Slave act. It was in the power of the Slave States to quiet this agitation by abandoning extreme views, giving up the Crittenden measure, and other impossibilities, and combining on the admission of New Mexico as a State in the Union. This would settle the chief question of difficulty, namely, that relating to the Territories. Should conciliatory measures here fail, he would advocate the calling of a National Convention. At all events, Pennsylvania will stand by the Union as it is."

The Special Committee, appointed [see page 284] to inquire into, and to report on

adoption of any well-organized plan until some of the States commenced to reduce their theories of secession to practice. Since then, persons thus dis affected seem to have adopted the idea that all re sistance to the Government, if there is to be any, should have at least the color of State authority. If the purpose was at any time entertained of forming an organization in secret, or open, to seize the District of Columbia, attack the Capitol, or prevent the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln, it seems to have been rendered contingent upon the secession of either Maryland or Virginia, or both, and the sanction of one of these States. Certain or ganizations in this District and in Maryland that, prior to the Presidential election, seem