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The following diagrams illustrate the method: L'exemplaire filmd fut reproduit grdce h la g^ndrositd de I'dtablissament pr§teur suivant : Dana Porter Arts Library University of Waterloo Les cartes ou les planches trop grandes pour dtre reproduites en un seul clich6 sonf filmdes d partir de I'angle supdrieure gaucho, de gauche d droite et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Le diagramme suivant iliustre la mdthode : 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 S 6 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. BY TEREMIAH CHAPLIN AND J. D. CHAPLIN. WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY HON. WILLIAM CLAFLIN. BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY D. LOTHROP & CO.. DOVER, N. H.: G. x'. DAY & CO. Entered, according; to Act of Confiress, fti thb >var 1874, Br D. I.OTflKOI' & CO., In the Office of ♦! h Litrarian of Contrres*. at Washington. tTBWBOTTPlD AT Tmi BOSrUM BTEIIEOTYPI rOUKDVT, 19 Spring Lau*. \ " Ilun.hly do r recognize the authority of Ilini wtio, when reviled, reviled not again; but His divine example teaches me to expose crime, and not to hesitate, though the Scribes and Pharisees, chief priests and money-changers, cry out." "Liberty has been won; the battle for Equality is still pending." "To be a man is a sufficient title-deed for the rights of man." " Say, in lofty madness, that you own the sun, tlie stars, the moon; but do not say that you own a nmn, endowed with soul to live immortal, when sun, and moon, and stars havo passed away." y^^^^yu^ € m. PREFACE. -•^•- In the belief that a Life of Charles Sumner, our great Senator, written in a Bomewhat popular style, would be welcomed by the public, this work has been carefully prepared from the most authentic Bources. The writers have had access to private papers, and other sources of information, which have enabled them to give some hitherto unpublished incidents and letters. The works of Mr. Sumner have been carefully examined, and fitting selections from his speeches have been incorporated in the biography. '•'lis addresses are an integral part of the history of the times in which he lived, and they largely reveal his character. A full survey of Mr. Sumner's public career has not been attempted. To do that, would have been to transcend the limits of our plan, which was, iU IV PREFACE. m Vi rathnr, to dwell upon his connection with the one great subject which, above all olhery, called out his powers and developc^d his character. To the overlhrow of American Slavery he g-avc his most earnest thought, and it was in this, his chief work, that his distinguislied qualities of mind and heart are most conspicuous. lie was a statesman in no narrow sense ; ho was not a man of but one idea; he was at home in all the business of legis- lation, in all foreign and domestic afVairs. But ho will be chiefly remend)ered as a philanthropist. Intellectually great, he was pre-eminently distin- guished as a lover of justice, a defender of humanit3\ His moral endowments and humane achievements will chiefly endear him to mankind. From these are to be gathered the most valua- ble lessons, especially for the young. Happy will it be for our country if her young men study his life, and emulate his example of unselfish devotion to tiie cause of luimanity. Hap- py for her if her coming legislators believe that to bo upright is to be practical, to be just is to be patriotic. Properly to present Mr. Sumner's philanthropic Borvices, it has been necessary briefly to sketch the IIS ill PREFACE. ▼ progress of the anti-slavery enterprise up to the time when he became its I'oreinost champion. Three chapters have, therclbre, been given to the pioneers in that cause, and to tiie state of public sentiment ui)on the shivery question prior to Mr. Sumner's public life. In sketcliing his career, it has been almost a ne- cessity to cast his co-laborers into tlic shade. As wo have not attempted a history of his times, but only of his special relation to the great question of the times, he seems to absorb to hiuiself more than his share of attention. He was, indeed, a most conspicuous fig-ure, great among the great, in some respects without a peer ; but the names of many men and women will come to mind who gave the full measure of noble talents and sweet charity to the cause of the liumble and op- pressed — names that will never die. Without these to prepare the way, or to furnish the con- temporary support of sympathy, of encouragement, of prayer, of sacrifice, Mr. Sumner could never have achieved those deeds which will make his name Immortal. The writings of Mr. Sumner abound in noble sentiments, and in the fruits of rich and varied cul* ! ▼i PREFACE. !! li M turo. Thoy aro eminently worthy of perusal by the rising generation. But above all, his life, in which those sentiments found tlioir most consist- ent and best illustration, deserves to be studied for it8 example of unwavering devotion to duty. To do right, to serve mankind, to obey Cod, was the high purpose for which he wrought. Such a life, in the inspiration which it imparts, in the lessons which it teaches, must be an abiding and ever-widening power in the world. It is grandly practical. It shows the path of true success. To friends who have kindly and greatly aided our work by letters of Mr. Sumner, and by vari- ous valuable information, we here express our grateful appreciation of their help. The invaluable work of Vice-President Wilson, Rise and Fall of the Slave Power in America, has been consulted in preparing a portion of this \olume. J. C. J. D. C. ilii INTRODUCTION. "•«•- The people of the whole coantiy realize, now, the loss they have sustained by the deatli of Sen- ator Sumner, Ilis place in the Senate cannot be filled from his native State, or any other. While he lived, the people felt that there was one man in the national councils whoso voice was ever ready in defence of the right, and in oppo- sition to injustice or wrong. That voice i-:* for- ever hushed. The fame of the great statesman, orator, and philanthropist reaches all civilized lands ; and all classes, here, desire to know his history from the beginning to the end of his life. This is not strange, when it is remembered that only two men exceeded his term of service in the Senate, and that neither of them held the position during ft very eventful period in the history of the coun- Vll I i VIU INTRODUCTION. l! W i iff i i u try, or made himself especially distinguished be- yond his own immediate locality. Few persons have used their opportunities for obtaining an education so faithfully as Mr. Sum- ner. Endowed by nature with great intellectual powers, possessing a genius for statesmatiship and philanthropy of the first order, he early de- voted himself to most diligent studv of all mat- ters relating to jurisprudence, international law, and the principles of government. In the order of Providence he was kept from the first struggles of the party of freedom. IIo was preparing for the great work before him. When, therefore, he entered upon his career in the Senate, he was better fitted than any one of his associates to meet the tremendous responsibil- ities which soon pressed upon him. lie gave himself to the cause dear to him aiil to every lover of liberty, without the least reserve or hesitation. All private business was laid aside, that he might devote IJrr^self to the accomplish- ment of the object for which the people of his State sent him to the Senate. The great political struggle in the legislature which resulted in his election had drawn the atten- INTRODUCTION. IX tion of the country to him. Nor were the people long kept in ignorance of his purposes and pow* r. His first great speech showed the depth of his moral convictions, and his determination to leave notliing undone to free the land from the blight- ing curse of slavery. Thenceforth there was no cessation of hostility to him and his measures on the part of the up- holders of that system. All their denunciations, however, had no efi'ect upon him. lie was one of the foremost of the noble band of statesmen who deemed all other questions subordinate while slavery existed. Although its abolition was paramount with him, yet there never was a greater mistake than to suppose that he was not a practical man in mat- ters pertaining to liis office, lie was familiar with the whole machinery of government, and knew how to accomplish an object in the shortest possible time. This was attested, again and again, by those having business before Congress or the depart- ments, in which it was proper to ask his influence and co-operation. But if a doubtful scheme or claim was to be carried through, he was the most impractical of U^: M; J'' I- 'I I 4 I INTRODUCTION. It I men. Professional lobbyists knew, well enough, that if a thing was right, he would favor it, but if questionable, no tactics, however skilful, would secure his support. In all his long official life no one dared to im- peach his integrity or question his motives. En- tire devotion to duty, undeviating rectitude, and high moral convictions guided and controlled hira. The sudden termination of a life so intimately connected with the government, and so potent in its influence, makes impressive these traits, rarely found in the most distinguished statesmen of the world. That a character so noble may be clearly brought before the masses, and especially before the young men who are soon to hold positions of honor and trust in the State and Nation, is the purpose of this volume. H )ngh, , but irould 3 im- Ea- and hira. itely it in irely the Light >urig and J of m i ill yx^.^ C^'-^^--^ ♦ o ^t^-^ i^ (l!/v\^ /r^^ '(fi ^^"2^2^-d^ i-»/* .«-<£ /LZt-yT^ Ci.x^. /^^./^ ?i-^ Cv%y^ /c^yf^^^H^ V.'t 1^; if< s- \- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. CHAPTER I. ''I ^1 Birth of Charles Sumner. — His Parents. — Ills Ancestry. An event so common as the birth of a child makes little stir in the busy world ; and even when Heaven is so lavish of its blessings as to send two little ones to the same homo at once, it brings joy only to the limited circle of relatives and friends who can enter into the happiness of the parents. On the Gth day of January, 1811, Charles Pinckney Sumner and Relief, his wife, were glad- dened by the birth of their first children, Charles and Matilda. The little now-comera to the great, strange 2 i7 * . M ! ■. i • 18 LIFE OF CnARLE3 SUMNER. ll' I : I , 'I world wero Irai) and tiny specimens of liurnnnity.* But they wero born to live; ono of thcni to grow to maidenlioo(l,an(l to grace lier liome a few short years, and then to pass away like a flower ; the other, with a frame scarcely large enongli to carry life, was to develop into a strong man, whoso name was t*^ be a power in the land for whose freedom his fathers had fonght. The men of Boston read their papers on tliat Cth day of January, and discussed the plans and the broils at the seat of government, just as tlio men of Boston do to-day. They passed and re- ■i '\ ' •Mrs. Winslow, a very ngcd widow, a member of the First Baptist Cluirch, living in Cliartcr IStrcct, gives the fullowinii; inter- esting facts : — Tlic Sumner family were neighbors of hers at the time their twins wore born. She knew Mrs. Sumner well, and speaks of licr as an excellent, kind person, and remember when slie made a public profession of religion. Siie states that on tiie third day after the birth of the twins, she (Mrs. Winslow) said to a neighbor, " liCt H3 go over and sec Mrs. Sumner's b:il)ies.'* They went, and were shown into the chamber where they lay. They were the snnillest infants she had ever seen, weighing but three pounds and a half each. The clothes which would have fitted ordinary babies were so much too large that the little ones were simply wrapped up, and not dressed, at that time. Mrs. Winslow says she took both babes in her arms, and held them while there. The house in which they were born w;is in May Street (now Re- vere Street), on the site now occuiiicd by the IJuwdoin School build- ing. The family aftcrwanls removed to 20 Hancock Street, which was long their homo, and where Mrs. Suiuuer died. 11 '-■r?\ . w at ho 'irst icir licr I the |)ud |nc3 l"P. loth Le- Jld- licb UKSIDENCH Ol- .MK. SU.MNEU'.S FATHER, HANCOCK ST., UOSTON : 'fl '. il » I i i''' H-i If^ I"' * LIFE OF Cn\RLES SUMNER. 19 passed tho liouso wlicro lay sleeping the future Bcnator — tlio little Samson, who was to take so largo a part in slaying the lion tliat was threaten- ing tho life of tho nation, and in i)ulling down tho gates with whieli oppression had guarded her Btrong cities. One of God's anointed had come to do a mighty work for him and for humanity. But he had {.'ppeared without the prophecy of seer, or tho heralding song of rejoicing angels ; and he lay there as little an object of terror to Southern op- pression, as was the Babe of Betlilehem, on tho night of his advent, to the impf rious rulers of tho East. And yet the birth of Charles Sumner was a great event to Massachusetts, to America, and, more than all, to millions of slaves groaning under the lash and trembling before the auction-block. America had broken her own fetters, but she had gathered up the links and welded them anew on tho limbs of defenceless strangers. But she was not quite at ease in her oppression. She was beginning to hear tho voice of God — to be afraid. Some men affect to despise ancestry, and even regard it as Democratic to boast of a low origin. ii' 'U 4 Ir' I I •i . I V i m ! 1, ,! 20 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. "Men of noblo licart and carncat life liavo, indocd, Cv)ii)0 up to l)less the world IVom coarse and i^-n.o- rant laniilios; but their success has been in spite, rather than in consequence, of th« M-iij;in. The Scriptures, wliicli teach the truest 1/.... lily, hold up to us the great blessini; of an uprij^lit and godly ancestry. Wealtli does not settle the question of pedigree. The nol)lo of the earth are those who are moved by high moral princii)le and unselfish aims, let their worldly condition be what it may. Wo often see nobility under the garb of toil, and meanness beneath purple and fine linen. The greatest and grandest specimen of hu- manity that ever walked the earth (for Jesus was as truly human as divine) wrought with the tools of the artisan, ate the bread of toil, and slept the sleep of the laboring man, which is sweet. Decker, an old English poet, says, — "the best of men That e'er wore eartli's garb about him — A soft, meek, patient, humble, traii'i'iil spirit; The lirst true geiitlemau that ever breathed." ¥ None will deny that it is a great blessing to have come of a long lino of noble and honorable (Will LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 21 men, wlio, having served God and their genera' tion, loll to tlieir descendants an inheritance of moral, i)1iysical, and intellectual Ktrcngth. In such a parentage Charles Sunnier was singularly blessed. The ancestor who emigrated to this country was William Srmner, a sturdy Puritan, born in Kent, England, in 1G05, and "made a freeman," that is, admitted to the privileges of citizenship, in Massachusetts, in 1G37. Next comes his son Roger, and his grandson Seth, and then Job, the grandfather, and Charles Pinckney, the father of the great senator who has just p^isscd away. Job Sunnier was a student at Harvard when the revolutionary war broke out. lie dropped his books, gave up all his literary plans, at his «^;ountry's call, and, immediately after the battle of Lexington, joined the army, in which he rose to the rank of major, and where ho remained until the close of the war. Charles Pinckney Sumner was a graduate of Harvard, a gentleman of high culture and stern integrity, accomplished in all the etiquette of society in his day. and noted for his free and genial hospitality. Ho was a lawyer of eminence, !! t ; i t ! I i f'f : 1 I l\ ti r* V 22 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. anrl was for some years slierifT of SiilTolk Comity. It was during liis term that Buston was disgraced by the anti-slavery riots, which opened her eyes to the true cliaracter of the slave power, and brought her into the front ranks in the battle for freedom. In the year 1810 Mr. Sumner married Relief Jacobs, daughter of a substantial farmer of Han- over, in " the Old Colony," who became the mother of nine children. She had many and deep afflictions. Two of her beautiful children fell at her side in tlieir early years ; two were lost at sea ', others died in theii full manhood ; and for many years she knew the heart of a widow. But she bo.'e her sor- rows with strong trust and fortitude. Rev. Mr. Foote, of King's Chapel, who was her pastor in her declining years, says of her, — " Mrs. Sumner was a woman of retiring sim- plicity of life, but of strong and heroic traits of character ; and those who knew her could trace in the senator's noblest characteristics a direct inheritance from her. The lofty and resolute sense of duty by which she was governed was strikingly illustrated by the following incident, UeasR e :i LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEU. 23 which occurred wliilo she was on her death-bed. A few df ys before she died; as a friend bent over her to receive what she supposed to bo her dying message to her son, then at Wasliington, during the session of Congress, she caught these words from the faihng lips : ' Tell him his coantry needs him more than his mother does now.' lie re- turned, however, instantly, on receiving tidings of her fatal illness, and had the satisfaction of bcinc: with her when she died." * * Matilda (twin sister with Charles) dii'd in March, 1832, aged 21 years; Jane died in October, 1837, aged 17 years; Mary died in October, ISH, aged 22 j'cars ; Horace was drowned in the wreck of the ship Elizabctli, on Lon/x Isliiiul, July Ki, 18o0, on his return from nI)road ; Albert was lost with his family in the wrecli of tlic Lyonnais, November, 1830 ; Ilcnry died at Orange, N. J., in 18-5G ; George died October 6, 18G3, in Boston, aged 4G years. One child, Mrs. Julia Hastings, of San Francisco, is still living. George Sunnier was a man of varied accomplishments. He en- joyed the advantages of study at the foreign universities of Berlin and Heidelberg, and travelled in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Like his brother Charles, he was nnich interested in international law, and in the political, social, and philanthropic institntions of differ- ent countries. He was a strong foe to war and slaver}'. lie wrote in favor of the Philadelphia Penitentiary System. In connectiop with Dr. S. G. Howe, he introduced into the United States the edu- cation of idiots. He wrote articles, not only for American, but for English, French, and German periodicals. He spent many yeara abro.id, and was often consulted by foreign governments on ques- tions of jjolitical cconcmiy. De Tocqueville spoke of him " as know ing the dill'ercnt parties and politics of Europe much better than any European with vvliom he was acquainted." In 1859, within less than fivo months, he gave one hundred and *>'' ; I ini i ' •| I , ' , -if : ( it M 1 ■ j t (■I I I i S'l 't! 24 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. One who knew Mrs. Sumner, and who saw Iiet when her son was rising to eminence, noticed the motlierly pride which slie would not conceal. When asked liow lie gained so many and great acquirements, slic replied, '' Cliarles, wlinn a boy was a good scholar, and always diligent in his studies." Iler pride was not vanity. She did not boast of his genius, but only of application and industry. Mrs. Sumner died in June, 18G6, aged eighty-one. But not to his mother li ne belongs the glory of rearing such a son lor his country and for humanity. His lather was not only a gentle- man and a scholar, but also a philanthropist of the purest type, Avhose talents were not spent for self-adulation or ambition, but were laid on iho altar to whose smoking fagots the boy that bore his name was a new torch, to alarm the oppressor, and burn up, like chafl', his imaginary wealth. lie was a strong anti-slavery man, when anti-slavery men were few and their principles unpopular. two lectures in towns and cities of the United States. On July 4 Oftliatyear he delivered the Annual Oration bclore the niuiiieipal authorities of Boston, which was spoken of as an " adniirui)lo address." The orator censured in severe terms the Dred Scott do* cioion of Chief Justice Taney. llHIhi LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 25 He was also a great advocate of peace princi- ples. From " Tlie Compass, a Poetical Ferlbrm- ance," delivered by liiiii at a Literary Exhibition, in September, 1795, at Harvard University, wo extract the following, wh'cli shows the seed that bore such rich fruits of justice, philanthropy, and peace iu the heart of his son : — " We antedate the timo When futile war shall cease through every elimc, No sanctioned slavery Afric's sons degrade, But equal rights shall equal earth i)ervadc ; When fearless Commerce, hy the compass led, On every wave her sacred ling shall spread; W'itli liljcral course to either ;)ole shall run, Or round the zodiac travel with the sun ; No narrow treaty sell the boundless sea, Which Nature's charter to the world made free; When all the coini)act which this globe shall bind Shall bo the mutual good of all mankind." Charles Pinckney Sumner was the last high sheriff who wore the antique dress which was till then here, as in England, the badge of office ; and it is said that it accorded well with his command- ing person and dignified bearing. Descended from a hardy stock of old Kentish yeomanry, men noted for their fine physical de- velopment, their powers of endurance, their skill in athletic games, and their bravery in battle, — Hi «t ■ p^ , t , t iH Ui 26 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. «iii(l in later times from men who, to these adv^an- tages and qualit:V;s, added the learning of the schools and the graces of society, — Charles Sum- ner belonged to the aristocracy of nature and of education, rather than to that of blood or of wealth. Increase Sumner, an eloquent man, an able judge, and one of tlie governors of Massachu- setts, shows the principles of the Sumners, in wliich this one, their briglitest ornament, was reared. Just before the revolutionary war ho wrote, — " The man who, regardless of public happiness, is ready to fall in with base measures, and sacri- fice conscience, honor, and his country merely for his own advancement, must (if not wretchedly hardened) feel a torture the intenseness of which nothing in this world can equal." In one of his charges as judge, he said, " America furnishes one of the few instances of countries where the blessings of civil liberty and the rights of mankind have been the primary ob- jects of their political institutions ; in which the rich and poor are equally protected ; where the rights of conscience are fully enjoyed j and where LIFE OF CHARLES SUMXKK. 27 merit aud ability can bo tlio only claim to tlio favor of the public. ^May wo not, then, prononnco that man destitute of the true principles of liber- ty, and unworthy the blessing of society, who does not, at all times, lend hid aid to support and sustain a government?" This man — who was a prince and a ruler in tho land in early times — was a cousin of Charles l^inckney Sumner, and was tho son of a yeoman of lloxbury, who was noted, like the others of the name, for his physical strength, and also for his untiring energy and ambition in the sphere where God had placed him. U8 LIFE OP CUAKLES SUMNEU. !! I ■ 1 'N" itii '•! i CHAPTER II. Childhood. — School Days. — Story of a Slide. — E)dcrs Harvard University. — Severe Applica' lion to Study and Iieadini»M"li I "IHT-TT— ' LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 49 Tliero are tlioso wlio afToct to disregard what others thiiilc of them, and glory in tlieir inde- pendence of public opinion. But this, so far from being a virtue, or even an infirmity, is a grievous defect, and may become a vice. It is a sign of nobleness to desire the good opinion of the good ; and he who really disregards it has a mean and despicable character. When, as in the case of Lord Bacon, vanity becomes an idol, demanding the incense which should be offered to honor anti justice, it deserves only reprobation and con- tempt. But when a man is doing right, and de- sires that other men should know and app'-eciato his efforts, and honor him for them, it is, to say the least, pardonable, especially when his work, and not himself alone, is kept prominent. :in ■^i If \i » If vl I 50 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. h 11 lis hi 1 1 CHAPTER y. Visit to Europe. — Letter of Judge Story, — Inci- dent in Westminster Hall. — Tcsiimonij of Enrj' lish Jadijes. — Baron Parke'' s Ajjpireciation of Mr. Stunner's Learning. — Li Paris. — Li Ger- many. — Li Italy. Forty years ago foreign travel for the pur- poses of enjoyment and study was the lot of a iavored few, and not, as now, an event in the Jifo of ahnost every literary and professional man. In tlie fall of 1837, Mr. Sumner, tlien twenty- six years old, carried out his long-cherished plan of visiting Europe. His previous studies had formed a fitting prep- aration for foreign travel. He was well read in the literature, the history, and the political insti- tutions of England and the countries on the con- tinent. In matters of art he had formed a taste, and knew what were the masterpieces and whera they were to be found. m liil :-- rrpTTiT'"'" ""S^-' LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 51 Full of scholarly enthusiasm, ho longed to visit tlie world-renowned imiv^ersities of Europe, to seo and converse with its great men, — its scholars, its jurists, its statesmen, to examine its libraries and art treasurcjs, and to inform liimself more thoroughly as to the peculiar features of its civili- zation. The re})utation for scliolurship which lie carried witli him, his gentlemanly bearing, liis un- assuming modesty, his rare conversational powers, and the valuable letters he took from Judge Story and other gentlemen of European fame, gave him at once sucli access to the higlicst circles of so- ciety as is rarely enjoyed by so }'oung a man in a foreign land. The following is an extract from one of Judge Story's letters addressed to a gentleman in Lon- don, dated November 3, 1837 : — " ^Ir. Sumner is a practising lawyer at the Boston bar, of very high reputation for his years, and already giving the i^romise of the most emi- nent distinction in his profession ; his literary and judicial attainments are truly extraordinary. " His private character, also, is of the best kind for purity and propriety ; but to accomplish him- Bclf more thoroughly in the great objects of his ..I I. i': ,'i;,«. 52 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. (' ii .;) profession — not merely to practise, but to ex- tend the boundaries in the science of law, — I am anxious that ho shouhl possess the means of visit- ing the courts of West minster Hall under fi;,vor- able aus[)ices ; and 1 sliall esteem it a personal favor if you can give him any ficihties in tliis particular." Mr. Sumner first visited Engluid, where he spent nearly a year, improving every moment in study, in careful observation of men and things, m attendance upon the debates of Parliament, the courts, and seientilic associations; linding elegant and most congenial relaxation in the circles of the great and titled, where ho was ever wel- come. More tlian once he was invited to sit with the judges in Westminster Hall. At one time, dur- ing tlie progress of a trial, a point arose where there seemed to be no precedent. The lord chief justice, turning to Sumner, said, " Can you inform me whether there are any American de- cisions upon the point in question?" " No, your lordship," was the reply ; " but this point has been decided in your lordship's own court in such a case," giving him the citation. This remarkable 5?SB!a.-> t . iiiiii iiii pW [ >ii i) Wl i i1> LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 53 readiness gave liim (^clat throiigliout the kingdom. The above is related by a former elassmate, uo\'v a gentleman of standing in this eity. The letters wliieli so close an obscrvei' wroto to his friends at home must have been full of interest. That they were of this character ap- pears from tlie following letter written by Judge Story to Mr. Sumner, August 11, 1838: — " I have received all your letters, and have de- voured them with nns[)cakable deliglit. All the family have heard them read aloud, and all join in their expressions of pleasure. You are .now exactly where I should wish you to be — among the educated, the literary, the noble, and, though last, not least, the learned of England, of good Old England, our mother-land, God bless her I " Mr. Sumner spent several months in Paris, where, as in England, ho was industriously cm- ployed in study and in converse with men emi- nent in literature and law. It was hero that ho met our distinguished countryman, Mr. Wheaton, with whom he had much conversation upon inter- national law, and to whom he suggested the plan of the great work on that subject afterwards writ- ten by that omiuent jurist. n ;» » 1 1 li:' . illi I '■ ii -I 54 LIFE OF CIIARLL'g SUMNER. It was there that lie prepared an essay upon a Ruhject tlicn mncli discussed in foreig-n circles, namely, the nortli-eastern boundary of the United States, wliicli was then in dispute between tliis country and Great Britain. Tlie paper was, like all Mr. Sumner's eflbrts, exhaustive and satis- factory, and attracted much attention at homo and al)road. In Germany, and in particular at Heidelberg, lie spent some time, and formed the acquaintance of eminent jurists and scholars, such as Savigny, Humboldt, and Hitter. His visit to Italy was to him one of peculiar deh'ght. It is said that here he used to spend all the day in the libraries and galleries of art, and nearly all the niglit in study, perfecting himself in the rich literature wliich had attracted Milton before him, a ycung and enthusiastic student like himself. One can easily imagine the pleasure which such classic scenes, where the ancient and the modern coml>inc to make Italy, and especially Rome, so conspicuous in the annals of the world, in poetry, history, law, government, and art, must have awakened in Mr. Sumner's mind. He had all the tustos and instincts of a scholar, and in LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 55 tlio scrcno pursuits of litcraturo and law ho was here, in his oAvn purpose, laying the founrhition of a career devoted to the quiet enlargement of liuman knowledge and human happiness. Little did he tlien imagine that tiiis cultivation of literature and art was to furnisli but the bright gilding of a sterner life, engaged in heroic bat- tling with the greatest wrong of the age, as tho foremost cliampion of the poor and oppressed. But so it was ap[)ointcd, tliat Liberty, outraged in millions of slaves, was preparing for hersolf a leader, like Closes, " learned in all tlie wisdom " of the age, who sliould compel respect and con- sideration for a cause then intensely unpopular. Tlie reputation win'eli Mr. Sumner left beliind him in England appears from the following inci- dent, reh^rred to in Loring's " Hundred Boston Orators " : — On an insurance question before the Court of Exchequer, one of the counsel having cited au American case, Baron Parke, one of the oldest of the English judges, asked him from wliat book hv quoted. " Sunnier's lleports," he rei)li(!d. " h that," asked Baron Rolfe, "the Mr. Sumner wlio was once in England?" Being answered in t!ie V' ; M m ^'■% I'' I i!) Hi! ■■\ 66 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. affirmative, Baron Parke replied, " "Wo shall not consider it entitled to less attention because re- ported by a gentleman whom wo all knew and rer^pected." The year after his return from England, tho ** London Quarterly Review," alluding to his visit, said, *' He presents in his own person a decisive proof that an American gentleman, without of- ficial rank or wide-spread reputation, by dint of courtesy, candor, an entire absence of preten- sion, an appreciating spirit, and a cultivated mind, may be received on a perfect footing of equality in the best circles, social, political, and intellec- tual ; which, be it observed, are hopelessly inac- cessible to tho itinerant note-taker, who never gets beyond the outskirts of the show-houses." In the year 1840, Mr. Sumner returned home. As might be expected from his antecedents and his rare personal accomplishments, ho was a wel- come guest in the most refined circles. The literary notables of Boston and vicinity were proud of his acquaintance and friendship. His foreign studies, especially in literature and art, had rendered the practice of the law still less attractive to him than before j and he was now mii" i LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 67 chiefly known as an elegant scholar, and a dev- otee of the law in its literature and principles. His edition of Vesey's Reports, in twenty vol- umes, published from i8-44 to 1846, show the bent of his mind and the affluence of his learning. I *m Ml! It*!! 68 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. m CHAPTER VI. ,11 , V 'H { ■ i ill :i f State of the Country. — Slave- Trade. — Missouri Compromise. — Change in Southern Sentiment — Op2')Osition at the North. — Change at the North. — A} di- Slaver }j Feeling. Before entering upon the pnblic life of Mr. Sumner, it will be proper to consider tlie state of the country, as regards the institution of slavery, previous to that period ; for to the overthrow of that system his public life was mainly devoted. Where was the slavery question when he took it to his great heart ? Three years before his birth, the foreign slave- trade had ended. As it ^vas still clandestinely carried on, the importation of slaves into tlie United States was, twelve years after, declared to be piracy, and made punishable with death. T>ut the domestic slave-trade — that is, between the slave states — was still carried on, and with m LIFE OF CDARLES SUMNER. 69 increasing vigor. It was attended with many horrors. Many free negroes fell a prey to kid. nappcrs, and were reduced to shivery. No less tlian fifteen thousand shxves were annually im- ported from tho more northern of the slave states into the distant South. Virginia, especially, be- came tho " negro-raising state I'or other states." After the war of 1812, ''the demand for slavo labor greatly increased, and the price of slavey was much advanced." Tho conscience of tho South, which, in spite of slavery, had been, to no small extent, on the side of freedom, began rapidly to harden. As slavery became more prof- itable, it was viewed with less abhorrence, and its removal, which had been talked of even at tho South as a most desirable event, at somo future day, was now indefinitely postponed. Ere long slavery was declared to be a blessing to the ne- gro race. It was a " patriarchal," it was a " mis- sionary " institution. By these cheats practised upon conscience, the South became more and more wedded to slavery. The great curse of our nation was gaining new strength every day. When young Sumner was nine years old, an important event occurred, which afterwardsj Ml ''" 'I 'I 1> CO LIFE OF CnARLE3 SUMNER. :i n^ ,if ■•jl i when the l;id liad grown to bo a man, and was a senator at Wasliington, became tlie occasion of calling forth his indignant eloquence. We refer to the Missouri Compromise, as it was called, which was ellected in 1820. This Compromise was the result of a mighty struggle between the free North and the slaveholding South. The Territory of Missouri had applied for admission as a state. The North wished to exclude slavery, the South to allow it. The contest was waged long and fiercely. It ended in a compromise, by which something was granted to freedom, but much more was gained by slavery. Missouri came in as a slave state, and slavery was forever pro- hibited north of thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north latitude ; but this did not express the whole result. The Compromise was a real triumph for the South. It was simply a politic measure on their part for effecting a new extension of slavery. Y/hen another extension was desired, a new compromise could be concocted, or the old one annulled — which was actually done in 1850. " The Missouri struggle, which so aroused and called into action the vital forces of freedom and slavery, demonstrated the startling fact that the it Iti LIFE OF CIIAIILES SUMNER. 61 raco of Southern statesmen who believed slavery to bo a temporary evil, to bo abolished at somo future day, and in some unforeseen way, had passed away." Even JelFerson, who had pictured tho evils of slavery in the darkest colors, and wlio '* had once prepared a plan for the prohibition of slavery in all the territory from the Lakes to tho Gulf, became alarmed, and shrunk appalled be- fore tho fury of the strife, declaring that it fell upon his ear * like the fire-bell at midnight.' " * So with Madison and Monroe. On the other hand, tho people of tho entire North, without respect to party, were aroused by this new attitude of the slave power. They were alarmed by the further extension of a sys- tem which they had fondly hoped would gradu- ally disappear. The future assumed a moro gloomy aspect. " Tho legislature of Pennsylvania unanimous- ly opposed the existence of slavery in Mis- souri. Their resolutions declared ' that they are persuaded that to open the fertile region of tho West to a servile race would tend to in- crease their number beyond all past example, • Rise and Fall of the Slave Power in America, by Henry Wilsoa m w it M w M if ?l? G2 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. would open a now and steady market for the law- less venders of liuuiiui flesh, and render all schemes for obliterating this foul blot upon tlio American character useless and unavailing.' . . . And they invoked the several states, * by the duty they owe to the Deil y, by the veneration which tliey entertain for the memories of tlie founders of the republic, and by a tender regard for poster- ity, to protest against its adoption, to refuse to covenant with crime, and to limit the range of an evil that already hangs in awful boding over so large a portion of the Union.' " These remonstrances against the organization of new slave states, and the extension of the curse of slavery, were sincere and earnest ; but when, after a struggle, victory fell to the South, the moral effect was disastrous. The free sentiment of the North, thus baffled and humili- ated, began to show signs of weakness and dis- couragement. " Freedom became timid, hesi- tating, yielding; slavery became bolder, more aggressive, and more dominating. Freedom re- treated from one lost position to another ; slavery advanced from conquest to conquest. Several years of unremitted despotism of the slave power ".» ■-—'- r-*-" LIFE OF CIIARLKS SUMNER. 63 li- re il followed the consummation of the jMiiSSouri Com- promise. The dark 8i)irit of slavery swayed tlio jjolicy of tlio republic. Southern legislatures re- pealed the more liumane acts of their slave codes, . . . and enacted statutes still more inhuman." Ivut the si)irit of freedom and humanity wis still alive and growing in many hearts. Amidst gen- eral defection there was a precious remnant. There were men and women who learned their duty at a higher source tlian sliifting public opin- ion, who listened to the " still small voice " of God, the Father of all. Their hearts were sad- dened — ovcrwlielmcd by the condition of the country. The cries of millions of slaves were to them an irresistible appeal for help. They pon- dered the question of duty, they prayed for light and strength, and then they went fearlessly for- ward in open and direct resistance to slave y. To human sight tlieirs was an unequal, almost profitless task. They were a handful of weak, ob- scure individuals, against a power which seemed well nigh omnipotent. But they were inspired and sustained by a serene faith in the ultimate triumph of truth. Among the pioneers of direct anti-slavery cf If] U LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. liHi fort, Benjamin Lundy, a native of New Jersey, of Quaker parentage, deserves the foremost place, lie was a true philanthropist — tender-hearted, self-sacrificing, fearless, and yet prudent. " Ilis heart was troubled at the sad condition of the slave. He enjoyed, lie said, no peace of mind, pnd came to the conclusion that he must not only feel, but act, for the suffering bondmen. Call- ing a few friends together at his house, ho un- bosomed his feelings. An anti-slavery organ- ization was formed, called ' the Union Humane Society.' " This was in 1815, when Charles Sumner was a boy of four years. Six years later, in 1821, Lundy commenced, in Ohio, a monthly paper, Tlio Genius of Universal Emancipation. In 1824 ho transferred his paper to Baltimore. In 1828, on a visit to the Eastern States, he accomplished per- haps the greatest work of his life ; he formed the acquaintance, in Boston, of a young man of twen- ty-three, and won him at once to his views. The young man was William Lloyd Garrison. Charles Sumner was then in his second college year, seventeen years of age. When Lundy returned to Baltimore, he did not LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. G5 Hi forget young Garrison. Evidently tlic .acquaint- ance liad deeply impressed his mind. He came back to Boston in Eoarcli of his friend. But Gar- rison had left the city, and was editing a paper in Vermont. Thither Lundy pursued liim. j\[r. Gar- rison, afterwards writing of this visit, said, " lie had taken his stall' in hand, and come ail the way to tlic Green Mountains. He came to lay it on my conscience and my soul that I should join him in this work of s jeking the abolition of slavery." Lundy prevailed. The next year they joined hands in Baltimore in the warfare against slavery. Mr. Garrison outstripped his partner — not in de- votion to the cause of emancipation, but in the fiery energy with which he assailed slavery. " In his first issue, he insisted on immediate and un- conditional emancipation as the riglit of the slave and the duty of the master, and disclaimed all temporizing, all make-shifts, all compromises, con- demning colonization, and everything else tliat in- volved or implied affiliation or sympathy with slaveholders." The Democratic slave-trade ho denounced as " Democratic piracy„" He branded as pirates the men — calling them by name — wlio carried on this traffic between Baltimore and New 3 • 1 ■ t 11,1 11 :| .'1 M .1 ' 66 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. Orleans. The result was a fine, and imprisonment for forty-nine days. Released by the generosity of a I'riend, who paid tlie line and costs, Mr, Gar- risoi; returned to Boston, to resume his weapons against islavery. ■ t ■ Hi rn-itfrntmrfil ill LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 67 f J CHATTER VII. " The Liberator " estaUishcd by Mr. Garrison. — Its Boldness. — Excitement at the South. — Demand on the Mayor of Boston. "While Mr. Sumner was engaged in his quiet studies, the year after his graduation from college, Mr. Garrison, six years his senior, com- menced the publication of The Liberator, in Bos- ton. The first number appeared in January, 1831. The history of this newspaper teaches U3 " not to despise tlie day of small things." No beginning could be more humble. No funds, not a single subscriber, the partner, Mr. Knapp, who was the printer, as poor as the editor, •' a dingy room of sixteen feet square, at once his sanctum, workshop, and home." What could be more un- promising or insignificant? But behind all thia poverty and meanness was an ardent, indomi- ■\i ; I ■ > • I 68 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. ii. ,4 j*-^ t 1.^1 ^r il!' table soul, conscious of a great mission, resolved to bo heard. Wo have seen Mr. Garrison's s[)lrit, tnitli-loving and fearless, in Balflmore. From])risonho came to Boston to deal iioavierMows against the great- est wrong of the age. Tlic estalilislnnent of Tho Liberator was the inauguration of a new era in tlio anti-slavery cause. It was tlie era of calling things by their right names. Listen to the intro- ductory announcement : " During my recent tour for tlie purpose of exciting the minds of the people by a series of discourses on the subject of slavery, every place that I visited gave fresh evidence of the fact that a greater revolution in public sentiment was to be effected in the free states — and particu- larly in New England — than at the South. I found contempt more bitter, opposition moro active, detraction more relentless, prejudice moro stubborn, and apathy more frozen than among slaveliolders themselves. Of course there were individual exceptions to tlie contrary. This state of things affected but did not dishearten me. I determined, at every hazard, to lift up the standard of emancipation in the eyes of the ■f-:'* LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 69 nation, within sight of Bunker Hill, and in tho birthplace of liberty. That standard is now un- furled ; and long may it float, unliurt by tho spoliations of time or tho missiles of a desperate ft)e ; yea, till every chain be broken, and every bondman set free. Lot Southern oppressors tremble ; let their abettors tremble ; let all the enemies of the persecuted blacks tremble. " I am aware that many object to the severity of my language ; but is there ^lot cause for severity ? I will be as harsh as truth, and as uncompromising as justice. On this subject I do not wish to think, or speak, or write with moderation. No ! No ! Tell a man whose house is on fire to give a moderate alarm ; tell him to moderately rescue his wife from the hands of the ravisher ; tell the mother to gradually extricate her babe from thtj fire into which it has fallen ; but urge me not to use moderation in a cause like the present. I am in earnest ; I will not equivo- cate ; I icill not excuse ; I will not retreat an inch. And I WILL BE HEARD ! The apathy of the people is enough to make every statue leap from its ped- estal, and to hasten tlie resurrection of the dead. " It is pretended that I am retarding tho cause •1. 70 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. mi '" I of emancipation by tho coarsoness of my invective, and the precipitancy of my measures. The charge is not true. On this question, my influence, hum- ble as it is, is felt at tliis moment to a considera- ble extent ; and it sliall be felt in coming years — not perniciously, but beneficially — not as a curse, but as a blessing ; and posterity will BEAR WITNESS THAT I WAS RIGHT. I dcsirC to thank God that He enables me to disregard the fear of man, which bringeth a snare, and to speak truth in its simplicity and power ; and I here close with this dedication : — 'it ' Oppression ' I have seon thee, face to face, And met thy cruel eye and cloudy brow ; But thy soul-withciiuf!; plance I fear not now — For dread to prouder I'oolings doth pivc place Of deep abhorrence ! Scorning the disgrace Of slavish knees that at thy footstool bow I also kneel — but with far other vow Do hail thee and thy herd of liirelings base; I swear, while life-blood warms my throbbing veins, Still to oppose and thwart, with heart and hand, Tiiy brutalizing sway — till Afric's chains Are burst, and Freedom rules the rescued land, Trampling Oppression and his jron rod. Such is the vow I take — so help mo God ! * " When were braver words ever spoken — to bo followed up by corresponding words and acts? LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 71 When accused of using hard language, he re- plied: "I admit the cliarge. I have not been able to find a soft word to dcscriljo villany, or to identify tlie perpetrator of it. The man wlio makes a chattel of his brother — what is he? The man who keeps back the hire of liis laborers by fraud — what is he ? They who prohibit tlio circulation of tiie Bible — what are they ? They who compel three millions of men and women to herd togcth.er, like brute beasts — what are they ? They who sell mothers by the pound, and children in lots to suit purchasers — what are they ? I care not wliat terms are applied to them, provided they do apply. If they are not thieves, if they are not tyrants, if they are not men-stealers, I should like to know what is their true character, and by what names they may bo called. It is as mild an epithet to say that a thief is a thief, as it is to say that a spade is a spade." Mr. Garrison had said, "I will be heard;" " Lot Southern oppressors tremble." Ho was heard, and that speedily. The sound of his trumpet, issuing from that dingy attic, reached even Southern ears. There was alarm through- *l;i 72 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. out Slavcdom. Soutlicrn fears at onco ccmpro- liended tlic full measure of this new foe. While as yet quite unnoticed at the North, he was iaraous at the South. Southern ears, accustomed to alarms, were quicker to discern coming danger. There was something in these clear, ringing tones that told of " a Daniel come to judgment." There was a spirit in the man which they felt could not be intimidated or blinded. According- ly, measures were taken to avert the tlircatened peril. " Before the close of the first year, the Vigi- lance Association of Columbia, S. C, ' composed of gentlemen of tlie first respectability,' oifered a reward of fifteen hundred dollars for the a2:)pre- liension and conviction of any white person detected in circulating in that state ' the newspa- per called The Liberator.' " The corporation of Georgetown, D. C, passed an ordinance rendering it penal for any free per- son of color to take from the post-office the paper, published at Boston, called The Liberator, the punishment for each ofience to be twenty dollars fine, or thirty days imprisonment. In case the olfender was not able to pay the fine, or ::l ■MHi LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 73 the fees for Imprisonment, ho was to bo sold into slavery for four montlis. The grand jury of Raleigli, N. C, at the instigation of tlie attorney general, made an indictment against tlie editor and publislier of The Liberator for its circulation in that county. The legislature of Georgia passed an act ofi'ering a reward of five thousand dollars for the arrest, prosecution, rnd trial to conviction, under tho laws of the state, of the editor or publislier of a certain paper called The Liberator, published in tho town of Boston, and State of Massachusetts. Truly compliments were showered upon our poor editor 1 A certain Southern magistrate thought to beard the Northern lion in his very den. He request- ed tho Hon. Harrison Gray Otis, " the Avealthy and aristocratic Mayor of Boston," to supjjress The Liberator. The mayor had probably never heard of, certainly never read, the paltry aboli- tion sheet. But, as a good and faithful peace- maker, he set about tho task demanded of him. Li duo time he reported that his offi- cers " had ferreted out the paper and its editor, whose office was an obscure hole, his only visible W ■ 1 V .ill I ! 74 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. li unxiliary a negro boy, its supporters a few insujnlficaid persons of all colors," ed made these men (jnly tlie moro I'anaticiil in their delence of slavery, and the moi'e I)itt(;r in their hostility t,o those who nought its (jveithi'ow. New sal'eguards iriust 1x3 thrown around the '' i)atriarchal " institution, now and more stringent laws enacted, a sharj)er watch maintained against abolition cmissari(3S, and the national gov(3rnm(int made to tako slavery mt^re directly under its j)r(^tection. The ire(3 Noi'tli, nnit(;d to the Houth by social, political, commercial, and ecclesiastical tics, de[)arted, to a I'eari'ul extent, from her better traditions, and joined in the crusado agamst abolitionists. " Great ia Diana of tho •Mi-miimmmmUlm IMHi LIFK OF CITAIILKSJ RUMNKR. 81 Epliosiiins ! " CrcNit Jind over to ])o (lof(3ndc(l la Arrioricun si ivciry ! FrDin Unit lirrxi oiiWMrd, Uk; opposifion to anti-Hlavcry inonjJisoi] in intousity Ixdh at tho North ;ii)-l;tw liiui tho uHCondoncy. Fro(; Kpooch was i)iit iiii(l(!r tlic Ijan. Slavery must not bo rnoutioiHsd in Roriuoiis and oration*!, oxoopt in t(jnns of coinni(!ndation or (ixt<5nuation. 'J'Iks pross was Tnu//,l(;d. ]*nf)!i(; j)niy(;rrt lor those; who woro in bonds WMS tr(3ason !i,^ainst tlu; j^ovonnnont. dates of nlavorv were on f brood with ny Tl lose iwiiu iin riilonlihfj^ I'i^j^or, Abolitioin'st:-'. woro tlio ol)- joots of oonstant abuse, and often their lives were m pen 1. But, not])in;^ daunted, tlioso poaooal^lo friond« of Innnan liberty resolved to proceed to moro ciniotivc; Tn(!asnreH in tlie cause to whir^li they had sa<;redly sworn themselves. In tlio winter of 18.'>.'>, a o(>n volition assombh^d in Pliiladelphia for th(; f(n'rriation of an American Anti-slavery Soci(!ty. 'J'liis meeting has b(u;n recently dc- Bcribed in a very grapliic manner l)y John G. Whittier, hiraself an active participator in tlio proceedings. Sixty-two delegates wore in at- ! i j| l'-\ 14 • IS . m 82 tend; LIFE OF CIIAliLES SUMNER. inc(^, iiiiioiig wlioiri woro Boriiih Green, "Williiiin [jloyd Carrisoii, SamiK;! J. May, Lcwia Ta[)|)aii, and .John Itaiikin. 'J'lio K(jcioty was or^'anizod under circum- Btaiices of peculiar soloirinily. '^J'lieir work com- pleted, the president, tlie Rev. Mr. Creen, ad- dressed tlie iiienilxM'H, as they were a])oiit to separate, in tou<'hin;_^ and j)rophetie words. " Brethren," Ik; said, " it has heen good to bo here. In this hallowed atmosj)herc I have been revived and refreshed. . . . Hut we iriust now retire from these inlluences and br(!athe another atmosphere. The ehill hoar-l'rost will be uf)on lis. The filorm and tanpcd ivlll rise, and the waves of persecution ivill dash aj/alnst our souls. T^et ua be prepared for the worst. Let us fasten our- Bclvos 10 the tln^one of Cod as with hooks of steel. . . . Let us be assured thtit our only hope in gra])pbn;j^ with Wm bony monster is in an Arm that is stronger than ours. Let us fix our gazo on God, and walk in the light of his counte- nance. If our cause be just, — and we know it is, — his omnipotence is pledged to its triumph. Let this cause bo entwined around the very fibres of our hearts. Let our hearts grow to it, LIFK OF CHARLES SUMXKR. 83 BO ihd notlilijg but death can suiidor tlio bond." Mr. Wliittior adds, "11(3 coased, and then, amidst a silunco bnjkcn only by llio diMjp-drawn brcatli of ornoti(jn in jli(3 assembly, lifted np his voice in a prayer to Almi^-jity (bxl, fiiil oi' fervor and feelin^^, imjtloriii^^ his l.l<;ssiini; jind sanetifir;;i- tion np(jn the convenlion and ils laltors. And wilh the solemnity oi' lliis snpfdication in our liearts, we clasp(!d hands in farewell, and went lorth each man to his j)la(;e of duty, not knowiu"* the things that should befall us, as individuals, but with a conhdence, never shak(;n by a])Uso and per.sccution, in the certain triinupli of our cause." 'Ill us was born into life the first national anti- Blavery organization. Tho "ytorm and tempest" did rise. Thero had been pro-slavory mobs in New York city. Tho cry was raised in IKV.], ^''Wm thousand dol- lars for Arthur 'Jappan." Valuable m(;n were those aboli-tionisfs ! Jiut in 1834 the " waves of persecution" dashed more furiously. An anli- slavcry celebration on tlio 4th of July was broken up by ruffians, crying, <' Treason, treason ! i t il! 84 LIFE OF CHAKLES SUMNER. m It i- ^l Hnrrali for the Union ! " Alas that the United States were reduced to the humiliation of having sucli defenders ! The leading journids of the city praised the rioters, who, for several days, com- mitted their outrages unrebukcd. At midnight, on the 9th, the dwelling of Lewis Tappan was broken open hy a mob, his furniture carried into the street and consigned to the ilames. The next day several churches had tlieir doors and windows broken ; one was " badly shattered, and one nearly destroyed, as were a school-house for colored children, and many dwellings inhabited by negroes. None of the rioters loere ever pun- ished.''^ It was a reign of terror. In Philadelphia there was a three-days' riot, in which the colored people suffered terribly by assaults upon their persons and dwellings. New England was disgraced by similar scenes ; for the slave-fiend had poisoned the moral atmos- phere of the whole country. In Massachusetts, at Worcester, in 1835, an anti-slavery lecturer was assaulted in the midst of the meeting. Simi- lar disturbances occurred in many villages. At Boston, October 21, 1835, a large and most respec- table mob, composed in good part of merchants, HHiMMHIiiiil ■Mi LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 85 assailed a meeting of the Female Auti-slavery Society, while its president was at prayer, and dispersed it.'