Chapter III: Part 3

It is vain to say that Slavery cannot exist in the Territories under the Constitution, and therefore legislation is superfluous. It is there in fact, and that is enough. It must be struck at once by Congress. St. Patrick banished snakes from Ireland; but that is no reason why the woman should not bruise the head of one found there. It is vain to say, as has been said, that the slaves are few,--amounting to fourteen only in New Mexico; for human rights, whether in a vast multitude or a solitary individual, are entitled to equal and unhesitating support. In this spirit the ancient lawgiver nobly declared that to be the best government “where an injury to a single citizen is resented as an injury to the whole state.” It is vain to say that the prohibition by Congress is superfluous in the present state of opinion; for nothing is clearer than the remark of Lafayette, that principles strong in themselves take new force, when solemnly recognized by all in the form of law. It is vain to say that Freedom is more powerful than Slavery, and therefore may be safely left face to face with its antagonist. In the progress of civilization, law has superseded the ordeal by battle; and law must now supersede this conflict. It is vain to say that the Territories are protected in any form, whether by the Constitution, public opinion, or the inherent strength of Freedom. No possible safeguard should be abandoned. Let there be double locks, double bolts, and double gates. No lock, no bolt, and no gate should be neglected by which Slavery may be fastened out. And, lastly, if Popular Sovereignty is invoked, let it be the Popular Sovereignty of the American people, counted by millions and assembled in Congress, rather than the tyrannical, irresponsible sovereignty of a handful of squatters.

* * * * *

Fellow-citizens, in taking leave of this question, I bear my testimony again to the abilities of Mr. Thayer, and to his active labors in times past. For the good that he has done I honor him; let it all be enrolled for his benefit. But not on this account can I accept him now as a representative of our cause. It is an ancient story, consecrated by the undying verse of Homer, that a ship, with all its canvas spread, was suddenly changed into a rock at the very mouth of a frequented harbor; and thus the instrument of commerce became an impediment to commerce:--

“Fixèd forever, a memorial stone,
Which still may seem to sail, and _seem_ alone.”[37]

A similar wonder is now repeated before our eyes, making the former instrument of Freedom an impediment to Freedom. Deplore this accident we must; but the remedy is happily within our power.

EVENING BEFORE THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.

SPEECH AT FANEUIL HALL, BOSTON, NOVEMBER 5, 1860.

This meeting was called to order by Carlos Pierce, Esq., who
announced the officers of the evening, among whom was Mr.
Sumner as President. On taking the chair, he made a speech,
which is preserved here as showing the anticipations of triumph
at the election, and also the declared magnitude of the result.
This testimony shows how seriously the election was regarded.
It foreshadows change, if not revolution,--“not only a new
President, but a new government.”

FELLOW-CITIZENS,--Five years have now passed since it was my privilege last to set foot in Faneuil Hall. During this long, unwilling exile, whether at home or abroad, my “heart untravelled” has fondly turned to this historic place, and often have I seemed to hear those utterances for Human Rights which echo along its walls. The distant in place was confounded with the distant in time, and the accents of our own Burlingame seemed to mingle with the words of Adams, Hancock, and Warren, in the past. Let me express my gratitude that I am permitted once more to enjoy these generous utterances, no longer in dream or vision only, but in reality.

Could these venerable arches speak, what stories could they not tell,--sometimes of victory and sometimes of defeat, sometimes of gladness and sometimes of mourning, sometimes of hope and sometimes of fear! The history of American Freedom, with all its anxieties, struggles, and triumphs, commencing before National Independence, and continued down to the very contest now about to close,--all this might be written from the voices of this Hall. But, thank God! the days of defeat, of mourning, of fear, have passed, and these walls will record only those notes of victory already beginning to sound in our ears.

There are anniversaries in our history noticed by young and old with grateful emotion; but to-morrow’s sun will set on a day more glorious for Freedom than any anniversary since the fourth of July, 1776. The forces for a long time mustering are about to meet face to face; but the result is not doubtful. That Power, which, according to the boast of Slave-Masters, has governed the country for more than fifty years,--organizing cabinets and courts, directing the army and navy, controlling legislation, usurping offices, stamping its own pernicious character upon the national policy, and especially claiming all the Territories for Slavery,--that Power which has taught us by example how much of tyranny there may be in the name of Democracy, is doomed. The great clock will soon strike, sounding its knell. Every four years a new President is chosen, but rarely a new government. To-morrow we shall have not only a new President, but a new government. A new order of things will begin, and our history will proceed on a grander scale, in harmony with those sublime principles in which it commenced. Let the knell sound!

“Ring out the old, ring in the new!
Ring out the false, ring in the true!
Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife!
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws!”

The eve of election is not the time for argument. Already this has been amply done in numerous public meetings, where you have been addressed by the orators of Freedom, and also in the press, which has repeated their eloquent words, while a new power, in happy harmony with the new exigencies--the “Wide-Awakes”--has shown how true it is that citizens by the million would spring forth, whenever the North

“Stamped her strong foot and said she would be free.”

I need not speak of our candidate for President, whose simple, honest character has grown constantly upon the public interest, while his abilities have everywhere commanded most unhesitating respect. Nor need I speak of our candidate for Governor, whose eminent qualities alike of head and heart give assurance of a man deserving our most devoted support. Of their election there is no doubt. Abraham Lincoln will be President of the United States. John A. Andrew will be Governor of Massachusetts.

But this is not enough. Especially must you see to it, so far as depends on you, that Representatives in Congress are chosen who shall be true to the principles of the Republican party. And since the election of our President is now certain, your vote for Representatives becomes more important than your vote for President. In vain you will vote for Abraham Lincoln, if at the same time you vote for a Representative who will oppose his well-known principles. Such a vote will more than neutralize your vote for President.

