Chapter V: Front Matter (5)

Two broad territories, New Mexico and Utah, under the exclusive jurisdiction of Congress, have been organized without any prohibition of Slavery. In laying the foundation of their governments, destined hereafter to control the happiness of innumerable multitudes, Congress has omitted the Great Ordinance of Freedom, first moved by Jefferson, and consecrated by the experience of the Northwestern Territory: thus rejecting those principles of Human Liberty which are enunciated in our Declaration of Independence, which are essential to every Bill of Rights, and without which a Republic is a name and nothing more.

Still further, a vast territory, supposed to be upwards of seventy thousand square miles in extent, larger than all New England, has been taken from New Mexico, and, with ten million dollars besides, given to slaveholding Texas: thus, under the plea of settling the western boundary of Texas, securing to this State a large sum of money, and consigning to certain Slavery an important territory.

And still further, as if to do a deed which should "make heaven weep, all earth amazed," this same Congress, in disregard of all cherished safeguards of Freedom, has passed a most cruel, unchristian, devilish law to secure the return into Slavery of those fortunate bondmen who find shelter by our firesides. This is the Fugitive Slave Bill,--a device which despoils the party claimed as slave, whether in reality slave or freeman, of Trial by Jury, that sacred right, and usurps the question of Human Freedom,--the highest question known to the law,--committing it to the unaided judgment of a single magistrate, on _ex parte_ evidence it may be, by affidavit, without the sanction of cross-examination. Under this detestable, Heaven-defying Bill, not the slave only, but the colored freeman of the North, may be swept into ruthless captivity; and there is no white citizen, born among us, bred in our schools, partaking in our affairs, voting in our elections, whose liberty is not assailed also. Without any discrimination of color, the Bill surrenders all claimed as "owing service or labor" to the same tyrannical judgment. And mark once more its heathenism. By unrelenting provisions it visits with bitter penalties of fine and imprisonment the faithful men and women who render to the fugitive that countenance, succor, and shelter which Christianity expressly requires. ["_Shame! shame!_"] Thus, from beginning to end, it sets at nought the best principles of the Constitution, and the very laws of God. [_Great sensation._]

I might occupy your time in exposing the unconstitutionality of this Act. Denying the Trial by Jury, it is three times unconstitutional: first, as the Constitution declares "the right of the people to be secure in their persons against _unreasonable seizures_"; secondly, as it further provides that "no person shall be deprived of life, _liberty_, or property, _without due process of law_"; and, thirdly, because it expressly establishes, that "in suits at Common Law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, _the right of trial by jury shall be preserved_." By this triple cord the framers of the Constitution secured Trial by Jury in every question of Human Freedom. That man is little imbued with the true spirit of American institutions, has little sympathy with Bills of Rights, is lukewarm for Freedom, who can hesitate to construe the Constitution so as to secure this safeguard. [_Enthusiastic applause._]

Again, the Act is unconstitutional in the unprecedented and tyrannical powers it confers upon Commissioners. These petty officers are appointed, not by the President with the advice of the Senate, but by the Courts of Law,--hold their places, not during good behavior, but at the will of the Court,--and receive for their services, not a regular salary, but fees in each individual case. And yet in these petty officers, thus appointed, thus compensated, and holding their places by the most uncertain tenure, is vested a portion of that "judicial power," which, according to the positive text of the Constitution, can be in "judges" only, holding office "during good behavior," receiving "at stated times for their services a compensation which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office," and, it would seem also, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate,--being three conditions of judicial power. Adding meanness to violation of the Constitution, the Commissioner is bribed by a double fee to pronounce against Freedom. Decreeing a man to Slavery, he receives ten dollars; saving the man to Freedom, his fee is five dollars. ["_Shame! shame!_"]

But I will not pursue these details. The soul sickens in the contemplation of this legalized outrage. In the dreary annals of the Past there are many acts of shame,--there are ordinances of monarchs, and laws, which have become a byword and a hissing to the nations. But _when we consider the country and the age_, I ask fearlessly, what act of shame, what ordinance of monarch, what law, can compare in atrocity with this enactment of an American Congress? ["_None!_"] I do not forget Appius Claudius, tyrant Decemvir of ancient Rome, condemning Virginia as a slave,--nor Louis the Fourteenth, of France, letting slip the dogs of religious persecution by the revocation of the Edict of Nantes,--nor Charles the First, of England, arousing the patriot rage of Hampden by the extortion of Ship-money,--nor the British Parliament, provoking, in our own country, spirits kindred to Hampden, by the tyranny of the Stamp Act and Tea Tax. I would not exaggerate; I wish to keep within bounds; but I think there can be little doubt that the condemnation now affixed to all these transactions, and to their authors, must be the lot hereafter of the Fugitive Slave Bill, and of every one, according to the measure of his influence, who gave it his support. [_Three cheers were here given._] Into the immortal catalogue of national crimes it has now passed, drawing, by inexorable necessity, its authors also, and chiefly him, who, as President of the United States, set his name to the Bill, and breathed into it that final breath without which it would bear no life. [_Sensation._] Other Presidents may be forgotten; but the name signed to the Fugitive Slave Bill can never be forgotten. ["_Never!_"] There are depths of infamy, as there are heights of fame. I regret to say what I must, but truth compels me. Better for him, had he never been born! [_Renewed applause._] Better for his memory, and for the good name of his children, had he never been President! [_Repeated cheers._]

I have likened this Bill to the Stamp Act, and I trust that the parallel may be continued yet further, by a burst of popular feeling against all action under it similar to that which glowed in the breasts of our fathers. Listen to the words of John Adams, as written in his Diary at the time.