^ Brave men were they I Mr. Garrison, being discovered, " was seized, a rope put round him, his hat knocked olT his head and cut in pieces, and his clotlies torn from his body. Dragged through Wilson's Lane into Stato Street, he was rescued by the mayor, his posse, and several respectable citizens, and taken into the mayor's room in the Old State House. From this place he was conveyed in a carriage to Lever- ett Street Jail, to save him from the lury of the mob." In order to effect Mr. Garrison's admis- sion to the jail, the kind-hearted deputy-sheriff, Mr. Parkraan, got out a warrant against him as " a disturber of the peace." Mr. Parkman attempted to get into the carriage witli the criminal, but could not for the crowd. Hasteninii: to his own carriage, he fortunately reached the jail just as Mr. Garrison arrived. The warrant was presented, the jail door was thrown quickly open, and Mr. Garrison was safe from the howling mob. There he remained for the night. As he was a prisoner for no crime, he could not be detained, • The Americiin Conflict, by Horace Greeley. m W fm mm. «r^ Vi 8G LIFE OF CIIAIlLIvS HUMNKR. tind tho next day an or(l(!r was issuod for hift jippcaraiKMi holoro lluj cijiirt, lo socuro his ro- louso. r>nt it wan not considcivd Hiifo that bo iriucli puhli(jity Hh(juld ho j^-ivoii lo (hoiill'iir; and accord in;j,ly, Jis Mr. (jarrison couhi not }^-o to tho court, tho court canio to liiiri ! 'Vlic; judj^o wont to tli(j jail, and inlorni(;d .Mr. (nt hiiforo dcpartinj^, lio inscrihcd thuso words u})(jn tho Walls of tho [)rison : '' William Lloyd (i.u-rison was put int(j this C(dl on Monday al'tornoon, Odoljor 21, 1835, t(j savo him IVoui tho violinnju of" a I'o- Rpoctahlo and iiiflucnlial mob, who sought to destroy him lor preaching tho ahominaljlo and dangerous doctrine that all m(Mi are created equal, and that all oj;»pressioa is odious in tho sight of God." Among the spectators of that riot of'tlie 21st was a young lawyer, of rare gifts, and of high promise — Wendell Philli|)s. Up to that day he had had no thought of linking himself with the abolitionists. His i s 1 ' 1 i§ tt '": * 1 ffl.. Quincy Adams, representative from Massacjhu- setts, who had, in previous years, manfully de- fended the right of petition, secured a great triumph over the slave power. The subject was discussed for nearly two weeks, amidst the most intense excitement. The boldness and persis- tency of Mr. Adams were intolerable. A resolu- tion censuring his conduct was introduced. But as it was a very serious matter, the pro-slavery members decided to take further thought bofore final action. A meeting for deliberation was held in the evening, and a chivalrous young member, Thomas Marshall, <^f Kentucky, was selected to bring forward resolutions. The wish was, to ex- pel the venerable ex-president ; but they feared to take that step. It was decided to be content with something less. The next morning, after the reading of the journal, Mr. Marshall submitted, according to the programme, three resolutions, declaring that the act of Mr. Adams might bo lield to merit cxjmlsion ; that the House deemed it an act of mercy and grace when they only in- flicted upon him the severest censure for conduct 80 unworthy of his past relations to the state and his present position, and that this they did for the wmm dlb ■i^ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 91 maintenance of their purity and dignity ; and for the rest, they turned him over to his own conscience and the indignation of all American citizens I The resolutions in which' !Mr. Marsliall cliarged Mr. Adams wiJi higli treason were Ibllowed by an eloquent and forcible speech. But the " old man eloquent " was far more than a match for the brilliant young orator and all his associates. With irresistible power of argument and sarcasm, be vindicated t!ie right of petition, charged the South with aiming at the subversion of the funda- mental rights of freemen, and assailed slavery itself as a tremendous evil. Soutliern members used every parliamentary artifice to stop him, but in vain. No one understood parliamentary usages and rights so well as he. He replied to his as- sailants with Lurrible severity. Keferring to the charge of treason, he thanked God that it was not left to the " puny " mind of the gentleman from Kentucky to define that crime — the Con- stitution had done it. lie said that if he were Mr. Marshall's lather, he would " advise him to return to Kentucky, and take his place in some law school, and commence the study of that pro- fession he had disgraced." Mr. Adams '* carried ■''4* ,4 *. I ■M "l! At - * I U: ■I'fi* :i , 92 IJFE OP CHARLE3 SUMNER. If.» m the war into Africa " with such vigor that he overwhehnod his opponents. They had begun the onset with the full purpose to humble him. For several days the contest raged. But the veteran statesman, conscious of his innocence, and resolved to maintain the right, fearlessly stood his ground, and compelled his enemies to surrender. They dared not carry out their plan. Their carefully concocted resolutions were laid on the table ! It was a grand triumph of liberty. At the next session, Mr. Adams, as cliairman of a committee on rules for the government of the House, omitted in his report the twerty-iirst rule — the rule which excluded anti-slavery petitions. Weeks were spent in discussing the subject, and Mr. Adams was violently assailed. " Mr. Dillett, of Alabam.a, quoted these words from a speech of Mr. Adams's to the colored people of Pittsburg : * We know that the day of your redemption must come. The time and manner of its coming we know not. It may come in peace, or it may come in blood ; but whether in peace or in blood, let it come.' Mr. Adams said, with emphasis, ' I say now, let it come.' Mr. Dillett replied, ' Yes, the gentleman now says, Let it come, though it costs ii«i. i: ? m LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 93 tho blood of thousands of wliito men.' Mr. Adams quickly responded, ' Though it cost tho blood of millions of white men, let it come ! ' " * The riglit of pqtition was not, however, now secured. At length, after ten years' struggle, Mr. Adams, in the second session of the twenty-eighth Congress, in 1844, eifected the abolishment of the tyrannical " rule." During all this time the friends of freedom were gaining strength and influence. In 1840 the Liberty party was organized, and in 1844, with James G. Birncy as its candidate for presi- dent of the United States, it cast more than sixty thousand votes. It was a small beginning, but it led on to great results. • ifl 11 ■J • Wilson. 94 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. lis J'' fe'ir CHAPTER IX. Annexation of Texas, — il/r. Sumner^s First Public Appearance. — Fouiiltof July Oration on ^^The True Grandeur of NatioisJ^ — Its Effect. — Scene at the Dinner. — Extracts from the Ora- tion. — Opinions of John A. Andreio and John Quincij Adams. The year 1845 found Mr. Sumner quietly en- gaged in the pursuits cf literature and the prac- tice of his profession. Early in that year occurred an event which was destined to agitate the whole country — the annexation of Texas. That region was claimed by Mexico as a part of her territory, even after it had proclaimed independence as a republic, bearing on its flag a "lone star." The people of Texas, large numbers of them colonists from tlio Southern States, and slaveholders, at length desired to be united with the United States — a project into which the South entered with all its heart. To receive it would be to risk ■■f'l ' li^ > t LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 95 a war with Mexico ; but its annexation was a fore- gone conclusion, provided its friends could secure the sanction of Congress. At the South it wag not a subject of discussion, but of desperate do- termination. The area of slavery must be ex- tended, its power strengthened. Every possible influence v/as brought to bear upon the two great political parties to commit them to the measure. As was usual then, the slave power carried the day. Thenceforth it became more deiiant and ex- acting, more unscrupulous and domineering. The North was beginning to be aroused, fear- ing whereunto all this would grow. But abolition- ism wa.s an unpopular doctrine. As yet Mr. Sumner had taken no active part in the cause to which, not long after, he dedicated his life. But he had been doing a great deal of think- ing. And he was not without deep convictions, even then, upon the stirring questions of the day. The great principles of right, wliich so early took deep root in his nature, were already working out their legitimate results. We know that from iho year 1834 ho had been a reader of Mr. Garrison's Liberator — a course of tuition decidedly stimulat- ing to ardent and thoughtful minds. Horace i ■ n 1 i " ■ l:;'^J :^': ; t' Mann, fifteen years liis superior in ago, also had no little influence in sliaping young Sumner's course of tliought and life. The two were always warm friends, of kindred opinions and sympathies. The friends of anti-slavery in the city were aware of Mr. Sumner's principles. They Jiad lis- tened to his earnest, generous utterances in pri- vate, and knew that if an opportunity were given him for a fuller expression of his views, he would employ no uncertain words. It so hap- pened that two, at least, of the board of aldermen of the city of Boston at this time. Deacon S. G. Shipley and Dr. Ayer, were abolitionists. They were on the committee to procure an orator for the anniversary of the Fourth of July, under the direction of the city government. They thought of Charles Sumnor, the pride of Boston, who was as yet known to the general public only as a most promising young lawyer, of extraordinary attain- ments, literary and legal, and to a select circle as a gentleman of refined tastes, elegant manners, anu fascinating social qualities. But the committee knew him as more than this. Calling upon him, they obtained his consent — > much to their delight. To a friend whom they «»r>i LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 97 met just after this, they said, " We have succeed- ed in getting Charles Sumner, a grand fellow, and a sturdy abolitionist." Had the board of alder- men known this, perhaps they would have had some misgivings. And now is to be revealed to tlio world what Mr. Sumner had been deeply pondering in his mind during the past quiet years. At last, full-armed in principles and purpose, ho steps forth into public life. The city fathers are in their place of honor in the church ; the solid men, the aspiring young men, the children of the public schools, are there, the last, to sing the songs of freedom. The flag that floats proudly that day bears the motto, '' E)ise petit 2T>l(^fidam suhlibertate quietem " — the glory of the sword. The assem- bly are sure of a rich treat from the learned and eloquent young lawyer. He announces his thema — ^' The True Grandeur of Nations." The occa- sion is one which, by the grace of long and hon- ored custom, is to call forth a patriotic eulogy of the heroes of '76. Mr. Sumner soon undeceived the expectant mul- titude — all but that committee. He had girded himself for a mighty onset upon war, and through M 1 1 : i-a i ; |, m 98 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. I 11 '.H! Ui ii& ■** : ll'-v;* rK'^i I !es ■'«■ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 103 II the great day which Americans have, at least heretofore, hckl sacred only to memory." j\.nd from his homo in Quincy, the venerable John Quincy Adams, some months later, wrote to Mr. Sumner these remarkable words : " Casting my eyes backward no firther than the Fourth of July of last year, when you set all the vipers of Alecto a-hissing by proclaiming the Christian law of uni- versal peace and love ; and then casting them for- ward, perhaps not much farther, but beyond my own allotted time, I see you have a mission to per- form. I look from Fisgah to the promised land; you must enter upon it^ From England, Richard Cobden, the great Lib- eral leader, wrote to Mr. Surnner, with reference to that oration, " You have made the most noble contribution of any modern writer to the cause of j> peace In a letter to the author, the poet Samuel Rogers wrote, " What can I say to you in re- turn for your admirable oration ? I can only say with what pleasure I have read it, and how truly every pulse of my heart beats in accordance with yours on the sulject. . . . Again and again must I thank you." ^ li If 104 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. CHAPTER X. M^ I" t-ji I ■-, Meeting in Faneidl Hall.— - Speech against the Admission of Texas as a Slave State. — Lyceum at New BeOford. — Lecture he/ore the Boston Lyceum. — Eulogy or: Pickering^ Story, ChaU' ning, and Allston, before the Phi Beta Imppa Society, at Harvard College. — Washington Allston. — '• No Battle-Picce ! " — True Province of Art. Mr. Sumner was now fairly before the public, and had given no doubtful indication of the drift of his future course. His lofty ideal was Right — Right, as applied to the improvement of man- kind. He had already tried War by this test, and found it wanting ; he was now to assail Slavery as radical injustice. He wanted Peace and Freedom for the whole world — nothing less. He would cry aloud and spare not, against all forms of oppression and cruelty. In doing so he had no desire for political im i m LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 105 oflSco, and several years were yet to elapse ero he should be forced into siicli a position. But he had openly committed himself to the stream of conflict, whicli was every day growing more troubled and tempestuous ; and he was not the man to desert the ship, or to haul down his flag. And so, four months after his disquieting ora- tion against war, we find him lifting up his voice in opposition to tlie admission of Texas as a slave state. The slave power had become alarmingly defiant. Having secured Texas as a Territory, it was resolved to have it fully equipped as a champion of slavery on the floor of Congress, and in the government of the nation. A meeting of all who were opposed to this movement was held in Faneuil Hall, November 4, presided over by Charles Francis Adams. There Charles Sumner stood beside William Lloyd Garrison and Wendell PhiUips. Among the resolutions, which were drawn up by Mr. Sumner was the following : " Be it resolved, in the name of God, of Christ, and of humanity, that we, belonging to all politi- cal parties, and reserving all other reasc ns of objection, unite in protest against the admi^. .on of Texas into the Union as a slave state." ' 1 ' ', ■I i ;»: ■ ,l. .1 i ; '■ / ii|if. •r l^4^ ■ \ ' 11 106 LIFE OF CUARLES SUMNER. Mr. Sumner followed with a Bpeecli, in wliict ho caid, " Congress is asked to sanction tlic con- Htitution of Texas, wliicb. not only supports slavery, but contains a clause prohibiting the legislature of the state from abolishing slavery. In doing this, it will give a fresh stamp of legis- lative approbation to an unrighteous system ; it will assume a new and active responsibility for this system ; it will again become a dealer in human flesh, and on a gigantic scale. At this moment, when the conscience of mankind is at last aroused to the enormity of holding a fellow- man in bondage, when, throughout the civilized world, a slave-dealer is a by-word and a reproach, we, as a nation, are about to become proprietors of a large population of slaves." In answer to the objection that Massachusetts miglit stand alone in her opposition, he said, — " But we cannot fail to accomplish great good. It is in obedience to a prevailing law of Provi- dence, that no act of self-sacriflce, of devotion to duty, of humanity can fail. It stands forever as a landmark, from which, at least, to make a new effort. . . . Massachusetts must con- tinue foremost in the cause of freedom j nor ! >r- Wl LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 107 can her cliildrcn yield to deadly dalliance with slavery." It was a Btormy night on which tliis meeting was held, and the slave power took occasion from that circumstance, the next day, to growl out its wrath against those who had dared to question its infallibility, through the Daily Times, a Demo- cratic paper of Boston. " The elements seemed determined not to sanction any such traitor-like movement, and interposed every obstacle to its success. It was proper tliat such a foul project should liave foul weather a^ an accompaniment." A few weeks later, ]\Ir. Sumner was invited to lecture before the Lyceum at New Bedford ; but he refused to go, as ^Ir. Phillips and George Wil- liam Curtis had done before this, for the reason that colored persons were not allowed to purchase tickets, and were only admitted, free of expense, provided they would sititi^the north gallery." In his letter to the connnittee, IMr. Sumner said, " One of the cardinal trutlis of religion and freedom is the equality and brotherhood of man. In the sight of God and of all just institutions, the white man can claim no precedence or exclu- sive privilege from his color. It is the accident !» li m^ !^!^ 108 LIFE or CUAKLES STOINER. I il lii m lii r'%- of an accident that places a human soii^ beneath tho dark shelter of an African countenance, rather than beneath our colder complexion. Nor can I conceive any application of the divine injunction, ' Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,' more pertinent than to the man who founds a discrimination between his fellow- men on difference of skin. It is well knovv^n that the prejudice of color, which i3 akin to the stern and scliish spirit that holds a fellow-man in slaver}'', is peculiar to our country. It does not exist in othc^ civihzed countries. In France, colored youths l t college have gained the highest honors, and been welcomed as if they were white. At the law school there, I have sat with them on the same bench. . . . All this was Christian ; so it seemed to me." This rule was soon after rescinded. In February of the next year, Mr. Sumner lectured before the Boston Lyceum on the Em- ployment of Time — a paper replete with valua- ble su^T-^cstions. " The hours spent in listlessness, or squandered in iniprofitablc dissipation, gathered mto aggre- gates, are hours, days, weeks, months, years. - ■ »w i> »in i|iii'i l » " LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 109 The daily sacrifice of a siiiirlc hour during a year comco, at its end, to thirty-six worlving da3"s^ allowing? ten hours to t!:o d;iv — an amount of time, if devoted exclusively to one object, amplo for the acquisition of important knowledge, and for the accomplishment of inconceivable good. Imagine a month dedicated, without interruption, to a single purpose, — to the study of a new lan- guage, an untried science, an unexplored Held of histor}'', a fresh department cf philosophy, or to some new sphere of action, some labor cf human- ity, some godiihc charity, — and what visions must not rise cf untold accumulations of knowl- edge, cf unnumbered deeds of goodness ! " Iteferring with praise to the valuable precepts of Franklin, in favor of industry and economy, ho adds : — " It cannot fail to be regretted, that the lessons taught by Franklin are so little spiritual in their character — that they are so material, so mun- dane, so fall cf pounds, shillings, and pence. *Tho almighty dollar,' now ruling hero with Bovcreign sway and masterdom, w^as placed on the throne by Poor Kichard. When shall it bo dethroned ? AVhen shall the thoughts, the aspira- Ul . i ?ii til T no LIVK OP CHAllLKS HUALNEU. oil ■' K\ , k: tioiiH, tiio politicH of tlio liiiid Ix) liftod from tlio iTMiro grocMl of /.!;!iiii; wilh an appctilo tiuifc grown h^ Avliai it foods on, iiilo llio soi'ono r('f2,'ioM of :iifl(;xil)lo jiisl i(;o ainl universal. I)cii(iV()lcii(.;u V " Addressing tlio young, Ik; sai' 1 I. ■'•■ 1 ,' : ' h4t - liil ' ■ is' ' '1 i « ' »; : I^hB'«' hi ■ ty for pieces representing handitti; bnt this taato does not appear in his hit or works. And wlien asked if he wonhl undertake to fdl the vacant panels in the rotunda of the Capitol at Washing- ton, ... he is reported to have said, ' I will paint only one subject, and choose my own. No battle-piece I ' "Admitting tlie calamitous necessity of war, it can never bo with pleasure — it cannot bo without sadness unspeakable — tliat wo survey its fiendish encounter. Tiic artist of purest aim, sensitive to these emotions, withdraws naturally from the field of blood, coi. essing that no scene of battle finds a place in the higliest art, — that man, created in the imago of God, can never bo pictured degrading, profaning, violating that sacred image. . . . There are tragedies which History enters sorrowfully, tearfully, in her faith- ful record; but this generous Muse, with too at- tractive colors, must not perpetuate the passions from which they sprang, or the griefs which they caused. Be it her duty to dwell with eulogy and prido on all that is magnanimous, lovely, benefi- cent ; let this be preserved by votive canvas, and marblo also. Bnt No battle-piece I . , . Tho time \'\ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 1.3 ia at liaiul wlioii religion, hiiriiinity, jiiul taste will concur in rejecting any image of liunian strife. Laid and Phryne have fled. 13accliU3 and Silenua are driven reeling from the scene. Mars will soon follow, howling, as with that wound from the Grecian spear before Troy. . . . In the mission of teaching to natiori- and to individuals wherein is true greatness, Art has a nohle oHlce. If not herald, she is at least handmaid of 'J'ruth. ITer lessons may not train the intellect, but they can- not fail to touch the heart. AVho can measure the influence from an inr.igo of beauty, affection, and truth ? The Christus Consolator of Scheffer, without a word, wins the soul." It is worthy of mention, that among the pic- tures with which, years after, Mr. Sumner adorned his house at Washington, lit battle-scene had a place, but there was a St. Mark descending from the skies to rescue a slave in the slave- market. "When Mr. Sumner came to speak of Chan- ning, ho came again upon war and slavery. He well knew that many present would consider those subjects wholly out of place at such a time, aud hence he said, with what seems like a 8 'i: !f; I ii »', I! ' ',11 I i /■■'"■ i:> '1 .- ■ ¥ lU LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. kind of gr^m luiraor, " AI' will sco that I cannot pas8 these on this occasion ; ior not to speak of them would bo to present a portrait in which the moat distinctive features were wanting." AVith that graceful excuse he dealt some more lusty blows at " those two terrible scourges," includnig a reference to the annexation of Texas, a war with Mexico, and the extension of slavery. Towards the end of the oration, Mr. Sumner, having spoken of the subjects of hip eulogy as all philanthropists, added, — " In their presence how truly do we feel the insignificance of office and wealth, which men so hotly pursue! WIuU is office? and wdiat is wealth? Expressions or representatives of what is present and fleeting only, investing the possessor with a brief and local regard. . . . They who live for wealth, and the things of this woild, follow shadows, neglecting realities eternal on earth and in heaven. After the perturbations of life, all its accumulated possessions must be resigned, except those only which have been devoted to God and mankind. What we do for ourselves perishes with this mortal dust ; what wo do for others lives coeval with the benefaction." II m t I LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 115 A marked quality of Mr. Sumner's character was hopefulness as to the triumpli of truth and justice. However dark the pret^ent aspect, or !/Uer the strife, he never doubted that success would come to the right. A short poem which lio introduced into this oration well indicates this firm, serene faith in the good and the true : — i " There's a fount about to stream, There's i\ light iiboiit to beam', There's a warmth about to ;^Iow, There's a flower about to blow, There's a mklni-jht bhickncss ehanging Into gray : Men of thoiiglitand men of action, Clear tlic way ! Aid the dawning, tongue and pen ! Aid it, hopes of honest men ! Aid it, paper ! aid it, type ! Aid it, lor the hour is ripe. And our earnest must not slacken Into play : Men of tiiought and men of action, Clear the way 1 " Such was Mr. Sumner's message to the then con servative Harvard and conservative Boston, and such his endeavor to kindle a generous enthusi- asm for humanity among the young scholars of the land. Those ringing words, " Clear the way," were as the sound of a trumpet. With what dis- I M^- « Hi; il . i I!' ' I 116 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. may must they have fallen upon the ears of men who loved soft Avords of compromise, and dreaded above all things agitation ! Doubtless they in- spired some younger hearts with a noble ambi- tion to " clear the way " for liberty throughout the laud. ' % i- ft LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 117 n d 1- i- iit CHAPTER XI. Wliig State Convention. — Dutf/ of the Whig Party. — Appeal to Daniel Webster. — Mr. Winthrop. — WIdte Slavery. — Fublic Schools. — Prison Discipline. We lia'" . seen Mr. Sumner making a literary festival serve the great interests of humanity. Letters, with him, were not an end ; they wero an elegant accomplishment and recreation, tho ornament and grace of life, and helps to more complete and effective v/ork in the great field of human improvement. And so he gracefully passes from the Academy to the Forum. About a month after this, September 23, 184G, his voice is heard at a Whig State Convention in Funeuil Hall. He was a member of the AVhig party, and anxious to have it maintain its in- tegrity. His associations with it had been of the most friendly character. In his opinion, it had been the party of freedom and progress. \\ I \ 118 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. '»; ! m IIo -,till believed that i^ Jit be kept true to its patriotic and liberal principles. But, in order to that, the friends of free- dom must bestir themselves. The time for neu- trality was past. Tlie Whig party must demand the repeal of slavery under tlie constitution and laws of the national government. They must *' choose moi who will devote themselves ear- nestly, heartily to tlie Avork, — who will enter upon it with awakened conscience, and with that valiant faith, before which all obstacles dis- appear, — who will be ever loyal to truth, free- dom, right, humanity, — who will not look for rules of conduct down to earth, in the mire of expediency, but with heaven-directed counte- nance seek those great ' primal duties ' which * shine aloft like stars,' to illumine alike the path of individuals and of nations. They must be true to the principles of Massachusetts. They must not be Northern men with Southern prin- ciples, nor Northern men under Southern influ- ences. They must be courageous and Avilling on all occasions to stand alone, provided right be with them. . . . There are a few such now in Congress. Massachusetts has a venerable rep- fe :' is m:4 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 119 ^y u resentative, whose aged bosom still glows with inextinguishable fires, like the central heats of the monarch mountain of the Andes beneath its canopy of snow. To this cause he devotes the closing energies of a long and illustrious life "Would that all might join him ! " All which was like a bracing north wind. Would the Whig party turn towards it its already feverish face, and be quickened to a new life ? Alas for the fond dreamer I He was piping to a party that would call him an enthusiast, and before long a fanatic. Its very tower of strength had already become a leaning tower, destined to an ignominious fall. But as yet there was hope. And Mr. Sumner pleaded with Daniel Webster to be true to free- dom. " There is," said he, " a senator of Mas- sachusetts we had hoped to welcome here to-day, whose position is of commanding influence. Let me address him with the respectful frankness of a constituent and friend. Already, sir, by various labors, you have acquired an honorable place in the history of our country. By the vigor, argumentation, and eloquence with which you upheld the Union, and that interpretation of I ' I il i. f IX >'i m i^.: i i 120 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. . « '■ ; , 'is-' I ; ( tho constitution which makes us a nation, you have justly earned tho title of Defender of the Coiistitatlon. . . . Pardon me if I add that there are yet other duties claiming your care, whoso performance will be the crown of a long life in the public service. Do not forget them. Dedicate, sir, the years happily in store for you, with all that grand experience which is yours, to grand endeavor in tho name of human freedom, for the overthrow of that terrible evil which now afflicts our country. . . . Do not shrink from the task. . . . Assume, then, these unperformed duties. The aged shall bear witness to you ; the young shall kindle with rapture, as they repeat the name of Webster ; the large company of the ransomed shall teach their children and their children's children, to the latest generation, to call you blessed ; you shall have yet another title, never to bo forgotten on earth or in heaven, — Defender of Ihunanity, — by the side of which the earlier title will fade into insignilicance, as the consti- tution, which is the work of mortal hands, dwindles by the side of man, created in tho image of God." We cannot wonder that this eloquent and m': \' i ^ 'A\ 5 Mr. Sumner's heart and hands were now full of work. Less than two months after intruding upon the Prison Discipline Society, lie responded to a call from the young men of Amherst College to address them at Commencement. What more coukl he desire ? The year before, he had spoken at Harvard no Mucertain words ; now, to another company of young scholars, he would repeat the cry, " Clear the way." Ills theme was. Fame and Glory — a theme hackneyed enough, often written about by school-boys and sophomores; but how, under the master's touch, it glows with new brightness ' . 132 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. If ii W t'< IfL if'ii i^^r^f ■ -j j4 '■ 'j ■M I ' 1 lti:i 1 ■ ^ T • Tho times were stirring, great events were at hand, tliero was an open field for generous am- bition, anel Mr. Sunmer wished to tunc the spirits of his auditors, the future hope of the country, to the demands of the times. Some words of his, written at a later period, well express his present feelings : " Especially do I invoke tlic 3'oung. They are the natural guardians of liberty. Thus has it been through- out all history ; and never before in history did liberty stand in greater need of their irresistible aid. It is the young wIk* give spontaneous wel- come to Truth, when she first appears an unat- tended stranger. It is the young who open tho soul with instinctive hospitality to the noble cause." Having this end in view, ho showed that tho love of fame, a divinely implanted principle, was peculiarly liable to perversion. lie pointed out tho dangers to bo avoided, the true use and end of the desire for glory, how it was to be controlled by, and subordinated to, higher principles. " Whatever," he said, " may be temporary ap- plause, or the oxpression of public opinion, it may be asserted, without fear of contradictiion, that no w LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 133 \m 3ro at 9 am- ?pirit9 try, to )eriod, ecially latiiral roiigli- )ry did sistiblo us Wei- ll imat- Don tlio noblo Uhat no true and permanent fame can he found except in labors ichich 2^romotc the haj^pincss of manhind. If these arc by Christian means, witli disinter- rested motives, and with the single aim ol' doing good, they become that rare and precious virtue whose fit image is the spotless lily of the field, brighter than Solomon in all his glory." Referring to several military heroes, ho said, " There is little of true grandeur in any such career. None of the beatitudes showered upon them a blessed influence. They were not poor in spirit, or meek, or merciful, or pure in heart. They vccre not peacemakers. They did not biaiger and thirst after justice. They did not vSufTer persecution for justice's sake." In honorable contrast to these men, and to all tlie fame of military achievements, he referred to John Howard, who said, ^^ Hearing the cry of the miserable, I devoted my time to their relief; " and to Clarkson, who, while yet in the university, his heart stirred by the horrors of the slave-trade, exclaimed, " It is time some person should see these calamities to their cndT^ " Sucli are exemplars of true glory. Without rank, office, or the sword, tliey accomplished immortal good. While ou earth J I i^; lii' t w ;i ^ii' HI 134 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. tlicy labored for their i'ellow-men ; and now, sleep- ing in death, by example and works they con- tinue the same sacred office. To all, in every sphere or condition, they teach the universal lesson of magnanimous duty. From the heights of their virtue they call upon us to cast out the lust of power, of office, of wealth, of praise, of a fleeting popular favor, which ' a breath can make, as a breath has made,' — to subdue the constant, ever-present suggestions of self, in disregard of neighbors, near or remote, whose wellare should never be Ibrgotten, — to chock the mad- ness of party, Avhich, so often, for the sake of success, renounces the very objects of success, — and, finally, to introduce into our lives those senti- ments of conscience and charity which animated them to such labors. " Nor should these be holiday virtues, marshalled on great occasions only. They must become part of us, and of our existence, — present on every occasion, small or great, — in tliose daily ameni- ties which add so much to the charm of life, as also in those grander duties which require an en- nobling self-sacrifice. The former are as flowers, whose odor is pleasant, though fleeting; the I'. i| LIFE OP CIIARLE3 SUMNER. 135 latter arc like tlio costly sinkenanl poured from the box of ulabiister upon tlie head of the Lord. , . . Their [men's] wors1ii[) in the i'liturc must bo the true God, our Father, as he is in heaven, and in the beneficent labors of his chil'i'"en on earth. Then farewell to the siren song of a worldly ambition! Farewell to (lie vain desire of mere literary success or oratorical disjilai/ ! Farewell to the distempered lony noble sentiments. It was as if a new gift of tongues had been vouch- safed. Men spoku freely, boldly, grandly, as reason and conscience prompted. Once more politics and morals joined hands. There was a feeling of responsibility to God. There was a new love for humanity. " All the speakers," it is said, " united in renouncing old party ties." None did this better than Charles Francis Adams, who con- cluded his remarks by saying, " Forgetting the things that are behind, I propose that w^o press forward to the high calling of our new occupa- tion ; and, fellow-citizens, whatever may be tho fate of you or me, all I can now add is, to repeat the words of one with whom I take pride in re- membering that I have been connected : ' Sink or 'I ( i, as more ,vas a la new said, did con- tlie press cupa- c tlio ■cpeat liii re- link or LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 139 Bwiin, llvo or die, survive or pcrisli/ to go with tlio liberties of my country is my fixed determi- nation." Mr. Sumner said, " In tlio comiii}^ contest I wish it understood that 1 belong to the party of freedom — to that party which plants itself on the Declaration of Independence and the Consti- tution of the United States." In answer to the objection that by voting for a separate candidate, — rejecting Cass and Tay- lor, — the new party, as being now small, would throw away its votes, and its opposition would fail, Mr. Sumner said, " Fail, sir ! Ko honest, earnest effort in a good cause can fail. It may not be crowned with the applause of men; it may not seem to touch the goal of immedi- ate worldly success. But it is not lost. It helps to strengthen the weak with new virtue, ... to animate all with devotion to duty, which in the end conquers all. Fail ! Did the mar- tyrs fail, when, with precious blood, they sovv-ed the seed of the church ? Did the discomfited champions of freedom fliil who have left those names in history that can never die ? . . . As- surances hero to-day show that we need not ■' m !;.« i 1 I m 140 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. postpone success. It seems already at hand. The lieart of Ohio l)eats responsive f j the heart of Massacliusetts, and all the Free States arc animated witli the vig'oroiis breath of free- dom. . . . From this demonstration to-day, and the acclaim wafted to us from the Free States, it is easy to see that the great cause of liberty, to which we now dedicate ourselves, will sweep the heart-strings of the people. It will smite all the chords witli a might to draw forth emotions such as no political struggle ever awakened belbre. It will move the young, the middle-aged, and the old. It will find a voice in the social circle, and mingle with the flame of the domestic hearth. It will touch the souls of mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters, until the sympnlliies of all swell in one irresistible chorus of indignation against the deep damnation of lending new sanction to the enslavement of our brother man." Thus was born the Free Soil party, from whose loins afterwards sprang the Republican party. Before saying more about this important move- ment, wo will follow Mr. Sumner to another col- f: J.. i ■ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 141 lego anniversary — this timo at Union Coliego, Sclionoctady, N. Y. These literary festivals were tiincs of seed- sowing. And it was a cheering indication of better, wliolosomer days, tliat the young men of the country were ready to listen to such a teacher as Mr. Sumner. The high-toned, C^M'istian morality ■which he inculcated, and which he insisted sliould be applied to poli tics, as everywhere else, was welcomed by young and ingenuous minds not yet blinded and liard- cned by tlie maxims of worldly expediency. Having sjioken at Harvard and Amiierst, now again in July, 1848, having just assisted in forming a ncAv party of progress, he discourses at Union on the Law of llama n Progress. •' 1 Avould, if I could," ho said, " utter truth which, while approved by the old, should sink deep into the souls of the young, filling them Avith strengtli for all good works." Mr. Sunnier had before him a grand ideal of trutii and right, and also of humanity. He would teach the young not to bo content with present attain- ments and the present condition of the world. There was a divine law of human progress ruu< 1' II ,)! If' i-')i il ■% %>\ i I ■ . I i ^ h 142 LIFE OF CIIAIILFS SUMNER. ning tliroiigli and slia]:)ing all history, and work- ing out a glorious liituro. " The earnest soul, cnliglitcned by l)istory, strengthened by philos- ophy, nursed to cliildisli clumber by the siniplo I)rayer, * Thy kingdom come, tliy will be done on earth as it is done in lieaven,' confident in the final, though alow, fulfilment of the daily fulfil- ling promises of the future, looks ibrward to the continuance of this progress during unknown and infinite ages, as a law of our being. . . . " Cliriiitianity is the religion of progress. Here is a distinctive feature which we vainly seek in any heathen faith professed upon eartlh Confu- cius, in his sublime morals, taught us not to do unto others what we would not have them do to us ; but the Chinese philosopher did not declare the ''''^ato triumpli of this law. It was ro- tor tlie Sermon on the !Mount to reveal . vital truth, that all the higliest commands of religion and duty, drawing in their train celestial peace, and marking the final goal of all progress among men, shall one day be obeyed. * For verily I say unto you,' says the Saviour, • till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle ' shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfiUed.' '' LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 143 soul, hilos- implo no on iu tlio iiiUil- to the known Hero ^cck in Contu- to do [1 do to loclare as re- rcvcal mands • train 1 of all beyed. aviour, tittlo all be # Tlii3 progress of humanity embraces people of 3vcry race, and demands for all the means of every kind of improvement. Bigotry, or con- Bervatism, opposes this movement ; but in vain. ''Tims ever has Truth moved on — though op- posed and reviled, still miglity and triumphant. Rejected by the rich and poweri'ul, by the favor- ites of fortune and place, she finds shelter with those who often have no shelter fur themselves. It is such as these that most freely wxdcomo moral truth, with its new connnandments. Not the dwellers in the glare of the world, but the humble and lowly, most clearly perce'>o this truth, — as watchers placed in the depths of a well observe the stars wdiich are obscured to those who live in the cfTulgenco of noon. Free from egotism and prejudice, whether of self- interest or of class, without cares and temp- tations, whether of wealth or power, dwelling iu the mediocrity or obscurity of common life, they discern the new signal, and surrender unre- servedly to its guidance. The Saviour knew this. He did not call upon priest, or Levite, or Pharisee to follow him, but upon the humblo fishermen by the Sea of Galilee.'^ .. i ■\ \ -■■-if' ill's u ,i ' . ■ '■:i ■} flr- ■ : I if- i I i t f ^1 ii I ifflHfi N lU LIFE OP CHAKLES SUMNEU. Mr. Sumner warned his hearers against impa tience and rashness. '' Cultivate a just moder- ation. Learn to reconcile order with change, stability with progress. This is a wise con- servatism ; this is a wise reform. Rightly un- derstanding these terms, who would not be a conservative ? who would not be a reformer ? — a conservative of all that is good, a reformer of all that is evil, — a conservative of knowledge, a reformer of ignorance, — a conservative of truths and principles whose seat is in the bosom of God, a reformer of laws and institutions which are but the wicked or imperfect work of man, — a conservative of that divine order which is found only in movement, a reformer of those earthly wrongs and abuses which spring from a violation of the great law of human progress ? " Thus did Mr. Sumner seek to build up a new party on the highest grounds, and to enlist in its support the young men of the land. •1^: ■* :*-.i< H LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 145 11 impa loder- langc, c on- ly un- L be a ler ? — ncr of dcdge, ivo of s bosom i tut ions vork of r which f those from a ;rcss?" b a new irit in its ra 1 -fi CHAPTER XIII. Object of the Free Soil Party. — Free Soil Con- vention at Buffalo. — Martin Van Buren and Charles Francis Adanis. — Speech by Mr. Sum- ner. — Address on Peace. — Colored Children o'n Public Schools. — 3Ir. Sumner^ s Argument be- fore the Supreme Court. — Mr. Clay^s Compro- mise Bleasw^es. — Fugitive Slave Bill. — Its EJfcct in the Free States. — Meeting of Protest in Faneuil Hall. — Terror of the Colored Peo- ple. — William and Ellen Crafts. — Mr. Sum- ner s Opinion of Slave- Hunters. The Free Soil party now entered fully upon its work. Its purpose was to prevent the further extension of slavery, and to secure its abolition wherever it existed within the national domain, as distinguished from State jurisdiction. It did not propose to touch slavery in the States. A large number of persons, who were distinc- tively known as Abolitionists, and who, to a great extent, took no part in political action against 10 n u 146 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. *! ' i ^ t i5i LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 147 frionds to tlic new cause sliowd that it had drawn to itself man}'' of the choicest spirits of the North. In l!)ct, the best portion of tiie two great parties wliicii liad Iiitlierto carried sway, came over to tlie new organization, wliicli alone represented true American princii)les. On tliis occasion I^Fr. Sumner was cliosen pre- si(hiig officer, and mack? an elo(pient sf)eech. IIo declared that not banks and tariffs', and such mere material interests, were now to give their tone to tlio policy of tiie country. '' ITenceforward, TRO- TKCTioN TO MAN wiU 1)0 tho true American sys- tem. . . . The old and ill-compaf^ted y)arty organ- izations are bioken, and from tlieir ruins is now formed a new party, ilie Parti/ ^f i^t^(^('dom. Thero were good men who longed for this, and died witliout tho sight. John Quincy Adams longed for it. William EUery Clianning longed for it. Their spirits hover over us, and m-ge us to perse- vere. Let us be true to tlio moral grandeur of our cause. Have fiith in Truth, and in God, who givcth tho victory." During the campaign which followed, jMr. Sumner spoke at many ])laces in tlio State. A Hpcech delivered in Faneuil Hall, October ol, ^^1 ii "-.''»■«- q3?t?'3'rS;' 148 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. fp^l' li V ' ■,; 0^ If Mi »U • Hi i|ij|il!|i 1. 1848, is said to have been one of " surpassing ability and cloqncnce," and to have been received with " tumultuous shouts " of applause. But it was not reported. In Mr. Sumner's view, war and slavery were kindred evils. Their fundamental idea was force, violence. Being invited by the American Peace Society to speak at their anniversary, in Boston, May 28, 1849, he did not regard it as an inter- ruption to his work in behalf of freedom. In an Address on the War System of the Common- wealth of Nations, he once more, as in 1845, urged '^ the abolition of the institution of war, and of the whole war system, as an established arbiter of justice in the commonwealth of nations. " Resuming his pen in behalf of freedom, he pre- pared an Address to the People of Massachusetts — which was afterwards adopted by the Free Soil convention at Worcester, September 12, 1849 — in vindication of the new organization. It con- tains the germ of his great speech in Congress in 1852, showing that the Freedom party is a na- tional party, as opposed to sectional. At this time, while Massachusetts was thus awaking to new opposition to slavery, she was Mm [liiMW^'i i )assing iccivcd But it •y were .s force, [1 Peace Boston, Q inter- . In an ^ommon- in 1845, war, and d arbiter V I* he pre- Lclmselts llie Free 12,1840 It con- bgress in lis a na- vas thus Bhe waa LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 149 herself hokling her colored citizens in a position of inferiority. Colored cliildron were not allowed to attend tlie public schools in company with tlio white. They had separate schools. The subject came before the Supreme Court of the State, De- ceiiiber 4, 1849, under an action brought by a col- ored child, only live years old, who, b// her next friend, as the law term is, sued the City of Boston for damages on account of a refusal to receive her into one of the common schools. Mr. Sunnier undertook her case, and argued in a most thorough manner the unconstitutionality of the discrimina- tion on account of race or color. He claimed for every person " equality before the law " — a term noAv for the lirst time introduced from the French, lie denounced the reparation of children in the pcliools, as in the nature of caste, that odious sys- tcin, which no Christian could sanction. lie de- clared it to be injurious, also, to the whole system of common schools. " The law," he said, -^ con- templates not only that all shall be taught, but that all shall be taught together. . . . All are to approach the same common fountain together; nor can there be any exclusive source for indi- vidual or class. The school is the little world 1-: i \ *tw<.j; fall, 4^^^ 150 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. wliero the child is trained for the larger world of life. . . . And since, according to our institutions^ all classes, without distinction of color, meet in the performance of civil duties, so should they all. without distinction of color, meet in the school, beginning there those relations of equality which the constitution and laws promise to all. . . . " Nothing is more clear than that tlie wellare of classes, as well as of individuals, is promoted by mutual acquaintance. Prejudice is the child of ]gnoranco. It is sure to prevail where people do not know cai.'h other. iSociety and intercourse are means established by Providence for human improvement. They remove antipathies, promote mulual adaptation and conciliation, and establish relations of reciprocal regard. Whoso sets up barriers to these, thwarts the ways of Providence, crosses the tendencies of human nature, and di- rectly interferes with the laws of God." Addressing himself directly to the judges, ho said, " The Christian spirit 1 again invoke. Where this prevails, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, Greek nor barbarian, bond nor free, but all are alike. From this we derive new and solemn assurance of the equality of men, as an ordinance of God." Hi f^' LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 151 voy\(\ of itutions^ inuct in lid they ] in tlio equality 3 nil. . . • welfare of noted V)y child of people do >tercoursG or human , promote establish sets up evidence, le, and di- |udges, ho Where Gentile, lut all are Id solemu )rdinance IIcrG wo see one feature of the Civil Rights Bill, which Mr. Sumner so earnestly pressed Congress to pass, as an act of justice to the blacks, and of benefit to the whole country. The court, in the present case, did not see fit to annul the discrimination in the connnon schools." But in 1855 the legislature threw the door open to all children alike.' So we trust the national legislatu"^ will do for the whole country. The year 1850 is memorable for the series of compromises, originating with Henry Clay, of Kcnlucky, whicli were designed to allay and forever settle the controversy about slavery. Alas, the ''conflict" was "irrepressible." It was now a period of extreme irritation be- tween the Free and the Slave States. The an- nexation of Texas, as a slave state, in 1845; the war with Mexico, begun in 184G ; the acquisition, as the result of it, of the vast territory of New Mexico and California, which the South were laboring to throw open to slavery, — all this had seriously alarmed the North. On the other hand, * Chief Justice Shaw decided that the chiim of equality bcforo the law meant " only that the ri^^hts of all, as they are settled and regulated by law. are equally entitled to the paternal consideration aud protection of tlio law for their maiutcuaucc and security," ■M R-«- ■ l- 1 1 . . t: k 1 -i i ■! 1! '■[. i: ■ !■• ^J 1! .i' f ■'■ ■ l'\ ^ Li i 1 B^BSBBIB ill I 152 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ^k %\ ifii t 0M> yiy -I,;,. ^ ■f Itf^ ( \4 • ■ ■■> ; the growing opposiition to slavery at tlio North, the determined spirit of tlie abolitionists, the rise of the Liberty party in 1840, of the Free Soil party in 1818, and the fear entertained at tlio South that, after all, New ^lexico and California were likely to bo non-slaveholding, had aroused the people of the Slave States to a fearful pitch of exasperation. • Then came forward the great compromiser, with his panacea of peace — his last public act. It was discussed amid great ex- citement, in and out of Congress, from January to September, in which month California was ad- mitted as a Free State, New Mexico and Utah were organized as Territories with no provision for or against slavery, tlio slave-trade was pro- hibited in the District of Columbia, and a strin- gent Fugitive Slave Law was passed. " Now," said President Fillmore, " we have been rescued from the wide and boundless agitation that surrounded us, and have a firm, distinct, and legal ground to rest upon." But he was crying peace when there was no peace. Specially obnoxious to the North was the Fugitive Slave Bill. It was a shameful stat- ute, not only as designed to rivet more firmly M' '% LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 153 North, the rise eo Soil at tlio ihfornia I aroused '* il pitch G groat . '■ ;c — his re at ex- January '? was ad- d Utah :| revision '1 1 ^as pro- the shackles of tho slave, and as carrying terror into every colored homo in the Fiee States, hut as turning tlio free North into a legalized hunt- ing-ground for fugitives, and as visiting with ''hitter penalties of fino and imprisonment tlio faithful men and women who rendered to tlio fugitive that countenance, succor, and shelter which Christianity expressly requires ; " thus, " from beginning to end," sotting " at nought tho best principles of the constitution, and tlie very laws of God." The most odious features of this hill were the following: it ordained a " summary process " — a legal proceeding intended to protect human freedom, hut which in this case was wickedly perverted to the very opposite. It violated the fundamental right of trial hy jury, which the constitution of the United States grants in suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars — tho liberty of a man being made of less account than the recovery of a horse. It provided that " in no trial or hearing under this act shall the testimony of such alleged fugitive he admitted in evidence.^^ He might be a white riWi ;.i 154 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. I^ll %. man or a free negro, but lie could bring forward no proof of the fact. The claimant with a bribe in his hand miglit enter into collusion with the commissioner, and between them the innocent victim might be reduced to slavery. It placed tlie liberty of the alleged fugitive at the mercy of one man, I'rom whose verdict there was no appeal. The government offered a jiremium for kldnaj)- 2)intj, for it allowed the commissioner twice as much in case he surrendered the alleired fuu'itivo to the claimant, as he should receive if he re- leased him — ten dollars for declaring a man a slave, five dollars for declaring him a freeman ! It authorized the ministers of the law — the mockery of law — to "summon and call to their aid the bystanders, or ^jos.se comitatus of the proper county," and it " commanded " all good citizens to aid and assist in the prompt and eflicicnt execution of the law, under the pen- alty of fine and imprisonment. In the last provision, it seemed as though the slave power was resolved to press to Northern lips the bitterest cup of abomination which it could possibly concoct. ) -y^ i- LIFE OF CIIARLKS SUMXKR. 155 'Mi •ward bribe th tbo locent ;ive at there id nap- ice as igitive he re- man a laii ! -the their f the good ■)t ami pen- gli the rthern ich it M ■ No wonder it awakened a feeling of indigna- tion and horror, not only among the blacks, but anuiiig nudlitudes of tiie liherty-loving ))eoi)le of the Free States. Many, even, who were liltlo conrerne(1 ibr the miseries of the colored people, revolted at the thon, just, )pinion i of rll [laming iraclise, Slave- 3mmon- liuman IS, and -ssa. .liu- undc I'- ll touch ivould I jiipt, the imunity !vcr he I him, no to cher-r Ishall be )of, fire, LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 159 or water„ Men shall point at him on the streets and in the highways. ' Sleep phiill neither night nor day Hang upon liis pent-house lid; He shall live a man forbid; Weary, scvcnnights nine times nine, Shall he dwindle, peak, and pine.' "Villages, towns, and cities shall refuse to receive the monster ; they shall vomit him forth, never again to disturb the repose of oar com- munity." Thus would Mr. Sumner arrest the action of the " law " at the outset. William and Ellen Crafts were not apprehend- ed. Their would-be kidnappers retired without their victims. At length the fugitives were sent to England, where Crafts became a sort of com- mercial agent to the kingdom of Dahomey. He is now living in Georgia. At the public Free Soil meeting, to which refer- once Avas just made, November 6, 1850, before ilie annual election, Mr. Sumner denounced the Fugitive Bill as " cruel, unchristian, and devilish." It was unconstitutional also, and ought not to be ol)eyed. After stating, in his speech, that he himself •.'