f .ai E 429 1.C61 Copy 1 SPEECH HON. JEREMIAH QLEMENS, OF ALA., NON-IJNTERVENTION, ' ^ DELItEBED IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES, FEBRUARY 12, 1852. WASHINGTON: PftlNtED AT THE CONGRESSIONAL GLOBE OFFICE. 1852. 4. 73808 NON-INTERVENTION. m t The Senate proceeded to consider the folIowin<^ reso utions, which were submitted by Mr Clarkp on the ,19th ultimo: ^ Resolvedly the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States oj .Imericu in Co,K»re« ruS",/TI,a{ '1 hat Governments are instituted anion? men to secure pmess, denvHig their just powers from the consent of lie destrSvV^?Hr'''''''T' '"'^ ''^""^ of government become: destructue ot.tliese ends, it is the right of the neonle to al er or to abolish it, and to' insUtute a^new GoveTnmem lat mg us foundatioi, upon such principles and o,"Zziu.L powers ,n such Conn as to them shall seem n Ss tikelv to effect their safetv and happiness.^' ^ Resolved, That while we claim for ourselves these com- prehensive rights of self-government, and also, as a co^- pequenceot sovereignty, the right to be exemn from the coercnm, control, or interference of others in the ma a^e^ measure ^l>!",t"]i" '"^*'''' ''" '^^'""'^'"^ '" "''"''■^ '"«= «ame R«^L "^" '."'."■'"""' ""luahfied independence. Resolved, That it is upon the sacred principle of inde- pendcu sovereignty that we recognize, n our intercourse with other nations, Governments de futo, without inn ir ng by what means they have been 4tabl she" oi ir^ what manner they exercise their powers. ' Resolved, That this Government has solemnly adonted tionaTacti^fn'^Z"'!^'^ "'""^ f"' ^^ ^ P"--iP'« of i-'-e'^na-' wen Adr e s^ < n,'''"''''^'^"]^^.^^''''''" in '"^ Fare- well Address Observe good faith and justice towards all nations; cultivate peace and harmony will, all." "Give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel an example of fafX < T^' ^t^'^ ''>' '"' •^•^"''^^'^ i^^^'i^e and benevo- lence." " Sympathy for a favorite nation betrays itself into a participation in the quarrels and wars of another w ho n adequate mdueementor justification." '^ Against thei s^ lous wiles of foreign influence the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake ; for foreign infiuence'^s the most baneful toe of republican Governments." " The tr I rule ot conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is, in e" ending our commercial relations, to have with them as lit- tle political connection as possible. " " Why quit our own to stand upon foreign ground : Why, by iit'er vea ~ur destiny with that of any part of Europe, entangle ou peace fn tere'^'Cj: '" '"' ""'^ "'' European'ambitiSn, rivalJl'ip" interest, humor, or caprice." ^' ...ff'^''"M' '^y^'^' '^'"'e ^« cherish tlie liveliest symnathv towards al4 who strive for freedom of opinion and for free institutions yet wo recognize our true policv in the great fundamental principles given to us bv Jeflerson : " eS and exact justice to all men, of whatever slate or persia- Fion, rehgious or political ; peace, eommerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with -Rfso/i-e,/, That although we adhere to these essential principles of non-intervention as forming the true and la t- in-! foundation ot our prosperity and happiness, yet wl ei - ever a provident foresight shall warn us Ihat ou own 1 be - own''s"nr '"^"t',',"°"^ "^--e threatened, then a just regard tooVir own safety vyill require us to advance to the conflict rather than await the approach of the foes of our const.tu , na freedom and ol human Uberty. Mr. Seward's amendment proposes to strike out all after the second resolution of Mr. Clarke. and insert: ' Resolved, That while the United States, in consideration mentsrf^'f T"' "'^"^I^J'' habitually recognize Goveni men s de facto in other States, yet that they are neverthe- less by no means indifferent when such a Government is established against the consent of any people by u?u pat „„ or by armed intervention of foreign States or nations Resolved, That, considering that the nr(u,I,. of IIn„"-nrTr in the exercise of the right secured to thein by il,e ^If n. nnnl '" ^ '"'''';'" ""'^ '"^i^imate manner ass.rtnl their national independence, and Established a Govern. iimt bv their own voluntary act, and successfully mainta,i„,| U agaiiistall opposition by parties lawfully iiiterested in the law ^'rriSf,'"^- 'hat the Emperor of Russia, withou jii-t or lawful right, invadftd Hungary, and, by fraud and armed force subverted the national independence and po cal constitution thus established, and thereby reduced tha country o the condition of a province ruled by a fbrei f, and absolute power : the United States, in defence of' the^ X, n ™' ?" ""^ 'he common interests of mankind do solemnly protest against ihr conduct of Russia on that occa- sion, as a wanton and ty..!