Happily there is no occasion to hesitate. Boston is now represented in Congress by two eminent citizens,--differing from each other in many respects, unlike in the talents which each so largely possesses, and dissimilar in character, and yet substantially agreeing in principles, uniting always in their votes, whether to guard Freedom or to promote the important interests of the metropolis, and by their very diversity of character, as the complement of each other, representing completely and harmoniously a large and diversified constituency. Follow the record of Mr. Burlingame and Mr. Rice, whether throughout the long contest for Speaker, or on the proposition to secure Freedom in Kansas, or on the various matters of local concern, and you will find that they always keep together.

Besides the merit of services which no candid person can question, they are also recommended by the practical consideration of their experience. They know their business, and on this account, if no other, it is for your interest that they should be continued. This experience is something which belongs to you, if you are wise enough to use it. On grounds of self-interest the most simple and obvious, you should vote for them.

But, besides experience, they will have another advantage, which you will surely not fling away. Being in harmony with the Administration, they will naturally have the ear of the President and of his Cabinet; and this alone will give them opportunities to promote the interest of Boston such as no Representative of the Opposition could hope to enjoy.

All will see how impossible it will be for Mr. Appleton and Mr. Bigelow to represent adequately this great metropolis during the coming administration. Imagine them at Washington, with the whole delegation from New England, ay, almost of the whole North, against them. Robinson Crusoe and Friday were not more solitary than these Proslavery Representatives would be among their colleagues from the Free States. And when, on the vote for Speaker, involving the organization of the House and the arrangement of the public business, the forces of Slavery are rallied against the Northern candidate, John Sherman or William Pennington, then will the Liberty-loving citizens of Boston be mortified to find their Representatives, under specious plea of danger to the Union, ranging with Disunionists. A simple errand-boy, picked up in the streets, honest and intelligent enough to deposit a vote for a Northern Speaker, would be better than Representatives who would do this thing.

The election of such persons would be a positive encouragement to the disunionists of the South. It would be a signal of sympathy from our citadel. Still further, it would be a premium for indifference to fellow-men struggling for their rights. In vain have we read the story of him who, having fallen among thieves, was succored by the good Samaritan, if we approve by our votes the conduct of those who, when Kansas had fallen among thieves and was lying wounded and bleeding, passed by on the other side without aid or sympathy.

In vain you say that these gentlemen, if elected, may mingle socially with the propagandists of Slavery at Washington, and through this intercourse promote your interests. Do not believe it. No good to you can come from any such artificial fellowship. The enmity of Slavery may be dangerous, but its friendship is fatal. None have ever escaped with honor from that deadly embrace.

In vain you appeal in the name of a party, familiarly called from its candidates Bell-Everett, which, in the recent elections of Vermont, Maine, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana, out of more than 1,300,000 votes, polled less than 20,000,--a party which, from its lofty airs here in Boston, may remind us of Brahmins, who imagine themselves of better clay than others, or of Chinese, who imagine themselves cousins of the Sun and Moon.

Vote, then, for your present Representatives: first, to maintain the policy of the new President; secondly, as proper recognition of their merits; thirdly, that you may have the benefit of their experience; fourthly, that you may have the advantage of their friendly relations with the new Administration; fifthly, that you may help choose a Northern Speaker; sixthly, that you may answer with proper scorn the menaces of disunion, whether uttered at the South or echoed at the North.

Hereafter, fellow-citizens, let it be one of your satisfactions, that in this contest you voted for Freedom. The young man should rejoice in the privilege; the old man must take care not to lose the precious opportunity.

EVENING AFTER THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.

SPEECH TO THE WIDE-AWAKES OF CONCORD, MASSACHUSETTS, NOVEMBER 7, 1860.

The “Wide-Awakes” constituted a new and powerful agency in
the machinery of American politics. They were companies of
active voters in uniform of cap and cape with a lamp on a
staff, organized and drilled with officers, who by display
in the streets increased their numbers and intensified the
prevailing enthusiasm. The organization was general throughout
the Northern States, and constituted the working element of
the Republican party. It has been sometimes remarked that its
military discipline was an unconscious preparation for the
sterner duties at hand.

The companies were not disbanded immediately after the
election, and at several places where Mr. Sumner lectured
he received from them the compliment of a visit after the
lecture. This was the case at Concord on the evening succeeding
the Presidential election, when the Wide-Awakes of the town
appeared before the house of Ralph Waldo Emerson, the admired
author, where Mr. Sumner was staying, and their Captain, Hon.
John S. Keyes, made the following address.

“HONORED SIR,--In behalf of the Republican Wide-Awakes of
Concord, and of numerous other Republicans, part of that
gallant army whose victory was yesterday achieved, I have
the honor to tender to you our respectful greeting on this
occasion of your first visit, after many years of pain and
suffering endured in the cause of Republicanism, to the
old battle-ground of Concord. We could not permit it to
pass without at least offering to you a warm and earnest
welcome, especially on the day following that glorious
victory whose brightness no cloud obscures, and whose
lustre is owing more, perhaps, to your earnest efforts
in the cause of Freedom than to any other man. Permit
me, Sir, in the name of these Wide-Awakes, to say to you
that we trust with renewed health upon this soil you may
bear forward the glorious cause of Freedom upon which our
country has just entered.”

Mr. Sumner, standing on the steps of the house, replied as
follows.

CAPTAIN AND WIDE-AWAKES:--

You take me by surprise, absolutely. I am here to-night in the performance of an agreeable service outside of politics, and have not anticipated any such contingency as this with which you honor me, nor any such welcome.

I thank you, Gentlemen, for the kind and good words which have fallen from your Captain. They are a reward for the little I have been able to do in the past, and will be an encouragement in the future.

I join with you in gladness at the victory we celebrate to-day,--not of the cartridge-box, but of the ballot-box. No victories of the cartridge-box have involved higher principles or more important results than that just won by the ballot-box. A poet, whose home is in Concord, has said that the shot fired here was heard round the world. I doubt not that our victory just achieved will awaken reverberations also to be heard round the world. All men struggling for rights, vindicating liberal ideas, seeking human improvement, maintaining republican government, will be encouraged, when they hear of yesterday. It will be good news to Garibaldi in Italy, good news to the French now subjected to imperial power, good news to English Reformers,--and so also will it be good news to all among us who love Liberty, for it proclaims that at last Liberty has prevailed. Every four years we choose a new President; but it rarely happens that we choose a new government, as was done yesterday. A new order of things is inaugurated, with new auspices, lifting the Republic once more to that platform of principles on which it was originally placed by the Fathers. What victory of the cartridge-box ever did so much?