« 'V ill 1 I, ■n. ;"}|r -w~^- 160 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. I'l ; ■ hi. !! , >i ;f: 1 ' 1 •I tiiihr^ Mi, held the ofGce of commissioner by appointment, the year before, of Judge Story, — an office whose duties he had seklom exercised, — yet, said he, " I cannot forget that I am a man, although I am a commissioner. . . . For myself, let me say, that I can imagine no office, no salary, no con- sideration, which I would not gladly forego, rather than become in any way the agent in enslaving my brother man. Wliere for me were comfort and solace after such a work ? In dreams and in waking hours, in solitude and in the street, in the meditation of the closet and in the affairs of men, wherever I turned, there my victim would stare me in tlie face. From distant rice-fields and sugar-plantations of the South, his cries beneath the vindictive lash, his moans at the thought of liberty, once his, now, alas ! ravished away, would pursue me, repeating the tale of his tearful doom, and sounding, forever sounding, in my ears, ' Thou art the man ! ' " Speaking in more general terms, he said, " We have seen v/hat Congress has done. And yet, in the face of these enormities of legislation, . . . we are told that the slavery question is set- tled. Yes, settled, — settled, — that is the word. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 161 M I Notling, si)% can he settled ivhich is not right. Nothing can bo settled which is against freedom. Nothing can be settled which is contrary to the Divine law. God, nature, and all the holy sentiments of the heart repudiate any such seem- ing settlement." As an encouragement to fidelity in the cause of freedom, he said, " To every laborer in a cause like this, there are satisfactions unknown to the common political partisan. . . . Whatever may be existing impediments, his is the cheering con- viction that every word spoken, every act per- formed, every vote cast for this cause, helps to swell those quickening influences by which truth, justice, and humanity will be established upon earth. He may not live to witness the blessed consummation, but it is none the less certain. Others may dwell on the past as secure. Under the laws of a beneficent God, the future also is secure, — on the single condition that we labor for its great objects." With reference to the election of suitable men to represent the cause in the State and tho Nation, he said: " Admonished by the experience of timidity, irresolution, and weakness in our 11 -4^ S^^P i;: 162 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. :'^^ public men, amidst the temptations of ambition and power, the friends of freedom cannot lightly bestow their confidence. They can put trust only in men of tried character and inflexible will. Three things at least they must require ; tiiu first is bacJcbone ; the second is backbone; and tlio third is backbone. . . . Wanting this, they all want that courage, constancy, firmness, which are essential to the support of PRiNCirLE. Lot no such men be trusted." And then, referring to his own purpose, he added, " To vindicate free- dom and oppose slavery, so far as I may consti- tutionally, — with earnestnesSj and yet, I trust, without personal unkindness on my part, — is the object near my heart. . . . Kcjoicing in associ- ates from any quarter, I shall bo found ever with that party which most truly represents the principles of freedom. . . . Whenever I forget them, whenever I become indifferent to them, whenever I cease to be constant in maintain- ing them, through good report and evil report, in any future combinations of party, then may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, may my right hand forget its cunning ! " Now that he has gone from us, his work com- "i'ij; ■ii\ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 163 .bition liglitly st only will. : lo first iid tlio bey all , wbicb Let no rring to ite free- y consti- I trust, — is tbe associ- iver witb ints tbo I forget to tbem, maintain- lil report, jben may lutb, may plotcd, wo can say of bim, tbat be never forgot tbcse principles, but ta tlie very last, even with bis latest breatb, redeemed every pledge bere made. This speecb was received witb great enthusi- asm by one class, but denounced by another as '' treasonable." It awakened deep feeling through- out tbe country, so bold and determined was its stand against a congressional statute. It doubt- less bad an important influence in tbo election wliicli was about to take place for United States senator, to fill the place made vacant by the ap- pointment of Daniel Webster as secretary of state. 1 ork com- 11 :tr 1G4 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. I ■ \ 1 ; i i > >.fl. \i>: U, \ i ; ii j. 1 i; i t, li ^ ■ '■ 1 ^>' il railiii. CnAPTEPt XIV. i I TJie '' CoalifionJ^ — Nomination of Ilr. Sumner for the United States Senate. — Scenes in the Legislature. — 3Ir. BartldVs Proposition. — Lack of Envelopes. — Talking aga'nst Time. — Election of Mr. Sumner. — Letter of John G. JVliittier to 3Jr. Sumner. — llie Jpplc- IVoman. — Feeling among the Whigs. — Treatment of Mr. Sumner. — Address' to the Lcijislature. — Horace Mann. We have now reached a very important period. Ilitlierto Mr. Sumner lias acted only as a private citizen ; lie is now to take a public office, and to become a public man, in a degree accorded to but few of this or any generation. The wlicle course of his life is henceforth to run in a channel far different from that marked out by himself. Yet, in a deeper sense, it was not different. He was still to be Charles Sumner, the same foe to A^^ar and slavery, the same friend of peace and freedom, the same lover of truth and justice, only in a wider Rphere. LIFE OF CIIARI-ES SUMNER. 1G5 Sumner in the 'lion. — rime. • — • John G. Woman. merit of ature. — At this time tliero were three political parties in MassachuseLts, tlie Wliig, the l)eiiiocrati(,', and the Free Soil. The two latter were neither of them strong enough to carry an election over the Whigs, but by a combination they hoped to secure their object. The Democrats wished to conquer the Whigs, the Free Soilers wished to promote tlie cause of freedom. Among tlie ibrmer, also, tliere were a considerable nund)er Avho were willing that the slave power should be rebuked. I^Iany such afterwards became vali.mt Republicans. It was accordingly agreed that most " of the state officers chosen by the legislature should be democrats, and the United States senator a Free Soiler." This was the famous " coalition." Henry Wilson, Free Soiler, was selected as can- didate for President of the Senate ; N. P. Banks, Democrat, for Speaker of the House ; George S. Boutwell, Democrat, for Governor ; and Charles Sumner, Free Soiler, for United States senator, all of whom were elected.'^' * It is worthy of remark, that this Icgishiture of 1S51 contained an unusual numhcr of members wlio have since risen to positions of eminence in the commonwealth or in the national government. Three have been governors of the State, N. P. Banks, H. J. Gardi* I i( ( i il 166 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ; !; * 1. To Mr. Sumner tliis was a wholly ui expected and undesired nomination. But lio yielded to the importunities of the friends of freedom, who in- sisted that, for the sake of tlie cause, he ought to forget his personal preferences. The choice of United States senator proved to be a three months' race between Mr. Sumner and Mr. Winthrop. The Senate proceeded to ballot on January 22, 1851, with the following result : Charles Sum- ner, 23 ; R. C. Winthrop, 14 ; Beach, 1. Mr. Sum- ner received, therefore, a majority of the votes at the first ballot, and the Senate did not vote again. In the House the first ballot stood thus : Sumner, 186 ; Winthrop, 1G7 ; scattering, 28 ; blanks, 3. Whole number, 381 ; necessary to a choice, 191. There was no choice. The voting in the House was not continuous from day to day, as is the present rule, but was carried on amid several postponements, some- times for a fortnight at a time. ncr, and William Cluflin ; several have represented the State in Con- gress ; three have been speakers of the House in the State legislature ; one is the present state trca:?urcr ; one has been mayor of Bo.^ton ; one has sat on the bcneh of the Supreme Court at Washington ; and* one has held many important offices under the general government, being at present our minister to Spain. Others have held influential positions. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 167 ^191 I'M 'bB i' i ' 5 i It was a period of intense excitement within and outside tlio General Court, enlivened now and then by amusing incidents. One member, living in the vicinity, but generally confined at liomo from sickness, was brought into the House when- ever voting was to be done, and then carried back. Every man was expected to " do his duty," even if he died in the attempt. And so it went on till March 12, when an ex- citing debate took place, in the course of which Caleb Cushing, of ancient and modern renown, being then a member from Newbury, said that " he would cheerfully confront any personal ex- tremity, he would be content to relinquish for- ever all aspirations as a statesman or a man, ho would think no personal sacrifice too great, if he might thereby avoid such a death-stab to the honor and welfare of the Commonwealth, and such a stain and disaster to the Union as the election to the Senate of the United States of a one-idea abolition agitator to represent the people of Mas- Bachusetts." * II III ♦ In generous contrast with the above, wc gladly insert the fol- lowing later testimony from Mr. CusliiiiLj: " I think the speeches, discourses, an I miscellaneons papers of Mr. Sumner eminently do- serve to be coliacted and published in a complete form. Whatever ^M ^ I- ' 1 I 1G8 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNKR. ■■1 ,|i. , .'i' .; 1 ! ■■< ' :^BH^Bl ' |H|v } mi i From tins wo infer that Mr. Gushing was not a party to the coalition. The session had now reached the 2-4th of April without an election. Trial had been made of voting viva voce and by open l)all()t, without secur- ing for any one the recpiisito majority. Sonic- body, it appeared, was casting two votes. Each side suspected the otiier of foul i)lay. At length Sidney Bartlett, an eminent lawyer, of the Wliig party, thinking that by another method their candidate might gain an advantage, moved, that " in the further balloting, the ballot be placed in an envelope ; and that, where two votes for one person are found in the same envelope, one shall be rejected ; and that, where two votes for diller- ent persons are cast, both shall be rejected ; the envelopes to be of a uniform character, furnished by the sergeant-at-arms." For once the shrewd lawyer committed a blun- diffcrence of opinion there may be in the country concerning the various political doctrines which, in his long senatorial career, he has so earnestly and so steadily maintained, certain it is that his productions constitute an ossonii il part of our public history, as well in foreii:n as in doniesiic relations ; ;anl they are characterized by such qualities of superior intellectual power, cultivated elo- quence, and great and general accomplishment and statesmanship, as entitle them to a high and permanent place in the political litcr- atme of tUo United btates." .I'fi I * A\\ IJFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. IGO J»« der. The Frco Soil mcmbora were deliglitcd at tlio motion, wliicli was carried at once. But there were not envelopes enough in the State House for the unusual demand, and a messenger was hurried ofT to a stationer's for a supply. Meanwhile the Free Soilers were in an agony lest, because of the readiness withwliicli the proposition had been received, a reconsideration might be called for, and one of their number set himself to the task of talking against time. It w.';;S an immense relief when the messenger ap- peared with his box of envelopes, which were to work such wonders for the AVhig party. Immediately the twenty-sixth vote was taken, when, to the dismay of the author of the infallible panacea and his compatriots, Charles Sumner was declared to have received one hundred and nine- ty-three votes, and to be United States senator for six years ; it having required ninety-three days to effect a concurrence of the House with the Senate's vote of January 22d. At that moment the breath of life went out of the Whig party in Massachusetts. A little longer it had a " name to live," but " was dead." r (i ■i- 1 ;;;; - It ( i 170 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. The Democratic party liad gained a temporary triumph, but it was by jiuttiug forward its most powerful future antagonist. Tho real victor was the little i>arty of freedom, which had obtained a leader, who, through " evil report and good report," and through " deaths oft," was to uphold their cause in the national Senate with a consistency and a firmness hitherto unparalleled on the floor of Congress. His election was a national triumph. Congrat- ulations came in from all the Free States, and from the friends of humanity abroad. John G .Whittier, an " original " abolitionist, was among the first to express his gladness at the event. " I rejoice," he wrote to Mr. Sumner, " that, un- pledged, free, and without a single concession or compromise, thou art enabled to take thy seat in the Senate. I never knew such a general feeling of real heart-pleasure and satisfaction as is mani- fested by all except inveterate Hunkers, in view of thy election. The whole country is electrified by it. Sick abed, I heard the guns, Quaker as I am, with real satisfaction." " Thank God, we have at last got a Governor tJiat can walk/^ said an old apple-woman, in the Ml LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 171 year 1707, as Increase Sumner, a cousin of Charles Sunuior'a father, a man of athletic frame and majestic appearance, passed from the Old South Church after the election sermon. Ilis prede- cessors, Adams and Hancock, had been crippled by gout or infirmity. Thank God, Massachusetts had at last got a Sen- ator that could ivalk, and with the firm and upright step of a real man. '^ Laus Deo,^^ wrote Mr. Chase when he heard of the event, and all lovers of free- dom re-ecliocd the senliment. Mr. Sumner heard of the election while at the house of lion. Charles Francis Adams, in Boston, and there received the first congratulations. A. proposition for a public demonstration at his own house in the evening he discountenanced, saying, that, while feeling grateful to friends for their kindness, he was unwilling to do or say anything that could be construed by any one as evidence of personal triumph, — that it was the triumph of the cause, but that his heart dictated silence. The account given in the second volume of his Works, further states, that '^ in the evening there was a n,eeting for congratulation in State Street, where speeches were made by Hon. Henry Wil- ;|t| I 'lit '• ' % ; t ' - s '. f ■ t) ,, ^;\; 4; III ;;j^||y 172 ■ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ^i t\ _ H^till ! n p ' M H ■f- son and others." Tho crowd in Stato Street niovetl to the house oi' Mr. iSuniner, bur, he had left the eity. A well-known colored man of tlio city, Lewis Ilayderj, who ])ad l)(!en a iu^^itive slave, says that towards eveninj^ he met ^Ir. Sumner in Cambridge Street, who said to him, " I am doing* wliat you did once — rurming away. I am a fugi- tive — from my friends." lie was on his way to Cam1)ridge, to his friend, Mr. Longfellow. i3esides other considerations, tlie solemn re- sponsibilities, which he wcsll knew were awaiting liim, may also have weighed heavily upon Mr. Sumner's nnnd. lie was, I'urther, making anotlier great sacri- fice. We have seen liow, at an earlier period, in 1845, and again during the discussions on Prison Discipline, he had lost caste, in distinguished social circles, for his radical novelties, and his crossing the })ath of older and most reverend worthies in church and state. But now, doors which had been partially closed wei'e to be shut in his face. lie had allowed Idmself to be a com- petitor with a gentleman wliom conservative Bos- ton delighted to honor, and had actually takcu 1; fm i.'^i^i LIFE OF CHARLES SUiMNER. 173 poPSCHslon of lliiit digiiifiod position of senator, wliich liad HCoiruMl niado vacant on purpose fox Mr. Willi lirof). This was not to bo endured. ^lostof Mr. Sumner's immediate lihirar)' iVieuds, to wliom lie had been elos(dy hound, now, with very few exceptions, turn(!d their hacks upon In'in. Amou^ the exceptions were !Mr. Prescott and Mr. Lonj^ifeilow, who:,e friendsiiip was iminov- al.'le. One iVirmd, distinguished for his classical attainments, would not, from this time, sfjcak to 1\\]\ Sumner, nor recogniz(3 him when they chanced to ine(!t in the street; tliough in after years a hearty reconciliation took jjlace. Such treatment nuist have saddened Mr. Suimier's lieart, tliougli it could not turn him from his high purpose. Not riato, but 1^'uth. Through all these transactions wo sec the gen- uine greatness of the man. lie did not seek ollice. OfUce souglit him, " No man," says a journal of tliat day, " ever accepted oflice witfi cleaner hands than CliarI(3S Sunnier. lie con- sented to receive the nomination with extreme reluctance. Jlis j)ursuits, his tastes, his aspira- tions, were in a dilFcrcnt direction. He earnestly cntre itcd his friends to Bclect some other candi i 4 1.:. 1 1 1 174 Lira (JF CIIAULIM SL'M.N'KR. 1; "i\ duto. Aftf;r Ik; wns norriinatcHl, un onsliui^lit, uij[)n!0(!(l(;iil-(;'l lor U'Vocliy uiid r()cklut I uin ch(M!r(;d by tli(; j^enerouH conliden<;<5, wiiicli, througiiout a lengthened content, perno- • Daily Coiumon wealth, April 'iO, IH'A, ^:.! m ■viM^' ■^ I'j'f V Wi m ^^ ^'i .■' li i-V '1 ^' ' ■' * i I 17G LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. vcrod in Hustiiiiiiii^ mo, uiid by tlio conviction tliiit, iunidst Jill K(3ominf^ dinbrenccH of party, tlio sentiments of which 1 am tho known iidvocato, and wliich led to my original selection as candi- date, are d(5ar to tlie hearts of the people through- out this commonwealth. . . . "Acknowledging the riglit of my country to tlie services of her sons wlierever she chooses to place them, and with a lieart fuL of gratitude that a sacred cause is permittc;d to triumpli through me, I now accejjt tiie post of senator. " 1 accei)t it as the servant of Massacliusctts, mindl'ul of the sentiiiKnils solemnly uttered by her successive legislatures, of the genius whi(;h in- spires her history, and of the men, her pei'petual pride and ornament, wlu) breatiied into her that br(;ath of liberty which early made her an ex- ample to the States. In sucli service, the way, though new to my footsteps, is illumined by lights which cannot be missed. . . . " Let me borrow, in conclusion, the language of another: 'I see my duty — tiiat of standing lip for the liberties of my country ; and whatever diflicultics and discouragements lie in my way, I daro not shrink from it ; and I rely on that Being ' :f. I i I! ''. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNKR. 177 who liaa not left to us tli(3 clioico of dntioH, tliat, whilst I conscioutiously discliarj^o iniiio, I shall not finally loso my reward.' Thoso arc words at- tiihiitud to Washington in the early (hiys of tho Amcrir'iui revolution. '^J'he rule of duty is Iho saiMO i'or the lowly and the j^reat; and i hope it may n«)t seem presumptuous in one so hiunhle as myself to adopt his determination, and to avow his confidence." And so IMassaehusetts sent Ji Man to represent her in the " high places of the field." Tho same month Horace JMarni wrote from In's y)lace in Washinj^ton, " My dear Sumner, Loals Deo I Good, better, best, better yet ! By tho necessity of tho case, you are now to bo a ])oli- tician — an honest one. Scores have asked whether you would be ti'ue. I have under- written to tho amount of twenty reputatious." 12 'I ' 'i li \^ 17S LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. CHAPTER XV. I ^1 >f •f i i \ I 11! » ; ; ) Li/titu/ up and (JdatiiKj doion. — Thomas Sims a Fuf/Ulvc Hlave. — Udarncd to his " 3ladcr.^^ — Theodore Parkar. — il/r. Sutnricr.s O/ju/ioft. — IIlh First Iteinarkti in the Senate. — Kos- suth. — Land, /Jill. — Jtoads. — J. Fenlmore Coojier. — Drayton and Saifres. — Anxlehj of Mr. S'tnun^r's Friends. — Fufjitive Slave JJilL — AUenipt to riean, and went down a^ain into his prison-house. Doul)th3SS this (ixarnplo of tlio injiistiee and har- l)arity of slavery, ri<:^lit under the sliadow of tlio State II()iis(3, hel[)cd to nerve the friends of free- dom to stand by j\Ir. Hinnncr. 'J'lioriias Sims, f)oor fellow, had found his way to IJoston in search of freedom, nnd for a timo fl'lt compjiratively safe, close by the "Cradle of Liberty." He was seized under the false charge of havini^ stolen a watch, and hurried off, after he had made a stout resistance, to tho Court House, which was converted into a jail. Wliile being taken from tho carriage into the Court House, ho uttered tho broken cry, "I am in tho hands of the kidnappers." Tho jail was guarded by the city marshal and sixty memberH of the city police. A detachment I , .1 ^!i pg— I I'. ' ii:;. ' i ! ;' 180 LIFE OP CriARLr:S SUMNKTl. of tlio military waH also ordered out. Cliaina were placed around Wio Itiiildiu!^, and all citizens wero strictly i)r(>liibi(od aduii.ssion, except members of the press and the har. Belbro the commissioner, Sims was defended l)y llohert Rantoul, Ji*., Ciiarles (I. LoriuLr, and Sanniel E. Sciwail. 'J'he last jj;T;ntl(;man, always an ardent friend of freedom, had s[)eeially inter- ested himself in the case. On the 12th of April, Sims was adjudged to be the property of a man named Potter. In one week more he was back again in Savanir.ih. Being didivered to his "master," ho was taken down State Street, under an escort of two or three hundred men, in violation of the laws of the State, on his way back to the house of bon- dage. It was of this outrage tliat Theodore Parker, who was never silent when liberty was at stake, said at u public meeting, " Nine days he was on trial for more than his lil'e, and never saw a, judge, never saw a jury. He was sent Ibrth into bon- dage from the city of Boston. You remember the chains that were put around the Court House, you remember the judges of Massachusetts stooping, <5 1 ; wcro 1 wcro ors of [brulod ig, iind r iutor- ' April, ' li iriau 19 buck ^3 taken two or aws of uf bon- Parkcr, it Btak(3, waB on a, jud^^o, ito bon- iiber tlio UBO, you tooping, LIFE OF CnARLE3 SUMNER. 181 crovicliinp^, creepinp^, crawling, under the cliains of slavery, in order to get into their own court." The trutli of liistory comfjels ua to add, that "the state and eily aiithoriti(,'s, tlie judieiary, tho military, the merchants," and vary many of tlio citizens, a])proved th(5 surrender. Some months beforcj, Shadrach, a fugitive slave, had been rescued, and iiad escaped. The com- mercial interests of Boston Bcemed to require Borne offering to the slave power, and Sims was made to pass throngh the fire to appease the Southern Moloch. !Mr. Sumner was deeply interested in this in- famous affair. April 19, a week after the rendi- tion, he wrote to Mr. Parker from his oflice in Court Street. Mr. Parker had preached on tho sul)ject on Sunday, the 11th. " i\Iay you live a thousand years, always preaching the truth of Fast day 1 That sermon is a noljle effort. It stirred me to the bottom of my heart, at times softening mo almost to tears, and then again filling me with rage. . . . " You have placed tho commissioner in an im- mortal pillory, to receive tho hootings and rotten eggs of tho advancing generations. . . . >1 I If i n li ■ ) ^^' 182 . LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 1 1 1 1 ; > ■ S"±i. Ldi^^^_ J " My appeal is to tho people, and my hopes to create in iMassaeliusctt?4 hucIi a [)ul)lic o[)ini()n ad will render the law a dead loiter. It is in vain to cxpeet its repeal by Congress till tlio nlavo power is overthrown. " It is, however, witli a rare dementia that this power has staked itself on a position which is so offensive, and which cannot for any length of time bo tenable. In enacting that law, it has given to tho Free States a sphere of discussion which they would otherwise have missed." And so Charles Sumner went to his seat at Washington, and Thomas Sims to a plantation in Georgia. But the lofty senator and tho lowly slave were, after all, co-laborers in tho cause of freedom — yes, and co-sufferers. In December, 1851, Mr. Sumner took his place in the Senate ; and it is an interesting fact, that the very day ho went into the chamber, Henry Clay went out of it, never to return — a fact symbolical of the going out of tho old era of compromise, and the coming in of a new era of principle. Mr. Sumner's first speech in the Senate, De- cember 10, was very short, but it was c^iaracter LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 183 istic of tho man. ITis heart embraced every man wiio, in whatever hind, showed himself tho hcU- sacrilicing friend of onr Htrwgii,-liii^- liuniaiiily. Wiien, then, a resohition was intruchiced by Mr. Seward extending* to Louis Kossntli, the Hun- garian patriot, a national welcome, it had in Mr. Sumner a warm advocate. " I see in him," said he, "■ more than in any other living man, tlio power wliieh may bo exerted by a single earnest, honest soul in a noble cause. . . . lie seems at times the fiery sword of freedom, and then tho trumpet of resurrection to tlie nations." Mr. Sumner regarded slavery as now tho one supremo question, but he could and did take a comprehensive survey of all sul)jccts of na- tional importance. And altliough senator from ^lassachusetts, he also knew that ho was senator of the United States. Hence, when, in February, 1852, a bill camo up affecting the interests of tho laud States in tho West, — the Iowa Eailroad ]>ill, ■ — ho strongly urged a grant of land to that State in aid of certain railroads. Hear what ho had to sav about roads : — " It would bo difficult to exaggerate tho in- fhieuco of roads as means of civilization. This at i ' 1 ■ 1 , 1 H I ! -' It I o^. \t>^S. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) I.I IfiM IIIIIM 2.2 1.25 1^ 1^ 1.8 U IIIIII.6 '<^A ^' ♦v '^'T J9 '-y # j% A" iV \ ^\^ * * ^n> ^1> ^ k W ■ 1^1 II If" i 5 I i.r * iHi< m ■ mkcs-^ .,. I r '^ 1 r''' i' I ii' P^ 184 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. least may be said, where roads are not, civili>ia- tion cannot, be ; and civilization advances as roads are extended. By roads religion and knowledge are dilFused, — intercourse of all kinds is pro- moted, — producer, manufacturer, and consumer are all brought nearer together, — commerce IS quickened, markets are created, — property, wherever touched by these lines, as by a magic rod is changed into new value ; and the great current of travel, like that stream of classic fable, or one of the rivers of our own California, hur- ries in a channel of golden sand. The roads, to- gether with the laws, of ancient Rome are now better remembered than her victories. IIig Flaminian and Appian Ways, once trod by such great destinies, still remain as beneficent repre- sentatives of ancient grandeur. Under God, the road and the schoolmaster are two chief agents of human improvement. The education begun by the schoolmaster ?s expanded, liberalized, and completed by intercourse with the world ; and this intercourse finds now opportunities and in- ducements in every road that is built." About the same time, Mr. Sumner, in responso to an invitation to a proposed demonstration in LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. Ifea memory of J. Fenimore Cooper, paid a just ahd graceful tribute to the great American novelist : '' As an author of clear and manly prose, as a poi'trayer to the life of scenes on land and sea, as a master of the keys to human feelings, and as a beneficent contributor to the general fund of happiness, he is remembered with delight. As a patriot who loved his country, who illus- trated its history, who advanced its character abroad, and by his genius won for it the unwill- ing regard of foreign nations, he deserves a place in the hearts of the American people." Some time after this, Mr. Sumner became in- terested in the case of two men, Drayton and Sayres, incarcerated at Washington for helping the escape of slaves. On the 14th of May, he submitted an opinion to the president upon his pardoning power, hoping to effect their release. The case is thus stated by Mr. Sumner him- self: — '^ This case, from beginning to end, is a curious episode of anti- slavery history. The people of Washington were surprised, on the morning of April 16, 1848, at hearing that the 'Pearl,' a schooner from the North, had sailed down ■■t,: M \l- l' »H-; 186 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. IM h ; If. 'K I' 1-1 VM the Potomac with seventy-six slaves, who had hurried aboard in the vain hope of obtaining tlieir freedom. The schooner was pursued and brought back to Washington, with her human cargo, and the h'berators, Drayton, master, and SayreSj mate. As the latter were taken from the river-side to the jail, they were followed by a pro-slavery mob, estimated at irom four to six thousand people, many armed with deadly weap- ons, amid wrathful cries of — 'Hang him!' ' Lynch him ! ' with all profanities and abom- inations of speech, and exposed to violence of all kinds, — the thrust of a dirk-knife coming within an inch of Drayton. The same mob be- sieged the jail, and, hearing that Hon. Joshua R. Giddings, the brave representative of Ohio, T7as there in consultation with the prisoners, demanded his immediate expulsion; and the jailer, to save bloodshed, insisted v.pon his de- parture. Nor was the prevailing rage confined to the jail. It extended to the office of tlie National Era, the anti-slavery paper, which was saved from destruction only through tho courage and calmness of its admirable editor. Tho spirit of the mob entered both houses of 1 ' '^''^'^'^'''illH 1 awJlM^^mi "^7 he lio LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 187 Congress, and the slave-masters raged, as was their wont. " Meanwhile, Drayton and Say res were in- dicted before the Criminal Court of the Dis- trict of Columbia, for ' transporting slaves.' There were no less than one hundred and fifteen indictments against each of the prisoners, and the bail demanded of each was seveniy-six thousand dollars. Hon. Horace IMann, a rep- resentative of Massachusetts, appeared for the defence. His speech on tliis occasion will be read with constant interest. The spirit of the mob without entered the court-room, betraying itself even in the conduct of the judge, while, standing near the devoted counsel for the de- fence, were men who cocked pistols and drew dirks in the mob that followed the prisoners to the jail. Of course the verdict was ' guilty,' and the sentence was according to the extreme requirement of a barbarous law. " Drayton and Sayres lingered in prison more than four years, and during this long incarcera- tion, they were the objects of much sympatliy nt the North. A petition io Congress in tlieir be- half, signed by leading abolitionists, including tLj nm ;!i?; h. ti : I \v\ § ii: TW 188 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. %t ''I 1*^ f* ' ; 1 ( ! •H >^ I'P' 1 1 :i!f: mi: ^1 -'fl ri 11 eloquent Wendell Phillips, was fjrwarded to Mi. Sumner for presentation to the Senate. On care- lul consideration, he was satisfied that sucli a petition, if presented, would. excite the dominant power to insist more strongly than ever on tlio letter of tlie law, and he took the responsibility of withholding it. Meanwhile he visited the suf- ferers in prison, and appealed to President Fill- more for their pardon. In this application ho was aided by that humane lady, Miss Dix. The president interposed doubts of his right to par- don in such a case, but expressed a desire for light on this point. " At Ins invitation, Mr. Sumner laid befiyre him a paper, which was referred to the attorney-gen- eral, Mr. Crittenden, who gave an opinion affirm- ing the power of the president ; adding, however, * Whether the power shall be exercised in this instance is another and very different question.' This opinion bears date August 4, 1852, which, it will be observed, was some time after the presi- dential convention of the two great political par- ties. Shortly afterwards the pardon was granted. " There was reason to believe that an attempt would be made to arrest the pardoned persons LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 189 on warrants from the governor of Virginia. An- ticipating this peril, j\Ir. Sumner, as soon as the pardon was signed, hurried to the jail in a car- riage, and, taking them with him, put them in charge of a friend, who conveyed them that night to Baltimore, a distance of forty miles, where they arrived in season for the early morn- ing trains north, and in a few hours were out of danger." * About seven months had now elapsed since Mr. Sumner took his seat in Congress ; and yet, with the exception of brief remarks on present- ing a memorial from some Friends against the Fugitive Slave Bill, his voice had not been heard in defence of the great cause for which mainly he had been sent there. His friends in Massa- chusetts began to feel some measure of anxiety. Theodore Parker had written to him, more than a year before, " I hope you will be the senator with a conscience. I look to you to represent justice. I expect much of you. I expect heroism of the most heroic kind." Writing to Dr. S. G. Howe, Mr. Parker said, " Do you see what imminent • "Works of Charles Sumner. Boston : Lee & Shepartl. ) I , t*.'1 J t M \ '■ l:t( t'.' 4»!i mm 190 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. ^m'''^% I'm * ' M'hi ■fi'ifm • 1 W,' !« II deadly peril poor Sumner is in ? If ho does not speak, then ho is dead." So potent in previous years had been the Southern spell, either by blandislimcnts or men- aces., to seal the lips of Northern men upon the subject of slavery, that it is scarcely strange that doubts even of Charles Sumner's courage and conscience began to arise ; for ho, too, had been approached, in the old way so well understood by Southern gentlemen, with soft and courteous words. But our Samson was not to be taken in the toils Avliich had captured so many Northern men. IIo knew what their polished ];hrases meant. He had counted the cost, and was all the while but watching his opportunity. At length, July 27, 1852, he broke silence. " I have a resolu- tion," said he in his place, " which I desire to offer ; and as it is not in order to debate it to- day, I give notice that I shall exnect to call it up to-morrow, at an early moment in the morning Lour, when I shall throw myself upon the indul- gence of the Senate to be heard upon it. " ' Resolved, That the committee on the judi- ciary bo instructed to consider the expediency LIFE OF CHARLES SUMXER. 191 u of reporting a bill for tlie immediute repeal of tlio act of Congress, approved September 18, 1850, known as tlio Futi-itivo vSlavo Act.' " The next day lie asked permission to take up the resolution. " Aa a senator," he said, "under the responsibilities of my position, I have deemed it my duty to oiler the resolution. I may seem to have postponed this duty to an inconvenient period of the session ; but had I attempted it at an earlier day, I might have exposed my?elf to a charge of a dilTerent character. It might have been said, that, a new-comer, and inexperienced in this scene, without deliberation, hastily, rashly, recklessly, I pushed this question before the country. This is not the case now. I have taken time, and, in the exercise of my most careful dis- cretion, at last ask the attention of the Senate." And then he added, " Make such disposition of my resolution afte -wards as to you shall seem best ; visit upon me any degree of criticism, censure, or displeasure ; but do not refuse me a hearing. ' Strike, but hear.' " The Senate, by a vote of thirty-two against ten, refused to hear him. Those who voted in the affirn;ative were Messrs. Clarke, Davis, Dodge, mi^ J: i ^ • U i'i 192 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNETl. II 5rf'' , ; f' ./, 1*- f *- ■. 1 ' X Foot, Ilamlin, Seward, Shields, Upham, and Wade. The slave power boasted, tliat, for that session at least, the Massachusetts abolitionist should not be heard. But while his enemies boasted, his friends cen- sured. Even now suspicion was not entirely removed. Surely Mr. Sunmer mi^ht contrive some way to compel a hearing, if he wished to. So said many of his friends in Massachusetts. Even the Liberator allowed itself to indulge in an ungenerous fling at tlie silent senator. He must be under an overseer ! Theodore Parker, too, who knew Mr. Sumner so well, was not satis- fied, and so he wrote to him. To this the sena- tor replied, August 11, — " 1 will not argue the question of past delay. To all that can be said on that head, there is this explicit answer. With a heart full of devotion to our cause, in the exercise of my best discre- tion, and on the advice or with the concurrence of friends, I have waited. It may be that this was unwise, but it was honestly and sincerely adopted, with a view to serve the cause. Let this pass. " You cannot desire a speech from me more f \Q LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 193 than I desire to miike one. I came to the Senate on my late motion (July 27), prepared for the work, licping to be allowed to go on, with the promise of leaders from all sides that I should have a hearing. I was cut off. No chance for courtesy. I must rely upon my rights. •^ You tell me no1> to wait for the Civil Appro- priation Bill. I know that it is hardly within the range of possibilities that any other bill should come forward, before this bill, to which my amendment can be attached. For ten days we have been on the Indian Appropriation Bill. With this the Fugitive Slave Bill is not ger- mane. " The Civil Appropriation Bill will probably pass the House to-day. It will come at once to the Senate, be referred to the Committee on Finance, be reported back by them with amend- ments. After the consideration of these amend- ments of the committee, and not he/ore, my chance will come. For this I am prepared, with a deter- mination equal to your own. All this delay is to me a source of grief and disappointment. But I know my heart ; and I know that sincerely, singly, I have striven for the cause. 13 ■•■ 'i\ ' I i E '* W^ 1 1 I I ■J ^ 1 w 194 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. " You remember tlio picture in tlie ' Ancient Mariner ' of tlie ship in tlie terrible cahn ? In such a cahn is my sbip at this moment ; I cannot move it. But I claim the conGdonce of friends, for I know that I deserve it. . . . There is a time for all things." Directly after ho wrote again, " In my course I have thought little what people would say, whether Hunkers or Free Soilers, hut how I could •most serve the cause. This consciousness sustains me now, while I hear reports of distrust, and note the gibes of the press. " Nothing hut death or deadly injustice, over throwing all rule, can prevent rue from speaking. In waiting till I did, I was right." It looks to us, at this time, as if Mr. Parker acted with a measure of officiousness, too much in the character of a conscience-keeper, when he thus seemed to dictate to Mr. Sumner his line of duty; though, perhaps, he used only the frank freedom of a friend. But Mr. Sumner, on the spot, best understood ^'is position, its difScuUies and opportunities. Af- ter the 26th of August there was no more distrust. We may here premise, that a chief artifice of MM. It. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 195 tho Wliigfl iind Democrats — both bidding for Soutliern patronago — was tho cry, that tlioy, standing by the coniproniiso measures, consti- tuted the national piirty, wliilo all otiiers were cliargeable with sectionalism. Mr. Sumner de- termined to reverse the order, to prove that freedom was national, slavery sectional. But how could ho get a hearing before a body which had just commanded silence ? No thanks to tho Senate. The Civil Diplomatic Appropriation Bill being under consideration, tho following amend- ment was proposed by Mr. Hunter, of Virginia : — " That, where the ministerial officers of the United States have or shall incur extraordinary expenses in executing the laws thereof, the pay- ment of which is not specifically provided for, the President of the United States is authorized to allow the payment thereof, under the special taxation of the District or Circuit Court of the District in which the said services have been or shall be rendered, to be paid from the appropria- tion for defraying the expenses of the Judiciary." The " extraordinary expenses " of course meant those incurred in the apprehension, trial, and rendition of fugitive slaves, under the recently enacted Fugitive Slave Bill. 196 ■LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. fill His hour had come. Mr. Sumner immediately moved the following amendment to the amend- ment : — " Frovidedf That no such allowance shall bo authorized for any expenses incurred in execut- ing the act of September 18, 1850, for the sur- rendci of fugitives from service or labor ; which said act is hereby repealed." When it was known that Mr. Sumner intended to sj^eak, several senators came to him, begging him to desist from his purpose. He replied, " God willing, I shall speak, and press the ques- tion to a vote, even if I am left alone." He did speak, and for nearly four hours. It must have been a thrilling scene. There, before the speaker, were his fellow-senators, all of them bitter opponents, or timid friends, save a little handful of hated, yet despised abolitionists, a helpless minority. He was to speak upon a sub- ject so " delicate," that barely to mention it was to throw the slaveholding members into spasms, — he one subject which alone, of au others, might not be brought into discussion. "Whigs and Democrats had combined to compel him to silence ; hitherto with success. But behold, ho has the floor, and they must hear him. lii LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 197 Mr. Sumner knew that ho was addressing more than the Senate. The whole country was his au- dience. And ho rose to the greatness and solem- nity of the occasion. Inspired by a profound sense of justice, sustained by a firm conviction that ho was right, and by the certain belief in tho final triumph of his cause, ho knew that ho had tho advantage of his opponents. Ho knew that their consciences wore on his side ; and he looked them in the face without quailing. There was a voice which said to him, " Fear not, for they that bo with us are more than they that bo with them." IIo knew that in *• dear old Massachusetts " and elsewhere, he had tho warm sympathies of valued friends of humanity. His was the cause of God. " Mr. President," ho began, " here is a provis- ion for extx'aordinary expenses incurred in exe- cuting tho laws of the United States. Extraordi- nary expenses ! Sir, beneath these specious words lurks tho very subject on which, by a solemn vote of this body, I was refused a hearing. Hero it is ; no longer open to the charge of being an ' ab- straction,' but actually presented for practical legislation ; not introduced by mo, but by the sinator from Virginia (Mr. Huutor), on the roc* 4 i'M ■M, ' *lfl 11* ' . ■ ,? , rl IT 1, fr 1 J t||f :i'' i 1 J V if ! 1 1 f. ■1.:. 1] 1 , 'i: [9 ^ JK*' 'Mj W' 1 i 198 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ommendation of an important committee of the Senate; not bronglit forward weeks ago, when tliiM'e was ample time for discussion, but only at this moment, without any reference to the late period of the session. The amendment which I offer proposes to remove one chief occasion of these extraordinary expenses. Beyond all con- troversy or cavil, it is strictly in order. And now, at last, among these final crowded days of our duties here, but at this earliest opportunity, I am to be heard — not as a favor, but as a right. The graceful usages of this body may be abandoned, but the established jirivileges of debate cannot be abridged. Parliamentary courtesy may be for- gotten, but parliamentary law must prevail. The subject is broadly before the Senate. By the blessing of God it shall be discussed. " With me, sir, there is no alternative. Pain- fully convinced of the unutterable wrong and woe of slavery, — profoundly believing that, accord- ing to the true spirit of the Constitution and the sentiments of the fathers, it can find no place under our national government, — that it is in every respect sectional, and in no respect national, — that it is always and everywhere creature and rr I LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 199 dependant of the States, and never anywhere creature or dependant of the Nation, and tliat the Nation can never, by legislative or other act, im- part to it any support under the Constitution of the United States, — with these convictions I could not allow this session to reach its close without making or seizing an opportunity to de- clare myself openly against the usurpation, injus- tice, and cruelty of the late intolerable enactment for the recovery of fugitive slaves. Full well I know, sir, the difficulties of this discussion, aris- ing from prejudices of opinion and from adverse conclusions, strong and sincere as my own. Full well I know that I am in a small minority, with few here to whom I can look for sympathy o.- sup- port. Full well I know that I must utter things unwelcome to many in this body, which I cannot do without pain. Full well I know that the insti- tution of slavery in our country, whicli I now proceed to consider, is as sensitive as it is power- ful, possessing a power to shake the whole land, with a sensitiveness that shrinks and trembles at the touch. But while these things may properly prompt me to caution and ) '^erve, they cannot change my duty or my dctermmation to perform • Ml 1:1 I' I I ; Si I I ::2-|;i I ! ■ ' j 1 : . :j : I. : ) V > :'» li ,1 in"- !•(.; k i!:' 200 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNE^ it. For tliis I willingly forget mystlf and all per- sonal consequences. The favor and good-will of my fellt^w-citizens, of my brethren c .iio Senate, Bir, grateful to ine as they justly arc, I am ready, if required, to sacrifice. Whatever I am or may bo I freely offer to this cause. " Party docs not constrain mo ; nor is my inde- pendence lessened by any relations to the office which gives me a title to be heard on this floor. He-e, sir, I speak proudly. By no effort, by no desire of my own, I find myself a senator of the United States. Never before have I held public office of any kind. With the ample opportunities of private life I was content. No tombstone for me could bear a fliirer inscription than this : ' Here lies one who, without the hon- ors or emoluments of jmblic station, did something for his fellow-men.' From such simple aspira- tions I was taken away by the free choice of my native Commonwealth, and placed at this respon- sible post of duty, without personal obligations of any kind, beyond what was implied in my life and published words. . . . "• Rejoicing in my independence, and claiming nothing from party ties, I throw myself upon the I*' LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 201 candor and magnanimity of the Senate. I ask your attention ; I trust not to abuse it. I may speak strongly, for I shall speak upcnly, and from the strength of my convictions. I may speak warmly, for I shall speak from the Heart. But in no event can I forget the amenities which belong to debate, and which especially become this body. Slavery I must condemn with my whole soul ; but here I need only borrow the language of slaveholders ; nor v/ould it accord with my habits or my sense of justice to exhibit them as the imperscation of the institution — Jefferson calls it the ' enormity ' — which they cherish. Of them I do not speak ; but without fear and with- out favor, as without impeachment of any person, I assail this wrong. Again, sir, I may err ; but it will be with the fathers. I plant myself on the ancient ways of the republic, with its grand- est names, its surest landmarks, and all its origi- nal altar-fires about me." Keferring to the effort to suppress free speech, Mr. Sumner said, " But. sir, this effort is impotent as tyrannical. Convictions of the heart cannot be repressed. Utterances of conscience must bo heard. Tliey break forth with irrepressible H U ! 41(1 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. miglit. A: well attempt to check tlio tides of Ocean, the cur^ellt^^ of the Mississippi, or the rush- ing waters of Niagara. Tlie discussion of slavery will proceed, wherever two or three are gathered together — by the fireside, on the highway, at the public meeting, in the church. The movement against slavery is from the Everlasting Arm. Even now it is gatliering its forces, soon to bo confessed everywhere. It may not be felt yet in the high places of office and power, but all who can put their ears humbly to the ground will hear and comprehend its incessant and advancing tre.ad." 'The argument proving the national character of freedom is thus condensed : " Considering that slavery is of such an offensive character that it can find sanction only in ' positive law,' and that it has no such * positive ' sanction in the Constitu- tion, — that the Constitution, according to its preamble, was ordained to ' establish justice ' and 'secure the blessings of liberty,' — that, in the convention which framed it, and also elsewhere at the time, it was declared not to sanction slavery, — that, according to the Declaration of Independence, and the Address of the Continen- tal Congress, the nation was dedicated to ' liber LIFE OF CHARLES SUMN1:R. 203 ty ' and tVo ' riglits of Imman nature/ — that, ac- cording to the principles of the common law, the Constitution must be interpreted openly, actively, and perpetually for freedom, — that, according to the decision of the Supreme Court, it acts upon slaves, not as propertf/, but as persons, — tliat, at the first organization of the national government under Washington, slavery had no national favor, existed nowhere on the national territory, be- neath the national flag, but was openly con- demned, by nation, church, colleges, and litera- ture of the time, — and finally, that according to an amendment of the Constitution, the national government can exercise only powers delegated to it, among which is none to support slavery, — considering these things, sir, it is impossible to avoid the single conclusion that slavery is in no respect a national institution, and that the Constitution nowhere upholds property in man. V Mr. Sumner thus characterized the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 : " Oppression by an individual is detestable ; but oppression by law is worse. Hard and inscrutable, wlicn the law, to which the citizen naturally looks for protection, boconioa %^ i V i y i ft' ' 204 LIFS OF CHAI^LFS SUMNER. itself a standing poril. As the sword takes tlio place of tlie shield, despair settles down like a cloud. . . . " With every attempt to administer the Slave Act, it constantly becomes more revolting, partic- ularly in its influence on tlio agents it enlists. The spirit of the law passes into them, as the devils entered the swine. Upstart commissioners, mere mushrooms of courts, vie and re-vie with each other. Now by indecent speed, now by harshness of manner, now by denial of evidence, now by crippling the defence, and now by open, glaring wrong, they make the odious Act yet more odious. Clemency, grace, and justice die in its presence. All this is observed by the world. Not a case occurs which does not harrow the souls of good men, bringing tears of sympatliy tr the eyes, and those other noble tears which ' patriots shed over dying laws.' " The heroism that shows itself in efforts to re- gain lost freedom is thus strikingly described: " Less by genius or eminent service than by suf- fering are the fugitive slaves of our country now commended. For them every sentiment of hu- manity is aroused. LTFE OP CIIARLKS SUMNER. 205 ' "Who could refrain, That hrd a heart to l;)Vc. und in that heart Coura-^e to make his love known ?' Riulo and ignorant they may bo, but in tlicir very cllbrts for Irccduni tlioy claim Idndrod Rom I has witii all that is noble in the past, itomance no stories of more thrilling interest. Classical antiquity has preserved no examples of adventure and tri;d moro worthy of renown. They are among tne heroes of our age. Among them are those wlioso names will be treasured in the an- nals of their race. By eloquent voice they have done much to make tlieir wrongs known, and to secure the resr>ect of the world. History will soon lend her avenging pen. Proscribed by you during life, ""hey will proscribe you through all time. Sir, already judgment is beginning. A righteous public sentiment palsies your enact- ment." The speech was followed by a debate, in which nineteen senators, from eighteen different States, took part ; all in opposition to Mr. Sumner's amendment, except Mr. Chase, of Ohio, and Mr. Elale, of New Hampshire. Mr. Seward was ab- sent. Senators from nine Free States were among ■ t ' J 1 ■<,K^ ; ■'■:i ;..1.| hi 1771 - ! M 206 ^IFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. '> J ill ' the opponents. Three Soiitliern scniitorrf indulged in personalities. Mr. Chase, afterwards the hon- ored seeretary of the treasury during tlie civil war, and yet later, chief justice of the yui)renio Court of the United States, said," In my judgment the s])eech of my friend from INhissachusetts will mark an era in American history." Henry Wil- son, afterwards, for so many yenrs, his co-agita- tor in the national Senate, and always his friend and able supporter, Wendell Phillips, Stephen C. Phillips, and many others, wrote to Mr. Sumner in a similar strain. Tho vote which followed tl: debate tells the sad tale of a Senate sold to slavery. On Mr. Sumner's amendment : Yeas, 4 ; nays, 47. Tho four were Messrs. Chase, Hale, Wade, and Sum- ner. But that small vote did not tell tho whole story. The truth had had a hearing. Moreover, it had awakened the consciences, and touched the deeper, better feelings of some of the Southern auditors. A letter written to Rev. Dr. Stebbins, about two months later, gives us a very interesting in- sight into Mr. Sumner's feelings at this time, and W:i LIFE OF CHARLES SUMIER. 207 also kIiows tlio ^lappy cfTuct of his speech, oven upon slavchulders : — "Newport, Tl. I., October 12, '52. *•' ^Iy I)i:ar Sir: \ cuniiot receive tlio overflow- ing sympiithy uf your letter without a response. It has added to niy happiness. Tlie interest you express in tliat speech, and particularly in tho latter part of it, emholdens mo to writo of it moro freely tlian I liave before. ♦ " I went to the Senate determined to do my duty, but in my own way. Anxious ibrthe cause, having it always in mind, I knew that I could not fail in loyalty, though I might err in judgment. All my instincts prompted delay. But mrinwhilo I was taunted and attacked at home. Had I been less conscious of the rectitude of my course, I might have sunk under these words. But I per- severed in my own way. " As I deliverv. "■ the part to which you refer, I remember well the intent looks of the Senate, and particularly of Mr. King [president, pro tcm., of the Senate]. It was already dinner time, but all were silent and attentive, and Hale [John P Hale, of N. 11.] tells me that I\Ir. Underwood, of Kentucky, by his side, was in tears. " From many leading Southern men I have re- ceived the strongest expressions of interest awa- kened m our cause, anrl a confession that they did ( ■i. if ' 1 ■ * 1 "'.■:■. ; J-is'l; 1 r i \-m !