\ PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF THE FORMATION OF TBh AMERICAN REPUF^LIC LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. Chap..lH.dG^yright No. ' UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF THE FORMATION OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC From Its Beginning to the End of the Civil War. / B^ BY ROBT. KISSICK, LL. B. OF THE OSKALOOSA, IOWA, BAR. u^ Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1896, by ROBERT KISSICK, In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. All Rights Reserved. • To A\Y Wire Whose suggestions and criticisms have been of great benefit to me in the preparation of this woric. This V^OLUME Is affectionately dedicated. W A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF THE FORMATION OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC. CONTENTS. PAGE. To THE People of the United States 9 Preface 11 Introduction li) Plan of the Work— The Value and Study of History — The Origin and Kinds of History— The Best Kind of History. Prelude 23 BOOK I. A Philosophical View of the Formation and Evolution OF THE Republic. PART I. The Origin, Necessity and Object of Government — The Causes that Led to the Formation of our Republic — The Steps Taken in Its Formation, with Some Results Consequent on the Manner of Its Formation. CHAPTER I. Fundamental Principles and the Origin of Our Re- public 27 CHAPTER II. Washington and the Confederation 36 CHAPTER III. Washington and the Constitution 44 CHAPTER IV. Effects of the Ordinance of 1787 52 5 CHAPTER V. PAGE. Dangers Confronting the Makers of the Constitu- tion AND Results 57 PART II. Two Civilizations— Their Rise and Development— The Fall of One and the Triumph of the Other. CHAPTER I. Planting Germs and Some Results 67 CHAPTER II. The Lincoln-Douglas Debate 77 CHAPTER III. The New Champion of Freedom 89 CHAPTER IV. Conspiracy and Secession ito CHAPTER V. The Southern Confederacy Ill CHAPTER VI. Buchanan and the Rebellion 116 CHAPTER VII. An Argument 183 CHAPTER VIII. Buchanan and Davis 138 CHAPTER IX. Causes of the Rebellion 144 CHAPTER X. The New President Inaugurated 146 CHAPTER XI. TkE Black Cloud of Rebellion 153 6 CHAPTER XII. I.A6B. Fort Sumter l-'^fi CHAPTER XIII. A Wicked Rebellion l*'" CHAPTER XIV. The Closing Drama 1^6 HOOK II. Landmarks of the Formative Period of the REiniiLic. CHAPTER I. Introductory 17!:^ CHAPTER II. The Declaration of Indetendence 175 1. Sketch of the Origin of tlie Declaration 175 2. Text of the Declaration 179 CHAPTER III. The Articles of Confedekation 187 1. Sketch of the Origin of the Articles 187 2. Text of the Articles 202 CHAPTER ly. The Ordinance of 1787 217 1. Sketch of the Origin of the Ordinance 217 2. Text of the Ordinance 219 CHAPTER V. The Constitution of the United States 231 1. Sketch of the Origin of the Constitution 231 2. Text of the Constitution 246 3. Text of Amendments to the Constitution 267 4. Chronology of Amendments to the Constitution 274 CHAPTER VI. Index and Analysis or the Constitution 276 Index of Persons 296 7 TO THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES. "One-half of the time which is now almost wasted, in district schools, on English grammar, attempted at too early an age, would be sufficient to teach our children to love the Republic, and to become its loyal and life-long supporters. After the bloody baptism from which the Nation has arisen to a higher and nobler life, if this shameful defect in our system of education be not speedily remedied, we shall deserve the infinite contempt of future generations. I insist that it should be made an indispensable condition of graduation in every American college, that the student must understand the history of this continent since its discovery by Europeans, the origin and history of the United States, its constitution of government, the struggles through which it has passed, and the rights and duties of citizens who are to deter- mine its destiny and share its glory." — James A. Garfield, in 1867. PREFACE. It may be thought that the scope of my work is too narrow; or, in other words, that I have not used all the events which go to make up the for- mation and evolution of the Republic. From one point of view this is true, to some extent. This work, however, has been written on the theory that our Republic was evolved, and has been per- petuated, out of conflicts between freedom and tyranny; that its philosophy rests upon the prin- ciple that all men are created equal, as expressed in the great Declaration. So long as inalienable rights were denied, to some or all of the people, conflicts were certain to take place, to right the wrong. Indeed, the history of the past two or three centuries or more consists largely of a series of struggles for freedom. What battles have been fought, what millions have died for the rights of man! Tyranny became intrenched in power, and would not let go; so Freedom had to battle for her rights. Freedom, though "scarred" with her many wars, by these has added strength to strength, to meet her ever vigilant and sleep- less enemy in combat — flnally to be victorious. Thus it ever has been; thus it ever will be. In this way freedom progresses, and civilization rises to a higher plane. 11 12 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. With the thought that freedom is the pole star — the central idea — of our Hepublic, around which clings all else, I have confined myself to an outline of the great struggles between freedom and tyr- anny, in giving a philosophical view of its forma- tion and evolution. 1 have tried to deal only with fundamentals, leaving details to be looked for else- where. The great drama of history naturall}^ divides itself into periods; and generally there is a cen- tral idea or principle in each from which it must be viewed when treating it philosophically. It may be trul}^ said that the three greatest periods in the history of the world, since the be- ginning of the Christian era, are, the discovery of a New World, by Columbus; the founding of a nation, by Washington; and the preservation of that nation, by Lincoln, These are the ones which have had, and which will still have, the greatest influence on humanity for its betterment. There is nothing mythical about these periods. AbU' writers have written of them, and none need be ignorant of their history. He, who will, may read and understand. It has been my endeavor, in this volume, to give a faithful exposition of the leading events of the second and third periods; they have been my theme; their history the warp and woof of my story. What grander theme than the founding of a na- tion — a Republic — at the time, and under the cir- cumstances, in which it was founded; and the PREFACE. 13 preservation of that Republic — after it liad grown uiighty among the nations of the world — from its internal foes! The history of these events should be familiar to all its people; and especially to the boys and girls — for in them is the future hope of the Kepublic. Patriotism, — love of country, — should be taught in the home, the school, the church, and to every citizen of the Kepublic. If this be done better citizens will be the result, and in conse- quence better government. Too many know but little, if anything, of the history of the formation of our Kepublic, of what it cost to build it, and tlie great cost of its maintenance. In what way can patriotism be better taught than by giving a knowledge of the fundamental ]n'inciples of libertj', of our government, and of what it cost to build and maintain the Republic? These I have tried to set forth in the spirit of the philosophy of the great events which have trans- pired in its building from its infancy up to the close of the war for the preservation of the Union. And, in doing this, I have given the landmarks which were made in its evolution during that time. Some of them fell by the wayside in that evolution; but all that were worthy of preserva- tion still endure, and it is hoped will endure for- ever; for they are founded on right, the only sure and stable foundation of government. Those landmarks which have stood the test of time, and the shock of battle, have been estab- lished in blood. Thev should be sacred to the peo- 14 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. ]jl»» and nourished by them with patriotic devo- tion. I have set forth the hmdmarks which have survived and those which have perished, that each may judge for himself whether the right or the wrong survived, in the great conflicts through which the Republic has passed. I have att emitted to inform the student as to fundamental princi- ples, and thus to assist in guiding him in his search after the truth of what was the right, or the wrong, of those conflicts; and in doing that 1 have sought to do so in a spirit of fairness and impartiality to all. Whether or not I have suc- ceeded, in this, I submit to the judgment of the reader. If this book inspires in the reader a love of truth, of country, of right, and a hatred of wrong, I shall feel that my labors have not been in vain. It has been a conviction of mine for years, that the study of the histor}^ of the formation of the Republic has been and is too much neglected. It: may be that some of the facts are pretty thor- oughly taught to the young, but I am led to believe that the philosophy of the real facts has been greatly neglected, as well as the fundamental prin- ciples of liberty and of our government; and this to the prejudice of good government. The naked facts of history are said to be dry and uninteresting. This, to some extent, is true; and, unless they are imbued with a soul, but little interest will be taken in them by the average stu- dent. History — pure or scientific history — should be PREFACE. 15 writteu and studied the same as any other braucli of knowledge requiring the use of the reasoning- powers. The reason of things should be clearlj brought before the mind. If this be done the mind of the student will the more readily grasp the rele- vancy or relation of events; without this he is groping, as it were, in the darkness, not knowing whither he is going or wliere he will land. In this way only will its study bear fruit woi'thy the human mind. The foundation principles of the Republic rest upon the Declaration of Independence; and this, with the Constitution of the United States, consti- tutes the Great Charter of our liberties; the Con- stitution being the organic and fundamental law of the land. These great instruments should be the study of all. Their language, — together with the history of their formation, and the causes which inspired and led to their adoption, — should be well known. "He can but poorly appreciate the freedom he enjoys," says an eminent jurist, "who does not understand the great charter which se- cures it. I was about to go further, and say, that he does not deserve to be free, who will not inform himself in what his freedom consists." The study of these instruments should not be confined to any one class. Persons of all occupa- tions and professions should be familiar with them and their history. But especially should the youth of the land be required to learn their text by heart, as were the Roman youth the law of the "twelve tables." If this were done citizenship would be 16 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, higher, and the perpetuity of the Government, — of the people, by the people,. and for the people, — be better assured and rest on a firmer and more en- during basis. In addition to these all should carefully study the utterances of Washington and Lincoln. Had their wisdom and counsels prevailed, in the hearts of their countrymen, this land would not have been drenched in fraternal blood. Their words are applicable to all times; and at the present time their patriotic sayings should be treasured in the minds of all, for a new era is dawning in the Republic. If this Republic ever goes down it will be from its internal foes, and not those with- out. Let all take heed to the eloquent and faithful words of its Founder and its Preserver, — then its future will be w^ell assured. In this history I have drawn the curtain at the close of the War for the Union ; not because what lies beyond is devoid of interest, for it is of great interest, but because the events which have transpired since, are too near to us to be viewed in the light of impartial history, — the point of view is not distant enough. The sediment of the events has not yet settled so as to leave the real facts transparent eijough to write of them in the light of a clear perception of their real character, and their relation to the welfare of the Republic. The author has designed this book as an authority in American literature, for use in the schools and homes of America. It is submitted, without any apologies, to a PREFACE. 17 critical public for its perusal, with the hope that it may inspire, in all, a love for our free institu- tions, our country, and those who so nobly per- formed their part in making it what it is, — the freest, the greatest, the grandest Republic the world has ever known. ROBT. KISSICK. Oskaloosa, Iowa, U. S. A. July 4th, 1896. INTRODUCTION. PLAN OF THE WORK.— THE VALUE AND STUDY OP HIS TORY.— THE ORIGIN AND KINDS OF HISTORY.— THE BEST KIND OF HISTORY. I have undertaken the task of writing a His- tory of the Formation of our Republic; not b}' giving an account of its battles, sieges, the early settlement of the country, the development of the colonies, and such like; others have written of these. But I intend, instead thereof, to use the facts of history, and from them write a Philosoph- ical History; giving, in as brief a space as possi- ble, the reason or philosophy of the leading events which have transpired in the building or evolution of the Republic, from its beginning, up to the end of the Great Rebellion in 1865. I shall endeavor to set forth the great land- marks, the steps she has taken to attain her high state of civilization, and high standing among the civilized nations of the world. For the true test of the progress of a people is their advance- ment in civilization. Progress is the fruit of knowledge; knowledge the base and regulator of civilization. I know of no history of the kind; and I have been led to believe that such a history would be one in which the x\merican people w^ould be in- terested. If it shall prove acceptable to the read- er, as I trust it may, I will feel amply repaid for my labors. The history of a great Republic, like ours, — 19 20 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. which has no parallel in the history of nations, ancient or modern, — should stand first in the affec- tions of its people, and should be the study of all its people. Its true greatness and its beneficence cannot be appreciated unless its people under- stand the history of its formation, and are willing to devote their attention to the study of the trials and vicissitudes through which it passed in its infanc}', and those which have follow^ed. Indeed, no one can learn of these without having his mind filled with a love for her priceless institutions, and for the freedom which all enjoy by reason of the sacrifices made by those who engaged in the great conflicts, which have produced such a benefi- cent result. The study of history should form a large part of an education; for, I cannot conceive that one is well educated unless he is thoroughly versed in history. • From history we derive our knowledge of man in his several relations with society; and as connected with the rise, progress, and decay of states and nations, in art, science, politics, reli- gion, and all those things which tend either to promote the happiness or the misery of the people. Man makes history. And since history deals with the actions of men, it is necessary, in writing history, to look into the causes and motives which impel men to act in a particular way. For there is a cause for every effect; and men do not act without a motive. It may be said that there are two kinds of history. One, wherein events are simply narrated, INTRODUCTION. 21 which may be called "fact history"; the other, wherein the facts of history are so used as to show the reason of the happening of events; that kind may be termed "spirit or soul history." The second kind of history I believe to be the more useful and important to mankind. For if we do not understand the reason or philosophy of a thing:, it cannot be said that we have been much, if any, benefited by its study. The first kind of history is the storehouse of facts; and, as it were, constitutes the anatomy of history. This anatomy, however, must have life breathed into it, or remain dead to mankind. The true historian, then, will so select, arrange, and use facts, deduce causes, motives, principles, as to give that life. In this way giving to the world the warnings and instructions of history, for which it is chiefly valuable. It has been said, that history is philosophy teaching by examples. But,. I apprehend, the ex- amples will amount to but little unless they are so used as to exemplify the philosophy of events. Its philosophy is the soul of history; and if the soul be not developed it is like the "barren fig tree," — f r u it 1 ess. My effort will be to delineate the soul of our Eepublic, — Freedom; or, as it were, to paint a picture of its evolution with the facts of history as its background. PRELUDE. AMERICA. My country! 'tis of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sing; Land where my fathers died; Land of the pilgrim's pride; From every mountain side. Let freedom ring. My native country! thee, Land of the noble free, Thy name I love; I love thy rocks and rills, Thy woods and templed hills; My heart with rapture thrills. Like that above. Let music swell the breeze. And ring from all the trees Sweet freedom's song; Let mortal tongues awake. Let all that breathe partake. Let rocks their silence break, The sound prolong. Our father's God! to Thee, Author of liberty! To Thee we sing; Long may our land be bright With freedom's holy light. Protect us by Thy might, Great God, our King. 23 BOOK I. A Philosophical View of the For- mation and Evolution of the Republic. PART I. THE ORIGIN, NECESSITY AND OBJECT OF GOVERNMENT— THE CAUSES THAT LED TO THE FORMATION OF OUR REPUBI— THE STEPS TAKEN IN ITS FORMATION. WITH SOME RESULTS CONSEQUENT ON THE MANNER OF ITS FORMATION. CHAPTER I. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES AND THE ORIGIN OF OUR REPUBLIC, Freedom is the original and normal condition of man. All men are born with certain natural rights; and when they dwell together, — with no human laws to restrain and regulate their con- duct, — they have complete natural freedom and personal independence, and are governed only by the laws of nature or the moral law, in their rela- tions with one another. In this condition there is a perfect equality of rights and obligations be- tween them. But this is the only equality that exists, for no two persons are, in point of fact, equal either socially, morally, physically or intel- lectually. An equality of rights and obligations, therefore, is the only equality that can exist among men, either in a state of nature or under civil government. It is self-evident from the nature of man, and, besides, experience has demonstrated, that when men dwell in communities, — as is natural for them to do, for man is a social being and cannot live alone, — something more than the law of nature is 'For specified causes, see Declaration of Independence, Chapter 2 of Book II. 27 28 ^ A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. needed to preserve harmony and order among them; something more than moral restraint is necessary to protect the rights of each individual, and of all. It is not in the province of man to enforce the lava's of nature or the moral law. He has no power to do so; that power belongs to God alone; hence, civil law — human law — is neces- sary; so that when one tramples on the rights of another there may be a remedy to redress the wrong or enforce the right. Laws are necessary to hinder the strong from oppressing the weak; to prevent might from trampling upon right and establishing the wrong. In short, laws are neces- sary to enforce and maintain equal and exact justice when justice is denied. But these laws, to be permanent, must be founded on the "higher law." These considerations being true, it follows that government is necessary to make and enforce such laws as may be for the good of all; otherwise anarchy would prevail and each would be a law unto himself, subject onl}^ to the moral law which is not enforceable by man, but only by his Creator. Two questions arise here. What kind of a gov- ernment should that be? and how should it be established? It v.'ould seem, from the nature of the rights of man, that government should be es- tablished by the consent of the governed, and in such form as shall best secure and promote the welfare and happiness of the people .to be affected by it. The whole community should have the right to speak on that subject. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES. 29 If the few strong of a commuuit}^ seeking power, should establish a government without the consent and against the will of the weak, that would be a government by coercion, and, there- fore, despotic. Government established in this way is not sure and stable, as has been shown by experience; for power exercised by the few inevi- tably leads to tyranny. The people become restive under such a government, and sometime they will seize the opportunity to throw it off and establish another. Where all have a voice in framing the govern- ment none can complain, for that would be a free government, since it would derive all its powers from the consent of the governed ; such, for exam- ple, is the government of the United States of America, which was erected by the "free voite and joint will" of the people, for their common defense, general welfare, and to secure the bless- ings of liberty. From these preliminary considerations it will be readily seen, that the object of government is, and should be, to promote the welfare and happi- ness of the people — all the people. Justice to all is the end of government. Indeed, it is the end of civil society. That some governments have not attained this end may justly be attributed, to some extent, to their form, and somewhat to the character of their rulers. The time will come,— long distant, perhaps, — when all governments will rule with equity, and 30 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. with the sole end of promoting the happiness and well being of the people. Great improvement in that direction has been made during the past century or more, and espe- cially since the Kepublic of the United States has come into existence. The crowned rulers of the Old World have taken lessons of the new Repub- lic, founded in the New World, and based on the principle, "that all men are created equal"; and that governments derive "their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abol- ish it, and to institute a new jtovernment, lading its foundations on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness."- When that grand declaration was made by the fathers of the Republic, the rulers of the Old World heard the announcement with bated breath and with astonishment. No such doctrine had ever been announced before. But it was in ac- cordance with the sublime teachings of Him who spake as never man spake. The claimed "divine right" of kings was becoming a myth; and man was asserting his right to self government. Its promulgation has had the effect to modify the harshness of the governments of the Old World; and the people by reason of it have en- joyed more liberty than ever before. It should be 'See Declaration of Independence, Chapter 2 of Book II. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES. 31 placed, in letters of gold, on the throne of every crowned head of the nations of the world. , That declaration was the result of long con- tinued tyranny and oppression on the part of the English Crown, over the people of her Colonies in America. It was wrung from them when all hope of redress, for wrongs, had fled; and when thej' must either assert their rights as freemen or become slaves to a tyrant. And thus out of tyr- anny and oppression was born a new Republic, where liberty should' be inspired witli liope, and which should become the wonder of the nations of the earth. Nowhere but in the New World could such a republic have been erected. Here all was new. The very air was fatal to the arbitrary institu- tions of the Old World. Here man was not con- taminated with the restrained freedom of the effete institutions of the Old World. He breathed the air of freedom in his roamings through the forests, over the hills and mountains of the New. All around him was wild and free; and his soul revolted against tyranny and oppression. He was engaged in a conflict with nature, on the one side, for his sustenance and physical well being; and on the other side he was engaged in battling with the forces of oppression against his rights as a freemen, — the rights the God of nature had given him. The living principle of freedom was implanted within him, and when tyranny and oppression became unendurable to him as a free- man, he asserted his rights and independence. 32 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. In this way the time came when the colonists of America asserted their rights, threw off the yoke of the English oppressor, and made the declaration "that all men are created equal; and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalien- able rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."^ This declaration, and their independence, they maintained by the sword. From Lexington to Yorktown the patriots of the Revolution, — with Washington^ as their leader, — contended for seven long years, with a heroism unparalleled, for the rights of man. At Yorktown the forces of oppres- sion surrendered to the forces of liberty, and their heroic efforts were crowned with success. Wash- ington and his compatriots then laid down their arms, and returned to their homes, to help build a nation, freed from the oppressions of their for- mer master. In this, Washington was the guide, — the leader, — as he had been through the war. All eyes were turned to him in the great work of building the new Republic. "See Declaration of Independence, Chapter 2 of Book II. •■George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the patriot army during tlie Revolution, was born at Bridges Creek, Viigniia, on the Potomac, about fifty miles south of where Washington now stands. His father, soon after the birth of George, removed to an estate on the Rappahannock opposite Fredericksburg. Washington's great-grandfather, John Washington, emigrated from England to Virginia about 1657. It is generally thought that he belonged to one of the old Cavalier families that fought in behalf of Charles I during the English Ci\il War. George Washington received a fair English education, but nothing more. He early excelled in athletic sports, horsemanship and as a soldier during the Colonial Wars; these prepared him for his future great work. By the death of his brother, Lawrence Washington, he came eventually into possession of the estate of Mount A'ernon, on the Potomac, a short distance below the present city of Washington. In 1759 he married Mrs. Martha Custis, a wealthy widow. Prom this time on until his death, December 14, 1700, ho stood the most prominent of any of the patriots of the Revolution or, indeed, of any in the world. Washington will alwaj's be known as the "Father of his Country." FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES. 33 What a grand spectacle was here presented! None such had ever been shown to the world be- fore. Their success in that great struggle for liberty and independence had a deeper and broader meaning, and the result was of more significance, than simply the independence of the Colonies from the English Crown, Not only was the yoke of tyranny and oppres- sion thrown off and liberty maintained in Amer- ica, but the success of the Americans preserved the liberties of the people of England. An eminent English historian^ says of that Revolution, and its influence on the liberties of P^ngland: "On the other side of the Atlantic, a great people, provoked by the intolerable injustice of the English government, rose in arms, turned on their oppressors, and, after a desperate struggle, gloriously obtained their independence. In 1776 the Americans laid before Europe that noble Dec- laration, which ou^ht to be hung up in the nursery of every king, and blazoned on the porch of every royal palace. In words, the memory of which can never die, they declared, that the object of the institution of government is to secure the rights of the people; that from the people alone it de- rives its powers; and that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government, laying its ^Buckle, "History of Civilization in England." 3 34 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. foundations on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. "In order to enforce the monstrous claim of taxing a whole people without their consent, there was waged against America a war ill-conducted, unsuccessful, and what is far worse, accompanied by cruelties disgraceful to a civilized nation. To this may be added, that an immense trade was nearly annihilated; every branch of commerce was thrown into confusion; we were disgraced in the eyes of Europe; we incurred an expense of £140,- 000,000; and we lost by far the' most valuable colonies any nation has ever possessed. "Such were the first fruits of the policy of George III.^ But the mischief did not stop there. The opinions which it wr. ^ necessary to advocate in order to justify this barbarous war, recoiled on ourselves. In order to defend the attempt to de- stroy the liberties of America, i)rinciples were laid down which, if carried into effect, would have subverted the liberties of England. Not only in the court, but in both houses of Parliament, from the Episcopal bench, and from the pulpits of the church party, there were promulgated doctrines of the most dangerous kind, — doctrines unsuited to a limited monarchy, and, indeed, incompatible with it. The extent to which this reaction pro- ceeded is kno.wn to but few readers, because the evidence of it is chiefly to be found in the par- liamentary debates, and in the theological litera- •King of England, FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES. 35 tiire, particularly the sermons, of that time, none of which are now much studied. But, not to anti- cipate matters belonging to another part of this work, it is enough to say, that the danger was so imminent as to make the ablest defenders of popular liberty believe that everything was at stake; and that if the Americans w^ere vanquished, the next step would be to attack the liberties of England, and endeavour to extend to the mother country the same arbitrary government which by that time would have been established in the Col- onies. "Whether or not these fears were exaggerated, is a question of considerable difficulty; but after a careful study of that time, and a study, too, from sources not much used by historians, I feel satis- fied that the}^ who are best acquainted with the period will be the most willing to admit that, though the danger may have been overrated, it was far more serious than men are now inclined to believe. At all events, it is certain that the general aspect of political affairs was calculated to excite great alarm. It is certain that, during many years, the authority of the crown continued to increase, until it reached a height of which no example had been seen in England for several generations. It is certain that the Church of Eng- land exerted all her iuliuence in favour of those despotic principles which the king wished to en- force. It is also certain that, by the constant creation of new peers, all holding the same views, the character of the House of Lords was under- 36 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORr. going a slow but decisive change; and that, when- ever a favourable opportunity arose, high judicial appointments were conferred upon men notorious for their leaning towards the royal prerogative. These are facts which cannot be denied; and put- ting them together, there remains, I think, no doubt, that the American war was a great crisis in the history of England, and that if the Colonists had been defeated, our liberties would have beeu for a time in considerable jeopardy. From that risk we were saved by the Americans, who with heroic spirit resisted the royal armies, defeated them at every point, and at length, separating themselves from the mother country, began that wonderful career, which in less than eighty years has raised them to an unexampled prosperity, and which to us ought to be deeply interesting, as showing what may be effected by the unaided resources of a free people." CHAPTER II. ' WASHINGTON AND THE CONFEDERATION. A sense of imminent and common danger, had caused the Colonies to unite, at the beginning of the Kevolutionary struggle, and to intrust their interests to a Congress, — composed of delegates from each Colony,^called the Continental Con- gress. The delegates to that Congress were in- structed, in general terms, to take care of the WASHINGTON AND THE CONFEDERATION. " 37 liberties of the coimtr3\ This they did. But it soon became evident that a formal instrument should be adopted, defining with precision, the nature and powers of the union. While the Declaration of Independence was under consideration in that Congress, in June, 1776, measures were taken by it for the establish- ment of a constitutional form of government. But nothing was agreed upon until the 15th of Novem- ber, 1777; on which day, "Articles of Confedera- tion and Perpetual Union" w^ere adopted by the Congress.''' When these articles were sent by Con- gress to the State legislatures for their ratifica- tion, they were declared to be the result of impend- ing necessity, and of a disposition for conciliation, and that thej were agreed to, not for their intrin- sic excellence, but as the best system which could be adapted to the circumstances of all, and, at the same time, afford any tolerable prospect of general assent.^ These articles were to go into effect when rati- fied by all the States. Some of the States ratified them promptly; the others held back,^ and it was not until the 1st day of March, 1781, that they received the assent of all. On the next day Con- gress assembled under the new government. This government proved to be "a n^ost unskilful fabric, and totally incompetent to fulfil the ends for which it was erected." It had neither judicial ^For Articles of Confederation, see Chapter 3 of Book II. ^Journal of Congress, Vol. V, p. 208. 8For reasons, see "Sketch of the Orig-in of the Articles of Con- federation," Chapter 3 of Book II. 38 ' A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. nor executive departDients. All its power was confided to Congress, composed of but one branch. One of the vital defects was that its laws and decrees acted on states instead of on individuals; and it had no power to enforce these laws and decrees, when violated, except by a resort to arms. This mode was not practicable. "Almost as soon as it was ratified," says Kent, in his Commentaries on American Law, "the States began to fail in a prompt and faithful obedience to its laws. As danger receded, instances of neg- lect became more frequent, and before the peace of 1783, the inherent imbecility of the government had displayed itself with alarming rapidity. The . delinquencies of one State became a pretext or apology for those of another. The idea of supply- ing the pecuniary exigencies of the nation, from requisitions on the States, was soon found to be altogether delusive. The national engagements seem to have been entirely abandoned. Even the contributions for the ordinary expenses of the gov- ernment fell almost entirely upon the two States which had the most domestic resources. Attempts were very early made by Congress, and in remon- strances the most manly and persuasive, to obtain from the several States the right of levying, for a limited time, a general impost, for the exclusive purpose of providing for the discharge of the na- tional debt. It was found impracticable to unite the States in any provision for the national safety and honor. Interfering regulations of trade, and interfering claims of territory, were dissolving the WASHIIiGTON AND THE CONFEDERATION, 39 friendly attachments, and the sense of common interest, whicli had cemented and sustained the Union during the arduous struggles of the Revo- lution. S^niptoms of distress, and marks of humiliation, were rapidly accumulating. It was with difficulty that the attention of the States could be sufficiently exerted to induce them to keep up a sufficient representation in Congress to form a quorum for business. The finances of the nation were annihilated. The whole army of the United States was reduced, in 1784, to 80 per- sons; and the States were urged to provide some of the militia to garrison the western posts. In short, to use the language of the authors of The Federalist,^^ 'each State, yielding to the voice of immediate interest or convenience, successively withdrew its support from the Confederation, till the frail and tottering edrfice was ready to fall upon our heads, and to crush us beneath its ruins.' " There was in truth no government worthy the name. Congress could not keep its engagements, and foreign nations would not enter into treaties of commerce with America because of her dis united condition. "We are," said Washington, "one nation to-day, and thirteen to-morrow, — who will treat with us on these terms?" At the close of the Revolutionary war, Wash- ington retired to his estate at Mount Vernon; and there in his retirement watched with great solici- ^"Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay were the authors of "The Federalist." 