Looking at the vote in its practical significance, several things may be considered as established and proclaimed by the American people, so that hereafter they shall not be drawn in question.

Of these I place foremost the irrevocable decree, according to the very words of Madison, that it is “wrong to admit in the Constitution the idea that there can be property in men,”[38]--that, therefore, Slavery, if it exists anywhere, is sectional, and must derive such life as it has from local law, and not from the Constitution,--in opposition to the pretension so often put forward in its name, that Slavery is national and Freedom sectional.

Then again the American people have declared, that all outlying Territories, so immense in extent, and destined to the support of unknown millions, shall be consecrated to Freedom, so that the vast outstretched soil shall never know the footprint of a slave: all of which is the natural conclusion and corollary from the first decree.

And yet again it is declared, that in the administration of the National Government the original policy of the Fathers shall be adopted, in opposition to the policy of Slavery, which for the last twelve years has been so tyrannical, and for the last forty years has made its barbaric impress on the country.

And still further, the decree goes forth that the Slave-Trade shall be suppressed in reality as in name, that the statutes against it shall be vigorously enforced, and the power of the Government directed in good faith against it, all efforts to the contrary notwithstanding.

These things were yesterday proclaimed by the American people solemnly, and in a way from which there is no appeal. It was done by a vote destined to be ever memorable and a landmark of history.

Having obtained this great victory, let us study to use it with moderation, with prudence, with wisdom. Through no failure on our part must its proper fruits be lost. Happily, Abraham Lincoln [_prolonged cheers_] has those elements of character needed to carry us through the crisis. He is calm, prudent, wise, and also brave. And permit me to say, that there are moments in government when bravery is not less important than prudence. He will not see our cause sacrificed through menaces of disunion from the South, even if echoed in Massachusetts; and in this firmness he will be sustained by the American people, insisting upon all that is promised and secured by the Constitution, and to all menaces, from whatever quarter, answering back, that the Union shall be preserved and made more precious by consecration to Human Rights. [_Three cheers for the Union._]

I thank you for this welcome, and now bid you good night.

JOY AND SORROW IN THE RECENT ELECTION.

LETTER TO THE WIDE-AWAKES OF BOSTON, AT THEIR FESTIVAL, AFTER ELECTION, NOVEMBER 9, 1860.

The defeat of Mr. Burlingame, as a Representative of Boston,
which was keenly felt by Republicans, and especially by Mr.
Sumner, opened the way to his wider career as Minister of the
United States to China, and then as Minister of the Chinese
Empire to the Western Powers. The vote stood 8,014 for Hon.
William Appleton, and 7,757 for Mr. Burlingame.

BOSTON, November 9, 1860.

DEAR SIR,--An engagement out of the State will prevent me from
uniting with the gallant Wide-Awakes this evening in their
festival at Music Hall. But my heart will be with them in their
joy and in their sorrow.

They will naturally rejoice in that great victory by which the
American people have solemnly declared that _Slavery is sectional
and Freedom is national_, so that, wherever Slavery exists, if
it exist at all, it must be by virtue of local law, and not by
virtue of the National Constitution.

But even this victory, opening a new epoch in our national
history, cannot make us forget the backsliders of Boston, through
whose desertion of principles the delegation in Congress,
pledged to Freedom, has been weakened, and a blow struck at
an eminent Representative which has fallen upon the hearts of
Republicans everywhere throughout the country. To the honor of
Mr. Burlingame, all good Republicans feel wounded through him;
and it is also to his honor that he was made the mark of special
assault.

All experience shows that the partisans of Slavery stick at
nothing, where the imagined interests of Slavery are in question.
The essential brutality of Slavery showed itself lately in New
York, when Marshal Rynders personally assaulted a venerable
citizen who appeared at his office on public business, cursing
him with most blasphemous oaths; and it showed itself here in
Boston, when the supporters of Mr. Appleton for weeks traduced
the Republican candidate, uttering calumnies which were as
basely false with regard to him as if they had been uttered
in detraction of Mr. Appleton. Such conduct must make us hate
Slavery more, and add to our mortification that it prevailed
among us.

It belongs to the Republican party, at last triumphant in the
nation, inflexibly to sustain its principles, and also to sustain
the men who are true to these principles. In this duty I doubt
not it will be guided by that temperate judgment which is in
harmony with the consciousness of right.

God bless the Wide-Awakes! And believe me, dear Sir,

Faithfully yours,

CHARLES SUMNER.

S. B. STEBBINS, Esq.

THE VICTORY AND PRESENT DUTIES.

SPEECH TO THE WIDE-AWAKES, AT PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, NOVEMBER 16, 1860.

Late in the evening, after lecturing[39] in Providence, Mr.
Sumner, who was the guest of Hon. A. C. Barstow, received a
serenade from the Wide-Awakes, commanded by Colonel Dexter,
with a band of music, and accompanied by the “Central Glee
Club” and the “National Vocalists.” The space in front of the
house, and the streets, for some distance, were thronged. After
music by the band, Mr. Sumner appeared on the front steps of
the house, and addressed the immense crowd.

GENTLEMEN OF THE WIDE-AWAKES:--

I had supposed that with our great triumph you would naturally retire to your homes, like soldiers when peace has come. But this goodly show assures me that here in Providence you still exist as a distinct body, ready with sympathy, and I doubt not for duty also.

In the faithful record of recent events, the service performed by the Wide-Awakes cannot be forgotten. I see it in two different aspects. Besides contributing immensely to that victory which now gladdens our hearts, you have shown that here at the North are men ready, if the exigency requires, to leap forward in defence of Northern rights, which are only Constitutional rights. In these two things you have done well, and I am happy in this opportunity of offering you my grateful thanks.