•': I 'j I 0i Hi 208 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. not Icnow before the strength of tlio argument on our side Polk, of Tennessee, said to me, ' If you sliould make that speech in Tennessee, you wouhl compel me to emancipate ^ ly niggers.' But enough of this. I have been tempted to it by tho generosity of your letter. " Thankfully and truly yours, "CUARLFS SUMNEB." A' LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 200 ;i ' V CHAPTER XVI. Return to JllassachuJcUs. — Warm Welcome. — Speech at Lowell. — Free Soil Party, — Super in- iendeuts of Armories. — Convention to revise the Constitution of 3Iassachusei/s. — Colored Mili- tia. — 21te Rcprese) dative System. — Nebraska and Kansas. — Stephen A. Doufjlas. — Mr. Sumner's Speech. — Final Protest. Mr. Sumner, on his return to Massachusetts, at the close of the session, was warmly welcomed by the friends of freedom. He had done his duty well, under circumstances of the most trying character. Where others had failed, he had not. At the State Convention of the Free Soil party, lield in Lowell, September 15, 1852, presided over by Stephen C. Phillips, of Salem, Mr. Sum- ner was received with much enthusiasm. " After an absence," he said, " of many months, ^ have now come home to breathe anew the in- vigorating Northern air, to tread again the free U IH {l^\ ■i d^ I V ■|l^ I 'I; ROMKM 210 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 6 * m I. fM s--' mt rj I 11 soil of our native Massachusetts, and to enjoy the sympatliy of friends and fellow-citizens. But, while glad in your greetings, thus bounteously lavislied, I cannot accept them for myself. I do not deserve them, 'i'iiey belong to the cause which we all have at licart, and which binds us together, ... I have done nothing but my duty." Farther on he said, " At the present time in our country, there exists a deep, controlling, con- scientious feeling against slavery. . . . The rising public opinion cannot flow in the old political chan- nels. It is impeded, choked, and dammed back. "But i^ not through iiiG old parties, then over the old parties, this irresistible current s^ all fmd It^ way. It cannot be permanently stopped. If iho old parties will not become its organs, they must become its victims. The party of Freedom will certainly prevail. It may be by entering into and possessing one of the old parties, filling it with our own strong life ; or it may be by drawing to itself the good and true from both, who are un- willing to continue in a political combination when it ceases to represent their convictions ; but, in one way or the other, its ultimate triumph is sure. " At this moment we are in a minority. At the ii:* LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 21\ h to n le. \Q last popular election in Massachusetts tlierc wcro twenty-eight thousand Free Soilers, forty-threo thousand Democrats, and sixty-four thousand "Whigs. But this is no reason for discouragement. According to recent estimates, the population of the whole world amounts to about eight hundred millions. Of these, only two hundred and sixty millions are Christians, while the remaining five hundred and forty millions arc mainly Mahome- tans, Brahmins, and idolaters. Because the Chris- tians are in this minority, that is no reason for renouncing Christianity, and for surrendering to the false religions ; nor do we doubt that Chris- tianity will yet prevail over the whole earth, as the waters cover the sea. The friends of free- dom in Massachusetts are likewise in a minority ; but they will not, therefore, renounce freedom, nor surrender to the political Mahometans, Brah- mins, and idolaters of Baltimore ; nor can they doubt that their cause, like Christianity, will yet prevail." Then, referring to the candidates of the party, he added, " With such a cause and such candi- dates, no man can bo disheartened. The tempest may blow, — but ours is a life-boat, not to be H^'^l^!' I 1 ■ *■ ,\ii tl -v,! 'si ...1 • t ■ i I .' I 1-fi! V m J*1 .it , !! \ ': U.|f,j \ : ■liJ.« i^ r 212 •^.IFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. harmed b^ wind or wnve. The Genius of Liberty sits at the helm. I hear her voice of cheer say- ing, * AVhoso sails with me comes to shore.' " On his return to the Senate, next year, Mr. Sum- ner made some remarks in iavor of employing civil instead of military superintendents of armories. Hero his peace principles came out — another, though slight, example of his remarkable consist- ency. " I do affirm confidently," he said, " that the genius of our institutions favors civil life rather than military life, — and that, in harmony •. 'Ui this, it is our duty, whenever the public interests will permit, to limit and restrict the sphere of military influence. This is not a military monarcliy, where the soldier is supreme, but a republic, where the soldier yields to the civilian. ... " The idea which has fallen from so many sen- ators, that the superintendent of an armory ought to be a military man, . . . seems to me to be as illogical as the jocular fallacy of Dr. Johnson, that he ' who drives fiit oxen should himself be fat.' " Mr. Sumner was a member of the convention which met in 1853 to revise and amend the con- stitution of Massachusetts. He was an able and influential member. Among other resolutions I ill LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 213 wliicli he advocated was the following: "That ill UiG org'inization of the vokiiitocr inihtary com- panies of the Coinnionweuhh there shall be no dist'indlon of color or 7'acc." lie also spoke on the rcpre-;cntative system and its pro))er basis, and on bills of rights — their history and policy. On the former topic he s;iid, " This is an in- vention of modern times. In anti(]^iiity there were republics and democracies, but there was no representative system. Rulers were chosen by tlie people, as in many connnonwealths : senators were designated by tlie king or by the censors, as in Rome ; amliassadors or legates were sent to a federal council, as to the Assembly of the Am- phictyons ; but in no ancient state was any body of men ever constituted by the people to repre- sent them in the administration of their internal affairs. In Athens, the people met in public as- sembly, and directly acted for themselves on all questions, foreign or domestic. This was possi- ble there, as the state was small, and the Assem- bly seldom exceeded five thousand citizens, — a large town-meeting, or mass-meeting, we might call it, — not inaptly termed ' that fierce democ* ratie ' of Athens." 1 w ?■ i i mm 11 .^.i^. iii- '• ''U : . ■;. Ml] n I. f, t ) L! » Hi 214 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. After alluding to the representative system as it exists in Engliincl, Mr. Samncr said, that " to our country belongs tlio honor of first giving to the world the idea of a system wliicli, discarding corporate representation [as in KnghmdJ, founded itself absolutely on equality." Tlie American system, as distinguished from the Englisli, is the applying the rule of three to representation — a representation not according to property, not according to territory, not according to any cor- porate riglits, but of persons, according to their re- spective numbers. " It gives to the great princi- ple of human equality a now expansion and ap- plication. It makes all men, in the enjoyment of the electoral francliiso, wliatever their diversi- ties of intelligence, education, or wealth, or where- soever they may be within the borders of the commomvealtli, whether in small town or popu- lous city, absolutely equal at the ballot-box." '' I cannot doubt that the district system, whereby tlie representative power will bo dis- tributed in just proportion, according to the rule of three, among the voters of the Commonw^ealth, is the true system, destined at no distant day to prevail." t ■ i at ,■ N LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 216 In tins connection Mr. Sumner said, " No law- giver or statesman can dirfregard citlier history or abstract reason. He must contemplate both. lie will faithfully study tlie Fast, and will recog- nize its treasures and traditions ; but, with equal fidelity, he will set his face towards the Future, where all institutions will at last be in harmony with truth." Mr. Sumner's return to his scat in 1853 was Bignalized by a new and more audacious stage in the pro-slavery movement. Disappointed in Cali- fornia, the Soutli was looking about for the means of extending the area of slavery even into re- gions from whicli it had been forever excluded by solemn compact. Thus originated the great struggle about Kansas and Nebraska. New States were soon to be formed out of the Terri tory of Nebraska, lying north of thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north latitude, i'lie slave power coveted this fertile region — this garden of Naboth. A Northern man, a native of free New Eng- land, Stephen A. Douglas, senator from Illinois, was the chief instrument in the perpetration of the great crime which soon followed. lie sub- ' r ' . ! ■ ■ ■( 1 . ] i a I 1 % > .1 i I mi: •\i] 1 216 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ir.i ii'i I Mf t ■MHjjIv BHiMt': PH ■')%p^<^, |j|;4 >9l iiBH ■ iM LiSfl liP ' ^ mitted a bill, dividing tho Territory into two, Nebraska and Kansas, and declaring tlio prohibi- tion of slavery contained in the Missouri Com- promise of 1820 " incon.-astent with the principles of non-intervention by Congress witli slavery in the States and Territories, as recognized by tlio legislation of 1850, commonly called the Com- promise Measures." According to this bill, Congress wns not to legislate slavery into, nor exclude it from, any Territory or State, but to leave the people thereof perfectly free to form and regulate their domestio institutions in their own way, subject only to the Constitution of the United States. This was just what was wanted by the South — a chance to carry slavery into all the no\v Territories. Mr. Sumner spoke most earnestly against the repeal of the Missouri prohibition of slavery, taking for his motto, " Cursed be he that re- moveth his neighbor's landmark, and all the peo- ple shall say, Jmen.^' TIio last words were em- phasized by Mr. Sumner in the printed speech, indicating his remarkable, unwavering faith in the triumph of Right. These were his opening words : — I LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 217 1^ " I approach tliis discussion with awe. Tho mighty question, with untold issues, ()p[)rcssc3 me. Like a portentous cloud surcharged with irresistible storm and ruin, it seems to till tho whole heavens, making me painfully conscious how unequal to the occasion I am — how une(pial, also, is all that I can sav to all that I feel. " The question for your consideration . . . con- cerns an immense region, larger than the original thirteen States, vying in extent with all the exist- ing Free States, — stretching over prairie, field, and forest, — interlaced by silver streams, skirted by protecting mountains, and constituting tho heart of the North American continent — only a little smaller, let me add, than three great European countries combined, — Italy, Spain, and France, — each of which, in succession, has domJnated over the globe. This territory has been likened, on this floor, to the garden of God. . . . The bill now before us proposes to organize and equip two new territorial establishments, with govern- ors, secretaries, legislatures, councils, legislators, judges, marshals, and the whole machinery of civil society. Such a measure at any time would deserve the most careful attention. But at the il . : :: Mil. mmmm^ mf ■ lU ^ -fe . 218 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. V' '.'' Hii mm ■n in. f lil ::: -iiiii ..5 . ' i Ik '1 ^BflB i H liii 1 fl n ill 1 present moment it justly excites peculiar interest, from the efFort made ... to open this immeuso region to slavery." Mr. Sumner arraigned this bill on two grounds : " First, in the name of public faith, as an infrac- tion of solemn obligations. . . . Secondly, in the name of freedom, as an unjustifiable departure from the original anti-slavery policy of our fathers." He showed that Southern members urged the compromise of 1820, and tliat it passed both Houses luithout a division. It was as much d Southern as a Northern measure. It was ap- proved by John C. Calhoun and other Southern members of Monroe's cabinet. Mr. Sumner would have the South keep the compact. To the argument tliat this proposition was a measure of peace, he replied, '' Peace depends ou mutual confidence. It can never rest secure on broken faith and mjustice ; " and he added, " Amidst all seeming discouragements, the great omens are with us. Art, literature, poetry, re- ligion, everything which elevates man, are all on our side. The plough, the steam engine, the telegraph, the book, every human improvement, every generous word anywhere, every true pulsa- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 219 tion of every lieart wliich is not a mere muscle and notliing else, gives new encounigement to the warfhre with slavery. The discussion will proceed. ... No political Joshua now, with miraculous power, can stop the sun in its course tlirougli tlie heavens. It is even now rejoicing, like a strong man, to run its race, and will yd send its beams into the most distant plantations, melting the chains of ecery slaveJ^ And this, nearly ten years before emancipation, when slavery sec-aed bent on yet new conquests ! To the objection tliat the movement against slavery was dangerous to the Union, jMr. Sum- ner replied, that in freedom only true union could exist, and that in the abolition of slavery the North and the South would hereafter bo bound more closely together. In this connection ho quoted from Shakespeare the remarkable dia- logue between Brutus and Cassius, in which Brutus might be considered as representing tho North, Cassius the South : — " Cas. Urge me no more ; I shall for£:cet myself. Ha^ve mind upon your health ; tempt me no farther. • ••••• Brut. Hear mc, for I will speak. Must I give way and room to your rash cboler ? ■t t1» I* \ 'I i r ' r ; ( I » r :!!* : I il, W . .t f-i i iiis, in your threats; VuY I iiiti urnicd so strong' in liotuisty, That tiny pasM hy nic as thi; iillc wind, AVhirh I respect not. • ■ • • • Caa. A friend should hear his friend's infirmities, But Brutus makes mine f,'reater thin they arc. Brut. I do not, TILI. YOU I'llACTISK TIIIiM O.V MB. Can. You love me not. BriU. I do not like your faults." All wiiicli ends at last in nnitod licart and hand. So would it 1)0 if slavery should disjippcar. Throe months later, May 25, ISf)!:, Mr. Sum- ner uttered his last protest n«;ainst the infainous bill, and a<^ainst slavery in Nebraska and Kansas. It was at the final pass'ago. At midnight, Mr. Sunnier ofTered inimerous remonstrances against the hill from diflerent i)arts of the country, chiefly from New England, and then spoke briefly, but most eh)(|uently. Among other things, he said, — " In passing such a bill as is now threatened, you scatter, from this darlt midnight hour, no LIFE OF niART.ER SUMNKTl. 221 iut Ino seeds of liarmony and p^ood-will, huf, broadcast tliroup^h tlio land, dragon's tootli, wliich liaply may not sprinp^ up in direful crojjs ofaniHid men, yet, I am assured, sir, will IVurtify in civil Htrifo and fond. From tlwi depths of my soul, as loyal citizen and as scMiator, 1 plead, remonstrate, pro- test iip^alnst the passap^o of this hill. 1 stru;j^^lo a;^ainst it as n^'ainst death ; hut, as in d(»ath itself corru[)ti()n i)uts on iiH^ori'uptioii, and (his mortal body ])uts on immortality, so from tlie slin^ of this hour I find assurance of //^r/Y /ri^rA/*/)//. />// jy/z/'c/i freedom will he restored to Iter inunortal Inrthrujld in the RepnliUc. " Sir, the bill you are al)out to pasp. is at once tlie worst and the best on which Conj^ress ever .acted. Yes, sir, woiiST and bkst at the same time. " It is tlie worst bill, inasmucli as it is a present victory of slavery. In a Christian land, and in an age of civilization, a time-honored statute of freedom is striick down, opening the way to all the count hiss woes and wrongs of human bon- dage. Among the crimes of history, ajiother is Boon to bo recorded, which no tears can blot out, and which in bolter days will bo road with uui« s I 1 ■' ill' ■ , ; K ;«ll* , i^i ■ ' 'If' J.. lit- 1 II 11^ t 222 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. vorsal sliamo. . . . There is another side, to whicli I gladly turn. Sir, it is the best bill on which Coij^ress ever acted, /or it annuls all j^cist compromises luiih slavery^ and makes any future compromises impossible. Thus it puts Freedom and Slavery face to face, and bids them graijplo. Who can doubt the result? It opens wide the door of the Future, when, at last, there will really be a North, and the slave power will be broken, — when their wretched despotism will cease to dominate over our government, no longer im- pressing itself upon everything at homo and abroad. . . . Then, sir, standing at the very grave of Freedom in Nebraska and Kansas, I lift myself to the vision of that happy resurrection by which freedom will be assured, not only in these Territories, but everywhere under the national government. More clearly than '^ver before, I now penetrate that great Future when slavery must disappear. Proudly I discern the flag of my country, as it ripples in every breeze, at last, in reality as in name, the Flag of Freedom, — undoubted, pure, and irresistible. Am I not right, then, in calling this bill the best on which Congress ever acted ? LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 223 " Sorrowfully I bend before the wrong you commit. Joyfully I welcome the promise of the Future." It was with reference to this iniquitous bill that, Horace Mann wrote to Mr. Sumner, — " I cannot describe my feelings to you on tho Nebraska Bill. I seem like one who is dragged by fiery devils or Douglases — it don't matter which — into Tophct, from which, for tho next five hundred years, I see no escape. It is a case of desperation. It so encompasses mo a^^out, lliat nothing but the power and wisdom of God seems capable of reaching outside of it. Have you any hope ? " !! la fii It h. «' ' f Am 224 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNFJl. CHAPTER XYII. Iff 1 &. 1*1 f 111 i J'^thomj Burns. — Meeting in Fancuil Hall. — Dr. Howe. — Wendell Phillips. — Theodore Par- ker. — The Court House assailed. — A Man killed. — The i)iilitarij called out. — TJie Ex- amination. — Attempt to imrchase Burns. — The 2Vial proceeds. — 3Ir. Bills and 3Ir. Dana. — Sims surrendered to his '^ blaster.' ^ — Scene in /State Street. — Mr. Sumner's Speech. — Be- monstrances against the Fugitive Slave Act. — Mr. Sumner s Life in Danger. — Lines by Mr, miittier. While ]\Ir. Sumner was tlnia thundering at the slave power in the Senate, the shive power was busy in Boston in carrying out one part of its horrible programme. Anthony Burns, a fugitive from Virginia, had been in the employ of Mr. Pitts, a colored citizen of Boston, about three weeks, when, one evening — May 24, 1854 — just after closing the shop, he was arrested on a warrant from the United States r«4l LIFE OF CHARLES SUifNER. 225 Commissioner. lie was taken to an upper room in the Court House, — now become the United States slave-pen, — where he was kept for the night under a strong guard of officers. " He seemed stunned and stupefied by fear." Tlie next day, the 25th, he was brought before the commissioner for trial. Richard H. Dana, Jr., Charles M. Ellis, and Robert Morris volunseared to be his counsel. At their solicitation, the case was adjourned to Saturday. The excitement was now intense throughout the city and the state, both among the abolition- ists and their enemies. On Friday evening an immense concourse of people filled Faneuil Hall, at the call of leading abolitionists. Among the officers were such men as William B. Spooner, Francis Jackson, Samuel G. Howe, Timothy Gil- bert, F. W. Bird, Rev. Mr. Grimes, and T. W. Higginson. Dr. Howe said, '' Nothing so well becomes Faneuil Hall as the most determined resistance to a bloody and overshadowing despotism. It is the will of God that every man should be free ; we will as God wills — God's will bo done. No man's freedom is safe unless all men arc free.'* 16 .■t :J :'l »ll i:b r:: -.1' '• i iii: 1 s ' y 1 i ; 9' 1 ' i 1 ! 1 i I:. 226 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ' 'I f , ' i'O^ ' ' , *'' ■ «'f it . ■ •'! h .' • ■ t. -. u , % ■ ,. ■ H [hi '1 i nil!! ■flu' 1^' ' < ■ Li 't ^ii(! X ' i , •; r; ' n T^^ : i. I {>ii*.,itt ■-":■:•• > ■ ''f! [ r JnBfiiJiy BH^^Bti ,lt ^B "1 ' ivm^ H ''it Wk-'i ■^oHi "Wendell Phillips said, " I am against squatter sovereignty in Nebraska, and against kidnapper's sovereignty in Boston. . . . When Burns comes up for trial, get a sight at him, and don't lose sight of him. There is nothing like the mute elo- quence of a suffering man to urge to duty ; bo there, and I will trust the result." Theodore Parker proposed that, when the meeting adjourn, it do so to meet in Court Square the next morning at nine o'clock. " It was in the people's power so to block up every avenue that the man could not be carried off." Mr. Parker and Mr. Pliillips counselled no at- tempt at a rescue till tlio next day. But, it being reported that a company of col- ored persons were attempting Burns's rescue in Court Square, most of the audience made their way to that place. The Court House was being vigorously assaulted, and a door was battered down, while the cry arose, " Rescue him ! " " Bring him out ! " During the melee a man named Batchelder, who had volunteered in be- half of the Fugitive Slave Act, was killed. The police being found unequal to the emer- gency, the authorities ordered out two companies of artillery, who arrived at midnight. J> m lea LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEU. 227 Tlio next morning, two corps of United States Marines were quartered within the walls of tlio Court House. Three city companies received or- ders from the major general of the State militia to be in readiness. Saturday morning the examination was re- sumed. The prisoner was brought in under strong guard. ITis counsel urged further delay, which was granted. Meanwhile the friends of Burns sou'^^ht his lib- eration by purchase, and twelve hundred dollars, the price demanded by Suttle, were placed in the hands of Rev. Mr. Grimes, pastor of the Second Colored Baptist Clmrch. So confident were they of success, that on Sunday morning a carriage was at the door of the Court House, to take Burns away. But it was decided to detain him till the next day. Suttle afterwards refused to sell. Sunday was an anxious day in Boston. Theo- dore Parker, in Music Hall, said, " I understand there are one hundred and eighty-four marines lodged in the Court House, every man of them furnished with a musket and a bayonet, with his fiide-arms and twenty-four ball cartridges. . . . i K. n 1 ^T^» 4 \ n « ii 11; il ■ 'I '. : i- ^^^mmmmmmm m t ■^^'A ^f 1^ p, lif. i : If -'ft' , 1 ; 'i l4 :?,'^ - 1 y;^ ^^ _ ^ mlk 1 lii'' i^^^H ll- ■. lit!* ■:\Ui It ij ill 228 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. Look at Boston to-day. There aro no chains around your Court House — there arc ropea around it. A hundred and ciglity-fbur United States soldiers are there. Tliey arc, I am told, mostly foreigners — the scum of the earth." On Monday, the 29th, the trial was renewed. Mr. Ellis made the opening argument. Address- ing the commissioner, he said, — " Sir, you sit here judge and jury betwixt that man and slaver3\ Without a commission, without any accountability, without any right of challenge, you sit to render a judgment, which, if against him, no tribunal can review and no court reverse." Referring to the claimants, ho said, " I wish to look the men in the eye who dare to come here, with pistols in their pockets, to ask us to meet a case with our opposing counsel armed, hemmed in with armed men, entering court with muskets at our breasts, trying a case mider tlio muzzles of their guns. I choose to ask these men, face to face, by what show of right they speak of la^v and justice." On Wednesday, Mr. Dana made hia argument in the defence. It is worthy of note that Joshua li a fctS ito jnt lua LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 229 R. Giddings, member of Congress from Ohio, an indomitable champion of freedom, was among tho spectators. Mr. Dana made a sarcastic reference to the remarkable pea^e enjoyed in Boston since the arrest of Burns, because of the posse of specials, gathered from the purlieus of tho city by the marshal : — " Wliy, sir, people have not felt it necessary to lock their doors at night; the brothels are ten- anted only by women ; figliting-dogs and racing- horses have been unemployed, and Ann Street and its alleys and cellars show signs of a coming millennium." Alluding to the statement made by Brent, a witness from Virginia, that Burns had expressed a willingness to return with Suttle, Mr. Dana said, — " If ho was willing to go back, why did they not send to Pitts's sliop, and tell the prisoner that Colonel Suttle was at the Revere House, and would give him an opportunity to return ? No, SH', they lurked about tho thievish corners of the streets, and measured his height and his 8:;ars, to see if they answered to the record, and seized II ii< . 1 I i ■ i^^ If i! ( • :"l: it'll :iii !l 1 - ( I'li :■ , * t ^ 1 . i ■1 i ^4, 1 m i \ ' '%\ « ll I'f 1 ■III til 230 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. liim by fraud and violence, six men of Jiem, and liurried him into bonds and imprisonment. Some one hundred liired men, armed, keep him in this room, where onco Story sat in judgment — now a shivc-pen. One hundred and fifty bayonets of tho regulars, and fifteen liundred of the militia, keep him without. If all tliat wo sec about us is necessary to keep a man who is willing to go back, pray, sir, what sludl wo see when they shall get hold of a man who is not willing to go back ? " In conclusion, ho said to tlio commissioner, " You recognized, sir, in the beginning, tho pre- sumption of freedom. Hold to it now, sir, as to the sheet-anchor of you)- peace of mind as well as of his safety. If you commit a mistake in favor of the man, a pecuniary value, not great, is put at hazard. If against him, a froo man is made a slave forever. If you have, on the evi- dence or on the law, the doubt of a reasoning and reasonable mind, an intelligent misgiving, then, sir, I implore you, in view of tho cruel character of this law, in view of tho dreadful consequences of a mistake, send him not away, with that tor- menting doubt in your mind. It may turn to a torturing certainty." 'iiit iil! wmiiwmrjM ri m S t'l LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 231 " Tlio eyes of many millions are upon you, sir. You arc to do an act wliicli will liokl its place in the history of America, in tlie history of the progress of the human race. May your judg- ment be for liberty, and not for slavery ; for hap- piness, and not for wretchedness ; for hope and not for despoir; and may be the blessing of him that is ready to perish may come upon you." The commissioner decided that Burns was the slave of Suttle, and should be given up to his " master." It was now June 2, ten days since the arrest. Burns was to be taken, tliat day, on board the steamer Jane Taylor. '' The police cleared the square, and guarded the entrances. Early in the morning, a detachment of United States artillery marched up State Street with a field-piece from the Navy Yard, wliich was planted in Court Square. Several companies of the State militia were in readiness." From dificrent offices in the vicinity of tho Court House there were exhibited " signs of woe." Among the most conspicuous mourners at tho tragic scene was John A. Andrew, after- wards tho " war governor " of Massachusetts, •I! i ii I'r i r''- 232 LIFK OP nrAIU.EH SUMNKR. ■'u. always an ardent riiiMul ()r(/li;iii(;.s Sumner. TIio windowH of liis offlrci woro festooncid in Mack. After ten o'clock in IIk; niornin;^-, the ntoros on Stat(^ Str(M!t \V(!r(» closed, ;iiid nil husiiuiSH HUKpend(Ml, TIm; cxMnteiiiciit, was inli^nse. 'I'lio Btreets in tlie vicinily \vci-e croW(i(;d witli ptu)- ple, tlionsands liavinj^ coiimj fro;. n(;i;^lil»orin{:^ towns, ail anxiouH to wihiesH tlio last act of tlio trag(;dy. From the ('ourt IIousij away down State Stn^et, a pasHa{2;e for 1 he ofIi('erH i)^ just ice with their unrorlunaie victim, wa.s guarded l»y troops. At hiUL^ili tlie m(;Ianr;hoIy procession began. It passe;l down tlie street towards liong Wharf. A res(;ue was im[)ossihl(!. Among tlie throng wlio gazed upon Hie innocent victim, and upon the armed men who were there to prevent liis csca[)e, there prevaiiiMJ, for the most part, the pilenco of a smothered indignalion — an indig- nation which, from that liour, witli very many, was to take the Hlia[)e of active and deadly opf)o- Bition to Hlavery. JMr. Sumner's f)ow(;rful words in Congress were feel)Io in comparison with the muto eloqncuico of that horrid scene. What Mr. Sumuor thought of it may bo ■^ LIFK OF CIIARLKS SUMNKU. 233 Iciarncd froiii Ji h»)(mh;1i, iihout thrco iiioiitlirt albjr itH occurroiKM', IxsCoro llio Uo[)nblic5in Stuto Con- vention at VVor(U;st(;r. •* Contcm|)oran(M)Usly willi IIk; final i'-*'inipli of lliis oiitra^o al. W^isliiii^^lon, aiiollicr d .n;il trag(;dy was enacted at IJoston. In llioso streets where Ik; had walked as fVeerrian, Anthony I'lirns was seized as slave, nnd(U* the base pretext that ho WHS a (uiiiiinal, iinprisoruMl in the Conrt TFonse, whi(;li was turncMl for the time into fortress and harnu^oon, [guarded Ity h(iartle.ss hirelinj^M, wlioso eliicf idea of liherly was li- cense to wrorif^, escorted hy intrusive soldiers of the lInit(Ml States, wat(;h(Ml hy a prostituted militia, and linally giv(.'n up to a slavednniter by the decree of a \nd\y niajjjistrate, wlio did not hesitate to take u()on his soul tiio awfid responsibility of dooininpj a f(dlow-inan, in whom ho could find no fault, to a fate worse than death. " Jfow idl this was aeeom[)lish(;d F need n(tt now relate. Sufheo it to say, that, in doint^ this deed of woo and shames, tlie liberties of nil our citizens, white as well as black, were put in j(;op- ardy ; the m.ayor of Boston was converted to a tool, tho governor of tlio Commonwealth to a iii'i W 'li .,}■ i> III I i t. ■M I,' fi :i 1 li ■.:.'' it i ■•p««pn 'H 1 fl 1. 1 \ i u., 234 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. cipher, the laws, tho precious sentiments, tlio re- ligion, the ])ri(lo and glory of Massachusetts, were trampled in tlic dust, and you and I and all of us fell down, wliilo the slave power flourished over us." This case, says Mr. Greeley, " probably excited more feeling than that of any other alleged fugitive, in tliat it attained unusual publicity, and took place in New England after the North had begun to feel the first throbs of the profound agitation excited by the repudiation of the Mis- souri Compromise." In Washington it awakened the deepest feel- ing, and intensified the hostility to Mr. Sumner. The death of Batchclder was falsely attributed to liis speech of the 24th. Pro-slavery papers in Y/ashington published the most insulting and inflammatory articles against him, and his life was in imminent periL His friends advised him to leave the city; but he would not abandon his post, nor arm himself, nor cease his daily walk to and from the Capitol. Letters came in from different parts oi tne country, especially from New England, express- ing profound sympathy or proffering protection. LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 235 Mr. Sumner was grateful for tlio former, but Invariably dcclincrl the latter. lie knew no fear. Ho was doing iiis duty. God was his defence. Massachusetts had sent a man back to slavery. Yet not ilassachusetts. The act did not repre- sent her real spirit. That soon appeared in an aroused and indignant pul)lic sentiment. Dur- ing the very montli in which Burns was returned to slavery, a petition, with twenty-nine hundred signatures, was forwarded to Congress, praying for the repeal of the Fugitive Slave Bill. Speaking on the petition, Mr. Sumner said, with refer; nee to himself, as having vehemently opposed this bill, '' For all that I have thus uttered I hav ^ no regret or apology, but rather joy and satisfaction. Glad I am in having said it ; glad I am now in the opportunity of affirming it all aneiv." He further said, " It is true that the Slave Act w^as with difliculty executed, and that one of its servants perislied in the madness. On these grounds the senator from Tennessee charges Boston with fanaticism.. I express no opinion on the conduct of individuals ; but I do say, that the fanaticism which the senator condemns ; f A 'i (' • '1 M |iti I* '* w ' ' '"> " k ' • I! p. i*. ' S if 4' "^ i. •■1 ^ - i - " if 236 LIFE OP CIIARLKg RUMNER. IP not now in Boston. Ft in tlio Ruino wliicli op- posod tlio execution of tlio Stiunp Art. iin!■ • :! M 1 -II - r -h ^■'-i il '.m t M iif. 'm \ ! H »* * W' m'' P •j-f: M ■■',■' ■t I - )■ Not discomfited by the raging storm, Mr. Sumner returned to tlie onset against the Fugi- tive Slave Bill a month later, July 31. It was in this wise. Mr. Seward having " reported a bill for the relief of a poor and aged woman, whose husband had died of wounds received in the war of 1812, Mr. Adams, of Mississippi, moved, as an amendment, another bill for the relief of Mrs. Batcheidcr, widow of a person killed in Boston, while aiding as a volunteer in the enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act." The amendment being adopted, Mr. Sumner introduced the fol- lowing amendment : " Provided, That the Act of Congress, approved September 18, 1850, for the surrender of fugitives from service or labor, be, and the same is hereby, repealed." An exciting debate ensued, and the Senate refused leave to introduce the bill — ten to thirty-five. It was with reference to this debate that Mr. Whittier, an ardent and intimate friend of Mr. Sumner, wrote the following lines : — "Thou knowcst my heart, dc;ir fricnc], and well canist guess, That, even though silent, I l)ave not the less Rejoiced to sec thy actual life iigrcc With the large future which I shaped for Ihce, When, years ago, beside the summer sea, LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. White in the moon, wc saw the long waves fall BalUcd and hrolccn from the rocky wall. That to the menace of tlic brawling flood Opposed alone its massive quietude, Calm as a fate, with not a leaf nor vine Nor birch-spray trembling in the still inoonshiuc, Cri'Wiiiiig it like God's jteaee. I sometimes think That night-seene bj'' tlie sea prophetical (For Nature speaks in symixds and in signs. And through her pictures human fate divines),— That rock, wherefrom we saw the billows sink In murmuring rout, uprising clear and tall In the white light of heaven, the type of one AVho, momently by Error's host ass;iiled, Stands strong as Truth, in greaves of gi-anite mailed, And, tranquil-fronted, listening over all The tumult, hears the augels say, Well done!" 16 241 fl ' : -V I .1 'i ^ ^'. 1 I ; i 1 1 i ■■i' i '< il: W^ li^ ',' I .'11 242 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. \fH^^ r ■ s I- 1 1 CHAPTER XVIII. vrj A' lilse of tJiG EepuhUcan Party. — Great Clianges. — Freedom gaining Ground. — liejjuhlican Convention. — Mr. Samner^s Speech. — Duties of Massachusetts. — Tlie Supreme Court and the Fugitive Slave Act. — Judges. — Letter to Agricultural Society. — Mercaidile Library Asso- ciation. — '' Position and Duties of the Mer- chant.''^ — Granville Sharp. — Seamen^s Wages. — Fugitive Slave Bill. ■«; The party of Freedom, wliicli had successively borne the names of Libei'ty Party and Free Soil Party, now assumed tliat of Republican. Its first convention, under this new designation, was held at AVorcester, September 7, 1854. Ten years had wrought a mighty change. The slave power was still in the ascendant, and resolved, by whatever means, to retain its su- premacy. It had humiliated the North, and dragged away in triumph from its towns and ■~i LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 243 ' I' I )4 cities numerous fugitives. It still domineered in the National Congress. It held all the National oflices. It controlled the army, the navy, and the judiciary. But its excessive fury had at last aroused the Blumhering North. Freedom had compelled a hearing in the National Council. Champions of her cause had at length appeared who could not 1)0 cajoled or intimidated. Slavery, though haughty and defiant, was filled witli new alarm. Under such circumstances, the first Rc];)ublicaa Convention came together. Its members were inspired with strong hopes. A great future was before the party of Freedom. Mr. Sumner was invited to be present, and was welcomed with unbounded joy. He had •* fought with wild beasts " at Washington, and won the gratitude of all tlie friends of Freedom. Addressing the Convention, he said, — " After months of constant, anxious service in another place, away from Massachusetts, I am permitted to stand among you again, my fellow- citizens, and to draw satisfaction and strength from your generous presence. Life is full of change and contrast. From Slave Soil I have »m fi' W: V, ) i ( ■ ;: i ii- [i; B 'T' 244 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. como to Free Soil. From tlio tainted breath of Slavery I have passed into the bracing air of Freedom. And the heated antagonism of debate, shooting forth its fiery cinders, is changed into thi.s brimming, overilowing welcome, while I seem to lean on the great Iieart of our beloved Commonwealth, as it palpitates audibly in this crowded assembly. " Let me say at once, frankly and sincerely, that I am not here to receive applause 6r to give oc- casion for tokens of public regard, but simply to unite with fellow-citizens in new vows of duty. And yet I would not be thought insensible to the good-will now swelling from so many honest bosoms. It tcmclies me more than I can tell." He then proceeded to show what were " the duties of Massachusetts at the present crisis." " Our duties in National and State affairs are identical, — in the one case to put the National Government, in all its departments, and in the other case, the State Government, in all its de- partments, openly, actively, and perpetually, on the side of Freedom." Speaking of the Slave Oligarchy, he said, " Lord Chatham once exclaimed, that the time m IiiL '1 [1 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 245 had been, when ho was content to bring Franco to her knees ; now he wouhl not stop till he had laid her on her back. Nor can we bo content with less in our warfare. Wo must not stop till wo have laid the Slave Power on its back." Referring to the decision of the Supremo Court of the United States, affirming the consti- tutionality of the Fugitive Slave Act, and to the alleged consequent duty of absolute submission, Mr. Sumner said, — " For myself, let me say, that I hold judges, and especially the Supreme Court, in much re- spect ; but I am too familiar with the history of judicial proceedings to regard them with any superstitious reverence. Judges are but men, and in all ages have shown a full share of human frailty. " Alas ! alas I the worst crimes of history have been perpetrated under their sanction. The blood of martyrs and of patriots, crying from the ground, summons them to judgment. " It was a judicial tribunal which condemned Socrates to drink the fatal hemlock, and which pushed the Saviour barefoot over the pavements of Jerusalem, bending beneath his cross. t 246 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. " It was a judicial tribunal "which, a^ainnt tho testimony and entreaties of her father, surrendered the fair Virginia as a slave, — which arrested tho teachings of the great Apostle to the Gentiles, and sent liini in bonds from Judea to Rome, — which, in tho name of the old religion, persecuted tho saints and fathers of tlio Christian Church, and adjudged tlieni to a martyr's death, in all its most dreadful forms, — and afterwards, in the name of the new religion, enforced the tortures of the In- quisition, amidst the shrieks and agonies of its victims, while it compelled Galileo to declare, in solemn denial of the great truth he had disclosed, that the earth did not move round the sun. " Ay, sir, it was a judicial tribunal in England which . . . lighted the fires of persecution at Oxford and Smithfield, over the cinders of Lati- mer, Ridley, and John Rogers, — which, after elaborate argument, upheld the fatal tyranny of ship-money against the patriot resistance of Hampden, — which, in defiance of justice anc' humanity, sent Sidney and Russell to the block — which persistently enforced the laws of Con formity tliat our Puritan fathers persistently re fused to obey, and afterwards, with Jeffries on w\ \\ Tiff 01 'I'.. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 247 m i tlio bcTicli, crowned the pages of Englisli history witli massacre and murder, oven with the blood of innocent women. " Ay, sir, it was a judicial tribunal in our own country, surrounded by all tlie forms of law, which hung witclies at Salem, — wliicli aHirmed the constitutionality of the Stamp Act, while it admonished jurors and people to obey, — and which now, in our day, lends its sanction to the unutterable atrocity of the Fugitive Slave Act." Mr. Sumner believed that he was bound to obey tlie Constitution as lie understood it, and not as he did not understand it ! He believed the Fugi- tive Slave Act to bo unconstitutional, and there- fore he did not regard it as binding upon him. It was against the divine law, and he would obey God rather than man. lie would disobey the liuman law, and take the consequences, whatever tliey might bo. "The good citizen, at all per- sonal hazard, will refuse to obey it." On the 25th of the same month, Mr. Sumner sent a characteristic letter to the Norfolk Agri- cultural Society, giving his reasons for not ac- cepting an invitation to attend : — " From tho mother earth we may derive man^ ■♦I; ill' . It 1 ■ > ,■ 1 •■ipi '*■' ■ f ' iiii 1, 1) Iff J! -^Lffl 1 i 1 ' Fffl • t| • ^li! ♦ >! ;- i li'' i j ■ ! \ 1 !:" • .y,-f j ,i"j;.: i '\ ' ulii V li r*' i il V I "I >l* **''. l&^Mi< 248 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMXER. lessons, and I doubt not they will spring up abun- dantly in the footprints of the Society. I'/icre is one which comes to my 'mind at this moment, and which is of perjidual force. " The good fanner obeys the natural laws, nor does he impotently attempt to set up any behest of man against the ordinances of God, determin- ing day and night, summer and winter, sunshine and rain. The good citizen will imitate the good farmer, nor will he impotently attempt to set up any statutes of man against the ordinances of God, which determine good and evil, right and wrong, justice and injustice." An ingenious ar- gument against the Fugitive Slave Act. On November 13, he addressed the Mercantile Library Association of Boston on the " Position and Duties of the Merchant, as illustrated in the Life of Granville Sharp." This oration marks a great change in public opinion on the subject of slavery. When, seven years before, he addressed the Association, ho called his lecture " an attempt to expose slavery before a promiscuous audience, at a time when the subject was too delicate to he treated directly^ Then he spoke of " white slavery in the Barbary f^l k LIFE OF CHARLES SUMXER. 240 States." Now ho could speak directl/ of negro elavcry in the United States, and bo " well ro ccived." He could even rebuke merchants of Boston who had not only aided, but, in some cases, instigated tlie arrest and rendition of Sims and Burns. Granville Sharp, a London morel lant, born in 1735, was held up as a model business man, and, above all, as a man : a man who carried his con- Bcience into trade, but never made a trade of con- science ; who was more tlian a successful merchant, a philanthropist of the purest cliaracter, a special foe to slavery, " heralding by many years the la- bors of Clarkson and Wilberforce." He boldly assailed the slave-trade, and slavery itself. Ho labored to prove that slavery could not exist un- der the British Constitution. Cases of slaves arrested in England by foreign masters had awa- kened his sympathies. Though often balked, he never rested till the Chief Justice of England at length declared, tliat the moment a slave touched British soil he became free. "Imititting him," said Mr. Sumner, in conclu- sion, " commerce would thrive none the less, but goodness more. Business would not be chocked^ "i: if I I ! 111' \l* i-l;l li H t 1 ' 1 1 ( ■ ■''Ml' ^H i : i ^M , -( 1 ' 1 ^M ^- ; .1 wn ' I i. f. m m mi _ \iiOi '/: y.' 1: ■1 |i SI" Ci 250 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. but it would cease to be pursued aa tlio ' one idea ' of life. AVcjilth would still abound ; but there would bo also that solid virtue, never to bo moved from truth. . . . " The hardness of heart engendered by the accursed greed of gain, and l)y tlie madness of worldly ambition, would be overcome ; tlie perverted practice, tliat j'olic?/ is the best honesty, would bo reversed ; and merchants would bo recalled, gen.ly, but irresistibly, to tho great practical duties of this age, and thus win the palm of true honesty, which trade alono can never bestow. ' Who is tho honest man ? lie that (lorh still jukI strongly gooil pursue, To God, his nuiglibor, and liimself, most true."* Thus, on all occasions, addressing young men, merchants, scholars, politicians, in the lyceum^ at literary festivals, in conventions of the people, in the Senate, everywliere that ho could get tho eai of his fellow-men, Mr. Sumner held up tho same high standard of right and truth, the au- tliority of conscience, the will of God. Returning to Congress, lie introduced a bill, February 12, 1855, " to secure wages to seamen m ' LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 251 1 [1 in caso of wreck." " Tho measure now pro* posed," ho siiid, " ir, of direct importance to the one hundred and fifty thousand seamen con- stituting tho mercantih3 marine of tlie United States. It also concerns tho miUion of men con- stituting tho mercantile marine of the civilized ■world, any of whom, in tlie vicissitudes of tlio sea, may find themselves in American bottoms. I commend it as a measure of enlightened phi- lanthropy, and also of simple justice." Ilis motion to refer it to tlie Committee on Commerce was agreed to. Southern as well as Northern senators could do justice to sea- men, in making secure tlieir hard-earned wages ; but not yet did the former heed the warning, " Woe unto him that useth his neighbor's ser- vice without wages, a7id giveth him not for his work." On the 23d of the same month, another oppor- tunity was given Mr. Sumner to demand the repeal of the Fugitive Slave Bill. It was on a motion of Mr, Toucey, of Connecticut, (!) to remove " cases arising from trespasses and dam- n^es under the Fugitive Slave Act," from the Stato Courts to the Circuit Court of the United «' \. ^^ S ' LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 253 freedom. Sir, there is a wide difference between slave-holder and slave-hunter. " But the bill before you is to aid in the chase of slaves. . . . Not from Slave Soil, but from Free Soil, comes this effort. A senator from the North, a senator from New England, lends himself to the work, and with unnatural zeal helps to bind still stronger the fetter of the slave." To the inquiry of Mr. E,usk, of Texas, where slavery was mentioned in the bill, Mr. Sumner ingeniously replied, " I might ask the senator to point out any place in the Constitution of the United States where ' slavery ' is mentioned." After earnest' denunciation of the Fugitive Slave Bill, he moved its rej-jeo?, with the follow- ing result: ayes 9, nays 30. The nine were Messrs. Brainerd, Chase, Cooper, Fessenden, Gil- lette, Seward, Sumner, Wade, and Wilson. And so ended one more effort for freedom. -I * i , , 1. ;«' M m t ■ i 254 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. f CHAPTER XIX. Lecture hc/ore the Mercantile Library Associaiion. — '' llic Anti- Slavery Enterprise. " — Opposition to Truth. — llie first to welcome Truth. — Mr. Hayes. — Dignity of the Cause (f Freedom. — — A work for Every One. — Meeting at Fan- euil Ball. — The Rip Van Winkle Party. — TJie Know Nothing Party. *■• II\xcocK Stuf.et, 23J November, 1836. " My dear Sir : An unkindlv current of air is often more penetrating than an arrow. From such a shaft I suffered on the niglit of my address to the Mercantile Library Association, more than a week ago, and no care or skill has been eiEca- cious to relievo me." This forms part of a letter of excuse from Mr. Sumner for not delivering a lecture — the first of a course organized in Boston for the discussion of slavery. Mr. Sumner was silenced. A " cur- rent of air " had effected what the acts and mm iJ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 255 threats of slaveholders had failed to do. But kindly Nature ere long relented, and released him from her bonds. He returned to his seat in the Senate. The following spring, in 1855, Mr. Sumner gave tlie lecture referred to above — " The Anti- Slavery Enterprise : Its Necessity, Practicabil- ity, and Dignity." It awakened so much inter- est, that its repetition was requested in Boston, and in many places in New York. Its suc- cessive delivery in Metropolitan Ilall and Niblo's Theatre, New York, and in Brooklyn, forms an era in the anti-slavery cause. Said the New York Tribune, " That a lecture should bo repeat- ed in New York is a rare occurrence. That a lecture on anti-slavery should be repeated .ia Now York, even before a few despised fanatics, is an unparalleled occurrence. But that an anti- slavery lecture sliould bo repeated, night after night, to successive multitudes, each more enthu- siastic than the last, marks the epocli of a revolu- tion in popular feeling ; it is an era in the history of Liberty." In the beginning of this speech, which wa3 three hours long, Mr. Sumner briefly sketched •- IS' II ! . i "f ■m • ' i 1 i i ( r'\ ij 1 : i ;, > i: 1,i 2^6 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. •J* It i?: i •1 III <4iR 1 the rapid progress of anti-slavery sentiment. Ref(;rringto the opposition which it had met witli, ho said, " Thus, in all ages, is trutli encountered. At first persecuted, gagged, silenced, cruci- fied, she cries out from the j)rison, the rack, the stake, the cross, till at last her voice is heard. And when that voice is really heard, whetlier in martyr cries, or in earthquake tones of civil con- vulsion, or in the cahnness of ordinary speech, such as I now employ, or in that still, small utterance inaudible to the common ear, then is the beginning of victory ! ' Give me where to stand, and I will move the Avorld,' said Archi- medes ; and truth asks no more than did the master of geometry. " Viewed in this aspect, the present occasion rises above any ordinary course of lectures or series of political meetings. It is the inaugura- tion of Freedom. From this time forward, her voice of warning and command cannot be si- lenced." Speaking of the objection to the anti-slavery enterprise, that it " lacked the authority of names eminent in Church and State," Mr. Sumner said, " If this bo so, the more is the pity on their ■ f LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 257 m ir account; for our cause is needful to tliem more than they are needful to our cause. Alas ! it ia only according to example that it should bo so. It is not the eminent in Church and State, tho rich and powerful, the favorites of fortune and of place, who most promptly welcome Truth, when she heralds change in the existing order of things. It is others in poorer condition who open hospitable hearts to the unattended stranger. This is a sad story, beginning with the Saviour, whose disciples were fishermen, and ending only in our day." " There is now in Boston a simple citizen whose example may be a lesson to Commissioners, Marshals, Magistrates, while it fills all with the beauty of a generous act. I refer to Mr. Hayes, who resigned his place in tlie city police, rather than take part in the pack of the Slave- hunter. He is now the doorkeeper of the public edifice honored tliis winter by the triumphant lectures on slavery. Better be a doorkeeper in the house of the Lord than a dweller in the tents of the ungodly. Has he not chosen well ? Little think those now doing the work of slavery, that the time is near when all this will be dishonor 17 « , ' I 1 , i:i t 1 i. U '" I A 258 LIFE OF CHARLE8 SUMNEK. and sadness. For myself, lonj^ ugo my mind waa made up. Notliing will I have to do with it. IIow can I help to make a slave ? The idea alone is painful. To do this thing would plant in my soul a remorse which no time could remove or mitigate. His chains Avould clank in my ears. His cries would strike upon my heart. His voice w^ould bo my terrible accuser. Mr. President, may no such voice fall on your soul or mine ! " Of the dignity of the enterprise ho thus dis- coursed : — " It concerns the cause of human freedom, which from earliest days has been the darling of History. By all tlio memories of the i)ast, by all the stories of childhood and the studies of youth, by every example of magnanimous virtue, by every aspiration of the good and true, by tho fame of martyrs swelling through all time, by the renown of patriots whose lives are landmarks of progress, by the praise lavished upon our lathers, you are summoned to this work. . . . Who can doubt that our cause is nobler than that of our fathers ? for is it not more exalted to struggle for the freedom of others than for our own ? " ^:m i la m '] . i-.li LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 259 V' ^ a 1 Ian ur lor Speaking of tlio practicability of the enter- prise, ho said there was a phico for every man. '•' Providence is felt through individuals ; tlio dropping of water wears away the rock ; and no man can be too humble or poor for this work^ while to all the happy in genius, fortune, or fame, it makes a special appeal. Hero is room for tho strength of Luther and the sweetness of Me- lancthon ; for tho wisdom of age and the ardor of youth ; for the judgment of the statesman and the eloquence of tlio orator ; for the grace of tho scholar and the inspiration of the poet; for tho learning of the professor and the skill of the law- yer ; for the exhortation of the preacher and tho persuasion of tho press ; for the various energy of man and the abounding sympathy of woman." At a Republican rally in Fancuil Hall, No- vember 2, 1855, on tlio evtj of an election, Mr. Sumner spoke for two hours and a quarter, show- ing that the Republican party alone represented the principles of Freedom and the Constitution. His speech began with these stirring words : — " Are you for Freedom, or are you for Slavery ? This 13 the question which you are to answer at the coming election. Above all other questions, 260 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. national or local, it lifts itsolf directly il tho path of every voter. Tlicre it is. It cannot bo avoid- ed. It cannot bo banished away. It cainiot bo silenced. Forever soundiniz: in our ears, it lias a mood for every hour, — stirrinj^ us at times as with tho blast of a trumpet, tlicn visiting us in solemn tones, like the bell whicli calls to prayer, and then again awaking us to unmistakable duty, like the same bell, when at midnight it sum- mons all to stay the raging conflagration." Tried by this test, the Democratic and Whig parties were utterly wanting; so also was tho Know Nothing or Anti-foreign party. " Men do not gather grapes from thorns, nor figs from thistles ; nor do they expect patriotism from Benedict Arnold." The Democratic party sus- tained " the tyrannies and perfidies of tho slave oligarchy." The Whig party was thus hand- somely disposed of: — " According to familiar rule, handed down from distant antiquity, wo arc to say nothing but good of the dead. IIow, then, shall I speak of tho late powerful Whig party, by whose giant contests the whole country was onco upheaved, but which has now ceased to exist, except as — ' ptUJ 'IJfl LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 261 the shadow of a namu ? Ilcro in ^Massachusctta, a few wlio do net yot know that it is dead havo met togotlier and professed the old allegiance. They are the Rip Van Winkles of our politics. This respectable cliaracter, falling asleep in tho mountains, drowsed undisturbed throughout tho war of the revolution, and tlien, returning to his native village, ignorant of all that had passed, made haste to declare himself ' a loyal subject of the king, God bless him ! ' But our Whigs are less tolerant and urbane than this awakened sleeper. In petulant and irrational assumption they are like the unfortunate judge, who, being aroused from slumber on the bench by a sudden crash of thunder, exclaimed, ' Mr. Crier, stop tho noise in court ! ' The thunder would not be hushed ; nor will tho voice of Freedom, now ro- verberatin": throucrhout tho land." Speaking of the so-called American party, Mr. Sumner uttered a plea for our foreign population. It should not be politically proscribed. Roman Catholics should " give some assurance of their purpose ... to become useful, loyal, and per- manent members of our community." With this explanation ho would extend generous welcome mil ! i Mf 1 ,. ; L 1 : . .: .