40 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. tucle the workings of the several parts of the Con- federation; anxious to see whether the thirteen States, under the present organization, coukl form an efficient general government, so as to secure the objects and results of the Revolution, Day by day, however, he was becoming more doubtful of the solidity of the fabric he had assisted in form- ing. In a letter to James Warren, of Massachusetts, Washington thus expressed himself as to the Con- federation. '"The Confederation," he writes, "ap- pears to me to be little more than a shadow with- out the substance, and Congress a migratory body, their ordinances being little attended to. To me it is a solecism in politics; indeed it is one of the most extraordinary things in nature, that we should confederate as a nation, and yet be afraid to give the rulers of that nation * * * suffi- cient powers to order and direct the affairs of the same. By such policy as this the wheels of gov- ernment are clogged, and our brightest prospects, and that high expectation which was entertained of us by the wondering world, are turned into astonishment; and from the high ground on which we stood, we are descending into the vale of con- fusion and darkness."^ ^ Again he expresses himself as to a national pol- icy. "I have ever been a friend," says Washington, "to adequate powers in Congress, without which it is evident to me, we never shall establish a na- tional character, or be considered as on a respect- "Sparks, IX, 139. WASHINGTON AND THE CONFEDERATION. 41 able footing by the powers of Europe. — We are either a united people under one head and for federal purposes, or we are thirteen independent sovereignties, eternally counteracting each other. — If the former, whatever such a majority of the States as the Constitution points out, conceives to be for the benefit of the whole, should in my humble opinion, be submitted to by the minority. — I can foresee no evil greater than disunion; than those unreasonable jealousies (I say unreasonable because I would have a proper jealousy alwaj'S awake, and the United States on the watch to prevent individual States from infracting the Con- stitution, with impunity) which are continually poisoning our minds and filling them with imagin- ary evils for the prevention of real ones."^- In a letter to the illustrious patriot, John Jay,^^ then Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Washington was of the opinion that public affairs were draw- ing rapidly to a crisis. "We have errors," said he, "to correct. We have probabl}^ had too good an opinion of human nature in forming our confed- eration. Experience has taught us that men will not adopt and carry into execution measures the best calculated for their own good, without the intervention of coercive power. I do not conceive we can exist long as a nation, without lodging somewhere, a power which will pervade the whole Union in as energetic a manner as the authoritj- ^^Sparks, IX, 121. '"The first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, was born in the city of New York, December 12, 1745; died May 17, 1829. 42 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. of the State government extends over the several States. * * * What a triumph for the advo- cates of despotism to find that we are incapable of governing ourselves, and that systems, founded on the basis of equal liberty, are merely ideal and fallacious! Would to God that wise measures may be taken in time to avert the consequences we have but too much reason to apprehend."^* Again, in a letter to James Madison he says, "The consequences of a lax or inefficient govern- ment are too obvious to be dwelt upon. Thirteen sovereignties pulling against each other, and all tugging at the federal head, will soon bring ruin on the whole; whereas, a liberal and energetic Constitution, well checked and well watched, to prevent encroachments, might restore us to that degree of respectability and consequence to which we had the fairest prospect of attaining."^^ In a letter to Lafayette, in 1783, four years before the framing of the Constitution by the Con- vention at Philadelphia, Washington said: "We are now an independent people, and have yet to learn political tactics. We are placed among the nations of the earth, and have a character to estab- lish; but how we shall acquit ourselves time must discover. The probability is (at least I fear it), that local or State politics will interfere too much with the more liberal and extensive plan of gov- ernment which wisdom and foresight, freed from the mist of prejudice, would dictate; and that we "Irving's "Life of Washing-ton," Vol. 3, p. 239. '^Irving's "Life of Washington," Vol. 3, p. 242. WASHINGTON AND THE CONFEDERATION. 48 shall be guilty of many blunders in treading this boundless theatre before we shall have arrived at any perfection in this art; in a word, that the experience which is purchased at the price of diffi- culties and distress, will alone convince us, that the honor, power, and true interest of this country must be measured by a continental scale, and that every departure therefrom weakens the Union, and may ultimately break the band Avhich holds us together. To avert these evils, to form a new Constitution, that will give consistency, stability, and dignity to the Union, and sufficient power to the great Council of the Nation for general pur- poses, is a dntj incumbent on ever^^ man who wishes well to his country, and will meet with my aid as far as it can be rendered in the private walks of life." B}^ these and other expressions, Washington, although in retirement at Mount Yeruon, was ex- ercising a powerful influence on national affairs; after his long service as a soldier, he was now becoming the statesman, and preparing the way for a better Constitution and a more effective gov- ernment. Indeed, he foreshadowed our present Constitution. 44 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. CHAPTER III. WASHINGTON AND THE CONSTITUTION. With siicii a condition of affairs confronting them, Washington, Hamilton,^*^ Franklin,^^ Madi- son, and other patriots of the Revolution, with Washington at their head, sought a remedy; and out of their patriotic efforts the Constitution was framed, and adopted by "We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquil- lity, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, aud secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterit}.'"^ To secure all these, the Articles of Confederation were defect- ive, and hence their enumeration in the preamble to the Constitution, The Union of tlie Colonies was made a per- petual Union of States, by the Articles of Confed- eration; this a "more perfect union," by the Con- stitution; and finally it was welded into an ever- lasting union, by loyalty to that Constitution. ""Alexander Hamilton, soldier, lawyer, and statesman, was born on the Island of Nevis, British West Indies, in January, 1757. Educated at King's (now Columbia) College, and was distinguished as a good speaker and writer, while yet a lad. Entered the Revo- lutionary airny, and became Washington's favorite aide. He served with great efficiency until the close of the war; and then made the law his profession. He had the most original and con- structive mind, probably, of any of the statesmen who framed th^^ Constitution; and to him we are largely indebted for the prin- cii)Ies upon which the Constitution was constructed, and for its adoption by the people. Washington made him the first Secretary of the Treasury. Died July 4, 1804, of a wound received in a duel with Aaron Burr. '"Benjamin Franklin, an eminent philosopher and statesman, was born in Boston, 1706. He rendered distinguished services to the cause of American independence, and was one of the most eminent of the patriots who framed the Constitution, 1787. He died in Philadelphia, full of years and honors, in 1790. ^8For Constitution, see Chapter 5 of Book II. WASHINGTON AND THE CONSTITUTION, 45 The people, by this Constitution, distributed their powers among the National and State Gov- ernments; and they retained whatever govern- mental powers remained, after this distribution. In this division and distribution of powders, the United States, among other things, guaranteed to every State in the Union a republican form of government.^'* And it was agreed that this Con- stitution and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treat- ies made, or which shall be made under the author- ity of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every State shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstand- ing.-*^ By this agreement State Constitutions and laws, were subordinated to the Constitution of the United States, its laws, and treaties. They also provided an arbiter, in cases of conflict, — the Supreme Court of the United States, whose deci- sions are final. Thus the people, as between the State and the Nation, vested supreme sovereignty in the Government of the United States: hence paramount allegiance is due the Nation, — it knows no superior. In whatever way it may have been brought about,^^ it is certain that the Constitution was made by the people of the United States, acting in their sovereign capacity, for their own guidance "See Section 4, of Article IV, of the Constitution. ^"Article VI of the Constitution. "See "Sketch of the Origin of the Constitution," Chapter 5 of Book II. 46 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. in exercising their sovereiii;u power, and became a compact between themselves and every one of their number. This the people had a right to do; for since the Ivevoliition, at least, all political sov- ereignty belongs to the people. The supreme, ab- solute, and uncontrollable power is in the people of America. They have the right to make and unmake constitutions. The^- exercised this right in making the Constitution of the United States, as a substitute for the Articles of Confederation, the parties to which "were free, sovereign and independent political communties — each possess- ing within itself all the powers of legislation and government, over its own citizens, which any polit- ical society can possess."-- By this instrument the thirteen orgiual States became united together for certain purposes, and the instrument was styled "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union between the States." The political body thus formed was entitled "The United States of Amer- ica." This instrument was adopted by the several States in their corporate capacity. But, in so doing, thej^ exercised, however, sovereignty whicli rightfully belonged to the people. B}- its provi- sions an uncontrollable sovereignty was left in the States. A national government thus organ- ized bore the seeds of its own death. States were the object of its decrees, instead of individuals, as under the Constitution; and it had no power to enforce them. "Curtis, "Constitutional History of the United States." WASHINGTON AND THE CONSTITUTION, 47 To obviate the many weaknesses of the Con- federation, the people reconstructed the fabric of government — both state and national. To one the}' gave certain powers; to the other certain other- powers, — keeping the remainder them- selves; the fee simple of all power still belonging to them. The theory, of John C. Calhoun,-^ of South Car- olina, and his followers, that the States, as free, and independent sovereignties, made the Consti- tution and constituted the National Government their common agent for certain purposes; and that, therefore, a State had the right to withdraw or secede from the Union at pleasure, is not borne out by the facts nor by the law. The framers of the Constitution, understanding the weakness of the Union made b}^ the Articles of Confederation in such manner, avoided that rock of destruction by giving the people of the United States an op- =^John C. Calhoun was born in South Carolina, 1782. Entered Congress, ISll, and served in both Houses many years. Secretary of War for President Monroe, ISIT. Elected Vice-President U. S., 1825; re-elected with President Jackson, 1S2S, and resijjned, 1S32, be- cause of the attitude the President assumed against South Caro- lina when that Stale attempted to put in force Calhoun's "Nulli- fication" and "Secession" doctrines, on account of a protective tariff law having been passed by Congress which South Carolina thought was detrimental to its interests. Calhoun elected to the Senate of the U. S., 1832. Secretary of State for President Tyler, 1843. Re-elected U. S. Senator, 1815, serving until his death in 1850. Calhoun taug'ht the doctrine that slavery is "a positive good," an advantage alike to the negro and to his owner; that the States are free and independent sovereignties, and as such made the Constitution: that the States, therefore, had the right to nullify a law of Congress or to secede from the Union. The logical result of his teachings was the Civil War. Webster, in his great reply to Hayne, in the Senate of the U. S., 1830, and in other speeches, demolished Calhoun's theories, but they still remained the evil geniur of the country— and bore the fruit of rebellion. Webster clearly demonstrated that the government of the V. S. is a government proper, established by the people of the U. S., and not a compact between sovereign States; that within its limits it is supreme, and that no branch of government— State or National— except the Suprem.e Court of the U. S., has the right to determine whether or not if has acted within its limits— from which there is no appeal, but to revolution. 48 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. portiinity, in their sovereigu and aggregate capac- ity, to adopt a Constitution representing their sovereign power, instead of sovereign States. The Constitution speaks in the name of "We, the people of the United States"; while the Confederation spoke in the name of "free, sovereign and inde- pendent States." It is true the people of the United States did not assemble in mass and adopt the Constitution, but they elected representatives from their numbei'S, in their respective States, who adopted it. This was in harmony with a repub- lican form of government. This theorj^ of Calhoun's was originated out of a desire to obtain and retain political power for certain purposes, and because of a change in the moral and political philosophy of the South, in the interest of a Power determined to rule the Nation and make it subservient to its own selfish inter- ests. But for this, no such theory would have been originated and advocated with such powerful vehemence and determination, as it was. Its per- sistent advocacy, and the interests it was intended to promote, bore the fruit of rebellion and civil war. The People's Government, however, still exists, notwithstanding its internal foes; these grow less and less as the years go by. And the time will come when all shall bow in reverence to it as the best government yet devised by man, because of the great impulse it has given to freedom, — every- where. The idea that we are a nation — one people — WASHINGTON AND THE CONSTITUTION. 49 undivided and indivisible, should be taught in every home and school in the Ivepublie. It should be the central idea of the politics of America. Soon after the Convention, which framed the Constitution, had completed its labors, but before the Constitution had been adopted by the people, Washington thus expressed himself as to its mer- its, in a letter written to Lafa} ette! "It appears a little short of a miracle," writes he, "that the delegates from so many States, different from each other, as you know, in their manners, circum- stances, and prejudices, should unite in forming a system of national government so little liable to well-founded objections. Nor am I such an enthu- siastic, partial, or indiscriminating admirer of it, as not to perceive it is tinctured Avith some real, though not radical defects. With regard to the two great points, the pivots upon which the whole machine must move, my creed is simply, First, that the general government is not invested with more powers than are indispensably necessary to per- form the functions of a good government; and consequently, that no objection ought to be made against the quantity of power delegated to it. "Secondly, that these powers, as the appoint- ment of all rulers will forever arise from, and at short, stated intervals recur to, the free suffrages of the people, are so distributed among the legis- lative, executive, and judicial branches into which the general government is arranged, that it can never be in danger of degenerating into a mon- archy, an oligarchy, an aristocracy, or any other 50 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, despotic or oppressive form, so long as there shall remain any virtue in the body of the people. "It vi'ill at least be a recommendation to the proposed Constitution, that it is provided with more checks and barriers against the introduction of tyrann}^, and those of a nature less liable to be surmounted, than any government hitherto insti- tuted among mortals. "We are not to expect perfection in this world; but mankind in modern times, have apparently made some progress in the science of government. Should that which is now offered to the people of America, be found on experiment less perfect than it can be made, a constitutional door is left open for its amelioration."^^ Again, after the Constitution had been adopted by the people, Washington said in a letter written to Johnathan Trumbull, "We may with a kind of pious and grateful exultation, trace the finger of Providence through those dark and mysterious events, which first induced the States to appoint a general convention, and then led them, one after another, by such steps as were best calculated to effect the object, into an adoption of the system recommended by the General Convention; thereby, in all human probability, laying a lasting founda- tion for tranquillity and happiness, when we had but too much reason to fear that confusion and misery were coming rapidly upon us,"-"' In all the trials and vicissitudes through which -*Irving's "Life of Washington," Vol. 3, p. 245. 25lrving's "Life of Washington," Vol. 3, p. 246-7. WASHINGTON AND THE CONSTITUTION. 51 his country had passed, Washington had always recognized the Supreme Kuler as moving the hearts of men in favor of liberty', and good gov- ernment; he attributed deliverance, from evils, to that Power who guides the destinies of men and of nations. Indeed, it may be said, that he traced "the finger of Providence" in all "those dark and mysterious events," through which the new Nation had passed. Who will say that he was not right? To act well f or^ the state, says Sallust,-*^ is glo- rious; virtue alone confers immortality^ That Washington acted well for the state; that he dis- played those virtues which confer immortality has not been denied to him by his countrymen, nor by the world. Indeed, the whole world has adopt- ed him as the representative of virtue, of liberty, and of good government. His name and virtues will go down through all the ages; though dead he yet speaks to the Republic, and to mankind. By the adoption of this new Constitution the United States of America became a living Nation, among the nations of the world, with a Republican form of government; and the formation and adop- tion of that Constitution will go down in history, as the crowning act of the fathers of the Republic. As a tribute to the virtues of Washington, the people made him the first President under the new Constitution; thus equipped, the new Republic started on its great career of progress, on the fourth day of March, 1789. -^A Roman historian, born 86 B. C. 52 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. I turn now to consider some matters occurring during the formation of the Constitution, and oth- ers, connected with the welfare of the llepublic, for good or for ill. CHAPTER IV. EFFECTS OF THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. While the Convention which formed the Con- stitution was in session, in 1787, at Philadelphia, — where liberty and independence rang out their first notes to the world, — with Washington as its President, the Congress of the United States, then acting under the Articles of Confederation, enact- ed an Ordinance, which for its far-reaching effects, on the destiny of the Republic, was only second to the Constitution itself. That was the Ordinance of 1787,^''' some of the principles of which had been enunciated by Thomas Jelferson several years be- fore, — for the organization and government of all that portion of the national domain northwest of the Ohio River — a large empire within itself — and out of which five States were afterAvards organized and admitted to the Union; these were the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wiscon- sin. This territory had been ceded to the United States by Virginia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York, several years prior to the adoption 27For Ordinance 1787, see Chapter 4 of Book II. EFFECTS OF THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. 63 of the Constitution of the United States; and the whole region was a vast wilderness and solitude, with some trifling exceptions, upon which no laws, but the laws of nature, had ever operated. Civili- zation knew it not. Behold it now with its millions of people, anreheusible machine is man! who can endure toil, famine, strife, imprisonment, and death itself, in vindication of his own liberty, and the next mo- 58 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. ment be deaf to all those motives whose power supported him yirough his trial, and inflict on his fellowman a bondage, one hour of which is fraught with more miserj- than ages of that which he rose in rebellion to oppose." Slavery had been fastened on the colonists, — at first against their will; but when the time came to form a national government with a Constitu- tion, which it was hoped would endure forever, stronger and better adapted to promote the Avel- fare and happiness of the people, than the Articles of Confederation, — one in harmony with the Dec- laration, — the delegates did not agree as to what disposition should be made of slavery, then exist- ing in nearly all the thirteen original States. The Northern States held but few slaves. Some none; and those who did have them soon freed them of their own accord, as they believed slavery to be wrong, and contrary to the spirit of free institu- tions.^^ At that time the question of the rightful- ness of slavery was being agitated to a large ex- tent, not only in this,but in other nations. But, notAvithstanding this, the Southern States looked with disfavor on the idea of freeing their slaves, ^^Curtis, in his Constitutional History of thie United States, on page 420, says: "Although, at the time of the formation of the Constitution, slavery had been expressly abolished in two of the States only (Massachusetts and New Hampshire), the framers of that instrument practically treated all but the five Southern States —Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia —as if the institution had been already abolished within their limits, and counted all the colored persons therein, whether bond or free, as part of the free population; assuming that the eight Northern and Middle States would be free States, and that the five Southern States would continue to be slave States. This ap- pears from the whole tenor of the debates, in which the line is constantly drawn, as between slaveholding and non-slaveholding States, so as to throw eight States upon the Northern and five upon the Southern side." DANGERS CONFRONTING MAKERS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 59 or of wiping out the slave trade, although some of their strongest and best men condemned it; Wash- ington, Madison, and Jefferson among the number. In 1774, Washington was chairman of a com- mittee which declared in regard to the slave trade: "We take this opportunity to declare our most earnest wish to see an entire stoj) put to such a wicked, cruel, and unnatural trade." In 1783, Washington wrote to Lafayette: "The scheme which you propose as a precedent to en- courage the emancipation of the black people of this country from the state of bondage in which they are held, is a practical evidence of the benev- olence of your heart. I shall be happy to join you in so laudable a work." Again, in 1786, he wrote Lafayette, "* * * Your late purchase of an estate in the colony of Cayenne, Avith a view of emancipating the slaves on it, is a generous and noble proof of your human- ity. Would to God a like spirit might diffuse itself generally into the minds of the people of this coun- try. But I despair of seeing it. Some petitions were presented to the Assembly (of Virginia), at its last session for the abolition of slavery, but they could scarcely obtain a reading." And again, in 1786, he wrote Robert Morris: "There is not a man living who wishes more sin- cerely than I do to see a plan adopted for the abolition of slavery. But there is but one proper and effective mode by which it can be accom- plished, and that is by legislative authority, and 60 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. tills, as far as my support will go, shall never be wanting." In 1787, he wrote Mr. John F. Mercer, of Phila- delphia: "I never mean to possess another slave by purchase. * * * It is among mj^ first wish- es to see some plan adof)ted so that slavery in this country may be abolished by law." In 1797j Washington wrote his nephew, Law- rence Lewis: "I wish, from my soul, that the Legislature of Virginia could see the policy of the gradual abolition of slaver}^ It might prevent much future mischief." Madison^^ said, in regard to the abolition of the slave trade: "The dictates of humanity, the prin- ciples of the people, the national safety and happi- ness, and prudent policy, require it of us. It is to be hoped that by expressing a national disappro- bation of the trade, we may destroy it, and save our country from reproaches, and our posterity 2"James Madison, fourth President of tlie United States, was born in Virginia, Marcli 16, 1751. Graduate of Princeton College, N. J., 1771. He and Alexander Hamilton of New York, were the foremost of the distinguished statesmen who framed the Consti- tution. Madison not only drafted the main features of the Con- stitution, but offered the first ten amendments in Congress. He was strongly in favor of having the Constitution submitted to the people of the United States — as it was— for adoption, instead of the State Legislatures; so that it might make a system of govern- ment founded on the consent of the people, and thus be a con- stitution of government ordained by those who hold the right to exercise all political power; and not a system of government founded by sovereign States, as was the Confederation. Madison was a member of the first Congress under the Con- stitution, 1789, continuing as such until 1797. Appointed Secretary of State by President Jefferson, ISOl. Elected President of the U. S., 1808. Re-elected for a second term. Died June 28, 1836. Madison was not a believer in the doctrines of "Secession" and "Nulliflcation"— advocated by Calhoun and his followers. In 1832. he said of the claimed right of a State to withdraw at will from the Union: "It is high time that the claim to secede at will should be put down by the public opinion." Again, in 1834, he said in regard to nullification: "Nulliflcation has the effect of putting powder under the Constitution and Union, and a match in the hand of every party to blow them up at pleasure." He said nullification and secession "both spring from the same poisonous root." DANGERS CONFRONTING MAKERS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 61 from the imbecility ever attendant on a country filled with slaves. ' "We have seen the mere distinction of color made, in the most enlightened period of time, a ground of the most oppressive dominion ever exer- cised by man over man. "It is wrong to admit into the Constitution the idea that there can be property in man." Jefferson in his "Notes on Virginia,"^^ 1781, said, "There must, doubtless, be an unhappy influ- ence on the manners of our people produced by the existence of slavery among us. The whole com- merce between master and slave is a perpetual exercise of the most boisterous passions, the most unremitting despotism on the one part, and de- grading submissions on the other. Our children see this, and learn to imitate.it; for man is an imitative animal. This quality is the germ of all education in him. From his cradle to his grave he is learning to do what he sees others do. If a parent could find no motive either in his philan- thropy, or his self love, for restraining the intem- perance of passion towards his slave, it should always be a sufficient one that his child is present. But generally it is not sufficient. The parent storms, the child looks on, catches the lineaments of wrath, puts on the same airs to the circle of smaller slaves, gives aloose to the worst of pas- sions, and thus nursed, educated, and daily exer- cised, cannot but be stamped by it with odious peculiarities. The man must be a prodigy who 36Page 240. 62 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. can retain his manners and morals undepraved by sncli circumstances. And with what execration should the Statesman be loaded, who, permitting one-half the citizens thus to trample on the rights of the other, transforms those into despots, and these into enemies; destro^^s the morals of the one part, and the amor patriae of the other. For if a slave can have a country in this world, it must be any other in preference to that in whi(-h he is born to live and labor for another, in w^hich he must lock up the faculties of his nature, con- tribute, as far as depends on his individual endeav- ors, to the evanishmeut of the human race, or to entail his own miserable condition on the endless generations proceeding from him. "With the morals of the people their industry also is destroyed. For in a warm climate no man will labor for himself who can make another labor for him. This is so true, that of the proprietors of slaves a very small proportion, indeed, are ever seen to labor. "And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God; that they are not to be violated but with his wrath?" He denounced slavery as "a violation of human rights"; and said that not only honor, but the "best interests of the country" demanded its ex- tinction. "Indeed," said he, "I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just." The delegates in that Convention from South DANGERS CONFRONTING MAKERS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 63 Carolina and Georgia announced, upon the pro- posal to suppress the slave trade immediately, that if this were done those States would not become part of the Union, for they must have slaves. Rut- ledge said, "Religion and humanity have nothing to do with this question. Interest alone is the gov- erning principle with nations. The true question at present is whether the Southern States shall or shall not be parties to the Union." Charles C. Pinckney said, "South Carolina can never receive the plan if it prohibit the slave trade." He was an able and strenuous supporter of the interests of the South in all that related to their right to hold and increase their slave population. He con- tended earnestly against a grant of authority to the general government to prohibit the importa- tion of slaves. Georgia and North Carolina took the same position. This was not the first time that South Carolina and Georgia had taken a stand in favor of the slave trade, and determined that they would not agree to anything which looked towards a dis- continuance of it. When the Declaration of Inde- pendence was under consideration in the Conti- nental Congress, the following clause in the orig- inal draft of the Declaration, reprobating the en- slaving the inhabitants of Africa, was struck out in complaisance to South Carolina and Georgia, who had never attempted to restrain the importa- tion of slaves, and who, on the contrary, still wished to continue it:^^ ^^Jefferson's Writings, Vol. I, p. 15. 64 A PHJLOSOPHICAL HISTORY. "He (George IIP*) has waged cruel war against human nature itself, violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in the persons of a dis- tant people who never offended him, captivating and carrying them into slavery in another hemi- sphere, or to incur miserable death in their trans- portation thither. This piratical warfare, the op- probrium of infidel powers, is the warfare of the Christian king of Great Britain. Determined to keep open a market where men should be bought and sold, he has prostituted his negative for sup- pressing every legislative attempt to prohibit or restrain this execrable commerce. And that this assemblage of horrors might want no fact of dis- tinguished d^^e, he is now exciting those very peo- ple to rise in arms among us, and to purchase that liberty of which he has deprived them, by murdering the people on whom he has obtruded them; thus paying off former crimes committed against the liberties of one people, with crimes which he urges them to commit against the lives of another." That was a critical time, and because of the opposition of those States, that clause was strick- en out of the Declaration. But a still more critical time was now at hand. If the new Nation, which had so recently achieved its independence, after so long a struggle, did not form a Constitution stronger and better than the Articles of Confed- eration, — a more perfect Union, — in all probability the Eepublic would cease to exist, and each State 3«King of England. GANGERS CONFRONTING MAKERS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 65 would form a Nation of its own. This could not be, — must not be! The Union must be formed or else all their labor for freedom and independence be in vain. So out of the necessities of the case a compromise was made with slavery, — broader, and one with far more reaching effects, than the first concession made by the Ordinance of 1787. This compromise was made a part of the Consti- tution, but the word "slave" or "slavery" was not used in making it. The concessions made were three, as follows: First. — Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be deter- mined by adding to the whole number of free per- sons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three- fifths of all other persons.^'' Second. — The migration or importation of such persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight . hundred and eight; but a tax or duty may be im- posed on such importation, not exceeding ten dol- lars for each person.**' Third. — No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or reg- ulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the seSee Section 2, Article I, of Constitution. «See Section 9. Article I, of Constitution- 5 66 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. party to whom such service or labor may be due.^^ By these forced concessions the obstacles to the formation of the Union were removed. The result of that compromise was the recognition of slavery b}^ the Constitution. Thus the Republic was built upon two antag- onistic civilizations, the g*erms of which had long before been planted. From that time on these two civilizations developed rapidly; and in that devel- opment they grew more and more antagonistic, as might be expected, for one was founded on "right"; and the other on "wrong." The time came when the one or the other of these civilizations must prevail. Both could not exist under the same flag, and in the same country. They met amid the clash of arms, and the "right" triumphed. In that conflict our country became a great battlefield, and the spirit of freedom and union was triumphant over the spirit of slavery and disunion. A civilization based on a "wrong" cannot en- dure. Justice is sure and is meted out to states* and nations as well as to individuals. The ren- dering of the decree may be long delayed. But it is one of the immutable laws of the "higher power," — to which all are subject, — that sooner or later the decree will be entered. So it was in the history of our Republic. In its evolution the forces of right and wrong long contended; but finally the decree went forth enforcing the decla- ration and the law, that all men are created equal. "See Section 2, Article IV, of Constitution. PART II. TWO CIVILIZATIONS— THUIR RISE AND DEVELOPMENT- THE FALL OP ONE AND THE TRIUMPH OF THE OTHER. CHAPTER I. PLANTING GERMS AND SOME RESULTS. The faith of one mau, — Columbus, — and the faith of one woman, — Queen Isabella, — in that man, gave opportunity for the founding of a Re- public in the New World, on a large scale, based upon the principle that all men are created equal. Every age has produced great men. But it was left for the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to bring forth men imbued with the spirit of lib- erty to all mankind. The eighteenth century pro- duced a Washington; the nineteenth a Lincoln. Both firmly believed in a government "of the peo- ple, by the people, and for the people"; that all men are created equal, and that freedom, — both civil and religious, — is the natural right of man. Washington became the founder of such a gov- ernment, — our Republic,- — and Lincoln its pre- server. The history of a great Republic, like ours, should be the study of all who love liberty. This Republic has no parallel in the history of nations. Indeed, it stands out unique and alone as the only 67 68 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISfORV. Republic which fully illustrates constitutional liberty in all its beneficence, power, and grandeur. There ever has been, and probably ever will be, a conflict going on between "right" and "wrong," But, sometime the right triumphs over the wrong. The day of triumph may be long delayed, but come it will. " This Republic was not born and reared with- out a conflict. It has grown to its present great- ness through the blood of its people. They were willing to offer themselves as a sacrifice that all might enjoy freedom, — both civil and religious. The sacrifice has been made; and behold, a land where all enjoy that freedom! Let us inquire as to the evolutionary process of the formation of our present Republic. Its formation began during the early part of the sev- enteenth century. During that century the germs of two diverse and antagonistic civilizations were planted in this country. One on the rocky shores of Massachusetts, by a race descended from the Saxon; the other in Virginia, by an English aris- tocracy, the descendants of the Norman Cavalier. The first was founded on the principle of freedom to all; the second, on the idea that some are born to rule, others to serve. It needs no argument, at this late day, to prove that that civilization based on freedom was right; and that the other based on slavery was wrong. For over two centuries these two civilizations developed side by side. In that development each PLANTING GERMS AND SOME RESULTS. 