ADDRE8.S OF COT^GRESS ^ / PEOPLE OF THE CO^FEDEitA l i^ STATES. JOl^T KESULLTIOK IM KELATION TO Tllii. WAK. ReaoLvtd by the Congress of the Confederate States, Tliiit tho present is deemed a titting occasion to remind the people of the Cout'ederate tiiates that ihey are engaged in a struggle lor the preservation both ol' liberty and civilization; and that no sacrifice of life or fortune can be too costly which may be requisue lo secure to themselves and their posterity tiic enjoyment of these inappreciable blessings ; and also to assure them that, in the judgment of ihe (Jongres!?, the resources of the country, if developed with energy, nusbanded with care, and applied with fidelity, are more than sufficient to support the most protracted war which it can be necessary to wage for our independence, and to exhort ilitiu, b) every consid- eration which can influence Ireemen and patriots, to a magiiaiiimoua surieiider of all personal and party feuds, to an indignant rebuke of every exhibition of lactious temper, in whatever quarter, or upon whatever pretext it may be made ; to a gener- OUH support of all branches of the Government, in the legiduuite exercise ol their constitutional powers, and to that harmonious, unselfish and patriotic co-operation which can alone impart to our cause the irresistible strength wnich springs from united councils, fraternal feelings, and fervent devotion to the public weal. In closing the labors of the first Permanent Congress, youi" representatives deem it a fit occasion to give some account of their stewardship ; to review brietiy what, under such embarrassments and auversc circumstances, nas been accomplisUcd ; to invite attention to liie prospect before us, and the duties incumbent on every citizen in this crisis ; and to address such words of counsel and encouragement as the times demand Compelled, by a long scries of oppressive and tyrannical acts, culminating at last iu the selection of a President and Vice-President, by a party confessedly sectional and hostile to the South and her institutions, these States withdrew from the former Union and formed a new Confederate alliance as an independent Government, based on the proper relations of labor and capital. This step was taken reluctantly, by constraint, and after the e.vhaustion of every measure that was likely to secure us from interference with our property, equality in the Union, or exemption from sub- mission to an alien Government. The southern States claimed only the unrestricted enjoyment of the rights guarantied by the Constitution. Finding, by painlul and pro- tracted experience, that this was persistently denied, we determined to separate Iroiu those enemies who had manifested the inclination and ability lo imj)overish and de- stroy us. We fell back upon the right for which the colonies maintained tlie war of the revolution, and which our heroic forefathers asserted to be clear and innlienablo. The unanimity and zeal with which the separation was undertaken and perfected, finds no parallel in history. The people rose «« w.i»«c to assort their liberties and protect their menaced rights. There never was before sucli universality of convic- tion among any people on any question involving so serious and so thorougli a change of political and international relations. Tliis grew out of the clearness vl' the right BO to act. and the cprthinty of the perils of further association with the North. The change wns «o wondorful. 80 rapid, so oontrnry to uiiivorsal history, that many fail to hee lliai itll has brtn done in the lotjieal sequence of ]irinci|-lc.«. which are the highest teitiriiony 1<> tl)e \vi»Join of our fath«T!>. and the hest iliupf>nsion of autiiority, no social disorders, no lawle-s di»tMrlmnces. Sovereignty wa' not for one moment in nbeya? ce. Th» utmost con-erv»ti«in mnrked ever;, procei'ding and fublic act. The objec" was "to do what wa« n>oe>sary. and no more; and Jo Ho that wiih the utmost temtcrnnee and pru- dence." St. .Iu>l. ill his re|K>rt to the Convention of France, in 1793. said: " A people has but fine dangerous em-niy. and that i."^ Government.'' We adopted no such ab- hurdity. In n-urly every ins-tnnee the first steps were taln the re< ord« and muniments of the past. We merely resisted innovation and tyranny, and contended for our birthrights and the covenanted principles of 6Mrrorc. Wo have had our Governors, General Assemblies and courts ; ihe same electors, the s.Hine eorjiorations. "the same rules for property, the same subordinations, the same ..rder in the law and in the magistracy." When the sovereign States met in council, they in truth and substance, and in a constitutional light, did noi make, but pre- vented, a revolution. Comnu ncing our new national life under such circumstances, we had a right to ex. peot that we would be permitted, without molestation, to cultivate the arts of peace; and vindicate, on our chosen arena, and with the .