- -p. \':r^' ■ -'i ' ■ ■■ ■■*^^l' i *; r ! 1 ■■ • m I . lJM 262 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ■I. '*^, l! 1 <• to foreigners. " The liistory of our country, in its humblest as well as most exalted spheres, tes- tifies to the merits of foreigners. Their strong arms have helped furrow our broad territory with canals, and stretcli in every direction the iron rail. They fill our workshops, navigate our ships, and oven till our fields. ... At the bar and in the high places of commerce you find them ; enter the retreats of learning, and there you find them, shedding upon our country the glory of science. " A party, then, wliich, beginning in secrecy, interferes with religious belief, and founds a discrimination on tlie accident of birth, is not the party for us." And so Mr. Sumner proved the necessity of the Repul'lican party. " * Where liberty iSj there is my country,' was the sentiment of that great api;»stle of freedom, Benjamin Franklin. ... In a similar strain, I would say, * Where liberty is, there is my party.' " That party has gained for itself a most honor- able name. Under God, it abolished slavery, it saved the nation. Its more recent history we pass by in silence. I iili irltii ■Mw r ifmiil LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 2G3 \' m t ', CHAPTER XX. Growing arrogance of the Slave Power. — Ne- braska and Kansas. — Violence in Washington. — il/r. Sumner s Speech, " The Crime against Kansas.'^ — Question of Admitting Kansas as a State. — Douglases Bill. — Letters to Theodore Parker. — 3Ir. Seward's Bill. — A Great De- bate. — The Afonsler Swindle. — Emigration to Kansas. — Border liujlians. — A Usurping Legislature. — Slave Legislation. — Senator Butler and South Carolina. We have now reached a period when the slavery question was fast hastening to a dread- ful cricis. The Nebraska Bill had revealed in unmistakable colors the daring and desperate character of the slave power. Kansas had be- come the theatre of a deadly strife. " The bor- der ruffian policy," says Vice-President Wilson, " which was filling that Territory with alarm and bloodshed, had its representatives in Washington, walking its streets, hanging around its hotels, and M i#' ' I « «'! ^:'Mli I Sli ?f-v'»" a.i I .« 264 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. stalking through tlio Capitol. To llio extreme arrogance of embittered and aggressive wordg were added the menace and actual inihction of personal violence. Indeed, the course of these men o,ssum.ed the form of a reckless and relent- less audacity never before exliibited. Members of Congress went armed in tlio streets, and sat with loaded revolvers in their desks." It should be added, that Mr. Sunnier always went un- armed. • Under sucli peculiar circumstances it was, that Mr. Sumner delivered, on May 19 and 20, 185G, hia speech entitled T/ic Cr'unc Jijaihst Kansas; The Apologies for the Crime ; The True Remedy. By the Nebraska Bill^ passed in 185-1, the Mis- souri Compromise of 1820, prohibiting slavery north of 36'' 30' north latitude, was violated, and the vast region known as Kansas and Nebraska, as also Minnesota, Washington, and Oregon Ter- ritories, were opened to slavery. By this bill it was left to each Territory whether to introduce or exclude slavery. The question now immediately pending waa the admission of Kansas, as a State, into the Union. The pro-slavery party were of course 11 !i i % LIFE OP CUARLE3 SUMl^ER. 2G5 resolved, if possible, to have it como in as a Slave State. For this purpose Mr. Douglas in- troduced a bill, March 17, 18.5G, '* to r/horizo the people of the Territory of Kansas to form a Constitution and State Government, preparatory to their admission into the Union, when they have the requisite population." Beneath the seeming fairness of this bill there lurked an infamous plot. It was designed, by delay, to so manipulate the voting power in the Territory, under the direction of the president, an agent of slavery, that a slave constitution should be adopted, and Kansas present herself for admission to the Union as a Slave State. A letter from Mr. Sumner to Theodore Parker, under date of March 26, 185G, shows the plan adopted by the friends of freedom in Congress, in opposition to the pro-slavery plot : — " I am glad you arj to open on Kansas. Let mo suggest to press the admission of Kansas at once with her present constitution. This is the 'policy we have adopted, and it will crowd Douglas and Cass infinitely. This proposition is some- thing practical ; and on this we must fight tho presidential election. . . . i M!^ » ij: smi 266 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. t;:)' .t: ii ' \li H ■ '! " Seward will mako a grand speech. I shall follow as soon as possible, and use plain words. " ! this enormity is not really understood. The more I think of it, the more its wickedness glares." Two days before his speecli (May 17), Mr. Sumner wrote to tiic same friend, " Alas ! alas 1 the tyranny over us is complete. Will the people submit? When you read this I shall be saying — in the Senate — they will not ! Would that I had your strength. But I shall pronounce tho most thorough Philippic ever uttered in a legis- lative body." According to the policy referred to above, Mr. Seward submitted, by way of substitute, another bill, providing for immediate action : " A Bill for the Admission of the State of Kansas into tho Union," with a free constitution. Thereupon ensued the great debate, in which Mr. Sumner took so prominent a part, using ^^ plain wordsJ' Ho reviewed the whole history of the conspiracy for extending slavery into regions solemnly consecrated to freedom. The Nebraska Bill he called " a swindle " — " a swindle of the North by the South" — "a sv/indle of tha >M>-i- 1 «' I' . - I, ill I . ■ ' m LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 267 3 whole country" — " a swindle of popular sever- oignty " — "a swindle of a p^rcat cause" — "a swindle of God-given, inalienable rights. Turn it over, look at it on all sides, and it is every- where a swindle ; and if tlie word I now employ has not the authority of classical usage, it has, on this occasion, the indubitable authority of fitness. No other word will adequately express the min- gled meanness and wickedness of the cheat." From this original monster swindle, other swindles were to issue. The region being opened to slavery, " it was confidently anticipated, that, by tlie activity of" secret slavery emigration so- cieties, " slavery might be introduced into Kan- sas, quietly, but surely, witliout arousing conflict — that the crocodile egi^ might be stealthily dropped in the sunburnt soil, there to be hatched, unobserved, until it sent fortli its reptile mon- ster." But, unfortunately for tins plot, emigration was open from the Free States, and the South soon had cause to fear a decided failure. Large num- bers of people flocked to Kansas, for the double purpose of finding a home and saving the Ter- ritory to freedom. There sprang up a conflict ii 111 re tramf)led under foot by its own progenitors, 'fhe j)eople of Kansas must be i"obb(3d of the rights solemnly — no, falsely — guaranteed to them. 'J'hey were not to be alloW(Ml to (hseide against sliivery. This outrage was attenii)ted in five H(;parate invasions of Kansas by ai'm(;d bands, in one; ease number- ing eigliteen hundi-ed men, from Missouri, and by other acts of {>eifidy insligabid or sanctioned at Washington. \>y controlling the ballot-box, theso invad(!rs el(;cted a slavery d(;legate to Congress in IHrjl. " 'J'he first ballot-box," Hays Oenenil INjmeroy, "that was opened upon our virgin soil wax closed to U8 by ovorpoworing numbers and impending ^iik LIFR OF CIIARLKS fiUMNKR. 209 il : e \ i, ■ i i forco. . . . T}i(;y fiumo ii[)()ri um, ikjI in ilio guino ofvotcM'H, to Kt(!;il away our fViiiKjIiiMC), hut boldly und openly, lo fji;iI,(;!i il, wil.Ii aHlroti*^ Ijuml. 'I'licy carno dircolly fVoin llioir own lioinc-^, and In <-oni- ])a(;t and or^^aiii/cd hand.-!, wilii arms in Iiand and provisions loj- (Jio oxpcdilion, inarcjicd lo our jiolls, and, when tii(3ir W(;rk was dono, roturnod ^vll(;n(;o tlH:y canio." " '!'l)is infliclion," sa,yH Mr. SunnKir, " was a nip^- nilicant, piciiido to I Ik; prand invasion of I Ik; oOlli JMaroIi, \H')!')j \i\, IIh; (jh^dion oi' lln; first, territo- rial l<;gislatur(5 under tins or^ani(; I iw, wlion an arnnid irndtiliido from Missonii (;nt(;ro!■ • 'm LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 273 T change at a future election, two dilTerent acts were passed : the first exckiding from the elec- tive franchise all who would not take tlie oath to support the Fugitive Slave Bill ; the second enti- tling all other persons to vote who tendered a tax of one dollar to tlie sheriff on the day of election; thus disfranchising all opposed to slavery, and at the same time opening the door to the votes of the invaders. " Thus was the crime consummated. Slavery stands erect, clanking its chains on the Territory of Kansas, surrounded by a code of death, and trampling upon all chcrisheri liberties, whether of speech, the press, the bar, the trial by jury, or the electoral franchise. And, sir, all this is done, not merely to introduce a wrong which is itself a denial of all rights, and in dread of which mothers have taken the lives of their offspring, . . . but it is taken for the sake of political power, in order to bring two new slaveholding senators upon this floor, and thus to fortify in the national government the desperate chances of a waning oligarchy. As the gallant ship, voyaging on pleasant summer seas, is assailed by a pirate crew, and plundered of its doubloons and dollars, 18 ,1 • ■ 9 '!• ig ^'1' ,.!;f 274 LIFE OF CTIARLEg SUMXER. fio is this beautiful Territory now assailed in peace and prosperity, and rol)bed of its political power for the sake of slavery. Even now the black flag of the land pirates from Missouri waves at the mast-head. In their laws you hear the pirate yell, and see the flash of the pirate knife; while, incredible to relate, the President,"^' gath- ering the slave power at his back, testifies a pirate Bympathy. " Emerging from all the blackness of this crime, where we seern to have been lost as in a savage wood, and turning our l)acks upon it, as upon devastation and death, from Avhich, while others have suffered, wo have escaped, I come, now, to the apologies which tlio crime has found. . . . Great crimes of history have never been without apologies. The massacre of St. Bartholomew, wliich you now instinctively condemn, was, at the time, applauded in high quarters, and even commemorated by a papal medal, wliich may still be procured at Rome, — as the crime against Kan- sas, which is hardly less conspicuous in dread- ful eminence, has been shielded on this floor by extenuating words, and even by a presidential ♦ Franklin Pierce. IMMi ===r F V'|i?| LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 275 moHsago, which, like the papal medal, can never bo ibrgottcri in considering the perversity of men. V For all these evils ^Ir. Sumner recommended \vhat he styled " the remedy of justice and peace, proposed by the senator from New York, and embodied in his bill. . . . This is sustained by the prayer of the people of tlie Territory, setting forth a constitution formed by spontaneous move- ment, in wliich all there had opportunity to parti- cipate, without distinction of party. , . . In offer- ing this proposition, the senator from New York has entitled himself to the gratitude of tlie coun- try. Tlirougliout a life of unsurpassed industry, and of eminent ability, ho has done much for freedom which the world will not let die ; but than this ho has done nothing more opportune, and he has uttered no words more effective than this speech, so masterly and ingenious, by wliich he vindicated it." During the delivery of this speech, Mr. Butler, of South Carolina, interrupted the speaker no less tlian thirty-five times. Mr. Sumner thus paid his respects to him : — " With regret I come again upon the benator m\ M ' • :^ 276 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. from Soutli Carolina, wlio, omnipresent in tliia debate, overflowrf with rage at the simple sug- gestion that Kiinsas has applied for admission as a State, and, with incolierent phrase, discliarges the loose expectoration of his speech, now n\Hm her representative, and then upon her peo2)le. There was no extravagance of the ancient par- liamentary debate which he did not repeat ; nor was there any possible deviation from truth which^he did not make — with so much of pas- sion, I gladly add, as to save him from the sus- picion of intentional aberration. But the senator touches nothing which he does not disfigure — with error, sometimes of principle, sometimes of fact. lie shows an incapacity for accuracy, whether in stating the Constitution or in stating the law, whether in details of statistics or diver- sions of scholarship. He cannot ope his mouth, but out tliere flies a blunder. ... " But it is against the people of Kansas that the sensibilities of the senator are particularly roused. Coming, as he announces, < from a Stato,' — ay, sir, from Soutli Carolina, — he turns with lordly disgust from this newly-formed community, which he will uot reoognize as even ' a member r H .1 ssacrszssc m LIFE OP CIIAIILES SUMNER. 277 of tho body politic' Pray, sir, by what titlo docs bo irnbilgo in thi:^ egotism? lias lie read MiG history of tho * ^Stato ' whicii ho roprosonts? ITo cannot, surely, forget its alianieful imbecility from slavery, confessed throughout tho devolu- tion, folhnved by its more shameful assumi)tion for slavery since. lie cannot forget its wretched persistence in tho slave-trade, as tho very applo of its eye, and the condition of its ])articipation in tho Union. ITo cannot forget its constitution, which is republican only in name, confirming power in the hands of tho few, and founding tho qualifications of its legislators on ' a settled free- hold estate of fivo hundred acres of land, and tea negroes 1 V Mr. Sumner concludes with these impressive words : '' In just regard for free labor, which you would blast by deadly contact with slave labor, — in Christian sympathy with the slave, whom you would task and sell, — in stern condemnation of the crime consummated on that beautiful soil, — in rescue of fellow-citizens, now subjugated to tyran- nical usurpation, — in dutiful respect for the early fathers, whose aspirations are ignobly thwarted, ' i;. 1 im 4 ■'Mi I; 1 !, 1 ■' 1 ■ ,'fc^ ^y ^ --vj IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // / I/. & %' &1 ^ 1.0 ^"- i !.l 1.25 2.5 S lifi ||||20 !l.8 1.4 1.6 Va 'm m '^w^^' ">.^^ V o /j >? 4 '^ / ^a iV S^r. <^.> Os •i>1 <* ' y =% ^ #« o'^ # 278 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. — in the name of the Constitution outraged, of the laws trampled down, of justice banished, of hu- manity degraded, of peace destroyed, of freedom crushed to earth, — and in the name of the heav- enly Father, whose service is perfect freedom, I make this last appeal." Such was this famous speech, — "a grand and terrible philippic, ■worthy of the grand occasion ; the severe and awful truth, which the sharp agony of the national crisis demanded." * • J. G. Whittier. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 279 CHAPTER XXI. Effect ^ Mr. Sumner's Kansas Speech. — Mr. Summ^' a ^ 'aulted, — Preston S. Brooks. — Scene in the House. — Retirement of Brooks. — Southern Sijmjoathj/. — Northern Indignation. — Meetings in Massachusetts. — Faneuil Hall. — Peleg W. CJiandler. — Joslah Quincy. — Wendell Phillips. — Ralph Waldo Emerson. — Horace Mann. — Courier and Enquirer. — Mr. Sum,- ner^s Motltcr. 1J; In the Senate, and in the country at large, the speech of Mr. Sumner produced a profound im- pression, both upon the foes and friends of Blavery. The former rejoiced, the latter were exasperated. Those especially " whose course had been subjected to this terrible arraignment were excited to madness ; and summary ven- geance was agreed upon as the only remedy that would meet the exigency of the hour." Tho Bpeech could not be answered ; the speaker must I n 280 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. be silenced. Such is always tlio last argument of guilt. The select agent of the slave power to carry out their fell purpose was Treston S. Brooks, a representative from South Carolina, and nephew of Senator Butler. After the adjournment of the Senate, on the 22d of ^lay, two days - ^ter the speech, Mr. Sumner remained at his desk engaged in writing. "VVhiio so engaged, Brooks, whom he did not know, approached him and said, " I have read your speech twice over, carefully. It is a libel on South Carolina, and Mr. Butler, who is a relative of mine." While these words were passing from his lips, he commenced a series of blows with a bludgeon upon the senator's head, by which the lattc was stunned, disabled, and smitten down, bleeding and insensible, on the floor of the chamber. From that floor he was taken by friends, borne to the an+e-room, where his wounds were dressed, and then he was carried by Mr. Wilson, assisted by Captain Darling, doorkeeper of the House, faint and bleeding, to his lodgings. " The injuries of Mr. Sumner were serious, and became the subject of constant anxiety to his :..!' M^ LIFE OP CHAELES SUMNER. 281 !] '' friends. It was four years before he was pro- nounced convalescent." * He never entirely re- covered from the effect of the assault, which was, doubtless, the remote cause of his death, eighteen years after. " Mr. Sumner, though confessedly the superior of his assailant in stature and physical strength, sitting and cramped beneath his writing-desk, over which he was bending, with pen in hand, taken unawares and at disadvantage, and his assailant raining blows upon his unprotected head, fairly represented Freedom and Slavery as they stood at that time confronting each other. Freedom, though instrinsically stronger than its antagonist, was yet practically weaker. . . . " In the evening of the day of the assault, the Republican senators met at the house of Mr. Seward. In a lean minority, — only one fifth of the Senate, — they knew that they were at the mercy of the majority, which was dominated by the incensed and inexorable leaders of the slave power. Always bitter and implacable, they were now still more determined and audacious. Al- ways zealous, their zeal was more inflamed by • Wilson. 282 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. the frcsli fuel these proceedings would add. Whnt now victims would be required; who they should be, and whom their appetite for vengeance, whetted by this taste of blood, would select, they knew not. Not unlikely some who gathered there, like the disciples of John the Baptist, after their master had fallen a victim to a tyrant's power, felt that, though the night was dark and the future was forbidding, it was no time to despair or to remit effort. Nor would they, without re- monstrance, submit to such an invasion of their personal and political rights. It was agreed that Mr. Wil3on should call the attention of the Senate to the subject the next da}^, and, unless some member of the dominant party should move a committee of investigation, Mr. Seward should make such motion. " On the assembling of the Senate, amid deep excitement, crowds filling every available space in the Chamber and all its approaches, Mr. Wilson rose, and having narrated briefly the facts of the transaction, said, ' Sir, to assail a member of the Senate out of this Chamber * for words spoken in debate ' is a grave offence, not only against the rights of a senator, but the constitutional privi- ' W mrmttmraam ■*th LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 283 leges of this House ; but, sir, to come into this Chamber and assault a member m his seat, until he falls exhausted and senseless on this floor, is an offence requiring the prompt and decisive ac- tion of the Senate, Senators, I have called your attention to this transaction. I submit no motion. I leave it to older senators, whose character, whose position in this body and before- the country, eminently fit them for the task of devis- ing measures to redress the wrongs of a member of this body, and to vindicate the honor and dig- nity of the Senate.' " As no Democratic senator proposed any ac- tion, Mr. Sev/ard offered a resolution for a com- mittee of five members, to be appointed by tho president, to inquire into tho assault and to report the facts, together with their opinion thereon. On motion of Mr. Mason, the resolution was so amended as to provide that the committee should be chosen by the Senate ; and Pearce of Mary- land, Cass of Michigan, Dodge of Wisconsin, Allen of Rhode Islai.d, and Geycr of Missouri, were selected. The committee was chosen wholly from tho Democratic party, and contained no one friendly to Mr. Sumner. The same day, Lewis ill li.. 284 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. D. Campbell introduced a resolution into tlio House of Representatives reciting the particulars of the assault, and proposing a select committee of five to report such action as might be proper for the vindication of the House. After a brief debate, the resolution was adopted, and Campbell of Ohio, Pennington of New Jersey, Spinner of New York, Cobb of Georgia, and Greenwood of Arkansas, were appointed. ... " The Senate comraittee reported want of juris- diction, because, it contended, ' authority de- volves solely upon the House, of which he is a member ; ' and the Senate itself took no further action. " The House committee entered at once upon the investigation, and proceeded to examine the witnesses of the transaction. Visiting Mr. Sum- ner at his room, they took his deposition from his sick bed. He made substantially the same state- ment as that already given, mentioning the addi- tional fact that, on coming to consciousness, ' he saw Mr. Douglas and Mr. Toombs standing in the Senate, and Mr. Slidell in the anteroom, from which the latter ' retreated at once.' " This statement becoming known, these sena- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 285 tors felt called upon to make explanations of their knowledge oi the affair, and of the course they had adopted in relation to it. Mr. Slidell, refer- ring to the fact that he was conversing with other senators, among whom was Mr. Douglas, when a messenger rushed in with the intelligence that somebody was beating Mr. Sumner, contemptu- ously said, ' We heard this remark without any particular emotion. For my part, I confess I felt none. I am not disposed to participate in broils of any kind. I remained very quietly in my seat. The other gentleman did the same. We did not move.' " He stated that, a few minutes afterwards, he went into the Senate Chamber, and was told that Mr. Sumner was lying in a state of insensi- bility. Returning to the anteroom, and attempt- ing to pass out, he saw the wounded man as he was carried into the anteroom, ' his face covered with blood, and evidently faint and weak.' ' I am not,' said Mr. Slidell, ' particularly fond of scenes of any sort. 1 have no associations or re- lations of any kind with Mr. Sumner. I have not spoken to him for two years. I did not think it necessary to express any sympathy or make any ■t i i ^'* II 286 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. advances towards him.' SlidcU closed his remarks by saying ho was free from any participation, connection, or counsel in the matter. " Douglas, too, deemed it his duty to make some ex])lanation. Ho said that when the messenger passed through the room, and said somebody was beating Mr. Sumner, * I rose immediately to my feet. My first impulse was to come into the Sen- ate Chamber and help to put an end to the affray if I could. But it occurred to my mind in an in- stant that my relations to Mr. Sumner were such that if ^ came into the hall my motives would bo misconstrued, perhaps, and I sat down again.' " Ho stated that a few moments afterwards ho went into the Senate Chamber, and saw tho crowd gathering about Mr. Sumner, who was prostrate on the floor. He closed his remarks by stating ho did not know that ho was in the Capi- tol, that he did not know that any man thought of attacking him, ai^d that he had not the slight- est suspicion of what was to happen. " Mr. Toombs said, * As for rendering Mr. Sum- ner any assistance, I did not do it.' It was also given in evidence that Mr. Keitt was present at the assault, not only consenting to the action of LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. £8? his colleague, but with violent demonstrations and profane expressions warning off all who wo\ild interfere to save the victim from his assailant.'' * On the other hand, the friends of freedom dis- played a tender and courageous sympathy for the BuiTering senator, and a righteous indignation at the outrage committed. Mr. "Wilson, a long-tried and steadfast friend, was among the first to hasten to the side of his stricken colleague, and to render him every broth- erly attention. Afterwards, in his place, he nobly represented Massachusetts in his denunciation of the attack as " brutal, murderous, and cowardly." The House committee brought in two reports ; the majority recommending the expulsion of Brooks, and expressing disapprobation of Edmon- son and Keitt ; the minority pleading want of jurisdiction. Here also Massachusetts vindicated her right to utter her sentiments on the floor of Congress, and defended her representative in the other Chamber from his assailants, whether they em- ployed tongue or bludgeon. Mr. Burlingarae was particularly bold and eloquent. Of ^Ir. Sumner's 11 I • Wilson. 288 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. .c;i': Speech ho said, ' It was severe, because it wa3 launched against tyranny. It was severe, as Chatham was severe, when he defended the fee- ble colonies agauist the giant oppression of the mother country. It was made in the face of a hostile Senate. It was continued through the greater portion of two days ; and yet, during that time, the speaker was not once called to order. This fact is conclusive as to the personal and parliamentary decorum of his speech. Ho had provocation enougli. His State had been called 'hypocritical.' He himself had been called 'a puppy,' * a fool,' ' a fanatic,' and ' a dishonest man.' No man knew better than he did the proprieties of the place, for he had always observed them. No man knew better than he did parliamentary law, because he had made it the study of his life. No man saw more clearly than he did the flaming Bword of the Constitution turning every way, guarding all the avenues of the Senate. But ho was not thinking of these things ; he was not thinking the of the privileges of the Senate, nor of the guarantees of the Constitution. He was there to denounce tyranny and crime ; and he did it. He was there to speak for tho rights of an empire, and he did it bravely and grandly." LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 289 "The House," says Mr. Wilson, "censured Keitt, but failed to condemn Edmonson. Keitt resigned. One hundred and twenty-one mem- bers voted to expel Brooks, and ninety-five voted against expulsion. Having failed to expel, — a two-thirds voj;e being necessary, — a vote of censure was adopted by a large majority. " After these votes were declared, Mr. Brooks addressed the House in a speech of mingled as- sumption, insolence, and self-conceit. While dis- claiming all intention to insult Congress, the Senate, or the State of Massachusetts, he seemed to be utterly oblivious that there had been any infringement of law or the rights of others ; it be- ing simply, he said, ' a personal affair, for which I am personally responsible.' With infinite ef- frontery he affirmed, * I went to work very deliber- ately, as I am charged, — and this is admitted, — and speculated somewhat as to whether I should employ a horsewhip or a cowhide ; but knowing that the senator was my superior in strength, it occurred to me that he might wrest it from my hand, and then (for I never attempt anything I do not perform) I might have been compelled to do that which I would have regretted the balance 19 i^'V 4 lili TM LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. — ^— .tiJi of my natural life.' What that contingency he so coolly admitted was, every reader can conjecture. " With still greater assurance and self-asser- tion, he claimed, as a matter of credit for his for- bearance, that he had not plunged the nation into civil war, as if he had held the destinies of the Republic in his hands. ' In my heart of hearts,' he said, ' such a menacing line of conduct I be- lieve would end in subverting this government and drenching this hall in blood. No act of mine, on my personal account, shall inaugurate revolution ; but when you, Mr. Speaker, return to your own home, and hear tlie people of the great North — and they are a great people — speak of me as a bad man, you will do me the justice to say that a blow struck by me at this time would be followed by a revolution ; and this I know.' " Concluding his speech, he announced the resignation of his seat, and walked out of the House." One of the saddest features of this aifair was the general, in most cases the enthusiastic, ap- proval accorded to Brooks by the Southern peo- ple. The men applauded him, fair women smiled upon him. Not only the young " chivalry," but LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 291 to grave and reverend heads, professors of science, teachers of youth, and preachers of righteousness, joined in the general jubilation. There were, of course, individual exceptions ; but the proofs of an all but universal satisfaction with the bloody deed are too r' nierous and strong to be contro- verted. The South indorsed the act, and made it its own. South Carolina placed the crown upon the head of her censured representative, by returning him immediately to Congress, with the bludgeon in his hand. Brooks was the hero of the hour ; though later, he confessed that he was heart-sick of the gifts and honors heaped upon him as the prince of bullies. Jefferson Davis, to an invitation to attend a public dinner in honor of Brooks, was not slow to reply, "I have only to express to you my sympathy with the feeling which prompts the sons of Carolina to welcome the return of a brother who has been the subject of vilifioation, misrepresentation, and persecution, because he resented a libellous assault upon the representa- tive of their mother." The students and officers of the University of Virginia voted a cane to their hero, — their ^l 292 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. r, Si diploma, — expressing their sense of his superio* attainments in the noble science of assault and battery. Never was a seat of learning prosti- tuted to a more ignoble use. In view of these facts, which might bo greatly multiplied, what proof we have of the power of prejudice, especially of the blinding, demoraliz- ing influence of slavery I But we gladly turn from such exhibitions of human folly and frenzy. All through the Free North there sprang up instantly a feeling which stood in marked and most favorable contrast with these Southern demonstrations. Slavery and freedom were more and more revealing their opposite characters. "Where the latter prevailed, the people, regard- less of political dilTerences, rushed together to express their profound sense of a great wrong done to Liberty. Massachusetts, as most directly assailed, was the most deeply moved. But every- where, every man felt that in the attack upon Mr. Sumner, he himself had been personally smitten. Where was free speech, where was liberty of any kind, if such deeds of violence could be allowed ? ^ ' The most important result of this atrocity was ■J-W^ J*. -- ■■■ 4. -!*!&»-! i^ LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 293 the deeper impression now made upon the minds of all anti-slavery men, or that now for the first time awakened among men hitherto indifferent or hostile to the movement for freedom — that slavery was the crowning shame and curse of the country. It was slavery that had beaten to th.> ground a representative of the people — a de- fender of liberty ; and slavery must fall. " When," said his colleague, Mr. Wilson, " I lifted his bleeding body from the floor, and laid him upon a lounge, and then washed his blood from my hands, I swore eternal vengeance to slavery, and consecrated my life anew to the cause of human freedom." And such was the feeling in ten thousand hearts, all over the North. At a public meeting in Fancuil Hall, Hon. Peleg W. Chandler said, — and his words were but an expression of the universal feeling, — "It is precisely because I have been and am now his personal friend, and it is precisely because I have been and now am his political opponent, that I am here to-night. . . . Yet personal feelings are of little or no consequence in this t rage. It is a blow not merely at Massachusetts, a blow not ?!| 'Sil, ' 1/ 'il ''M I .' t 4 294 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. merely at the name and fame of our nommon country, — it is a blow at constitutional liberty all the world over ; it is a stab at the cause of uni- versal freedom. Whatever may be done in this matter, however, one thing is certain, one thing is sure. The blood of this Northern man now stains the Senate floor, and let me tell you that not all the water of tlic Potomac can wash it out. Forever, forever and aye, that stain will plead in silence for liberty wherever man is enslaved, for humanity all over the world, for truth and for justice, now and forever." The Hon. Josiah Quincy, then in the eighty- fifth year of his age, said, in a meeting at Quincy,— " The blow struck upon the head of Charles Sumner did not fall upon him alone. It was a blow purposely aimed at the North. It was a blow struck at the very Tree of Liberty. It speaks to us in words not to be mistaken. It says to us that Northern men shall not be heard in the halls of Congress, except at the point of the bowie-knife, the bludgeon, and revolver. " The bludgeon, heretofore only brandished, lias at last been brought down. Charles Sumner •mm^ 5 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. needs not our sympathy ; if he dies, his name will be immortal — his namo will he enrolled with the names of Warren, Sidney, and Russell ; if he lives, he is destined to be the light of the nation." At another meeting in Boston, Wendell Phillips spoke with even more than his wonted elo- quence. " Nobody," he said, " needs now to read this speech of Charles Sumner to learn whether it is good. We measure the amount of the charge by the length of the rebound. When the spear, driven to the quick, makes the devil start up in his own likeness, we may be sure it is the spear of Ithuriel. That is my way of measuring the speech which has produced this glorious result. 0, yes, glorious 1 for the world will yet cover every one of those scars with laurels. Sir, he 7ni08t not die ! We need him yet, as the van- guard leader of the hosts of Liberty. Nay, he shall yet come forth from that sick chamber, and every gallant heart in the Commonwealth be ready to kiss his very footsteps." Referring to v/hat some had regarded as coarseness in one of Mr. Sumner's comparisons, ' « I'll ■ ■ m 296 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER, Mr. Phillips said, " In utter scorn of the sickly taste, of the elFeminato scholarship that start? back in delicate horror at a bold illustration, 1 dare to say there is no animal God has con- descended to make, that man may not venture to name. And if any ground of complaint is supposable in regard to this comparison, which shocks the delicacy of some men and some presses, it is the animal, not Mr. Douglas, that has reason to complain. ... I place the foot of my uttermost contempt on those members of the press in Bos on that have anything to say in criticism of his language, while he lies there pros- trate and speechless — our champion, beaten to the ground for the noblest word Massachusetts ever spoke in the Senate." Ralph Waldo Emerson, in a speech at Concord, said, " Well, sir, this noble head, so comely and so wise, must be a target for a pair of bullies to beat with clubs I The murderer's brand shall stamp their foreheads, wherever they may wan- der in the earth. " But I wish, sir, that the high respects of this meeting shall be expressed to Mr. Sumner. . . , I wish that he may know the shudder of tor- •%*u.: m LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 297 ror that ran tlirough all this community on the first tidings of this brutal attack. Lot him hear that every man of worth in New England loves his virtues, — that every mother thinks of him as the protector of families, — that every friend of freedom thinks him the friend of freedom." Horace Mann, his early and devoted friend, wrote to Mr. Sumner, "We are wounded in your wounds, and bleed in your bleeding." Writing later, he said, " It is impossible to tell , how much we have felt for you — sorrow, admi- ration, hope, affection for you ; grief, indignation contempt, abhorrence for the malefactor. Mrs. Mann read one account of the outrage, and could never read another. She said she felt the concussion of the blows all through her brain." The legislature of Massachusetts passed a se- ries of resolves concerning the assault, describ- ing it as " brutal and cowardly in itself, a gross breach of parliamentary privilege, a ruthless attack upon the liberty of speech, an outrage of the decencies of civilized life, and an indignity to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts." They demanded of the national Congress " a prompt and strict investigation " of the affair, 1 tl Iw H. mm 298 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. .md the expulsion of Brooks and any other mem* ber concerned witli him in the assault. Beyond Massachusetts, everywhere but at the South, a similar feeling was manifested. Gov- ernor Clark, of New York, wrote to Mr. Sumner, expressing his abhorrence of the assault, and hia personal sympathy with the sufferer. In New York an " immense meeting, and unprecedented in character," declared the con- duct of Brooks to have been •' brutal, murder- ous, and cowardly." An editorial in the Courier and Enquirer, of New York, admirably summed up the moral result of the act of Brooks : — " The fact is incontestable, that when the Massachusetts senator again crosses the thresh- hold of that Senate Chamber, slavery will have to confront the most formidable foe it ever had to face before the public eye. He will come with every muscle braced and every sinew strung by the sense of measureless personal wrong ; but, infinitely more than that, he will come armed with the indignation and shielded by the moral sup- port of the whole North. Hitherto he has fig- ured but in one character- — the assailant of n ■%(i.5 XIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 299 Blavery ; hencefcith ho will be also the acrredited assertor and chnrnpion of the most sacred right of freedom of speech, and as such will command tenfold greater consideration. ITis antagonists have affected to despise him before, and to treat him with scorn. The day for that has passed. The public man, wlio has once been the occasion of such an outburst of sympathy and good-will as has within the 'ast wee!: sprung from the mouth of millions upon millions oi his country- men, is no longer a man to be disdained. He has henceforth position, power, and security be- yond any of his adversaries." A true prophe- cy, in due time to be fulfilled to the letter. The expressions of regard and sympathy which came to Mr. Sumner from so many quarters must have been peculiarly grateful to his heart. He received them as proofs both of personal friendship and of interest in the cause in which his life had l)ecn imperilled. But there were other testimonials, which, though he was grateful for the sentiment which prompted them, he felt constrained instantly to decline. One was the payment by the State of the expense of his illness, which was recommended by the governor m m ^ •! ■Mi soo LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. V to the legislature ; the other " a massive and elaborate silver vase, bearing upon its summit a figure representing Charles Sumner holding his Kansas Speech in his right hand," with othel olegant artistic designs. As soon as Mr. Sumner learned that these were in progress, he courteously, but firmly, refused them, expressing his wish that the money de- signed to be thus appropriated might be applied for the benefit of Kansas, Throughout this terrible scene there was one heart upon which fell a burdei. of anxiety and grief peculiarly its own. It was the heart of the mother. She was then living in Boston, at the age of seventy-one, a widow, and already be- reaved of several children. The tidings which flew over the wires that her noble son, who had spoken so truly and bravely, was a dreadful sufferer from blows which might prove fatal, must have pierced her heart as with a sword. Ah, how she wished to fly to him, that she might watch over him as only a mother can, and tell him how much she loved him, how proud she was of him ; or if, as her fears might suggest, he should not recover, that a mother's hand might (- LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 301 perform the last sad offices. What anxious hours wore hers between the first news of his being smitten and the better tidings that ho would not die. AVo are glad to know, from the testimony of her pastor, that she bore the great trial with Christian patience, worthy the motlier of such a son. And besides the suppoits of religion, she had this strong consolation, that he had suffered because of his fidelity to his convictions in the cause of humanity. As to the son, in those moments when murder- ous strokes were raining upon him, how must his mind have flown to that mother — sadder, no doubt, for her sake, than for his own. Thank God, it was to be \r privilege, in after years, to be with that fond mother when " heart and flesh were failing " her. ,i„^ T^ t;l: 302 LIFE OP CHARIES SUMNFB. ' . ■A 320 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. i'\ pleasant contrast with the protracted suffering from fire which made the summer a torment. And yet I fear that I must return to that treat- ment. " It is with a pang unspeakable that I find my- self thus arrested in the labors of life, and in the duties of my position. Tliis is harder to bear than the fire. I do not hear of friends engaged in active service . . . without a feeling of envy," Returning to Paris, Brown- Sequard gave him the joyful information that the cure was com- plete. Hope long, long and most painfully deferred, is at last realized. Through four tedious years of suspense and pain, he has looked forward to this hour ; and now it has come. He hears the call of duty from across the waters, and when Congress opens, December, 1859, he takes up his work, in the exulting consciousness that this time it shall not drop from his hands. But where are the men who had compelled him to lay down that work, and because it was so faithfully done? Two of the most prominent actors, the most audacious, arrogant, insulting, and, for the time being, seemingly most potential 'iK-Sf LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 3?,1 — Brooks and Butler, — were in their graves in less than a year after the assault, Brooks having experienced a sudden and most agonizing death. The contrast is impressive. 21 m ^ ^4 1 k 1 f ;^, li f 322 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. !.. 1 1 I 'I "'' CHAPTER XXlll. Excited State of Feeling. — Letters to Mr. Glajlin. — John Brown. — His Demeanor ; his Execu- tion ; his 'previous Interview with Mr. Sumner. — John Broi07i in Congress. — Kidnajoping. — Petitions against Slavery tabled. — Letter from Horace 31ann. — Speech, ^^ Barbarism of Sla- verij.^^ — Allusion to Brooks. — Reply of Mr. Chesnut. — Mr. Sumner s Life in Danger. At the time of Mr. Sumner's return to the Senate * the country was in a state of intense excitement. John Brown had just made his bold attack upon slavery, and was on the eve of his execution. The Fugitive Slave Bill had provoked several of the Free States to pass Personal Liberty Bills, for the protection of their citizens from Southern • The Senate was still strong!y Democratic, and of the extreme pro-slavery stamp, though the Republican minority now numbered twenty-four. That minority was soon to be an overwhelming ma- j(»rity. B 1 •3 n > 53 O O ,:'r I ! !l f ' ! 1 ' ijil V. ii Pf: ! 0- fa-i ' \ • I \ 1 1 1 ■ ! LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 323 domination, which, in turn, had roused the pro- slavery party to madness. Secession was be- ginning to show itself. A presidential canvass was just at hand, involving a direct issue between freedom and slaverv. Under these circumstances, when the air was filled with alarms, and many were putting for- ward plans for peace, Mr. Sumner wrote to a friend as follows: — ** "Washington, January, 'GO. "My dear Claflin: Massachusetts has now an important post. The greatest difficulty is So be true to herself and her own noble history. " In the name of Liberty I supplicate you not to let her take any backward steps — not an inchj not a hair^s breadth I " It is now too late for any fancied advantage from such conduct. It only remains that she do nothing by which liberty suffers, or by which her principles are recanted. Remember well that not a word from the legislature can have the least influence in averting the impending result; that the only security is the firmness which noth- ing can shake. ♦* Let the timid cry, but let Massachusetts stand stiff — God bless her 1 *^ We are on the eve of great events, and this h 1 t i- "fm ^r 324 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. 1 d month will try men's souls. But our duty is clear as noonday, and bright as the sun. " Ever sincerely yours, " Charles Sumner." John Brown had now found his way into Con- gress, — for his " soul " Avas " marching on," — in the Ilarper's Ferry Investigation, in the Senate, on the question of imprisoning a citizen for refus- ing to testify in the case. This was March 12, 1860. The investigation arose from the famous enter- prise of the " Hero of Osawatomie," who, October 17, 1859, with a force of twenty- two men, captured the United States Arsenal at Harper's Ferry. His object was to set in motion a plan which he had formed for the general liberation of the slaves. It was charged upon him that he intended to pro- voke insurrection, but he solemnly denied having any such purpose ; and his word was as good as an oath. He hoped to effect a peaceful exodus of the slaves without rebellion or bloodshed. What he had already done in Missouri, in a small way, when he " took slaves without the snapping of a gun on either side " to Canada, he said he wished now to accomplish on a grander scale. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 325 On his trial — for he was soon overpowered — he said, with noble simplicity, that he had only carried out the principles of the New Testa- ment, " which taught him that all things ' what- soever I would that men should do unto me. I should do even so to them.' " To us his scheme seems a mad one, but there can be no doubt of his entire conscientiousness. He was a man of lieroic nature, a devout Chris- tian of the old Puritan style, a perfectly unselfish philanthropist. His very enemies were power- fully impressed by the nobleness of his demeanor in the court-room, in the jail, and at his execu- tion. The letters which he wrote to his family and to his friends, after his sentence to death, show a sweet tenderness of spirit and a cou- rageous and peaceful trust in God. In prison he was cheerful to the very last, and an eye-witness testifies that on the day of his execution, December 2, 1859, he walked out of the jail " with a radiant countenance, and the step of a conqueror." "His face was even joy- ous, and it has been remarked that probably his was the lightest heart in Charlestown that day. A black woman, with a little child in her arms, Hi ,'i^ : M. ■-\ i^j'i i !' (I i 'I !M I '! 326 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. stood by the door. Ho stopped a momei t, and, stopping, kissed the cliild affectionately. An-, other bbck woman, with a child, as ho passed along, exclaimed, ' God bless you, old man ! I wish I could help you ; but I can't.' He looked at her with a tear in his eye." * Compare this man, so gentle and heroic, tho friend of the poor and oppressed even unto death, with the border ruffians of Missouri, whom we have seen, in defiance of all law ond all jus- tice, attempting to set up slavery in Kansas. If wo cannot approve John Brown's plan of liberation, we can admire his magnanimoas spirit and his generous purpose ; while, in the other case, both the men and their scheme deserve only unmingled condemnation. In the case before the Senate, Mr. Sumner contended that that body had not the power to compel testimony, under pains and penalties, except in cases involving self-defence. " This," said he, " is a fearful prerogative; and permit me to say, that, in assuming it, you liken yourselves to the Jesuits, at the period of their moat hateful supremacy, when it was said that * The American Conflict, by Horace Greeley. md, in- fesed I! I ked 0.^.^ .ii^'JJCA,^"-*^ ^ «/ iLcJii) cuZc '/^ <^^^^^^.^^^^ |i/ f^l^f- ¥ ill!* J ;h ,/•• i!i LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 327 their power was a sword whoso handle was at Rome, and whose point was in the most distant places. You take into your hands a sword whose handle will bo in this Chamber, to be clutched by a mere partisan majority, and whose point will be in every corner of the republic." Ah, why did not these senators, who were so anxious for justice to be done, summon wit- nesses to testify about the raids into Kansas, and the attack upon Lawrence ? But it was when Slavery, not Liberty, was in danger, that these republicans of the South were aroused. Mr. Sumner must have felt a peculiar interest in the case before the Sena'e, for he had met John Brown in Boston while there suffering from his injuries received from Brooks. Per- haps that meeting had some connection with the present case. Rev. James Freeman Clarke mentions that, calling at that time on Mr. Sum- ner at his home in Hancock Street, he found him resting in an easy-chair, and with him three gentlemen. One was Captain Brown. " They were speaking of the assault by Preston Brooks, and Mr. Sumner remarked, ' The coat I had on at the time is in that closet. Its col- m I •li m- ill m ifWi S: I 328 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. I)!! i i' lar is stiflf with blood. You can seo it if you please, captain.' Brown arose, went to the closet, slowly opened the door, carefully took down the coat, and looked at it for a few mo- ments with the reverence that a Roman Cath- olic regards the relic of a saint. Perhaps the sight caused him to feel a still deeper horror of slavery, and to take a stronger resolution of attacking it in its strongholds. So the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." A few days later. Mr. Sumner spoke again upon a similar subject — "An attempt to kid- nap a citizen, under order of the Senate." It was an attempt to bring Mr. Sanborn, of Concord, Mass., to Washington, as a witness in the Harper's Ferry affair. Mr. Sumner denied the right to do so, and declared the attempt to be kidnapping. Two days later, he presented twelve different petitions against slavery, con- taining fifteen hundred and eighty-nine names. The Senate, still in bondage to the slave power, laid them on the table. A few months after the assault upon Mr. Sum- ner, his friend Horace Mann wrote to him, " Seek the noblest revenge, which is strength " — "ii, LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEE. 329 Btrength to resume the contest with slavery. One opportunity to deal a heavy blow at that syritem he had improved ; another had come. The session was far advanced into June. Mr. Sumner had been testing his strength for another vigorous encounter. His revenge was sure- — not personal — his noble nature disdained that, — but the revenge of saying again, in his place, all that was in his heart for the cause of human rights. When last he had spoken at any length, it was on the subject of admitting Kansas as a Free State. That was four years ago, May 19 and 2o, 1856. During his absence the question had remained unoottled, and now, on the 4th of June, 1860, he takes up the theme where he had left it. Then he spoke on the " Crime against Kansas ; " now he dwells on the " Barbarism of Slavery." He does so for the best of reasons. He had seen that merely dwelling on particular exam- ples of the injustice of slavery had not brought the desired result. The Nebraska " swindle " had been exposed, the crime against Kansas had been laid bare ; and still the swindle remained, and ) » hi ',1 ' 1 I r; PJ' u:: t. .5.1 I : I j, II wi i li ^t : I I < 330 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. Kansas was refused her rights. The South waa growing more rapacious. What should be done \ Mr. Sumner's logical mind saw no hope but in laying the axe at the root of the tree. He would strike at slavery itself, the bitter root whence had sprung that harvest of woes which the na- tion was reaping. He would carry, not " the war into Africa, but Africa into the war." He would kill the monster whose arms were strangling the nation. " The Barbarism of Slavery " — the most ap- propriate theme, because the most radical. And thus did Mr. Sumner enter upon his speech : — " Mr. President : Undertaking now, after a silence of more than four years, to address the Senate on this important subject, I should sup- press the emotions natural to such an occasion if I did not declare, on the threshold, my gratitude to that Supreme Being through whose benign care I am enabled, after much suffering and many changes, once again to resume my duties here, and to speak for the cause so near my heart. " To the honored Commonwealth whose repre- sentative I am, and also to my immediate asso- ciates in this body, with whom I enjoy the fellow LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 331 ship which is found in thinking alike concerning the Republic, I owe thanks, whicli I seize the mo- ment to express, for indulgence extended to mo throughout the protracted seclusion enjoined by medical skill; and I trust that it will not be thought unbecoming in me to put on record here, as an apology for leaving my seat so long vacant, without making way, by resignation, for a successor, that I acted under the illusion of an invalid, whose hopes for restoration to natural health continued agairfst oft-recurring di>sappoint- ment. " When last I entered into this debate, it be- came my duty to expose the crime against Kan- sas, and to insist upon the immediate admission of that Territory as a State of this Union, with a constitution forbidding slavery. Time has passed, but the question remains. Resuming the discus- sion precisely where I left it, I am happy to avow that rule of moderation which, it is said, may venture to fix the boundaries of wisdom itself "I have no personal griefs to utter; only a vulgar egotism could intrude such into this Chamber. I have no personal wrongs to avenge ; only a brutish nature could attempt to wield that ' > i r *■?.•' i «, i) 1 f., i ) iri I ^ '■PI f-r^ »1 f' f. Hi f: I m \\ »i,.: ? I 332 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. I i; I w M] , 1 ^m li ' ^H vengeance which belongs to the Lord. The years that liave intervened and the graves that have opened since I spoke have their voices, which I cannot fail to hear. " Besides, what am I, what is any man among the living or among the dead, compared vrith the question before us ? It is this alone which I shall discuss, and I begin the argument with that easy victory which is found in charity." Mr. Sumner proceeded to say that in his former speech he had left untouched the most important part of the argument — " that found in the Char- acter of Slavery." " This," he added, " is no time for soft words or excuses. They may turn away wrath; but what is the wrath of man ? This is no time to abandon any advantage in the argument. Sena- tors sometimes announce that they resist slavery on political grounds only, and remind us that they say nothing of the moral question. This is wrong. Slavery must be resisted not only on political grounds, but on all other grounds, wheth- er social, economical, or moral. Ours is no holi- day contest ; nor is it any strife of rival factions, of White and Red Roses, of theatric Neri and ^- 1 ?' ; , i'^ i f % i' ■ i!, i - ■t-q^ I fc.i K t'f ■'i' Ij ■y*- i LIFE OP CHARLES SUMXER. 