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CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



of the State of Virginia were exceptei, as I now 

 recollect, by the President in his proclamation 

 declaring what portions of the territory of the 

 United States were in rebellion. The State 

 was never declared to be in rebellion as a State ; 

 but the inhabitants of portions of the State of 

 Virginia were declared to be in rebellion. Why, 

 at the close of the war, after it is over, shall we 

 adopt language that was not used during the 

 pendency of the war or at its commencement 

 legislative language, if you please to give a 

 character to the rebellion which it has not had 

 heretofore ? 



" My great objection to this resolution is that 

 it undertakes to establish the idea in the coun- 

 try that these States have to be brought back 

 into the Union by an act of Congress, which I 

 do not believe. I believe that in law the States 

 are in the Union, and that all that is needed is 

 to give them practical relations to the Federal 

 Government in every respect. So far as that 

 was within the power of the Executive, it has 

 been done. The Executive department is exer- 

 cising all of its powers within and over these 

 States. In some of the States, I believe, the 

 Federal judiciary is also exercising its powers. 

 It now simply requires the action of Congress 

 to give them their full rights as States in the 

 Union. Therefore I do not think it is proper 

 to say in this resolution that the States have 

 been in rebellion, or to provide that the States 

 are to be brought back again by an act of Con- 

 gress. This is all I have to say upon the amend- 

 ment." 



Mr. Wade, of Ohio, said: "Mr. President, I 

 am perfectly aware that a war is made and I 

 am willing to meet it anywhere upon what are 

 called the radicals of the country, and I am one 

 of them. In olden times I was here in the 

 Senate called an abolitionist, but they have 

 changed the name since. They have all got to 

 be abolitionists now, and they have changed my 

 name to ' radical.' " 

 Mr. Conness : " A radical change." 

 Mr. Wade : " No, sir, it is not a radical 

 change. My radicalism is exactly the same 

 thing that what you called my abolitionism was. 

 Sir, it has conquered you. Who dare get up 

 to-day and say that he is not an abolitionist? " 

 Mr. Sumner : " And it will conquer again." 

 Mr. Wade : " Will conquer again ! It has 

 conquered. What do you call this tempest in a 

 teapot now before us ? Do you call that a war ? 

 Sir, it does not rise to the dignity of war- 

 fare. The attempt is put down now in the 

 hearts of the people. God knows the rever- 

 berations from all parts of the country show 

 that the attempt to war on the radicals will 

 not rise to respectability enough to make a 

 defence. I thank God for it, for, Mr. President, 

 in the history of mankind, so far as I have read 

 or know it, there never has been a time when 

 parties were so organized on radical principles 

 of justice and right. The party with whom I 

 act appeal to no expediency, to none of your 

 political policies ; we dig down to the granite 



of eternal truth, and there we stand, and they 

 who assail us have to assail the great principles 

 of the Almighty, for our principles are chained 

 to His throne, and are as indestructible as the 

 Almighty himself. And do you think by your 

 puny attempts, by false, copperhead, miserable 

 papers like this to assail us, and think to pre- 

 vail over the principles which we have adopted? 

 I want no warfare with anybody ; but if you 

 will make war upon such principles as we have 

 adopted, it is the worse for you. You cannot 

 prevail. 



" I have been in these political warfares for a 

 long time ; I claim to be an old soldier in them. 

 I stood in this Senate when there were not five 

 men with me to support me, and then I rose 

 here and told those who were inveighing like 

 demons against the principles that they called 

 abolitionism, that I was an abolitionist. To- 

 day you are all abolitionists, not voluntarily, 

 but by compulsion. Yes, sir, compulsory aboli- 

 tionists, for who does not go for abolition? 

 Your President is an abolitionist ; every leading 

 man of the South is compelled to say he is an 

 abolitionist, whether he is at heart or not. 

 Such are the triumphs of the great principles of 

 right, justice, and liberty, which were abetted 

 and advocated by the great party with whom I 

 have acted and. claim now to act. 



" Talk not to me about resolutions or the veto 

 of a bill making any successful opposition to 

 the measures that we have brought forward 

 now for the purpose of advancing right, lib- 

 erty, and justice in the South and everywhere 

 else. You may delay the blow, but come it 

 will, for the decree is not of us, but of the 

 Almighty ; we shall prevail, and all you can do 

 or say will not be able to prevail against it. 



" I have wondered a great deal why men did 

 not learn more about these things than they 

 seem to do. Our principles are assailed now 

 with just the same virulence that they used 

 to be when, we were in a small minority. I do 

 not hold that they have triumphed thus far 

 because of any superior capacity on our part. 

 Certainly not. Why is it, then, that we, from 

 the smallest of all beginnings, have conquered 

 the prejudices of the people and conquered the 

 predominant party of this country which had 

 stood completely dominating the whole nation 

 for more than forty years ? Why is it that we 

 have conquered you and now are triumphant 

 here in this Senate and almost by two-thirds 

 in both branches, with the whole nation at our 

 backs ? What miracle has wrought this change? 

 None other than the great consoling fact that 

 justice, liberty, and right are destined among 

 the American people to sacceed, and the gates 

 of hell cannot prevail against them, although 

 they are trying at this particular time very hard 

 to do it. 



" Mr. President. I did not rise to speak on this 

 resolution. It has been here long enough. I 

 wish we would come to a vote upon the subject. 

 I did not intend to open my mouth upon it, 

 and I should not have said any thing now but 