„i,ical infraction of th,. laws of na ons; and the United .-Uates do furtherdpclar,. tha? they will not herealtcr be indifferent to similar acts of national Ihiy maTSrf ""' ""' "^"--P^'-"' whenever or whereve. Mr. Cass's amendment is desi-ned as a sub- stitute for Mr. CLARKii's series,. Jt is as follows- P;''°^';^\h tjie Senate and House of Representative, Th.at while the people of the United States sympathize with all nations who are striving to establish free GWern! ments, yet they recognize the great principle of the law of nations which assures to each of them the right to manage us own internal affairs in its own way, and to establish alter or abolish Us Government at pleasure, without the I interference of any other Power; and they have not seen r.n?.", '">■ ""V'' f *"' "'tho'" -leep concern, the viola- tion ot this principle of national independence. Mr. CLE.MENSsaid: Mr. President, when this question was last under consideration, I listened with deep attention to the remarks of the honora- ble Senator from Michi£:an, [Mr. Ctss.l In that, speech— perhaps the ablest of his life— there is inuch to which I cannot suljscribe; but there is also much K. which I yield a cordial assent. I had supposed that we differed more widely than we do; and that supposition was a source to me of profound regret, not merely because he is the acknowled,ged leader of the political party to which 1 belong, but more on account of the kind and cordial relations existing- between us. It was therefore with sincere pleasure I heard liim an- nounce that he proposed no intervention in the attairs of other nations beyond an expression of opinion that the conduct of Pai.ssia had not been in accordance with the law of nations, and that we could not look upon a similar violation of that law with unconcern. I sliall not go out of my way to discuss with the Senator from IVIicliigan the propriety of tlie expression of such an opinion. I shall addre.sa i myself rather to tliose who go far beyond that , honorable Senator, and demand " material aid" for Hungary. I am afraid that tliere is a dispo- sition in some quarters to undervalue the import- ance of this question. Indeed I have heard it, on one or two occasions, cliaracterizcd as an abstrac- tion. I w'sh it was. In my opinion, it is net only j a question of immediate and pressing iniportance, but it is a question, upon the correct decision of | ■which, must depend the liberty and happiness of | generations who are ta come after us. A foreigner has landed upon our shores, preach- j ing a crusade against the nations of the Old i World, and boldly asking us to incorporate a new principle in the foreign policy of the nation. Of that foreigner it is necessary that I should say something. That he is an orator of consid- j erable ability, is conceded; but he is an orator j merely. To call him a hero, is, in my opinion, I a very near approach to the ridiculous. The man who was the first to shrink at the approach i of the tempest he had raised, who abandoned his country when he had still an army of one hun- dred and^iirty-five thousand men at his com- mand; who surrendered the powers vested in him for the good of the State into the hands of a man, whom for months, he had believed to be a trai- tor, is not made of such stm as Washington, or Sumter, or Marion, or Grlgnp. The excessive laudations which have been heni'd upon him since his arrival 'among us, must, in liic eyes of foreign nations, who know his history far better than we seem to know it, cover us witli ridicule, if not with contempt. Not long sime, I saw a letter, written by an individual inhigh phice, in which the wri- ter seemed Im be nt a lo.