69 produced fruit according to its kind. The one good fruit and the other bad. As the course of Empire turned westward, these two civilizations moved out side by side towards the setting sun. The descendants of the Puritan hewed a way through the wilderness for the march of liberty, equality, and human rights; the followers of the Cavalier led a mournful pro- cession to the music of the sad song of the slave. Human avarice brought the slave and the slaveholder to the shores of the New World, and this was the result. Our history ma}' be divided into four periods. The first, the Colonial, while we were under the control of England; the second, the Revolution- ary, wherein we gained our independence by arms; the third, the Union of the States into a govern- ment; and the fourth, the maintenance of that Union by arms. The history of these four periods shows the foundation upon which our Republic rests, its strength, and probable perpetuity. During the Colonial period there was a bond of sympathy between the people of these diverse civilizations, in that both were desirous of throw- ing off the yoke of the common oppressor, — Eng- land, — and they united to free themselves from that oppressor. On the fourth day of July, 1776, their repre- sentatives promulgated the Great Charter of our Independence, announcing to the world, "that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by 70 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among- these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." They concluded that great instrument by declaring, "that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved."^ And, for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, they mutually pledged to each other their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. Washington and his compatriots fought to maintain that declaration, and, after an heroic struggle, won. Thus by the Declaration and the arbitrament of war, the United Colonies became "free and independent States." Free and inde- pendent of Great Britain, but not, however, free and independent of each other. For at the begin- ning of that struggle they united, first, as Colonies; second, as States into a Confederacy;^ and finally, after the struggle was over, entered into a "more perfect union" by the Constitution of the United States, adopted by the people of all the States.^ Thus the United States became a nation, among the nations of the world, with a republican form of government. At the time of the formation of the Union and the adoption of the Constitution, in 1787-8, slavery iPor Declaration of Independence, see Chapter 2 of Book II. -For Articles of Confederation, see Chapter 3 of Book II. ^For Constitution, see Chapter 5 of Book II. PLANTING GERMS AND SOME RESULTS. 71 existed in nearly all of the States to a greater or less extent. There were but few slaves in an^^ of the Northern States — the great bulk of them being in the Southern States. The Northern States soon did away with slavery, but the South still con- tinued it; although it is a well known historical fact that the fathers of the Republic regarded slavery as an evil and hoped it would be abolished by all the States. At the time of the adoption of the Constitution, they saw no other way, under the circumstances, than to trust its extirpation to the people, believing that, in time, they would vol- untarily do away with it. But, in this, they were mistaken. Alexander H. Stephens, of Georgia, said in 1861: "The prevailing ideas entertained by him (Jefferson) and most of the leading statesmen at the time of the formation of the Constitution were, that the enslavement of the African was in viola- tion of the laws of nature; that it was wrong in principle, socially, morally and politically. It was an evil they knew not well how to deal with; but the general opinion of the men of that day was, that, somehow or other, in the order of provi- dence, the institution would be evanescent and pass away. This idea, though not incorporated in the Constitution, was the prevailing idea at the time. The Constitution, it is true, secured every guarantee to the institution while it should last, and hence no argument can be justly used against the Constitutional guarantees thus secured, be- cause of the common sentiment of the day. Those 72 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, ideas, however, were fundamentally wrong. They rested upon the assumption of the equality of the races. This was an error." * * * "The negro by nature, or b}^ the curse against Canaan, is fitted for that condition which he occupies in our sys- tem." "The negro," said Mr. Stephens, "is not equal to the white man"; and, "slavery, subordi- nation to the superior race, is his natural and nor- mal condition. It is, indeed, in conformity with the ordinance of the Creator. It is not for us to inquire into the wisdom of His ordinances or to question them." Although all the Northern States did away with slavery, and Washington and others of the founders of the Republic, living in Southern States, freed their slaves, yet the people of the Southern States, or rather its aristocracy, re- tained it and nursed it with a jealous care, and began to advocate the idea that they could not get along without it, and that the ideas of the "fathers" were "fundamental!}' wrong." This idea, and their jealousy of the institution, grew in in- tensity as the years rolled by. Thus, a slavehold- ing aristocracy grew up in the Republic very dan- gerous to its existence. For this aristocracy sub- ordinated everything to its own selfish interests. In 1838 a distinguished Representative from South Carolina, declared, in the Congress of the United States, that "many worthy men, who were formerly somewhat uneasy at the existence of this institution, now feel themselves called upon by every motive, personal and private, by every PLANTING GERMS AND SOME RESULTS. 73 consideration, public and patriotic, to guard it with the most jealous watchfulness, — to defend it at every hazard." These were the sentiments of all those in the South who had embraced the new moral and political philosophy of John C Calhoun, Kobt. Y. Hayne,^ — with whom Webster had his great debate in 1830, — and others, who were seek- ing to perpetuate slavery and its power in the Nation. This slaveholding aristocracy became arrogant and tyrannical, — as all aristocracies do. It con- trolled the State governments of the South, and largely dominated in the councils of the Nation, aided by a portion of the people of the North who were in sympathy with them and belonged to the same political party. Although the State govern- ments of the South were republican in name, in fact they were oligarchies. In consequence of this state of things the com- mon people of the South were in degradation, — even lower than the slaves, — and exercised no in- fluence in governmental affairs; these being en- tirely in the hands of the slaveholding aristoc- racy. Labor was degraded, and the free laborer was regarded as being lower than the slave. For a white man to labor was considered a degrada- tion. Public education was neglected, and, indeed. ^Robert Y. Hayne was born near Charleston, S. C, in 1791. Be- came a lawyer and orator. United States Senator for ten years. In the debate with Webster in the United States Senate, in ISSO, advocated the doctrine that the States are sovereign, and have the right to nulht'y an act of Congress. Chairman of Committee of the South Carolina Convention which reported the nullification ordinance, 1832. Soon aftjr was elected Governor of South Caro- lina. Issued a counter manifesto to President Jackson's proclama- tion. Died ISll. 74 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. hardly known; consequently the great mass of the people grew up in ignorance. Not so in the North. There education was fostered, its people were edu- cated, labor was encouraged, and the dignity of labor recognized. Education and labor went hand in hand. In consequence the laborer had a chance to rise. He took part in matters of government, and his voice was heard in the Councils of the State and Nation. These differences between the two sections grew out of the difference of tlieir civilizations — the one being based on freedom; the other on slavery. In the formation of the Union, the slave power got the advantage. Slavery was indirectly recog- nized in the Constitution; and in fixing the basis of representation each State should have in Con- gress, live slaves were counted as three freemen, although they were held as property.^ With this advantage, and with the idea that they were the ruling class, this slavehoJding aris- tocracy grew arrogant and tyrannical and sought to control the Government and subordinate it en- tirely to their own interests. It seems to be one of the attributes of wrong that it is aggressive and on the alert. It is imj)a- tient of restraint and restriction, and is ever seek- ing to enlarge its borders. The slaveholders were alert, aggressive, and impatient of restraint or restriction. They sought to perpetuate slavery by extending it into the Ter- ^See Section 2 of Article I, the Constitution. PLANTING GERMS AND SOME RESULTS. 76 ritories of the United States. They were not satis- fied with having it confined to the States where it alread}^ existed. Their selfishness, and the moral degradation which the institution of slavery had fastened on them, led them — to give a sort of color to their claimed right of perpetuating and extend- ing it — to advocate it as a "divine institution." In other words, that the same Creator who made man in his own image, declared that it is right for one man to enslave another. Even ministers of the Gospel proclaimed that doctrine; and bought and sold their fellow men. Bishop Meade wrote a book of sermons to be used for slaves. In one he says, "Almighty God hath been pleased to make you slaves here, and to give you nothing but labor and poverty in this world. * * * This rule you should always carry in your mind, that is, that you should do all service for 3'our masters as if you did it for God himself. * * * Your masters and mistresses are God's overseers. * * * You are to do all service to them as unto Christ. Failing to do this, you will be turned over to the devil to become his slave forever in hell." And this in the nineteenth century of the Christian era! They pretended not to believe the declaration that all men are created equal. Working them- selves by degrees into that belief, the^' sought to extend the "institution" by fastening it on the Territories of the United States; thus making it a national instead of a local institution. In this thej^ succeeded for many years, by their 76 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. aggressiveness and persistency. During that time compromise after compromise was made witii slav- ery, and always to the advantage of the slave- holders. Thus they acquired a power almost re- sistless. At last, however, the conscience of the Nation became so aroused that the lovers of free- dom determined, if possible, to stem the onflowing tide and stop its further spread. When, therefore, in 1854, Kansas and Nebras- ka were organized into Territories by Congress, the conflict came on with renewed vigor; and the question of the right of extending slavery was agitated with vehemence. Freedom was aroused against slavery as never before. The question arose, Shall the public domain of the Republic be the theater of all free or all slave labor? It was evident that one or the other of these must prevail, for the antagonism was so great between them that one or the other must jield. The slave power sounded the trumpet for battle, and the newly organized Territory of Kansas was its chosen field of conflict. The champions of freedom claimed that this Nation was not founded with the idea of perpetu- ating and extending slavery; that it was a great wrong; that freedom was the normal condition of man; and that the public domain of this coun- try was set apart for freedom. It was not proposed to interfere with slavery as it existed, — but it must not be extended ; and no more compromises must be made, that too many had already been made with it. THE LIN'COLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. 77 CHAPTER II. THE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. While this great struggle, between freedom aud slavery, was going on in Kansas, Stephen A. Douglas*^ and Abraham Lincoln, opposing candi- dates for the United States Senate in Illinois, held, in 1858, a series of debates, and discussed the issue then uppermost in the minds of the people. Mr. Douglas was the champion of the slavery side of the question, and Mr. Lincoln the champion of the side of freedom. Both were able repre- sentative men, although Mr. Lincoln was but little known to the countr}-. These debates developed the claims of both parties, and attracted the atten- tion of the Nation. I can do no better than to here give the leading points of their claims. Mr. Douglas said: "I hold that the signers of the Declaration of Independence had no reference to negroes at all when they declared all men to be created equal. * * * They alluded to men of European birth and European descent, — to white men, and to none others, when they declared "Stephen A. Douglas was born in Vermont, 1813; removed to Illinois in 1831. Taught school, studied law, was Attorney General of the Stale, Secretary of State. Judge of the Supreme Court, Congressman, United States Senator, and finally ran for President against Abiaham Lincoln, as one of the Democratic candidates; John C. Breckenridge, of KentucKy, being the other. Died June 3, 1861. After Mr. Lincoln was inaugurated as President, he heartily supported the Union cause, and when dying he breathed a prayer that the enemies of his country might be overthrown. With this record, contrast that of John C. Breckenridge. Born in Kentucky, 1821. Studied law; served in the Mexican war; elected to Con- gress, 1S51; re-elected, 1853. Elected Vice-President of the United States on ticket with James Buchanan, 1856. Elected U. S. Senator, 1860. Defended the Southern Confederacy in the Senate. Expelled from the Senate, December, 1861. Appointed Major-General in the Confederate army and served in the field until February, 1866, when Jefferson Davis appointed him Secretary of War. Died, 1875. 78 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. that doctrine. I hold that this Government was established on the white basis. It was established by white men for the benefit of white men and their posterity forever, and should be administered b}' white men, and none others. But it does not follow, by any means, that merely because he is not our equal, that, therefore, he should be a slave. * * * "If the people of Kansas want a slave State, they have a right, under the Constitution of the United States, to form such a State, and I will let them come into the Union with slavery or with- out, as they determine. If the people of any other Territory desire slavery, let them have it. If they do not want it, let them prohibit it. It is their business, not mine. It is none of our business in Illinois whether Kansas is a free State or a slave State. * * * I assert that this Goverumeut can exist as they (the fathers) made it, divided into free and slave States, if any one State chooses to retain slavery. "lie (Lincoln) says that he looks forward to a time when slavery shall be abolished everywhere. " * * I look forward to a time when each State shall be allowed to do as it pleases. If it chooses to keep slavery forever, it is none of my business, but its own; if it chooses to abolish slavery, it is its own business — not mine. I care more for the great principle of self government, the right of the people to rule, than I do for all the negroes in Christendom. I would not endan- ger the perpetuity of the Union, I would not blot THE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. 79 out the great inalienable rights of the white men for all the negroes that ever existed. Hence, I sa}', let us maintain this Government on the prin- ciples that our fathers made it, recognizing the right of each State to keep slavery as long as its people determine, or to abolish it when they please. * * * "His (Lincoln's) idea is that he will prohibit slavery in all the Territories and thus force them all to become free States, surrounding the slave States with a cordon of free States and hemming them in, keeping the slaves confined to their pres- ent limits whilst they go on multiplying until the soil on which they live will no longer feed them, and he will thus be able to put slavery in a course of ultimate extinction b}^ starvation. * * * He intends to do that in the name of humanity and Christianity, in order that we tnay get rid of the terrible crime and sin entailed upon our fath- ers of holding slaves. * * * i ask. you to look into these things, and then tell me whether the Democrac}^ or the Abolitionists are right. I hold that the people of a Territory, like those of a State (I use the language of Mr. Buchanan in his letter of acceptance) have the right to decide for themselves whether slavery shall or shall not ex- ist within their limits. * * * My friends, if, as I have said before, we will only live up to this great fundamental principle, there will be peace between the North and South." Mr. Lincoln said: "You have heard him (Doug- 80 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. las) frequently allude to mj controversy with him in regard to the Declaration of Independence. * * "It may be, argued that there are certain con- ditions that make necessities and impose them upon us, and to the extent that a necessity is im- posed upon a man he must submit to it. I think that was the condition in which we found ourselves when we established this Government. We had slaves among us, we could not get our Constitu- tion unless we permitted them to remain in slav- er3% we could not secure the good we did secure if we grasped for more; and having by necessity submitted to that much it does not destroy the principle that that is the charter of our liberties. Let the charter remain as our standard. * * * "I think the authors of that notable instru- ment intended to include all men, but they did not mean to declare all men equal in all respects. They did not mean to sa^^ all men were equal in color, size, intellect, moral development or social capacity. They defined with tolerable distinctness in what they did consider all men created equal — equal in certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This they said, and this they meant. They did not mean to assert the obvious untruth, that all were then actually enjoying that equality, or jet, that they were about to confer it immediately upon them. In fact, they had no power to confer such a boon. They meant simply to declare the right so that the enforcement of it might follow as fast as circumstances should permit. They meant to THE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. 81 set up a standard maxim for free society which should be familiar to all; constantly looked to, constantly labored for, and even, though never perfectly attained, constantly approximated, and thereby constantly spreading and deepening its influence and augmenting the happiness and value of life to all people, of all colors, everywhere. * * "I assert that Judge Douglas and all his friends may search the whole records of the country, and it will be a matter of great astonishment to me if they shall be able to find that one human being three years ago had ever uttered the astounding sentiment that the term "all men" in the Declara- tion did not include the negro. Do not let me be misunderstood. I know that more than three years ago there were men who, finding this asser- tion constantl^^ in the way of their schemes to bring about the ascendenc}^ and perpetuation of slavery, denied the truth of it. I know that Mr. Calhoun and all the politicians of his school denied the truth of the Declaration. I know that it ran along in the mouth of some Southern men for a period of years, ending at last in that shameful though rather forcible declaration of Pettit of Indiana, upon the floor of the United States Sen- ate, that the Declaration of Independence was in that respect 'a self evident lie,' rather than a self evident truth. But I say, with a perfect knowledge of all this hawking at the Declaration without directly attacking it, that three jears ago there never had lived a man who had ventured to assail it in the sneaking way of pretending to believe it 82 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. and then asserting it did not include the negro. I believe the first man who ever said it was Chief Justice Tanej in the Dred Scott case, and the next to him was our friend Stephen A. Douglas. And now it has become the catchword of the entire party. I would like to call upon his friends every- where to consider how they have come in so short a time to view this matter in a wa^^ so entirely different from their former belief? to ask whether they are not being borne along by an irresistible current — whither, they know not? * * * "Hear what Mr. Cla}^^ said: 'It is a general declaration in the act announcing to the World the independence of the thirteen American Colo- nies, that all men are created equal. Now as an abstract principle, there is no doubt of the truth of that declaration; and it is desirable, in the original construction of society; and in organized societies, to keep it in view as a great fundamental principle. * * * i desire no concealment of my opinions in regard to the institution of slavery. I look upon it as a great evil, and deeply lament that we have derived it from the parental Govern- ment, and from our ancestors. But here they are, and the question is, how can they be best dealt with? If a state of nature existed, and we were about to lay the foundations of society, no man would be more strongly opposed than I should be, "Henry Clay, lawyer, orator and statesman, was born in Vir- ginia in 1777; died at Washington, D. C, 1852. In 1797 he removed to Lexington, Kentucky. In 1799, when the people of Kentucky were about adopting a State constitution. Clay urged them (but without success) to abolish slavery. He entered Congress in 1806, and continued in public life from that time until his death. THE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. 83 to incorporating the institution of slavery among its elements.' "What have I done, that I have not the license of Henry Clay's illustrious example here in doing? Have I done aught that I have not his authority for, while maintaining that in organizing new Ter- ritories and societies, this fundamental principle should be regarded, and in organized society hold- ing it up to the public view and recognizing what he recognized as the great principle of free govern- ment? And when this new principle — this new proposition that no human being ever thought of three 3^ears ago — is brought forw^ard, I combat it as having an evil tendency, if not an evil design. I combat it as having a tendency to dehumanize the negro — to take away from him the right of ever striving to be a man. I combat it as being one of the thousand things constantly done in these days to prepare the public mind to make property, and nothing but property, of the negro in all the States of this Union. * * * "The principle upon which I have insisted in this canvass, is in relation to laying the founda- tions of new societies. It is nothing but a misera- ble perversion of what I have said, to assume that I have declared Missouri, or any other slave State, shall emancipate her slaves. I have proposed no such thing. But when Mr. Clay says that in laying the foundations of societies in our Territories where it does not exist, he would be opposed to the introduction of slavery as an element, I insist that we have his warrant — his license for insisting 84 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. upon the exclusion of that element which he de- clared in such strong and emphatic language was most hateful to him. * * * "We are now far into the fifth year since a policy was initiated with the avowed object and confident promise of putting an end to the slavery agitation. Under the operation of this policy, that agitation has not only not ceased, but has con- stantly augmented. In my opinion, it will not cease until a crisis shall have been reached and passed. 'A house divided against itself cannot stand.' I believe this Government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it, and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction, or its advocates will push it forward till it shall become alike lawful in all the States — old as well as new, North as well as South. * * * "I entertain the opinion upon evidence suffi- cient to my mind, that the fathers of this Govern- ment placed that institution where the public mind did rest in the belief that it was in the course of ultimate extinction. Let me ask wli}^ the}^ made provision that the source of slaver}^ — the African slave trade — should be cut off at the end of twenty years ?^ VChy did they make provision that in all the new territory we owned at that time, slavery *See Constitution, Section 9 of Article I, THE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. 85 should be forever inhibited ?^ Why stop its spread in one direction and cut off its source in another, if they did not look to its being placed in the course of ultimate extinction? * * * "Language is used (in the Constitution) not suggesting that slavery existed or that the black race were among us. And I understand the con- temporaneous history of those times to be that covert language was used with a purpose, and that purpose was that our Constitution, w^hich it was hoped and is still hoped will endure forever — w^hen it should be read by intelligent and patriotic men, after the institution of slavery had passed from among us — there should be nothing on the face of the great charter of liberty suggesting that such a thing as negro slavery had ever existed among us. This is part of the evidence that the fathers of the Government expected and intended the insti- tution of slavery to come to an end. They ex- pected and intended that it should be in the course of ultimate extinction. * * * "We might, by arresting the further spread of it, and lilacing it where the fathers originally placed it, rest in the belief that it was in the course of ultimate extinction. Thus the agitation may cease. * * * "It is not true that our fathers, as Judge Doug- las assumes, made this Government part slave and part free. Understand the sense in which he puts it. He assumes that slavery is a rightful thing »North-Western Territory. See Ordinance of 1787, for prohibi- tion of slavery in that Territory. 86 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. within itself — was introduced by the framers of the Constitution. The exact truth is, that they found the institution existing among us, and they left it as they found it. But in making the Govern- ment they left this institution with many clear marks of disapprobation upon it. They found slavery among them, and they left it among them because of the difficulty — the absolute impossibil- ity of its immediate removal. And when Judge Douglas asks me cannot we let it remain jjart slave and part free, as the fathers made it, he asks a question based upon an assumption which is of itself a falsehood; and I turn upon him and ask him the question, when the policy that the fathers of the Government had adopted in relation to this element among us was the best policy in the world — the only wise policy — the only policy that we can ever safely continue upon— that will ever give us peace, unless this dangerous element masters us all and becomes a national institution — I turn upon him and ask him why he could not leave it alone. I turn and ask him why he was driven to the necessity of introducing a new policy in regard to it. He has himself said he introduced a new policy.^^ * * * j have proposed noth- ing more than a return to the policy of the fathers. * * * "The Judge alludes very often in the course of his remarks to the exclusive right which the States have to decide the whole thing for themselves. I agree with him very readily that the different loKansas-Nebraska Bill, in 1854. THE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE. 87 States have that right. He is but fighting a mau of straw when he assumes that I am contending against the right of the States to do as they please about it. Our controversy with him is in regard to the new Territories. We have no power as citi- zens of the free States or in our federal capacity as members of the Federal Union through the General Government, to disturb slavery in the States where it exists. * * * "The real issue in this controversy — the one pressing upon every mind — is the sentiment on the part of one class that looks upon the institution of slavery as a wrong and of another class that does not look upon it as a wrong. * * * "On this subject of treating it as a wrong and limiting its spread, let me say a word. Has any- thing ever threatened the existence of this Union save and except this very institution of slavery? What is it that we hold most dear among us? Our own liberty and prosperity. What has ever threatened our libert}^ and prosperity, save and except this institution of slavery? If this is true, how do you propose to improve the condition of things by enlarging slavery — by spreading it out and making it bigger? * * * That is no prop- er way of treating what you regard a w^rong. You see this peaceful way of dealing with it as a wrong — restricting the spread of it, and not allowing it to go into new countries where it has not already existed. That is the peaceful wa^^, the old fash- ioned way, the way in which the fathers them- selves set us the example. * * * 88 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. "Judge Douglas contends that whatever com- inunit}' wants slaves has a right to have them. So they have if it is not a wrong. But if it is a wrong, he cannot say people have a right to do wrong. He says that upon the score of equality, slaves should be allowed to go in a new Territory, like other property. This is strictly logical if there is no difference between it and other property. If it and other propert}^ are equal, his argument is entirely logical. But if you insist that one is wrong and the other right, there is no use to insti- tute a comparison between right and wrong. * * "That is the real issue. That is the issue that will continue in this country when these poor tongues of Judge Douglas and m^'self shall be silent. It is the eternal struggle between these two principles — right and wrong — throughout the world. They are the two principles that have stood face to face from the beginning of time; and will ever continue to struggle. The one is the common right of humanity and the other the divine right of kings. It is the same i^rinciple in what- ever shape it develops itself. It is the same spirit that says, 'You work and toil and earn bread, and I'll eat it.' No matter in what shape it conies, whether from the mouth of a king who seeks to bestride the people of his own nation and live by the fruit of their labor, or from one race of men as an apology for enslaving another race, it is the same tyrannical principle." THE NEW CHAMPION OF FREEDOM. 89 CHAPTER III. THE NEW CHAMPION OF FREEDOM. Those words, of Abraham Lincoln, will go ring- ing down the ages as long as liberty and free gov- ernment have an existence. His argument was made In the light of a broad humanity; in the light of the true sense of tlie Declaration of Inde- pendence; in the light of the Constitution and the history of the formation of our Government. His logic was unanswerable. He spoke with the vision of a prophet, — as one having authority. We may well inquire, Who was this new and powerful champion of freedom? Was he of the blood royal? Was he born in .a palace? Neither. Born in a cabin of poor and humble parents,^^ raised amid the surroundings of hardship and pov- erty incident to a new country; self educated. Product of the unexhausted West. "Nothing of Europe here. New birth of our new soil." A stalwart man imbued with the spirit of liberty to all mankind; and, — "Limbed like the old heroic breeds, Who stands self-poised on manhood's solid earth, Not forced to frame excuses for his birth, Fed from within with all the strength he needs."^= This new man Providence raised up for a great "Abraham Lincoln was born in Hardin County, Kentucky, Feb- ruary 12, 1809. In 1816 the Lincoln family moved to Spencer County, Indiana; and, in 1S30, to Illinois. In 1834 Abraham Lincoln began the study of law, and in 1S37, began its practice in Springfield, 111., where he remained until he became President of the United States iri ISfil. He was re-elected President in 1864. Assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, April 14, 1865, . at Washington, D. C, and died the following day. •-From Lowell's "Commemoration Ode," 90 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. purpose. That purpose was to lead the Nation through an irrepressible conflict, — a conflict be- tween two antagonistic civilizations, — that the de- mands of the Higher Law, upon which the Declara- tion was based, might be fulfilled. Under him freedom, everywhere, was to receive a new impe- tus — a new baptism, and finally to be triumphant. He Avas taking up the great work begun and car- ried forward by a Garrison, a Phillips and others, who, for many years, had been battling for the rights of man in educating the conscience of the Nation. These re-enforced by Charles Sumner,^"' William H. Seward and others in Congress. He was destined, under Providence, to finish the work they had so well begun and carried forward. This is the man who was to lead the Reijublic through the fiery furnace of war, and at last to receive the veneration of a grateful people, and the homage of kings and emperors. The aristocracy of the South had no love for such a man. He was not of their kind. His blows against slavery were felt; and no man had made ^^Charles Sumner was born in Boston, Mass., January 6 1811. Graduated at Harvard College and Cambridge Law School' Ad- mitted to the bar, 1831. Delivered his first great oration, on the "True Grandeur of Nations," at Boston July 4, 1S45; and his first anti-slavery speech, 1S50. On the death of Judge Story of the Supreme Court of the United States, in 1845, was offered the vacant seat, but declined. In the winter of 1851 was elected to the Senate of the United States from Massachusetts, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Daniel Webster; retained that position until his death, March 11, 1874. Of Sumner, Senator George F. Hoar, himself a statesman of large ability, wrote in 1894: "If we judge him by the soundness of his principles, by the wisdom of his measures, bv his power to com- mand the support of the people, by the great public results he ac- complished, there is no statesman of his time to be named in the same breath with him. save Abraham Lincoln. * * * His figure will abide in History like that of St. Michael in Art, an emblem of celestial purity, of celestial zeal, of celestial courage. It will go down to immortality with its foot upon the dragon of Slavery and with the sword of the spirit in its hand, but with a tender light in Us eye, and a human love in its smile." THE NEW CHAMPION OF FREEDOM. 91 SO profound an impression on the conscience of the Nation, as to the wrong of slavery and its relation to the Government, as he. He stripped the slaveholders' pretenses naked; and alarmed them when he said, " 'A house divided against itself cannot stand.' I believe this Government cannot endure permanently^ half slave and half free. I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other. Either the oppo- nents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it, and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction, or its advocates will push it forward till it shall become alike lawful in all the States — old as well as new. North as well as South." It was evident that the course of events was tending towards one or the other of these alter- natives, and had been for several years. It was almost certain to "become all one thing or all the other." The slave j^ower had been encouraged to believe that slavery would become a national in- stitution by the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, and later, 1857, by the decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the Dred Scott case, wherein Chief Jus- tice Taney^^ announced that the Missouri Compro- '*Roger Brooke Taney was born in Maryland, March 17, 1777. Admitted to tlie bar as a lawyer in 1799. He served in the Senate and Assembly of Maryland. Appointed Attorney General of the United States in 1S31, and Secretary of the Treasury in 1S33. He was appointed Chief Justice of the United States on the death of Judge Marshall, and took his seat as such in January, 1S37, and remained in that office until his death, in the city of Washington, on October 12, 1864, when his place was filled by Salmon P. Chase, of Ohio, who was appointed by President Lincoln. 