^elected type of social character, istics, "iiirelaims to civilizutiou Ii was thought, too, by many, that war would not ).f; resorted to by an enlight<'ned country, except on the direst necessity. That a peo|»le. professing lo be animated by Christian sentiment, and who had regarded our ).>*ciiliar institution as a blot and blur upon the fair escutcheon of their common Ohrisiiiinity. should make war upon the South for doing what they had a perfect right to do. and for rilieving them of the incubus which they professed, rested upon them by assoeiation. was deemed almost beyond belief by many of our wisest minds. It wa^ lici|(i-d, too. that the obvious interests of the two sfctions would restrain the wild frenzy of excitement, ami turn into peaceful channels the thoughts of those who had but rcreiitly been inveMid with power in tlie I'nited States. These rcHsoni.ble anticii.ations were doomed to disappointment. The red glare of battle, kindled at Sumter, dissipated all hopes of peace : and the two Governments were arrayed in hostility against each other. Wf charge the rfi-pom-hility of this xoar upon the l.'titxl Siiltt. They are accountable for the blood and havoc and ruin it has canned. For such a war we were not prepared. The diflerenco in military resources betweea our enemies and ourselves; the immense advantages possessed in the organ- iz.ed niacin ;iery of an esiablislied Government; a powerful navy; the nucleus of an -.r" V : credit abroad, and illimitable facilities in mechanieul and manufacturing ]iUbed tbun on "the vantage ground.' In our infancy, we were without a .11 or M»ldier. without revenue, without gold and silver, without a recognized liiaee in lh»! family of iiatioiir, without external commerce, without foreign credit, A itll the itrijudices of the world against us. While we wvrc without manufacturing li.'H to ^upply our wants, our por«s wero blockaded ; wo had to grapple with a adversary, defend two thoiisund mihi* of fea-coast, and an inland frontier of If we had succeeded in preventing any -urcesses on the part of our liMVo been a miracle. What wo have accomplished, witti a popula- in niiml>erk. and mean-, ho vastly disproportionate, has excited the Jitlonifiinieni and admiration of the world. The war in whidi we are engaged was wickedly, and against all our protests and the mo-t oHroem effort- to tlie contrary, forced upon us South Carolina .sent a com- inibhion to Wn^-hington i,> ndjust all questions of dispute between her and the United Stales One of th.' fir-t acts of the Provisional Government was to iiccrcditaLonts to visit Wafl.inglon. an() Uho all honorable means to obtain a satisfactory settlement of all (inestiuiis r.f dispute with ihat Government. Both etforts failed. Gommissionm were deceived and rejectesion to priva- tions of the war, have siied an immortal lustre upon iheir sex and country. Our arniy is no hireling .soldiery. It comes not from paupers, eiiminals or emi- grants. It was originaUy raised by the free, unconstrained, unpurch;isable assent of the men. All vocations and classes contributed to the swel ing numbers. Aban- doning lu.xuries and A)mforts to which they had been accustomed, they submitted cheerfully te the scanty fare and exactive service of the camps. Their services above price, the only remuneration they have sought is the protection of their altars fire- sides and liberty. In the Norwegian wars, the actors were, every one of hem, named and patronyniicaliy described asthe King's friend and companion. The samo wonderful individuality has been Seen in this war. Our soldiers are not a consoli- da ed mass, an unthinking machine, but an army of intelligent unitJ*. To designate all who have distinguished themselves by special valor, would be toeiuimerate nearly all in the army. The generous rivalry between the troops from different States has prevented an\' special pre eminence, and hereafter for centurie.s to come, the gallant bearing and unconquerable devotion of Confederaie soldiers will inspire the hearts, and encourage the hopes, and strengthen the faith, of all who labor to obtain their freedom. For three years this cruel war has been waged against us, and its continuance ha.s been soizwl upon us a pretext by some discontented persons to excite hostility to the Government. Kecent and public as have been the occurrences, it is atrange that a misapprehension exists as to the conduct of the two (rovernments in reference to peace. Allusion has been made to the unsuccessful efforts, wheii separation took place, to procure an amicable adjustment of all matters in dispute. These attempts at negotiation do not comprise all that has been done. In .every form in which ex- pression could be given to the sentiment, in public meetings, through the press, by legislative resolves, the desire of this people for peace, fur the uninterrupted enjoy- ment of their rights and prosperity, has been made known. The President moro authoritativelj-. in several of his me.