-^s tor words to exjuess the amount of his rev^g^e for the " illustrious Mag- yar." An American,, citizen, a freeman, talking about his rcr^-renre for any living thing belov/ the God that m;ule him ! Sir, I neither feel reverence, nor anything approaching it, for one who has | K roved himself to be as weak and vacillating in the ourof danger, as he was reckless and uncalculating before its approach. But I have no wish to deal in unkind expressions towards him. As an individual I entertain for him no feeling but that of indid'er- etice. It is almost impossible that he should ever become either a frif-nd or an enemy of mine. Nor would I speak of him at all, but for th.e doctrines he advances; and for the further fact, that he has been invested by his advocates with almost num- berless virtues, for the purpose of enlisting sym- pathy in his behalf, and preparing the public mind to yield a readier assent to his teachings. None know better than the demagogues who have sur- rounded him since his arrival here, that the voice^ of wisdom may be drowned iiy the wiki shouts of a frenzied mob, clamoring for the establishment of freedom throughout the world. And hence it is that we have him presented to us as a pure repub- lican, whose exile is a consequence of his minis- trations at the altar of Liberty, and whose whole life has been one long labor in the cause of human rights. Now, sir, I do not believe this; but I nhould not trouble myself to contradict it, if it were not for the intention which dictates the eulogy. That he has labored, and is laboring zealously, to ob- tain aid for Hungary, is not to be denied; and I neither know nor care what amount of stimulus may have been added to his exertions by disap- pointed ambition and deep-rooted enmity to the Power that vanquished him. He would not be human, if some such feeling did not find a place in his bosom. I blame him not, if it is there; and do not care to inquire how far it may have governed his conduct. But, sir, the apostle of freedom should illustrate, by his own example, its beauty and smiplicity. On a former occasion,! expressed doubts v/hether he really understood the simple creed, which has been the source of all our happiness and all our greatness. Since that time he has been among us, and those doubts have ripened into convictions. And here again let me say, I do not blame him. He had been accus- tomed to the pageantry of courts, to the " pomp, pride, and circumstance " which surround the monarchs of the Old World, and he naturally sup- I posed that these were necessary adjuncts to a favorable impression upon the people. To^Jthis I cause I attribute the unnecessary display of uni- forms and sabres, which gave to a quiet hotel i in this city much the appearance of the head-quar- I ters of a commanding general in a conquered ! country. To this cause," also, I attribute the bad I taste which brought an armed guard into this Hall on the day of his reception here; v/hen, for the I first tiine since their erection, these walls echoed the jingle of arms. Let us hope that it is no omen I of scenes which are to follow. But when I remembered the peaceful purposes for which this i building grew under the hands of the architect; ' when Tremembered that, to this body, above all I others, the people are accustomed to look, to I check rashness, to rebuke violence, and to frown I down all schemes of extravagance and excitement, I I confess 1 felt something like a shudder at the unwonted rattling of foreign sabres in the inmost i temple of American Liberty. j There is another circumstance I must not omil to mention. If Kossuth had been the ardent're- I I puldican which he is represented, there is one spot 1 in this vicinity no difficulty would havo deterred !; him from visiting. Neither storm nor tempest — il the summer's heat nor winter's snow should have i' prevented him t'rom making a pilgrimage to Mount I I Vernon, and kneeling at the tomb of the wisest, !| the noblest, and the purest of all those who have |1 done battle in the cause of mankind. But that great I name seems to have awakened in him no'enthu- r siasin, and the spot where the remains of Wash- { ington are interre^', has been undisturbed by the tread of Hungarian feet. I doubt if there is a :: mimarch in Eunipe who v>'ou!d have been guilty i[ of similar neglect; who would have manifested so ji little reverence for the dead — so little regard for I ' the holiest feelings of the living. !l Mr. President, I have now done with the indi- vidual. It is to his mission that I shall addresa myself His first proposition is, that every na- tion has the right to regulate its own affairs in its own way; and to this I shall interpose no ob- jection. But Mr. Kossuth and I may differ very widely as to what constitutes a nation, and con- sequently as to who it is in whom this right re- sides. 