333 Bianchi ; but it is a eolemn battle between right and wrong, between good and evil. Such a battle cannot be fought with rose-water. There is austere work to be done, and free- dom cannot consent to fling away any of her weapons." Mr. Sumner assailed slavery as guilty of a five- fold wrong: its claiming property in man, — its abrogation oi marriage, — its abrogation of the parental relation, — its closing the gates of knowl- edge, — its appropriation of all the toil of its vic- tims. With reference to the first, he said, — " Under what ordinance of Nature or of Na- ture's God is one human being stamped an own- er, and another stamped a thing ? God is no re- specter of persons. . . . God is the Father of the human family, and wo are all his children. Where, then, is the sanction of the pretension by which a brother lays violent hands upon a broth- er ? To ask these questions is humiliating ; but it is clear there can be but one response. ... On all grounds of reason, and waiving all questions of positive ' statute, the Vermont judge was nobly right, when, rejecting the claim of a slave-master, '?. 'hi I'f J' i, '1 II,: » !' ¥ : :'i iH U'r ■f » ft I f I I 1, \A m 334 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. M !S I il' 4 ^ he said, ' No, not until you show a hill of sale from tlio Almighty.' " Tlio closing: words aro these : — " Thus, sir, speaking for freedom in Kansas, I have spoken for freedom everywhere, and for civilization ; and as the less is contained in the greater, so are all arts, all sciences, all econo- mies, all refinements, all charities, all delights of life, embodied in this cause. You may reject it, but it will bo only for to-day. The sacred ani- mosity of freedom and slavery can end only with the triumph of freedom." His terrible arraignment of slavery was re- ceived with " profound and ominous silence " — the silence which precedes the storm. The slave party in the Senate, taught a lesson by the universal horror — save at the South — which followed the assault upon Mr. Sumner after his former speech, now determined upon a differ- ent policy. They affected to regard the present speech as only wortliy of contempt, all the while feeling the barbed arrows of truth rankling in their bosoms. Mr. Chesnut, of South Carolina, was their mouthpiece, and vented his spleen in some very LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 335 choice expressions : " After ranging over Europe, crawling through the back doors to wliine at the feet of British aristocracy, craving pity, and reaping a rich harvest of contempt, the slanderer of States and men reappears in the Senate. Wo had hoped to be relieved from the outpourings of such vulgar malice. ... la this I am disap- pointed. . . . " It has been left for this day, for this country, for the abolitionists of Massachusetts, to deify tho incarnation of malice, mendacity, and cowardice. . . . We do not intend to contribute, by any con- duct on our part, to increase tho devotees at the shrine of this new idol. We know what is ex- pected and what is desired. We are not inclined again to send forth the recipient of punishment howling through the world, yelping fresh cries of slander and malice. These are the reasons which I feel it duo to myself and others to give to the Senate and the country, why wo have quietly listened to what has been said, and why we can take no other notice of the matter. ^^ Why did not the senator from South Carolina undertake to disprove the tstatementa made by Mr. Sumner? "HI V'" ' "rl » I 336 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMMER. !|! 'M I i But what it was decided not to do in the Senate Chamber, was attempted outside of it. Mr. Sum- ner's life was in peril ; and because lie refused to take any personal precautions, some friends, with- out his knowledge, kept guard over his house, and escorted him to and from the Capitol. At the North, the speech was regarded by some as very truthful, indeed, but very impru- dent. By multitudes it was read with delight, not because Southern wickedness was exposed, but because the truth had been spoken. The veil that concealed the cancer had been torn away ; now there was hope of a cure. It was a hide- ous spectacle, but abhorrence would rouse to action. This speech doubtless hastened the crisis, and helped to bring on the war. That was, however, no fault of the speaker, unless the Saviour was at fault when he said, " I bring not peace, but a sword." The sword of truth is the necessary precursor of true and lasting peace. The nation had tried compromises long enough. Now was Justice lifting up her voice, to try her power, where every other remedy had only LIFE OP CHARLES SHMNEB. aggravated the disease, and left the patient nigher to death. ® Thank God, a man had arisen to speak the ruth, without fear or favor. To-day the nation lives, lii tlie new strength of universal liberty 22 i );'i i *H k i ::tl ^p=F. Um' 4i 111! m t. 1 'i I! !! y 338 LIFE OP CHARLE3 SUMNER. CHAPTER XXIV. fanaticism of the Slave Power. — Jefferson Davis^s Resolutions in the Senate. — Demo- cratic National Convention in Charleston. — Bell and Everett. — Republicans and Abraham Lincoln. — Mr. Lincoln's Views. — Mr. Sum- ner at the Cooper Listitute. — " Republican Party.^'' — West India Emancipation. — Mr. Sumner. — " Presidential Candidates and the Issues.^^ — ^^ Mrs. Toodles.^' — Mr. Lincoln elect- ed. — The Rebellion at the Door. — President Buchanan'' s Cure-all. — South Carolina. — Or- dinance of Secession. — Lhrt Sumter. — Sixth Massachusetts Regiment at Baltimore. — Speech of .Mr. Sumner to Major Devens's Company, at New York. Events are rapidly ripening for a great crisis. The country is in violent agitation. The future Wears a lowering aspect. It is plain that the slave power is bent on em- ploying the most extreme measure for strength- A. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 339 ening its position. Tho union of the States is of littlo account in comparison with slavery. That must bo maintained at all hazards. In tho Senate, only a few days before Mr. Sumner's last speech, Jeflcrson Davis carried through a series of resolution:?, one of which directly a/Tirmed " tho constitutional right of an}'" citizen of tho United States to take his slave property into the common Territories, and there hold and enjoy the same while tlie territorial condition continues." This was a great advance on ]\Ir. Douglas's plan of " popular sovereignty," so called, which left it optional with a Territory to admit or reject slavery. The South wanted more. A slave- owner must be allowed to take his slaves into any Territory, whether the majority of the in habitants willed it or not. Slavery must have the national patronage and protection. This, of course, would divide the Democratic, which was also a pro- slavery, party, as the North- ern wing were not ready to adopt so ultra a measure. But the South cared not for that. If the Democratic party would not follow their lead, they would break with it. '■ 1 t ; ;; lit; ,4 ^n ui >: ! li ( -'i-i '!i' ,■ ■■'•if 'M'l m 'AM it'' 'i \l\ tei 1^^ !l ffi if '* ^i 'i J t! t S40 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNES. Accordingly, when the Democratic National Convention met in Charleston, S. C, in April, 1860, to nominate a President and Vice-Presi- dent, a division ensued. The Convention broke Tip in confusion. The party of the majority adjourned to Baltimore, June 18; that of the minority, comprising men of the most extreme Southern doctrines, adjourned to Richmond, aiid afterwards to Baltimore. The former nominated Stephen A. Douglas for President; the latter, John C, Breckinridge. Thus the South was withdrawing more and more within itself, even then having in view a S(»\ithern Confederacy. In the mean time, another party, composed mainly of old-fashioned Whigs, adopting only the Constitution as its platform, and declining to take any open stand either for or against slavery, had nominated John Bell for President, and Ed- ward Everett for Vice-President. Though pro- fessedly non-committal, it was really pro-slavery. Not to be against slavery, was to be for it. Neu- trality was no longer possible. There was certainly need of another nomina- tion for the Presidency, to represent the party LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 341 of Freedom. The Republicans had just selected Abraham Lincoln as their standard-bearer. Mr. Lincoln, in his own admirable way, which showed genius as well as philanthropy and pa- triotism, had clearly defined his position. Mr. Douglas's so-styled "Popular Sovereign- ty " was thus defined : " Jf any one man choose to enslave another, no third man shall be allowed to object I " The three parties represented, respectively, by Breckinridge, Douglas, and Bell, were assailed with a quotation from Scripture, and an ingen- ious commentary thereon: "*-4 house divided against itself cannot stand.'' I believe this gov- ernment cannot permanently endure, half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved — I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect that it will cea^e to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other." This was another way of putting Mr. Seward's " irrepressible conflict." And thus the parties stood in the spring of I860 — three for Slavery, one for Freedom ; three for Barbarism, one for Civilization ; " all one thing, or all the other." ita II Sf-'*! • J ' \it ', L w -'■^■Vi "m ' ;i:^ If;";! \:. fwi f^ \ \ ' :. V I i ■r ii'' * \t il!' 1? :\ • 1 ;! »■ }m ." T «ll 34: LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. Mr. Sumner entered with all his heart into the presidential contest. He hailed the advent of a new era — the icJiole house dedicated to Freedom. In the month of Julv, about a month after his Speech in the Senate, he spoke at the Cooper In- stitute, New York, on " The Republican Party : its Origin, Necessity, and Purpose." This great speech was another blow " at the root" — at slavery itself It was full of hope. " All good omens," he said, " are ours. The work cannot stop. Quickened by the triumph now so near, with a Republican president in power, State after State, quitting the condition of a Territory, and spurning slavery, will be wel- comed into our Plural Unit, and, joining hands together, will become a belt of fire girt about the Slave States, within which slavery must die, — or, happier still, joining hands together, they will become to the Slave States a zone of Free- dom, radiant, like the ancient cestus of Beauty, with transforming power." Mr. Sumner would be content with nothing short of universal emancipation. His view of such a measure may be learned from a letter to a public meeting convened to celebrate emancipa tion in the British West Indies : — "Hi i1 I u i SI 352 LIFE OP CHARLE3 SUMNER. vention at Worcester, while aiBxirs were in a condition of mingled hope and fear, Mr. Sumner boldly announced this proposition — Emancipa- tion our best weapon. lie saw that slavery was at once the strength and weakness of the enemy, and he would invoke the war power of the government to abolish it. The right, ho said, was unquestionable. The necessity was urgent. " It is often said that war will make an end of slavery. This is probable. Cut it is surer siill that the overthrow of slavery will make an end of the war. "If I am correct in this averment, which I believe beyond question, then do reason, justice, and policy unite, each and all, in declaring that the war must be brought to bear directly on the grand conspirator and omnipresent enemy. " Not to do so is to take upon ourselves all the weakness of slavery, while we leave to the rebels its boasted resources of military strength. " Not to do so is to squander life and treasure in a vain masquerade of battle, without practical result. " Not to do so is blindly to neglect the plain- eat dictates of economy, humanity, and common '♦i.i LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 353 sense, — and, alas ! simply to let slip the dogs of war on a mad chase over the land, never to stop until spent with fatigue or sated with slaughter. " Believe me, fellow-citizens, I know all im- agined difficulties and unquestioned responsibili- ties. But, if you are in earnest^ the difficulties will at once disappear, and the responsil)ilities are such as you will gladly bear. This is not the first time that a knot hard to untie was cut by the sword ; and we all know that danger flees before the brave man. Believe that you can, and you can. The will only is needed. Courage now is the highest prudence. " It is not necessary even, borrowing a familiar phrase, to carry the war into Africa. It will be enough if we carry Africa into the war, in any form, any quantity, any way. The moment this is done, rebellion will begin its bad luck, and the Union become secure forever." Though this speech was received with great applause when delivered, the public mind was divided as to the expediency of immediate emancipation. Then, as many times since, Mr. Sumner was thought by not a few to be prema- Vure and unpractical ; but then, ere long, as well 1 1' 1 1 i 1' i I \ :< r rn. mil I !!: 354 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. as since, his most advanced and objectionable propositions were subsequently adopted. The nation was compelled to adopt emancipation as necessary to success. The next mouth he urged the same proposi- tion, with new arguments and illustrations, at an immense meeting in New York. His theme was, The Rebellion ; its Origin and Mainspring. He called slavery " the ruling idea " of the rebellion. " It is slavery that marshals these hosts and breathes into their embattled ranks its own barbarous fire. It is slavery that stamps its character alike upon officers and men. It is slavery that inspires all, from general to trum- peter. It is slavery that speaks in the word of command, and sounds in the morning drum-beat. It is slavery that digs trenches and builds hostile forts. It is slavery that pitches its wicked tents, and stations its sentries over against the national Capitol. It is slavery that sharpens the bayonet and runs the bullet, — that points the cannon, and scatters the shell, blazing, bursting with death. Wherever the rebellion shows itself, whatever form it takes, whatever thing it does, whatever it meditates, it is moved by slavery; nay, the ■ I I I , 1- i . i i.m^i enable The ion as roposi- }, at an le was, of the ; these I ranks stamps . It is ) trum- »vord of im-beat. hostile d tents, national Dayonet mon, and death, rhatever rhatever lay, the LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 355 rebellion is slavery itself, incarnate, living, acting, raging, robbing, murdering, according to the es- sential law of its being. " Nor is this all. The rebellion is not only ruled by slavery, but, owing to the peculiar condition of the Slave States, it is, for the moment, accord- ing to their instinctive boast, actually re-enforced by this institution. " As the fields of the South are cultivated by slaves, . . . the white freemen are at liberty to play the part of rebels. The slaves toil at home, while the masters work at rebellion ; and thus, by singular fatality, is this doomed race, without taking up arm.s, actually engaged in feeding, sup- pvjrting, succoring, and invigorating those bat- tling for their enslavement. " But how shall the rebellion be crushed? . . . You will strike where the blow is most felt ; nor will you miss the precious opportunity. The ene- my is befoi you ; nay, he comes out in ostenta- tious challenge, and his name is Slavery. You can vindicate the Union only by his prostration. Slavery is the very Goliath of the rebellion, armed with coat of mail, with helmet of brass upon the head, greaves of brass upon the legs, a iliii m V i I i;^ tf ■ - ) # >?!'' 356 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEB. '^^^' )f ^f!^*! ^1^ I ifiil, •ir* iil It I'll ilt target of brass between the shoulders, and with the staff of his spear like a weaver's beam. But a stone from a simple sling will make the giant fall upon his face to the earth. " Amid all surrounding perils there is one only which I dread. It is the peril from some new surrender to slavery, some fresh recognition of its power, some present dalliance with its intoler- able pretensions. " Worse than any defeat, or even the flight of an arm}"^, would be this abandonment of princi- ple. From all such peril, good Lord, deliver us 1 " And there is one way of safety, clear as sun- light, pleasant as the paths of peace. Over its broad and open gate is written, Justice. In that little word is victory. Do justice, and you will be twice victors ; for so you will subdue the rebel master, wliile you elevate the slave. " Do justice frankly, generously, nobly, and you will find strength instead of weakness, while all seeming responsibility disappears in obedience to God's eternal law. Do justice, though the heavens fall. But they will not fall. Every act of justice becomes a new pillar of the Universe, or it may be a new link of that ^^ mii LIFE OP rHASLES SUMNER. 357 'golden, evcrl£,stin.Ia^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 11.25 Hi uk «« 140 12.0 2.2 1.8 U il.6 % V] '^? 7 ^ V c> 7 -(^ TV ^ 366 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEB. and set the prisoners at liberty. Thus war wag happily averted. Mr. Sumner was the more ciirncs^ for such a settlement, as opening the way for great " re- forms in maritime law," so that war might be '' despoiled of its most vexatious prerogatives, while innocent neutrals are exempt from its tor- ments." He would have *' privateering," with " contraband of war," and the " right of search," abandoned. " Commercial blockade " should dis- appear, "to complete the triumph of neutral rights." " Such a change, just in proportion to its ac- complishment, will be a blessing to mankind, inconceivable in grandeur. The statutes of the sea, thus refined and eleVated, will be agents of peace instead of agents of war. Ships and car- goes will pass unchallenged from shore to shore, and those terrible belligerent rights, under which the commerce of the world has so long suffered, will cease from troubling. ... " Meanwhile through all present excitement, amidst all trials, beneath all threatening clouds, it only remains for us to uphold the perpetual policy of the republic, and to stand fast on the ancient ways." * >■■ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 367 This speech, so thoroughly American in ita ijpirit, and yet exhibiting so catholic and benefi- cent a statesmanship, tended greatly to elevate Mr. Sumner in the public esteem. Even those who had depreciated him as a ma-n of " one idea " were convinced of their mistake. The public generally, in spite of their preju- dices, readily acquiesced in the peaceful solution Oi a vexed and perilous question, and the govern- ment was left free to give its undivided energies to the suppression of the rebellion. u >■ iii : ■i ■ -i ■ 'i I ■i 1 1 hi I' !t n \ wj 'i I (i II vT-^ III i ■1 1 H "i n^^^H^I II i \ 1 1 i 1 9^1: 1 •i|!| m m II I 'If'' ll-r 368 LIFE OP CHARLE3 SUMNER. CHAPTER XXVI. Recognition of Ilayti anto Liberia. — Confiscation of Bcbel Projjert?/. — Proclamation of Emanci- pation. — 3Ir. Sumner in Faneuil Hall. — " Bridge of Gold.'' — Jid of the Slaves neces- sary to Success. — Providential Judgments. — Changed Character of the War. — Mr. Sumner's Be-election. — Contrast. — Privateers. — Our Foreign Belations. — Becognition of a Slave Bepublic denounced. So long as slavery ruled in the national coun- cils, the governments of Hayti and Liberia could obtain no recognition at Washington. Southern members of Congress had denounced such a prop- osition as nothing loss than "treason," and as sure, if carried out, " to convulse the Union." But with the inauguration of the Republican party in Washington, a new era came in. Presi- dent Lincoln, in his Message, December, 1861, recommended the long-neglected duty. " If," Hscation Emanci- Hall. — IS neces- lents. — hxmner^s — Our % Slave 1 coun- could outhern a prop- and as )iiblican Presi- r, 1861, u If » LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 569 said he, " any good reason exists 7 V y. if I) •s • 378 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. f4 iij i sibility of any recognition of a new power with slavery as a corner-stone." " An aroused public opinion, ' the world's col- lected will/ and returning reason in England and Fra,nce, will see to it that civilization ia saved from, this shock, and the nations them- selves from the terrible retribution which sooner or later must surely attend it. " No power can afford to stand up before man- kind and openly vote a new and untrammelled charter to injustice and cruelty. God is an un- sleeping avenger ; nor can armies, fleets, bul- warks, or ' towers along the steep,' prevail against this mighty avenger. To any applica- tion for this unholy recognition there is but one word the Christian powers can utter. It ia simply and austerely, ' No,' with an emphasis that shall silence argument and extinguish hope itftelf And this proclamation should go forth swiftly. Every moment of hesitation is a mo- ment Ci apostasy, casting its lengthening shadow of dishonor. Not to discourage is to encour- age ; not to blast is to bless. Let this simple word be uttered, and slavery will slink away, with a mark on its forehead, like Cain, ?. per* LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 379 pctual vagabond, forever accursed ; and tlio malediction of the Lord shall descend upon it. saying, ' Among these nations shalt tiiou lind no case, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest ; but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sor- row of mind ; and tiiy life shall hang in doubt before thee, and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life ; in the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even, and at even thou shalt say. Would God it were morning.' "And yet, British statesmen, forgetting foi the moment all moral distinctions, forgetting God, who will not be forgotten, gravely an- nounce that our cause must fail. " Alas, individual wickedness is too often suc- cessful ; but a pretended nation, suckled in wickedness and boasting its wickedness, a new Sodom, with all the guilt of the old, waiting to be blasted, and yet, in barefaced effrontery, openly seeking the fellowship of Christian pow- ers, is doomed to defeat. Toleration of such a pretension is practical atheism. Chronology and geography are both ofifended. Piety stands ..: S .■ V ■■■: 1 i ■ ■" 1 •pn^'.--^ i ) I III 'Ml'li i' i. 380 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. aghast. In this age of light, and in countries boasting of civilization, there can be no place for its barbarous plenipotentiaries. As well ex- pect crocodiles crawling on the pavements of London and Paris, or the carnivorous idols of Africa installed for worship in Westminster Ab bey and Notre Dame." LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER, 381 CHAPTER XXVII. Foreign Relations. — Domestic Relations. — Recoil- struction of the Rebel States. — Striking at Slavery. — Rebuke to Young Men at Albany. — Final Repeal of Fugitive Slave Bills. — Happy Change. — Practical Legislation. — Treatment of Freedmen. — Freedmen^s Bureau. — The Coastwise Traffic in Slaves. During the period of the war, Mr. Sumner, as Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations, where ho was placed in 1861, when the new era came in, held an intimate relation to the govern- ment, and was constantly consulted on foreign affairs by the President and Secretary of State. He was an authority in such matters. His pro- found acquaintance with international law, his accurate knowledge of European affairs, and his intimacy with foreign ji ^ists and statesmen, pre- eminently qualified him lo be a wise counsellor. But, as we have seen, he was equally at home h[ .i''- f ! tmih ,r hi I a ; : : . ^ m m ■ i,--;?^ :^ ' i"-!; f i ii'M li^ i I ifc ■ ^ ■■ f ^k : I i I p * ill h ■■ I i.i 882 LIFE OP CHARLES SUAINER. in domestic matters. He profoundly compre- hended the spirit of our govern •nent, the intent of the Constitution, as founded in universal, im- partial justice, and sought to conform the actual legislation to its principles. Republicanism with him was more than a party — it was an idea. It represented simple justice as applied to govern- ment. Before the war, he had labored to expel slavery, as a foreign element ; and, now that re- bellion had opened the way for perfect liberty, ho was constantly on the watch to follow up with new safeguards every advance towards that con- summation. Ho would cut off the retreating foe from any way of return. The question had arisen, What shall be done with the rebel States ? In February, 18G2, he had already introduced the subject of reconstruction, in a series cf reso- lutions, in which he declared the right of Con- gress " to assume complete jurisdiction " in the rebel States, and " to establish therein republican forms of government under the Constitution." The speech which he had intended to make in defence of his views was published as an article in a magazine, October, 18G3. In it he showed >) LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 383 himself to be more practical than many who re- garded him as little more than an idealist or en- thusiast. Dismissing all fine-spun th^'^ries about the status of the rebel States, he looked at the actual condition of the governments and people of those States. In fact, there existed no legal govern- ments. The majority of the people were dis- loyal. Therefore, there existing no government that could be recognized, the whole region fell at once, and of necessity, under the jurisdiction of Congress. " The whole broad rebel region is tabula rasa, a clean slate, where Congress, un- der the Constitution of the United States, may write the laws." " Behold the rebel States in arms against that paternal government to which, as the supreme condition of constitutional existence, they owe duty and love ; and behold all legitimate powers, executive, legislative, and judicial, in these States, abandoned and vacated. It only remains that Congress should enter and assume the proper jurisdiction." And that, he said, would be in the interests of liberty ; for slavery, being a local, a municipal institution, fell, of necessity ;'■ fj if 384 LIFE OF CHA:ILES SUMNER. with tlio fail of the power which sustained it. The nation, through Congress, could know noth- ing of slavery. To make this more secure, and to breathe the breath of freedom upon every part of the country, a constitutional amendment, prohibiting slavery throughout the national domain, was introduced in the House of Representatives towards the close of 18G3. In the Senate, Mr. Sumner was its earnest supporter. It became a part of the Constitution December 18, 1865, — not, alas! till it was beyond Mr. Lincoln's power to know the result which he had looked forward to with eo much interest. But Mr. Sumner was not willing to await the slow process of a Constitutional Amendment, which, after the action of Congress, would have to be submitted to all the States. " Beyond my general desire." he said, " to see an act of universal emancipation, at once and for- ever settling this great question, . . . there are two other objects ever present to my mind as a practical legislator : First, to strike at slavery, wherever I can hit it ; and secondly, to clear the statute -book of all existing supports of slavery, LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEIl. 385 80 that this great wrong may find nothing theie to which it can cling for life. . . . " So long as a single slave continues anywhere beneath the Hag of the Republic, I am unwilling to rest. For well I know the vitality of slavery, with its infinite capacity of propagation, and how little slavery it takes to make a Slave State with all the cruel pretensions of slavery." He would therefore have immediate action, in advance of the slower method of amendment. As a specimen of Mr. Sumner's idea of " strik- ing at slavery wherever he could hit it," whether North or South, in its spirit or practice, we give his letter to the Young Men's Association, of Albany, within about a week after this speech. The young gentlemen, it appears, excluded from their lecture-room all persons not of the " ap- proved color," and then invited Mr. Sumner to speak on Lafayette. His reply was as fol- lows : — " You invite me to deliver an address on Lafayette. ... In view of a recent incident in the history of your Association, I am astonished at the request. " I cannot consent to speak of Lafayette, who 25 'V: i -i- S86 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. v.^;' 5 % I M i il : was not ashamed iofcjht beside a black soldier, to an audience too delicate (o sit beside a black citi- zen. I cannot speak of Lafayette, who was a friend of universal lil)erty, under the auspices of a society which makes itself the champion of caste find vulgar prejudice." A just rebuke to the delicate Albanians. Three days after, Mr. Sumner followed up his attack on slavery in a bill for the " final repeal of all Fugitive Slave Acts." He had given to the Senate notice of his intention to that effect as early as December 10, 1863. About two months later (February 8, 18G4) he introduced a bill. But the subject met with delay from various causes, until June 23, when it came up on a bill from the House for the repeal of all Fugitive Slave Acts, which was passed that da , and which, on the 28th, 1864, by Mr. Lincoln's signa- ture, became the law of the land. This was a hard blow at slavery, a glorious triumph of freedom. No more hunting of men and women through the free North, — no more dragging them trembling from their homes or hiding-places to Southern plantations, — no more converting Northern court-houses into slave-pens, Si-tilii 10 was a LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 387 and no more surrounding them with ropes and chains, under which judges must creep into tho halls of justice, — no more degrading a State soldiery into tho base service of lielping to en- slave human beings, — no more bowing the knee to imperious masters. The nation had swept away one more relic of l)arbarism, and taken one more long step in the directi. a of universal freedom. In urging this measure, Mr. Sumner, in tho course of the debate upon it, replied to tho objection, that it was not '' practical." " If it be practical to relievo the people from an uncon- stitutional and oppressive statute ; if it be practi- cal to take awav a badge of subjugation imposed by slave-masters during a brutal supremacy ; if it be practical to secure the good name of tho Republic, still suffering immeasurably from this outrage ; if it bo practical, at this moment of our own severe trial, to substitute justice for op- pression, and thus secure tho favor of Provi- dence ; and finally, if it be practical tc oLrike at slavery wherever we can hit it, end to relieve ourselves of this terrible wrong, — then is this measure eminently practical. It is as practical m \: f !■ i i m^ Jt iN'l 1 ^li V i! \ . -1 : li ;• , 1 1 ■ Hi 1 : "^:-iA ■ ' :: y. i 1« ■y\ ■:- ■• U i :|ii i I, 388 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEB. 1 I 08 Justice, a.8 practical as humanity, as practical aa duty, which cannot be j^ostponed." Tlio Union causo had now assumed a brighter aspect. The year 18G3 had been one of great prosperity. The year 18G-1 opened liopefiilly, and the prospect of subduing the rebellion grew more cheering every day. General Grant, with the title of Lieutenant- General, was assigned to the command of all the Federal forces. The rebel forces were mainly concentrated in two great armies, in Virginia and in Georgia. Against these it was th^ plan of the commanding general to direct the whole military pov/er. In consequence of our successes and the in- creasing prospect of crushing the rebellion, there arose a new and most important question. What shall be done with the Freedmen ? It was not enough that slavery had disappeared or was departing. There must be constructed a " bridge from slavery to freedom," over which the millions who had been enfeebled and degraded by slavery might safely pass into a condition of useful citi- zenship. They needed guidance and protection. Many plans were proposed by persons in and out of Congress. The one finally adopted, March LIF13 OF CHARLES SUMNER. 389 3, 18G5, creating a Bureau of Fieedmen under the War Department, dillered in some particulars irom that proposed by Mr. Sumner, May 25, 18G4, but it embraced its essential features, llis pref- erence, however, was, that the bureau should bo connected with the Treasury Department. It has been supposed by some that Mr. Sum- ner had " a great scheme for creating a new de- partment of the government, with a cabinet officer at its head, for the perpetual care of tlie freed- men/' and tending " to perpetuate caste." Noth- ing could be farther from the truth. Ho ex- pressly calls his plan a " bridr/e from slavery to freedom." IIo sought for the freedmen " imme- diate protection and welfare during the present transition period" *^ Our present necessity." he said, " is to help those made free by the present war ; " " to help the freedmen in their rough passage from slavery to freedom;" "to securo employment for them during the transition from one condition to another." " The temporary caro of the freedmen is tho complement of emanci- pation." The sphere of the bva-eau was afterwards made to embrace provision for the education, as well til -fU 390 LIFE OP CHAHLES SUMNER. as for tlio em^^loyment and protection, of tho frocdmen. TliG bureau accompllslied a most beneficent work, notwitlistundinj^ many serious mistakes in its operation, au'l cases of perversion of funds from their legitimate purposes. Without it, tho newly-freed would have found their transition much harder from slavery to freedom. It stood between them and their lato masters, and oftcred help and encouragement. The statutes for the rendition of fugitive slaves had been repealed. Another and a last support of slavery still remained — that which sanctioned '' the coastwise traffic in slaves under the flag of tho United States." Tho foreign slave-trade had been declared piracy. Why should the domestic, inter-state commerce in slavery bo allowed to continue? March 22, 18G4, Mr. Sumner reported a bill for removing the " disgraceful statute." It came up again June 24 and 25, in the form of an amendment to a civil appropriation bill. It passed the Senate Juno 25, and on July 2, by the President's signature, the national statute- book was thoroughly purged from the stain of Blavery. LIFE OP CUARLES SUMNER, 391 Attached to the same appropriation bill was another anienchnent, also introduced by the in- domitable " intruder " from Massachusetts, for " opening the United States courts to colored witnesses." This also was carried. While other senators interposed objections, oi were favorable to delay in these cllbrts for free- ing the general government from all complicity with slavery, and from discriminations against tho colored people, Mr. Sumner was ever on the alert with his *' besom of destructior'," desiring to make a "clean sweep" of all odious and op- pressive distinctions. Some objected to hia making use of appropriation bills for carrying through his projects ; but he told them that there was " hardly over an appropriation bill that was not compelled to take passengers in this way," and that when the " passengers " were the har- bingers of justice and humanity, he had no scru- ples about putting them c ■ board — if the Senate would compel him to seek for them that method of transportation. #<^ ■;■ ,M, \\im¥ V I i . - H '■-» Ji , 892 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. CHAPTER XXVIII. Nomination of Abraham. Lincoln. — Reverses. — • Peace Overtures. — Jefferson Davis. — Nomi- nation of General McClellan. — Federal Suc- cesses. — Speech of Mr. Sumner at New York, — " Issues of the Presidential Election." — Chicago and Baltimore. — Election of Mr. Lin- coln. — il/r. Sumner^s Speech at Faneuil Hall. — Great Exultation. — Political Barbers. — Mr. Lincoln'' s Inaugural. — Reconstruction of Louisiana. — The Plan opposed by 3Ir. £!\i,rn- ner. — His Reception in Massachusetts. — Change of Tone. — Praise follows Blame. — Rebel Legis- lature of Virginia. — Mr. Lincoln'' s Plan. — Opposed by Mr. Sumner. — Telegram to Rich- mond. — Mr. Sumner's Views of Reconstruction. — Relations between Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Sum- ner. — Henry Clay and Dr. Channing. — Pic- ture for the Capitol. — Tax on Knowledge. The war had now been prosecuted more than three years. With high hopes of its speedy termination, the Union National Convention met LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 393 at Baltimore, and unanimously re-nominated Abraham Lincoln for President. But soon reverses came, financial embarrass- ments increased, and a general gloom overspread the country. Under these circumstances peace overtures were attempted. Jefferson Davis was interro- gated as to his views of a peaceful settlement of the difficulties between the North and South. He would listen to no proposition of peace which did not recognize Southern independence. The Democratic party now sounded the cry, " A four years' failure ! " There were some re- spectable but misguided men who joined in the dirge, but with them was a large following of traitors, who now, at the first sign of ill success, crept forth from their hiding-places for a last des- perate effort to save slavery from impending doom. They came together, these enemies within the camp, of high and of low degree, in a so-called National Convention, at Chicago, August 29. There, bitter and even treasonable words were spoken against the administration, and especially its interference with slavery. General McClellan was nominated for President. f i' 1 :,( i^lil i: 1M- li i Hi V' 1 '' 5. 394 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. Tlio convention had scarcely broken up when splendid successes came, under Sherman and Farragut. The public confidence and hope were strong that at last the rebellion was nigh to death. The presidential canvass was full of impor- tance, and awakened a profound interest. Mr. Seward stated the issues thus : " McClellan and Disunion — Lincoln and Union." Just before the election, Mr. Sumr r Jelivered a speech at New York (November 5, 18G4) on The Issues of the Presidential Election. In it ho said, " There is a wide-spread political party, which, true to its history, noAV comes forward to save belligerent slavery, — even at this last mo- ment, when it is about to be trampled out for- ever. Not to save the country, but to save belligerent slavery, is the object of the misnamed Democracy. Asserting the war, in which so much has been done, to be a failure . . . this party openly offers surrender to the rebellion, [do not use too strong language. It is actual surrender and capitulation ... in one of two forms: (1) by acknowledging the rebel States, 80 that they shall be treated as independent j oi itifi^WiriBWVaH LIFE OF CIIAULES SUMMER. 395 (2) by acknowledging slavery, so that it shall be restored to its old supremacy over the national government, with additional guarantees. . . . Both pivot on slavery. One ac mowlcdges the sla\ e poAver out of the Union ; the other acknowl- edges the slave power in the Union. " Look," ho said, " at the Chicago platform oi candidate as you will, and you are constantly brought back to slavery as the animating impulse. " Look at the Baltimore platform or candidate, and you are constantly brought back to liberty as the animating impulse. " And thus again slavery and lil)erty stand face to face — the slave-ship against the Mayflower. " Never was grander cause or sublimer conflict. Who is not saddened at the thought of precious lives given to liberty's defence ? The soil of the rebellion is soaked with patriot blood, its turf is bursting with patriot dead. Surely they have not died in vain. The flag they upheld will con- tinue to advance. But this depends upon your votes. Therefore, for the sake of that flag, and for the sake of the brave men who bore it, now sleeping where no trumpet of battle can wake them, stand by the flag." HTt-i}- ,|.J Si ll ■rk- I 396 LIFE OF CHARLE3 SUMNER. November 8, Mr. Sumner was at Boston, at a meeting in Faneuil Hall. As the votes were an- nounced giving assurance that Abraham Lincoln was elected, he spoke, as the mouthpiece of the assembly, of the free North, and of oppressed millions at the South, words of enthusiastic grat- itude : — " The trumpet of victory is now sounding through the land, ' Glory, Hallelujah 1 ' It is the silver trumpet of an archangel, echoing in val- leys, traversing mountains, and filling the whole country with immortal melodies, destined to awaken other echoes in the most distant places, as it proclaims ' Liberty throughout all the land, unto all the inhabitants thereof.' " Such is the victory we celebrate, marking an epoch in our history and in the history of the world. . . . The voice of the people at the ballot- box has echoed back that great letter of the President, ' To whom it may concern,' declaring the integrity of the Union and the abandonment of slavery the two essential conditions of peace. " Let the glad tidings go forth, ' to whom it may concern,' — to all tlie people of the United States, at length now made wholly free — to for- ^ F LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 897 eign countries — to the whole family of man — to posterity — to the martyred band who have fallen in battle for their country — to the angels above — ay, and to the devils below, — that this republic shall live, for Slavery is dead. This is the great joy we now announce to the world." In merrier words, but no less serious strain, Mr. Sumner wrote, a day or two later, to the Young Men's Republican Union of New York, — " Thank God, the pettifoggers of compromise are answered by the people, who demand peace on the everlasting foundations of Union and Lib- erty. " The political barbers, who undertake to pre- scribe when they can only shave, are warned that their quackery is at an end." Surely it was " at an end ; " for at the next session of Congress after Mr. Lincoln's re-elec- tion, the Cone^itutional Amendment abolishing and forever prohibiting slavery in the United States, was passed. Mr. Lincoln followed with his Inaugural, in which, with a solemnity and pathos, and a deeply religious strain, that seemed to betoken a con- Bciousnoss that his work was almost done, and in I' ? : !. ■ ;■ ' :-*l iiv '■i-L- 398 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. language rather like a prophet's than like a statesman's, ho spoke of the sin and woe of slavery. " The Almighty," he said, " has his own pur- poses. * Woe unto the world because of offences ; for it must needs be that offences come, but woe to that man by whom the offence comcth.' " If we shall suppose that American Slavery is one of these offences, which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time. He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war, as the woe due to those by whom the offence came, shall we dis- cern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the behevers in a loving God always ascribe to Ilim?" About a fortnight previous to the inauguration of the President, a resolution was introduced into the Senate, by Mr. Trumbull, recognizing the new State government of Louisiana, to be inaugurated under General Banks. This was a favorite measure with Mr. Lincoln. '' With malice towards none, and charity for all," he was anxious to have the work of reconstruc- tion and good-will go forward. like a voe of vn pur- ffences ; but woe Slavery (vidence , having He now th North ? duo to we dis- divino nig God .guration troduced [ogniznig la, to be Lincoln. for all," )onstruc- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 399 Mr. Sumner was as earnest for this as was the President, but in this particular case, as often at other times, they difTcred as to means. Mr. Sumner frankly stated his objections, in private, to the President, and also in the Senate. The new government recognized " an oligarchy of the skin ; " there ought to be " no reconstruc- tion without the votes of the blacks." He took his position against the bill. If in no other way, he would talk it down. It was near the close of the session ; most important business was pressing for action ; but Mr. Sumner was resolved not to be driven from his purpose. " Such a revolutionary measure " must be defeated. To put power into the hands of men just emerged from rebellion, and full of prejudice against the blacks, leaving the latter at the mercy of the former, without a voice in the new government, was, he thought, most unsafe for the country, most unjust to one half the popu- lation of Louisiana, and a most dangerous pre- cedent in the coming work of reconstruction. It was necessary to begin right. To prevent so great a wrong and peril was, in his view, far moro important than to pass appropriation or any vn 1 f 4 i 1 ' 1 i:ji -if! : .. f I \ ' 4 i ■ ' ; %iii 1 lit. I , 1 r. I ; t I* ix, 400 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. other bills. A mistake here might lose whatever had been gained. And so he piled up documents upon his desk, preliminary to a determined liattle. He would talk against time. lie would defeat the bill. Senators beheld with dismay these formidable preparations. " Do you intend," said one mem- ber, an intimate friend, " by parliamentary tac- tics, to stop all the business of the Chamber?" " I do," said he ; "I shall employ every parlia- mentary device which is allowable. I shall pro- pose amendments. I shall talk and talk, till you are glad to surrender." He did talk ; his documental ammunition ena bled him, from day to day, to keep up a running fire, which bore down all opposition, and a sur- render came. That commanding presence, that resolute look, those eloquent pleas for justice, those constant discharges of facts and arguments, that determination to conquer, carried the day. The bill went by default. The country was saved from a great peril. It was said that the President took the defeat of the bill much to heart, and it was supposed that now there was an irreparable breach be- tween him and the sturdy senator. hatever is desk, 3 would :he bill, •midable le mem- ory tac- imber?" y parlia- hall pro- , till you ion ena running d a sur- nce, that [• justice, giiments, the day. ras saved he defeat supposed each bo- 99 on W » S o r! en M > > »H O H O ! i^ ..im. LIFE OP CUARLE3 SUMNER. 401 But they were both magnanimous, and, firmly believing each in tlio other's honesty of purpose, could dilTcr without malice. " On the niglit of the Gtli of ]^^arch," says Mr. Schurz, " two days after Lincoln's second inauguration, the customary inauguration ball was to take place. Sumner did not think of attending it. But towards evening he received a card from the President, which read thus : — ' Dear Mr. Sumner : Unless you send me word to the contrary, I shall this evening call with my carriage at your house to. take you with mo to the inauguration ball. * Sincerely yours, ' Abraham Lincoln." " Mr. Sumner, deeply touched, at once made up his mind to go to an inauguration ball for the first time. Soon the carriage arrived, the President invited Sumner to take a seat in it with him, and Sumner found there Mrs. Lincoln and Mr. Colfax, the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Arrived at the ball-room, the President asked Mr. Sumner to offer his arm to Mrs. Lincoln ; and the astonished spectators, who had been made to believe that the breach between Lincoln and 26 ■' ■ r ? I H'> *mond a recall of the above permission. In two days more he was assassinated. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 405 \'&^IW tate the South, and endanger or delay reconstruc- tion." Mr. lancoln heard them through ; the telegram that was sent to Richmond the next day, order- ing delay, told what Mr. Lincoln thought of Mr. Sumner and his opinions. And again the country was saved through a man who dared to stand alone. The time is coming when the true history of events will show that, in several important crises, Mr. Sumner stood alone in the breach, and saved the nation. He had rare sagacity and courage. The country owes him a debt of gratitude which even now she cannot duly estimate. And the South have begun to learn tliat even when he opposed reconstruction on their grounds, he was seeking their best interests, because seek- ing it on a permanent basis of justice to all. He thought it no unreasonable hardship that those who had sought to overthrow the national gov- ernment should stand modestly aside until their passions had subsided, and until sure guarantees could be eifected for the rights of the colored people. Peace was in his heart. But it was no deceptive peace. It was peace springing from ; I tHI. i ;».! :-^ I '111 i ' m «'! 406 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. impartial justice, involving tlio righteous adjust- ment of the relations between whites and blacks. In this connection we may add what Mr. Schurz further remarks about the relations of these great men to each other. Speaking of Mr. Lincoln, he sa^'s, — " Mr. Sumner he treated as a favorite coun- sellor, almost like a Minister of State, outside of the cabinet. There were statesmen around the President who were also politicians, understand- ing the art of management. Mr. Lincoln appre- ciated the value of their advice as to what was prudent and practicable. But he knew also how to discriminate. In Mr. Sumner he saw a coun- sellor who was no politician, but who stood before him as the true representative of the moral ear- nestness and the great inspirations of their com- moi cause. From him he hoard what was right, and necessary, and inevitable. By the former ho was told what, in their opinion, could prudently and e^afcly be done. Having heard them both, Abraham Lincoln counselled with himself, and formed his resolution. "Thus Mr. Lincoln, while scarcely ever fully and speedily following Sumner's advice, never LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 407 ceased to ask for it, for ho knew its significance. And Sumner, while almost always dissatisfied with Lincoln's cautious hesitation, never grew weary in giving his advice, for he never dis- trusted Lincoln's fidelity. Always agreed as to the ultimate end, they almost always differed as to times and means ; but while differing, they firmly trusted, for they understood one another." Among the causes which led to the differing views of Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Sumner, and to their peculiar relations to each otl>er, we may mention the influence, intellectual and political, upon the former, of Henry Clay, and upon the latter, of Dr. Channing. Henry Clay was the great leader of the Whig party, and his Life was read with avidity by Lincoln in his boyhood, and his example and teachings, in after years, had a powerful influence upon the formation of Mr. Lincoln's opinions on public questions. Dr. Channing was, to an important extent, the teach- er and model of Sumner in his younger days, as a groat foe to war and slavery. Clay, as well as Chacning, was opposed to slavery. Both the statesman and the divine de- sired its extermination. But while the ibrmei ISi '1 ti ■• t' i - ^h fiSii i in »l 5l i ^i \i ili . \ 408 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. was largely governed in his methods by consid- erations of expediency, the latter viewed tho subject in its profounder moral aspects, and was more earnest and radical. These differences ap- pear in their disciples. Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Sumner had the same hatred of slavery, and an equal desire for its ex- tinction ; but they often, as in the case just con- sidered, differed widely as to methods. The former, though far in advance of his teacher in his attitude towards slavery, yet felt the influence of the great compromiser, and was slow and hes- itating compared with Mr. Sumner. The lat- ter, having the most intense convictions of sla- very as an unmitigated wrong, would make no terms with it. He could brook no delay in deal- ing with it. He demanded immediate and un- conditional emancipation. They both desired emancipation, and they both reached it ; but the one at a bound, the other slowly, feeling his way cautiously along ; the one certain that it was always safe to do right, the other equally sure of that, but not quite sure the right time had come. As they differed about slavery, so also about .,i f>^ MI- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 409 m the reconstruction of the insurgent States, and according to the different kinds of influence tliey had each come under, in Illinois or Massachusetts. While the Louisiana bill was under considera- tion, Mr. Sumnei, following up his purpose of securing a guarantee of republican governments in the rebel States, by which all, without distinc- tion of color, might have equal rights and privi- leges, introduced a series of resolutions to that effect. That, in his radical measures Mr. Sumner was governed by the highest considerations of jus tice, and a delicate regard to the interests and honor of the whole country, is evident from his treatment of a proposition in the Senate, Febru- ary 27, " to purchase a picture for the Capitol." He offered an amendment : — " Provided, That in the National Capitol, de- voted to the National Union, there shall be no picture of a victory in battle with our fellow- citizens." Here, too, Mr. Sumner stood alone. Mr. Wil- son and Mr. Howe dissented from him entirely, and the amendment was rejected without a divis- ion. But here, as often, Mr. Sumner was far in advance of his countrymen. '.rirr .. ^!: 11 " j3ar^ ^^pPHnensB BBC! 410 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. Tlio same day, and in the same large and lib- eral spirit, he opposed a proposition to lay a tax on books. The country, in its struggle with the rebellion, needed all the money she could get, but he thought it poor economy to impose a tax on knowledge. But here also Mr. Sumner was in a small mi- nority, and his amendment was lost. -li i«DJ3HV>'91 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. 411 i < ':' r CHAPTER XXIX. Prcsidevt Lincoln and Mr. Sumner at Richmond, — Passage from ^^ Macbeth. " — Mr. Lincoln's Assassination. — Mr. Seward's Life attempted. — Mr. Sumner at the Dlclcens Dinner. — His Account of the Night of the Assa^isi nation, — Mr. Sumner^s Eulogy on President Lincoln. — Divine Providence. — Mr. Lincoln'' s early Man- hood. — His Departure for Washington. — His Speech at Gettysburg. — His Second Inaugu- ral. — His Intellectual Character. And now we have reached a sad period of the national history. Sherman has triumphed over the lower army of the South, Richmond has fallen, Lee surren- dered, and the rebellion come to an end. It is a time of universal joy. But sorrow is at tho door. On the 6th of April, 18G5, the President, attended by Mrs. Lincoln, the Vice-President, \) »■ 412 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMXER. H mm mm and several Senators, among them Mr. Sumner, made a visit to evacuated Richmond. It was then that the President, sitting by Mr. Sumner on the deck of the steamboat, read aloud, " from a beautiful quarto Shakspeare in his hand," those sad, prophetic words in Macbeth, — " Duncan is in his grave : After life's fitful fever he sleeps well. Treason has done her worst: nor steel, nor poison, Malice doinestie, fori'ign levy, nothing Can touch him farther! " Mr. Sumner, in his eulogy upon Mr. Lincoln, in September following, says that, " impressed by their beauty, or by some presentiment un- uttered, he read them aloud a second timoi" A week more, and the prophecy is fulfilled 1 Treason did its worst. Our noble President fell by a shot from an assassin shouting, " Sic semper tyrannis / " * And to think that he, so simple-hearted, so magnanimous, so true a friend to the humblest and weakest, should have been reckoned among tyrants ! But this was the last frenzied shriek of the rebellion. The evil spirit went out of it, foaming and rending. But the President was not the only object • May such always be tho fate of tyrants. T tJl; LIFE OP CHAIILES SUMNEE. 