"The year 1765 has been the most remarkable year of my life.
That enormous engine, fabricated by the British Parliament, for
battering down all the rights and liberties of America, I mean
the Stamp Act, has raised and spread through the whole continent
a spirit that will be recorded to our honor with all future
generations. In every colony, from Georgia to New Hampshire
inclusively, the stamp distributors and inspectors have been
compelled by the unconquerable rage of the people to renounce
their offices. Such and so universal has been the resentment of
the people, that every man who has dared to speak in favor of the
stamps, or to soften the detestation in which they are held, how
great soever his abilities and virtues had been esteemed before, or
whatever his fortune, connections, and influence had been, has been
seen to sink into universal contempt and ignominy."[55] [_A voice_,
"_Ditto for the Slave-Hunter!_"]

Earlier than John Adams, the first Governor of Massachusetts, John Winthrop, set the example of refusing to enforce laws against the liberties of the people. After describing Civil Liberty, and declaring the covenant between God and man in the Moral Law, he uses these good words:--

"This Liberty is the proper end and object of authority, and cannot
subsist without it; and it is a liberty to that only which is
good, just, and honest. This liberty you are to stand for, with
the hazard not only of your goods, but of your lives, if need
be. _Whatsoever crosseth this is not authority, but a distemper
thereof._"[56]

Surely the love of Freedom is not so far cooled among us, descendants of those who opposed the Stamp Act, that we are insensible to the Fugitive Slave Bill. In those other days, the unconquerable rage of the people compelled the stamp distributors and inspectors to renounce their offices, and held up to detestation all who dared to speak in favor of the stamps. Shall we be more tolerant of those who volunteer in favor of this Bill? ["_No! no!_"]--more tolerant of the Slave-Hunter, who, under its safeguard, pursues his prey upon our soil? ["_No! no!_"] The Stamp Act could not be executed here. Can the Fugitive Slave Bill? ["_Never!_"]

[55] Diary, December 18, 1765: Works, Vol. II. p 154.

[56] History of New England (ed. Savage), 1645, Vol. II. p. 229.

And here, Sir, let me say, that it becomes me to speak with caution. It happens that I sustain an important relation to this Bill. Early in professional life I was designated by the late Judge Story a Commissioner of his Court, and, though I do not very often exercise the functions of this appointment, my name is still upon the list. As such, I am one of those before whom the panting fugitive may be dragged for the decision of the question, whether he is a freeman or a slave. But while it becomes me to speak with caution, I shall not hesitate to speak with plainness. I cannot forget that I am a _man_, although I am a _Commissioner_. [_Three cheers here given._]

Could the same spirit which inspired the Fathers enter into our community now, the marshals, and every _magistrate_ who regarded this law as having any constitutional obligation, would resign, rather than presume to execute it. This, perhaps, is too much to expect. But I will not judge such officials. To their own consciences I leave them. Surely no person of humane feelings and with any true sense of justice, living in a land "where bells have knolled to church," whatever may be the apology of public station, can fail to recoil from such service. For myself let me say, that I can imagine no office, no salary, no consideration, which I would not gladly forego, rather than become in any way the agent in enslaving my brother-man. [_Sensation._] Where for me were comfort and solace after such a work? [_A voice_, "_Nowhere!_"] In dreams and in waking hours, in solitude and in the street, in the meditations of the closet and in the affairs of men, wherever I turned, there my victim would stare me in the face. From distant rice-fields and sugar-plantations of the South, his cries beneath the vindictive lash, his moans at the thought of Liberty, once his, now, alas! ravished away, would pursue me, repeating the tale of his fearful doom, and sounding, forever sounding, in my ears, "Thou art the man!" [_Applause._]

The magistrate who pronounces the decree of Slavery, and the marshal who enforces it, act in obedience to law. This is their apology; and it is the apology also of the masters of the Inquisition, as they ply the torture amidst the shrieks of their victim. Can this weaken accountability for wrong? Disguise it, excuse it, as they will, the fact must glare before the world, and penetrate the conscience too, that the fetters by which the unhappy fugitive is bound are riveted by their tribunal,--that his second life of wretchedness dates from their agency,--that his second birth as a slave proceeds from _them_. The magistrate and marshal do for him here, in a country which vaunts a Christian civilization, what the naked, barbarous Pagan chiefs beyond the sea did for his grandfather in Congo: _they transfer him to the Slave-Hunter_, and for this service receive the very price paid for his grandfather in Congo,--_ten dollars!_ ["_Shame! shame!_"]

Gracious Heaven! can such things be on our Free Soil? ["_No!_"] Shall the evasion of Pontius Pilate be enacted anew, and a judge vainly attempt, by washing the hands, to excuse himself for condemning one in whom he can "find no fault"? Should any court, sitting here in Massachusetts, for the first time in her history, become agent of the Slave-Hunter, the very images of our fathers would frown from the walls; their voices would cry from the ground; their spirits, hovering in the air, would plead, remonstrate, protest, against the cruel judgment. [_Cheers._] There is a legend of the Church, still living on the admired canvas of a Venetian artist, that St. Mark, descending from the skies with headlong fury into the public square, broke the manacles of a slave in presence of the very judge who had decreed his fate. This is known as "The Miracle of the Slave," and grandly has Art illumined the scene.[57] Should Massachusetts hereafter, in an evil hour, be desecrated by any such decree, may the good Evangelist once more descend with valiant arm to break the manacles of the Slave! [_Enthusiasm._]

Sir, I will not dishonor this home of the Pilgrims, and of the Revolution, by admitting--nay, _I cannot believe--that this Bill will be executed here_. ["_Never!_"] Among us, as elsewhere, individuals may forget humanity, in fancied loyalty to law; but the public conscience will not allow a man who has trodden our streets as a freeman to be dragged away as a slave. [_Applause._] By escape from bondage he has shown that true manhood which must grapple to him every honest heart. He may be ignorant and rude, as poor, but he is of true nobility. Fugitive Slaves are the heroes of our age. In sacrificing them to this foul enactment we violate every sentiment of hospitality, every whispering of the heart, every commandment of religion.