1 do not admit that every part of an em- pire, whether it be called a province, state, or department, is a nation. Hungary is and has long been a part of the Austrian Empire, and is no more independent of the Chief Executive than is New York of the General Government. If the State of New York should undertake to regulate her own aifairs in her own way — to appropriate die immense revenues collected in her ports — to form alliances with foreign nations, and to tax the citizen of Pennsylvania or Massachusetts, whose business required him to pass through her terri- tory, it requires no great stretch of imagination to I suppose that an army would soon be collected on | her borders, and that her right would be made to ] depend upon her power to enforce it. I think I but utter an admitted truth, when I say that the right to regulate the affairs of the United States, to watch over the interests of the whole Union, to g^uard and to defend them, is here, and must re- main here, until the people take it away either by successful revolution or by constitutional amend- ments. So, I take it, the right to regulate the aJTairs of the Austrian Empire resides in its Ex- ecutive head, until the people see fit to withdraw tlie powers they have vested in him. If a minority are dissatisfied and wish to change their form of government, there is no recourse but revolution; and not until that revolution is successfully ac- complished can they claim a place among the na- tions of the earth. If it were possible to collect all the Germans in the United States into one State, the Irish in another, the French in another, although each might speak its own language and be governed by its own local laws, they would no more be entitled to the appellation of nations than now, when they are diiTused throughout the whole Republic. Mere difference of language, and of local laws, is no evidence of nationality. Some- thing more is needed; and it would be easy to ehow that, in enunciating his first proposition, Kossuth has made a case against himself. But, sir, T do not wish to pursue the inquirer. It is immaterial whether or not any such right is to be found in the law of nations. Indeed it is somewhat diificult for any one at all conversant with the history of the world to suppress a smile while listening to learned dissertations in favor of rights founded on the law of nations. That na- tion does not exist \vhich has not disregarded all Such laws whenever promjjted by interest to do eo. To take care of its own interest, to provide for its ov/n security, is and always has been the ruling principle of every nation, irrespective of any public law. So universal has been this prac- tice, that I recollect InU one instance in all history to the contrary, and that was when Tliemistocles wished to burn the ships of the other Grecian States, and M^as prevented by the report of Aris- tides to the Athenians, that though nothing could be more advantageous to Athens, nothing could be more unjust. England pursued a different course at Copenhagen; and by so doing, struck one of the heaviest blows ever dealt at the power of Napoleon. I make no comment upon the dif- ferent degrees of morality exhibited by the ancient and the modern, the heathen and the cliristlgn. I merely state historical facts, and from them I draw the deduction, that a right without the means of making it respected is a mockery. It is admitted that Hungary has no such means. The question, then, arises," vShall we furnish them .' This is the point, the whole gist of the matter. Let me begin by supposing that it is in our power to do so — that we have the ability to punish Russian interfer- ence and repel Russian invasi(in — how are we to be benefited ? What portion of the fruits of victory is to inure to us? I do not address this question to dinner orators, brimfuU of philanthropy and champagne, nor to vainglorious militia colonels, who are exceedingly anxious to march to Hun- gary to-morrow, but who could not make it con- venient to march to Mexico when our country ivas engaged in war. I address it to grave Sena- tors, who are charged with the interests of twenty- five millions of people, and who are responsible to the present and the future for the manner in which they discharge the duties assigned them. General Washington has said: " Tliere can be no greater error than to expect or calcn- late upon any real favors from nation to nation. It ia an illusion which experience must cure, and which a jusl pride ought to discard." There is a deep wisdom in this paragraph, and he who disregards or treats it lightly wants the highest attribute of a statesman. We can expect nothing as a favor from other nations, and none have a right to expect favors from us. Our inter- ference, if we interfere at all, must be dictated by interest; and therefore I ask, in what possible manner