413 {( imner, [t wag iimncr " from ' those son, Lincoln, pressed cnt un- Lilfilled I resident g, " Sia he, so a friend ve been the hist vil spirit y object i. of vengeance. Secretary Seward and two of his sons caine near siifTcring the same fate. Others, doubtless, had been marked for attack, but escaped, perhaps because of the ge. al alarm which was immediately awakened. Mr. Sumner was for some time thought by his friends to bo in peril of his life, and he was urged to arm himself, and use other pre- cautions against threatened danger. But he refused to do so. The colored people of Washington were par- ticularly concerned for his safety, and sent a committee, among whom was Rev. Mr. Grimes, of Boston, then in Washington, to urge him to accept a guard whom they would feel proud to provide, and who might, unknown to the public, watch over his person and house. He thanked them most heartily for their kindness, but firmly declined their proffer, saying that he had only done his duty in contending for their rights, and that if it was God's will that he should now go, he was ready for the event. Ho would leave himself in God's hands. • - A friend has furnished us with some remarks of Mr. Sumner, at a little dinner-party given by h-: M 414 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEB. him, in WashingtoL, February, 2, 18G8, in honor of Mr. Dickens, in -which ho gavo an account of tlie assassination of Mr. Lincoln. Between nino and ten of that Friday evening ho was in pleasant conversation with Mr. Con- ners, when the door was thrown open, and e young man rushed in with his hair almost on end, and said, " Mr. Lincoln is assassinated in the theatre. Mr. Seward is murdered in his bed. There's murder in the streets 1 " Mr. Sumner said he could not credit it, and replied, " Young man, bo moderate in your state- ments — what has happened ? Tell us I " He replied, indignantly, " I have told you what has happened," and repeated his statements. Mr. Sumner said that he then left and went to the White House, where he found the sentinel quietly pacing before the mansion. He asked him whether Mr. Lincoln had returned. " No," was his reply, " and we have heard nothing from him." Mr. Sumner then went to the door, and put the same question to the porter, from whom he received a similar reply. He then said, "They say that the President TTT 1 1' 1 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 415 has been assassinated." Whereupon the porter rushed up stairs and told Robert Lincoln, who at once came down. As Mr. Sumner turned to go, Robert joined him. They found a hack at the door, but who sent it no one ever knew. They jumped in, and drove with great rapidity till they reached the theatre, where they found a startled crowd. Mr. Sumner passed by the sentinels, and, as he entered the building, found where Mr. Lincoln had been carried. Mrs. Lincoln and Miss Harr'i ^ were standing in the entry. Mrs. Lincoln rushed up to him with many exclamations, and asked him whether her husband was dead. lie in- formed her that he had just come, and knew noth- ing of what had happened, but had brought her son. He then passed into the room where Mr. Lincoln was. He was lying on the bed, stretched diagonally across it, — for he was very tall, — his head hanging over a little to accomo- date the blood, which was flowing freely from the wound. He was breathing heavily, his eyes were half open, and his face looked perfectly fresh and natural. Mr. Sumner sat down at the head of the bed, ■ I ' I ! -ii; 1 ; 1 416 LIFE OF CHARLUS SUMNLH. took the President's right hand in hk, and spoke to him. One of the surgeons said, " It is of no use, Mr. Sumner — he can't hear you — he is dead." Mr. Sumner resented the idea, and said, " No, he isn't dead — look at his face — he is breath- ing )> " It will never be anything more than this," was the answer. There Mr. Sumner sat during the wliole night, listening to his breathing, which sounded almost like melody, till, at twenty minutes past seven, it stopped. He then said, " Now for Mr. Seward ; " for he had heard nothing from him, and turned to go out. He found General Halleck a few feet in front of him, and as he had a carriage, Mr. Sumner asked him to take him as far as Mr. Seward's. The general said he was going to see Vice- President Johnson, and tell him not to stir out that day without a guard. After he had seen Mr. Johnson, he would carry him Avhere he liked. They got into the carriage, and as they passed through the crowd, people asked, " How is Mr. Lincoln? Is he alive?" He shook his uead. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 417 and they drove on to the Kiikwood House, where General Ilulleck did an errand, [ind then to Mr. ►Seward's. Mr. Sumner sent up his card to Mrs. Scv/ard, and said that she might like to see him. She Gent for him. As he started to go up to the third story, ho found her half way down the stairs, seated, and dressed in white. She seized him by both his hands, and said, " Charles Sum- ner, they have murdered my husband, they have murdered my boy. Fred is dying. lie will never speak to me again." Mr. Sumner tried to say that ho hoped it was not so bad, and asked how her husband was. "Henry is doing better than I expected," she replied, " but Fred will never speak to me again." Then suddenly rising, she threw off his hands, and said, " I must fly," and disappeared. Mr. Sumner said he never saw her again. The city of Boston wished to do honor to the memory of the martyred President, and invited the elder of the senators of the Commonwealth to deliver a eulogy on the first day of June. Mr. Sumner began his eulogy with these im- pressive words : — 2T V! -r 'i. ] I ! r M < II' -■i«fi^,!P,. I 418 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. "In the universe of God there are no acci- dents. From the fall of a sparrow to the fall of an empire or the sweep of a planet, all is ac- cording +0 divine Providence, whose laws are everlasting. No accident gave to his country the patriot we now honor. No accident snatched this patriot, so suddenly and so cruelly, from his sublime duties. Death is as little an accident as life. Never, perhaps, in history has this Provi- dence been more conspicuous than in that recent procession of events where the final triumph is wrapped in the gloom of tragedy. It is our present duty to find the moral of this stupendous drama." Speaking of Mr. Lincoln's early manhood, Mr. Sumner saidj,with great truth and beauty, — " His youth was now spent, and at the age of twenty-one he left his father's house to begin the world. A small bundle, a laughing face, and an honest heart, — these were his simple posses- sions, together with that unconscious character and intelligence which his country learned to prize. " In the long history of worth depressed, there is no instance of such contrast between the de- if 10 acci- tho fall 11 is ac- lws are country natched rom his ident as i Provi- ,t recent umpli is : is our pendous ood, Mr. 7,— 3 age of to begin [ace, and posses- haracter irned to ed, there the de- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 419 pression and the triumph. No academy, no uni- versity, no Alma Mater of science or learning, nourished him. No government took him by the hand and gave him the gift of opportunity. No inheritance of land or money fell to him. No friend stood by his side. Ho was alone in pov- erty; and yet not all alone. There was God above, who watches all, and does not desert the lowly. Plain in person, life, and manners, and knowing absolutely nothing of form or ceremony, for six months with a village schoolmaster as his only teacher, he grew up in companionship with the people, with nature, with trees, with the fruitful corn, and with the stars. " While yet a child his father had borne him away from a soil wasted by slavery, and he was now a citizen of a Free State, where free labor had been placed under safeguard of irreversible compact and fundamental law. And thus he took leave of youth, happy at least that he could go forth under the day-star of Liberty." Mr. Lincoln's departure for Washington is thus described: — ''You cannot forget how he left his village home, never to return, except under the escort 1 1 ' it 'f 420 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. of death. In words of farewell to neiglibors thronging about him, he dedicated himself to liia country, and solemnly invoked the aid of divine Providence. " ' I know not,' he said, ' how soon I shall see you again,' and then, with prophetic voice, an- nounced that a duty devolved upon him greater than that which has devolved upon any other man since the deiys of Washington, and asked his friends to pray that he might receive that divine assistance without which he could not succeed, but with which success was certain. " To power and fame others have gone forth with gladness and with song; he went forth prayerfully as to sacrifice." Of that exquisite speech of Mr. Lincoln's, at Gettysburg, at the dedication of the National Cemetery, Mr. Sumner says, " The President spoke very briefly ; but his few words will live as long as time. Since Simonides wrote the epitaph for those who died at ThermopyljB, noth- ing equal has ever been breathed over the fallen dead. " That speech, uttered on the field of Gettys- burg, and now sanctified by the martyrdom of iglibors f to Ilia ■ divino liall see ice, an- greater y other i asked ive that uld not ertain. tie forth nt forth 3oln's, at National 'resident will live rote the loB, noth- :he fallen f Gettys- rrdom of LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEB. 421 its author, is a monumental act. In the modesty of his nature, ho said, ' The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here ; but it can never forget what they did liere.' " lie was mistaken. Tlie world noted at once what he said, and will never cease to remember it. The battle itself was less important than the speech. Ideas are more than battles. " Among events assuring to him the general confidence against all party clamor and prejudice, this spcecli cannot be phicod too high. To some who doubted his earnestness, it was touching proof of their error. Otiiers who followed with indifference were warmed with grateful sympa- thy. Many felt its exquisite genius, as well as lofty character. There were none to criticise." " Mr. Lincoln's Inaugural Address," said Mr. Sumner, " which signalized his entry for a second time upon his great duties, was briefer than any in our history ; but it has already gone farther, and it will live longer, than any other. It was a continuation of the Gettysburg speech, with the same sublimity and gentleness. Its concluding words were like an angelic benediction." Mr. Lincoln's intellectual character was thus ii h I LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. portrayed : " He was original in mind as in char- acter. His stylo was his own, having no model, but springing directly from himself. Failing often in correctness, it is sometimes unique in beauty and sentiment. " There are passages that will live always. It is no exaggeration to say, that in weight and pith, suffused in a certain poetical color, they call to mind Bacon's Essays. There also was a touching reality and unconscious power, without form or apparent effort. Nothing similar can be found in State papers. How poor are kings' speeches and presidential messages by the side of such utterances, fit harbingers of the sublime era of humanity !" How entirely in keeping with Mr. Sumner's character was his preference as to who should serve as chaplain on the occasion, as appears from the following reply to Mr. Gaffield, of tho municipal government : — "WAsniNGTON, Cth May, 18G5. " My dear Sir : Do as you please. The names you mention are excellent. " If I could choose one, it would be Rev. Mr. Grimes, the colored preacher. It was for his LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 423 in char- ) model, Failing lique in ays. It gilt and or, they 30 was a without T can bo e kings' the side sublime Sumner's should appears d, of the race that President Lincoln died. If Boston adopted him as chaplain on the day when wo mourn, it would bo a truer homage to our de- parted President than music or speech. I can say nothing that could promise to be so cirectivo on earth or welcome in lieaven. Think of this, and believe me, my dear sir, "Very faithfully yours, . " Charles Sumner." Mr. Sumner's request was granted, and the late Rev. Mr. Grimes served, with Rev. Dr. Webb and Rev. W. H. Cudworth, as chaplain upon tho memorable occasion. ay, 18G5. he names Rev. Mr. i8 for lii3 -1 ■ '■ ' ''. ! 1 1 i I * «" II 1 .: i - i » 1 i I-: ' i i t 1 ||: / R 424 LIFE OP CHARLE3 SUMNER. CHAPTER XXX. ': f n Annexation of Alaska. — Im]jeachment of Presi- dent Johnson. — I'ite Alahajna Question. — Johnson- Clarendon Treaty. — Mr. Sumnefs Views. — Project for Annexing Dominica. — Mr. Sumner's Ojjjjosition. — Unfriendhj Ilela- tions with the President. — Joins the Liberal Party. — His lieasons. — His Feelings. — L' t- ter to a Friend. — liemoval from Chairman- ship of Committee on Foreign lielations. — His Disinterestedness. fi i's- m 4 The year 18G7 added more than five hundred thousand square miles to our national territory, by the purchase from Russia, for seven million two hundred thousand dollars., of her possessions in North America — the region that now bears the name Alaska. Mr. Sumner took much interest in this pur- chase, and made an elaborate speech in the Sen- ate in favor of the treaty to that effect. ^ LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER* 425 m Presi- lion. — imncr^s nica. — f llda- Liberal — L't- iirman- -His Limdred rritory, million sessions V bears lis pur- [lo Sen- In 1868 Mr. Sumner was mucli engaged in tlio case of the imi)eachment of President Johnson, lie firmly believed that the chief :nagistrato was seeking to execute a plan of reconstruction of the revolted States which would restore unre- pentant rebels to their old power, and revivo slavery, and that for this purpose he was set- ting at defiance the Constitution and laws of the land, and usurping power which belonged to Congress. Let us hope that the President was not so great an offender as he was charged with being. ) In the year 18G9 Mr. Sumner took decided ground against the Johnson- Clarendon treaty for the settlement of the " Alabama question " and other difficulties between the United States and Great Britain, growing out of the war of the rebellion, especially from rebel cruisers. But it does not appear that he intended to press to an extremity the full amount of claims. He hoped to effect, out of a full and frank exam- ination of the whole case, a better understand- ing between the two countries, and great reforms in tli.e international code. He most of all sought '. I, I ; Vi i '■■■ I ' i' a LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. security against future causes of disagreement^ and firmer guarantees of peace. In a speech at Worcester, in September, ho said, — " Wlio shall fix the measure of this great ac- countability ? For the present it is enough to expose it. I make no demand — not a dollar of money, not a word of apology. I show simply what England has done to us. It will be for her, on a careful review of the case, to determine what reparation to offer. It will be for the American people, on a careful review of the case, to determine wliat reparation to require. " On this head I content myself with the aspi- ration that out of this surpassing wrong and the controversy it has engendered, may come some enduring safeguard for the future, some land- mark of humanity. Then will our losses end in gain for all, while the law of nations is elevated. " But I have little hope of any adequate set- tlement until our case, in its full extent, is heard. In all controversies, the first stage of justice is to understand the case ; and, sooner or later, England must understand ours." lu 1870 and 1871 Mr. Sumner engaged in fw imcnt. cr, lio sat ac- iigli to )llar of simply for her, ;ormiiio for tlio of tlio lire. 10 aspi- and tlio 10 somo 16 land- i end in jlovated. late set- is heard. Listice i9 or later, jaged in LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 427 another contest, which proved to bo one of great bitterness. It concerned a favorite project of President Grant — the annexation of a part of St. Domingo to tho United States. Mr. Sum- ner took decided ground in opposition to tho measure. Baez, tho alleged ruler of Dominica, with whom negotiations for its purchase had been carried on, Mr. Sumner regarded as an unprin- cipled usurper, who was attempting to sell his country for gold, " in violation of its constitu- tion." Tho relations between the two govern- ments of Ilayti and Dominica were of so dis- turbed a character, that Mr. Sumner deemed it especially censurable in our government to pur- sue a course of " menace " for tho acquisition of a part of the island, to the offenco and humiliation of the Haytien Republic. Such was Mr. Sumner's view of tho matter, tho correctness of which recent events have most abundantly vindicated. Honestly entertaining it, he could do nothing less than vigorously op- pose the presidential scheme. He did so with his usual thoroughness, and with that force of language of which he was master. Of course ! I ■*i i i 1 V ! n ' •< , u \0 1 ■ H m • ?i 428 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. there was a tempest, and tlic relations between tlio Senator and the President were far from pleasant. Every day the clouds gathered blackness, until they found vent in a drenching rain of denuncia- tion, President Grant being arraigned before tho bar of tho country in the famous speech, " Re- publicanism versus Grantism : Reform and Purity in Government," delivered in tlie Senate, May 31, 1872. In this speech Yir. Sumner renewed his attack upon the presidential plan for annexing Dominica, and freely commented upon various points of the administrative policy. In all this he declared that he was not warring with the Republican party. He simply wanted reform, in the direction of honesty and justice. Of the party he said, " I stood by its cradle ; let mo not follow its hearse." Tho party, however, disregarded Mr. Sumner's appeals, and renominated President Grant. Mr. Sumner, finding his efforts fruitless within tho old organization, joined in a separate move- ment, which aimed at the election of Horace Greeley, professedly a Reform candidate. IIow far he was mistaken in his allegations two en IVum until mncia- ro tlio ., " Rg- Purity e, Muy ncwed mexing various warring wanted justice, cradle j jumner's it. 18 within ;e move- ■ Horace ite. legationa LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 42y ngiiiast the administration, or how far time has pioved their correctness, it is not the provinco of tliis volume to inquire. But we cannot believe that the man wlio had lieretofore labored witli singular disinterested- ness for lofty ends, had now, at last, descended to the mean gratification of personal spite, willing to rend the i)arty wliicli had cherished him, and which had given freedom to the whole country. Concede that ho erred in judgment; still his high purpose was to serve Ids country in what seemed to him the only practicable way that waa left him. It was said that in siding with the Liberal party, he showed too much sympathy with the South. In reply, he appealed to his course from the first, through the whole contest against sla- very, in proof that his eye had ever been upon peace. " Such," he said, " is the simple and harmoni- ous record, showing how, from the beginning, I was devoted to peace ; how constantly I longed for reconciliation ; llo^^^, with every measure of equal rights, this longing found utterance ; how it became an essential part of my life ; how I m m . -' i. N u«, 430 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. discarded all idea of vengeance and punislimcnt ; how reconstruction was. to rny mind, a transition period ; and how earnestly I looked forward to the day when, after the recognition of equal riglits, the people should again bo one, in reality as in name. If there are anv who ever main- tained a policy of hate, I never was so minded ; and now, in protesting against any such policy, I act only in obedience to the irresistible prompt- ings of my soul." In these contests for Truth and Right, as ho understood them, he sulTered the keenest sorrow. Writing to a friend about this time, he unbo- somed himself with unaccustomed fullness : — " I do not deserve the praise of my friends, nor do I deserve the censure so freely lavished by others. In what I have done I have acted always under irresistible promptings, which I could not disobey, being the voice of conscience within — thinking little, asking never, how it might affect me personally. ... I am no stranger to sorrov/. But is not this the lot of life? Some- times I feel that I have had more than my share. There have been fountains of tears for me that few know of and the world cannot divine. Be- ri]i LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 431 Bi'dca these, I have felt keenly the trials of my position, and the perils of the truth which I love. Never have I seen my way more clearly than in these late conflicts, which have disturbed some of my associates, and never was my course more simple or conscientious. To suppose that I am under the influence of personal motives, whether of ambition or anger, on a great question of na- tional and international duty, is an absurdity which can come from those only who find my motives in their own." Mr. Sumner's removal from the chairmanship of the Committee on Foreign delations, which ho had held and honored since 18G1, was to him a great source of pain. This displacement was occasioned by his altered relations to the Presi- dent, which, in the opinion of many, rendered a change necessary for the public interest. But he felt it keenly, not so much as involving tho loss of a distinguished place, as indicating, in his view, a rude change of feelings towards him on the part of friends with whom he had long labored on terms of mutual esteem and affection, and as taking him from a position where he felt entirely at home, and where he had so long I' .|^«' w 432 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. f^ been trusted with questions of tlio liighest con- corn to the country. That Mr. Sumner's views about the St. Do- mingo affair were unchanged to the very last, is shown by a letter written to a friend, three days before his death, and received after that event: — " My DEAR *' Senate Chambei:, 9th March, '74. I am against capital punishment, but if ever a man deserved a halter it is Baez, who proposes to visit Boston. " I know his history intimately, and he is a usurper, whose hands have been red with inno- cent blood, and who had thvj terrible audacity to conceive the idea of keeping an American citizen in prison to prevent his return to New York, where it was feared he would write against the treaty ; and this crime he actually perpetrated 1 " If ho goes to Boston, he ought to be driven out by an indignant public sentiment. " Sincerely yours, " Charles Sumner." ': ;U' LIFE OF CHARLES SUM^fER. 433 est con- st. Do- ery last, id, three iler that roll, '74. ; capital a halter he is a ith inno- dacity to III citizen iw York, ainst the Detrated 1 le driven UMNER. 17 >' CHAPTER XXXI. Battle Flags and Army Register. — Proposition to erase Names of Battles. — First Besoliction. — General Scott. — Picture , or the Capitol. — Second Resolution. — Cens^^red by the Legisla- ture of Massachusetts. — 31r. Sumner's Feel- ings. — Letters. — Efforts for rescinding the Vote of Censure. — John G. Whittier. — The Resolutio7i rescinded,. — Mr. Sumner^s Views. — Broad Patriotism. — Opinion of Carl Schurz. Perhaps none of Mr. Sumner's acts has been more entirely misunderstood, and at last more thoroughly vindicated, than his attempt to erase the names of battles won during the war of the rebellion, from the regimental colors of the army and from the army register. This subject was first introduced into Con- gress by Mr. Sumner, May 8, 1862, on the occa- sion of a despatch from General McClellan, in which that officer inquired whether, like other ■.' .•}. i '^ -r 4 I .,11.1"!' .. Mm iffs' 434 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. generals, he should direct the names of battles to be placed on the colors of regiments. Upon this, Mr. Sumner moved the following reso- lution : — " Resolved, That, in the efforts now making for the restoration of the Union, and the establish- ment of peace throughout the country, it iia inex- pedient that the names of victories obtained over our fellow-citizens sliould be placed on the regi- mental colors of the United States." The resolution was riot received with favor, and no action was taken upon it. General Scott, however, said of the resolution, " This was noble, and from tlie right quarter.'' It may seem strange that a proposition which, when renewed ten years later, excited intense feeling against its author, should at this time, in the very midst of the war, have attracted scarce- ly any notice, so that Mr. Sumner was re-elected by an almost unanimous vote, nine months after he had introduced it.. But at the latter period there were immediate causes of liostility to Mr. Sumner ; and so his action with reference to the national flags was seised upon as a means of still further prejudicing the public mind against him. rattles Upon reso- ng for ablish- b inex- kI over e regi- L favor, I Scott, 5 noble, wliicli, intense time, in scarce- elected IS after period J to Mr. to the of still ,st him. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 435 On February 27, 18G5, two years after his re- election without any censure, there being a reso- lution before the Senate autliorizing a contract with W. II. Powell for a picture at the Capitol, Mr. Sumner proposed an amendment : — " Provided, That in the National Capitol, dedi- cated to the National Union, there shall be no picture of a victory in battle with our fellow- citizens." In connection with this, Mr. Sumner said, — " Are you sure that tlie subject selected at the present time would be sucli as a matu- rer and more chastened taste could approve? This is a period of war. We are all under its influence. But I doubt if it be desirable to keep before us any picture of war, especially of a war with fellow-citizens. Tliero are mcral triumpi!^ to which art may better lend its charms. I need only refer to the Proclamation of Emancipation, which belongs to the great events of history." The amendment was opposed and rejected ; but still we hear no note of rebuke from Mas- sachusetts. Again, December 2, 1872, Mr. Sumner brought the subject before the Senate, without a thought, probably, of rousing a tempest of denunciation if 'i < f : ti ■ M n i-if Jl I? li 436 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. against himself for what ho had done twice be- fore unrebukcd : — " Wiereas, The national unity and good-will among fellow-citizens can be assured only through oblivion of past differences, and it is contrary to tiie usage of civilized nations to perpetuate the memory of civil war : Therefore, " Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Rep- resentatives of the United States of America, in Congref^s assembled, That the names of battles with fellow-citizens shall not be continued in the army register, or placed on the regimental colors of the United States." At once, as though guilty of some recent offence, there arose a cry against the senator, wliicli found official expression in the passage of a resolution of censure, December 18, by the legislature of Massachusetts, sixteen days after tlie offence had been committed. " Resolved hy the Senate, &c., That, whereas a bill has been introduced into the Senate of the United States by a senator from Massachusetts, providing * that the names of battles with feUow- citizens sliall not be continued in the army regis- ter, or placed on regimental colors of the United States ; ' and u LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 437 3 be* iry to :o the '' Rep- ',ca, in jattles icd in mental recent nator, ige of ^y the after jreas a of the usetts, tellow- regis- United " JVIiereas, The passage of such a bill would be an insult to tlic loyal soldiery of the nation, and depreciate their grand achievements in the late rebellion ; " There/ore, resolved, That such legislation meets the unqualified condemnation of the peo- ple of this Commonwealtli." This action was hasty and ill-considered. It was done at a special session called to consider measures of relief for the city of Boston under the losses sustained by the great fire. It did not represent Massachusetts. The injustice of this act was keenly felt by Mr. Sumner, and it threw a gloom over the last years of his life. It seemed to him that ho was cast off by the State wliich he loved so well, whose honor he had ever sought to up- hold, and which he had thought held him in true esteem. It was not enough that he was told that the act was a hasty one — that it was not the real act of Massachusetts. There stood the censure upon her records 1 He was deeply touched by assurances given him that it would be annulled. He almost died with- out the sight. To an intimate friend, who had assured him dl \:h '<'\ ! 438 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. that the censure would soon be removed, ho wrote, February 23, 1873,— " My dear : Your letter surprises uie. I never doubted that, sooner or later, jus- tice would be done me ; but I thought it M'ould be later. Your own action is another proof of that unbroken friendship which has so long subsisted between us. Thanks ! many thanks I I send you my bill introduced by two allegations of fact which nobody can dispute. " You will find in vol. vi., p. 490, of what booksellers call ' Works of C. S.' the first ap- pearance of the official resolution, as long ago as May 8, 1852. Massachusetts did not con- demn me then, but soon thereafter re-elected me. General Scott, once commander-in-chief of our army, and perhaps as well informed in history as an}'- army oOicer, thanked me (see vol. i., pp. 155-190 of his autobiography), as also did General Robert Anderson of Fort Sumter. " Thanks to Mrs. , also, and believe me, dear , " Ever sincerely yours, " Charles Sumner." To the same friend he wrote, March 11, — " Thanks again, dear . Never was 1 more sure of any proposition than that for which I am assailed. When well enough, I will Hi LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 439 )) place it beyond all question, — showing reason, histor}'', and every civilized nation for it. The Emperor of Germany has just adopted it." To another personal friend ho wrote, March 20,- " If persons would only consider candidly my original convictions on this question, they would see how natural and inevitable has been my conduct. As if in such a matter I could have ' hostility ' or ' spite ' to any body 1 I am a public servant, and never was I moved by a purer sense of duty than in tliis bill, all of which will be seen at last. Meanwhile men will flounder in misconception and misrepre- sentation, to be regretted in the day of light." John G. Whittier was foremost among thoso who were deeply grieved by the vote of cen- sure. By his pen and in conversation, his noble heart appealed to the sense of justice and mag- nanimity of the members of the legislature, to rectify the grievous wrong done to the high- minded and patriotic son of Massachusetts by hasty action taken in a moment of excitement. Early in 1874, soon after the opening of the ses- sion, numerous petitions, from John G. Whittier, Vice-President Wilson, Henry L. Dawes, Ex* -^1 ^■11 fi 1 ii 4 Is 440 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. Governors Emory Washburn and William Claliii^ Henry L. Pierce, and very many other citizens of the highest standing, representing the intelligence and honorable feelings of the Connnonwealth, were presented to the Senate. These were at once referred to the Committee on Federal Relations, who, January 29, reported, that, " finding an un- merited censure had been inflicted upon a repre- sentative of the State in the Senate of the Union," they submitted the following resolution : — " Jiesolved, Tliat the resolution passed on the eighteenth day of December, eighteen hundred and seventy-two, at the extra session of the legis- lature of that year, relating to a bill introduced in the Senate of the United States concerning the army register and regimental colors of the United States, be and hereby is rescinded and annulled^ This resolution was carried, and being in- trusted to a special messenger, Joshua B. Smith, of the House, was borne to Mr. Sumner. It reached him just before his death. Who is not rejoiced to know that it greatly gladdened a heart oppressed with heavy sorrow ? After all, the " dear old Commonwealth "' had done him justice. The heart of Massachusetts and tho LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 441 ■m )i heart of her great son once again beat in perfect unison. Whatever opinion may be held as to the ex- pedieucy of Mr. Sumner's proposition, this is certain — that it was in perfect consistency with principles declared by him as early as 1847, twenty years before his first resolution. In an oration before the literary societies of Amherst College, August 1 1 of that year, speaking of civil wars, he said, — " Even if countenanced by justice or dire ne- cessity, they were none the less mournful. No success over brethren of the same country could he the foundation of honor. And so firmly was this principle embodied in the very customs and institutions of Home, that no thanhsfjiving or religious ceremony was allowed by the Senate in commemoration of such success ; nor was the triumph permitted to the conquering chief whose hands were red with the blood of fellow-citizens. Caesar forbore even to send a herald of his un- happy victories, and looked upon them with shame. . . . [The Christian] would . . . pray that the recording angel would blot with tears all recollections of the fraternal strife in which he was sorrowfully engaged." In a learned note appended to the address, Mr, 442 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. f^ { w *-. i"! rm Sumner gave many historical illustrations of his position. ITo quoted from Dion Cassius, that Pompcy, after his success over Cicsar at Dyr- rachium, " did not spealc of it boastfully, nor did bo wreathe liis fasces with laurel, feeling a re- pugnance to doing anything of this sort on ac- count of a victory over citizens." Mr. Sumner knew that it was the uniform prac- tice of all civilized, Christian nations to remove all national memorials of civil war. To his gen- erous and comprehensive mind, informed as to universal custom elsewhere, it seemed both just and magnanimous to efface from the national, the common flag, all traces of our fraternal strife. If North and South were ever to be united, it must be by meeting on common ground, by oblivion of past differences, and by putting away all me- morials of form.er hate. Mr. Sumner was said to be wanting in patriot- ism ; but his was the highest, broadest patriotism, embracing the whole country, and not a moiety. It was national, not sectional. It was based on the principles of Christianity. Surely it were better that the different parts of the country should be of one heart, than that sectional pride LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 443 of hia , thai - Pyr- or did a ro- on ac- 1 prac- rcraovo is gcn- l as to ith just lal, the lie. If it must )blivion all me- patriot- riotism, moiety, ised on it were country il pride should be perpetually gratified. TTorc, in his view, was an opportunity for the noblest self-sacrifico, to gain a great national advantage. " I am for peace," said lie, on another occasion, " in reality as in name. From tlie bottom of my heart I am for peace, and 1 welcome all that makes for peace. With deep-felt satisfaction I remember that no citizen who drew his sword has suffered by the hand of the executioner." Urging the " enduring fellowship of a common citizenship," he said, '' To this end there must be reconciliation ; nor can I withhold my hand. Freely I accept the hand that is offered, and reach forth my own in friendly grasp. I am against the policy of hate ; I am against fanning ancient flames into continued life ; I am against raking in the ashes of the past for coals of firo yet burning. Pile up the ashes ; extinguish the flames : abolish the hate — such is mv desire." It was such noble sentiments as these that dictated Mr. Sumner's policy. Was he the man to be pronounced by a legislative body worthy of " unqualified condemnation," as offering " an insult to the loyal soldiery of the nation ? " This was a blow aimed at as pure a patriot as Amer m in 444 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. ica was ever blessed with. Wlio is not thankful that a stigma wliich could not attach to him wa3 removed from Massacliusetts ? The position of Mr. Sumner was well expressed by a fellow-senator, Carl Schurz, in his noblo eulogy upon Mr. Sumner, in Boston, April 29: — " Should the son of South Carolina, when at some future day defending the republic against some foreign foe, bo reminded by an inscription on the colors floating over him, that under this flag the gun was fired that killed his father at Gettysburg? Should this great and enlightened republic, proud of standing in the front of human progress, be less wise, less large-hearted, than the ancients were two thousand years ago, and the kingly governments of Europe are to-day ? Let the battle-flags of the brave volunteers, which they brought home from the war with tho glorious record of their vi'itories, be preserved intact as a proud ornament of our State Houses and armories. But let the colors of the armv, under which the sons of all the States are to meet and mingle in common patriotism, speak of noth- ing but union, — not a union of conquerors and conquered, but a union which is the mother of all, equally tender to all, knowing of nothing but equality, peace, and love among her children. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 445 ,iii i^i Do you want sliming mementos of j'our vic- tories ? They are writt(3n upon the dusky brow of every freeman who was once a slave ; tliey are written on tlio gate-posts of a restored Union ; and tlic most sliiniiif^ of all will bo written on the faces of a contented people, ro- miited in common national pride." Mr. Sumner's patriotic act is bearing the fruit of peace. Tlie South is touched by his gener- ous purpose. " Lot the grave," says the New Orleans Picayune, " cover all that was inimical to Soutliern ideas and sentiments in the deceased senator, and let us only remember that he would have put away from the federal archives all shew and sign of the triumph of countrymen over countrymen.' Said Mr. Lamar, of Mississippi, in the ITouse of Representatives, " It was certainly a gracious act towards the South ... to propose to erase from the banners of the national army the mementos of the bloody internecine struggle, which might be regarded as assailing the prido or wounding the sensibilities of the Southern people. That proposoi will never be forgotten by the people so long as the name of Charles SuDiner lives in the memory of man." '" 4' '. \ 4.- i*ifej*T 446 LIFE OF CHARLES SUilNEB. CHAPTER XXXTT. Religious Fieios of Mr. Sumner. — Dr. Charming. — il/r. Samner^s Faith in God. — Seeking Help from the Highest Soiirxe — Gratitude to God. — .Divine Providence. — Justice of God. — Regard for the Scriptures. — Belief in Christianity. — The Christian Standard. — Tlie CJtristian Hero. — Familiarity with the Bible. — Advice to a Young Clergyman. — The Good Shepherd. — 3Ir. Sumner's Character. — The Chief- Justice- ship. — 3Ir. Sumner^ s Disinterestedness. — His Writings. In his youth, and for some time after he en- tered upon the practice of his profession, Mr. Sumner was a regular attendant at King's Chapel. During this pcxiod, llcv. Dr. F. W. P. Green- wood and Rev. Dr. Ephraim Peabody were tho pastors, the latter beginning his pastorate in 184G. They were men of fine gifts and cniinont worth. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 447 I . Mr. Sumner's character was formed under tlio decided influence of religious principles. All his writings, as well as iiis life, show that ho had a reverent faith in God. Indeed, the con- stant recognition of a Supreme Being of infinite justice, truth, and love, is a conspicuous feature Ci' his speeches. " True greatness," he says in one place, " con- sists in imitating, as nearly as possible, the perfections of an Infinite Creator — above all in inculcating those highest perfections. Justice and Love." The references to God. scattered through his political speeches, as well as his literary and other addresses, carry with them every appear- ance of sincerity and profound conviction. This is corroborated by some remarks by Rev. E. E. Hale, in an address at Faneuil Hall : " Mr. Sumner said to a young man, who repeated it to me, that, when there was any new subject of de- bate ; when there was any new course to be adopted; when there was any polic}'' which seemed strange or dif'cult; when there were any of those clouds of which we have been speaking ; when that track was to be found and was hard to »l 448 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. find ; he never took counsel with men, but 8epa« rated himself from men, and went alone and con- sulted the Highest Authority; and when ho was assured by the Iligliest Authority, then ho always went forward, and asked no question more." How reverent his mention of God's care over him, in the opening words of his speech on the Barbarism of Slavery ! How grand and impressive that opening para- graph in the eulogy on Pi-esident Lincoln, in which he speaks of divine Providence ! He speaks of the injustice of ending the war against the rebellion, without also putting an end to slavery, as " challenging tlie judgments of a righteous God." " If," said he, " the instincts of patriotism did not prompt this support (emanci- pation), I should find a sufficient motive in that duty which we all owe to the Supreme Ruler, God Almighty, whose visitations upon our country are now so fearful." Mr. Sumner also made frequent references to the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testa- ment, and alwa3''s in the spirit of reverence. He heard God speaking in them, and summoning ua V I ' it sepa* [id con- hen he then ho question ire over on the ng para- icoln, in the war 5 an end nts of a bincts of emanci- in that e Ruler, country cnces to V Testa- ice. He oning us LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 449 to obedience. " Amidst the thunders of Sinai God declared, ' Thou slialt not kill ; ' and the voice of these thunders, with this commandment, is prolonged in our own day in the echoes of Christian churches." Of the Fugitive Slave Act he says, " With modesty, and yet with firmness, let me add, it offends against the divine law." Mr. Sumner was a believer in Christianity. He speaks of it in one place as " our faith." In his view, Christianity was the " true " religion, in contrast with heathen religions, which he calls « false." Conversing at one time with Rev. Dr. Neale, who often met him in educational meetings, as well as elsewhere, Mr. Sumner, in answer to a question designed to draw out his religious views, declared his full belief in the Christian religion. " My way of looking at it," he said, " may differ somewhat from yours, but it is the same religion. The sun shines in a different way upon different persons, his rays striking some vertically, and others obliquely, according to their respective localities; but it is the same glorious sun. So with Christianity — it comes to me in a way 29 i :m '- 'i ■u 1%^ s % t ! I 450 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. somewhat peculiar, but it is the same glorious faith.-' Mr. Sumner regarded Christianity as present- ing the highest, even a perfect, standard of right. He constantly speaks of " Christian duty " as pre- senting duty in its purest and most authoritative form. When discoursing upon arbitration for the settlement of difficulties between nations, after other reasons in its favor, he adds, " Above all, it is consistent with the teachings of Christianity," and implies " a lofty Christian statesmanship." He speaks of " that sublime revelation of Christianity, the brotherhood of man." " Are we not all," he asks, " in a just and Christian sense, brethren of one household?" "To the Christian, every fellow-man, whether remote or near, is ' neighbor ' and *' brother.' " Speaking of slavery as a barbarism, and not a civilization, he says, '' In the Christian light of the nineteenth century there can be but one civilization." Slavery he calls " an infraction of God's great laws of right and love, and of the Christian precept, ' Whatever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.' " The highest commendation he gives to Wash- ) glorious s prescnt- 1 of right. "as pre- lioritative ion for the ons, after 10V0 all, it istianity," nship." ilation of 1. V i( Are Christian "To the remote or I, and not light of but one action of I of the that men to Wash- if LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 451 ington AUston is, to call him " a Christian artist." Thus, every private and public act and institu- tion was tested by the Christian standard. He speaks of " the irresistible might of Chris- tian institutions," and of the encouragement de- rived from " the promises of Christianity." "With this faith, we place our hands, as those of little children, in the great hand of God. Ho will guide and sustain us — through pains and perils it may be — in the path of progress." " In the clear eye of that Christian judgment which must yet prevail, vain are the victories of war." " He is the benefactor, and worthy of honor, who carries comfort to wretchedness, dries the tear of sorrow, relieves the unfortu- nate, feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, does justice, enlightens the ignorant, unfastens the fetters of the slave, and finally, by virtuous gen-- ius in art, literature, science, enlivens and exalts the hours of life, or by generous example, in- spires a love for God and man. This is the Christian hero.'' " Christianity inculcates pa- tience, forbearance, forgiveness of evil, even tlie duty of benefiting a destroyer," ^ i U '.in 'it! r>,ii h 452 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. In one place he declares his belief in the futuro universal prevalence of Christianity. " Nor do we doubt that Christianity will yet pre- vail over the whole earth, as the waters cover the sea." Mr. Sumner was very familiar with the Scrip tures. This is evident, not only in his frequent and most apposite quotations, but in those inci- dental allusions and in that happy use of Scrip- ture phraseology which flavor and dignify his writings. As an instance of this, take a sentence in his address to the governor at the time of his public reception in Boston, in 1856, where, speaking of his efforts to regain his health, he said, " I listened to the admonitions of medical skill, and I courted all the bracing influences of Nature, while time passed without the accustomed healing on his wings." The uniform correctness of his references to the Bible forms a noteworthy contrast with the Borry work which politicians are apt to make m their awkward attempts at Scripture citation. The Christian spirit that animated Mr. Sumner appears in a little incident. He was once present LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 453 at the ordination of a young clergyman. At the close of the services he went up to him, and said, in a pleasant tone, '' He prayeth well who loveth well." A few weeks before Mr. Sumner's death, a party of ladies and gentlemen from Boston visited his house at Washington, in company with a com- mon friend. Mr. bumner was even more than usually genial and animated, and took great pains to point out and explain objects of interest in his apartments. Among other things to which he called the attention of his guests, was a small and rude terra cotta figure of the Good Shepherd, in relief, bearing a lamb, the lost one, now recov- ered, upon his shoulders. Mr. Sumner said to his visitors that this was the way in which the shepherd in Eastern countries was accustomed to carry home his sheep when infirm or disabled. He repeated the passage in the gospel about the lost sheep, and the owner leaving the ninety and nine to seek that one, giving a touching explana- tion of it. He spoke with deep feeling of Jesus as the Good Shephf»rd, and of his great compas- sion to mankind. The company were much struck with the earnestness and tenderness of Vil r I Ft .1?! .^.^|i tji^'- 4^1 i^-" kH 1» 1^ I 454 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. his manner, and tlicy remember the scene as one of uncommon interest. Who that considers the character of his life, his rilling purpose to do good, can doubt that a spirit was breathed into him from above, from the Father of all truth and goodness, to prepare him for the great work of mercy which he was a chief instrument in accomplisliing? lie had faults and weaknesses, but they were not the faults and weaknesses of an ignoble and selfish character. He sometimes showed hauteur in his manner, — though this was not the habit of his nature, — but it was always in a good cause. It largely grew out of his profound con- victions, his intense hatred of all wrong, indirect- ness, sham, and double-dealing. These things aroused his ire, and sometimes made him pass over the bounds of a proper moderation. But he was not a man to harbor petty grudges ; he was not a self-seeker; he was not jealous or en- vious 5 he never sought to supplant others to make a place for himself Above any casual infelicities of temper or manner, arising in part, no doubt, from nervous infirmity brought on by his bravo exposure of wrong, shone forth his genuine lovo LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 455 f eno as one of truth and justice, his indomitablo patriotism, his sincere purpose to benefit his race. George William Curtis calls him " conscience incarnate in politics." ]\[r. Caleb Lyon, in some personal reminiscences of Mr. Sumner's life in Wavshington, gives one instance of his remarkable disinterestedness. ■' Soon after Chief Justice Taney's death," says the account, " he showed me a co.rd from the President, upon which was written, ' ITon. Charles Sumner: The vacant chief justiceship is placed at your disposal. A. Lincoln.' He then said, ' There was a time when this office would have been the realized dream of my youth ; but now it must not, cannot be. The breach between Mr. Chase and the President is growing wider and wider, and this will close it. No personal sacrifico is too great, nor can anything tempt me to desert my post. The Republican party must remain intact until its mission is fulfilled.' " It is well known that only the great senator's persistency accomplislied the appointment of Mr. Chase, after a tedious delay from October to De- cember. Mr. Chase through life remained un- it I ■i\ 456 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. conscious of Mr. Lincoln's ofibr to Mr. Sumner, and his refusal.'' Persons who knew Mr. Sumner intimately in Washington for years together, bear uniform testimony to liis great kindliness of spirit in private life, and to his thoughtful regard for the comfort of those who were in any way dependent on him. They relate how patiently he would often listen to a long story of trouble from some humble unfortunate, while he also well knew how to shake off mere intruders upon his time. LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEIl. 457 CHAPTER XXXIII. Mr. Sumner's Purity of Life. — Political Integrit?/. — Conversational Peculiarities. — A French Dinner. U Mr. Sumner wo have seen to bo a man of the purest principles. He was, also, a man of unblemished life. Political venom never assailed his character. Profanity — tliat vice too common among pub- lic men — was always repulsive to him, as also was the slightest approach to vulgarity or coarse- ness in conversation. A gentleman, who was one of his warm supporters and personal friends, and who often entertained him as his guest, says that he has met him in all places where gentle- men meet without restraint, and heard him con- verse on all topics with men of various classes ; but has never heard him tell a story or mako 1-i' r ■ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) 1.0 l.i ^ 1^ 12.2 i ^ IIIIIM *- I. 1.8 11-25 111.4 11.6 %^ \ ,-i 458 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. an allusion, that would have offended the ear of the most dainty lady. Ho once said to a clergyman of this city, speaking of his somewliat limited means, " I have never had the art to get my hand into the treasury." The boldest schemer of evil never dared to approach him with plans for robbing the pecjple ; and his hand remained to the last un- sullied by the touch of unholy gain. So great was the gulf between him and the men who play traitor to their trusting constituents, that he could say with trutli, " People talk about the corruption at Wasliington. I have been here all these years, and have seen nothing of it." He had not seen it, because he never looked in that direction. Ho never pledged an offering to Freedom which he did not lay, freely and without re- serve, on her altar. Ho never held out an unmanly allurement for votes ; never spent a dollar in the effort to gain an election ; never used any of the low trickery which degrades alike the elections of England and America. He could not stoop either to buy from, or to 1 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 459 cajole a vote out of, any man. lie was tlio same dignified gentleman during a political campaign, that lie was in the Senate Chamber and the drawing-room. Mr. Sumner talked, rather than conversed, when in company. One who knew him well, and was frequently in his society, expresses it thus : " lie either led the conversation or re- mained silent." Mr. Sumner was an inimitable stor}'-- teller. That minuteness of detail which in another would have amounted to tediousness, only kept up the interest of the listener, as every word gave a new charm. It would be impossible to give any adequate illustration of this, but to convey some idea of the way in wliich he re- lated scenes and everts, we will give, as nearly as it can bo done from memory, his account of a dinner to which he was invited at the mansion of one of the most noted among European rulers, the last time he was abroad. It required a real diplomatist to make him- self agreeable to foreigners at that time. They were hungry to hear all about republics ; but being, as he felt himself, under a ban which ■ill ' 'i ! ! i . M 1 -; \ 4G0 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. tlie world knew, lio realized the great impor- tance of steering clear of American politics ; as, should " the battle flag matter " come up, ho could not defend himself Avithout censuring " dear old Massachusetts " — and that ho would not do. He had a liabit of constantly throwing the words " J ou will observe " into his conversa- tion, particularly v/hen describing persons ho had met, or scenes through which he had passed. He had been courteously received by the gentleman in question, and was now invited to a dinner at his elegant mansion. Having arrayed himself with that care which all who knew him will remember, he ordered a cab to convey him thither ; and he tells the story of the dinner thus : — "When I left my hotel, I told the cabman I wished him to drive me to the residence of . " ' Yes, sir,' he replied, ' I will gladly do so ; we all love him.' " After a short drive, we turned into the ele- gant grounds, and drove up the avenue which leads to the mansion, at the door of which a servant received mo. T^ ,* fe < (''I LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 461 ho " I Haw no one in the halls as I was condncted up stairs to my room by the man who carried my bag for me. Entering the apartment assigned me, — a most luxurious one, — I found an open fire glowing in the grate, a table fully furnished with writing materials, and an easy-chair beside it — a very beautiful welcome for a stranger. The servant then asked for my key, opened my bag, and laid out over a chair, the articles I had brought to complete my toilet, and then retired, saying, ' I will v/ait at your door uutil you are ready, sir ; when you call me I will conduct you to the drawing-room.' " This, you will observe, is the custom in sucli circles. " When I was ready, I went to my door, where I found the man awaiting me. I descended the stairway, and was ushered into the saloon, where I found Madame and her guests, — the cus- tom of my host being, you will observe, not to ap- pear until just before dinner is announced. " The house was gorgeous and elegant, and the company very distinguished-looking, and of course most richly dressed. Madame , who was a large and rather coarse-looking person, received me with courtesy, and introduced me to the com- pany. " We conversed for some time before our host joined us ; and very soon after he did so, a man* V f: : ' r i V » . .1 t' %nl ?