Duke University Libraries 
 
 Speech of Hon. 
 Conf Pam #618 
 
S P Elte C H 
 
 HON. JOSEPb H. ECHOLS. 
 
 The House of Repreaentativea, on January^9th, 1865, having un(Jer consider- 
 ation a "Bill to impose an export duty on cotton and tobacco of 5 cts. per pound," 
 the Hon. Humphrey Marshall, of Kentucky, moved to recommit the bill, with 
 instructions that the Committee report a bill to seize all the cotton and tobacco 
 of the Confederacy. The Hon. Josrph H. Echols, of Georgia, opposed the mo- 
 tion, and spoke in substance as follows : 
 - ■ -^ 
 
 Mr. Speaker : — 
 
 In my reply on yesterday to the fervid and eloquent speech of 
 the honorable gentleman from Kentucky, (Mr. Marshall) I would 
 not be considered as having objected te the patriotic and earnest 
 appeal he made to this House and the whole country, to rally to our 
 cause and never give up the struggle »ntil wcshall have secured 
 national iidependence. Lmo^t cordially endorse the spirit and 
 some of the sentiments of that distrnguished gentleman, but it was 
 the line of policy and the mode of accomplisbiag our success, to 
 which my strictures were directed. Sir, the whdle scope and tenor 
 of the speech were in favor of the most radical aivd stringent mea- 
 sures. He scouted the idea of hajuig "feelinga ' of delicacy to- 
 wards the constitution, aitd a^sertei^p were in danger of being too 
 tender footed, in times il'ai demand all our nion and redourcea. I 
 regretted exceedingly the announcement that wq could at any time 
 have a too sacred regard for the constitution I ftar, from the ar- 
 guments he advanced and otker indications in this Hpuse as well from 
 some of tke measures of our past legislation, we will soon have no 
 constitution at all. Why, sir, this is a war fo|jfche constitution, it 
 is a constitutional war. It is not a war of the^Roses," a contest 
 to settle the claims of a spurious or doubtful line oi fossilliforous 
 royalty, but it is a struggle for constitutional rights. One of the 
 ablest arguments I hav^ heard duriutr the present session, on 
 the greatest constitutional cmestion of tho day, was made by that 
 distinguished gentleman, anclrit added additional lustre to his wide- 
 spread national reputation. I was, therefore, taken by surprise 
 and that surprise was expressed with some degree of earnestness, 
 
 D ►:' 9 '^ 1 n 
 
when I heard that crentlcman assert "we must not have such feeHnp;8 
 of delicacy towards the constitution." All the riehts vrehold dear, 
 "free ppeecb." "a free pre«s," ''Jcial bv jury," freedom from un- 
 reasonable seizures and to wora^ God as we please, are all se- 
 cured to us by the constitution. 
 
 Mr. Speaker, the constitution Ufcs the prreat cenripetal force 
 that held togrether the mafrnificent constellation of the States of the 
 old Union, and when that force -v^^destroyed, those Sates, like so 
 many planet? that had lo?t their power of attraction, were driven 
 into other spheres, and seeking the orbits of their original sove- 
 reignty, again revolved about a llew and common centre. When 
 we lose our regard for the constitntion, when the obligation of an 
 oath to support it becomes so demoralized as to allow us to violate 
 its provisions with irattttutv, we are not far removed from self- 
 subjugation and politioBHJKcide. W# propose to carry on this 
 war under the ^anc^jon^ anoljy virtue of its authority. I have ho 
 sympathy for a counter revolution, but, in the language of a distin- 
 guished statesman. "I am for keeping the present one in the right 
 track ;" and that is the great highway of our chartered and consti- 
 tutional rights. 
 