«sages, while protesting the utter absence of all desire to interfere with the United States, or acquire any of their territory, has avowed that the "advent of peace will be hailed with joy. Our dtsiro for it has never been concealed Our efforts t<> avoid the war, forced on us as it was by the lust of conquest and the insane passions of our foes are known to mankind." The course of tlie Federal Government has proved tliat it did not desire pea':e, and would not consent to it on any term-* that we could possibly coiu-ede In prooi of this, we refer to the repeated rejeeti n of all terms of coneiliaiion aod compromise, to th(!ir recent comemptnous r«^fus il Jto receive the Vice Pre.-«ident who w.i.s sent to negotiate for softening the asperities of war, and tlieir scornful rvjection of the offer of a neutral power lo mediate between the cmtendlnnr parties. If canmlativo evi- dence be needed, it can be found in the following resolution, recently adopied by the Uonso of Kepreseniatives i.i Washingion : " Hfsol ed. That as our coun ry and the very existence of the be^f Government ever instituted by man are imperilled by the most causidess ;ind wicked ri'bollioti that the wirld has «een, and bulieving. as we do, that the only hopi- of sav.ng this country and preserving this Government is by the power of tiie sword, we are for the mo.-^t vigorous prosecution of the war until the Constitution and the laws shall be enforced and obeyed in all parts of the United States; and to that end wo opjiose any armistice, or intervention, or mediation, or proposition for peace, from any quarter, so long as there shall be found a rebel in arms against the Govern m"nt; and we ignore all party names, lines and issues, and recognize but two parties in this war — patriots and traitors." The motive of .such strange conduct is obvious. The republican party was founded to destroy slavery and the equality of the States, and Lincoln was selected as the instrument to accomplish this object. The Union was a barrier to the consumnuition of this policy, because the Constitution, which was it" bond, recognized and pro- tected slavery and the sovereignty of the States. Tho Union mus'., therefore, be ■acriticed, and to ensure its destruction, war was determined on. The mass of the northern people wore not privy to, and sympathized in no such design. They loved the Union and wished to preserve it. To rally the people to the support 'of the war, its object wasproclaimod to he "a restoration of the Union," as if that which implied voluntary assent, of which agreement was an indispensable element &'>x\ condition, could be preserved by coercion. It is absurd to pretend that a government, really desirous of restoring the Union, would adopt such measures as the confiscation of private property, the emancipation of slaves, systematic efforts to invite them to insurrection, forcible abduction from their homes, and compulsory enlistment in the army, the division of a sovereign State without its consent, and a proclamation that one-tenth of the population of a State, and that tenth under military rule, should control the will of the remaining nine-tenths. The pnly rela- tion possible between the two sections, under such a policy, is that of conqueror and conquered, superior and dependent. Rest assured, fellow-citizens, that although restoration m ly still be used as a war cry by the northern Government, it is only to delude and betray. Fanaticism has summoned to its aid cupidity and vengeance ; and nothing short of your utter subjugation, the destruction of your State govern- ments, the overthrow of your social and political fabric, your personal and public degradation and ruin, will satisfy the demands of the JS'orth. Can there be a man so vile, so debased, so unworthy of liberty as to accept peace on such humiliating terms? It would hardly bo fair to assert that all the northern people participate in these designs. On the contrary, there exists a powerful political partj', which openly condemns them. The administration has, however, been able thus far, by its enormous patronage and its lavish expenditures to seduce, or by its legions of '• Hes- sian" muict'naries to overawe, the masses, to control the elections, and to establish an arbitrary dospotisni It cannot be possible that this state of things can continue. The people of the United States, accustomed to freedom, cannot consent to be ruined and enslaved in order to ruin and enslave us. Moral, like physical, epidemics, have their allotted periods, and must, sooner or later, be, exhausted and disappear. "When reason returns, our enemies will prohnbly reflect, that a people, like