[57] An eloquent French critic says, among other things, of this
greatest picture of Tintoretto, that "no painting surpasses, or
perhaps equals" it, and that, before seeing it, "one can have
no idea of the human imagination." (Taine, Italy, Florence, and
Venice, tr. Durand, pp. 314, 316.) Some time after this Speech an
early copy or sketch of this work fell into Mr. Sumner's hands,
and it is now a cherished souvenir of those anxious days when the
pretensions of Slavery were at their height.

There are many who will never shrink, at any cost, and notwithstanding all the atrocious penalties of this Bill, from effort to save a wandering fellow-man from bondage; they will offer him the shelter of their houses, and, if need be, will protect his liberty by force. But let me be understood; I counsel no violence. There is another power, stronger than any individual arm, which I invoke: I mean that irresistible Public Opinion, inspired by love of God and man, which, without violence or noise, gently as the operations of Nature, makes and unmakes laws. Let this Public Opinion be felt in its might, and the Fugitive Slave Bill will become everywhere among us a dead letter. No lawyer will aid it by counsel, no citizen will be its agent; it will die of inanition,--like a spider beneath an exhausted receiver. [_Laughter._] Oh! it were well the tidings should spread throughout the land that here in Massachusetts this accursed Bill has found no _servant_. [_Cheers._] "Sire, in Bayonne are honest citizens and brave soldiers only, _but not one executioner_," was the reply of the governor to the royal mandate from Charles the Ninth, of France, ordering the massacre of St. Bartholomew.[58] [_Sensation._]

[58] Le Vicomte d'Orthez à Charles IX.: D'Aubigné, Histoire
Universelle, Part. II. Liv. I. ch. 5, cited by Sismondi, Histoire
des Français, Tom. XIX. p. 177, note. I gladly copy this noble
letter. "Sire, j'ai communiqué le commandement de Votre Majesté à
ses fidèles habitans et gens de guerre de la garnison; je n'y ai
trouvé que bons citoyens et braves soldats, mais pas un bourreau.
C'est pourquoi eux et moi supplions très humblement Votre dite
Majesté vouloir employer en choses possibles, quelque hasardeuses
qu'elles soient, nos bras et nos vies, comme étant, autant qu'elles
dureront, Sire, vôtres."

It rests with you, my fellow-citizens, by word and example, by calm determinations and devoted lives, to do this work. From a humane, just, and religious people will spring a Public Opinion to keep perpetual guard over the liberties of all within our borders. Nay, more, like the flaming sword of the cherubim at the gates of Paradise, turning on every side, it shall prevent any SLAVE-HUNTER from ever setting foot in this Commonwealth. Elsewhere he may pursue his human prey, employ his congenial bloodhounds, and exult in his successful game; but into Massachusetts he must not come. Again, let me be understood, I counsel no violence. I would not touch his person. Not with whips and thongs would I scourge him from the land. The contempt, the indignation, the abhorrence of the community shall be our weapons of offence. Wherever he moves, he shall find no house to receive him, no table spread to nourish him, no welcome to cheer him. The dismal lot of the Roman exile shall be his. He shall be a wanderer, without _roof, fire, or water_. Men shall point at him in the streets, and on the highways.

"Sleep shall neither night nor day
Hang upon his penthouse-lid;
He shall live a man forbid;
Weary sevennights nine times nine
Shall he dwindle, peak, and pine." [_Applause._]

Villages, towns, and cities shall refuse to receive the monster; they shall vomit him forth, never again to disturb the repose of our community. [_Repeated rounds of applause._]

The feelings with which we regard the Slave-Hunter will be extended soon to all the mercenary agents and heartless minions, who, without any positive obligation of law, become part of his pack. They are _volunteers_, and, as such, must share the ignominy of the chief Hunter. [_Cheers._]

* * * * *

I have dwelt thus long upon the Fugitive Slave Bill especially in the hope of contributing something to that Public Opinion which is destined in the Free States to be the truest defence of the slave. I now advance to other more general duties.

* * * * *

We have seen what Congress has done. And yet, in the face of these enormities of legislation,--of Territories organized without the prohibition of Slavery, of a large province surrendered to Texas and to Slavery, and of this execrable Fugitive Slave Bill,--in the face also of Slavery still sanctioned in the District of Columbia, of the Slave-Trade between domestic ports under the flag of the Union, and of the Slave Power still dominant over the National Government, we are told that the Slavery Question is settled. Yes, _settled_,--_settled_,--that is the word. _Nothing, Sir, can be settled which is not right._ [_Sensation._] Nothing can be settled which is against Freedom. Nothing can be settled which is contrary to the Divine Law. God, Nature, and all the holy sentiments of the heart repudiate any such false seeming settlement.

