The Great Conspiracy, Volume 2Logan, John Alexander
History
The Great Conspiracy, Volume 2
Logan, John Alexander
Slavery -- United States; United States -- Politics and government -- 1861-1865
It would seem also, from another part of Wigfall's reply, that the
speeches of Union Senators had been so effective that a necessity was
felt on the part of the Southern Conspirators to still further attempt
to justify Secession by shifting the blame to Northern shoulders, for,
while referring to the Presidential canvass of 1860--and the attitude of
the Southern Secession leaders during that exciting period--he said:
"We (Breckinridge-Democrats) gave notice, both North and South, that if
Abraham Lincoln was elected, this Union was dissolved. I never made a
speech during the canvass without asserting that fact. * * * Then, I
say, that our purpose was not to dissolve the Union; but the dire
necessity has been put upon us. The question is, whether we shall live
longer in a Union in which a Party, hostile to us in every respect, has
the power in Congress, in the Executive department, and in the Electoral
Colleges--a Party who will have the power even in the Judiciary. We
think it is not safe. We say that each State has the clear indisputable
right to withdraw if she sees fit; and six of the States have already
withdrawn, and one other State is upon the eve of withdrawing, if she
has not already done so. How far this will spread no man can tell!"
As tending to show the peculiar mixture of brag, cajolery, and threats,
involved in the attitude of the South, as expressed by the same favorite
Southern mouthpiece, toward the Border-States on the one hand, and the
Middle and New England States on the other, a further extract from this
(February 7th) speech of the Texan Senator may be of interest. Said he:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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