ours, who have exhibited such capabilities, and extemporized such resi>urces, can never be sub- dued; ih .t a vast ex[)Mnse of territory, with such a population, cannot be governed as an obi;(licnl colony. Victory would not be conquest. The inextinguishable quar- rel vp uld be tianimi ted "from bleeding sire to son," and the struggle would be re- newed between generations yei unborn. To impoverish us would only he to dry up some of the springs of northern pi-osperity — to destroy southern weulthis to reduce northfM-n profits, while the restoration of peace would necessarily re-establish some commercial intercourse. It may not be amiss, in this connection, to say, that at one tiin •. it was iKc wish aiid expectation of many at the South, to form a treaty of amity and fri-ndship wiih the northern States, by which both peoples might derive the bene- fits i)f commercial in'ercours" and move on, side by side, in the arts of peace and civili- zation. Hjstory has coniirmed the lesson taught by Divine authority, thai each na- tion, as wll as each inome evidence is given of a change of policy on the part of the Government, and some a .suranee is received that efforts at negotiation will not bo spurned, the Congress are of opinion, that any direct overtures for peace would compromise our self re^peet., be frui'less of good, and imorpretod by the enemy as an indication of wenknesrt We can only repeat the desire of tlio people for peace, and our roadi- neis to accept terms, consistent with the honor and dignity and independence of the S ates, and compatible with the safety of our domestic institutions. Not content with rejecting all proposals for a peaceful settlement of the con- trover-easur«» which would ha^e devoted to deaili thousands of families." In the discuSvSions growiui; out of the treaty of peace of 1S14, and the proffered mediation of Kus=ia. theprincii.le was maintained by the United ."■tales that "tiie emancipation of memyV slaves is not among the acta of legitimate -warfare " Tn ihe instructions from John (>uincv Adams, as Secre- tary of State, to Mr. Middleton, at St Petersburg, Oeti ber 18, 182U, it is said : ''The British have broadly as.serted the right of em lucipafing slaves (private property) as a legitimate right of war No such "right is acknowledged as a law of war by writers who adroit any limitation. The right of j.utting to death all prisoners in cold blood, and without special cause, might as well be prr> • iided to be a law of war, or the right to use poisoned weajmns, or to nssassiiiate " Disregarding the teachings of tlie a proved writers on infcrnalional law, and Ihe practice and claims of his own Government in its purer days. President Lincoln has sought to convert the South into a St. Domingo, by appealing to ihe cupidity, lusts. ambition, and ferocity of the slave. Abraham Lincoln ia bvit the lineal descendanl of Dunmore, and the impotent malice of each wa* fnilod bv the fidelity of those who, by the raeunticss of the conspirators, would only, if successful, have been seduced into idli-ness, tilth, vice, begi^ary and death. But we tire of these indignities and enormities. They are too sickening for re- cital History will hereafter/ji^ ori/ those who cmiimitted and encuinaged such crimes in immortal infamy. General Kobort E. Lee, in a recent battle order, Rtated to his invincible legions, that " the cruel foe 8e>;ks to reduce our fathers and mothers, our wive.-» and children, to abject slavery." He does not paint too slrongl> the purposes of the enemy or the consequences of subjugation. What has been done in certain districts, is but the prologue of the bloody drama that will be enacted. It is well that every man and woman should have some just conception of the horrors of conquc'jt. The fate of Ire- land at the period of its conquest, and of Poland, distinctly foreshadows what would await us. Thi' guillotine, in its ceaseless work of blood, would be revived for the ex- ecution of. the •' rebel leaders." The heroes of our contest would be required to lay down their proud ensigns, on which are recorded the lia lle-tields of their glory, to stack their arms, lower their heads in humiliation and dishonor, and pass under the yoke of abolition misrule and tyranny. A liatei'ul inquisition, made atrocious by spies and informers; star-chamber courts, enforcing their deci^ions by confiscations, imprisonments, banishments and death ; a band of detectives, ferreting out secrets, lurking in every family, existing in every conveyance; the suppression of free speech; the deprivation of a.rms and tVanciiises; and the ever present sense of inf**- riority would make our eondiiion abject and miserable beyond what freemen can imagine. Su'jugation involves everything that the torturing malice and devilish ingenuity of our foes can suggest — the destruction of our nationality, the