All our hearts, fellow-citizens, are swelling with joy at the Presidential election. It is in congratulation that you appear to-night once more with banners and lights, and I rejoice with you,--as I love Liberty and love my country. It is impossible to exaggerate the result. Had we merely elected new officers, that would have been much; but we have done more. A new policy is declared. Thus far the National Government has been inspired by Slavery. It has seemed to exist for Slavery only. All is now changed. Liberty will be its inspiration. And what a change! Liberty instead of Slavery! But you know well that this change, so beneficent and natural, is in completest harmony with the Constitution and with the declared sentiments of our fathers.

I can never banish from my mind that picture of Washington taking his first oath to support the Constitution of the United States, when nowhere on the land within the national jurisdiction breathed a single slave. At that time Freedom was national. Surely good men will rejoice to see our country regain once more that happy condition, nor can any person regret it who does not deliberately exalt Slavery above Freedom. But this condition is secured by the recent election. Already the country seems fairer, the skies clearer, the air purer, and all good influences more abundant, while Liberty opens the way to prosperity and renown. Not merely will Slavery cease its baleful predominance in the Government, but other things will be accomplished. There will be improvements in rivers and harbors, communications between the Atlantic and Pacific, homesteads for actual settlers on our public lands, peace and dignity in our foreign relations, with sympathy for struggling Liberty everywhere, also economy in administration, and reform generally,--all of which will naturally ensue, when the Republic is once more inspired by those sentiments in which it had its being.

While indulging in proper congratulations on such a victory, we can afford to disregard all menaces, from whatever quarter they come, whether from the distant South or nearer home. Conscious of right, we have only to go forward, mindful always of the Constitution, mindful also of that just moderation which adds to the strength of firmness. An ancient poet teaches, that, “where Prudence is, no Divinity is absent.”[40] I cannot doubt that the Republican party, to which we belong, will be as prudent in government as it has been irresistible at the ballot-box. Such, at least, is my sincere aspiration.

* * * * *

Fellow-citizens and Wide-Awakes, I thank you for this unexpected visit, and now most sincerely and gratefully wish you good night.

The speech was followed by vocal music, in a succession of
pieces, continuing till after midnight. In conclusion, the
serenaders sang the following words, written by Hon. William M.
Rodman.

“Bold champion of the Right!
We welcome thee to-night
With heartfelt song:
Once Freedom’s tyrant foe
Essayed to lay thee low,
But now we joy to know
That thou art strong.

“Life’s purpose to fulfil,
Stand thou defiant still,
While life remains:
For Thraldom’s night will flee,
Our children yet shall see
The land redeemed and free
From Slavery’s chains.

“Faithful and vigilant!
To thee our song we chant:
Good night! Good night!
Around thy couch be peace,
From pain may sleep release,
And strength with years increase!
Good night! Good night!”

MODERATION IN VICTORY; STANDING BY OUR PRINCIPLES.

SPEECH TO THE WIDE-AWAKES OF LOWELL, NOVEMBER 21, 1860.

In the evening after his lecture at Lowell, Mr. Sumner was
escorted by the Wide-Awakes, with banners and lights, to the
house of Hon. John Nesmith, whose guest he was. On arrival
there, he thanked his escort in these words:--

WIDE-AWAKES AND FELLOW-CITIZENS:--

I owe my best thanks for the escort with which you honor me. But I must say frankly that I attribute it less to any merit of my own than to your zeal for the good cause in which I have borne a part.

In our recent triumph the Wide-Awakes have rendered conspicuous service. The light which they have carried, I trust, is symbolical of that which, under the new Administration, will be directed upon the dark places of Government, while their activity and promptitude furnish an example which all may be proud to follow.

The Republican party has prevailed. Its success is the triumph not only of Freedom, but also of the Constitution, long perverted to the purposes of Slavery. Nothing is clearer than this. The Republican party is not _aggressive_, but _conservative_. Its object is to carry the Government back to the original policy of the Fathers. Pardon me, but I never tire of reminding my fellow-citizens, that, when Washington took his first oath as President, the Constitution nowhere on the land, within the national jurisdiction, covered a slave; and surely the Republican party cannot err, if it seeks to bring back the condition of things under Washington. Bear this in mind, if you please; and when it is said that you are aggressive, reply fearlessly, “Then is the Constitution aggressive, then was Washington aggressive.” With these two authorities we cannot hesitate. To all enemies we oppose “the Constitution and Washington.”

If attacks upon the Republican party here at home have caused a different impression in any quarter, the responsibility belongs to those who have constantly and systematically maligned and misrepresented us. And our severity of judgment should be reserved less for the Southern States so much excited than for those at the North who feed the flames.

Our duty is plain and bright before us,--plain as day, and bright as the sun. It is simply to proceed as we have begun, and to abide by our declared principles. This is not the moment for any surrender to threats, even if Massachusetts could ever yield to such compulsion.

It was the saying of Samuel Adams, in the early stage of our Revolution, that we should be respected abroad just in proportion to the firmness of our conduct. And this is true now. The victory which we have won can be assured only by such conduct, tempered always by that wise moderation which is needful even in victory. There should be no party act or hasty word to increase present responsibilities. Our safety is in our principles. They are of living rock, and no power can prevail against them.

Again I thank you. Good night.

This was followed by a serenade, with a song for the occasion.

MEMORIAL STONES OF THE WASHINGTONS IN ENGLAND.

LETTER TO JARED SPARKS, HISTORIAN OF WASHINGTON, NOV. 22, 1860. FROM THE BOSTON DAILY ADVERTISER.

BOSTON, November 22, 1860.

MY DEAR SIR,--Since our last conversation I have received from
Earl Spencer precise copies of the two “Memorial Stones” of the
English family of George Washington, which I described to you
as harmonizing exactly with the pedigree having the sanction
of your authority.[41] The copies are, as I understand, of the
same stone and of the same size with the originals, and have the
original inscriptions,--being in all respects _fac-similes_. They
will therefore give you an exact idea of those most interesting
memorials in the parish church near Althorp, in Brington,
Northamptonshire.