92 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. mise of 1820, was unconstitutional and, therefore, null and void from its beginning; and that slave- holders had the right to take their slaves with them into any State or Territory of the Union, the same as horses and cattle, without impairing their rights thereto. And now, with this encourage- ment, the slave power bent all its energies to make slavery a national institution. On the other hand the power of Freedom had been so thoroughly aroused by the course of events and the aggres- siveness of the slave power, that it exerted all its power to preserve the rights of freedom under the Declaration and the Constitution. In speaking of this struggle, William H. Sew- ard^ ^ of New York said, in the United States Sen- ate, 1854: "Come on, then, gentlemen of the slave States; since there is no escaping your challenge, ^^^William H. Seward was born in Florida, N. Y., May 16, 1801. Became eminent as a lawyer, statesman, and diplomat. Was elected Governor of New York, 1S3S; re-elected, 1840. Elected U. S. Senator, 1849; re-elected, 1&55. Apponiied Secretary of State by President Lincoln, immediately after his first inauguration. He filled that important office with great ability until after the close of the Civil War. Died October 10, 1872. Mr. Seward boldly denounced the slave power, and was an ardent defender of Freedom. He originated the two famous phrases, "the higher law" and "the irrepressible conflict." They were denounced by the advocates of slavery, but were caught up as the symbols of the political faith of the advocates of freedom. He used the phrase "the higher law" in a speech delivered in the Senate, March 11, 1850, upon the admission of California into the Union. He said in part: "The Constitution devotes the do- main to union, to justice, to defense, to welfare, and to liberty. But there is a 'higher law' than the Constitution, which regulates our authority over the domain, and devotes it to the same noble purposes." The phrase "irrepresible conflict" is found in a speech deliv- ered at Rochester, N. Y., October 25, 1S58, in the following con- nection: "It is an irrepressible conflict between opposing and en- during forces. It means that the United States must and will, sooner or later, become entirely a slaveholding nation or entirely a free labor nation. Either the cotton and rice fields of South Carolina and the sugar plantations of Louisiana will be ultimately tilled by free labor, and Charleston and New Orleans become marts for legitimate merchandise alone, or else the rye-fields and wheat-fields of Massachusetts and New York must again be sur- rendered by their farmers to slave culture and to the production of slaves, and Boston and New York become once more markets for trade in the bodies and souls of men." THE NEW CHAMPION OF FREEDOM. . 93 I accept it on behalf of Freedom. We will engage in competition for the virgin soil of Kansas, and God give the victory to the side that is stronger in numbers as it is in right." The slaveholders soon began to realize that when the power of Freedom exerted all its strength, that the power of Slavery in the Nation, to extend itself, was gone. They began to see the handwriting on the wall, — ^"Thoii hast been weighed in the balance and found wanting." They began to see power departing from them, and declared, in effect, "If we cannot get what we want in the Union we will leave it and build a nation of our own; for power we must have." This, however, they had threatened for nian^^ years. But soon they determined to carry out their threats. They were willing to sacrifice the Republic rather than lose their power. Khett, of South Car- olina, avowed that "the South must control the government or must fall." If our rights, as he assumed them to be, "are overthrown, let this be the last contest between the North and the South, and the long, weary night of our dishonor and humiliation be dispersed at last by the glorious dayspring of a Southern Confederacy." The slave power now boldl}' advocated the re- opening of the slave trade, although that trade is declared by law to be piracy. They denounced the opposition to that trade as "the sickly senti- ment of pretended philanthropy and diseased mental aberration of 'higher law fanatics'." 94 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORV. Jefferson Davis, in an address, in the autumn of 1859, denounced the hiw of 1820, which dechires the slave trade to be pirac}- ; and said that nothing could "justifj^ the government in branding as in- famous the source from which the chief part of the laboring population of the South is derived." He also declared that "servitude" was essential for the good of the black race; that slavery ought to be protected by law in the territories; that Cuba should be secured as being important for the inter- ests of a Southern Confederacy; and that the Union should be dissolved, if the republicans elect- ed their candidate on the platform of putting a stop to the further extension of slavery.^*' What a vast power Freedom had to contend against! — ^ A great slave oligarch}, based on four million slaves, valued at about two billion dollars, knit together in interest for the promotion of its power; and the tentacles of that power reaching far out into states and nations. That oligarchy had Freedom by the throat, trying to throttle it. The great question then was, AVould Freedom be able to shake it off and crush it? i^Duyckinck's "History of the World," Vol. 4, p. 232. CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 95 CHAPTER IV. CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. The great struggle between Freedom and Slav- ery, in Kansas, continued until finally Freedom was victorious, after a conflict — amounting to civil war, at times, — of five years or more. The slaveholding aristocracy was now more desperate than ever. The slaveholders had now come to the point where they saw that slavery would not be extended; that their power, once so great, was departing. When, therefore, in 1860, the elements com- posing the Democracy split on the slavery ques- tion and Abraham Lincoln was elected President, and thereby the South lost power, the slavehold- ing aristocracy made the election of Mr. Lincoln the pretext for conspiring against and attempting to destroy the Union. Before the election South- ern men threatened that in the event of the elec- tion of Mr. Lincoln the South would disrupt the Union. The Governor of Soutli Carolina just the day before his election formally recommended se- cession to the Legislature of that State "in event of Abraham Lincoln's election to the presidency." Soon after his election the United States Senators and Federal office holders for that State resigned their places. There was a general feeling among most of the leaders in the South that in case Mr. Lincoln was elected, secession w^ould and ought to take place; and so immediately thereafter prep- Oo A PHILOSOPHICAL HIStORV. arations were made in that direction, and a con- spiracy formed to destroy tlie Union. Secession was tallved openly, even in tlie halls of Congress. Senator Iverson, of Georgia, rose in his seat in the Senate of the United States,^ ^ and, with cool defiance, said: "We intend, Mr. President, to go out peaceably if we can, forcibly if we must; but I do not believe, with the Senator from New Hampshire (Mr. Hale), that there is going to be any war. If five or eight States go out, they will necessarily draAv all the other Southern States after them. That is a consequence that nothing can prevent. If five or eight States go out of this Union, I should like to see the man who would propose a declaration of war against them, or attempt to force them into obedience to the Federal Government at the point of the bayo- net or the sword. If one State alone was to go out, unsustained by her sister States, possibly war might ensue, and there might be an attempt made to coerce her, and that would give rise to civil war; but, sir, South Carolina is not to go out alone. In my opinion, she will be sustained by all her Southern sisters. They may not all go out immediately, but they will, in the end, join South Carolina in this important movement; and we shall, in the next twelve months, have a confed- eracy of the Southern States, and a government inaugurated and in successful operation, which, in my opinion, will be a government of the great- est prosperity and power the world has ever seen." "December 5, 1860. CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 97 History records that early in January, 1861, wliile only South Carolina had actually seceded from the Union, though other Southern States had called conventions to consider the question, the United States Senators of the seven slave. States farthest south practically assumed control of the whole movement, and their energy and unswerv- ing singleness of purpose, aided by the telegraph, secured a rapidity of execution to which no other very extensive conspiracy of history can afford a parallel. The cardinal object of these Senators Avas to hurry the formation of a new national gov- ernment, as an organized political reality which would rally the outright secessionists, claim the allegiance of the doubtful, and coerce those who still remained recalcitrant. At the head of this senatorial conspiracy, and of its executive com- mittee, was Jefferson Davis,^^ Senator from Mis- sissippi, and naturally the first official step toward the fortnation of a new government came from the Mississippi Legislature, where a committee report- ed, January 19th, 1861, resolutions in favor of a congress of delegates from the seceding States to provide for a Southern Confederacy. The other seceding States at once accepted the proposal, through their State conventions, which also ap- ^sjefferson Davis was born in Kentucky, ISOS; but brought up in Mississippi, of wliich State his father, a planter and a Revo- lutionary officer, became a resident while it was a Territory. Graduate United States Military Academy, 1S28. Was colonel of a regiment in the Mexican War. Appointed United States Senator by the Governor of Mississippi, in 1S47: twice re-elected to the same position. Appointed Secretary of War by President Pierce in 1853. Went back into the United States Senate at the close of Pierce's administration, where he remained until he left it to become President of the Southern Confederacy in February, 1861. Died, loSd. 98 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. pointed the delegates on the ground that the peo- ple had entrusted the State conventions with un- limited powers. These delegates^ ^ met at Mont- gomery, Alabama, and, on the 8th day of February, 1861, organized the Southern Confederacy. Thtis organized, they, and others, bent all their energies, from this time on, to induce the remain- ing eight slave States to secede from the Union and join the Confederacy. In this, however, they were onlj- partially successful.-" There was one notable exception to the idea that the South ought to withdraw from the Union in case Mr. Lincoln was elected. Alexander H. Stephens,-^ one of the ablest men of Georgia, was opposed to it. In a speech deliv- ered November 14, 1860, in the Hall of the House of Representatives of Georgia, at the request of members of the Legislature, he said in part: "The "From the States of South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Ala- bama, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. =»Four more slave States joined the Confederacy soon after the firing on Fort Sumter, April 12, 1S61, namely: Arkansas, North Car- olina, Tennessee and Virginia— except West Virginia. The remain- ing four slave States— Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Mis- souri — did not secede. 21 Alexander H. Stephens was born in Taliaferro County, Georgia, February 11, 1S12. Educated at Franklin College, by the aid of kind friends attracted to him by the quickness of his parts; gradu- ated, 1832. Admitted to the bar and practiced his profession with great success. From 1837 to 1842 he was a member of the Georgia Legislature, and in 1848 he was elected to the lower House of Congress as a candidate of the old Whig party; but when that party went down he took refuge in the Union wing of Southern Democ- racy. He soon attained distinction in Congress as a sound thinker, and a skillful and eloquent debater. It was as lawyer, legislator, and orator that he won his reputation. The cast of his mind was deliberative and argumentative. He had but little executive ability, or power to lead men into action. He was the antithesis of Jeffei-son Davis. Stephens was elected Vice-President of the Southern Confederacy because the uncompromising secessionists thought, by placing him in that position, he would attract to the new government the men of moderate views, who were still at- tached to the Union. After the close of the Civil War he re-en- tered Congress, 1872. Author of two works on the Civil War. Died March 4. 1883. CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 99 first question that presents itself is, Shall the peo- ple of the South secede from the Union in conse- quence of the election of Mr. Lincoln to the presi- dency of the United States? In my judgment, the election of no man, constitutionally chosen to that high office, is sufficient cause for any State to sep- arate from the Union. It ought to stand by and aid still in maintaining the Constitution of the country. To make a point of resistance to the (Jovernment, to withdraw from it because a man has been constitutionally elected, puts us in the wrong. We are pledged to maintain the Constitu- tion. Many of us have sworn to support it. Can we, therefore, for the mere election of a man to the presidency, and that, too, in accordance with the prescribed forms of the Constitution, make a point of resifetance to the Government, withdraw ourselves from it, without becoming the breakers of that sacred instrument ourselves? Would we not be in the wrong? Whatever fate is to befall this country, let it never be laid to the charge of the people of the South, and especially to the people of Georgia, that we are untrue to our na- tional engagements. Let the fault and the Avrong rest upon others. If all our hopes are to be blast- ed, if the Republic is to go down, let us be found to the last moment standing on the deck, with the Constitution of the United States waving over our heads. Let the fanatics of the North break the Constitution, if such is their fell purpose. Let the responsibility be upon them. But let not the South, let us not be the ones to commit the aggres- 100 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. sion. We went into the election with this people. The result was different from what we wished; but the election has been constitutionally held. Were we to make a point of resistance to the Gov- ernment and go out of the Union on that account, the record would be made up hereafter against us. * * * That this government of our fathers, with all its defects, comes nearer the objects of all good governments than any other on the face of the earth, is my settled conviction. * * * Where will you go, following the sun in his circuit round the globe, to find a government that better protects the liberties of the peojjle and secures to them the blessings that we enjoy? I think that one of the evils that besets us is a surfeit of liberty, an exuberance of the priceless blessings for which we are ungrateful. * * * Have we not at the South as well as the North grown great and happy under its operation? Has any part of the world ever shown such rapid progress in the develop- ment of wealth, and all the material resources of power and greatness, as the Southern States have under the general government?" How prophetic the words, "the record would be made up hereafter against us." Indeed, the record has been made up against them. The same opinions were reiterated by Mr. Ste- phens at the Georgia Secession Convention held in January, 1861, less than a month before he accepted the vice-presidency of the Confederacy whose formation he had persistently opposed. In this speech he said: "This step (of secession) once CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 101 taken can never be recalled; and all the baleful and withering consequences that must follow, will rest on the Convention for all coming time. When we and our posterity shall see our lovely South desolated by the demon of war, which this act of 3^ours will inevitably invite and call forth; when our green fields of waving harvest shall be trod- den down by the murderous soldiery and fiery car of war sweeping over our land; our temples of justice laid in ashes; all the horrors and desolations of war upon us; who but this Con- vention will be held responsible for it? And who but him who shall have given his vote for this unwise and illtimed measure, as I honestly think and believe, shall be held to strict account for this suicidal act by the present generation, and probably cursed and execrated by posterity for all coming time, for the wide and desolating ruin that will inevitably follow this act you now pro- pose to perpetrate? Pause, T entreat you, and consider for a moment what reasons you can give that will ever satisfy yourselves in calmer mo- ments — what reasons you can give to your fellow sufferers in the calamity that it will bring upon us. What reasons can you give to the nations of the earth to justify it? They will be the calm and deliberate judges in the case; and what cause or one overt act can you name or point on which to rest the plea of justification? What right has the North assailed? What interest of the South has been invaded? What justice has been denied? and what claim founded in justice and right has 102 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. been withheld? Can either of you to-day name one governmental act of wrong, deliberately and purposel}' done b^^ the government of Washington, of which the Hoiith has a right to complain? I challenge the answer. While on the other hand let me show the facts (and believe me, gentlemen, I am not here the advocate of the North; but I am here the friend, the firm friend, and lover of the South and her institutions, and for this reason I speak thus plainly and faithfully for yours, mine, and ever^^ other man's interest, the words of truth and soberness), of which I wish you to judge, and I will only state facts which are clear and undeniable, and which now stand as records authentic in the history of our country. When we of the South demanded the slave-trade, or the im- portation of Africans for the cultivation of our lauds, did they not yield the right for twenty 3 ears?-- When we asked a three-fifth representa- tion in Congress for our slaves, was it not grant- ed ?^^ When we asked and demanded the return of any fugitive from justice, or the recover}^ of those persons owing labor or allegiance, was it not incorporated in the Constitution,-^ and again ratified and strengthened by the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850? But do you reply that iu many instances they have violated this compact, and have not been faithful to their engagements? As individuals and local communities, they may have done so; but not by the sanction of the Govern- --See Section 9, Article I, of the Constitution. -"See Section 2, Article I, of the Constitution. "*See Section 2, Article IV, of the Constitution. CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 103 merit; for that has always been true to Southern interests. Again, gentlemen, look at another act; when we have asked that more territory should be added, that we might spread the institution of slavery, have they not yielded to our demands in giving us Louisiana, Florida, and Texas, out of which four States have been carved, and ample territory' for four more to be added in time, if you b}^ this unwise and impolitic act do not destroy this hope, and perhaps, by it lose all, and have your last slave wrenched from you by stern mili- tary rule, as South America and Mexico were; or by the vindictive decree of a universal emancipa- tion which may reasonably be expected to follow? "But again, gentlemen, what have we to gain b}^ this proposed change of our relation to the G-eneral Government? We have always had con- trol of it, and can yet, if we remain in it, and are as united as we have been. We have had a ma- jority of the Presidents chosen from the South; as well as the control and management of most of those chosen from the North. We have had sixty years of Southern Presidents to their twenty- four, thus controlling the Executive department. So of the Judges of the Supreme Court, we have had eighteen from the South and but eleven from the North; although nearly four-fifths of the judi- cial business has arisen in the Free States, yet a majority of the Court has always been from the South. This we have required so as to guard against any interpretation of the Constitution un- favorable to us. In like manner we have been 104 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. equally watchful to guard our interests in the Legislative branch of Government. In choosing the presiding Presidents (pro tern.) of the Senate, we have had twenty-four to their eleven. Speakers of the House we have had twenty-three, and they twelve. While the majority of the Representa- tives, from their greater population, have always been from the North, yet we have so generally secured the Speaker, because he, to a great extent, shapes and controls the legislation of the countr3^ Nor have we had less control in ever^^ other de- partment of the General Government. Attorney' Generals we have had fourteen, while the North have had but five. Foreign ministers we have had eighty-six, and they but fifty-four. While three- fourths of the business which demands diplomatic agents abroad is clearly from the Free States, from their greater commercial interest, yet we have had the principal embassies so as to secure the world markets for our cotton, tobacco, and sugar on the best possible terms. We have had a vast majority of the higher officers of both army and navy, while a larger proportion of the soldiers and sailors were drawn from the North. Equally so of Clerks, Auditors, and Comptrollers filling the executive department, the records show for the last fifty years that of the three thousand thus employed, we have had more than two-thirds of the same, while we have but one-third of the white population of the Republic. "Again, look at another item, and one, be as- sured, in which we have a great and vital interest; CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 105 it is that of revenue, or means of supporting Gov- ernment. From official documents, we learn that a fraction over three-fourths of the revenue col- lected for the support of the Government has uni- formly been raised from the North. "Pause now, while 3'ou can, gentlemen, and contemplate carefully and candidly these impor- tant items. Look at another necessary branch of Goverument. I mean the mail and postoffice priv- ileges. The expense for the transportation of the mail in the Free States was, by the report of the Postmaster General for the year 18G0, a little over 113,000,000, while the income was |19,000,000. But in the Slave States the transportation of the mail was .fl4,71(),000, while the revenue from the same was $8,001,026, leaving a deficit of |(),704,9T4, to be supplied by the North for our accommoda- tion, and without it we must have been entirely cut off from this most essential branch of Govern- ment. "Leaving out of view, for the present, the count- less millions of dollars you must expend in a war with the North, with tens of thousands of your sons and brothers slain in battle, and offered up as sacrifices' upon the altar of your ambition — and for what, we ask again? Is it for the overthrow of the American Government, established by our common ancestry, cemented and built up by their sweat and blood, and fouuded on the broad prin- ciples of liight. Justice and Humanity? And, as such, I must declare here, as I have often done before, and which has been repeated by the great- 106 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. est and wisest statesmen and patriots in this and other lands, that it is the best and freest Gov- ernment — the most equal in its rights, the most just in its decisions, tlie most lenient in its meas- ures, and the most aspiring in its principles to elevate the race of man, that the sun of heaven ever shone upon. Now, for you to attempt to over- throAV such a government as this, under which we have lived for more than three-quarters of a cen- tury — in which we have gained our wealth, our standing as a nation, our domestic safetj- w^hile the elements of peril are around us, with peace and tranquillity accompanied with unbounded prosperity and rights unassailed — is the height of madness, folly, and wickedness, to which I can neither lend my sanction nor my vote." No man, in the South, so clearly understood the situation as Mr. Stephens. His words were prophetic. Although he was a slaveholder, and a firm be- liever in slavery, yet he was a strong friend of the Union and felt that it was no light matter to sever that Union. His birth and early training had much to do with this friendship for the Union. He represented the conservative Union men of the South. He was born of humble parents and reared in comparative poverty. By his own inherent powers he had raised himself to the rank of a statesman, and no man stood higher in the South than he — with the great mass of the people. It may be truly said that he represented the common people and CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 107 was the great "Commoner" of the South, as Thad- deiis Stevens was of the North. But he was overpowered in his views by the aristocracy of his State, — by menaces and in other ways, — by such men as Toombs,-^ Cobb, and oth- ers who were determined, right or wrong, to over- throw the Eepublic; and finally, he gave in his adhesion to the Confederacy and became its Vice- President. In contrast with Mr. Stephens, I now refer to the tyi)ical aristocrat of the South— Jefferson Da- vis, of Mississippi, then a member of the Senate of the United States from that State. In January, ISGl, he arose in his seat and addressed the Senate and said: "I rise, Mr. President, for the purpose of announcing to the Senate that I have satisfac- tory evidence that the State of Mississippi, by a solemn ordinance of her people in convention as- sembled, has declared her separation from the United States. Under these circumstances, of course, mj functions are terminated here. * * * The occasion does not invite me to go into argu- ment. * * * And yet it seems to become me to say something on the part of the State I here represent, on an occasion so solemn as this. It is known to Senators who have served with me here, that I have for many years advocated as an 25Robert Toombs, born in Washington, Georgia, ISIO. Graduate Union College, New York, 182S. Admitted tc the bar, 1830. Served in the Georgia Legislature: in Congress from 1S44 to 1S53, when he was elected United States Senator, retiring on secession of Georgia. He was a Southern fire-eater of a pronounced type, and an un- compromising Secessionist. Became Secretary of State of Southern Confederacy, and Brigadier General. Never accepted the general amnesty offered by the Government of the United States to the rebels at the close of Civil War. Died December 15, 1885. 108 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. essential attribute of State sovereignty, the right of a State to secede from the Union. Therefore, if I had not believed there was justifiable cause; if I had thought that Mississippi was acting with- out sufficient provocation, or without any existing necessity, I should still, under my theory of the Government, because of my allegiance to the State of which I am a citizen, have been bound by her action. I, however, may be permitted to say that I do think she has justifiable cause and I approve of her act. I conferred with her people before that act w^as taken, counseled them then that if the state of things which they apprehended should exist when the convention met, they should take the action they have now adopted. * * * i therefore say I concur in the action of the people of Mississippi, believing it to be necessary and proper, and should have been bound by their action if my belief had been otherwise. * * * ^/^ State finding herself in the condition in which Mississippi has judged she is; in which her safety requires that she should provide for the mainte- nance of her rights out of the Union, surrenders all the benefits (and they are known to be many), deprives herself of the advantages (they are known to be great), severs all the ties of affection (and they are close and enduring) which have bound her to the Union; and thus divesting herself of every benefit, taking upon herself every burden, she claims to be exempt from any power to execute the laws of the United States within her limits. * * "It has been a conviction of pressing necessity, CONSPIRACY AND SECESSION. 109 it has been a belief that we are to be deprived in the Union, of the rights which our fathers be- queathed to us, which has brought Mississippi into her present decision. She has heard proclaimed the theory that all men are created free and equal, and this made the basis of an attack on her social institutions; and the sacred Declaration of Inde- pendence has been invoked to maintain the posi- tion of the equality of the races. * * * When our Constitution was formed, they were not put upon the footing of equality with white men — not even upon that of paupers and convicts, but so far as representation was concerned, were discrim- inated against as a lower caste only to be repre- sented in a numerical proportion of three-fifths. "Then, Senators, we recur to the compact which binds us together; we recur to the principles upon which our government was founded; and when you deny them, and when you deny to us, the right to withdraw from a government which thus prevented, threatens to be destructive of our rights, we but tread in the path of our fathers when we proclaim our independence, and take the hazard. This is done not in hostility to others, not to injure an^^ section of the country, not even for our own pecuniary benefit, but from the high and solemn motive of defending and protecting the rights we inherited, and which it is our sacred duty to transmit unshorn to our children. "I find in myself, perhaps, a type of the general feeling of my constituents towards yours. I am sure I feel no hostility to you, Senators of the 110 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. North. * * * I therefore feel that I but ex- press their desire when I saj I hope, and the^^ hope for peaceful relations with you, though we must part. They may be mutually beneficial to us in the future as they have been in the past, if you so will it. The reverse may bring disaster on every portion of the country; and if you will have it thus, we will invoke the God of our fathers, who delivered them from the powxr of the lion, to pro- tect us from the ravages of the bear, and thus, putting our trust in God, and to our firm hearts and strong arms Ave will vindicate the right as best we may. "Mr. President and Senators, having made the announcement which the occasion seemed to me to require, it only remains for me to bid you a final adieu." What a spectacle was here presented! A Sen- ator of the United States, who had taken an oath to support its Constitution, rising in his place and solemnly declaring that he had counseled the dis- ruption of his country; and that whether he thought there was cause or no cause for his State withdrawing from the Union he would stand by her, — under the false claim that his allegiance to her was paramount to that of the Union. I think of but one parallel in history with this base betra^^al of country; and that is Catiline, a member of the Koman Senate, who formed and headed a conspiracy to destroy his country. Like Catiline, Davis conspired to destroy his country THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. Ill while he yet was in the Senate. But there was no Cicero^^ there to denounce him. CHAPTER V. THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACT. The conspiracy was carried out by the leaders of the South, of which Mr. Davis was chief, eleven States seceding from the Union^^ and forming a Confederacy, with a written Constitution, under the name of "The Confederate States of America," and chose Jefferson Davis of Mississippi, as their President, and Alexander 11. Stephens of Georgia, as their Vice President — the two representative types of the people of the South. The records of history show that the politicians of South Carolina, according to agreement, took the first step toward open rebellion. For that pur- pose, an extraordinary^ session of the Legislature was held at the time of the Presidential election, Nov. 6, 1800, and, soon after the result was known, 28Marcus Tullius Cicero, the greatest orator of Rome, and one of the most illustrious of her statesmen, was born at Arpinum, on the 3d of January, in the year 106 B. C. Cicero, while consul (63 B. C), frustrated the conspiracy of Catiline with great skill and prompt- ness. The history of this conspiracy is given by Sallust, the great Roman historian, in a remarkably clear, concise and nervous style. His account of it, however, does not do justice to Cicero. -"These were the following States, named in the order of their passing secession ordinances: South Carolina, December 20, 1860; Mississippi, January 9, 1861; Florida, January 10; Alabama, January 11; Georgia, January 19; Louisiana, January 26; Texas, February 1; Virginia, April 17: Arkansas, May 6; North Carolina, May 20; Tennessee, June 8. The first seven seceded before and the remaining four after the firing on Fort Sumter, April 12, 1861. The Confederacy was formed by the first seven on the 8th of February. 1860, at Montgomery, Alabama; the others joined it as soon as they passed ordinances of secession, although as a matter of fact many of the leaders in these States had been acting with it before that. 112 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. the Legislature authorized a convention of dele- gates, for the purpose of declaring the State sep- arated from the Union, and taking measures for maintaining what they called the "Sovereignty of South Carolina." The members of that Convention were chosen on the od of December, and the}^ met at Charleston. On the 20th day of December, 18G0, they adopted an Ordinance of Secession ;^^ and that evening, in the presence of the Governor and his council, the Legislature, and a vast concourse of citizens, it was signed in the great Hall of the South Carolina Institute, by one hundred and seventy of the members. On this historic occasion, a significant banner was hung back of the chair of the president of the convention. Upon it was represented an arch composed of fifteen stars (each indicating a slave- labor State) rising out of a heap of broken and disordered stones, representing the Free-labor States. The key-stone w^as South Carolina, on which stood a statue of John C. Calhoun. This banner was a declaration of the intention of the convention to destroy the Republic, and to erect upon its ruins an empire whose corner-stone should be slavery. Beneath the design on the banner were the words: "Built from the Buins."-^ -«This ordinance of secession reads as follows: "We, the people of South Carolina, in convention assembled, do declare and ordain, and it is hereby declared and ordained, that the ordinance adopted by us in convention, on the twenty-third day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand se\-en hundred and eighty-eight, whereby the Constitution of the United States was ratified, and also all Acts and parts of Acts of the General Assembly of the State, ratifying Amendments of the said Constitution, are hereby repealed, and the union now subsisting- between South Carolina and other States, under the name of the United States of America, is hereby dis- solved." ""Lossing's "The First Century of the United States." THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. 