equaliza- tion of whites and blacks, the obliteration of State lines, degradation to colonial vas- salage, and I ho reduction of many of our citizens to dreary, hopeless, remediless bond- age. A hostile police would keep "order" in every town and city. Judges, like Busteed, would hold our courts, protected by Yankee soldiers. Churches would be tilled by Yankee or tory preachers. Every otlice would be bestowed on aliens. Absen. teeism would curee us with all its vic(!.s. Superatlded to these, sinking us into a lower abyss of d^^jgradation, we would be nuide the slaves of our slaves, bowers of wood and drawers of water for ihosc upon whom God has stamped indellibly the marks of physiciil and intellectual inferiority. The p;ist, or foreign countries, need not be sought unto to furnish illustrations of the heritage of shame that subjugation would entail. Baltimore, St. Louis, Nashviil.;, Knoxville. New Orleans, Vicksburg, Hunisville, Norfolk, Ncwbern. Louisville, and Fredericksburg, are the first fruits of the igno- miny atid poverty of Yankee domination. The .- struck down, and the blo»>d of her children, her maidens, and her old men, is made to fl')w, out of mere wantonness and recklessness. No whisijcrs of freedom go unpunished, and the very instincts of self-preservation are outlawed The worship of God and the rites of sepulture have b(!tin shamefully iiiteruipted, and, in many instances, ttie cultivaticm of the so'l is prohibited to her own citizens. Thi'se facta are attested by many witnesses, and it is but a just tribute to that noble and chival- rous people, that, amid barhirilies almost unjiaralloled, they still maintain a proud and defiant spirit towards thuir enemies. Jn .Maryland the judiciary, m ide subservient to executive ab.solufism, furnishes no security f«r individual riglils or perscuial frr'edotn ; members of the Legislature are arrested and imprisoned without process of hiw or assignment of causc. and the whole land gronueih nn;ier the ojipressions of a merciless tyranny. In Kentucky, tln' ballot-box has been overthrown, free speech is suppressed, the most vexatit)us aniioyMTiei-s harass and embitter, and all the arts and appliances of an unscrupulous dcspoti-m Hre freely used to prevent the uprising of the nublo patriots of "the dark and bloody ground." Notes of gladness, assurances of a brighter and hotter day, reach us, and the exiles may take courage and hope for the future. In Virginia, the model of all that illustrates human heroism and self-denying patriotisn^, although the lemjiest of desolation has swept over her fair domains, no j*ign of repentant^e for her sejmralinn from the North can be found, iler o d home- steads dismantled, her ancestral relics destroyed, her people irajjoverished, her terri- tory made the battle-ground for the rude shocks of contending hosts, and then dirided. with hireling parasites, mockingly claiming jurisdiction and authority, the Old Dominion still stands with proud crest and defiant mien, ready to tramp beneath her heel ever}' usurper and tj'iani, and to illustrjite afresh hor sic i,fi.per iyrannii, the "proudest motto that ever blazed on a nation's shield or a warrior's arms.'' To prevent such I'tTeets, our people are now proseeuting this struggle It is no mere war of ca'culatinn. no contest for a particular kind of property, no baner of precious blood f.r filthy lu(;re. Everything involved in manhodd, civilization reli- gion, law, property, couimy, homo, is at stake. We fight not for piunder. spoils, pil- lage, teriit'irial conquest. The Government tempts by no prizes of "betiuty or boo'y," to be drawn in the loitify of this war. We seek (o preserve civil freedcmi, honor, equality, firesides, and bluod is well shtd when "she i for our family, for our friends, for our kind, for ourcountry. for our God." Burke said: "A .Stale, resolved to hazard its existence rather than abandon its object, must have an i!)tiiiite advan- tage over that which is resolved to yield, rather than carry its resistance beyond a coriain point." It is better to be conquered bj' any other na'^ion than by the United States. It is better to be a dependency of anv other power than of that. By the condition of its existince and essentia! constitution, as now governed, it must be in perpetual hostility to us As the Spanish invader burned his ships to make retreat impossible, so we cannot aflFord to txke steps backward. Retreat is more dangerous than advance. Behind us are inferiority and degradation. Before us is everything enticing to a patriot. Our bitter and implacable foes are preparing vigorously for the coming campaign. Corresponding eftorts should be made on our part. Without murmuring, our people should respond to the laws which the exigency demands. Every one capable of bearing arms, should be conn«'cted with some etfcctive military organization. The