Amidst the shifts and changes of party, our DUTIES remain, pointing the way to action. By no subtle compromise or adjustment can men suspend the commandments of God. By no trick of managers, no hocus-pocus of politicians, no "mush of concession," can we be released from this obedience. It is, then, in the light of duties that we are to find peace for our country and ourselves. Nor can any settlement promise peace which is not in harmony with those everlasting principles from which our duties spring.

Here I shall be brief. Slavery is wrong. It is the source of unnumbered woes,--not the least of which is its influence on the Slaveholder himself, rendering him insensible to its outrage. It overflows with injustice and inhumanity. Language toils in vain to picture the wretchedness and wickedness which it sanctions and perpetuates. Reason revolts at the impious assumption that man can hold property in man. As it is our perpetual duty to oppose wrong, so must we oppose Slavery; nor can we ever relax in this opposition, so long as the giant evil continues anywhere within the sphere of our influence. _Especially must we oppose it, wherever we are responsible for its existence, or in any way parties to it._

And now mark the distinction. The testimony which we bear against Slavery, as against all other wrong, is, in different ways, according to our position. The Slavery which exists under other governments, as in Russia or Turkey, or in other States of our Union, as in Virginia and Carolina, we can oppose only through the influence of morals and religion, without in any way invoking the Political Power. Nor do we propose to act otherwise. But Slavery, where we are parties to it, wherever we are responsible for it, everywhere within our jurisdiction, must be opposed not only by all the influences of literature, morals, and religion, but directly by every instrument of Political Power. [_Rounds of applause._] As it is sustained by law, it can be overthrown only by law; and the legislature having jurisdiction over it must be moved to consummate the work. I am sorry to confess that this can be done only through the machinery of politics. The politician, then, must be summoned. The moralist and philanthropist must become for this purpose politicians,--not forgetting morals or philanthropy, but seeking to apply them practically in the laws of the land.

It is a mistake to say, as is often charged, that we seek to interfere, through Congress, with Slavery in the States, or in any way to direct the legislation of Congress upon subjects not within its jurisdiction. Our _political_ aims, as well as our _political_ duties, are coextensive with our _political_ responsibilities. And since we at the North are responsible for Slavery, wherever it exists under the jurisdiction of Congress, it is unpardonable in us not to exert every power we possess to enlist Congress against it.

Looking at details:--

We demand, first and foremost, the instant Repeal of the Fugitive Slave Bill. [_Cheers._]

We demand the Abolition of Slavery in the District of Columbia. [_Cheers._]

We demand of Congress the exercise of its time-honored power to prohibit Slavery in the Territories. [_Cheers._]

We demand of Congress that it shall refuse to receive any new Slave State into the Union. [_Cheers, repeated._]

We demand the Abolition of the Domestic Slave-Trade, so far as it can be constitutionally reached, but particularly on the high seas under the National Flag.

And, generally, we demand from the National Government the exercise of all constitutional power to relieve itself from responsibility for Slavery.

And yet one thing further must be done. The Slave Power must be overturned,--so that the National Government may be put openly, actively, and perpetually on the side of Freedom. [_Prolonged applause._]

In demanding the overthrow of the Slave Power, we but seek to exclude from the operations of the National Government a _political_ influence, having its origin in Slavery, which has been more potent, sinister, and mischievous than any other in our history. This Power, though unknown to the Constitution, and existing in defiance of its true spirit, now predominates over Congress, gives the tone to its proceedings, seeks to control all our public affairs, and humbles both the great political parties to its will. It is that combination of Slave-masters, whose bond of union is a common interest in Slavery. Time would fail me in exposing the extent to which its influence has been felt, the undue share of offices it has enjoyed, and the succession of its evil deeds. Suffice it to say, that, for a long period, the real principle of this union was not observed by the Free States. In the game of office and legislation the South has always won. It has played with loaded dice,--_loaded with Slavery_. [_Laughter._] The trick of the Automaton Chess-Player, so long an incomprehensible marvel, has been repeated, with similar success. Let the Free States make a move on the board, and the South says, "Check!" ["_Hear! hear!_"] Let them strive for Free Trade, as they did once, and the cry is, "Check!" Let them jump towards Protection, and it is again, "Check!" Let them move towards Internal Improvements, and the cry is still, "Check!" Whether forward or backward, to the right or left, wherever they turn, the Free States are pursued by an inexorable "Check!" But the secret is now discovered. Amid the well-arranged machinery which seemed to move the victorious chess-player is a _living force_,--only recently discovered,--being none other than the Slave Power. It is the Slave Power which has been perpetual victor, saying always, "Check!" to the Free States. As this influence is now disclosed, it only remains that it should be openly encountered in the field of _politics_. [_A voice, "That is the true way."_]

* * * * *

Such is our cause. It is not sectional; for it simply aims to establish under the National Government those great principles of Justice and Humanity which are broad and universal as Man. It is not aggressive; for it does not seek in any way to interfere through Congress with Slavery in the States. It is not contrary to the Constitution; for it recognizes this paramount law, and in the administration of the Government invokes the spirit of its founders. It is not hostile to the quiet of the country; for it proposes the only course by which agitation can be allayed, and quiet be permanently established. And yet there is an attempt to suppress this cause, and to stifle its discussion.