113 This action of Soutli Carolina was speedily imitated by the politicians, in the interest of the conspirators, in the other States which seceded from the Union. Mr. Stephens, now launched on the sea of rebel- lion, undertook to vindicate this new Government and its Constitution, in a speech delivered at Sa- vannah, Georgia, on the 21st day of March, 1861, which is all that need be said of them; for his attempted vindication, in the light of the truth, is their condemnation. "The new Constitution," said Mr. Stephens, "has put at rest forever all the agitating questions relating to our peculiar institutions — African slav- ery as it exists among us — the proper status of the negro in our form of civilization. This was the immediate cause of the late rupture and present revolution. Jefferson, in his forecast, had antici- pated this as the 'rock upon which the old Union would split.' He was right. What was conjecture with him, is now a realized fact. But whether he fully comprehended the great truth upon which tliat rock stood and stands, may be doubted. The prevailing ideas entertained by him and most of the leading statesmen at the time of the formation of the old Constitution (Constitution of the United States), were that the enslavement of the African was in violation of the laws of nature; that it was wrong in principle, socially, morally, and polit- ically. It was an evil they knew not well how to deal v\ith, but the general opinion of the men of that day was, that somehow or other, in the order 114 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. of Providence, the institution would be evanescent and pass away. This idea, though not incorpo- rated in the Constitution, was the prevailing idea at the time. The Constitution, it is true, secured every essential guarantee to the institution while it should last, and hence no argument can be justly used against the constitutional guarantees thus secured, because of the common sentiment of the day. Those ideas, however, were fundamentally wrong. They rested upon the assumption of the equality of races. This was an error. It was a sandy foundation, and the idea of a government built upon it; when the 'storm came and the wind blew, it fell.' "Our new Government is founded upon exactly the opposite idea; its foundations are laid, its corner-stone rests upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man. That slavery ■ — subordination to the superior race, is his natural and normal condition. This, our new Government, is the first, in the history of the world, based upon this great physical and moral truth. This truth has been slow in the process of its development, like all other truths in the various departments of science. It has been so even amongst us. Mau}^ who hear me, perhaps, can recollect well, that this truth was not generally admitted, even within their day. The errors of the past generation still clung to many as late as twenty years ago. Those at the North who still cling to these errors, with a zeal above knowledge, we justly denominate fanatics. * * * THE SOUTHERN CONFEDERACY. 115 "It is the first government ever instituted upon principles of strict conformity to nature, and the ordination of Providence, in furnishing the mate- rials of human society. Many governments have been founded upon the principle of certain class- es; but the classes thus enslaved, were of the same race, and in violation of the laws of nature. Our system commits no such violation of nature's laws. The negro, by nature, or by the curse against Canaan, is fitted for that condition which he occu- pies in our system. The architect, in the construc- tion of buildings, lays the foundation with the proper materials, the granite; then comes the brick or the marble. The substratum of our soci- ety is made of the material fitted by nature for it, and by experience we know that it is best, not only for the superior, but for the inferior race that it should be so. It is, indeed, in conformity with the ordinance of the Creator. It is not for us to inquire into the wisdom of His ordinances, or to question them. For Ilis own purposes He has made one race to differ from another, as He has made 'one star to differ from another star in glory.' "The great objects of humanitj^ are best at- tained when conformed to His laws and decrees, in the formation of governments, as well as in all things else. Our Confederacy is founded upon principles in strict conformity with these laws. This stone which was first rejected by the first builders 'is become the chief stone of the corner' in our new edifice. "The progress of disintegration in the old 116 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. Union may be expected to go on with almost abso- lute certainty. We are now the nucleus of a grow- ing power, which, if we are true to ourselves, our destin^^, and high mission, will become the con- trolling power on this continent. To what extent accessions will go on in the process of time, or where it w^ill end, the future will determine." CHAPTER VI. BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. From the time of the election of Mr. Lincoln, the conspirators used every effort to cripple the Government; and many of them held high posi- tions in the (jovernment, so that they were in a position to carry out their treasonable designs. President Buchanan"^ did nothing to foil the conspirators, some of whom were in his cabinet; neither did he make any effort to prevent" a dis- ruption of the Union, nor but little to protect the ^"James Buchanan was born in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, April 23, 1791. Educated at Dickenson College, where he graduated at the age of eighteen. In 18U9 he was admitted to tlie bai, ana was soon in successful practice. In 1814, when only twenty-three years of age, he was elected to a seat in the I^egisiature of Penn- .sylvania. This was his first prominent appeal ance in public life. In 1S15 he distinguished himself in his State Legislature as an op- ponent of the United States Bank, and became one of the fore- most men in the Democratic party. Elected to Congress in 1820, and there soon became distinguished as a speaker and debater. After ten years' service, he retired from Congress in 1S31 when President Jackson appointed him Minister to Russia. In 1S33 he was elected to the Ignited States Senate, where he served ten years. President Polk called him to his cabinet, as Secretary of State: and in 1849 he again retired to private life. In 1853 he was appointed Minister to England. In No\'ember, ISijfi, he was elected President of the United States by the Democratic party, and was inaugiu'ated as such March 4th, 18.57. At the close of his term, March 4th. ISfil, he retired to private life at his country seat, called "Wheatland," near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he died June 1, 186S. BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. lit property of the United States in the rebellious States; claiming that he did not have the power to do so. The conspirators, — who had been colleagues or were disciples of John C. Calhoun, — had been for years plotting treason against the Government of the United States. They were of one mind in re- gard to the overt act ; but they differed somewhat as to time and manner. Those of South Carolina who, by common sentiment, were expected to lead in the great movement, were anxious for imme- diate action, and when they found those of other sister slave-States hesitating, they resolved not to wait for their co-operation. For a while this question divided the secessionists, but it w^as soon settled by general co-operation. Everything was favorable to their plans. Three, if not four, of the leading conspirators were then members of Presi- dent Buchanan's cabinet, and the President him- self and his Attorney General (.Jeremiah S. Black,*^^ of Pennsylvania) were ready to declare,. and did declare, that the Constitution gave the President of the United States no powder to stay the arm of rebellion against the Government. Of the Pres- ident, Jacob Thompson,'^- of his cabinet, said: "Buchanan is the truest friend of the South I have ever known in the North. He is a jewel of a man.'-^" ^■Jeremiah S. Black was born in Pennsylvania, 1810. Attorney General under President Buchanan. In December, 1860, appointed Secretary of State by the President in place of Gen. Cass, resigned. Died, 1883. ^-Jacob Thompson was born in North Carolina, 1810. Secretary of the Interior under President Buchanan from March, 1857, to Jan- uary 7, 1861. Was one of the most active secessionists before and after the breaking out of the Civil War. Died, 1885. 33Autograph letter, November 20, 1860. 118 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, Howell Cobb of Georgia, Secretary of the Treas- ury, wished to hold back the blow until the close of Buchanan's term, but he was overruled by the other conspirators, who counted upon the Presi- dent's passive, if not active, sympathy with them.^'* During the four months intervening between the Presidential election, November 6, 1860, and the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln, March 4, 1861, those favoring secession in the South had practical control of their section, for while President Bu- chanan hesitated as to his constitutional powers and failed to perform his duty as the Executive of the Nation, the conspirators, who were in his cabinet and in the Senate, were aiding their South- ern friends in every practical way. These men, who had taken a solemn oath to support the Constitution of the United States, sat in their places in Washington, were paid by the Government of the United States to promote the best interests of that Government and of the Ke- public, and instead of doing that were plotting its destruction. They remained in their positions only for the purpose of insuring the success of their conspiracy — only that they might counter- balance the votes of men loyal to the Republic, and keep at dead lock all the essential functions of government. These are not mere assertions nor vague deductions with no evidence to support them. The evidence is abundant, but many of the histories of the day do not give it; neither do they refer to a conspiracy nor to the conspirators. The "^Lossing's "The First Century of the United States." BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 119 fact is, however, that the records of treacherous conspiracy show none more infamous. Senator D. L. Yulee, of Florida, in a private letter to one of his constituents, Joseph Finegan, told the designs of the conspirators in Washing- ton.^^ "On the other side," he said, "is a copy of resolutions adopted at a consultation of the Sen- ators from the seceding States in which Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Mississippi and Florida, were present. "The idea of the meeting was that the States should go out at once, and provide for the early organization of a Confederate government, not later than 15th February. This time is allowed to enable Louisiana and Texas to participate. It seemed to be the opinion that if we left here force, loan, and volunteer bills might be passed, which would put Mr. Lincoln in immediate condition for hostility; whereas if by remaining in our places until the 4th of March, it is thought we can keep the hands of Mr. Buchanan tied, and disable the Republicans from effecting any legislation which will strengthen the hands of the incoming admin- istration. "The resolutions will be sent by the delegation to the President of the convention. I have not been able to find Mr. Mallory^^ this morning. Hawkins is in Connecticut. I have therefore thought it best to send you this copy of the reso- lutions." s^Autograph letter dated at Washington, January 1, 1861. 38Stephen B. Mallory, a United States Senator from Florida, afterward made Secretary of the Navy of the Southern Confederacy. 120 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. To add to the shame and perfidy, this letter was secured a swift and free passage to Mr. Fiu- egan under the Honorable (?) writer's Senatorial frank.37 With these men, says the historian of that time, secession was a foregone conclusion, and de- lay and vacillation on the part of the half-hearted supporters of the Government, in power, only aided the accomplishment of their designs. This was made plain on the 31st of December, 1860, by Senator Benjamin,^^'^ of Louisiana, a State which iiad not yet taken even the preliminary steps to secession. In a speech meant both as a threat and a valedictory, he announced to the Senate that during the next week Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida would separate from the Union; that a week after Georgia would follow them, to be fol- lowed shortly by Louisiana and Arkansas. He de- clared that the day of adjustment was past, and that when the members of that body parted, they would part to meet again as Senators in one common council-chamber of the Nation no more forever; and, announcing it as his belief that there could not be peaceable secession, he defied the attempt to subdue the revolted people to the authority of the Constitution. Couching this defiance in the phraseology adopted by the conspirators, he closed his speech with these words: '^'Harper's "Pictorial History ot the Great Rebellion," pp. 31, 32. ='=^Judah P. Benjamin was born in St. Domingo, 1812. Removed to New Orleans, La., ISol. United States Senator, 1852-1S61. Appointed Attorney General Southern Confederacy, 1861. At the close of the Civil War went to England, where he practiced law, and became a Q. C. Died, 1885. BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 121 "What may be the fate of this horrible contest none can foretell; but this much I will say — the fortunes of war may be adverse to our arms; you may carr^^ desolation into our peaceful laud, and with torch and firebrand may set our cities in flames; you may even emulate the atrocities of those who in the days of our Revolution hounded on the bloodthirsty savage; you may give the pro- tection of your advancing armies to the furious fanatics who desire nothing more than to add the horrors of servile insurrection to civil war; you may do this and more, but you never can subjugate us; you never can subjugate the free sons of the soil into vassals paying tribute to your power; you can never degrade them into a servile and in- ferior race — never, never, never !"^^ On December 30th, 1860, in answer to the visit- ing commissioners from South Carolina, K. W. Barnwell, J. H. Adams, and James L. Orr, who for- mally submitted that Staters Ordinance of Seces- sion and demanded possession of the forts in Charleston harbor, President Buchanan said: "In answer to this communication, I have to say that my position as President of the United States was clearly defined in the message to Congress on the 3d inst. In that I stated that 'apart from the execution of the laws, so far as this may be prac- ticable, the Executive has no authority to decide what shall be the relations between the Federal Government and South Carolina. He has been in- vested with no such discretion. He possesses no 3»Harper's "Pictorial History of the Great Rebellion," p. 32. 122 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. power to change the relations heretofore existing between them, mucli less to acknowledge the in- dependence of that State. This would be to invest a mere executive officer with the power of recog- nizing the dissolution of the Confederacy among our thirty-three sovereign States. It bears no re- semblance to the recognition of a foreign de facto government, involving no such responsibility. Any attempt to do this would, on his part, be a naked act of usurpation. It is, therefore, my duty to submit to Congress the whole question in all its bearings.' "Such is my opinion still. I could, therefore, meet joii only as private gentlemen of the highest character, and was entirely willing to communi- cate to Congress any proposition you might have to make to that body upon the subject. Of this you were well aware. It was my earnest desire that such a disposition might be made of the whole subject by Congress, who alone possess the power, as to prevent the inauguration of a civil war be- tween the i^arties in regard to the possession of the Federal forts in the harbor of Charleston." President Buchanan, in his annual message of December 3, 1860, had appealed to Congress to in- stitute an amendment to the Constitution recog- nizing the rights of the Southern States in regard to slavery in the Territories, and as this document embraced the views which subsequently led to such a general discussion of the right of secession and of the right to coerce a State, I make a liberal quotation from it: BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 123 "I have purposely confined my remarks to revo- lutionary resistance because it has been claimed within the last few years that any State, when- ever this shall be its sovereign will and pleasure, may secede from the Union in accordance with the Constitution, and without any violation of the constitutional rights of the other members of the Confederacy. That as each became parties to the Union by the vote of its own people assembled in convention, so any one of them may retire from the Union in a similar manner by the vote of such a convention. "In order to justify secession as a constitutional remedy, it must be on the principle that the Fed- eral Government is a mere voluntary association of States, to be dissolved at pleasure by any one of the contracting parties. If this be so, the Con- federacy is a rope of sand, to be penetrated and dis- solved by the first adverse wave of public opinion in any of the States. In this manner our thirty- three States may resolve themselves into as many petty, jarring, and hostile republics, each one re- tiring from the Union without responsibility whenever any sudden excitement might impel them to such a course. By this process a Union might be entirely broken into fragments in a few weeks, which cost our forefathers many years of toil, privation, and blood to establish. "Such a principle is wholly inconsistent with the history as well as the character of the Federal Constitution. After it was framed with the great- est deliberation and care, it was submitted to con- 124 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. ventions of the people of the several States for rati- fication. Its provisions were discussed at length in these bodies, composed of the first men of the country. Its opponents contended that it con- ferred powers upon the Federal Government dan- gerous to the rights of the States, whilst its advo- cates maintained that, under a fair construction of the instrument, there was no foundation for such apprehensions. In that mighty struggle be- tween the first intellects of this or an}- other coun- try, it never occurred to any individual, either among its oj^ponents or advocates, to assert or even to intimate that their efforts were all vain labor, because the moment that any State felt her- self aggrieved she might secede from the Union. What a crushing argument w^ould this have proved against those who dreaded that the rights of the States would be endangered by the Consti- tution. The truth is, that it was not until some years after the origin of the Federal Government that such a proposition was first advanced. It was afterwards met and refuted by the conclusive arguments of General Jackson,^*^ who, in his mes- *°Andrew Jackson was born March 15, 1767, in the Waxhaw settle- ment, Mecklenberg- County, North Carolina, close to the South Carolina boundary line. When but a lad he entered the revolu- tionary army and was taken prisoner by the British, where he received brutal treatment. In 17S4 he began the study of law in Salisbury, North Carolina. Four years later he remove'd to Nash- ville, Tenn., where he opened a law office. In 1797 he was elected United States Senator, but soon resigned. Re-elected in 1S23. During the war of 1812 Jackson was appointed major general in the regular army, and gained a great victory over the British at New Orleans. By this, and his victories over the Indians, he acquired great popularity, and in consequence was elected President of the United States by the Democratic party, in 1828; and again in 1832. He was a man of indomitable will and of great firmness; and earned the nickname of "Old Hickory." It was while he was Pres- ident that South Carolina undertook to nullify a law of Congress, passed in 1S28, in regard to the tariff— a protective tariff. John C. BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 125 sage of the IGtli of January, 1833, transmitting the nullifying ordinance of South Carolina to Con- gress, employs the following language: 'The right of the people of a single State to absolve themselves at will and without the consent of the other States from their most solemn obligations, and hazard the liberty and happiness of the mil- lions composing this Union, cannot be acknowl- edged. Such authority is believed to be utterly repugnant both to the principles upon which the General Government is constituted, and to the ob- jects which it was expressly formed to attain.' "It is not pretended that any clause in the Con- stitution gives countenance to such a theory. It is altogether founded upon inference, not from any language contained in the instrument itself, but from the sovereign character of the several States by which it was ratified. But it is beyond the power of a State, like an individual, to yield a portion of its sovereign rights to secure the re- mainder. In the language of Mr. Madison, who has been called the father of the Constitution, 'It was formed by the States — that is, by the people in each of the States acting in their highest sov- ereign capacity, and formed consequently by the same authority which formed the State constitu- tions.' 'Nor is the Government of the United Calhoun and Rotat. Y. Hayne were at the head of this movement. South Carolina said, in effect, "If the Government of the United States undertakes to enforce this law we will resist by arms and go out of the Union." Jackson replied, "No, you will not!" that "Our Federal Union must be preserved." The nulliflers got no sympathy from him; but his determined stand at that time did not prevent the same State from seceding- from the Union thirty years later. Jackson died at his farm of the Hermitage, near Nashville, June 8, 1S45. 126 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. States, created by the Constitution, less a Govern- ment, in the strict sense of the term within the sphere of its powers, than the governments cre- ated by the constitutions of the States are within their several spheres. It is like them organized into legislative, executive, and judiciary depart- ments. It operates, like them, directly on persons and things; and, like them, it has at command a physical force for executing the powers commit- ted to it.' "It was intended to be perpetual, and not to be annulled at the pleasure of any one of the con- tracting parties. The old Articles of Confedera- tion were entitled, 'Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union between the States'; and by the thirteenth article it is expressly declared that 'the articles of this Confederation shall be inviolably observed by everj^ State, and the Union shall be perpetual.' The preamble to the Constitution of the United States, having express reference to the Articles of Confederation, recites that it was es- tablished 'in order to form a more perfect union.' And yet it is contended that this 'more perfect union' does not include the essential attribute of perpetuity. "But the Constitution has not only conferred these high powers upon Congress, but it has adopt- ed effectual means to restrain the States from in- terfering with their exercise. For that purpose it has in strong prohibitory language expressly declared^^ that 'no State shall enter into any "See Section 10 of Article I, the Constitution. BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 127 treaty, alliance, or confederation; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of credit; make an}- thing but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts; pass any bill of at- tainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts.' Moreover, 'without the consent of Congress no State shall lay any im- posts or duties on any imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws,' and if they exceed this amount, the excess shall belong to the United States. And 'no State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty of tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement or compact with another State, or with a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded or in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay.' "In order still further to secure the uninter- rupted exercise of these high powers against State interposition, it is provided 'that this Constitution and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made or which shall be made under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every State shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrarj^ notwithstanding.'^- "The solemn sanction of religion has been su- peradded to the obligations of official duty, and all Senators and Representatives of the United States, *2See Article VI of the Constitution. 128 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORV. all members of State Legislatures, and all execu- tive and judicial officers, 'both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution.'*^ "In order to carry into effect these powers, the Constitution has established a perfect Govern- ment in all its forms, legislative, executive, and judicial; and this Government to the extent of its powers acts directly upon the individual citizens of every State, and executes its own decrees by the agency of its own officers. In this respect it dif- fers entirely from the Government under the old confederation, which was confined to making requisitions on the States in their sovereign char- acter. This left it in the discretion of each w^hether to obey or refuse, and they often declined to comply with such requisitions. It thus became necessary, for the purpose of removing this bar- rier, and 'in order to form a more perfect union,' to establish a Government which could act di- rectly upon the people and execute its own laws without the intermediate agency of the States. This has been accomplished by the Constitution of the United States. In short, the Government created by the Constitution, and deriving its au- thority from the sovereign people of each of the several States, has precisely the same right to ex- ercise its power over the people of all these States in the enumerated cases, that each one of them possesses over subjects not delegated to the United *8See Article VI of the Constitution. BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 129 States, but ^reserved to the States respectively or to tlie peoiDle.'^^ "To the extent of the delegated powers the Con- stitution of the United States is as much a part of the constitution of each State, and is as bind- ing upon its people, as though it had been textually inserted therein. "This Government, therefore, is a great and powerful Government, invested with all the attrib- utes of sovereignty over the special subjects to which its authority extends. Its framers never in- tended to implant in its bosom the seeds of its own destruction nor were they at its creatioij guilty of the absurdity of providing for its own dissolution. It was not intended by its framers to be the base- less fabric of a vision, which, at the touch of the enchanter, would vanish into thin air, but a sub- stantial and might}^ fabric, capable of resisting the slow decay of time, and of defying the storms of ages. Indeed, well may the jealous patriots of that day have indulged fears that a Government of such high power might violate the reserved rights of the States, and Avisely did they adopt the rule of a strict construction of these powers to prevent the danger. But they did not fear, nor had they any reason to imagine that the Constitu- tion would ever be so interpreted as to enable any State by her own act, and without the consent of her sister States, to discharge her people from all or any of their federal obligations. "It may be asked, then, are the people of the *^See Article X of Amendments to the Constitution, 130 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. States without redress against the tyranny and oppression of the Federal Government? By no means. The right of resistance on the part of the governed against the oppression of their govern- ments cannot be denied. It exists independently of all constitutions, and has been exercised at all periods of the world's history. Under it, old gov- ernments have been destroyed and new ones have taken their place. It is embodied in strong and express language in our own Declaration of In- dependence. But the distinction must ever be ob- served that this is revolution against an estab- lished government, and not a voluntary secession from it by virtue of an inherent constitutional right. In short, let us look the danger fairly in the face; secession is neither more nor less than revolution. It may or it may not be a justifiable revolution; but still it is revolution." The President having thus set forth his views as to the Constitution, and having attempted to demonstrate that there is no warrant in the Con- stitution for secession, but that this was incon- sistent both with its letter and spirit, then defines his own duties and powers, as the Executive head of the Nation. "What, in the meantime," he says, "is the re- sponsibility and true position of the Executive? He is bound by solemn oath, before God and the country, 'to take care that the laws be faithfully executed,' and from this obligation he cannot be absolved by any human power. But what if the- performance of this duty, in whole or in part, has BUCHANAN AND THE REBELLION. 131 been rendered impracticable by events over which he could have exercised no control? Such, at the present moment, is the case throughout the State of South Carolina, so far as the laws of the United States to secure the administration of justice bv means of the Federal judiciary are concerned. All the Federal officers within its limits, through whose agency alone these laws can be carried into execution, have already resigned. We no longer have a district judge, a district attorney, or a mar- shal in South Carolina. In fact, the whole ma- chinery of the Federal Government necessary for the distribution of remedial justice among the peo- ple has been demolished, and it would be difficult, if not impossible, to replace it. "The only acts of Congress on the statute book bearing upon this subject are those of the 28th February, 1795, and 3rd March, 1807. These au- thorize the President, after he shall have ascer- tained that the marshal, with his posse comitatus, is unable to execute civil or criminal process in any particular case, to call forth the militia and em- ploy the army and navy to aid him in performing this service, having first b}'' i^roclamatiou com- manded the insurgents 'to disperse and retire peaceably to their respective abodes within a lim- ited time.' This duty cannot by possibility be performed in a State where no judicial authority exists to issue process, and where there is no mar- shal to execute it, and where, even if there were such an officer, the entire population would con- stitute one solid combination to resist him. 132 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. "The same insuperable obstacles do not lie in the way of executing the laws for the collection of customs. The revenue still continues to be col- lected, as heretofore, at the custom house in Charleston, and should the collector unfortunately resign, a successor may be appointed to perform tliis duty. "Then, in regard to the property of the United States in South Carolina. This has been purchased for a fair equivalent, 'by the consent of the Legis- lature of the State,' 'for the erection of forts, maga- zines, arsenals,' etc., and over these the authority 'to exercise exclusiv^e legislation' has been express- ly granted by the Constitution to Congress,^' It is not believed that any attempt will be made to expel the United States from this property by force; but if in this I should prove to be mistaken, the officer in command of the forts has received orders to act strict]}^ on the defensive. In such a contingency the responsibility for consequences would rightfully rest upon the heads of the as- sailants." Here the President sets forth the part of his message which he quoted in his answer to the Commissioners who presented to him the ordi- nance of secession of South Carolina ;^'^ and then goes on and gives his opinion that the Constitution of the United States has conferred no power on the Government to coerce a State to remain in the Union, in the following language: *^See Section S of Article I, the Constitution. *«See page 121, ante. AN ARGUMENT. 133 "The question fairly stated is, Has the Consti- tution delegated to Congress the power to coerce a State into submission which is attempting to withdraAv, or has actuall}^ withdrawn from the Confederacy^? If answered in the affirmative, it must be on the principle that the power has been conferred upon Congress to make war against a State. "After much serious reflection, I have arrived at the conclusion that no such power has been delegated to Congress or to au}^ other department of the Federal Government, It is manifest, upon an inspection of the Constitution, that this is not among the specific and enumerated powers grant- ed to Congress; and it is equally apparent that its exercise is not 'necessary and proper for carrying into execution' any of these powers. * * *" CHAPTEK VII. AN ARGUMENT. The President's argument, against the claimed right of secession, was strong; but weak on the vital point — the remedy against those who were attempting to destroy the Union by secession. He clearly demonstrated that the Constitution was intended by its framers to be perpetual; that it did not provide for its own termination; that the Constitution was formed by the people acting in their highest sovereign capacity; and that the 134 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. Union made by that Constitution is not a mere "N'oluntary association of States, to be dissolved at pleasure by any one of them, but that it is an ever- lasting Union to be dissolved only by the consent of the sovereign power that made it — the people of the United States. In the words of Washing- ton, the president of the convention which framed the Constitution, and the first President of the Re- public under that Constitution, "Until changed by an explicit and deliberate act of the whole people, it is sacredly obligatory upon all." Charles C. Pinckney^''^ of South Carolina, another member of the convention which framed the Constitution, said, in the Legislature of South Carolina, just be- fore the people of that State adopted the Con- stitution, "Let us, then, consider all attempts to weaken this Union by maintaining that each State is separately and individually independent, as a species of political heresy which can never benefit us, but may bring on us the most serious dis- tresses." However, if the Government of the United States has no power to protect its own life — save itself from destruction — then, indeed, is it "a rope of sand, to be penetrated and dissolved by the first adverse wave of public opinion in any of the States." But this is a Government invested with ^^Charles Cotesworth Pinckney was born in Charleston, S. C, February 25th, 1746. Educated in England. Began practice of law in Charleston, 1709. Entered revolutionary army, and was captured at the fall of Charleston. Appointed U. S. Minister to the French Republic, 1796, and second major general In the United States army, 1797. Author of "Millions for defence, but not one cent for tribute." He, aided by others of the South, who helped to frame the Consti- tution of the United States, 1787, compelled the concessions made in the Constitution with slavery. Died August 16, 1S25. AN ARGUMENT. 135 all the attributes of sovereignty; and its Consti- tution and the laws and treaties made thereunder, are the supreme law of the land.'*^ "Its framers," says the President, "never intended to implant in its bosom the seeds of its own destruction, nor were they at its creation guilty of the absurdity of providing for its own dissolution. It was not in- tended by its framers to be the baseless fabric of a vision, which, at the touch of the enchanter, would vanish into thin air, but a substantial and mighty fabric, capable of resisting the slow decay of time, and of def}' ing the storms of ages." But this being true, does not the Government have the inherent power to save itself? When as- sailed b}^ internal foes must it keep quiet and per- mit its own destruction? May it not be said that every government has the power to preserve itself w^hether it is so written or not? If the Govern- ment of the United States does not have this pow- er, either in or outside of the Constitution, of pre- serving itself, then, indeed, it has "implanted in its bosom the seeds of its own destruction;" and is incapable of "defying the storms of ages." But is it true that the Constitution does not provide for the maintenance of the Government organized under it? It is the organic and fundamental law of the land, binding on all the States and all the people of the United States; and it ijrovides that, "the United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a republican form of government ;"^^ *8See Article VI. of the Constitution. "Section 4 of Article IV. 136 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. and that, " no State shall enter into any treaty, al- liance, or confederation."