can we be benefited? Russia has done ua no injury; we have, therefore, no wrongs lua\enge. Rus.sia has no territory of whi^h wewish to deprive her, and from her there^ no danger against which it is necessary lojrguard. Enlightened self-interest does not oiler a single argument in favor of embroiling oiusillves in a quarrel with her. So obvious, so indisputable is this truth, that the advocates of " intervention " have base'dL their speeches almost s^'ely on the ground thcitwy have a divine mission to ]:erform, and that is to strike the manacles from lie handsof allmankipd. It may be, Mr. President, tTtSU we have ai0i a mission: but, if so, the " time of its fulfillment ia not yet." And, for one, I jnef^r waiting fursome clearer manifestation of the Divine Will. By at- tempting to fulfill it now, we employ &e surest means of disappointing that " jnanifest^lestiny," of which we have heard so much- . IW^ have be- fore us the certainty of indicting OTe]Tinjury upon ourselves, without the slightest prosjiect of bene- fiting others. According to Kossuth 's own ad- mission, R-ussia can precipitate upon Hungary one hundred thousand men in thirty days; Au.s- tria, at the lowest calculation, can bring as many more into the field. If we give them notice, in advance, that we intend to interfere in the affairs ! of Hungary, not only these troops, but all the dis- j posable forces of both empires will be collected at the most convenient points, and an attempted revo- lution would be crushed before we heard it had j begun. I need not depict the unenviable attitude in which we would then be placed. Involved in a war without an object, our ally vanquished, the I very chains we sought to loosen riveted with ten- fold strength, the miserable victims of their own and our folly piling curses upon us, witli the sneer- ing taunts of the victors adding the last mortifica- tion to the Quixotism of America. Sir, if I had but one prayer to offer for my country, it would be, " May God avert this deep disgrace!" Mis- fortunes may come upon us all; dishonorattaches only to the unworthy. A nation* may be con- quered, trodden down; her living sons in chains, her dead the prey of vultures, and still leave a 6 bright example — a glorious history to after times. But when folly and wickedness have ruled the hour; when disaster is the legitimate child of er- ror and weakness, the page tiiat records it is but a record of infamy, and pity for misfortune be- comes a crime against justice. Sir, I do not love that word "destiny" — "man- ifest" or not " manifest." Men and nations make their own destinies. " Our acts, our angols are, or good or ill — Our fatal shadows that walk hy us still." The future of this Republic is in our hands, and it is for us to determine whether we will launch the ship of State upon a wild and stormy sea, above whose blackened waters no sunshine beams, no star shines out, where not a ray is seen but what is caught from the lurid lightning as it treads its fiery path. This, Senators, is the niighty ques- tion we have to solve, and let me add, that if the freedom of one continent and the hopes of four shall sink beneath that inky flood, ours will be the guilt, ours the deep damnation it deserves. Shall I be told these are idle fears.' That in a war with Russia, no matter for what cause waged, we must be the victors? That, in short, all Eu- rope combined could not blot this Union from the map of nations.' Ah, sir, that is not all I fear. I fear success eveii more than defeat. The Senator ihiganf [Mr. C \ss] was right when hesaid fears were to lie found at hoine. 1 do fselves. Commit om- people once to un- sary foreign wars,Jei victory encourage the ry spirit already Wp prevalent among them, Roman history wijhave no chapter bloody aigli to be transmilteHto posterity side by side with ours. In a brief^eriml we shall have re- enacted, on a grander |!<^''', the same scenes which marked her decline. -. followed a victorious 1 will f Tjet his love oT comni;ii.('er, and tli-' abroad ." conquer akn to desti- lythe rights ■ throne "i'an em|)ero;-. e \ eteran soldier who has :ler from clime to clime, itntry in his love for his ayonets you have sent :lom will be brought back the citizen and prop the I have t^|us, sir. Tects of inbrv.'iii effec its tire.