Vain and wretched attempt! [_A band of music in the street here interrupted the speaker._]

* * * * *

I am willing to stop for one moment, if the audience will allow me, that they may enjoy that music. [_Several voices, "Go on! go on!" Another voice, "We have better music here." After a pause the speaker proceeded._]

* * * * *

Fellow-citizens, I was saying that it is proposed to suppress this cause, and to stifle this discussion. But this cannot be done. That subject which more than all other subjects needs careful, conscientious, and kind consideration in the national councils, which will not admit of postponement or hesitation, which is allied with the great interests of the country, which controls the tariff and causes war, which concerns alike all parts of the land, North and South, East and West, which affects the good name of the Republic in the family of civilized nations, _the subject of subjects_, has now at last, after many struggles, been admitted within the pale of legislative discussion. From this time forward it must be entertained by Congress. It will be one of the orders of the day. It cannot be passed over or forgotten. It cannot be blinked out of sight. The combinations of party cannot remove it. The intrigues of politicians cannot jostle it aside. There it is, in towering colossal proportions, filling the very halls of the Capitol, while it overshadows and darkens all other subjects. There it will continue, till driven into oblivion by the irresistible Genius of Freedom. [_Cheers._]

I am not blind to adverse signs. The wave of reaction, after sweeping over Europe, has reached our shores. The barriers of Human Rights are broken down. Statesmen, writers, scholars, speakers, once their uncompromising professors, have become professors of compromise. All this must be changed. Reaction must be stayed. The country must be aroused. The cause must again be pressed,--with the fixed purpose never to moderate our efforts until crowned by success. [_Applause._] The National Government, everywhere within its proper constitutional sphere, must be placed on the side of Freedom. The policy of Slavery, which has so long prevailed, must give place to the policy of Freedom. The Slave Power, fruitful parent of national ills, must be driven from its supremacy. Until all this is done, the friends of the Constitution and of Human Rights cannot cease from labor, nor can the Republic hope for any repose but the repose of submission.

Men of all parties and pursuits, who wish well to their country, and would preserve its good name, must join now. Welcome here the Conservative and the Reformer! for our cause stands on the truest Conservatism and the truest Reform. In seeking the reform of existing evils, we seek also the conservation of the principles handed down by our fathers. Welcome especially the young! To you I appeal with confidence. Trust to your generous impulses, and to that reasoning of the heart, which is often truer, as it is less selfish, than the calculations of the head. [_Enthusiasm._] Do not exchange your aspirations for the skepticism of age. Yours is the better part. In the Scriptures it is said that "your young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams"; on which Lord Bacon has recorded the ancient inference, "that young men are admitted nearer to God than old, because vision is a clearer revelation than a dream."[59]

It is not uncommon to hear people declare themselves against Slavery, and willing to unite in _practical_ efforts. _Practical_ is the favorite word. At the same time, in the loftiness of pharisaic pride, they have nothing but condemnation, reproach, or contempt for the earnest souls that have striven long years in this struggle. To such I would say, If you are sincere in what you declare, if your words are not merely lip-service, if in your heart you are entirely willing to join in practical effort against Slavery, then, by life, conversation, influence, vote, disregarding "the ancient forms of party strife," seek to carry the principles of Freedom into the National Government, wherever its jurisdiction is acknowledged and its power can be felt. Thus, without any interference with the States which are beyond this jurisdiction, may you help to efface the blot of Slavery from the National brow.

[59] Essays, XLII. Of Youth and Age.

Do this, and you will most truly promote that harmony which you so much desire. And under this blessed influence tranquillity will be established throughout the country. Then, at last, the Slavery Question will be settled. Banished from its usurped foothold under the National Government, Slavery will no longer enter, with distracting force, into national politics, making and unmaking laws, making and unmaking Presidents. Confined to the States, where it is left by the Constitution, it will take its place as a local institution,--if, alas! continue it must,--for which we are in no sense responsible, and against which we cannot exert any political power. We shall be relieved from the present painful and irritating connection with it, the existing antagonism between the South and the North will be softened, crimination and recrimination will cease, and the wishes of the Fathers will be fulfilled, while this Great Evil is left to all kindly influences and the prevailing laws of social economy.

To every laborer in a cause like this there are satisfactions unknown to the common political partisan. Amidst all apparent reverses, notwithstanding the hatred of enemies or the coldness of friends, he has the consciousness of duty done. Whatever may be existing impediments, his also is the cheering conviction that every word spoken, every act performed, every vote cast for this cause, helps to swell those quickening influences by which Truth, Justice, and Humanity will be established upon earth. [_Cheers._] He may not live to witness the blessed consummation, but it is none the less certain. Others may dwell on the Past as secure. Under the laws of a beneficent God _the Future also is secure_,--on the single condition that we labor for its great objects. [_Enthusiastic applause._]

The language of jubilee, which, amidst reverse and discouragement, burst from the soul of Milton, as he thought of sacrifice for the Church, will be echoed by every one who toils and suffers for Freedom. "Now by this little diligence," says the great patriot of the English Commonwealth, "mark what a privilege I have gained with good men and saints, to claim my right of lamenting the tribulations of the Church, if she should suffer, _when others, that have ventured nothing for her sake, have not the honor to be admitted mourners_. But if she lift up her drooping head and prosper, among those that have something more than wished her welfare, I have my charter and freehold of rejoicing to me and my heirs."[60] We, too, may have our charter and freehold of rejoicing to ourselves and our heirs, if we now do our duty.

* * * * *

I have spoken of votes. Living in a community where political power is lodged with the people, and each citizen is an elector, the vote is an important expression of opinion. The vote is the cutting edge. It is well to have correct opinions, but the vote must follow. The vote is the seed planted; without it there can be no sure fruit. The winds of heaven, in their beneficence, may scatter the seed in the furrow; but it is not from such accidents that our fields wave with the golden harvest. He is a foolish husbandman who neglects to sow his seed; and he is an unwise citizen, who, desiring the spread of good principles, neglects to deposit his vote for the candidate who is the representative of those principles.