^'*' These provisions are absolute in their terms; and no department of the National Government nor of the State govern- ments, has the right to violate them. The Government of the United States, and of the several States, are republican in form and must be maintained until a new form of govern- ment is adopted by all the people of the United States in their sovereign capacity as the source of all political power. It is the imperative duty, then, of the Government of the United States, un- der the Constitution, not to permit any State in the Union to establish any other form of govern- ment than it had when it became a member of the Union under that Constitution; nor to permit any State in the Union to "enter into any treaty, alli- ance, or confederation" with any other State. In- deed, any other doctrine might soon destroy the whole fabric of American free government. One State, for instance, might change its form of gov- ernment to a limited monarchy; another to an ab- solute monarchy; and so on through all the differ- ent forms of government known to man. And, again, a State might enter into an "alliance, or confederation," with another State or States, either in or out of the Union. In this wa^^ caus- ing the ruin of the whole fabric of republican gov- ernment "which cost our forefathers so many years of toil, privation, and blood to establish." These considerations being true, does it not fol- »'Section 10 of Article I. AN ARGUMENT. 137 low that the Government of the United States has the power to take all the necessary steps to pre- vent any such violations of the provisions of the Constitution? And that whenever any State un- dertakes to withdraw from the Union and estab- lish a government of its own, or to enter into an "alliance, or confederation" with another State or States — as South Carolina and other States of the Union did and formed a Confederacy — does it not have the power to coerce that State back into the Union — back into the relations it occupied in our systeju of government before it took on its new re- lations? If this be not true, then, indeed, is the Constitution of none effect, and the Government under it weak, instead of "great and powerful." But it is a great and powerful Government, hav- ing full power to enforce its Constitution and its laws. In the execution of these it is backed by the whole military power of the nation, and that power is under the control of the President as commander-in-chief. With that power to sustain him in executing the mandates of the Constitu- tion, and the laws enacted under it, the President of the United States can overthrow all its enemies — internal and external — when he acts with promptness and energy. If the time should ever come, however, when this is not true the days of the Kepublic are numbered. 138 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. CHAPTER VIII. BUCHANAN AND DAVIS. At the time President Buchanan sent his mes- sage to Congress the slaveholding aristocracy were generally in a high state of excitement, be- cause of the election of Mr. Lincoln as President. "The indignation with which the result of the Presidential election was received in the Southern States," says Jefferson Davis in his Short History of the Confederate States of America,^^ "proceeded from no personal hostility to the President-elect, nor from chagrin at the defeat of the Democratic candidates, but from the fact that the people of the Si)uth (the slaveholding aristocracy^) recognized in Mr. Lincoln the representative of a party profess- ing principles destructive to 'their peace, their prosperity , and their domestic tranquillity.' " Again he says: "The character of the President in power now became an important factor in the situation. Mr. Buchanan's freedom from sectional asi)erity, his long life in the i3ublic service, his conciliatory disposition, his love of peace, and his reverence for the Constitution, were guarantees that he would not precipitate a conflict with any of the States. But it soou became evident that in the closing months of his administration he had little power to mould the policy of the future. Like all intelligent and impartial students of constitu- tional history, the President held that the Fed- oiPublished in 1890, by Belford Co., New York. See p. 37. BUCHANAN AND DAVIS. 139 eral Government had no rightful power to coerce a State; and that although Congress may possess many means of preserving it by conciliation, the sword was not placed in their hand to preserve it by force. Ten years before the date of this mes- sage, Mr. Calhoun had uttered similar sentiments in the Senate." Again, in the same work, Mr. Davis says:^^ "Shortly after the election in November, the Sena- tors and Representatives of Mississippi were in- vited by the Governor to meet him for consulta- tion as to the character of the message he should send to the special session of the Legislature he had called to consider the propriety of assembling a convention.^^ "While holding, with my political associates, that the right of a State to secede was unquestion- able, the knowledge I had gained, as Chairman of the Military Committee of the United States Sen- ate and as Secretary of War, had made me famil- iar with the entire lack of preparation for war in the South; and as, unlike most of my associates, I did not believe that secession would be peaceably accomplished, but that war would surel}' ensue be- tween the sections, and that the odds against us would be far greater than what were due merely to our numerical inferioritj^, I was slower and more reluctant than others, who held a different opinion, to resort to that remedy. * * * While engaged in consultation,! received a telegraphic message from ^-See p. 40. ^^Secession convention. 140 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, two members of President Biiclianau's Cabinet, urging me to proceed immediately to Washington. Advised by my associates to comply, I hastened to the Capital and called on the President, who of- fered to read me his forthcoming message. I made certain suggestions for its modification, all of which he kindl}^ accepted, but some of which he subsequently changed." Thus, while this man and others were plotting against their country, he was sent for in haste and taken into the confidence of the President of the United States, and invited to make suggestions as to what his message to the Congress of the United States should contain. As to what suggestions were made the reader can draw his own conclu- sions in the light of the history of that time. If, instead of this, the President had treated Davis and his co-conspirators, as were Catiline and his co-conspirators against the life of the Ro- man Republic, in the days of Cicero, the rebellion would have been nipped in the bud and the Presi- dent would have been crowned with glory. But instead of that he took him into his confidence and permitted his sympathies for the slave power to direct his course in another direction, and thereby went out of office in disgrace. When the Piesident's message was read in Con- gress, Senator Jefferson Davis publicly objected to portions of it; but not, of course, to that part where- in the President had said that neither he as the Executive of the Nation, nor any other department of the Government of the United States, had the BUCHANAN AND DAVIS. 141 power to coerce a State to remain in the Union. But these objections were puerile and only made for effect on the public mind; for what did Mr. Da- vis and his co-conspirators care for his doctrine that a State had no right to secede from the Union, so long" as the President had announced as his conclusion that the Government had no power given it under the Constitution to coerce a State to remain in the Union; and that, owing to the condition of affairs in the South, he was unable to enforce the laws of the United States therein. This attitude of the President to- wards the rebellious States, greatly encouraged the conspirators and their Southern friends, to push secession as rapidly as possible, and to organize a new Government while Mr. Buchanan should re- main in oflflce. The President was in sympathy with the South, and hence did not want to do anything to alienate his Southern friends. He pretended to believe that the South had suffered "serious grievances," and his idea seemed to be that those grievances ought to be redressed. In this condition of mind, from the time of the delivery of his message, he exerted all his influence in favor of compromise measures with the South, as he pretended the Union could not be preserved in any other way. He did not comprehend that the time for com- promises with the slave-holding aristocracy was past; that the real question then was, Shall the Government of the United States permit them to run it in their. own w^ay or destroy the Republic? 14'2 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. In a special message to Congress on the 8th of January, 1861, the President, after, depicting the consequences which had already resulted to the Republic from the bare apprehension of civil war and the dissolution of the Union, said: "Let the question be transferred from political assemblies to the ballot box, and the people them- selves would speedih" redress the serious griev- ances which the South have suffered. But, in Hea- ven's name, let the trial be made before we plunge into armed conflict upon the mere assumption that there is no other alternative. Time is a great con servative power. Let us pause at this momentous point and afford the people, both North and South, an opportunity for reflection. Would that South Carolina had been convinced of this truth before Jier precipitate action! I, therefore, appeal through you to the people of the country, to declare in their might that the Union must and shall be i)reserved b}^ all constitutional means. I most earnestly rec- ommend that you devote yourselves exclusively to the question how this can be accomplished in peace. All other questions, when compared with this, sink into insignificance. The present is no time for palliatives; action, prompt action, is re- quired. A delay in Congress to prescribe or to recommend a distinct and practical proposition for conciliation, may drive us to a point from which it will be almost impossible to recede. "A common ground on which conciliation and harmony can be produced is surely not unattain- able. The proposition to compromise by letting BUCHANAN AND DAVIS. 143 the North have exclusive control of the territory above a certain line, and to give Southern institu- tions protection below that line, ought to receive universal approbation. In itself, indeed, it may not be entireh^ satisfactory, but when the alterna- tive is between a reasonable concession on both sides and a dissolution of the Union, it is an impu- tation on the patriotism of Congress to assert that its members will hesitate for a moment." This recommendation was totally disregarded, although compromise measures were introduced in Congress, but they rightfully failed. The friends of freedom and of the Union were not willing any longer to compromise with the slave power on their own terms; nor, indeed, on any terms other than to obey the laws of the land, and become loyal citi- zens of the Republic. On the other hand, the slave- holding aristocracy had made up their minds to spurn compromises and set up a Government of their own. All talk on their part in favor of com- promise was onl}^ to gain time to carry out their plans of secession. For they had determined to destroy the Republic, rather than to see the power of the Nation pass into the hands of the friends of freedom. 144 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. CHAPTER IX. CAUSES OF THE REBELLION. When Mr. Lincoln was inaugurated President, on the 4th of March, 1861, rebellion was rampant. He found the Treasury empty, the army and navy scattered, forts and other property of the United States in possession of the rebels, and disloyalty in all the departments of the Government. He found the slave-holding aristocracy seeking to de- stroy the Government which they ceased to rule. The leaders of that aristocracy made the elec- tion of Lincoln the pretext for attempting the de- struction of the Union. The real cause, however, lay deeper. The real cause was the great antagonism existing between a civilization based on free men, free speech, free schools, and free labor; and a civilization based on an aristocracy, bottomed on slavery, and opposed to these. As slavery produced the latter civilization, so it was the primary cause of the rebellion. Slavery produced a condition which, in the course of events, made rebellion not only possible, but probable and desirable on the part of those who originated and promoted it; or, in other words, the ambition, avarice, and selfishness of man, made a condition which, in turn, produced rebellion. Indeed, with- out that condition, in all probability, the rebellion would not have occurred. But, in human affairs, man does not always do right. Selfish interests impel him to the wrong; and when the time comes CAUSES OF THE REBELLION. 145 — as it always does — to right tlie wrong or the wrong seelvS to trample down the right, a conflict ensues, which, in governmental affairs especially, sometimes ends in rebellion. For, says Madison, "Wherever there is an interest and power to do wrong, wrong will generall}^ be done." The Author of our being, however, does not compel any one to pursue this or that course; but He permits each to choose the course he desires to pursue. He points out, indeed, the way of right and how to avoid the wrong, but leaves to each the choosing as between the right and the wrong. When the wrong is chosen and pursued not only the wrong-doer, but others suffer from the conse- quences of his acts. As with individuals, so it is with states and nations. There were but two causes for the rebellion — and only two. One primary, the other immediate. Many historians, however, give more. But the causes given do not agree with facts, and are neither logical nor philosophical; they mistake ef- fects for causes. I have already given the primary cause of the rebellion. Its immediate cause was the loss of power to promote a wrong condition; namely, a civilization based on slavery. Long continued power is sweet, especially to those who arrogate to themselves the right to rule; and when power becomes thoroughly intrenched the history of the world shows that it is not given up without a struggle. The leaders of the slave- holding aristocracy, so long in power, determined 10 146 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. not to give it up without a struggle. Beaten at the ballot box, they resorted to conspiracy and rebel- lion, and finally to the sword. If they could not rule the Union, in their way, they would break it and set up a Government of their own in accord with their civilization, over which their ]3ower would be supreme. The declaration of a leading and distinguished Southern statesman — John C. Calhoun of South Carolina — made years before, was now being car- ried out. "When we cease," he said, "thus to control this Nation through a disjointed democracy, or any material obstacle in that party which shall tend to throw us out of that rule and control, we shall then resort to the dissolution of the Union." CHAPTER X. THE NEW PRESIDENT INAUGURATED. Mr. Lincoln entered upon his duties as President under great and trying difficulties. He was des- tined, however, to guide the ship of state througli tiie storm of rebellion, now lashing itself into fury against the Government at Washington. Under this chaotic condition of things, when the Union seemed about to be going down into the darkness of oblivion, he was inaugurated President of the United States. The question now in every mind was, W^hat will President Lincoln do to preserve the Union? THE NEW PRESIDENT INAUGURATED. 147 In his inaugural address, after speaking fully as to the question of slavery and saying, "I have no purpose, directl}'^ or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so," he further said: "I take the official oath to-day with no mental reservations, and with no purpose to construe the Constitution or laws by any hypercritical rules. * * * It is seventy-two years since the first in- auguration of a President under our National Con- stitution. During that period fifteen different and very distinguished citizens have in succession ad- ministered the executive branch of the Govern- ment. They have conducted it through man}' per- ils, and generally with great success. Yet, with all this scope for precedent, I now enter upon the same task, for the brief constitutional term of four years, under great and peculiar difficulties. "A disruption of the Federal Union, heretofore only menaced, is now formidably attempted. I hold that in the coutemplation of uuiversal law and of the Constitution, the union of these States is perpetual. Perpetuity is implied, if not expressed, in the fundamental law of all national govern- ments. It is safe to assert that no government proper ever had a provision in its organic law for its own termination. Continue to execute all the express provisions of our National Constitution, and the Union will endure forever, it being impos- 148 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. sible to destroy it except by some action not i>ro- vided for in the instrument itself. "Again, if the United States be not a Govern- ment proper, but an association of States in the nature of a contract merely, can it, as a contract, be peaceabl^^ unmade by less than all the parties who made it? One party to a contract may violate it — break it, so to speak — but does it not require all to lawfully rescind it? Descending from these general principles, we find the proposition that in legal contemplation the Union is perpetual, con- firmed by the history of the Union itself. "The Union is much older than the Constitu- tion. It was formed, in fact, by the Articles of As- sociation in 1774. It was matured and continued in the Declaration of Independence in 1776. It was further matured, and the faith of all the then thirteen States expressly plighted and engaged that it should be perpetual, by the Articles of Con- federation in 1781; and, finally, in 1787, one of the declared objects for ordaining and establishing the Constitution was to form a more perfect Union. But if the destruction of the Union by one, or by a part only of the States, be lawfully possible, the Union is less than before, the Constitution having lost the vital element of perpetuity. "It follows from these views that no State, upon its own mere motion, can laAvfully get out of the Union; that resolves and ordinances to that effect are legally void; and that acts of violence within ally State or States against the authority of the THE NEW PRESIDENT INAUGURATED. 149 United States are insurrectionary or revolutionary, according to circumstances. "I therefore consider tliat, in view of the Con- stitution and the laws, the Union is unbroken, and, to the extent of my ability, I shall take care, as the Constitution itself expressly enjoins upon me, that the laws of the Union shall be faithfully executed in all the States. Doing this, which I deem to be only a simple duty on my part, I shall perfectly perform it, so far as practicable, unless m}^ rightful masters, the American people, shall withold the requisition, or in some authori- tative manner direct the contrary. I trust this will not be regarded as a menace, but only as the declared purpose of the Union that it will constitii- tionall}^ defend and maintain itself. In doing this, there need be no bloodshed or violence, and there shall be none unless it is forced upon the national authority. * * * "That there are persons, in one section or an- other, who seek to destroy the Union at all events, and are glad of any pretext to do it, I will neither affirm nor deny. But if there be such, I need ad- dress no word to them. "To those, however, who really love the Union, may I not speak, before entering upon so grave a matter as the destruction of our national fabric, with all its benefits, its memories, and its hopes? Would it not be well to ascertain why we do it? Will 3'ou hazard so desperate a step, while any por- tion of the ills you fly from have no real existence? Will you, while the certain ills you fly to are greater 160 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. than all the real ones you fly from? Will you risk the commission of so fearful a mistake? "If the minority will not acquiesce the majority must, or the Government must cease. There is no alternative for continuing the Government but ac- quiescence on the one side or the other. If a minor- ity in such a case will secede rather than acquiesce, they make a precedent which in turn will ruin and divide them, for a minority of their own will secede from them whenever a majority refuses to be con- trolled by such a minority. For instance, why not any portion of a new Confederacy^, a year or two hence, arbitrarily secede again, precisely as por- tions of the present Union now claim to secede from it? All who cherish disunion sentiments are now being educated to the exact temper of doing this. Is there such perfect identity of interests among the States to compose a new Union as to produce harmony onl}^, and prevent renewed seces- sion? Plainly, the central idea of secession is the essence of anarchy. * * » Physically speaking, we cannot separate — we cannot remove our respec- tive sections from each other, nor build an impas- sable wall between them. * * * They cannot but remain face to face; and intercourse, either amicable or hostile, must continue between them. Is it possible, then, to make that intercourse more advantageous or more satisfactory after separation than before? Can aliens make treaties easier than friends can make laws? Can treaties be more faith- fully enforced between aliens than laws can among THE NEW PRESIDENT INAUGURATED. 151 friends? Suppose you go to war, you cannot fight always; and when, after much loss on both sides, and no gain on either, you cease fighting, the iden- tical questions as to terms of intercourse are again upon you. * * * "The Chief Magistrate derives all his author- ity from the people, and they have conferred none upon him to fix the terms for the separation of the States. The people themselves, also, can do this if they choose, but the Executive, as such, has noth- ing to do with it. nis duty is to administer the present Government as it came to his hands, and to transmit it unimpaired by him to his successor. Why should there not be a patient confidence in the ultimate justice of the people? * * * if the Almighty Ruler of Nations, with his eternal truth and justice, be on your side of the North, or on yours of the South, that truth and that justice will surely prevail by the judgment of this great tribu- nal, the American people. * * * While the people retain their virtue and vigilance, no administra- tion, by any extreme wickedness or folly, can very seriously injure the Government in the short space of four years." He closed his address by speaking directly to those in rebellion against the Government, and said: "My countrymen, one and all, think calmly and well upon this whole subject. Nothing valuable can be lost by taking time. If there be an object to hurry any of you, in hot haste, to a step which you would never take deliberately, that ob- 152 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. ject will be frustrated by taking time; but no good object can be frustrated b}'^ it. Such of you as are now dissatisfied still have the old Constitution un- impaired, and on the sensitive point, the laws of your own framing under it; while the new adminis- tration will have no immediate power, if it would, to change either. If it were admitted that you who are dissatisfied hold the right side in the dispute, there is still no single reason for precipitate action. Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm reliance on Ilim who has never yet forsaken this favored land, are still competent to adjust, in the best way, all our present difficulties. "In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow country- men, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. The Government will not assail you. You can have no conflict without being yourselves the aggressors. You have no oath registered in heaven to destroy the Government, while I shall have the most solemn one to 'preserve, protect and defend it.' "I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though p ission may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mj^stic chords of menior}^, stretch- ing from every battle field and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone, all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature."^'* ^olitical and constitu- tional principles will we also conquer. To that 8*In his debate with Douglas, in 1858, THE CLOSING DRAMA. 167 standard we shall adhere, and uphold it through evil and through good report. We will meet dan- ger, we will meet death, if they come, in its pro- tection; and we will struggle ou, in daylight and in darkness; ay, in the thickest darkness, with all the storms which it may bring with it, till 'Danger's troubled night is o'er, and the star of Peace re- turn.' " The world did not have an opportunity to cry out "Shame," for the President and the loyal people of the Nation, rose to the occasion. More than two million men were mustered against the hosts of Treason. For four long years the battle raged with fury. What a grand arm}^ was that! the volunteer army of the United States. It was composecTof men and beardless youths from all avocations of life. The farmer left his plow; the blacksmith dropped his hammer; the carpenter forsook his bench; the lawyer laid aside his brief, and the doc- tor quit his patient; the preacher left the sacred desk; young men went from the desk and counter, from the office, field and factor}^, from the shop, and all from the fireside of loved ones. "Good-b^x^" was said to friends most dear, and they went forth to do, and, if need be, die for their country. Battle after battle was fought, and the battle- fields were strewn with the slain and wounded; hospitals were filled with the wounded and suffer- ing; prison pens were filled with the captured, and many were tortured and starved to death. Hun- dreds of thousands went down to death that the 168 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, Nation might live. They sacrificed home and its sweet memories, loved ones, and life, while in the full vigor of manhood. That was an army of intelligence, patriotism and courage. Of this there can be no question. Gen- eral Grant,^^ its great chieftain, the heroic man of the age, said of it in his report of the siege of Vicksburg: "It is a striking feature, so far as my observation goes, of the present volunteer army of the United States, that there is nothing which men are called upon to do, mechanical or profes- sional, that accomplished adepts cannot be found for the duty required in almost every regiment." And, again, he said, in his farewell address to the army, that its "marches, sieges, and battles, in dis- tance, duration, resolution, and brilliancy of re- sults, dims the luster of the world's past military achievements, and will be the patriot's precedent in defense of liberty and right, in all time to come." Its patriotism and courage were fully attested by the more than two thousand battles and skir- mishes which it fought, with a vigilant and cour- ageous foe on its own soil; by the long marches and untold privations it endured, by da}^ and by night, in a climate to which it was not inured; and, final- «=General U. S. Grant was born at Point Pleasant, Ohio, April 27, 1822. Graduated at United States Military Academy, 1843. Served in the Mexican War, and was promoted to captain, 1853. Resigned commission, 18.54, and afterward engaged in the tanning business at Galena, 111. Entered the Civil War as colonel Twenty-first lUinois Volunteers. Promoted to brigadier general, July, 1861, then to major general; then to lieutenant general, March, 18fi4. Received surrender of Gen. Robt. E. Lee of the Confederate army, at Appo- mattox. April 9, 1865. Commissioned general, a grade created for him, by Congress, July 25, 1S66. Elected President of the United States. 1868. 1872. Died, July 23, 1885. General Grant's services to ttie Republic were of inestimable value: and he will go down in history as one of the .greatest military chieftains of the world. THE CLOSING DRAMA. 169 I3', b}' the great victory it achieved for the right, and then quietly dispersed to their homes and again entered upon the peaceful pursuits of good citizens of a saved Republic, without having im- posed conditions upon its enemy other than that of becoming loyal citizens of the Union. One reason for its strong i)atriotism and cour- age is that it did not fight for conquest — as a Caesar or an Alexander — but for liberty, and coun- try. It fought to maintain that civilization which it is hoped will become the civilization of the world. By the heroic efforts of that army that civiliza- tion, whose germ was planted in Virginia, surren- dered at Appomattox to that civilization whose germ was planted on the rocky shores of Massa- chusetts, and a new civilization w^as born with free- dom to all as its chief corner-stone. Then, universal freedom was made the supreme law of the land. While millions were rejoicing over the great victory of "right" over "wrong," and while peace — blessed peace! — was dawning upon a stricken land, the President — our beloved Lincoln — was struck down by an assassin, and joy was turned into mourning. "With malice towards none, with char- ity for all," his great soul took its departure; and Libert}^, in all lands, mourned his death. "Chieftain, farewell! The Nation mourns thee. Mothers shall teach thy name to their lisping chil- dren. The youth of our land shall emulate thy vir- tues. Statesmen shall study thy record and learn lessons of wisdom. Mute though thy lips be, jet 170 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. they still speak. Hushed is thy voice, but its echoes of liberty'' are ringing through the world, and the sons of bondage listen with joy. Prisoned thou art in death, and yet thou art marching abroad, and chains and manacles are bursting at thy touch. Thou didst fall not for thyself. The assassin had no hate for thee. Our hearts were aimed at, our national life was sought. We crown thee as our martyr, and humanity enthrones thee as her triumphant son. Hero, martyr, friend, fare- well!"«6 The corner-stone of National Independence has now long been in its place; and on it is inscribed the name of George Washington. The Union soldier placed another stone by its side — the Declaration of Independence, with all its promises fulfilled. On this stone Liberty in- scribes the name of Abraham Lincoln. ^Closing- paragraph of Bishop Simpson's oration, delivered at the funeral of President Lincoln, Oak Ridge Cemetery, near Spring- field. 111., May 4, 1865. BOOK II. Landmarks of the Formative Period of the Republic. BOOK II. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY. What may be called the actual formative pe- riod of the Republic, and the Uuiou of the United States of America, extended over a period of about fifteen years, beginning with the first Continental Congress, in September, 1774, and ending with the adoption of the Constitution by the people in 1787-88. During that time the Government of the Union passed tlirugh three stages or forms: 1. The Rev- olutionary. 2. The Confederate. 3. The Consti- tutional. But ^hile the Revolutionary and Con- federate periods have passed away, the Constitu- tional still exists; and will continue to exist until the people shall see fit to change the Constitution, and the government under it, to some other form. While the Revolutionary War was going on, and soon after the Declaration of Independence was promulgated, the Articles of Confederation were formed by the Continental Congress, and sent to the several States for their ratification; but they were not ratified by all until March 1, 1781, Mary- land being the last State to approve them. These articles were not to be binding on- any of the States until they should receive the approval of all. On the second day of March, 1781, Congress 173 174 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. assembled under the Confederation; and the Gov- ernment was carried on under these articles until the Constitution — which was the next step in the formation of the Republic — was adopted and went into effect. By an act of Congress the Government was to begin operations under the Constitution on the 4th day of March, 1789. Congress assembled on that day, but Washington, the first President, was not inaugurated until the 30th da^^ of April. Since the Constitution went into effect it has been the fundamental and supreme law of the land — al~ though assailed by internal foes— together with the amendments, which have, from time to time, been adopted and become a part of it. These instruments, together with the Ordi- nance of 1787, which was adopted by the Con- gress in July, 1787, a short time prior to the forma- tion and adoption of the Constitution by the con- vention, which met at Philadelphia, are herein set forth, with sketches of the origin of each, for the convenience and benefit of those who may study the formation of our Republic. I have also appended an Index and Analysis of the Constitu- tion, as an aid to its study. The following suggestions are made to stu- dents of the Constitution: First, read the Constitu- tion carefully. Next, study the Index and An- alysis thoroughly. And lastly, go over both again and again, and again, until its contents are as fa- miliar as the Ten Commandments. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 175 CHAPTER 11. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN OF THE DECLARATION— TEXT OF THE DECLARATION. The first Continental or General Congress of the Colonies met in Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia, September 5, 1774. In it were forty-four dele- gates, representing eleven of the thirteen colonies. Later, eleven more delegates took their seats, and all of the colonies were then represented except Georgia, w^hich promised to concur with "her sis- ter colonies" in their effort to maintain their rights as English subjects. Peyton Randolph, of Vir- ginia, was elected President of the Congress. Many distinguished men were delegates. Among the number were Washington, Richard Henry Lee, Patrick Heniy, John Adams, Samuel Adams, John Dickinson, William Livingston, John Jay, Roger Sherman, and the Rutledges of South Carolina. On the 14th of October the Congress adopted a Declaration of Colonial Rights, and on the 26th a Petition to the King,^ asking the redress of their wrongs, was also adopted. The second Continental Congress met in Phil- adelphia, in the State House (Independence Hall), May 10, 1775, a few days after the battles of Lex- ington and Concord. This time Georgia was repre- sented along with all the rest of the colonies. A second Petition to the King was formulated and ^George III. 176 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. adopted, and Washington was appointed com- mander-in-chief of the Continental army, though Congress still denied any intention of separating from Great Britain and earnestly expressed a de- sire for the peaceful settlement of all difficulties.