-^eiit ai y traced the prospective Let me refer as briefly to ' eflccts. We must begin with an outlay, at the lowest calculation, of one hundred niiililins of dollars; and this, be itremem- bered, is but a beginning. Our navy must be quad- rupled, our army increased not less than an hun- dred thousand men. Every fort upon our long line of sea-coast, from Maine to the Rio Grande, and from Northern Oregon to Southern California, must be garrisoned, and the immense sums thus expended must be dragged directly from the pock- ets of the people. Allof us know, that in a war with a maritime power, our revenues from imjiorts must decrease below the wants of the Government. But irrievous as would be this load of debt, it is the lightest of the evils we will be called upon to bear. From direct invasion, I admit that we have notliin^' to fear; from battles upon the ocean, between national vessels, just as little. The dan-, ger is of aimther kind. There is not a sea which an American vessel is not tliis moment travers- ing. There is not a clime unknown to our com- merce. Whenever war is declared, the lust of gain and the love of adventure will cover the ocean with privateers, and the rich fruits gathered by the arts of peace will be sacrificed to the demon of folly. The spindles of the New England manuficturer will stand still; the door of the New York mer- chant will be closed; the ploughshare of the North- western mrmer will rust in the furrow; and the noise of the cotton-gin will no longer be heard. Not a pound of bacon nor a barrel of flour, not a sack of corn, nor a bag of cotton, not a hogshead of tobacco, nor a tierce of rice, can leave our porta without danger of caf.ture. The hardy mariner, who pursues his i)erilous calling m the northern seas, may find himself a captive, and the fruits of long years of toil swept away before he is aware that he has an enemy to avoid. The life-blood will stagnate in every vein of our commerce; and every interest will wither under its blighting influ- ence. Is this picture too highly colored ? Grant that it is so. Grant that but one tenth part of what is here depicted will come to pass, and the eye of the patriot will still turn with a shudder from tlie dark prospect on which it rests. But is it in truth overdrawn .' There are Senators here who remember the war of 1812, its trials and its suf- ferings; and all of us have learned from history or tnidition that these suflerings were suflicient to cast a veil even over the deformities of treason, and to cause the formation of a party whose ob- ject was to make a separate peace with the com- mon enemy, and leave the rest of the Republic to take care of itself. Can it be doubted that with a greatly extended commerce these evils will be pro- portionately increased, and moreover that they would be aggravated by the reflection that they were brought upon us against reason and without necessity .' It may be .said, sir, that an argumenS of this sort extends to all wars as well as to the par- ticular case under consideration. Undoubtedly to some extent it does so. No war car. be carried on vv-ithout detriment to the prosperity or the moral- ity of the people; but there may be cases which justify, there may be wrongs which demand, the sacrifice; and whenever such a case arises, I shall not be the last to draw the sword. I am afraid, Mr. Pi-esident, that after the able and judicious remarks of the Senator from R.hode Island, [Mr. Clarke,] I shall but tax the pa- tience of the Senate by referring to the opinions of former Presidents; but if it should be somewhat tedious to this body, it will not be uninstructive to the country. There has been no disagreement of opinion among them, no matter to what section of the Union tliey belonged, no matter to what party they owed their elevation to power; all of them have urged non-interference with the affairs of other nations as the dictate alike of interest and of duty. All of them, with singular unanimity, I have maintained and enforced the precepts of the father of his Country. I am aware that it is be- coming somewhat unfashionable to argue from the usages and experience of the past. It has been again and again announced that rules which were well enough for the govermnent of an infant Re- public, are valueless now; that a change of cir- cumstances necessarily induces a change of policy, and that what was wi.