 The constitution is the ''Lex Scripta" ^j way of distinction. 
 It was once the e(|uilibrium of the States, "ut dow it is known as 
 the "Lost Principle ;" and, like the missing "Ploiade," can no longer 
 be seen with a powerful magnifier any where in the vast political 
 heavens of the North. Let us not follow their example, but in 
 war as in peace, with the most religious scrupulosity, adhere to its 
 teachings and obey its behests. If, in the mighty struggle to se- 
 cure our indepenflpnce, wo shall be driven with the momentum of 
 an avalanche into the vortexpf anarchy and ruin, we may not be 
 able, when we will, to return to constitutional liberty and a free 
 government. If,jn the ij^ood providence of God, we are not to suc- 
 ceed, (which I , cannot believe,) let us go down to an honorable 
 grave, with the'^'onl in one hand and the cons/iYw^io/i in the other. 
 
 Again the bonoiablc 'gentleman, with great vehemence, urged the 
 propriety of seizins: evcr/man and hurling him into the ranks. 
 Sir, is this to be the policy of ilii^'. "overnment ? Are we to have 
 no exemptions ^u^lust we leave offf' children without instruction, 
 rob our pnlpitdS^ the ministry, abolish our courts, break down the 
 press and turn' society loose to follow the dictates of its own dis- 
 ordered nnsti nets ? Why, sir, tiic people are losing, every where 
 throughout the ^nfedcracy, their respect for an enlightened pub- 
 lic sentiment. If you would have chastity and virtue assume the 
 place of prudery^Bd boldness, the elegance and polish of refined 
 society supplaniocr^ courseness -^ind rowdyism, then conscribe 
 all your teacho: s and put liayonets^gSto the hands of all, your min- 
 isters. Close the sauctiiiu ies of Qi)|p7 seal up .the sacred oracles 
 and leave the community to the defcoralizing influences of specu- 
 lation, fraud and robbery, and we will have transformed this^unny 
 
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 land into a eterile "Sahara"' of barbarism and infidelity. If, to 
 use the classic languapre of the honorable member, this c:overnment 
 shall ^'seize every man h/ the nap of the neck" and thrust them into 
 the ditches, where are you to j^et supplies for the army ? The aprri- 
 culturalists must leave their plow-shares or 'beat them into swords, 
 and their pruning hooks into bayonets, and the army be fed on 
 "beach nuts," and the families of soldiers upon "the roots of the 
 ground." Sir, this is the sophomoric declamation of a school boy, 
 and not in keepins; with the breadth of intellect and enlarged 
 statesmanship of the brave and gallant Kentuckian. 
 
 Is this the way to talk to freemen, to make the war popular and 
 win back the affections of the people ? Such sentiments will make 
 more deserters and drive oft" moj.'e patriots from your government 
 than a hundred defeats, or the fall of every city along our entire 
 Atlantic coast. Our soldiers, who are now enveloped in mud and 
 snow, are not hired mercenaries, or the floating scum of a half-bar- 
 barous mongrelism, who are seeking ©ur subjugation for plunder 
 and spoils, but they are the flower and pride of Southern chivalry. 
 They are a citizin soldiery, many, of thorn of the highest order of 
 intellect and most cultivated taste — they know no master and are 
 not ready to purchase independence by making slaves of freemen. 
 
 Again the honorable gentleman proposes by his amendment to 
 seize or impress all the cotton and tobacco in the country, aad put 
 them into the hands of the government. Sir, you remember that 1 
 was among the first, at the opening of the present session of Con- 
 gress, to advocate the propriety of making cotton a basis of re- 
 deeming and appreciating Confederate Treasury notes — but I have 
 never been in favor of impressing either of these commodities. 
 The entire system of impressments is injudicious, unwise and un- 
 constitutional, unless under the pressing emergency of an absolute 
 military necessity. Our impressment laws are an outrage upon a 
 free and patriotic people. 
 
 Mr. Speaker, I propose reading some authority on this subject 
 that may have some influence, at least upon Virginians. It is a let- 
 ter from a gentleman and soldier, who, according to the opinion of 
 Lord Brougham, never had^ peer upon tha American coHtinont. 
 I will read it : |?' 
 
 Valley Forge, January otb, 1778. 
 