[60] The Reason of Church Government, Book II., Introduction:
Prose Works, ed. Symmons, Vol. I. p. 117.

Admonished by experience of timidity, irresolution, and weakness in our public men, particularly at Washington, amidst the temptations of ambition and power, the friends of Freedom cannot lightly bestow their confidence. They can put trust only in men of tried character and inflexible will. Three things at least they must require: the first is _backbone_; the second is _backbone_; and the third is _backbone_. [_Loud cheers._] My language is homely; I hardly pardon myself for using it; but it expresses an idea which must not be forgotten. When I see a person of upright character and pure soul yielding to a temporizing policy, I cannot but say, _He wants backbone_. When I see a person talking loudly against Slavery in private, but hesitating in public, and failing in the time of trial, I say, _He wants backbone_. When I see a person who coöperated with Antislavery men, and then deserted them, I say, _He wants backbone_. ["_Hear! hear!_"] When I see a person leaning upon the action of a political party, and never venturing to think for himself, I say, _He wants backbone_. When I see a person careful always to be on the side of the majority, and unwilling to appear in a minority, or, if need be, to stand alone, I say, _He wants backbone_. [_Applause._] Wanting this, they all want that courage, constancy, firmness, which are essential to the support of PRINCIPLE. Let no such man be trusted. [_Renewed applause._]

For myself, fellow-citizens, my own course is determined. The first political convention which I ever attended was in the spring of 1845, against the annexation of Texas. I was at that time a silent and passive Whig. I had never held political office, nor been a candidate for any. No question ever before drew me to any active political exertion. The strife of politics seemed to me ignoble. A desire to do what I could against Slavery led me subsequently to attend two different State Conventions of Whigs, where I coöperated with eminent citizens in endeavor to arouse the party in Massachusetts to its Antislavery duties. A conviction that the Whig party was disloyal to Freedom, and an ardent aspiration to help the advancement of this great cause, has led me to leave that party, and dedicate what of strength and ability I have to the present movement. [_Great applause._]

To vindicate Freedom, and oppose Slavery, so far as I may constitutionally,--with earnestness, and yet, I trust, without personal unkindness on my part,--is the object near my heart. Would that I could impress upon all who now hear me something of the strength of my own convictions! Would that my voice, leaving this crowded hall to-night, could traverse the hills and valleys of New England, that it could run along the rivers and the lakes of my country, lighting in every heart a beacon-flame to arouse the slumberers throughout the land! [_Sensation._] In this cause I care not for the name by which I am called. Let it be Democrat, or "Loco-foco," if you please. No man in earnest will hesitate on account of a name. Rejoicing in associates from any quarter, I shall be found ever with that party which most truly represents the principles of Freedom. [_Applause._] Others may become indifferent to these principles, bartering them for political success, vain and short-lived, or forgetting the visions of youth in the dreams of age. Whenever I forget them, whenever I become indifferent to them, whenever I cease to be constant in maintaining them, through good report and evil report, in any future combinations of party, then may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, may my right hand forget its cunning! [_Cheers._]

And now as I close, fellow-citizens, I return in thought to the political election with which I began. If from this place I could make myself heard by the friends of Freedom throughout the Commonwealth, I would give them for a rallying-cry three words,--FREEDOM, UNION, VICTORY!

The peroration was received with the most earnest applause,
followed by cries of "_Three cheers for Charles Sumner!_" "_Three
cheers for Phillips and Walker!_" "_Three cheers for Horace Mann
and the cause!_"

* * * * *

ACCEPTANCE OF THE OFFICE OF SENATOR OF THE UNITED STATES.

LETTER TO THE LEGISLATURE OF MASSACHUSETTS, MAY 14, 1851.

The combinations or agreements between the Free-Soilers and Democrats throughout Massachusetts in the election of members of the State Legislature were successful. The election was more than usually interesting, because the Legislature was to choose a United States Senator for the term of six years from the ensuing fourth of March, in the place of Mr. Webster, who had become Secretary of State. Nothing had been said before the election with regard to candidates for this place, but there was a general understanding, at least among Free-Soilers, that it should be claimed for one of their party. Mr. Sumner had never regarded himself as a candidate, and the first intimation he had that he was so regarded by others came to him early in the morning after the election in a note written in pencil at his door by Seth Webb, Jr., Esq., afterwards the excellent Consul at Hayti, as follows.

"MY DEAR MR. SUMNER,--

"I called to tell you _such_ good news. We have carried everything
in the State. Senate sure; House nearly certain; Governor,
_Senator_, all. You are bound for Washington this winter.

"Yours truly,

"SETH WEBB, JR."

Similar intimations came from various quarters. Under date of December 18th, the Rev. Joshua Leavitt, the constant Abolitionist, wrote: "I confidently hope and trust that in a month from this time you will take your seat in the Senate of the United States, as the successor of Daniel Webster. I need not say how greatly I shall be gratified at such an event, both for your sake and that of the cause. It will be a worthy rebuke of cotton arrogance, pronounced in earnest and sealed by action in the name of the good old Commonwealth." An active Free-Soiler in Vermont wrote: "I think you are nearer my ideal of a Free-Soiler of this time than anybody else; so does the whole Free-Soil heart of New England. And you may depend that the actual triumph of just such a man as you are will give a heavier blow to the conspirators against Freedom, and do more to fortify the general trust in the ultimate ascendency of uncompromising right, than that of any other living being. You cannot escape from your position." Mr. Giddings and Mr. Chase both wrote from Washington, insisting that Mr. Sumner could not refuse to be a candidate. Hon. John Mills wrote from Springfield: "C.S., I am satisfied, must be the man. He stands better with the Democrats than others, and so he does with the Free-Soilers in this section of the State." Hon. C.F. Adams "saw difficulties in alliance with the Democracy"; but he added, "If our friends decide to risk themselves in that ship, I trust we may get a full consideration for the risk, and the only full consideration that we can receive is in securing your services in the Senate. If anything can be done with that iron and marble body, you may do it. You know how hopeless I think the task."