^ But the king, instead of taking notice of these petitions, and righting the wrongs of the colonists, declared the colonies in rebellion and sent more troops over to force them to submit to the many unjust and tyrannical measures imposed upon them. The colonists now began to realize that they must back down and become slaves to a tyrant or fight for their rights as free men. They at once determined on the latter course. Patrick Henry said: "We must fight! An ap- peal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us. I repeat it, sir, we must fight!" Washing- ton declared that, "nothing short of Independence, it appears to me, can possibly do." The Sons of Liberty echoed this sentiment until the Congress finally became possessed with the idea that "noth- ing short of Independence" would do. The idea of a separation from the mother country began to dawn upon them as the only thing they could do to promote their welfare and happiness as a people. This idea took shape in 1776. On the 7th of June of that year Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, ^It was of this Congress, and of these their doings, that Lord Chatham said: "For genuine sagacity, for singular moderation, for solid wisdom, manly spirit, suljlime sentiments, and simplicity of language, for everything respectable and honorable, the Congress of Philadelphia shine unrivalled. This wise people speak out. They do not hold the language of slaves; they tell you what they mean. They do not ask you to repeal your laws as a favor; they claim it as a right." THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 177 arose iu his place in the Congress and moved, "That these United Coh^nies are, and, of right, ought to be, free and independent States; and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally suppressed/'^ John Adams, of Massachusetts, sec- onded the motion. Upon this resolution there sprang up at once, after it had been referred to a committee of the whole, an earnest and powerful debate. It was opposed by some, principally on the ground that it was premature. If passed they felt that reconciliation would be no longer pos- sible. It meant that the colonies must establish their full and final sovereignty or be conquered and enslaved; that thenceforward there could be no retreat. The resolution was debated until the 10th, when it was adopted in committee. On the same day a committee, consisting of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston, was ai)pointed and in- structed to prepare a formal declaration "that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States; that they are ab- solved from all allegiance to the British crown; and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, dis- solved." At the same time Lee's resolution was postponed until the 1st of July, to give time for ''On the lOUi of May, Congress had, by resolution, recommended the establishment of independent Stale governments in all the col- onies. This, however, was not sufficiently national to suit the bolder and wiser members of that body, and many of the people at large. Lee's resolution more fully expressed the popular will. 12 178 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. working up the idea of a total separation from the mother country. The postponement was im- mediately followed by proceedings in the colonies, in most of which the delegates in Congress were either instructed or authorized to yote for Inde- pendence. On the 28th of June the committee made their report and presented the Declaration which they had drawn up. The first or original draft was prepared by Thomas Jefferson, chairman of the committee, and but few alterations were made in it by the committee or by Congress. On the 2d of July Congress proceeded to the consideration of this great paper. The discussion of it lasted for nearly three days. It was so powerfully op- posed by some that Jefferson compared the oppo- sition to "the ceaseless action of gravity, weigh- ing upon us by night and by day." Its supporters, however, were the leading minds and urged its adoption with an ability and an eloquence only born of a desire and a determination to be free men. John Adams, Jefferson sa^^s, was "the Co- lossus in that debate," and "fought fearlessly for every word of it." Finally, on the 4th day of July, 1776, the paper, known as the Declaration of Independence, was agreed to, and the transaction is recorded as fol- lows in the journal for that day: Agreeably to the order of the day, the Con- gress resolved itself into a committee of the whole, to take into their further consideration the Decla- ration; and, after some time, the President re- THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 179 Slimed the chair, and Mr. Harrison reported that the committee haA'e agreed to a declaration, which they desired him to report. The Declaration being read', was agreed to as follows: A DECLARATION BY THE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES OP AMERICA, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED. When, in the course of human events, it be- comes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind re- quires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident — that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, govern- ments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes de- structive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new gov- ernment, lajdng its foundations on such princi- ples, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and, ac- cordingly, all experience hath shown that man- 180 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. kind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are siifferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pur- suing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their dut}^, to throw off such gov- ernment, and to provide new guards for their fu- ture security. Such has been the patient suffer- ance of these colonies, and such is nov\' the neces- sity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct ob- ject the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these States. To prove this, let facts be submit- ted to a candid world. 1. He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. 2. tie has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operations till his assent should be obtained; and, Avhen so suspended, he has ut- terly neglected to attend to them. 3. He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of repre- sentation in the Legislature — a right inestimable to them, and formidable to tyrants only. 4. ITe has culled together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the repository of their public records, for the sole THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 181 purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures. 5. He has dissolved representative houses re- peatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his in- vasions on the rights of the people. 6. He has refused, for a long time after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exer- cise; the State remaining, in the meantime, ex- posed to all the dangers of invasions from without, and convulsions within. 7. He has endeavored to prevent the popula- tion Of these States; for that purpose obstructing the laws for the naturalization of foreigners; re- fusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appro- priations of lands. 8. He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establish- ing judiciary powers. 9. He has niade judges dependent on his will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries. 10. He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance. 11. He has kept among us in times of peace, standing armies, without the consent of our Legis- latures. 12. He has affected to render the military in- dependent of, and superior to, the civil power. 182 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, 13. He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our Constitutions, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his as- sent to their acts of pretended legislation. 14. For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us. 15. For protecting them, by a mock trial, from punishment for auj murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these States. 16. For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world. 17. For imposing taxes on us without our consent. 18. For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of a trial by jury. 19. For transporting us beyond seas, to be tried for pretended offenses. 20. For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing there- in an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries, so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same abso- lute rule into these colonies. 21. For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering, funda- mentally, the forms of our governments. 22. For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legis- late for us in all cases whatsoever. 23. He has abdicated government here, by de- claring us out of his protection, and waging war against us. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 183 24. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people. 25. He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized na- tion. 26. He has constrained our fellow citizens, taken captive on the high seas, to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall them- selves by their hands. 27. He has excited domestic insurrection among us, and has endeavored to bring on the in- habitants of our frontiers the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare is an un- distinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions. In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms; our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. Nor have we been wanting in our attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them, from time to time, of attempts by their Legis- lature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circum- 184 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. stances of our emigration and settlement here. V\e have appealed to their native justice and mag- nanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpa- tions, which would inevitably interrupt our con- nections and correspondence. They, too, have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity which denounces our separation, and hold them as we hold the rest of mankind — enemies in war; in peace, friends. We, therefore, the representatives of the Unit- ed States of America in General Congress assem- bled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States; that they are ab- solved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totall}^ dissolved, and that, as free and independ- ent States, they have full jiower to levy war, con- clude peace, contract alliances, establish com- merce, and do all other acts and things which inde- pendent States mnj of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mu- tually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor. The foregoing Declaration was, by order of THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 185 Congress, engrossed, and members : NEW HAMPSHIRE. JOSIAH BARTLBTT. WILLIAM WHIPPLE. . MATTHEW THORNTON. RHODE ISLAND. STEPHEN HOPKINS. WILLIAM ELLBRY. NEW YORK. WILLIAM FLOYD. PHILIP LIVINGSTON. FRANCIS LEWIS. LEWIS MORRIS. MASSACHUSETTS BAY. SAMUEL ADAMS. JOHN ADAMS. ROBERT TREAT PAINE. ELBRIDGE GERRY. CONNECTICUT. ROGER SHERMAN. SAMUEL HUNTINGTON. WILLIAM WILLIAMS. OLIVER WOLCOTT. NEW JERSEY. RICHARD STOCKTON. JOHN WITHERSPOON. FRANCIS HOPKINSON. JOHN HART. ABRAHAM CLARK. PENNSYLVANIA. ROBERT MORRIS. BENJAMIN RUSH. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. JOHN MORTON. GEORGE CLYMER. JAMES SMITH. signed by the following JOHN HANCOCK. PENNSYLVANIA. GEORGE TAYLOR. JAMES WILSON. GEORGE ROSS. DELAWARE. CAESAR RODNEY. GEORGE READ. THOMAS M'KEAN. MARYLAND. SAMUEL CHASE. WILLIAM PACA. THOMAS STONE. CHARLES CARROLL, of Carrollton. VIRGINIA. GEORGE WYTHE. RICHARD HENRY LEE. THOMAS JEFFERSON. BENJAMIN HARRISON. THOMAS NELSON, JUN. FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE. CARTER BRAXTON. NORTH CAROLINA. WILLIAM HOOPER. JOSEPH HEWES. JOHN PENN. SOUTH CAROLINA. EDWARD RUTLEDGE. THOMAS HEYWARD, JUN. THOMAS LYNCH, JUN. ARTHUR MIDDLETON. GEORGIA. BUTTON GWINNETT. LYMAN HALL. GEORGE WALTON. Immediately after the Declaration was agreed to, the Congress passed the following resolution: "Resolved, That copies of the Declaration be sent 186 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. to the several assemblies, conventions, and com- mittees or councils of safet}', and to the several commanding officers of the Continental troops; that it be proclaimed in each of the United States, and at the head of the army."^ This celebrated instrument, says an eminent American jurist,^ regarded as a legislative pro- ceeding, was the solemn enactment, by the repre- sentatives of all the colonies, of a complete disso- lution of their allegiance to the British crown. It severed the political connection between the peo- ple of this country and the people of England, and at once erected the different colonies into free and independent States. The body by which this step was taken constituted the actual government of the nation, at the time, and its members had been directly invested with competent legislative power to take it, and had also been specially instructed to do so. The consequences flowing from its adop- tion were, that the local allegiance of the inhabit- ants of each colony became transferred and due to the colony itself, or, as it was expressed by the Congress, became due to the laws of the colony, from which they derived protection;*^ that the i)eo- ple of the country became thenceforth the rightful sovereign of the countr}^; that they became united in a national capacity', as one people; that they could thereafter enter into treaties and contract alliances with foreign nations, could levy war and conclude peace, and do all other acts pertaining to ^Journal Cong., Vol. I, p. 396. ''Curtis, "Constitutional History of the United States," Mournal Cong., Vol. II, p. 216. THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 187 the exercise of a national sovereignty; and, finally, that, in their national capacity, they became known and designated as the United States of America. This Declaration was the first national state paper in which these words were used as the style and title of the nation. In the enacting part of the instrument the Congress styled them- selves "the representatives of the United States of America in General Congress assembled;" and from that period the previously "United Colonies" have been known as a political community, both within their own borders and by the other nations of the world, by the title which they then as- sumed.'^ CHAPTER III. ■ THE ARTICLES OP CONFEDERATION. SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN OF THE ARTICLES— TEXT OF THE ARTICLES. The colonies having united to obtain their rights as English subjects, when by the Declara- tion of Independence they became "free and inde- pendent States," they saw^ the necessitj^ of contin- uing that union, in order to carry forward the work of independence to a completion by the agenc}^ of war, which, by the act of the king and ministry of England, was upon them. ^The title of "The United States of America" was formally as- sumed in the Articles of Confederation, when they came to be adopted. But it was in use, without formal enactment, from the date of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, 188 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. It was now that "state sovereignty," the bane of our national life, first manifested itself. The States were not oul}^ jealous of each other, but they were jealous of the formation of any outside or over-government, which should exercise jurisdic- tion and power over them for the good of all; and it became at once an ever-present cause of embar- rassment to the Continental Congress in carr3ing on the war, and in forming a general government and a union by a written constitution. At this time the idea of forming a strong na- tional government by the people of the United States in their sovereign capacity, as the rightful possessors of all political power, it would seem, had not entered the minds of the men of that day; or, at least, if it had, they did' not manifest it at this time. They looked only to the formation of a league or federal alliance between the thirteen independent and sovereign States in their cor- porate capacities. They had to be driven to the formation of a strong national government, b^^ the people, by an absolute necessity to preserve their existence as a nation, and to promote the welfare and happiness of the people, and secure the bless- ings of liberty to themselves and their posterity. Indeed, the building of the new Republic had to be gradually evolved, for there were no precedents to guide them in carrying out the principles of the Declaration of Independence. The Continental Congress, therefore, on June 11, 177C), resolved that a committee should be ap- pointed to prepare, and properly digest, a form THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 189 of confederation to be entered into by the several States. This committee consisted of one delegate from each State, and John Dickenson, of Penn- sylvania, was chosen its chairman.^ On the 12th of July the committee reported to Congress a draft of Articles of Confederation. From that time until the 20th of August daily debates were had upon the articles, when the report was laid aside, and was not again taken up for consideration until the 8th of April, 1777. In the meanwhile several of the States, in accordance with the recommenda- tion of the Congress, had adopted Constitutions, republican in form, for their respective govern- ment, and Congress was practically acknowledged the supreme head in all matters appertaining to the war then going on. It emitted bills of credit, or paper money, appointed foreign ministers, and opened negotiations with foreign governments. But the government thus carried on was revolu- tionary in its nature, and continued so until the Articles of Confederation were adopted by the State Legislatures of the several States. From the 8th of April until the 15th of Novem- ber following, the articles were debated two or three times a week and several amendments were made. As the confederation might be a perma- nent bond of union, says one, of course local in- terests were considered prospectively. If the union had been designed to be temporary, to meet the exigencies arising from the state of war in sTlie committee consisted of Messrs. Bartlett, Samuel Adams, Hopkins Sherman, R. R. Livingston, Dickenson, McKean, Stone, Nelson, Hewes, Edward Rutledge, and Gwinnett. 190 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORlT. wliicli the States then were^ local questions could hardlj have had weight enough to have elicited debate; but such was not the case, and of course the wise men who were then in Congress looked beyond the present, and endeavored to act accord- ingly. From the 7th of October, 1777, until the 15th of November of that year, the debates upon the subject were almost daily, and the conflicting in- terests of the several States were strongly brought into view by the si)eakers. On the 15th day of November, 1777, the Articles of Confederation were adopted; and on the 17th Congress trans- mitted from Yorktown, where it was then in ses- sion, authenticated copies of the same to the Legis- latures of the several States for their ratification, accompanied by the following CIRCULAR LETTER: "Congress having agreed upon a plan of con- federacy for securing the freedom, sovereignty, and independence of the United States, authentic copies are now transmitted for the consideration of the respective Legislatures. "This business, equally' intricate and impor- tant, has in its progress been attended with un- common embarrassments and delay, which the most anxious solicitude and persevering diligence could not prevent. To form a permanent union, ac- commodated to the opinion and wishes of the dele- gates of so man}"- States differing in habits, pro- duce, commerce, and internal police, was found to be a work Tthich nothing but time and reflection. THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. l91 conspiring with a disposition to conciliate, could mature and accomplish. "Hardly is it to be expected that any plan, in the variety of provisions essential to our union, should exactly correspond with the maxims and political views of every particular State. Let it be remarked that, after the most careful inquiry and the fullest information, this is proposed as the best which could be adapted to the circumstances of all, and as that alone which affords any tolerable prospect of general satisfaction. "Permit us, then, earnestly to recommend these articles to the immediate and dispassionate atten- tion of the legislatures of the respective States. Let them be candidly reviewed, under a sense of the difficulty of combining in one general system the various sentiments and interests of a continent divided into so manj^ sovereign and independent communities, under a conviction of the absolute necessity of uniting all our counsels and all our strength to maintain and defend our common lib- erties; let them be examined with a liberality be- coming brethren and fellow citizens surrounded by the same imminent dangers, contending for the same illustrious prize, and deeply interested in being forever bound and connected together by ties the most intimate and indissoluble; and, finally, let them be adjusted with the temper and magnanimity of wise and patriotic legislators who, while they are concerned for the prosperity of their own more immediate circle, are capable of rising superior to local attachments when they 192 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. may be incompatible with the safety, happiness, and glory of the general confederacy. "We have reason to regret the time which has elapsed in preparing this plan for consideration; with additional solicitude we look forward to that which must be necessarily spent before it can be ratified. Every motive loudly calls upon us to hasten its conclusion. "More than any other consideration, it will confound our foreign enemies, defeat the flagitious practices of the disaffected, strengthen and con- firm our friends, support our public credit, re- store the value of our money, enable us to main- tain our fleets and armies, and add weight and respect to our counsels at home and to our treaties abroad. "In short, this salutary measure can no longer be deferred. It seems essential to our very exist- ence as a free people, and without it we may feel constrained to bid adieu to independence, to liberty and safety — blessings which, from the justice of our cause and the favor of our Almighty Creator visibly manifested in our protection, we have rea- son to expect, if, in an humble dependence on His divine providence, we strenuously exert the means which are, placed in our power. "To conclude, if the legislature of any State shall not be assembled, Congress recommend to the executive authority to convene it without de- lay; and to each respective legislature it is rec- ommended to invest its delegates with competent powers ultimately, in the name and behalf of the THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 193 State, to subscribe Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union of the United States; and to at- tend Congress for that purpose on or before the tenth da}' of March next." Notwithstanding this earnest and patriotic ap- peal of Congress to the thirteen States, recom- mending that they ratify the Articles of Confed- eration, at an early day, they were destined to remain unratified for several years. Much oppo- sition was made to them in all the States. Their ratification was commenced on the 9th of July, 1778; but it was not completed until the 1st day of March, 1781. The principal reason for this long delay was the claim made by some of the States to the vast unoccupied western territory — extending to the Mississippi River. Their conflicting claims to this territory formed one of the chief obstacles to a gen- eral union of the States under the Articles of Con- federation. Those States, whose colonial charters gave them no claim to any part of this territory, insisted that the other States, which laid claims to it under their charters, should surrender their claims to the United States, for the use and bene- fit of all the States. Impoverished as the States then were, and overburdened with debts contracted for the general good of the whole, it was reason- ably claimed that this vacant territoiy, so un- equally distributed originalh^, ought to be made a common fund for defraying the expenses of the war.*' ^Walker's "American Law." 13 194 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. Seven States laid claim to an interest in this vacant territory. These were the States of Massa- chusetts, Connecticut, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia; four of these — New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Virginia — claimed the territory Northwest of the Ohio Eiver to the Mississippi; Virginia claiming the greater portion of it. But so little was known of our topography when the grants were made to the different colo- nies — by Great Britain — that, besides being vague and often contradictory, some of them were highly extravagant in point of quantity. For example, the descriptive words in "the grant to Virginia, covered a tract four hundred miles in width, and extending in terms from the Atlantic to the Pa- cific Ocean. The grant to Connecticut was of a sim- ilar character, and the rest not greatly different. The consequence was that immediately after the Declaration of Independence, conflicting claims to territory were set up by the several States, which threatened to prevent the formation of a perma- nent union.^^ Maryland made a vigorous and special objec- tion to agreeing to the Articles until some provi- sion should be made for the cession of the western lands to the United States, for the benefit of all the States. Her legislature in the instructions to her delegates in Congress, refusing to ratify the Articles unless this was done, among other things, said: ^''Walker's "American Law. THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 195 "Although the pressure of immediate calami- ties, the dread of their continuance from the ap- pearance of disunion, and some other peculiar cir- cumstances, may have induced some States to ac- cede to the present Confederation, contrary to their own interests and judgments, it requires no great share of foresight to predict that, when those causes cease to operate, the States Avhich have thus acceded to the Confederation will consider it as no longer binding, and will eagerly embrace the first occasion of asserting their just rights, and securing their independence. Is it possible that those States who are ambitiously grasping at ter- ritories to which, in our judgment, they have not the least shadow of exclusive right, will use with greater moderation the increase of wealth and power derived from those territories, when acquired, than what they have displayed in their endeavors to acquire them? We think not. We are convinced the same spirit which hath prompt- ed them to insist on a claim so extravagant, so repugnant to every principle of justice, so incom- patible with the general welfare of all the States, will urge them on to add oppression to injustice. If they should not be incited by a superiority of wealth and strength to oppress by open force their less wealthy and less powerful neighbors, yet de- population, and consequently the impoverishment, of those States will necessarily follow, which, by an unfair construction of the Confederation, may be stripped of a common interest, and the common benefits derivable from the Western Country. Sup- 196 A PHILOSOPHICAL HlSfORy. pose, for instance, Virginia indisputably possessed of the extensive and fertile country to which she has set up a claim, what would be the probable consequences to Maryland of such an undisturbed and undisputed possession? They cannot escape the least discerning. "Virginia, by selling on the most moderate terms a small proportion of the lands in question, would draw into her treasury vast sums of money; and in proportion to the sums arising from such sales would be enabled to lessen her taxes. Lands comparatively cheap, and taxes comparatively low, with the lands and taxes of an adjacent State, would quickly drain the State thus disadvantage- ously circumstanced of its most useful inhabitants; its wealth and its consequence in the scale of the confederated States would sink of course. A claim so injurious to more than one-half, if not the whole, of the United States, ought to be supported by the clearest evidence of the right. Yet what evidences of that right have been produced? What argu- ments alleged in support either of the evidences or the right? None that we have heard of deserv- ing a serious refutation. * * * "We are convinced, policy and justice require, that a country unsettled at the commencement of this war, claimed by the British crown, and ceded to it by the treaty of Paris, if wrested from the common enemy by the blood and treasure of the thirteen States, should be considered as a common property, subject to be parcelled out by Congress into free, convenient, and independent govern- THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 197 ments, in such manner and at such times as the wisdom of that assembly shall hereafter direct. "Thus convinced, we should betray the trust reposed in us by our constituents, were we to au- thorize you to ratify, on their behalf, the Confedera- tion, unless it be further explained. We have cool- 1}'^ and dispassionatel}^ considered the subject; we have weighed probable inconveniences and hard- ships against the sacrifice of just and essential rights; and do instruct you not to agree to the Con- federation, unless an article or articles be added thereto in conformity with our declaration. Should we succeed in obtaining such article or articles, then you are hereby fully empowered to accede to the Confederation. * * * "Also we desire and instruct you to move, at a proper time, that these instructions be read to Con- gress by their Secretary, and entered on the Jour- nals of Congress. "We have spoken with freedom, as became freemen ; and we sincerely wish that these our rep- resentations may make such an impression on that assembly as to induce them to make such addition to the Articles of Confederation as may bring about a permanent union." On the 21st of May, 1779, the delegates of Mary- land informed Congress that they have received instructions from their State legislature respect- ing the Articles of Confederation, which they are directed to lay before Congress, and have entered on their Journals. The instructions were read, and 198 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. then referred to a coDimittee; subsequently the committee made its report to Congress. On the 6th day of September, 1780, Congress took into consideration tlie report of the commit- tee to whom were referred the instructions of the General Assembl}'' of Maryland to their delegates in Congress respecting the Articles of Confedera- tion, and the declaration therein referred to; the act of the legislature of New York on the same subject; and the remonstrance of the General As- sembly of Virginia, which report was agreed to, and is in the words following: "That, having duly considered the several mat- ters to them submitted, they conceive it unneces- sary to examine into the merits or policy of the instructions or declaration of the General Assem- bly of Maryland, or of the remonstrance of the General Assembly of Virginia, as they involve questions a discussion of which was declined, on mature consideration, when the Articles of Confed- eration were debated; nor, in the opinion of the committee, can such questions be now revived with any prospect of conciliation: That it appears more advisable to press upon these States which can remove the embarrassments respecting the West- ernCountrya liberal surrender of a portion of their territorial claims, since they cannot be preserved entire without endangering the stability of the general Confederacy; to remind them how indis- pensably necessary it is to establish the Federal Union on a fixed and permanent basis, and on prin- ciples acceptable to all its respective members; THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 199 how essential to public credit and confidence, to the support of our army, to the vigor of our coun- cils, and success of our measures, to our tranquil- lity at home, our reputation abroad, to our very existence as a free, sovereign, and independent peo- ple; that we are fully persuaded the wisdom of the respective legislatures will lead them to a full and impartial consideration of a subject so interest- ing to the United States, and so necessary to the happy establishment of the Federal Union; that they are confirmed in these expectations by a view of the before-mentioned act of the legislature of New York, submitted to their consideration; that this act is expressl}^ calculated to accelerate the federal alliance, by removing, as far as depends on that State, the impediment arising from the Western Country, and for that purpose to yield up a portion of territorial claim for the general bene- fit. "Whereupon : Resolved, That copies of the sev- eral papers referred to the committee be trans- mitted, with a copy of the report, to the legisla- tures of the several States; and that it be earnestly recommended to these States who have claims to the Western Country to pass such laws, and give their delegates in Congress such powers, as may effectually remove the only obstacle to a final rati- fication of the Articles of Confederation; and that the legislature of Maryland be earnestly requested to authorize their delegates in Congress to sub- scribe the said articles." This patriotic appeal of Congress, and the ex- 200 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. * ample of New York in authorizing a cession of her interest in the western lands, were not in vain. The other States imitated the example of New York, and, at successive intervals, ceded to the United States — with certain reservations b}^ some — all their claims to the Western Country.^^ Thus by the Revolution and these cessipns the United States derived their title to all that portion of the public domain north of Florida and east of the Mississippi River — a vast territory. It will be remembered that the public domain acquired by the United States subsequent to this, was obtained in a different manner; quite a large portion of it by purchase from foreign governments, and the remainder hj conquest. The most of these ac- quisitions were, the Louisiana purchase from France, in 1803; the Florida purchase from Spain, in 1819; the Mexican cession, in 1818, by conquest of Mexico; and the Alaska purchase from Russia, in 1867. The legislature of Maryland having received the appeal of Congress, in which she was earnestly requested to authorize her delegates in Congress to subscribe the Articles of Confederation, without waiting for the States to make cessions of their claims to the western territory, authorized, in Feb- ruary, 1781, her delegates in Congress to subscribe i^The Northwestern territory was ceded as follows: That of New York was made March 1st, 1781, under the authority of the Act of the Legislature of that State, of the 19th of February, 1780. That of Virginia was made March 1st, 1784, under the authority of an Act of the 20th of December, 1783. That of Massachusetts, on the 19th of April, 1785, under the authority of the Acts of that State, of the 13th of November, 1784, and 17th of March, 1785; and that of Connecticut, on the 14th of September, 1786, under the authority of an Act of that State of May, 1786. See Kent's Commentaries, Vol, I, pp. 271-272 (Uth Ed.). THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 201 and ratify the Articles of Confederation; declar- ing, however, in the same act, "that, by acceding to the said Confederation, this State doth not re- linquish, or intend to relinquish, any right or in- terest she hath with the other united or Confed- erated States to the back country; but claims the same as fully as was done by the legislature of this State in their declaration which stands entered on the Journals of Congress; this State relying on the justice of the several States hereafter, as to the said claim made by this State." Whereupon the Articles were signed and ratified by John Han- son and Daniel Carroll, her delegates, on the 1st day of March, 1781. The Articles of Confederation were now in full force and effect, and so continued until the 4th day of March, 1789, wdien the Consti- tution of the United States went into effect. It was well that Maryland insisted, with so much vigor and with such justness of right, that she would not ratify the Articles of Confederation unless some provision was made for the States claiming interests in the western territory for ced- ing their claims to the United States, f6r the bene- fit of all the States. For it is quite certain that her action and delay in ratifying the Articles, caused a cession of that territory to the United States, preserved the Union, and, as Virginia claimed a large portion of the North Western Ter- ritory, prevented slavery from being fastened on it, which it is probable would have been done had Virginia retained her interest therein. Thus the free States would have been hemmed in, and the 202 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. cleTelopment of freedom prevented. But Provi- dence determined tbie course of events otherwise; and that Territory was dedicated to freedom. The following is the text of the ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. To all to whom these presents shall come, We, the undersigned, delegates of the States affixed to our names, send greeting: Whereas the delegates of the United States of America in Congress assembled did, on the fif- teenth day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy-seven, and in the second year of the independence of America, agree to certain Articles of Confedera- tion and Perpetual Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Mary- land, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, in the words following, viz.: Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union between the States of New Hampshire, Massachu- setts Bay, Rhode Island and Providence Planta- tions, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Article I. The style of this Confederacy shall be, "The United States of America." Article II. Each State retains its soA'ereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, Juris- diction, and right, which is not by this Confedera- THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 203 tion expressly delegated to the United States in Congress assembled. Article III. The said States hereby severally enter into a firm league of friendship with each other for their common defense, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general wel- fare; binding themselves to assist each other against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account of religion, sov- ereignty, trade, or any other pretense whatever. Article IV. The better to secure and perpetuate mutual friendship and intercourse among the peo- ple of the different States in this Union, the free inhabitants of each of these States, paupers, vaga- bonds, and fugitives from justice excepted, shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of free citizens in the several States; and the people of each State shall have free ingress and regress to and from any other State, and shall enjoy therein all the privileges of trade aud commerce, subject to the same duties, impositions, and restrictions, as the inhabitants thereof respectively: Provided, That such restrictions, shall not extend so far as to prevent the removal of property imported into any State to any other State, of which the owner is an inhabitant: Provided, also, That no imposition, duties, or restriction shall be laid by any State on the property of the United States or either of them. If any person guilty of or charged with treason, felony, or other high misdemeanor, in any State, shall tlee from justice, and be found in any of the 204 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. United States, he shall, upon demand of the gov- ernor or executive power of the State from which he fled, be delivered up, and removed to the State having jurisdiction of his offense. Full faith