40 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



and she would be recreant, did she not rally to maintain that 

 title. Beneath the flag of the Union, her commerce has freely 

 traversed these western seas ; shall she resign that freedom 

 now ? The history of the country is her history ; the protec- 

 tion of the Constitution and the blessings of the Union are 

 hers ? And from her every hallowed battle-field, the blood of 

 her fathers cries to her from the ground, to send forth her sons 

 in defence of that republic in whose cause they fell. May the 

 work of constitutional freedom begun at Lexington, and Con- 

 cord, and Bunker Hill, be yet perfected on this continent. 

 And while the sons of Massachusetts go forth to defend that 

 government which is based upon equal rights to all, may we 

 who, less favored, and reluctant, remain behind, cherish her 

 institutions, and guard her interests, and beautify her soil, 

 for the glory and honor of her future years of peace and 

 prosperity. 



And this day, set apart by the Chief Magistrate of the United 

 States for national humiliation and prayer, calls upon us to 

 remember our duties as citizens living under a constitution 

 framed for the whole republic. For the confirmation of the 

 rights and privileges conferred by that immortal instrument, 

 we are involved in civil war. To protect that fabric, which has 

 made us strong at home and abroad, and has extended the 

 American power from sea to sea, the sword, sheathed when the 

 battles of freedom were fought, has leaped again from its 

 scabbard. As God shed down his strength upon the founders, 

 so may He sustain the defenders of that fabric, everywhere. 

 Not for a section, not for a party, not for a state, not for an 

 abstraction or a dream, have our people rushed to arms ; but 

 to preserve the very foundations of our religion, and law, and 

 education, and material greatness — to preserve our Govern- 

 ment, to preserve our Union. In this work, shall any theory 

 divide us, or any platform rule ? It is a government for the 

 East and for the West, for the North and for the South, for 

 " every kindred, and nation, and tongue " on this continent, 

 which demands all our care. Are there wrongs ? — let them be 

 redressed under the Constitution. Are there rights to be 

 maintained ? — let them be maintained under the Constitution. 

 And not until all its guarantees are extended over every State 

 and Territory, over every people and party, may this war cease. 