Under the unamended Constitution of Massachusetts popular elections were determined by a majority of the votes cast, and not by a plurality. In the event of a failure to secure a majority, the election of Governor and Lieutenant-Governor was transferred to the Legislature, which made a selection from the three highest candidates. This duty was now devolved upon the Legislature. At the opening of the session there were separate caucuses of the Free-Soilers and Democrats, with committees of conference, which resulted in the understanding that the Democrats should have the Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, five of the nine Councillors, the Treasurer, and the Senator for the short term, being the few weeks till the 4th of March following, while the Free-Soilers should have the Senator for the long term, being for six years from the 4th of March. The two parties united on Mr. Sumner as their candidate for Senator. The nomination by the Free-Soilers was communicated in the following letter.

"CAUCUS ROOM, STATE HOUSE, 1/2 past 10, A.M. [Jan. 7th, 1851.]

"We have just taken the vote by ballot for Senator, and you are the
man.

"Whole number
"For Charles Sumner 82
"Others 00

"We have sworn to stand by you, to sink or swim with you, AT ALL
HAZARDS.

"If you shall fail us in any respect, may God forgive you!--we
never shall.

"Yours truly,

"E.L. KEYES.

"CHARLES SUMNER."

The nomination thus unanimously conferred was welcomed beyond the caucus that made it. A letter of Richard H. Dana, Jr., written the next day, congratulates Mr. Sumner. "I have just learned that you have received the unanimous nomination of the Free-Soil caucus, as their first choice for the Senate. Whether the state of parties permits your election or not, this voluntary and unanimous tribute from our party must be a deep gratification to you through life, and I heartily congratulate you upon it."

Why Mr. Sumner was selected appears from the _Commonwealth_, which was at the time the organ of the Free-Soil party, and edited by Richard Hildreth, the historian. "Mr. Sumner was selected as the candidate for the Senate, because, while true as the truest to Free-Soil principles, he was supposed to be less obnoxious than any prominent Free-Soiler in the State to the Democratic party. He was never identified with any of the measures of the Whig party, except those relating to Slavery. He never entered a Whig State Convention, except to sustain the sentiment, not of the Whig party alone, but of Massachusetts, against the annexation of Texas and the Mexican War."[61]

[61] Daily Commonwealth. April 2, 1851.

The Democrats in caucus were less prompt than the Free-Soilers. They began by a resolution to abide by the decision of two thirds of those present and voting, being the rule of the Baltimore Convention in 1844. This was adopted almost unanimously. Mr. Sumner then received the two thirds required, when one of those who voted against him, after stating his adverse vote, moved that he be unanimously declared the candidate of the Democratic caucus, and six only voted in the negative.

On the completion of these arrangements, the Legislature proceeded to the elections, choosing George S. Boutwell Governor, and Henry W. Cushman Lieutenant-Governor, both Democrats, and, at a later day, Robert Rantoul, Jr., a Democrat, Senator for the short term. The other Democrats were chosen according to the understanding. In the Senate, Henry Wilson, Free-Soiler, had been chosen President, and in the House of Representatives Nathaniel P. Banks, Jr., Democrat, Speaker.

On the 14th of January the House of Representatives proceeded to ballot for Senator, with the following result: Whole number, 381; necessary to a choice, 191; Charles Sumner, 186; R.C. Winthrop, 167; scattering, 28; blanks, 3. There was a second ballot on the same day, when Mr. Sumner had the same number of votes as before. The entire Free-Soil vote was 110, which he received, with 76 Democratic votes.

The _Commonwealth_ announced at once the determination of the Free-Soil party as follows. "This entire unanimity of the Free-Soil members indicates a purpose, not to be changed, to stand by their candidate, come what may. They have taken the candidates presented by the Democratic party without pledges, without questions. They have selected for their candidate a man who stands first in the respect and affections of every true Free-Soiler in the State. Their constituents would repudiate them, if they should desert him now. We are assured _they never will_."[62]

[62] Daily Commonwealth, January 15, 1851.

The failure in the House did not prevent the Senate from proceeding with the election, on January 22d, when the whole number of votes was 38: for Charles Sumner, 23; for R.C. Winthrop, 14; and for Henry W. Bishop, 1; and Mr. Sumner was accordingly chosen on the part of the Senate.

During the long contest which ensued, Mr. Sumner was constant to the end, without doing or saying anything to change or modify his position. Extracts from his speeches, printed in capitals, with hostile comments, appeared daily in the Whig and Democratic papers, and were often characterized as _treasonable_, while he was called a _disunionist_. In reply to a personal and political friend, who sought some mode of meeting these attacks, he wrote the following private letter, which was never published.

BOSTON, January 21, 1851.

MY DEAR SIR:--

The peculiar nature of your inquiry, and the friendship which
prompts it, do not allow me to decline an answer.

You know well that I do not seek or desire any political office,
that I am not voluntarily in my present position as candidate, and
that, prescribing to myself the rule of _non-intervention_, I have
constantly declined doing anything to promote my election, and have
refused pledges or explanations with regard to my future course,
beyond what are implied in my past life, my published speeches, and
my character.

