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CONGRESS, U. S. 



the safety of the nation." It also favored the 

 Border State plan. Mr. Seward, of New York, 

 in presenting the memorial to the Senate, stated 

 that he had been asked by the committee to 

 support the petition, but he had not seen a 

 proposition from either North or South which 

 would be satisfactory to the other. He deemed 

 it his duty to hold himself open and ready for 

 the best adjustment, but he would express to 

 the public and to the Senate the commendable 

 spirit in which the committee came. He then 

 proceeded to say : 



" I have asked them, also, in return for per- 

 forming my duty on this occasion, that when 

 they have arrived at home, they will act in the 

 same spirit and maDifest their devotion to the 

 Union above all other interests and all other 

 sentiments, by speaking for the Union, by vot- 

 ing for the Union, and, if it should be demand- 

 ed, by lending and even giving their money for 

 the Union, and fighting, in the last resort, for 

 the Union, taking care always that speaking 

 goes before voting, voting goes before giving 

 money, and all go before a battle, which I 

 should regard as hazardous and dangerous, and 

 therefore the last, as it would be the most 

 painful, measure to be resorted to for the sal- 

 vation of the Union. 



" This is the spirit in which I have deter- 

 mined for myself to come up to this great ques- 

 tion, and to pass through it, as I sincerely be- 

 lieve we shall pass through it. For, although 

 this great controversy has not been already 

 settled, I do not, therefore, any the less calcu- 

 late upon and hope and expect that it will be 

 peacefully settled, and settled for the Union. 

 I have not been so rash as to expect that, in 

 sixty days which have been allowed to us since 

 the meeting of Congress and I will be frank, 

 sir, in saying that I have not expected that, in 

 the ninety days which are the allotted term of 

 Congress reason and judgment would come 

 back to the people, and become so pervading, 

 so universal, as that they would appreciate the 

 danger and be able to agree on the remedies. 

 Still, I have been willing that it should be tried, 

 though unsuccessfully ; but my confidence has 

 remained the same, for this simple reason : that, 

 as I have not believed that the passion and 

 frenzy of the hour could overturn this great 

 fabric of constitutional liberty and empire in 

 ninety days, so I have felt sure that there 

 would be time, even after the expiration of 

 ninety days, for the restoration of all that had 

 been lost, and for the reestablishment of all 

 that was in danger." 



Mr. Mason, of Virginia, replied : " I was 

 about to remark, that at this time, when the 

 Government is in process of disintegration, 

 when there are six States which have sepa- 

 rated themselves from the Union, as they say, 

 finally and forever ; when other States not yet 

 separated, are arming themselves arming upon 

 a large scale ; when my own State appropriat- 

 ed, twelve months ago, in expectation of what' 

 seems now to be occurring, the very large sum 



from a State treasury, in advance, of $500,000 

 to purchase arms to arm her people ; when 

 here, within a few days, another appropriation 

 was made of $1,000,000 for the same purpose, 

 to arm her people ; when we find that other 

 States have done the same thing ; when we 

 find, in my own State and in other States, also, 

 that the people are arming themselves, that the 

 counties and the towns, exercising their muni- 

 cipal authority, are raising money upon the 

 credit of the counties and the towns to arm the 

 people ; when that state of things is going on, 

 and the public mind is engaged, in those of the 

 slave States that have not yet separated, and 

 in some of the free States, in devising a pos- 

 sible mode by which the American mind can 

 again be united in a common Government, 

 what do we hear from the honorable Senator 

 from New York ? What do we hear from that 

 Senator who occupies the position before the 

 country which is occupied by that Senator, ac- 

 knowledged at the head of the political combi- 

 nations which are to bring into power the in- 

 coming Administration, said, through the news- 

 paper press, to be the probable right hand of 

 the new Administration? What do we hear 

 from him ? 



" Why, the honorable Senator, amidst the 

 maze of generalities which marked his speech, 

 did march up to the line and tell us what his pol- 

 icy was ; and I assume it is to be the policy 

 of those whom he has so aided to bring into 

 power. What was it ? His recommendation to 

 those gentlemen who have sent this enormous 

 petition here, not adopting their views, not 

 looking to any amendment to the Constitution 

 whatsoever, is given in four distinct propositions 

 of what is to be the policy of those whom he 

 is to lead, if history does not misinform us, 

 after the 4th of March next. What is it ? He 

 recommends them, when they go home, to em- 

 ploy themselves in the great work of restoring 

 the breaches that have been made in the Gov- 

 ernment. How ? Why, said he, speak for the 

 Union. That is the first. Next, vote for the 

 Union. That is the second great measure. 

 What is the third? Give money 'for the Union. 

 And the last? Fight for the Union. These 

 are the four measures proposed by the honor- 

 able Senator from New York to heal this gap- 

 ing breach in the Government." 



Mr. Seward, in answer, said : " I contem- 

 plated, sir, after the expiration of all the mul- 

 titudinous trials that are making to save this 

 Union by compromise, a convention of the peo- 

 ple of the United States, called in constitution- 

 al form ; and when that shall have been held, 

 or refused to be held, and found to be impos- 

 sible to obtain ; if then, this Union is to stand 

 or fall by the force of arms, I have advised 

 my people to do as I shall be ready to do my- 

 self stand in the breach, and stand with it or 

 perish with it." 



Mr. Mason responded : " Then we have it 

 definite, Mr. President. I want to bring the 

 honorable Senator, the exponent of the new 