^dom yesterday may be folly to-morrow. Much of this may be true. I do not mean that we should blindly follow any policy without reference to circumstances. I do imt mean to say that, because the Spartans lived on black broth, and used nothing but iron money, therefore we ought to follow their example; but what I do mean to say is, that there are certain great truths wliich no time can change, no circumstances affect, and chief among these I reckon the duty of every nation to provide for the substantial happiness of its ou-n citizens. No matter whether in infancy, maturity, or decline, this is a policy no nation can neglect with safety — no people can disregard with- out suffering. It was on this principle that Wasliington acted. T propose to read, sir, a few short paragraphs from his Farewell Address: "The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations, is, in extending our commercial relations, to have with tliem as little political connection as possible. So lar as we have already formed engagements, let them be ful filled with perfect good faith. Here let us slop. "Europe has a set of primary interests, which to us have rone, or a very remote relation. Hence she nnist be en- gaged in frequent controversies, the causes of v.hich are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, therefore, it must be unwise in tis to implicate ourselves, by artiticial ties, in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics, or the ordi- nary combinations and collisions of her friendships or en- mities. " Our detached and distant situation invites and enables tis to pursue a ditierent course. If we remain one people, under an etficient Governnii;nt, the period is not farofl when we may defy material injury from external annoyance; when we may take such an attitude as will cause the neu- trality we may at any time resolve upon, to be scrupulously respected ; when belligerent nations, under the impossibility of making acquisitions upon us, will not lightly hazard the giving us provocation ; wlien we may choose peace or war, as our interest, guided by justice, shall counsel. " Why forego the advantages of so peculiar a situation .' Why quit our own to stand upon foreign ground.' Why, by interweaving our destiny with tliatof any part of Europe, entangle our peace and prosperity in the toils of European ambition, rivalship, interest, humor, or caprice .'" Now, Mr. President, the authority of the hon- orable Senator from Michigan to the contrary notwithstanding, I must say that it is not in a doc- ument thus carefully prepared, solemnly announ- 1 cing opinions so maturely formed, that we are to | look for advice intended to guide us tor a season i only. Every word of that Address was intended ' to have its weight so long as the Republic should [ endure. Guided by a wisdom but little short of inspiration, lie foresaw the possibility of a case such as tliat which has now arisen, and affec- tionately warned us to beware of dangers which , might prove fatal to the Republic. I tiust, sir, that there is yet among the people too much re- spect for the memory of George Washington, too much gratitude for his services, to permit his j counsels to be disregarded. I trust we are not yet prepared to exchange the calm and patriotic ad- vice of the sagacious statesman for the noisy bab- [ blings of political aspirants, still less for tlie in- terested suggestions of a foreigner, seeking the attainment of his own selfish ends, no matter at I what cost, no matter at what sacrifice of the inter- , est of others. i The most popular and the most powerful of the successors of General Wasliington held similar opinions. I read from the fourth annual message of Andrew Jackson: " In the view I have given of our connection with for- eign Powers, allusions have been made to their domestic disturbances or Ibreign wars, to their revolutions or dissen- sions. It may be proper to observe, that this is done solely in cases where those events atfeet our political relations With them, or to show their operation on our commerce. Further than this, it is neither our policy ^or our right to interfere. Our best wishes on all occasions, our good offices when required, will be afforded, to promote tiie domestic tranquillity and foreign peace of all nations with whom we ave any intorcojj^e . Any intervention in |peir atiairs further than this, even hy the expression of an official opin- ion, is contrary to our principles of international policy, and will always be avoided." I might go on until I had filled a volume with similar extracts; but it is not needed. The obvious good sense of attending to our own business, re- quires no authority to sustain it. We are nov\r rich, happy, and powerful. If we continue in the course we have thus far pursued, imagination can set no bounds to our progress. I profess, sir, to have as much sympathy for the oppressed as other men. As an individual, I think it quite possible that I would peril