The largest is of Lawrence Washington, father of John Washington,
who with his brother Lawrence emigrated to America. It is a slab
of bluish-gray sandstone, and measures five feet nine inches long
and two feet six inches broad.

This is the inscription:--

HERE·LIETH·THE·BODI·OF·LAVRENCE
WASHINGTON·SONNE·&·HEIRE·OF
ROBERT·WASHINGTON·OF·SOVLGRÆ
IN·THE·COVNTIE·OF·NORTHAMTON
ESQVIER·WHO·MARIED·MARGARET
THE·ELDEST·DAVGHTER·OF·WILLIAM
BVTLER·OF·TEES·IN·THE·COVNTIE
OF·SVSSEXE·ESQVIER·WHO·HAD·ISSV
BY·HER·8·SONNS·&·9·DAVGHTERS
WHICH·LAVRENCE·DECESSED·THE·13
OF·DECEMBER·A: D[=N]I: 1616

THOV·THAT·BY·CHANCE·OR·CHOYCE
OF·THIS·HAST·SIGHT
KNOW·LIFE·TO·DEATH·RESIGNES
AS·DAYE·TO·NIGHT
BVT·AS·THE·SVNNS·RETORNE
REVIVES·THE·DAYE
SO·CHRIST·SHALL·VS
THOVGH·TVRNDE·TO·DVST·&·CLAY

Above the inscription, carved in the stone, are the arms of the
Washingtons, with the arms of the Butlers _impaled_,--the latter
being, in the language of heraldry, _azure, a chevron between
three covered cups or_.

The other stone is placed over Robert Washington and Elizabeth
his wife. Robert was uncle of the emigrant. This is a slab of the
same sandstone, and measures three feet six inches long and two
feet six inches broad.

The inscription, on a small brass plate set into the stone, is as
follows:--

HERE LIES INTERRED Y^{E} BODIES OF ELIZAB: WASHINGTON
WIDDOWE, WHO CHANGED THIS LIFE FOR [=IM]ORTALLITIE
Y^{E} 19^{TH} OF MARCH 1622. AS ALSO Y^{E} BODY OF ROBERT
WASHINGTON GENT: HER LATE HVSBAND SECOND
SONNE OF ROBERT WASHINGTON OF SOLGRAVE IN Y^{E}
COVNTY OF NORT[=H]: ESQ^{R}: WHO DE[=PT]ED THIS LIFE Y^{E}
10^{TH} OF MARCH 1622 AFTER THEY LIVED LOVINGLY TOGETHER
MANY YEARES IN THIS PARRISH

On a separate brass, beneath the inscription, are the arms of
the Washingtons, without any addition but a crescent, the _mark
of cadency_, which denotes the _second_ son. These, as you are
well aware, have the combination of stars and stripes, and are
sometimes supposed to have suggested our national flag. In
heraldic language, they are _argent, two bars gules, in chief
three mullets of the second_.

In the interesting chapter on the “Origin and Genealogy of the
Washington Family,” preserved in the Appendix to your “Life of
Washington,” it appears that Lawrence, father of the emigrant,
died 13th December, and was buried at Brington 15th December,
1616. But the genealogical tables followed by you furnish no
indication of the locality of this church. Had it appeared as the
parish church of the Spencer family, in Northamptonshire, the
locality, which I believe was unknown in our country, would have
been precisely fixed.

In fact, the slab covering Lawrence Washington is in the chancel
of the church, by the side of the monuments of the Spencer
family. These are all in admirable preservation, with full-length
effigies, busts, or other sculptured work, and exhibit an
interesting and connected series of sepulchral memorials, from
the reign of Henry the Eighth to the present time. Among them is
a monument by the early English sculptor, Nicholas Stone; another
by Nollekens from a design by Cipriani; and another by Flaxman,
with exquisitely beautiful personifications of Faith and Charity.
Beneath these monuments repose successive representatives of this
illustrious family, whose aristocratic claims are enhanced by
services not only to the state, but also to knowledge, as shown
in the unique and world-famous library collected by one of its
members. In this companionship is found the last English ancestor
of our Washington.

The other slab, covering Robert, uncle of the emigrant, is in one
of the aisles, where it is scraped by the feet of all who pass.

The parish of Brington--written in Domesday Book “Brinintone,”
and also “Brintone,” in modern pronunciation _Brighton_--is
between seven and eight miles from the town of Northampton, not
far from the centre of England. It contains about 2,210 acres, of
which about 1,490 belong to Earl Spencer, and about 326 to the
rector in right of his church. The soil is chiefly dark-colored
loam, with a small tract of clay towards the north. Nearly four
fifths of the whole is pasture.

In the village still stands the house said to have been occupied
by the Washingtons when the emigrant brother left them. You will
see a vignette of it on the title-page of the recent English work
entitled “The Washingtons.” Over the door are carved the words,
THE LORD GEVETH, THE LORD TAKETH AWAY, BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE
LORD; while the Parish Register gives pathetic commentary, by
showing that in the very year when this house was built a child
was born and another died in this family.

The church, originally dedicated to the Virgin, stands at the
northeast angle of the village, and consists of an embattled
tower with five bells, nave, north and south aisles, chancel,
chapel, and modern porch. The tower is flanked by buttresses
of two stages. The present fabric goes back in origin to the
beginning of the fourteenth century, nearly two hundred years
before the discovery of America. The chancel and chapel, where
repose the Spencers and Lawrence Washington, were rebuilt by
Sir John Spencer, purchaser of the estate, at the beginning of
the sixteenth century. They afford a late specimen of Tudor
architecture. The church is beautifully situated on the highest
ground of Brington, and is surrounded by a stone wall lined with
trees. Dibdin says that a more complete picture of a country
churchyard is rarely seen. A well-trimmed walk encircles the
whole of the interior, while the fine Gothic windows at the end
of the chancel fill the scene with picturesque beauty.