 ' To the President Congress : 
 
 It will never answer to procure supplies of clothing or provi- 
 sions by coercive measures. The small seizures of the former a 
 few days ago, in consequence of the most absolute ani pressing 
 necessity, when that or to dissolve wag the alternative, excited tho 
 greatest alarm and uneasiness even amongst our best and warmest 
 friends. Such proceedings may give momentary relief, but if re- 
 
peated will prove of the most perilous consequences. Besides 
 spreadins: disaflfection, jealousy and fear among the people, they 
 never fail, even the most veteran troops, under the most rigid dis- 
 cipline, to raise in the soldiers a disposition to licentiousness, to 
 plunder and robbery, difficult afterwards to suppress, and which 
 haa proved not only ruinous to the inhabitants, but in many in- 
 stances, to the armies themselves. 
 
 (Signed.) GEORGE WASHINGTON. 
 
 Mr. Speaker : If the authority and sacredness of the name of 
 Washington have lost their charm, if such words of wisdom fail 
 to influence our legislation on this suliject, 1 cannot hope that my 
 humble views shall change the opinion of tlii:? House. Sir, the 
 weight of responsibility tht^t rests upon this body is absolutely pain- 
 ful, and, in the langua<!:e of tho gentleman from Kentucky, 1 fear we 
 have not "arisen to tho i^ieatncss ol tlio occasion." Whenever this 
 Congress shall, by one fell swoop, cleave down all ihc sacred rights 
 of persons and property, delivered to us by our fathcM's, we are like- 
 ly to raise a storm of indignation, that we shall not be able to sub- 
 due. It is a fundamental proposition that underlies all our repub- 
 lican ins.itiitions, that the will of the people should be potent and 
 fully represented in all our legisluive councils. Another proposi- 
 tion, equally axiomatic, is that the niaintainauce of our cause de- 
 pends ujion the Jjoarty co-operation of tho people. We should, 
 therefore, so shape our legislation and execute our laws, as to pro- 
 duce as little distrust and vexation as possible. The gentleman 
 fiom South Caiolina, (Mr. S.j well said, on yesterday, that the past 
 legislation of Congress hnd a tendency, among certain classes, to 
 alienate their affections and excite among them a desire for recon- 
 struction. I fully concur in this opinion, but. Mr. Speaker, we can 
 never rccunstrvct this Government. 
 
 Whtn all the mailed, limbless and wounded soldiers of this 
 country shall Lave slept with their falheia. the thousand 
 widows of this land shall be laid by their immortal heroes, and their 
 ten thousand orphans shall have forgotten the wrongs done their 
 fathers and brothers, and the refluent waves of time shall have 
 •gashed out the memories of the past ; when the name of 
 Vankee shall no longer be a synonym of rapine and plunder ; 
 when tlie blessings of peace and felicities of home shall ol)literate 
 the recolici'tion of burnt cities, outraged beauty and the wail of or- 
 phanage, when such men as Butler, Hunter atid McNeil shall have 
 been court martialed and cashiered by an incensed Deity and ©rder- 
 ed to report to tho "■Father of lies, ^^ then we may bear tp hear tho 
 woid reconstruction, but not until then. But, Mr. Speaker, we may 
 precipitate the South into another revolution. Before the "banner 
 of the cro.'^s" phall wave triumphantly over thecapitol of a brave and 
 free people, wo may suffer long and nrjch from military blunders 
 and unwise and radical 'iegislation. Without designing to arraign 
 
the wisdom of our predecessors, may I be permitted to say, that 
 the euspensioa of the writ of habeas corpus, the impressment of 
 private property, without paying: just compensation, the harsh and 
 unfeeling method of conscription, the tax upon the currency, and 
 the abuses of the tithing system, have alarmed the fears and aroused 
 the apprehensions of a patriotic and confiding people. Because I 
 desire to " temper the wind to the shorn lamb," and make these 
 harsh measures of legislation as agreeable as possible, shall I be 
 considered as wanting in devotion to our cause ? Can we not 
 honestly diflfer as to the best mode of conducting this revolution? 
 \yhy, sir, he is a traitor to his own understandirg and disloyal to 
 his own sense of ri^ht, and unworthy of the confidence of a free 
 people, who shall sit here in this House and smother the convictions 
 of his own intelligence. I will not fill my place here, if I must, with 
 folded arms, breathless silence and supplicating subserviency, not 
 be allowed to differ with the majority, without having my patriotism 
 questioned. 
 