utmost energies of the whole population should be taxed to produce food and cloth- ing, and a spirit of cheerfulness and trust in an all-wise and overruling Providence should be cultivated. The history of the past three years has much to animate us to renewed effort, and % firmer and more assured hope. A whole people have given their hearts and bodies to repel the invader, and costly sacrifices have been made on the aliar of our country. JIo similar instance is to bo found of such spontaneous uprising and volunteering. Inspired by a holy patriotism, again and again, have our brave soldiers, with the aid of Heaven, baffled the el^brts of our foes. It is in no arrogant spirit, that we refer to successes that have cost us so much blood, and brought sorrow to so many hearts. We may find in all this an earnest of what, with determined and resolute exertion, ■we can do to avert subjugation and slavery — and we cmnotfail to discern in our deliverance from so many and so groat perils, the interposition of that Being who •will not forsake us in the trials that are to come. Let us, then, looking upon the bodies of our loved and honored dead, catch inspiration from their example, and gather renewed confidence and a firmer resolve to tread, with unfaltering trust, the path that leads to honor and peace, although it lead through tears and suffering and blood. We have no alternative but to do our duty. We combat for property, homes, the honor of our wives, the future of our children, the preservation of our fair land from pollution, and to avert a doom which we can read, both in the threats of our enemies and the acts of oppression, wo have alluded to in this address. The situation is grave, but furnishes no just excuse for dospond(>ncy. Instead of harsh criticisms < n the Government and our generals ; instead of bewailing the failure to accomplish impossibilities, we should rather be grateful, humbly and profoundly, to a benignant Providence, for the results that have rewarded our labors. Keniem- bering the disproportion in population, in military and naval resources, and the defi- ciency of .skilled iHbor in the South, our accomplishments have surpassed those recorded of any people in the annals of tiie world. There is no just reason for hope- lessness or fear. Since the outbreak of l!io war the South has lost the nominal pos- session of the Mississippi river and fragments of hor territory ; but Federal occu- pancy is not concjueet. The fires of patri\)ti.sm still burn unqueiichably in the breasts of those who are subject to foreign domination. We yet have in our uninterrupted control a territory, which, according to past progress, will require the enemy ten years to overrun. The enemy is not free from difficulties. With an enormous debt, the financial convulsion, long postponed, is surely ((.ming. The short crops in the United States and abundant harvests in Europe will hasten wdiat was otherwise inevitable. :Many sagacious person;" at the North, discover in the u-urj^ations of their Government, the certain overthrow of their libi-rties. A large number revolt from the unjust war waged upon the South, and would gladl^v bring it to an end. Others look with alarm upon the comploto subversion of constitutional freedom by Abraham Lincoln, and fee!, in their own pi-rsoDii, the bitternetisof the sluTcry which three years of war have failed to inflict on the b'"iith. Brave and earnest men at the North have spoken out against the usurpations and cruelties daily practiced. The success of these men over the radical and dfsjiotic faction which now rules the North may open the way to prac ful negotiation and a ccssati- n <>f this bio<>dy and unnecessar}' war. In conclu-ion, wo exhort our fcKow-citiz^^ns to be ut' jtood cheer and spare no labor, nor sacrifices, fai may bo necessary to enable us to win the campait;!) upon which we have just iMi,>,red. We have pasced through i;reat trials of atMiclion, but suf- ferin-j and huiuiliation a e the school mastv-rci that load nations to self reliance and indepindcuce. Those di>cinlinary providences but mature and d>;velop and solidify our people Wo bej; that iIk- RU[>})li«s and resources of the country, which are ample, may be sold to the Government to supj^ort and equip its armies. L> t all spirit of taction and jiasi party diffeionces be forjfotten in the presence of our cruel foe. We should not despond. We should be self-denying. We shou'd labor to extend to the utmost, the productive resources of the country. Wediould economize The fami- lies of soldif.'rs siioulc^ be cared for and li orally supplied. We entreat from all, a generous and hearty co-operation witli the Government in all branches of its admin- istration, and with th" ayents civil or military, in the performance of their duties. Moral aid has the "power of the incommunicible." and, by united efforts. t