The Parish Register, which is still preserved, commences in 1560.
From this it appears that William Proctor was rector from 1601 to
1627, partly contemporary with the last Washingtons there. Other
entries occur, relating to this family.

1616. “Mr. Lawrance Washington was buried the XVth day of
December.”

1620. “Mr. Philip Curtis and M^{is} Amy Washington were maried
August 8.”

1622. “Mr. Robert Washington was buried March y^{e} 11th.”

----. “M^{rs.} Elisabeth Washington widow was buried March y^{e}
20th.”

Of a minister in this church we have an amusing notice in
Evelyn’s Memoirs, where the following contrast is found, under
date of August 18th, 1688: “Dr. Jeffryes [a misnomer for
_Jessop_], the minister of Althorp, who was my Lord’s chaplain
when Ambassador in France, _preached the shortest discourse I
ever heard_; but what was defective in the amplitude of his
sermon he had supplied in the largeness and convenience of the
parsonage-house.”[42]

Less than a mile from the church is the famous seat of the
Spencers, surrounded by a park of five hundred acres, with one of
the gates opening near the church. Bordering on the churchyard
are oak-trees which were growing at the purchase of the estate
in the reign of Henry the Seventh. Evelyn was often here, a
delighted visitor. On one occasion he speaks of “the house, or
rather palace, at Althorp.”[43] Elsewhere he describes it as
“in a pretty open bottom, very finely watered, and flanked with
stately woods and groves in a park.”[44] An engraving by the
younger Luke Vorsterman, a Dutch artist, attests the attraction
of the place at this time.

One feature of the park excited the admiration of Evelyn, and at
a later day of Mrs. Jameson, who gives to it some beautiful pages
in her “Visits and Sketches at Home and Abroad.” It is a record
of the dates when different plantations of trees were begun.
While recommending this practice in his “Sylva,” Evelyn remarks,
“The only instance I know of the like in our own country is in
the park at Althorp in Northamptonshire, the magnificent seat of
the Right Hon. the Earl of Sunderland.”[45] Here are six of these
commemorative stones. The first records a wood planted by Sir
John Spencer, in 1567 and 1568; the second, a wood planted by
Sir John Spencer, son of the former, in 1589; the third, a wood
planted by Robert Lord Spencer, in 1602 and 1603; the fourth,
a wood planted by Sir William Spencer, Knight of the Bath,
afterwards Lord Spencer, in 1624. This stone is ornamented with
the arms of the Spencers, and on the back is inscribed, VP AND
BEE DOING AND GOD WILL PROSPER. In this scenery and amidst these
associations the Washingtons lived. When the emigrant left, in
1657, the woods must have been well grown. Not long afterwards
they arrested the attention of Evelyn. The fifth and sixth stones
were never seen by the Washingtons, or by Evelyn. They were set
up in 1798 and 1800, by George John, second Earl Spencer, who
planted trees as well as amassed books.

The Household Books at Althorp show that for many years the
Washingtons were frequent guests. The hospitality of this seat
has been renowned. The Queen of James the First and Prince
Henry, on their way to London in 1603, were welcomed there in an
entertainment, memorable for a Masque from the vigorous muse of
Ben Jonson.[46] Charles the First was at Althorp in 1647, when
he received the first intelligence of those approaching pursuers
from whom he never escaped except by the scaffold. In 1695,
King William was there for a week, and, according to Evelyn,
“mightily entertained.”[47] At least one of the family was famous
for hospitality of a different character. Evelyn records that
he used to dine with the Countess of Sunderland,--the title
then borne by the Spencers,--when she invited _fire-eaters_,[48]
stone-eaters, and opera-singers, after the fashion of the day.[49]

The family was early and constantly associated with literature.
Spenser, the poet, belonged to it, and dedicated to one of its
members, Alice Spencer, “the Ladie Strange,” afterwards Countess
of Derby, his “Tears of the Muses.” For the same Alice Spencer
Milton wrote his “Arcades,” while Sir John Harrington celebrated
her memory by an epigram. The Sacharissa of Waller was the Lady
Dorothy Sydney, wife of the first Earl of Sunderland, third Lord
Spencer, who perished fighting for King Charles the First at
Newbury. I do not dwell on other associations of a later day, as
my object is simply to indicate those which existed in the time
of the Washingtons.

“The nobility of the Spencers has been illustrated and enriched
by the trophies of Marlborough; but I exhort them to consider the
‘Fairy Queen’ as the most precious jewel of their coronet.” Thus
wrote Gibbon in his Memoirs,[50] and all must feel the beauty of
the exhortation. This nobility may claim another illustration
from ties of friendship and neighborhood with the Washingtons.
Perhaps hereafter our countrymen will turn aside from their
travels to visit the parish church of Brington, in reverence for
a spot so closely associated with American history.

* * * * *

I trust that this little sketch, suggested by what I saw at
Althorp during a brief visit last autumn, will not seem
irrelevant. Besides my own personal impressions and the volumes
quoted, I have relied upon Dibdin’s “Ædes Althorpianæ,” so
interesting to all bibliographical students, and especially
upon Baker’s “History and Antiquities of the County of
Northampton,”--one of those magnificent local works which
illustrate English history,--to which you refer in your Appendix.

The Memorial Stones, which I have received from Lord Spencer,
are of historic value; and I think that I shall best carry out
the generous idea of the giver by taking care that they are
permanently placed where they can be seen by the public,--perhaps
in the State-House, near Chantrey’s beautiful statue of
Washington, if this should be agreeable to the Commonwealth.

Pray pardon this call upon your attention, and believe me, my
dear Sir, with much regard,

Ever sincerely yours,

CHARLES SUMNER.

JARED SPARKS, Esq.

The following official documents show how these Memorial Stones
found their way to the State-House of Massachusetts.

“EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, COUNCIL CHAMBER,
BOSTON, March 15, 1861.

“_To the Honorable the House of Representatives_:--

“I have the honor to present to the General Court, as a
gift to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts from one of its
citizens, certain memorials of great historic interest.