life and limb in such a cause, as readily as the noisiest advocates of inter- vention; but in this Chamber I endeavor to sepa- rate the man from the legislator, looking only to the good of the countr)', seeking to perpetuate its in- stitutions, and preserve unimpaired the high priv- ileges we enjoy; I can permit neither sympa- thies nor enmities to govern my conduct, nor sway me from the pathway pointed out by reason and reflection. Feeling, pride, passion, prejudice, are all out of place here. The interests of this great nation, and its continued existence as a free Repub- lic, must not be subjected to capricious legislation, dictated by sympathies which may be misplaced — which are always unreflecting. The heart is a bad counsellor at best. An individual may be pardoned for yielding to its promptings when the risk is all his own; but no coi^'e of morals, no pre- cept of religion can excuse or extenuate the guilt of him who idly perils a nation's welfare, a peo- ple's happiness. It was an inflexible rule of the Roman Senate, never to make peace with a victorious enemy, lest amid the sufferings and humiliations of defeat they might be tempted to sacrifice the interests of the Republic. No wonder that a people governed by such rules became the masters of the world. Over them the passions had no sway — reasarrruled supreme. Cold as the marble columns about them, no wild fancies led theOT into profitless ad- ventures, no vain dreams of universal philaii thro ]iy tauffht them to forget the highjEr duties they owed to Rome. * The present project of interventipn 'does not come recommended to me by the company in whicli it proposes to place us. We are asked to act in conjiuiction with England, who may well find it for her own interest and her own safety, but who will offer us nothing in exchange for our share in the common danger and the common expense. The policy of England is known to the world, and all history is false if she ever formed an alliance without a selfish end in view. What- ever nation subserves her purposes, is her ally for the time lieing, but not a moment longer. A league with England, out of which any good could arise to America, is an Utopian dream, of which a school-boy should be ashamed. In her case, also, even feeling prompts us to re- ject the profl'ered fellowship. There are many wounds inflicted in the past whose " poor dumb mouths" plead eloquently against such an alliance. The fierce Tarlton and the merciless Rav.'don are not yet forgotten. The ho«^ burnings of Cock- burn and the sav.ige inaslBp-es of Proctor still blacken the page of history. I'ime has not abated the deep indignation excited by thebriri'al war-cry which rang over the plains of New Orleans; and none of us remember, without a feeling of resent- A « #♦ 8 ment, the Vandal inroad to which this capital was aubjected. That large class of our population who are of Irish birth or Irish extraction have darker memories to cherish and deeper wrongs to avenge. Many of them have had their infant slumbers broken by the rattle of musketry and the fierce yell of an infuriated soldiery, and none,of them have forgotten that there was a time when the frightened peasant who fled to the mountain or the morass for safety, was lighted on his way by the flames bursting from the roof of his cot- tage; when the dungeon was filled with the noblest in the land, and the scaffold groaned with the weight of its victims; when terror wallced side by side with the jjaid informer, and desolation made its home in Ireland. These are the souvenirs connected witli the name of England; and I will not so libel a gallant people as to suppose for a moment that they have any great anxiety to clasp in friendship hands red with the best blood of their native land. Let me not j be misunderstood. I seek no quarrel with England, ! but I do not forget what she has done, and 1 want j no alliance v/itli her. So long as she attends to \ her own business, and does not presume to meddle | with ours, I am willing that our present relations [ should continue. But let her beware how she 1 ttrouses the animosities now slumbering in the | American bosom. The bones and sinews of the I young giant of the West are fast hardening into niatt|*jinanhood, and, the next time we meet in hostin|Hfefl|MBd\e prO(^d boast that the roll of the Englis^^^^^^v be heard from the rising to the settino^^^^^^Hp nothin.;- but a tale of the past. Thenj^^^^^^He Irisii heart leap with a pioud |oy, fii^^^^^Biviil ^W^ come when the epitaph of Emm^^Pl^at last be written. Mr. Presi