To these I now refer. They will give a sufficient refutation to the
charge that I am a _Disunionist_. No honest person, acquainted with
them, can make this charge.

Besides, I am closely identified, as you also are, with the
well-known principles of the Free-Soil party. These, while
declaring the duty of opposing Slavery and its influence, wherever
they exist under the National Government, always recognize that
other duty of loyalty to the Union and the Constitution. We propose
to wait and work patiently under and through the Constitution,
that our purposes may be peaceably accomplished in the spirit of
that instrument and of our fathers. We are Constitutionalists and
Unionists. In this class I have always been and still am.

That I may place this matter beyond question, I beg leave to repeat
and reaffirm what I said on a former occasion: "We reverence the
Constitution of the United States, and seek to guard it against
infractions, believing that under the Constitution Freedom can be
best preserved. We reverence the Union of the States, _believing
that the peace, happiness, and welfare of all depend upon this
blessed bond_."

Faithfully yours,

CHARLES SUMNER.

In another letter, written during the contest and published at its close, Mr. Sumner stated his position more fully, and released the party from all obligation to him as a candidate.

BOSTON, February 22, 1851.

MY DEAR SIR:--

I desire to repeat to you in writing what I have so constantly said
to you and others by word of mouth.

Early in life I formed a determination never to hold any political
office, and of course never to be a candidate for any. My hope
was (might I so aspire!) to show, that, without its titles or
emoluments, something might be done for the good of my fellow-men.

Notwithstanding the strength of this determination, often declared,
I have, by the confidence of the friends of Freedom in Boston, more
than once been pressed into the position of candidate; and now,
by the nomination of the Free-Soil and Democratic members of the
Legislature of Massachusetts, contrary to desires specially made
known to all who communicated with me on the subject, I have been
brought forward as their candidate for the Senate of the United
States.

Pardon me, if I say that personal regrets mingle with gratitude
for the honor done me. The office of Senator, though elevated and
important, is to me less attractive than other and more quiet
fields.

Besides, there are members of our party, valued associates in our
severe struggle, to whom I gladly defer, as representatives of the
principles we have at heart.

I trust, therefore, that the friends of Freedom in the Legislature
will not, on any ground of delicacy towards me, hesitate to
transfer their support to some other candidate, faithful to our
cause. In this matter, I pray you, do not think of me. I have no
political prospects which I desire to nurse. There is nothing in
the political field which I covet. Abandon me, then, whenever you
think best, without notice or apology. The cause is everything; I
am nothing.

I rely upon you in some proper way to communicate this note to the
Free-Soil members of the Legislature.

Believe me, my dear Sir,

Very faithfully yours,

CHARLES SUMNER.

Hon. HENRY WILSON, Chairman of the Committee of the Free-Soil
Members of the Legislature.

He also wrote privately to more than one leader, proposing to withdraw. Hon. Charles Allen, who was then at Washington, said in reply: "I need no declaration from you to assure me that you did not seek nor desire political office. On that subject you have no secrets to communicate to me. Your purposes and wishes have been transparent.... Though not so tall by some inches, I believe I have kept myself about as bolt upright as you have, and as far within the lines of the Free-Soil party. I shall give no more heed to the suggestion of your letter. You must be the hero of this war to the end,--the conquering hero, I trust." Hon. Stephen C. Phillips, though not sympathizing with the "Coalition," gave his best wishes to Mr. Sumner, saying: "As the case now stands, I hope you will not be disposed, and I am clear that the Free-Soil members should not allow you, to withdraw yourself; and in view of what may affect you personally, and of some probable or possible general results, I rejoice in the prospect of your election."

The issue was presented, if possible, with increased distinctness by the revival in the papers of the speech at Faneuil Hall on the eve of the election. The editor of the _Times_, a Democratic paper in Boston, calling on Mr. Sumner, invited him to modify his opinions, or, as was sometimes said, to "ease off," especially with regard to his recent speech. This Mr. Sumner declined to do, when the editor inquired how he would like that speech reprinted in the _Times_, that it might be read by the Legislature. Mr. Sumner replied at once, that nothing could give him more pleasure. The speech appeared the next day, with an appeal to the Legislature as follows. "Mr. Sumner avows that what is called his Faneuil-Hall Speech contains his calm, deliberately formed, and well-matured opinions,--opinions by which his action would be governed in the event of his election to the office of United States Senator.... We hope that every Democratic member of the Legislature will read the speech of the man for whom they are asked to vote, and then consider whether it is not their duty to vote for some other person."[63]

[63] Boston Daily Times, January 10, 1851.

As the discussion proceeded, the _Commonwealth_ also published the speech, introducing it with these defiant words: "We treat our readers to-day to the noble speech of Charles Sumner at that great 'treasonable' meeting in Faneuil Hall. We are proud of it, and of the man who made it. We give it as it was reported by Dr. Stone for the _Traveller_, and as it was copied into the _Times_. The apologists for Slavery have heaped abuse on Mr. Sumner for this speech, and garbled it to serve their base purposes; but here it stands. Not a glorious word of it can or shall be rubbed out. We ask any member of the Legislature, whatever may be his politics or party, as a man, as a son of New England, and as an admirer of Washington, Jefferson, Patrick Henry, John Hancock, and Samuel Adams, to read this speech, and tell us how he can do a better thing than to vote for its author next Wednesday. Here you have the intellect and heart of a man,--a man for the times, a man for Massachusetts!"[64]

[64] Daily Commonwealth, March 28, 1851.