“The home and final resting-place of the ancestors of
George Washington were until recently unvisited by
and unknown to Americans. In the genealogical table
appended to the ‘Life of Washington’ by our distinguished
fellow-citizen, Mr. Jared Sparks, it is stated that
Lawrence Washington, the father of John Washington (who
emigrated to Virginia in 1657), was buried at Brington;
but, though both Mr. Sparks and Washington Irving visited
Sulgrave, an earlier home of the Washingtons, neither of
these learned biographers appears by his works to have
repaired to this quiet parish in Northamptonshire.

“Our fellow-citizen, the Hon. Charles Sumner, on a recent
visit to England, identified certain inscriptions in the
parish church of Brington, near Althorp, as being those of
the father and uncle of John Washington, the emigrant to
Virginia, who was the great-grandfather of the Father of
his Country.

“Earl Spencer, the proprietor of Althorp, sought out the
quarry from which, more than two centuries ago, these
tablets were taken, and caused others to be made which
are exact _fac-similes_ of the originals. These he has
presented to Mr. Sumner, who has expressed the desire that
memorials so interesting to all Americans may be placed
where they may be seen by the public, and has authorized me
to offer them to the Commonwealth, if it be the pleasure
of the Legislature to order them to be preserved in some
public part of the State-House.

“I send with this a letter addressed to myself by the
learned historian of Washington, bearing testimony to the
great interest of these memorials, and expressing the
desire that they may (Mr. Sumner assenting) be placed in
the Capitol.

“A letter from Mr. Sumner to Mr. Sparks also accompanies
this Message, describing the church at Brington, and some
of the associations which cluster around the resting-place
of the ancestors of our Washington.

“JOHN A. ANDREW.”

* * * * *

MR. SPARKS TO THE GOVERNOR.

“CAMBRIDGE, February 22, 1861.

“DEAR SIR,--I enclose a copy of a highly interesting letter
from Mr. Charles Sumner, describing the church at Brington,
near Althorp, in Northamptonshire. In this church were
deposited the remains of Lawrence Washington, who was the
father of John and Lawrence Washington, the emigrants to
America, and who was therefore the last English ancestor
of George Washington. A copy of the inscription on the
stone which covers the grave of Lawrence Washington, and
also of another inscription over the grave of his brother,
Robert Washington, who was buried in the same church, are
given with exactness in Mr. Sumner’s letter. As far as I am
aware, these inscriptions are now for the first time made
known in this country.

“Earl Spencer has sent to Mr. Sumner two stones, being from
the same quarry, and having the same form and dimensions,
as the originals, and containing a _fac-simile_ of the
inscriptions. It has been suggested that these stones
ought to be placed in the State-House, where they may be
accessible to the public, and my opinion on the subject has
been asked. As they are unquestionably genuine memorials
of the Washington family, and possess on this account a
singular historical interest, I cannot imagine that a more
appropriate disposition of them could be made. I understand
that Mr. Sumner would cheerfully assent to such an
arrangement, and I cannot doubt that your Excellency will
be well inclined to take such measures as may effectually
aid in attaining so desirable an object.

“I am, Sir, very respectfully yours,

“JARED SPARKS.

“His Excellency JOHN A. ANDREW, _Governor of
Massachusetts_.”

* * * * *

“COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS.

“HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, March 23, 1861.

“The Committee on the State-House, to whom was referred
the Message of His Excellency the Governor, presenting
to the General Court, as a gift from the Hon. Charles
Sumner, certain memorials of Washington, of great historic
interest, report that they consider it a matter of special
congratulation that the interesting facts concerning the
Father of his Country, contained in the papers accompanying
the Message, should have been first made known to us by a
citizen of Massachusetts; and deeming it important that
these valuable memorials should be permanently preserved
in the capitol of the State, they report the accompanying
resolves.

“Per order,

“R. WARD.”

* * * * *

“_Resolves in relation to certain Memorials of the
Ancestors of Washington._

“_Resolved_, That the thanks of the General Court be and
hereby are presented to the Hon. Charles Sumner for his
interesting and patriotic gift to the Commonwealth, of two
Memorial Tablets in imitation of the originals which mark
the final resting-place of the last English ancestors of
GEORGE WASHINGTON.

“_Resolved_, That the Commissioners on the State-House
cause the same to be prepared and placed, with appropriate
inscriptions, in some convenient place in the Doric Hall of
the State-House, near the statue of Washington.--_Approved
April 6, 1861._”

* * * * *

“OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONERS ON THE STATE-HOUSE,
BOSTON, January 1, 1862.

“The undersigned, Commissioners on the State-House,
hereby certify, that, in compliance with the Resolves of
the Legislature of Massachusetts, passed April 6, 1861,
they have caused the abovenamed Memorial Tablets of the
Washington Family to be permanently placed upon the marble
floor of the area in which the statue of Washington stands,
within the railing in front of said statue.

“JOHN MORISSEY, _Sergeant-at-Arms_.
OLIVER WARNER, _Secretary_.
HENRY K. OLIVER, _Treasurer_.

A white marble tablet, placed by the Commissioners near the
Washington Memorials, bears the following inscription:--

THESE FAC-SIMILES OF THE MEMORIAL STONES OF THE WASHINGTON
FAMILY IN THE PARISH CHURCH OF BRINGTON, THE BURIAL-PLACE
OF THE SPENCERS, NEAR ALTHORP, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE, ENGLAND,
WERE PRESENTED BY THE RIGHT HONORABLE EARL SPENCER TO
CHARLES SUMNER OF MASSACHUSETTS, AND BY HIM OFFERED TO THE
COMMONWEALTH 22 FEBRUARY, 1861.

LAWRENCE WAS FATHER, AND ROBERT UNCLE, OF THE ENGLISH
EMIGRANT TO VIRGINIA, WHO WAS GREAT-GRANDFATHER OF GEORGE
WASHINGTON.

LAFAYETTE, THE FAITHFUL ONE.