and credit shall be given in each of these States to the records, acts, and judicial pro- ceedings of the courts and magistrates of every other State. Article V. For the more convenient manage- ment of the general interests of the United States, delegates shall be annually appointed in such manner as the Legislature of each State shall di- rect, to meet in Congress on the first Monday in November, in every year, with a power reserved to each State to recall its delegates or any of them, at any time within the year, and to send others in their stead for the remainder of the year. No State shall be represented in Congress by less than two nor by more than seven members; and no person shall be capable of being a dele- gate for more than three years in any term of six years; nor shall any person, being a delegate, be capable of holding any office under the United States, for which he, or another for his benefit, re- ceives any salary, fees or emolument of any kind. Each State shall maintain its own delegates in a meeting of the States, and while they act as members of the committee of these States. In determining questions in the United States in Congress assembled, each State shall have one vote. Freedom of speech and debate in Congress shall THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 205 not be impeached or questioned in any court or place out of Congress; and the members of Con- gress shall be protected in their persons from ar- rests and imprisonments during the time of their going to and from, and attendance on, Congress, except for treason, felony, or breach of the peace. Article YI. No State, without the consent of the United States in Congress assembled, shall send any embassy to, or receive any embassy from, or enter into any conference, agreement, alliance, or treaty with any King, prince, or state; nor shall any person holding any office of profit or trust un- der the United States, or any of them, accept of any present, emolument, office or title of any kind whatever from any King, prince, or foreign state; nor shall the United States in Congress assembled, or any of them, grant any title of nobility. No two or more States shall enter into any treaty, confederation, or alliance whatever be- tween them Avithout the consent of the United States in Congress assembled, specifying accurate- ly the purposes for which the same is to be entered into, and how long it shall continue. No State shall lay any imposts or duties, which may interfere with any stipulations in treaties en- tered into by the United States in Congress as- sembled with an}^ King, prince, or state, in pur- suance of any treaties already proposed by Con- gress to the Courts of France and Spain. No vessels of war shall be kept up in time of peace by any State, except such number only as shall be deemed necessary by the United States 206 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. in Congress assembled, for the defense of such State, or its trade; nor shall any body of forces be kept up by any State in time of peace, except such number only, as, in the judgment of the United States, in Congress assembled, shall be deemed re- quisite to garrison the forts necessary for the de- fense of such State; but every State shall always keep up a well regulated and disciplined militia, sufficiently armed and accoutered, and shall pro- vide and constantly have ready for use, in public stores, a due number of field-pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, ammunition, and camp equipage. No State shall engage in any war without the consent of the United States in Congress assembled, unless such State be actually invaded by enemies, or shall have received certain advice of a resolu- tion being formed by some nation of Indians to in- vade such State, and the danger is so imminent as not to admit of a delay till the United States in Congress assembled can be consulted; nor shall any State grant commissions to any ships or ves- sels of war, nor letters of marque or reprisal, ex- cept it be after a declaration of war by the United States in Congress assembled; and then only against the kingdom or state, and tlie subjects thereof, against which war has been so declared, and under such regulations as shall be established by the United States in Congress assembled, un- less such State be infested by pirates, in which case vessels of war may be fitted out for that occa- sion, and kept so long as the danger shall con- THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 207 tinue, or until the United States in Congress as- sembled shall determine otherwise. Article VII. When land forces are raised by any State for the common defense, all oflBicers of, or under the rank of colonel, shall be appointed by the Legislature of each State respectively by whom such forces shall be raised, or in such man- ner as such State shall direct; and all vacancies shall be filled up by the State which first made the appointment. Article VIII. All charges of war, and all other expenses that shall be incurred for the common defense or general welfare and allowed by the United States in Congress assembled, shall be de- frayed out of a common treasury, which shall be supplied by the several States, in proportion to the value of all land within each State, granted to, or surveyed for, any person, as such land and the buildings and improvements thereon shall be esti- mated, according to such mode as the United States in Congress assembled shall, from time to time, direct and appoint. The taxes for paying that proportion shall be laid and levied by the authority and direction of the Legislatures of the several States, within the time agreed upon by the United States in Con- gress assembled. Article IX. The United States in Congress as- sembled shall have the sole and exclusive right and power of determining on peace and war, ex- cept in the cases mentioned in the sixth article; of sending and receiving embassadors; entering into 208 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. treaties and alliances: Provided, That no treaty of commerce shall be made whereby the legislative power of the respective States shall be restrained from imposing such imposts and duties on foreign- ers as their own people are subjected to, or from prohibiting the exportation or importation of any species of goods or commodities whatsoever; of es- tablishing rules for deciding, in all cases, what captures on land or water shall be legal, and in what manner prizes taken by land or naval forces in the service of the United States, shall be divided or appropriated; of granting letters of marque and reprisal in times of peace; appointing courts for the trial of piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and establishing courts for receiving and determining finally, appeals in all cases of cap- tures: Provided, That no member of Congress shall be appointed a judge of any of the said courts. The United States in Congress assembled shall also be the last resort on appeal in all disputes and differences now subsisting, or that hereafter may arise between two or more States concerning boun- dary, jurisdiction, or any other cause whatever; which authority shall always be exercised in the manner following: Whenever the legislative or executive authority or lawful agent of au}'^ State in controversj'^ with another, shall i)resent a peti- tion to Congress, stating the matter in question^ and praying for a hearing, notice thereof shall be given by order of Congress to the legislative or executive authority of the other State in contro- versy, and a day assigned for the appearance of THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 209 the parties by their lawful agents, who shall then be directed to appoint^ by joint consent, commis- sioners or judges to constitute a court for hearing and determining the matter in question; but if they cannot agree. Congress shall name three per- sons out of each of the United States, and from the list of such persons each party shall alternately strike out one, the petitioners beginning, until the number shall be reduced to thirteen : and from that number not less than seven nor more than nine names, as Congress shall direct, shall, in the pres- ence of Congress, be drawn out by lot; and the persons whose names shall be so drawn, or any five of them, shall be commissioners or judges, to hear and finally determine the controversy, so al- ways as a major part of the judges who shall hear the cause, shall agree in the determination; and if either party shall neglect to attend at the day appointed, without showing reasons which Con- gress shall judge sufficient, or, being present, shall refuse to strike, the Congress shall proceed to nomi- nate three persons out of each State, and the Sec- retary of Congress shall strike in behalf of such party absent or refusing; and the judgment and sentence of the court to be appointed in the man- ner before prescribed shall be final and conclusive; and if any of the parties shall refuse to submit to the authority of such court or to appear or defend their claim or cause, the court shall, nevertheless, proceed to pronounce sentence or judgment, which shall, in like manner, be final and decisive; the judgment or sentence, and other proceedings, being 14 210 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. in either case transmitted to Congress, and lodged among the acts of Congress for the security of the parties concerned: Provided, That every commis- sioner, before he sits in judgment, shall take an oath, to be administered by one of the judges of the supreme or superior court of the State, where the cause shall be tried, "well and truly to hear and determine the matter in question, according to the best of his judgment without favor, affec- tion, or hope of reward": Provided, also, That no State shall be deprived of territory for the benefit of the United States. All controversies concerning the private right of soil claimed under different grants of two or more States, whose jurisdictions, as they may re- spect such lands, and the States which passed such grants, are adjusted, the said grants or either of them being at the same time claimed to have originated antecedent to such settlement of juris- diction, shall, on the petition of either party to the Congress of the United States, be finally determ- ined, as near as may be, in the same manner as- is before prescribed for deciding disputes respecting territorial jurisdiction between different States. The United States in Congress assembled shall also have the sole and exclusive right and power of regulating the allov and value of coin struck by their own authority, or by that of the respective States; fixing the standard of weights and meas- ures throughout the United States; regulating the trade and managing all affairs with the Indians, not members of any of the States: Provided, That THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 211 the legislative right of any State within its own limits, be not infringed or violated; establishing and regulating post-offices from one State to an- other, throughout all the United States, and exact- ing ^uch postage on the papers passing through the same, as may be requisite to defray the ex- penses of the said office; appointing all officers of the livnd forces in the service of the United States, e«cepting regimental officers; appointing all the officers of the naval forces, and commissioning all officers whateA'er in the service of the United States; making rules for the government and reg- ulation of the said land and naval forces, and di- recting their operations. The United States in Congress assembled shall have authority' to appoint a committee to sit in the recess of Congress, to be denominated "a Com- mittee of the States," and to consist of one dele- gate from each State, and to appoint such other committees and civil officers as may be necessary for managing the general affairs of the United States, under their direction; to appoint one of their number to preside; provided that no person be allowed to serve in the office of president more than one year in any term of three years; to ascer- tain the necessary sums of money to be raised for the service of the United States, and to appropriate and apply the same for defraying the public ex- penses ; to borrow money or emit bills on the credit of the United States, transmitting every half year to the respective States, an account of the sums of monev so borrowed or emitted; to build and 212 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. equip a na\^; to agree upon the number of land forces, and to make requisitions from each State for its quota, in proportion to the number of white inhabitants in such State, which requisitions shall be binding; and thereupon the Legishiture of each State shall appoint the regimental otiicers, raise the men, and clothe, arm, and equip them in a soldier-like manner, at the expense of the United States; and the officers and men so clothed, armed, and equipped, shall march to the place appointed, and within the time agreed on by the United States in Congress assembled ; but if the United States in Congress assembled shall, on consideration of cir- cumstances, judge proper that any State should not raise men, or should raise a smaller number than its quota, and that any other State should raise a greater number of men than the (juota thereof, such extra number shall be raised, offi- cered, clothed, armed, and equipped in the same manner as the quota of each State, unless the Leg- islature of such State shall judge that such extra number cannot be safely spared out of the same; in which case they shall raise, officer, clothe, arm, and equip as many of such extra number as they judge can be safely spared. And the officers and men so clothed, armed, and equipped shall march to the place appointed, and within the time agreed on by the United States in Congress assembled. The United States in Congress assembled shall never engage in a war, nor grant letters of marque and reprisal in time of peace, nor enter into any treaties or alliances, nor coin money, nor regulate THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 213 the value thereof, nor ascertain the sums and ex- penses necessary for the defense and wel- fare of the United States or any of them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money on the credit of the United States, nor ap- propriate money, nor agree npon the number of vessels of war to be built or purchased, or the num- ber of land or sea forces to be raised, nor appoint a commander-in-chief of the Army or Navy, unless nine States assent to the same; nor shall a ques- tion on any other point, except for adjouruing from day to day, be determined, unless by the votes of a majority of the United States in Congress as- sembled. The Congress of the United States shall have power to adjourn to any time within the year, and to any place within the United States, so that no period of adjournment be for a longer duration than the space of six months; and shall publish the Journal of their proceedings monthly, except such parts thereof relating to treaties, alliances, or mili- tary operations, as in their judgment require se- crecy; and the jeas and nays of the delegates of each State on any question, shall be entered on the Journal, when it is desired by any delegate; and the delegates of a State, or any of them, at his or their request, shall be furnished with a tran- script of the said Journal, except such parts as are above excepted, to lay before the Legislature of the several States. Article X. The Committee of the States, or any nine of them, shall be authorized to execute, in the 214 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORV. recess of Congress, such of the powers of Congress as the United States in Congress assembled, by the consent of nine States, shall, from time to time, think expedient to vest them with : Provided, That no power be delegated to the said committee, for the exercise of which, by the Articles of Confedera- tion, the voice of nine States in the Congress of the United States assembled is requisite. Article XL Canada, acceding to this confed- eration, and joining in the measures of the United States, shall be admitted into, and entitled to, all the advantages of this Union; but no other colony shall be admitted into the same, unless such admis- sion be agreed to by nine States. Article XII. All bills of credit emitted, moneys borrowed, and debts contracted, by or under the authority of Congress, before the assembling of the United States, in pursuance of the present con- federation, shall be deemed and considered as a charge against the United States, for payment and satisfaction whereof the said United States and the public faith are hereby solemnly pledged. Article Xltl. Every State shall abide by the determinations of the United States in Congress assembled, on all questions which by this confed- eration are submitted to them. And the articles of this confederation shall be inviolably observed by every State, and the union shall be perpetual; nor shall any alteration at any time hereafter be made in any of them, unless such alteration be agreed to in a Congress of the United States, and be after- THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION. 215 wards confirmed by the Legislatures of every State. And whereas it has pleased the Great Gov- ernor of the World to incline the hearts of the Legislatures we respectively represent in Congress, to approve of, and to authorize us to ratify the said articles of confederation and perpetual union: Know ye. That we, the undersigned delegates, by virtue of the power and authority to us given for that purpose, do, by these presents, in the name and in behalf of our respectiye constituents, fully and entirely ratify and confirm each and every of the said Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, and all and singular the matters and things therein contained. And we do further sol- emnly plight and engage the faith of our respective constituents, that they shall abide by the determ- inations of the United States, in Congress as- sembled, on all questions which, by the said con- federation, are submitted to them; and that the articles thereof shall be inviolably observed by the States we respectively represent; and that the union shall be perpetual. In Witness Whereof we have hereunto set our hands, in Congress. Done at Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, the ninth day of July, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy-eight, and in the third year of the Independence of America. On the part and behalf of the State of New Hampshire. — Josiah Bartlett, John Wentworth, Jr., August 8, 1778. 216 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. On the part and behalf of the State of Massa- chusetts Bay. — John Hancock, Samuel Adams, El- bridge Gerry, Francis Dana, James Lovell, Samuel Holten. On the part and in behalf of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. — William El- lery, Henry Marchant, John Collins. On the part and behalf of the State of Connec- ticut. — Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, Oli- ver Wolcott, Titus Hosmer, Andrew Adams. On the part and behalf of the State of New York. — Jas. Duane, Era. Lewis, Wm. Duer, Gouv. Morris. On the part and in behalf of the State of New Jersey. — Jno. Witherspoon, Nath. Scudder, Nov. 26, 1778. On the part and behalf of the State of Penn- sylvania. — Robt. Morris, Daniel Roberdeau, Jona. Bayard Smith, William Clingan, Joseph Reed, July 22(1, 1778. On the part and behalf of the State of Dela- ware. — Thos. McKean, Eeb. 13, 1779, John Dickin- son, May 5, 1779, Nicholas Van Dyke. On the part and behalf of the State of Mary- land. — John Hanson, March 1, 1781, Daniel Car- roll, March 1, 1781. On the part and behalf of the State of Virginia. — Richard Henry Lee, John Banister, Thomas Ad- ams, Jno. Harvie, Francis Lightfoot Lee. On the part and behalf of the State of North Carolina.^ — John Penn, July 21, 1778, Corns. Har- nett, Jno. Williams. THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. 217 On the part and behalf of the State of South Carolina. — Heniy Laurens, William Henry Dray- ton, Jno. Mathews, Richard Hutson, Thomas He}^- ward, Jr. On the part and behalf of the State of Georgia. —Jno. Walton, July 24, 1778, Edw. Telfair, Edw. Langworthy. CHAPTER IV. THE ORDINANCE OP 1787. SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN OF THE ORDINANCE.— TEXT OF THE ORDINANCE. The United States acquired by the Revolution, and by cessions of New York, Connecticut, Massa- chusetts, and Virginia, all the vast unsettled ter- ritory North West of the River Ohio, bounded by the Great Lakes on the north and the Mississippi River on the west. It now became necessary, as emigration was moving westward and the people were desirous of settling in that territory, and of creating new States out of it, to make some provis- ion for the government of the same; and to pro- vide for the admission, into the Union, of the States which might be carved out of it. The Articles of Confederation did not give Con- gress power to provide for the government of ter- ritory acquired by the United States, nor for the admission of new States into the Union. Congress, however, out of the necessities of the case, assumed the right to legislate for the Northwestern Terri- tory in enacting a constitution for its government, 218 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. and providing therein for the admission of States which might be organized out of the same. Their labors resulted in what is called the "Ordinance of 1787." This ordinance was an instrument of great value. It laid down principles so just and wise as to be accepted by future legislators as a model in the preliminary organization of all the other States admitted into the Union. History says, that some of its provisions formed part of a political compromise between the free and slave States of great importance. The intro- duction of slavery into Virginia, in 1620, proved fruitful of dangers and disasters to American lib- erty. Moral, social and industrial antagonisms gradually sprung out of it and threatened the peace and stability of the Union from its beginning. The instinctive foresight of danger, the causes of which they could not agree to banish altogether, led the founders of the Republic to compare interests and views and ascertain what settlement of them was possible. Collision, apparently, would be fatal; union was indispensable; therefore they made terms with each other, giving the territory north of the Ohio to the free labor system, and that south of the Ohio to the forced or slave labor system.^ ^ The situation immediately after the Revolution seemed too critical to allow a violent contest, and neither the principles nor the interests involved were sufficiently well developed at that time to impress those great men with the danger which a ^=For some effects of the compromise, see Chap. IV. of Part I, Book I. THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. 219 compromise might involve. Other dangers seemed to them more immediate. Each period of national history has its own measure of wisdom and foresight, its special ques- tions to settle, and its instinct of self-preservation. The compromises, with relation to slavery, involved in the Ordinance of 1787, and in the Constitution of the United States adopted about two months later by the Convention at Philadelphia, may be accepted, when all the circumstances and difficul- ties of that period are weighed, as a proof of the patriotic wisdom and moderation of the Fathers of the Republic.^^ The following is the full text of the ORDINANCE OF 1787. An Ordinance for the Government of the Ter- ritory of the United States Northwest of the Ohio River. (In Congress, July 13, 1787.) Be it ordained by the United States in Congress assembled. That the said Territory, for the pur- poses of temporary government, be one district; subject, however, to be divided into two districts, as future circumstances may, in the opinion of Con- gress, make it expedient. Be it ordained by the authority afore- said, That the estates both of resident and non-resident proprietors in the said Territory, dying intestate, shall descend to and be dis- tributed among their children, and the de- scendants of a deceased child, in equal parts; "Walker's "The Mississippi Valley." 220 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. the descendants of a deceased child or grandchiht to take the share of their deceased parent in equal parts among them; and where there shall be no children or descendants, then in equal parts to the next of kin, in equal degree; and among collater- als, the children of a deceased brother or sister of the intestate shall have, in equal parts among them, their deceased parents' share; and there shall, in no case, be a distinction between kindred of the whole and half blood; saving in all cases to the widow of the intestate, her third part of the real estate for life, and one-third part of the per- sonal estate; and this law relative to descents and dower shall remain in full force until altered by the Legislature of the district. And until the gov- ernor and judges shall adopt laws as hereinafter mentioned, estates in the said Territory may be devised or bequeathed by wills in writing, signed and sealed by him or her, in whom the estate may be, (being of full age,) and attested by three wit- nesses; and real estates may be conveyed by lease and release, or bargain and sale, signed, sealed, and delivered by the person, being of full age, in whom the estate may be and attested by two witnesses, provided such wills be duly proved, and such con- veyances be acknowledged, or the execution there- of duly proved and be recorded within one year, after proper magistrates, courts, and registers shall be appointed for that purpose; and personal property may be transferred by delivery, saving, however, to the French and Canadian inhabitants, and other settlers of the Kaskaskies, Saint Vin- THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. 221 cent's, and the neighboring villages, who have here- tofore professed themselves citizens of Virginia, their laws and customs now in force among them, relative to the descent and conveyance of prop- erty. Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid. That there shall be appointed, from time to time, by Con- gress, a governor, whose commission shall con- tinue in force for the term of three years, unless sooner revoked by Congress; he shall reside in the district, and have a freehold estate therein, in one thousand acres of land, while in the exercise of his office. There shall be appointed, from time to time, by Congress, a secretary, whosQ commission shall con- tinue in force for four years, unless sooner re- voked; he shall reside in the district, and have a freehold estate therein, in five hundred acres of land, while in the exercise of his office; it shall be his duty to keep and preserve the acts and laws passed by the Legislature, and the public records of the district, and the proceedings of the governor in his executive department; and transmit authen- tic copies of such acts and proceedings every six months to the secretary of Congress. There shall also be appointed a court, to consist of three judges, any two of whom to form a court, who shall have a common law jurisdiction, and reside in the district, and have each therein a freehold estate, in five hundred acres of land, while in the exercise of their offices, and their commissions shall continue in force during good behavior. 222 A PHILOSOPrtlCAL HISTORV. The governor and judges, or a majority of them, shall adopt and publish in the district such laws of the original States, criminal and civil, as may be necessary, and best suited to the circumstances of the district, and report them to Congress, from time to time, which laws shall be in force in the district until the organization of the general assembly therein, unless disapproved of by Congress; but afterwards the Legislature shall have authority to alter them as they shall think fit. The governor for the time being shall be com- mander-in-chief of the militia; appoint and com- mission all officers in the same below the rank of general officers. All general officers shall be ap- pointed and commissioned by Congress. Previous to the organization of the General As- sembly, the governor shall appoint such magis- trates and other civil officers in each county or township as he shall find necessary for the preser- vation of the peace and good order in the same. After the General Assembly shall be organized, the powers and duties of magistrates and other civil officers shall be regulated and defined by the said assembly; but all magistrates and other civil officers, not herein otherwise directed, shall, dur- ing the continuance of this temporary governmeiit, be appointed by the governor. For the prevention of crimes and injuries, the laws to be adopted or made shall have force in all parts of the district, and for the execution of pro- cess, criminal and civil, the governor shall make proper divisions thereof; and he shall proceed from THE ORDINANCE OF ItSt. 223 time to time, as circumstances may require, to lay out the parts of the district in which the Indian titles shall have been extinguished, into counties and townships, subject, however, to such altera- tions as may thereafter be made by the Legislature. So soon as there shall be five thousand free male inhabitants of full age in the district, upon giving proof thereof to the governor, they shall receive authority, with time and place, to elect representa- tives from their counties or townships, to represent them in the General Assembly: Provided, That for every five hundred free male inhabitants, there shall be one representative ; and so on, progressive- ly, with the number of free male inhabitants, shall the right of representation increase, until the num- ber of representatives shall amount to twenty-five; after which the number and proportion of represen- tatives shall be regulated by the Legislature: Pro- vided, That no person be eligible or qualified to act as a representative unless he shall have been a citizen of one of the United States three years, and be a resident in the district, or unless he shall have resided in the district three years; and in either case, shall likewise hold in his own right, in fee simple, two hundred acres of land within the same: Provided, also. That a freehold in fifty acres of land in the district, having been a citizen of one of the States, and being resident in the dis- trict, or the like freehold and two years' residence in the district, shall be necessary to qualify *a man as an elector of a representative. The representatives thus elected shall serve for 224 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. the term of two years; and in case of the death of a representative, or removal from office, the gov- ernor shall issue a writ to the county or township for which he was a member to elect another in his stead, to serve for the residue of the term. The General Assembly, or Legislature, shall consist of the governor, legislative council, and a house of representatives. The legislative coun- cil shall consist of five members, to continue in oflice five years, unless sooner removed by Con- gress, any three of whom to be a quorum; and the members of the council shall be nominated and appointed in the following manner, to-wit: As soon as representatives shall be elected, the gov- ernor shall appoint a time and place for them to meet together, and when met, they shall nominate ten persons, residents in the district, and each pos- sessed of a freehold in five hundred acres of land, and return their names to Congress; five of whom Congress shall appoint and commission to serve as aforesaid; and whenever a vacancy shall hap- pen in the council, by death or removal from office, the house of representatives shall nominate two persons, qualified as aforesaid, for each vacancy, and return their names to Congress; one of whom Congress shall appoint and commission for the resi- due of the term. And every five years, four months at least before the expiration of the time of service of the members of the council, the said house shall nominate ten persons, qualified as aforesaid, and return their names to Congress; five of whom Con- gress shall appoint and commission to serve as THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. 225 members of the council five years, unless sooner removed. And the governor, legislative council, and house of representatives, shall ha^-e authority to make laws in all cases for the good government of the district, not repugnant to the principles and articles in this ordinance established and declared, and all bills having passed b}' a majority in the house, and by a majorit}^ in the council, shall be referred to the governor for his assent; but no bill or legislative act whatever shall be of any force without his assent. The governor shall have power to convene, prorogue, and dissolve the General As- sembly when in his opinion it shall be expedient. The governor, judges, legislative council, secre- tary^, and such other officers as Congress shall ap- point in the district, shall take an oath or affirma- tion of fidelity and of office, the governor before the President of Congress, and all other officers before the governor. As soon as a Legislature shall be formed in the district, the council and house as- semble, in one room, shall have authority, by joint ballot, to elect a delegate to Congress, who shall have a seat in Congress, with a right of debating, but not of voting during this temporary govern- ment. And for extending the fundamental principles of civil and religious liberty, which form the basis whereon these republics, their laws and constitu- tions, are erected; to fix and establish those prin- ciples as the basis of all laws, constitutions, and governments, which forever hereafter shall be formed in the said Territory; to provide, also, for 15 226 A PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY. the establishment of States, and permanent gov- erument therein, and for their admission to a share in the Federal conncils on an equal footing with the original States, at as early periods as may be consistent with the general interest: It is hereby ordained and declared, by the au- thority aforesaid, That the following articles shall be considered as articles of compact, betw^een the original States and the peo- ple and States in the said Territory, and forever remain unalterable, unless by common consent, to- wit: Article I. No person, demeaning himself in a peaceable and orderly manner, shall ever be mo- lested on account of his mode of worship or relig- ious sentiments, in the said Territory. Article II. The inhabitants of the said Terri- tory shall always be entitled to the benefits of the writ of habeas corpus, and of the trial by jury; of a proportionate representation of the people in the Legislature, and of judicial proceedings accord- ing to the course of the common law. All persons shall be bailable, unless for capital offenses, where the proof shall be evident or the presumption great. All fines shall be moderate; and no cruel or unusual punishments shall be inflicted. No man shall be deprived of his liberty or property but by the judgment of his peers, or the law of the laud; and should the public exigencies make it necessary for the common preservation to take any person's property, or to demand his particular services, full compensation shall be made for the same. And, THE ORDINANCE OF 1787. 227 in the just preservation of rights and property, it is understood and declared that no law ought ever to be made, or have force in the said Territory, that shall, in any manner whatever, interfere vrith, or affect, private contracts or engagements, bona fide and without fraud, previously formed. Article III. Religion, morality, and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the hap- piness of mankind, schools and the means of edii- cation shall forever be encouraged. The utmost good faith shall always be observed toward the In- dians; their lands and property shall never be taken from them without their consent; and in their propert^^, rights, and liberty they shall never be invaded or disturbed, unless in just and law- ful wars authorized by Congress; but laws foundel in justice and humanity shall, from time to time, be made for preventing wrongs being done to them, and for preserving peace and friendship with them. Article IV. The said Territory, and the States which may be formed therein, shall ever remain a part of this confederacy of the United States of America, subject to the Articles of Confederation, and to such alterations therein as shall be consti- tutionally made; and to all the acts and ordinances of the United States in Congress assembled, con- formable thereto. The inhabitants and settlers in the Territory shall be subject to pay a part of the Federal debts, contracted or to be contracted, an 79> 89, 147, 166 Livingston, William 175 Livingston, Robert R 177 Madison, James 60, 239, 243 Mason, George 233, 239, 245 Mallory, Stephen B 119 Morris, Robert 239 Morris, Gouverneur 239 Phillips, Wendell 90 Pinckney, Charles Cotesworth 63, 134, 239, 244 Pinckney, Charles 239 Pryor, Roger A 1 54 Randolph, Peyton 175 Randolph, Edmund 239 Rhett, R. B 93 Rutledge, John 63, 239 Rutledge, Edward 189 Sallust 51, III Seward, W^illiam H 92 Sherman, Roger 175, 177, 239 Stephens, Alexander H 71, 98, 100, 113 Stevens, Thaddens 107 Sumner, Charles 90 Taney, Roger Brooke 91 Thompson, Jacob 117 Thompson, Charles 230 Toombs, Robert 107, 155 Washington, George 32, 39, 49, 59, 238, 242, 243 INDEX OF PERSONS. 297 Webster, Daniel 53, i66 Webster, Noah 237 Webster, Pelatiah 23; Wilson, James 239, 244 Yulee, D. L 119 ONGBESS -\"x