 Mr. Speaker, we are in no danger of subjugation, if this Con- 
 gress will come up to the full measure of its duty. I would propose 
 another line of policy, lay down a new track ; harmonize the two 
 leading officers of your govermieut; impose the lightest burdens 
 possible upon the people, consistent with the wants of the country; 
 abolish your impressment laws ; pay and feed your troops; vitalize 
 and encourage the people ; popularize the war ; restore public con- 
 fidence and hold to the most rigid accoxmtahility every officer of 
 the government, civil and military; appropriate no more money 
 than is absolutely required to carry on the war; th-^u we will in- 
 fuse into the army and people a heroic invincibility that will plant 
 its standard upon the summit of independence and purchase free- 
 dom by the " last analysis of liberty, the blood of the brave.'' 
 
 Why are our troops unpaid ? Congress, at its last session, ap- 
 propriated $74,000,000 for this specific object and $100,000,000 for 
 their sopport, and yet sir, there are many of them without clothes 
 and have not received a Confederate dollar in eight months. Who 
 has this money? Where is it? I call upon the committee that 
 supervises the estimates and looks after our finances, never to stop 
 their investigations until they can tell an oppressed and burdened 
 constituency, who it is that is squandering or stealing the public 
 moneys. These appropriations do not include the tax in kind, and 
 by this system alone we furnish the government supplies amply suffi- 
 cient for an army of two hundred thousand men for twelve months. 
 With all these apparent indications of official negligence, we are 
 still called upon by the departments to appropriate, for the year 
 1865, over $800,000,000. 
 
 I now recur, Mr. Speaker, to the Committee's bill and the pend- 
 ing amendment. 1 can see no good reason for impressing cotton 
 when tte government can neither export or sell it. Every man in 
 this House knows that the government cotton in many places ia ex- 
 
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 posed fo the weatlioi', without shelter or haj^ginff, and rotting every 
 hour. Then why impress tnoro to waste if But if it should ap- 
 pear that the Government can employ it in sustaining its finances 
 and uphrldinfr its credit, let us go into the market as lieretojore, 
 and purchase it, giving just compensation. We might, by paying 
 for it in specie, throw into «irculation a large amount of the pre- 
 cious metals, and thereby give substantial assurances to our people 
 that we intended to place oar currency upon a metallic basis, and 
 reorganize our finances upon the principles of an intelligent politi- 
 cal economy. 
 
 1 am still more opposed to the Committee's bill to tax cotton and 
 tobacco 5 cts. per pound, ad infinitum. Why, sir, 5 cts. per pound 
 is 50 per cenf. of the market value upr n a specie basis. Suppose the 
 producer had to pay the tax, this would stop its production entire- 
 ly. Every one who is at all conversant with the laws of trade and 
 principles of commerce, knows it often occurs, when an export duty 
 is laid upon a specific article, under the laws of supply and demand, 
 that the tax falls on the producer. I cannot, therefore, support a 
 measure to lay a tax of 5 cts. a pound on cotton and tobacco, which 
 is to be continued indefinitely, and may by possibility be an annual 
 incubus on the production of these commodities. The whole ob- 
 ject, as I understand the Committee, of introducing this bill, is to 
 appreciate the 600 million non-taxable bonds. We certainly ought 
 not to lay an annual lax on cotton and tobacco which may lessen 
 their production and array in perpetual antagonism, bondholders 
 and agriculturists. 
 
 Mr. Speaker, we must abandon all radical and revolutionary leg- 
 islation, and lay as fewrestrictions upon trade as possible and leave 
 it to the operation of its own unchangable laws. For these con- 
 siderations I shall oppose the motion to recommit the bill with the 
 amendment and instructions. 
 
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