ADDRESS AT THE COOPER INSTITUTE, NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 30, 1860.

He [Algernon Sidney] was stiff to all republican principles,
and such an enemy to everything that looked like monarchy, that
he set himself in a high opposition against Cromwell, when he
was made Protector.--BURNET, _History of His Own Time_, Vol. I.
p. 538.

Quant à moi, j’avoue que mon indolence sur cet objet tient à la
confiance intime où je suis que la liberté finira par s’établir
dans l’ancien monde comme dans le nouveau, et qu’alors
l’histoire de nos révolutions mettra chaque chose et chacun à
sa place.--LAFAYETTE, _Mémoires_, Tom. I. Avant-propos, p. v.

Go on, my friend, in your consistent and magnanimous career;
and may you live to witness and enjoy the success of a cause
the most truly glorious that can animate the breast of
man,--that of elevating and meliorating the condition of his
race.--JAMES MADISON, _Letter to Lafayette, 1821_: _Letters and
other Writings_, Vol. III. pp. 237, 238.

* * * * *

This Address was at the invitation of the Young Men’s
Republican Union of New York, before whom the speech on the
Republican party had been given.[51] On the present occasion,
William C. Bryant, justly famous in our literature, took the
chair and introduced Mr. Sumner in the following words.

“I am glad, my friends, to see so large an audience
assembled for the purpose of hearing one of our most
accomplished scholars and orators discourse on a subject
lying apart from the ordinary strifes and immediate
interests of the day. Concerning the services rendered by
Lafayette to our country, to our own Republic, in the most
critical stage of its existence, there is no controversy.
For them we are all grateful. For his personal character
we all cherish a high veneration. And your presence here
to-night in such numbers declares that there are multitudes
among us who cherish and preserve a warm admiration, a
generous and purifying enthusiasm, for the noble examples
of self-sacrifice bequeathed to us by a generation which
has passed away. Among public men, in all times and all
countries, among all that class who have been actors in
the events which make up the history of the world, there
are few, unfortunately, who can compare with Lafayette
in a course of steady, unswerving virtue. Attend, then,
my friends, to the portraiture of that virtue drawn and
set before you in living words by a great artist, Charles
Sumner, of Boston, whom I now introduce to this assembly.”
[_Long continued cheering._]

The newspapers speak of the assembly as crowded and
enthusiastic, in spite of stormy weather. The _Herald_ says,
“The cheering was protracted, and the utmost enthusiasm was
manifested by the audience.” Even the _World_ adds, “The
lecturer was frequently and vociferously applauded, and the
audience gave evidence of deep interest in his remarks.” From
the report in the _Herald_ it appears that the allusions to
Slavery were received always with “applause,” while, at the
remark of Lafayette attributing “the evils of France less to
the madness of violence than to compromise of conscience by
timid men,”[52] there was what the _Herald_ calls “vehement and
long continued applause, and waving of hats and handkerchiefs.”
The temper of the audience was an illustration of prevailing
sentiment.

Beside the newspaper report at the time, this address was
printed at New York in a pamphlet, but from notes of reporters
without revision or help from Mr. Sumner.

* * * * *

In selecting this subject, Mr. Sumner was governed by two
considerations: first, a long cherished desire to pay the
homage justly due in his opinion to an illustrious character
whose place in history was not yet determined, and, secondly,
the conviction, that, in the actual crisis of our affairs, such
an example of fidelity would help to fix popular sentiment. The
sympathy of the audience in all the testimony against Slavery,
and especially in the condemnation of Compromise, showed that
the effort was appreciated. The report in the _Herald_ was
headed “_Sumner on Slavery_.”

Rumors of compromise in certain quarters and menaces from
the South increased the anxiety of the more earnest to take
advantage of every opportunity for demonstration against
Slavery. To all suggestions of concession the North made haste
to answer in the negative. Already began that fidelity under
which the Rebellion finally succumbed and Slavery disappeared.

* * * * *

Mr. Sumner was especially pleased at the appreciation of this
Address as an effort against compromise,--shown by a letter
from a citizen of Kansas, who was present:--

“How timely and impressively that bright example teaches
adherence to Liberty and Principle, and resistance to
concession and compromise, at the present crisis!”

A patriot citizen who heard it at Philadelphia, where it was
given before an immense audience, wrote:--

“Your Lecture has done more good than words can tell. There
is no such thing as calculating its value to our city.”

The _Pennsylvanian_ of Philadelphia, after entitling it “Clear
Grit Abolitionism,” said:--

“The People’s Literary Institute Lecture, at Concert Hall,
last evening, was by that perfect ensample of Abolitionism,
Senator Sumner, of Massachusetts. The hall was crowded,
negroes occupying the front seats and other prominent
places. Sumner’s nominal subject was ‘Lafayette,’ but he
made his sketch of the noble Marquis a vehicle for the
expression of the most ardent wishes and aspirations after
negro equality. The audience applauded the most radical
passages, although a stray hiss now and then betrayed the
whereabouts of a ‘Conservative.’”

ADDRESS.

MR. PRESIDENT,--I am to speak this evening of one who early consecrated himself to Human Rights, and throughout a long life became their representative, knight-errant, champion, hero, missionary, apostle,--who strove in this cause as no man in history has ever striven,--who suffered for it as few have suffered,--and whose protracted career, beginning at an age when others are yet at school, and continued to the tomb, where he tardily arrived, is conspicuous for the rarest fidelity, the purest principle, and the most chivalrous courage, whether civil or military. There is but one personage to whom this description is justly applicable, and you have anticipated me when I pronounce the name of Lafayette. As in Germany Jean Paul is known as “the Only One,” so would I hail Lafayette as “the Faithful One.” If Liberty be what philosophy, poetry, and the human heart all declare, then must we treasure the example of one who served her always with a lover’s fondness and with a martyr’s constancy, nor demand perfections which do not belong to human nature. It is enough for unstinted gratitude that he stood forth her steadfast friend, like the good angel,--

“unmoved,
Unshaken, unseduced, unterrified,--