558 



MAINE. 



general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to 

 posterity, therefore 



Resolved, That the purpose of the Democratic party 

 is the restoration of the Union as it was, and the pres- 

 ervation of the Constitution as it is; and to secure 

 these objects we will stand shoulder to shoulder with 

 Union men everywhere in support of the Federal 

 Government, in maintaining its safety, integrity, and 

 legitimate authority by all constitutional and proper 

 means. 



Resolved, That the Constitution was first formed and 

 adopted by the States and the people, in a spirit of 

 concession and compromise, and the Union resulting 

 from its adoption has hitherto been preserved by the 

 same means, and must from its very nature, and the 

 principles upon which our institutions are founded, 

 still rely mainly for its continuance or restoration, 

 upon the prevalence among the people of the same 

 spirit by which it was formed, and not upon military 

 power alone. That we hold sacred, as we do all other 

 parts of that instrument, the following provisions of 

 the Constitution of the United States : 



[These provisions relate to the trial by jury 

 where the crime was committed ; the abridg- 

 ment of the freedom of speech and the press ; 

 the reserved power of the States and people; 

 the right of the people to be secure from un- 

 reasonable searches and seizures ; the right of 

 the accused to a speedy public trial where the 

 crime was committed.] 



And we utterly condemn and denounce the repeated 

 and gross violation by the Executive of the United 

 States, of the said rights thus secured by the Constitu- 

 tion ; and we also utterly repudiate and condemn the 

 monstrous dogma that in time of war the Constitution 

 is suspended, or its powers in any respect enlarged 

 beyond the letter and true meaning of that instrument. 

 That we view with indignation and alarm the illegal 

 and unconstitutional seizures and imprisonment, Tor 

 alleged political offences, of our citizens without judi- 

 cial process, in States where such process is unob- 

 structed, but by Executive order by telegraph or 

 otherwise, and call upon all who uphold the Union, 

 the Constitution, and the laws, to unite with us in de- 

 nouncing and repelling such flagrant violation of the 

 State and Federal Constitutions and tyrannical infrac- 

 tion of the rights and liberties of American citizens ; 

 and that the people of this State cannot safely, and will 

 not submit to have the freedom of speech and freedom 

 of the press, the two great and essential bulwarks of 

 civil liberty, put down by an unwarranted and despotic 

 exertion of power. 



The election was held on the 8th of Septem- 

 ber, and the votes were cast as follows: 



The republican candidate received 45,534: 



The " war democratic " candidate received 7,178 



The regular democratic candidate received... 32,331 

 The republican majority over both the others 



was ." 6,025 



The majority of President Lincoln over all 

 other candidates, in 1860, was 24,704. 



The vote in the congressional districts was as 

 follows : 



Republican. 



1st 10,205 



2d 9,o92 



3d 9,971 



4th 8,113 



5th : 9,160 



War 

 Democrat.. Democrat. 



10,332 

 7,237 

 6,549 



3,976 1,290 



8,217 



The Legislature was elected as follows : 



Senate. House. 



Republicans 24 107 



War democrat 3 12 



Democrats 3 32 



The force sent into the field from the State 

 of Maine for the war was twenty-seven regi- 

 ments of infantry, one regiment of cavalry, one 

 regiment of mounted artillery, six batteries, 

 and one company of sharpshooters, exceeding 

 thirty thousand men. These troops were dis- 

 tributed in Virginia, on the peninsula, and 

 southwest of Washington, at Port Royal in 

 South Carolina, Fernandina and Pensacola, 

 Florida, and at New Orleans. 



An event of considerable interest to the peo- 

 ple of the State, and one also of national im- 

 portance, occurred at the beginning of 1862. 

 This was the permission granted by the Secre- 

 tary of State, Mr. Seward, for British troops 

 to pass across the territory of the State. Just 

 previously, the seizure and removal of Messrs. 

 Mason and Slidell from on board the Brit- 

 ish steamer Trent had been made, and the 

 British, in connection with their demand for 

 the release of these pel-sons, were sending large 

 numbers of troops to Canada. On the 13th of 

 January the senate of the State adopted a res- 

 olution requesting the governor to inquire if 

 such permission had been given. Mr. Seward 

 replied on the 17th, stating that on the 4th of 

 January his department was advised by a tele- 

 graphic despatch from Portland, in the State 

 of Maine, that the steamship Bohemian, due 

 there on the 7th, was telegraphed off Cape 

 Race, with troops for Canada ; and inquiring 

 whether, in case they came to Portland, any 

 different course was to be taken than what has 

 been heretofore pursued, and asking instruc- 

 tions, in that contingency, by telegraph. 



Upon this information he replied by tele- 

 graph, addressed to the marshal of the United 

 States, and all the Federal officers in Portland, 

 directing that the agents of the British Gov- 

 ernment shall have all proper facilities for 

 landing and conveying to Canada, or elsewhere, 

 troops and munitions of war of every kind, 

 without exception. The immediate grounds for 

 this proceeding were, that it was supposed that 

 a passage of the troops and munitions named 

 across the territory of the United States, by the 

 Grand Trunk railroad, would save the persons 

 concerned from risk and suffering, which might 

 be feared if they were left to make their 

 way, in an inclement season, through the ice 

 and snow of a northerly Canadian voyage. 



The principle upon which this concession 

 was made to Great Britain was that, when hu- 

 manity, or even convenience, renders it desir- 

 able for one nation to have a passage for its 

 troops and munitions through the territory of 

 another, it is a customary act of comity to grant 

 it, if it can be done consistently with its own 

 safety and welfare. It is on this principle that 

 the United States continually enjoy the right of 

 the passage of troops upon the Panama rail- 

 road across the territories of the republic of 

 New Granada. 



It was not supposed that the State of Maine 

 would feel aggrieved ; but if it was so, the di- 

 rections would be modified. 