^ " 'Vi;hl Ill ^ 462 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. servant threw open the doors which led to the dining-room, and gravely announced, ' Dinner is served.' The gentleman of the mansion then ollered his arm to the most distinguislied lady of the party, and led the way to the dining-room. But the custom, you will observe, is, not for the lady of the house to give her arm to the gentle- man she wishes to honor, and follow her husband, but to remain with him behind, till she sees that all the ladies are provided with escorts, and have left the saloon, when she and her escort follow them, and take their places at table. I had given my arm to my hostess, taking care, you will ob- serve, that it should not be hi a way which would oblige her to place me at her right hand at table unless she desired to do so. This, how- ever, she did. " The table and its appointments were elegant and costly be3^ond description, all the service, even to the plates, being either of solid gold or of solid silver. The style of serving was in ac- cordance with the elegance and costliness of the arrangements of the table. " I was still careful, as you will observe, to avoid every topic strictly American, lest it might lead us towards politics. Knowing, as I did, that my host was a great connoisseur in art, and the owner of rare collections, and remembering that he lost many beautiful pictures and statues in the to LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 4G3 barbarism of the revoliitioi, I opened tliis sub- ject with Madame . Lut on art in general t met no response. I then said to lier, * 1 am very glad, madame, to hear that some of your Inis- band's rare treasures, which he lost in your troubles, have been returned lo liim ; ' feehng sure that that must be a matter of interest. Slio manifested not the least interest in the matter, and her only reply was, ' If he has recovered any of them, I never heard of it before.' " I found it impossible to keep up any conver- sation with her. " The elegant and refined tastes of the gentle- man found, you will observe, no sympathy in his wife. She is very rich, but not a woman of cul- ture or polished manners, while he is a model ol' an elegant and polite French gentleman. " At one time during dinner, my host cast an anxious look on the lady, who, perhaps, to his practised eye, looked out of humor, and said very kindly, — wliat with us would be regarded as a breach of politeness, — ' You look very weary, my dear ; ' but she did not reply. She took no more notice of the remark tlian if she had been deaf. " On returning to the long saloon, the hostess and all the ladies gathered at one end of the room, and the gentlemen at the other. The entertainment then partook ratlier of the form oi a lecture than conversation. Tiie host stated 'I it li .y ' ■ Hi M' i ■ 4- i II i •' !' i ''■ h li iif ■ ^ I I 4C4 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. his views on points which were then occupy- ing the public mind, and gave his reasons for them, discoursing at some length, to the great enjoyment of his guests. It is in this way that he prepares the speeches, which he afterwards delivers. " Having finished his remarks, my host turned to me and asked, * What, sir, is the opinion of American statesmen in regard to the electoral college system ? ' " That was a question I had no delicacy in an- swering. ' They regard it as an utter failure, sir,' I replied. He then turned to a gentleman near him, and said, ' Mr. Secretary, note that statement of the Amer'can gentleman.' " % % LIFE OF CHAULES SUMNER. 465 CHAPTER XXXIV. ! Wide General Information. — Talk at a Stock Club. — Talk on Laces. — 3Ir. Sumner and hie little Namesake. — Interest in the Work of others. — Letter of Hon. G. W. Warren. I r Great men are too often wise only in their own sphere, and ignorant of all beyond it. Mr. Sumner was remarkable for his general information. Nothing escaped his eye, and no subject was too great or too small for his inves- tigations. Being once on a visit at the country house of a friend, when a " stock club " was meet there, Mr. Sumner entered heartily into the mat- ter, and expressed pleasure at meeting the gen- tlemen. But he was not a listener only ; he surprised both host and guests by his familiarity with the subject, and by finally giving what amounted to a 30 f*i: * - ' H i"! F i' tJ %y^\\ ! 4G6 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. dissertation on tho various breeds of cowo, and the varieties of cheese. He knew all about the Englit;li and Scotch cows, and dwelt with inter- est on their marked peculiarities. lie intro- duced to their notice a breed of Highland cows, of which none of tho stock club had ever Jieard before. On another occasion, at the same house, a fellow-guest, one of our most honored ]^ublic men at the Capitol, was entertaining the company with an account of the way in which- ho had been duped in the purchase of lace when abroatl, — buying miserable cotton stuff in place of tho rich fabric he wanted — by the statements of " half- price " and " poverty," from the glib-tongued daughters of Erin, near Queenstown. At this Mr. Sumner took up the subject of lace, and went into it minutely. He described the different varieties, told how and where they were made, — from tho rich altar-pieces and other laces of antiquity down to the manufac- tures of our own day. He knew the name of each style, and in whose possession the laces were which had come down as heirlooms in royal and noble families. 0, and it the intor- intro- C0W9, heard use, a ic men IV with [1 been •oad, — ihc rich " half- ngiied ect of Iscribcd e they s and lanufac- k,me of laces loms in ■Ss. XIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 467 Wlien surprise was expressed that a gentleman should know so much on a subject which would naturally interest ladies only, he said that ho once sat at a dinner party next Airs. General F , when this subject was brought up. She then told him the name of the lace worn by each lady at table, calling his attention to the fact that some of the least showy were the most rare and expensive. After tliat, ho felt an interest in the subject, and read about laces, and examined the different kinds when abroad ; so that now he was really a judge of the article, and proof against imposition. Mr. Sumner's manner towards little children shows that there was a fountain of tenderness sealed up beneath what many regarded his stern and cold exterior. What he might ha.ve lieen, surrounded by family love and schooled by sweet home influences through life, we can only im- agine. Mr. H. Vincent Butler, of Boston, having aslred Mr. Sumner's permission tc' name a little son for him, received the following reply : — ■\fi-- ^■ II ;i ' k ■14 k r m 1-3 H X w n o o o c. w M W o H O a! i^ ''<>«niiiimiii!!iiiniiiini.i;:!iiiuiiiiiiiiJ!iiHniiiHttr t- . t ''\ in y T I I , I i '; f LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 469 carried it about the room in his arms, while the little one gazed up with infantile wonder into the strange but noble face of him who was so kindly caressing it. lie then apologized for not hav- ing called on the baby. Just then two gentlemen came in, friends of Mr. Sumner, to whom he said, after having in- troduced the parents, and holding the baby up towards them, " And this gentleman is Master Charles Sumner Butler ! " At this moment the senator, being unskilful in the art of holding babies, accidentally snapped the elastic cord that hold the cap, against the little one's cheek, which made it cry out with pain. " Is that so ? " said one of the gentlemen. " "We must admit that he has early commenced, like his honored predecessor, to ' cry aloud and spare not,' since he does not hesitate to express his mind in this illustrious presence." .1 i i> i .< 'U i ,1, , •• ! ill 470 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. CHAPTER XXXV. Bnutlne of Life in Washington. — Borne at Wash' ington. — Aunt Chloc's " God bless him / "' — Giv- ing Autojraplts. — Honor in 3Ioney Matters. — Tlie Malachite Table. — The Hard-earned Vases. — Bust of Psyche. Mr. Sumner's tastes were elegant and refined, but his manner of life Avas remarkably simple for one in his public position. He rose about seven o'clock, breakfasted at eight, and read his letters and papers, and received visitors, often convers- ing with friends while at breakfast. Ho was remarkably prompt as a correspondent, answering all letters in the order of their dates, and very generally with his own hand. Ho dined at six o'clock, after which he conversed with hia guests till their departure, when he put himself earnestly to his work, amid what seemed to oth- ers a wild confusion of books, papers, magazines, and manuscripts, but what was to him the poetry LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. 471 i at Wash- I '' — Giv^ fatiers. — led Vases. d refined, limple for ut seven lis letters convers- ^pendent, )ir dates, He dined with his himself i to oth- agaziues, le poetry of order, as he knew where to lay his hand on anything he wanted. Much of Mr. Sumner's brain- work was done after his guests liad retired. He was genial and pleasant with his servants, and courteous to all those who served or aided him in a higher capacity. A gentleman who was for two years his secretary, and companion at table and in the library, says he never once saw him out of temper. When assailed or misrep- resented, he seemed grieved, but never angry. Very frequently, in the case of a violent attack, he made no reply whr.tever. It is not car intention to give a full description of Mr. Sumner's home, nor a list of his art treas- ures. We shall, however, give a private letter from a lady who visited the senator, and was shown through the rooms by him, and heard de- scriptions and anecdotes of these things from his own lips, only a few weeks before his death : — "... We passed through La Fayette Square to Mr. Sumner's house. It was a lovely morning, 30 summer-like that we wondered the grass and flowers did not forget it was January, and peep out. " The birds were out in full force, filling the I : i f 472 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNEB. place of leaves on the bushes, and singing with all their power. There were large, smooth, glossy leaves, "ke magnolia leaves, scattered about the paths. " Mr. Sumner's house stands on a corner, the Arlington House on either side, making it look as if it were a part of the hotel. " When we entered, Mrs. sent up her card, and while the servant was gone we sat in the charming parlor, furnished in gold-colored satin, and filled with pictures and articles of virtu. " Mr. Sumner asked us, at once, up stairs into his study, where we found Vice-President Wil- son. When we entered the room, there was a little flurry about seating us, as the chairs were all filled with newspapers and manuscripts. " I am accustomed, as you know, to sitting on sermons and manuscripts of that sort in the study at home ; but I confess that I hesitated a little be- fore taking a chair already occupied by senato- rial speeches, public orations, and the like. " As so jn as we were seated, Mr. Sumner re- turned to his reclining- chair. Pie was dressed in a robe de chamhre of dark, bluish-purple cloth, iiTfihra- LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 413 ng with smooth, mattered nor, the look as up her ! sat in colored cles of TS into lit Wil- I was a 's were I. ting on study ttle be- senato- ler re- sed in cloth, richly trimmed with crimson, and confined about the waist by a crimson cord and tassels. He ig a grand-looking man, tall and broad-shouldered. He has a splendid licad, crowned witli what I should call — although I have never seen Jupiter — ' ambrosial locks.' His smile is very beautiful, lighting up his usually stern face, and melting away all its coldness. I never saw a face before which was so changed by a smile. I was par- ticularly struck with his hands, which were very white and beautifully formed. " Mr. Sumner had just received a letter from a friend, asking a favor of him. He spoke of it to Mr. Wilson, saying he hoped he should be able to arrange the matter. Mr. Wilson volunteered to attend to it for him, and soon left the room for that purpose. The large, sunny study in wliich we were, extends over the library and part of the dining-room. It has three windows, in one of which hangs a beautiful transparency. There was a largo desk in the centre cf the room, and another by one of the windows. Pliotographs were tacked all over the walls and the doors, and everywhere about were lying books, books — papers, papers. i- ih. ■^i 4 J.. i a Ite a i I! !'■ I i!«i -f- ii 474 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. ^^Yery soon Mr. Sumner showed us his copy of Pope's ' Essay on Man,' witli interlined and marginal corrections by the author's own hand, V/o read them, and found they were improve- ments as well as alterations. " He next showed us his copy of Erasmus, with pen-and-ink etchings on the margin by Holbein, and John Bunyan's Bible. Mrs. remarked, that Bunyan's Psalm-book (which she owned), which bore his autograph and that of his wife, Elizabeth Bunyan, seemed to her more valuable than his Bible. " * I had my choice between the two when they were for sale, and preferred the Bible,' said Mr. Sumner. 'There is something about the Bible, you know, — his Bible, — which inclined me to it.' " He had the daintiest of cases for these rare books, into which they just fitted. He alluded to them, and said there was nothing like them made in this country. " He then brought out from careful paper wrap- pings two small wood- cuts he had recently re- ceived, according to his order, from an English sale. " OuQ was a head of Prester John, and as I, in >„« LIFE 0^ CHARLES SUMNER. 475 ^ common with others, have rather a vague idea of this semi-mythical gentleman, I was not sur- prised to see a good-looking colored man. " The other was Salvator Rosa's ' Jonah's De- liverance from the Whale.' The prophet seemed coming out of his prison in a terrible hurry, on all fours. The ' great fish ' was a fearful-looking animal, resembling a Japanese griffin more than anything else. " I remarked that the artist had carried out the words of the Scripture by making a great fish instead of the traditionary ivhale. " ' Why, was it not a whale ' ? " asked Mr. Sum- ner, smihng. - 1 was brought up to believe it was a whale, and always thought it was.' " I referred him to the English Bible, and felt surprised and glad to find that I knew one thing which Charles Sumner did not know 1 " We chanced, in the course of conversation, to speak of ' A Week in a French Country-IIouse/ ,, when he told us that he had met Madam Sartori, the author of it, abroad, and was once invited to the house of a friend to hear her sing. She was at that time studying for the stage, but married ^r. Sartori soon after, and so never entered on .1 . ! I ■I ■ ■ f 476 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. a public career. This lady, I may remark, is the motlier of the young man who is, at the time of writing, engaged to be married to the daughtef of President Grant. " Mr. Sumner then spoke of Fanny Kemblc, who is Madam Sartori's sister. lie said ho knew her well, and that some years ago he boarded near her, and used to take long rides with her on horseback, during which they conversed much on the topics of the day. He said the' ho greatly admired Mrs. Kemble. " Mr. Sumner spoke very feelingly of Agassiz. Ho said that, when he was last in Cambridge, Agassiz showed him the manuscript of his article on the Darwinian theory, — or rather, the three manuscripts, — for he first dictated the matter to Mrs. Agassiz, then corrected and interlined the writing, which she afterwards re- wrote. This copy he corrected and added to, after which she made a third transcript, which was sent to tho printer. " While on this subject, Mr. Sumner said that Mrs. Agassiz was in entire sympathy with her husband in his scientific work, and rendered him great assistance ; and added, with much earnest' T jfcl . iJWri — - t LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 477 ncsM, * She is a true woman and a true wife/ IIo had not heard till tlien of the gift Agassiz had received from his daugliter, for the carrying out his cherished plans. Wiicn Mrs told him about it, ho seemed greatly pleas-'od, and said, ' IIow happy that it came in such good time, while she could enjoy the pleasure of giv- ing and ho of receiving.' He and Mrs. then talked of various people, and of the interests of the country, in a most interesting way. "Mr. Sumner was to mnke a speech that day; but, unfortunately lor us, it v.'as in a secret ses- sion. We rose to leave. Bui, ho asked us to go down (Stairs and wait till he should join us. " When he came down, ho went to the library, opened a drawer, and showed us a Latin book of John Dryden's, with his name scrawled on the fly-leaf in a school-boy's hand. While wo were examining it, Mr. Sumner told us that once, when he was showing it to two ladies, one of them looked at the writing, and exclaimed to the other, 'Isn't that just like our John's?' IIo showed us Wickiilfe's Bible, with its long chain and padlock. " Among his valuable autographs was this most iuterosting ono : — « «^*f. 478 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ■..J \ Cs r * If Virtue fcc'dc were, Ilcavca itself would stoop to her. •Johannes Milton. n burdens and laid aside the veil which usually hung between his heart and the world, says, " When Mr. Sumner's brother George lay sufl'er- ing at the hospital, whitiier he had gone for treatment, and where lie died, it was the senator's custom to visit 1 im every morning. "He always entered the room with his natural high bearing and kingly tread, and asked in deep tones the usual questions, and said wliatever of interest he had to say. lie tlien bade the sufferer good morning, and went out, apparently as un- moved as a stone. "But the attendants reported that as soon as ho had passed the screen that sliielded his brother, his heart gave way, and he manifested deep feel- ing, the great tears rolling down his cheeks as he passed out of the room." He WLS then, doubtless, carried back to the days of his childhood. The statesman was lost in the brother; ambition for the future was dimmed by regrets for the past; and his sym- pathy for all, concentrated in a yearning desire to save the partner of his childhood from pain and death. I ': ! ''I 486 LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNEB. "Ti" CHAPTER XXXVI. A Struggle for Life. — Oji^iosition to the Centen- nial Bill. — Speech against the Bill. — Insults from the Projectors. — Leaves the Senate Cham- ber for the Last Time. — Last Hours. — His Dying Charge. — Announcement of Mr. Sum- ner's Death. — A Mourning Nation. — Funeral at King's Chajjel. — Procession to Blount Au- burn. — Tlie Closing Scene. Charles SumneIi received his doath-blow in 185G.; but lie was long in dying. A man of weaker nerves, or one without a high purpose in life, would have yielded to the power of dis- ease rather than endure a slow martyrdom for years. But as long as there was work for him to do, he bravely struggled on, compelling him- self to undertake what was really beyond his strength. It was in this spirit that he set himself to per* foiin what proved to be his last public act. Pin LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 487 e Centen- — Insults lie Cham- rs. — His Ir. Sum- - Funeral ouid Au- i-blow in . man of purpose 5r of dis- rdom for : for him ing him- yond his f to per- ct. As he had never learned tlie art — unfortunately easy to so many — of putting his hand into tho public treasury, neither had he learned that of letting other men do so, if he knew tlieir pur- pose. Believing tliat the " Centennial Bill " was a huge scheme for benefiting a private corporation at tho public expense, Mr. Sumner delivered a speech on the subject Friday, March G. In tho part we quote he was more humorous than was his wont: — "But I have something more to say — very briefly, however — on tlio way in wliich these corporators, if I may so express myself, worked into their present position. Tliey came here for their bill; they obtained it with the condition that I have mentioned — a condition openly an- nounced and accepted by their representatives on this floor, and also in the other House ac- cepted fully; and the venerable senator from Pennsylvania on my right was so jubilant tliat ho announced at once that they would obtain tho money without delay. Ah, sir, does not tho poet tell us, — • Fair laughs tlic morn, and soft the zephyr blows ' ? 1| ^nl\f 488 ■;*. LIFE OP CHARLES SUMNER. It was so with them. Their morning liiughed; and the zephyr fanned their cheeks. Tliey were confident of success. They began with their own immediate fellow-citizens, and there they failed. They then turned to the States ; there again they failed ; and now, sir, morning no longer laughing, and zephyr no longer blowing, they turn to the United States, and ask us to as- sume this great expense. There should havo been more frankness originally. If the United States were at any time to be called to assume this expense, they should have known it in ad- vance. " Nor is this all. The United States should havo had the conduct of the whole business. It should not have been entered upon by a private corporation of stockholders. Permit me to say, in a certain sense they are usurpers ; occupying a supreme national function. Thus far, all world's fairs have been governmental in origin and con- duct, and I see no reason in our national condi- tion why we should bo an exception. I do not find that we have facilities for massing capital and obtaining the means for a great world's fair that should make us an exception to the received LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 489 Tliey wero with their there they tes ; tliero orning no r blowino:. c us to as- 3ul(l have le United to assume it in ad- es sliould incss. It 1 private e to say, 3cupying 1 world's md con- I condi- do not capital Id's fair eceived rule and practice of other nations. The world's fair should have been in the hands of the nation. " And now, still further, I am about to say tliat, in my judgment, a proper celebration of the one hundredth natal day of the republic should have been by the nation, and not by any private cor- poration. But these private corporators have worked themselves into the business. The authentic story of the Siberian bear is revived. You all remember it. The bear leaped upon a horse, and he ate so furiously that he ab- solutely ate his way into the harness and drew the sledge. I know not if our Philadelphia bear has not already eaten itself into the harness. But has not the time come to stop? I think we must give the bear notice to quit ; at least let him know that he cannot drag this nation into any world's fair." Monday evening, March 9, was the last time that Mr. Sumner conversed sociably on matters of the day. A writer in a Washington paper, who passed several hours with him, and found him free from actual pain, gives the following account of the interview : — " At eight o'clock on Monday evening I made li i i 490 LIFE OP CHARLKS SUMNER. ray last call on Senator Sumner. ITo greeted me, saying, * I am so weary thinking over my yp'"'-ecli on finance! 1 wanted a change, — a ray of sunlight, — and I am glad you have come.' lie at once began to talk on European politics, which, to him, waj^ an outspread map, and whoso kaleidoscopic ciiangcs he always viewed with absorbing interest. He spoke of Gladstone — his noble struggle in the cause of liberalism, his success, his failure, and liis fall ; ho gave a sketch of ;> breakfast with him, and summed up by ex] lessions of his firm faith in tlie ul- timate triumph of those principles which Glad- stone so nobly championed. ' A great man, under the shadow of defeat,' said he, ' is taught how precious are the uses of adversity; and as an oak tree's roots are strengthened by its shadow, so all defeats in a good cause are but resting-places on the road to victory, at last.' lie spoke of the patchwork empire of Germany ; of Bismark and I)e la Marmora; of truth, stranger than fiction, viz., of the Italian statesman's assertion of Bis- mark's offer to cede to France a portion of German territory ; of the impolicy of the annexation of Alsace and Lorraine ; of the differences with tho LIFE OF CHAHLES sumxku. 491 Catliolic church, tlie imprisonment of her prulatog — and then, taking a vohnno of Milton, he road, in deep, rich tones of tender mek)dy, liis famous sonnet upon the persecution of the Waldenses, during Cromwell's protectorate, as follows : — * Avon.u'c, Lord ! thy sluuf^'litcrcd saints, wliosc bones Lie sc.ittcird on tlic Alpine nioiintaiiis cold; Even tlicni wlio kept tliy truth so \n\rc of old, "When all our fathers worsliipped storks and stones, Fi'r;:ct nor ; in thy l)ook reeord tlieir groans, Wlio were thy sheep, and in their aiieient fold Slain l)y the i.loody Pie(hnontc>c, tliat rolled Motlier with inf.int down tl)e roeks. Their niouns Tlie vales redonitled to tlie hills, :uA tliey To heaven. Theii' martyred blood and ashes sow O'er all the Italian liilds where stiil doih sway The triple tyrant; that from these may ^m\j\v A himdred fold, who, having learned thy way Early, may fly the Babylonian woe.' " In closing, he added, ' Thus History re\renge3 herself? " About this time his evening mail was brought ; wlienever he came to an interesting note or letter, he would look it over and tlien hand it to me to read. The first was from an art association in Boston, saying that the Duke do Montpensier, of Spain, had agreed to loan his valuable collec- tion of pictures, valued at five hundred thousand dollars, to tho association, provided they paid X. r ,i ii s, >: (. ,»;, ". « 492 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. packing, transportation, and insurance ; and aa the laws of the United States limit the timo of international loan ireo of duty to six months, it needed a special act of Congress to keep viio paintings two years, so as to pay expenses l)y their exhibition, and he desired speedy legisla- tion. lie asked mo if I had seen them when in Spain. I answered him, I had, and described several of those I remembered best. lie said, ' In the Senate I do not tliink thv^ro will bo much difficulty ; but in the House,' ho added, smiling, ' Ben Butler can put it through, as ho does, with his white horse, everything else. Why, ho is a political Cagliostro.' " The next letter was from Philadelphia, an anonymous attack of the bitterest description, impugning his motives concerning his speech on the International Centenary Exposition, wind- ing up witli a threat of violence, which I forbear to transcribe. As he handed it to mo, ho said, good humoredly, ' I am used to such letters.' I read it, and as I did so, consigned it to the blazing grate. The next letter was from Indiana ; ono of those good, whole-souled letters, full of sym- pathy and admiration, with an urgent, earnest in- LIFE OP chahles sumneh. 493 vitation for l)im to visit tlio writer next snmmor, and an oiler of generous and unstinted hospitality. * Tlicrc/ said he, * you have burned the bane, and hero is the antidote.' His next letter was from Boston, full of hearty thankfulness for his restora- tion to health and eheer for the future. It was closely written, and as ho handed it to mc, he said, ' This is no summer friend.' " The last of many letters was one of congrat- ulation about the Massachusetts legislative reso- lutions, rescinding the vote of censure. I never saw him look more happy than when he was read- ing it. He then arose and showed me with sat- isfaction the legislative resolutions, beautiiuily engrossed on parchment. I asked, ' Will you ad- dress the Senate when they are presented ? ' He replied, •' The dear old Commonwealth has spoken for me, and that is enough.' " Tuesday, March 10, at two o'clock, he took a seat in the Senate Chamber beside a brother sen- ator, also a prominent opponent of tlic Centennial Bill, and told him, with an evident feeling of an- noyance, of the offensive anonymous letters which had been sent him. His friend turned his mind from this by allud- .M 494 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. ■ l:i'^ 1 ing to tho recent action of the Massacliiisetta legislature, at which Mr. Sumner expressed great pleasure. lie talked with Senator Ferry, of Connecticut, a fellow-aufferer from spinal disease, and told him of his intense pain the night before, which had forced him to send for his physician, who relieved him by injecting morpliine under tlie skin. Mr. Sumner realized that day that he was go- ing far beyoyid his strength. " 1 want to talk with you about my health, for I fear I am working too hard," he said to a friend a few hours before he was attacked with the spasm which proved fatal. Tuesday evening he entertained a few friends at dinner. That was tho last time he sat down at his table. That night the summons came for him to lay aside his armor, and to receive his dis- cliarge from a long and toilsome warfare. His friends and physicians did all that mortals could do to ward off the mightiest of foes — but in vain. There were no kindred present to smooth hi? dying pillow ; but he was not without love and sympathy in his parting hour. There were the men of mind and culture, whose hearts had been knit to his by common labors and sufferings in LIFE OP CHART Eg SUMNER. 495 behalf of Immanity ; and there wcro there, also, friends representing the race for \\ .xom he had lived and toiled. Even while dying, he still pleaded for the causo that was dearer to him tlian life. Almost his last words were an appeal to tliosc about him, wlio held positions in the national councils, to consum- mate the last great act of justice to the colored race. Judge Hoar, of Massachusetts, who stood be- side his bed, received the great senator's dying charge, " Do not let the Civil Riglits Bill fail ! " Solomon said, " I sleep, but my heart waketh." So Sumner, when lulled to sleep by necessary opiates, was awake to his life-work, and mur- mured his charge to all who had any influence in the government, " Don't let the bill fail I " Again he begged with earnestness that the bill might not be lost. Judge Hoar stooped, and with much emotion, kissed the cold hand of the senator. Again Mr. Sumner spoke, and said, " I should not regret this, if my book were finished. My book ! my book is not finished ; but tlie great ac- count is scaled." TW rr iK5 i' 49G LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. About noon on the 11th he raised his head, and said to Senator Schiirz, " Why ! I can't see I What does this mean ? " After hours of agony he moaned, " I am so tired, I am so tired ! I can't last much longer ! " Just before he died, Judge Hoar gave him a mess-age from Ralph Waldo Emerson, to which Mr. SuiUner replied, with some difficulty, " Tell Emerson that I love md revere him." To a colored friend who stood chafing his cold hand in the vain effort to restore the lost circula- tion, he said tenderly, " My poor Johnson, you can soon rest." To one who said, " I wish I could do something to warm your hands," he re- plied, " You never can." Being told that his friend, Hon. Samuel Hooper, had come, he looked at him, waved his hand, and said, " Sit down." At that moment his heart ruptured, a terrible convulsion shook his frame, j^nd he was no longer among the living. The great Irish Liberator exclaimed, when he heard that Wilberforce was dead, " He has gone vp to heaven with a million broken fetters in his ill m LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. 497 hands I " May not as much bo said of our de- parted senator? When it was announced tliat Charles Sumner was dead, a pall seemed to fail over the Capitol ; and as the sad news flew over the wires there was a nation of mourners. Even his enemies were at peace with him now, and all dilTerences were forgotten in presence of that miglity recon- ciler — ■* Death. Previous to the removal of the remains to Massachusetts, appropriate funeral services were held in the Capitol. There was a continued funeral service on the route, and as the train neared Boston the crowds assembled to meet it. In the shadows of evening, he who had so often entered his native city in the triumph of success, was borne into its streets for the last time, in silence ; and when the pro- cession arrived at the State House, the remains were formally delivered by the committee of Congress into the keeping of the Governor of Massachusetts, and lay in state in the Doric Hall over the Sabbath, during which time they were visited by fifty thousand people. No funeral since that of Abraham Lincoln haa y S2 . T 'i-T'-". . 498 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. iimii :i^ «i| m .1 " been to our people so much like the burying of their own dead as tliat of Charles Sumner. On Monday, Boston seemed lost to everything but the fact that it was the burial-day of her great son. Tho funeral procession, wliich consisted of the dignitaries of the State and City, moved at about ten o'clock down Beacon Street to King's Cha'^el, which was elaborately draped with black, relieved by flowers and vines. Tlie services were con- ducted by Mr. Foote, pastor of the church, and consisted of scriptural readings, music, and a prayer, one sentence of which should bo pre- served in letters of gold : " Teach us to honor only those who honor Thee, and to trust only those who put their trust in Thee." The shadows wei-e beginning to fall when tho imposing cortege reached Mount Auburn, and wound up the avenues and paths through which Charles Sumner had so often followed his dead with an aching heart. The personal friends of tho deceased, with the committees of Congress and the Legislature, and the few surviving members of the class of 1830 at Harvard, gathered beside tho open grave, while thousands of spectators stood ■»r 1,1 Hi OF CHARLES SUMNKU. 4D1) on tlio hillocks and all around, waiting for tlio closing scene. The clergyman read anotlicr portion of Scrip- ture, the friends around the grave joined witli him in repeating tl>3 Lord's prayer, and tlien ail that remained of this miglity man of valor was lowered into its silent bed, to slumber till the day of the great awakening. John G. AVhittier, who loved Mr. Sumner with a brotlier's heart, wrote to a beloved friend of both, on hearing of his death, — " I was in the act of mailing this, when the telegram announced the death of our dear and noble Sumner. My heart is too full for words. In deepest sympathy of sorrow I reach out my hand to thee, and to Mr. , who loved him so well. " no has died as he wished to, at his post of duty, and when the heart of his beloved Massa- chusetts was turning towards him with more than the old-time love and reverence. " God's peace be with him.'' A few months before his death, Mr. Sumner met Pastor Fliedner at the residence of a friend. Their conversation turned upon war. The two # 600 LIFE OF CHARLES SUMNER. gentlemen expressed tbeir vi'^wp, which closely aQ;reecl, on tlic barbarity of wur ard the great "»uong in naiions. prnl'Q8S'Hlly Christian, perpet- uating it, in the light of the nineteenth century. At parting, they clasped hands, when Pastor riiedner said, " I hope wo shall meet in tlie land of peace ! " " Let us hope so ! " replied Mr. Sumner, in those deep tones which gave Buch power to every utterance of his. I I i n '^l The Germans have added another beatitude to those given by our Lord in the sermon on the mount : " Blessed are the homesick, for they shall reach home." May wo not say of Charles Sumner, who followed the apostolic injunction, " Seek peace and ensue it ; " " Blessed is the peace-lover, for he has reached the land of peace " ? A-I^I^EISTDIX. A. As showing the kind of influence under which the children of Sheriff Sumner were brought up, we insert below a paper written by one of the daughters, at the age of sixteen, a year before her death. The delicate conscientiousness which is hero seen also formed a striking characteristic of Charles Sunmcr. «• May 1, 183G. ** It is now nearly a year since I first wrote my character ; and the self-examination necessary for it, I found so useful, that I will try it again. I have hoped, and even believed sometimes, that that fault (vanity), which was so predominant in my character then, was partly cured ; but in the very act of al- lowing that thought to take i^ossession of my mind, I was, perhaps, indulging the very thought which has given mo so much distress, and throwing myself ofl' my guard when temptation should arise. ' Watch and pray therefore.' I have done these, but not enough, and my mind is still fur too much engrossed with the follies and vanities of the world. I have too great a desire to appear well, and I fear, to show off how much I know. It is hard to own this to myself; but I have need of being humbled. " I have not enough moral courage — courage to tell the sim- ple truth at all times, and in spite of everybody. I have not guarded this carefully enough, and vanity is at the bottom here. I thought I was conscientious, I had been so often told so, and my vanity persuaded me to believe it, at least in part. (601) 602 APPENDIX. "I liavo a prcat lack of charity, that virtue \rhich I feci Blionld bo exorcised towards mo. My own fuilinj^s should loach inc this. Prejudice and pride, too, form a part of niy character. I am still sometimes cross and fretful, and I fear my temper is not at all improved. My own selfishness shocks me, sometimes. " Tho only thins in which I have improved this past year, is that I have a {greater desire to {^row {jood, and I am more thoughtful and watchful. I have wept and prayed over these faults; and M'ill tiiey never be eradicated? Must I always endure this state of anxiety, this lonjiing for pure feelings? I will persevere, for I know that He wlio has helped me so far, will continue his aid. " How much reason I have to be thankful for my long illness and tlie moments of delighful intercourse with God which I then enjoyed, and how grat(>ful ought I to be for being kept so long from the enticements which we are subject to, who mix with the world. IJut I have not improved it enougli. How happy should I be if I had ! I fear that when I am again well, all the impressions wiiicli my sickness has given me will vanish like a mist. Ungrateful shall I be if they do. " Tliia is what I am just at sixteen." A lady who was intimate with Mrs. Sumner says that she remembers talking with her one day about her son after he had received his injuries from Brooks, and saying, " How proud I should be if I had such a son I " *' Yes," was the re- ply, " but I tremble." Speaking of tl»e father, the lady said that he would somc- tinies buy tickets to lectures on useful su1)jects, and give them to his children, with the remark, "I shall be busy myself this evening, and I wish you, Avhen you return, to give a cor- rect account of what you hear." In such ways he cultivated in them habits of attention, and the power of communicating what they knew. ■"^; , :.. ;aa'«!l.«iW. - t I always re feelinffs? Ipcd me so lonjriiinosg 3d M'hich I being kept 'ct to, Avho it enough, i^hen I am has given if they do. s that eho n after he Iff, How 'US the re- Lild some- ?ive them y myself ivo a cor- L'ultivated um' eating APPENDIX. B. 603 The following letter, written by Mr. Sumner, just on the eve of his setting sail for Europe, in 1837, was addressed to one of his sisters, then a little girl. It reveals the future man. ** My DEAn : " I don't remember that I ever wrote you a letter. I feel confident, however, that your correspondence cannot be very extensive ; and, therefore, I may flatter myself that wliat I write you will be read with attention, and, I trust, also, deposited in your heart. Before trusting myself to the sea, let me say a few words to you, which shall be my good by. I have often spoken to you of certain habits of personal care, which I will not here more particularly refer to than by asking you to remember all that I have told you, and to endeavor to follow my advice. I am very glad, my dear, to remember your cheerful countenance. I shall keep it in my mind, as I travel over the sea and land, and hope that when I return, I may still find its pleasant smile ready to greet me. Try never to cry. But, above all things, do not be obstinate or passionate. If you find your temper mastering you, always stop till you can count si'xii/, before you say or do anything. Let it be said of you that you arc always amiable. Love your father and mother, and brothers and sisteis, and all your friends ; cultivate an alfectionate disposition. If you find that you can do anything which will add to the pleasure of your parents, or anybody else, be sure to do it. Consider every opportunity of adding to the pleasure of others as of the highest importance, and do not be unwilling to sacrifice some enjoyment of your own, even some dear plaything, if, by doing 60, you can promote the hajjpiness of others. If you follow this advice, you will never be selfish or ungenerous, and everybody will love you. Besides this, my dear, always tell the trutli. Nobody was ever hurt who told the truth; H ■'ill. 111 jl'll '[ III :■ '1 lit 604 APPENDIX. while many who tohl fjilsohoods have hccn struck down, like Ananias and Sapphira, whose history you have undouhtodly read in the Acts of the Apostles. If you have ever done anything wrong, always tell of it at once, and your parents and God will forgive you; whereas, they never will if you try to conceal it, or tell a falsehood with regard to it. *' Study all the lessons given you at school, and when at home, in the time when you are tired of j)liiy, read some g()(>d hooks which will help to improve the mind. If you follow all this advice you will he amiable, good, and happy, and will contrihute very much to the happiness of others. Let mo know, on my return T' ;m Europe, that you have followed all my dull advice. I should feel grieved very much if I should understand that you had not followed it. If you will let Horace read this letter, it will do the same, perhaps, as one addressed to him, and perhaps he will follow my advice. Give my love to mother, and Mary, and the rest. "Your affectionate brother, CuAS." «' A3TOU IIOUSE, Dec. 7, 1837." New Publications. What tiik Sevex Did. By Marjiarot Sidiioy. Boston : D. Lollirop & Co. Price $l1o. Quo of tlie most at tract ive volimies of iIk; present year, or, indeed, of any of tlie years precedlnjT, Is this deliglitfiil record of the sayings and doings of the Wordsworth Clnh at its various regnhir and irregular meetings. Tlie club is a girls' club and the mystic number seven constitutes its active sf )"th. The memiiers are greatly given to fun and frolic, am heir meetings, although generally spiced with easy-to-break-out tempers of some of tlie lively crowd, are generally occasions of special enjoy- ment. There is a mystery in the story — a succession of mysteries, rather — and they all liave to do with a certain Miss llachel Wigthoipe and a Little Brown Box. Just what they are we are not permitted to tell, but they have tlie effect of bringing tlie members of tlie Club together at very special weekly meetings in ^liss Wigthorpe's parlor for S(!ven consecutive weeks, and not only that, but all the hoys and girls of the neighborhood who have, or who can beg or borrow ten cents, are eager to share in the enjoyment of these mysterious evenings. Even tlie babies and the cats soinetinies have to be let in, and occasionally a prominent part is taken in the proceedings by a mature and irrepressi- ble young gentleman of three, wlio insists on weaiing his hat and has a proclivity, in certain contingencies, for the active use of teeth and nails. It is a delightful book from beginning to end, and will furnish no end of entertainment for juvenile readers. It is profusely illustrated, vvitli au artistic cover designed by J. Wells Champuey. Tennyson's Pastoual Songs. Boston: D. Lothrop & Co. Price $2.50. Among the holiday publications now iu course of preparation by the Messrs. Lothrop, this exquisite volume merits particular attention. It is made up of choice selections from the works of the poot-laureate, beautifully illustrated, printed on the finest paper, and elegantly bound. Among the selections are some of the songs from " Maud" and "The Princess," "The Bugle Song," "The Brook," " Tlie Miller's Daughter," etc. Nothing more clioice of its kind will be offered holiday buyers the coming season. <*? it I NEW PUBLICATIONS. A Family Flight over Eoytt and Syria. By E. E. Hale and Susan Hale. 111. IJoston : D. Loiliiop & Co. Trice $2J}0. Ol' all the hooks issued during the lioliday scvson a year ago, not one had so ininiediale and widespiead a popularity as the fiist volume of this series, A Family FlilJit tliroiKjh France, (j'crinaui/, JVoricay and iswitzer- land. Although a very hirge edition was issf^d hy the puhlishers early in Deceniher it was wholly exliausted hefore Christmas, while tlie call was at its height, and there has been a steady demand for it ever since in the regular chan- nels of the trade. Attractive as it was, the present volume is of still greater interest and is even more pruiusely illus- trated. It is especially timely too, as everhody is anxious, in view of the present complications in the East, to know something more about Egypt than can be gaineil from the daily pnpers. The family — four in number this time — make their flight from New York, landing at Bordeaux, and jjushing on without stop to Marseilles, wliich they reached just in time to catch the steamer for Alexandria They stop at Malta on the wa^ , but only for a few hours;, which, however, are well improved. At Alexandria they remain for two days, and then hurry on to Cairo, where friends are awaiting them. Here the Nile journey begins, and an entertaining record of each day's experiences is given. The party sees all that possibly can be seen, botb going up and coming down the river. After their return to Cairo and a few days' rest they start for Suez, where they trave4-se tlie one liiinilred miles of the famous canal to Port Snid, on the ^iediterranean. From there they take the steamer to Jaffa, the ancient .lo'ppa, and the most ancient tow n in the woi Id. From there they push on to Jerusalem, and after an cxhnus- tive exploration of the sacred city extend their travels to other histoiieiil localities of the Holy Land. The interest of the narrative never palls. The style is breezy, free and nnconven1i(»iial, and nothing is told but is worth the telling. The Volume is beautifully hound, anil, as we have alre;idy stated, is abundantly illustrated. A new edition of thf first volume will l)e issued simultaneously with E'f'I> & Co. llie lioliday (I uitlospiL'ad *, A Family ^«''~'l l>y the listed before tl there has 'giilar cliiin- > at MiiUa >\vever, are two days, « a\vidtin5. Tliis is the hecond V(,liinie in tlie V 1 F ^elies wliich was stanipeil wiih success Ly ihe first i.-..^ue. It is unnecessary to say of any liooks of Jir. liaiid's ll;at tliey are bright, interesting and liclptul; that may be taiien for gran led. His stories have always been eliaraeterized by lliose qualities and in the one uefore us they are particularly jjn.niincnt. Tliere is always a purpose in Ids books, an hilhieiice uliich remains after tlic mere incidents of the story are forgotten, lie lias painted a variety of cliaraeters, good and bad, in After the Frc.s/ui, all of wliicli have a special mission to per- form. Tlie main character of tlie sloiy is Arthur Jilanley, a young man of fine talents and noble character, Mho has been brought up in a rough farmer's family in ignorance of his parentage. From the fact that he has become a great favor- ite with a wealthy family in town, he has incurred the dislike of an unprincipled lawyer, who has designs uiiou that family, and who resorts to a series of persecutions in Older to get him out of the way. The story of how he evades the plots of his enemy and how he ultimately dis- covers the secret of his birth and achieves the other and higher ambitions of his life, is vividly and affectingly told. Todays and Yi:sterdays. By Carrie Adelaide Cooke. Boston : D. Lothrop & Co. Price $1.25. This pleasant story is from the pen of the author of Fro)n June to June, and is intended for the reading of girls who have reaclu'd that ace when their real mission in life seems fo commence; the age when school-days are ended, and the sphere of duty is enlarged by wider acquaintance and new rc.-ponsibilities. The story opens at a New Hampshire seminary on the eve of examination day. and the principal characters are three girls, scliool-conipanions and fcllow-giaduatcs. It is not a story of incident, nor does its interest depend upon strong contrasts or vivid descriplions. The narrative is a quiet following out of the currents of tlu'se three lives, with their various changes, their joys and sorrows. A strong religi( us element permeates the book, and it will be found a valuable '" am. The Iludsonsand tin; Marstons are neighbors in thevicinity of Boston, and tlie chiUlren are great friends. They all go to Cape Cod and Nantucket to spend the summer, and from there the Iludsons are called away to San Francisco by Col. Hudson, who is an army officer, and is stationtnl there. The book describes their stay on the Cape, and their long overland journey to the Pacific coast. Its interest is not wholly confined to the members of the party, for the author takes special pains to give correct and vivid pictures of tlie various places visited. The illustrations are some of tlie best ever put into a children's book, and are many from drawings and photographs made on the spot. Chronicles of the Stimpcett Family. By Abby Morton Diaz. Boston : D. Lothrop & Co. Price $].2.'5. Some one once said, " Give a Frenchman an onion and a beef-bone, and he will make a dozen dilTerent kinds of delicious soup." Give Mrs. Diaz two or three simple inci- dents, and she will nnmufactiire half a dozen stories so sprightly and jolly, and so full of every day human natur'^ wilhal, that to the young they are a source of perennial delight, while the old people can get as much enjoyment out of thtMii as from a volume of Scott y Kiissell 11. C»)n\\ell. Boston: I). Loth- rop & ("o. Price ^l.'>i). The utillioi- of lliis work .says truly lliiit 'the (liioct and uiiavohhihle appeal of a noble lite, which closed wilh honor and deseivoil renown, is far more ))aleiil and permanenl ia the culluie and reformation of the World than ;di other forms of mental and moral qnicl\cn< ing." Ihiyard Taylor is conspicuous anioni,' the many in our country who have risen from humble conditions by per- sonal, honorable effort, to high places, not only foi- his suc- cess, but for the quality of that success. Although not the greatest of American poets, he was one of the truest. His harp never rang fai.-e; ho never praised things evil or lent Ids pen to a bail cause. He was a lover of humanity and of truth. Alihougjj in one Sv-nsj a man of the world, he never lost the i)ure instincts of his childhood, and though lie had the common faults of humanity they weighed liglitly when compared with his virtues. Col. Con well lias told tlie story of his ilt'e, his strnggles and his final succtrss with loving care, and has supplemented it with an accouui of his death and the wide-spread sorrow it occasioned. Ht; :;ives a report of the great memorial meeting held at Tremont Temple, and quotes freely and largely fi'om the expressions of condolence and .x/tection made by those present and received from those of tho dead poet's friends who were unable to be jtresent. The vo.uirie is issued in handsome form and contains a por- trait ot yiv. "laylor. TiiK Lrir;,K Folks' TvEADER. Illu.strated, Boston: D. Lothrop & Co. Price $1.(^0. No one who has not sean it can realize th."- beauty of this little quarto, or the care with which its coni,'nts have been prepared for young readers. It is mtendod tor the use of little beginners in the art of reading, and all possible means have been taken to make it as attractive as possible. The stories are such as will inter- est young children, and are profusely Illustrated by the best American diauglitsmen. As much i)ains and exi)eiise have been bestowed upon it as upon some of the cosily holiday volumes. It has a beautiful prize cover designed by George F. Barnes. .»- , ' / New Publications. "Wide Awakk Plrasuuk Book. Popular edition. Boston: P. Lotlirop tt Co. I'rice $l.r)0. It would he diffi- cult to find any one volinne wliicli would more conii»lt'tely meet the wants of young readeis than this volume, whicli is made up of the last six nunihcrs of Wide Aicakc fof 1881, includinii; also the Chautaufjua Mip{)lenHMits. It ie[iie.>ent3 a perfect wealth of stories, skelclu'S, essays, instruclive arti- cles and ganuis hy the hest autiiors, witli drawings hy noted American artists, engraved and re-produceil at great expense. Ballad of the Lost ITahr. By INIargaret Sidney. Boston: D. Lothrop & Co. Price $1.00. Here is somelhiiif; that will take the little ones by storm. It is a liAht jolly story of "the nauirhtiest hare e'er made," which, in spite of ■warnings aiul whippings, persisted in running away, until one day lie ran so fai- that he never cor>Ul ^ind his way hack. On this particular occasion he met with the most surprising and exciting adventures. He encountered calves, goats, bulls, Jambs and colts, but no animal tliat he saw cared for his (Company until a pack of hounds fell in with liim. ami seemed very anxious for a closer acquaintance. What became of liim we leave little readers to find out. The book is a large oblong in form, tlie text is printed in large type on very lieavy paper, and the illustrations are iu chromo lithograph. The cover is printed iu ten colors. Young Folks' Life of Wasiiixoton". By Emma E. Brown. Illustrated. Boston: D. Lothrop & Co. Price $1.50. This is the first volume of a new series just started by the publishers, to be called Young Folks' Biographies. It is an excellent plan, and one which will be warmly and substantially recognized bv tlie public. In this initial volume Mis>i Ih-own has shown the same careful nuMhod which has characterized her former books. It is written in a clear and flowing style, and in the condensation requireil to bring tlie subject within the necessary limits, nothing of vital importance has been dropped out or left untouched. It is fully illustrated and handsomely bound in clotli. > New Publications. Living Truths. From the writing?} of Cliarles Kingslcy. Selected by E. E. Brown. Introduction i)y W. D .llowcll.-s. Spiiie Minute Seiies. Boston: D. LoLliiop & Co. Price $1,00. This deeply inleresliug volume con-iitules the fil'ih is.sue of the Spare jNlinute Series, and adds one more td lh(^ list of works which may be considered as inilispens- iible to llie making up of a ])erfecL library, The same plan is followed as in its predecessors. The editor lias gone witli a careful and judicious hand over the en- tile range of Kingsley's books, poetry and prose, cul- ling from the universal richness such jewels of thought as in addition to their literary l)rliliaiicy may teach a lesson, or quicken religious and moial thought. The brief sketch of the author's life sliows the chaiactor of the author in a vivid liglit. lie was a m.in of wonderful quickness of jjerception, conscientious i'l the higiiest de- gree, imaginative, and sympatbeiic. AViii'liier an idt'a ■was popular or iinj)o;)ular was a question wiiich never entered ids mind. If it seenuid to him ligiit, he espoused it witii enlhusiasr.i, no natter in what company he found himself. At one time when he had warmly expressed his sympathies with the chartists, many of hfs fri»;nds tuiiied for a time against liim. During the discussion which resulted, he wrote to his wife: '* I will not be a liar. I will speak in season and out of season. I will not shun to declare the whole counsel of (iod. I will not take counsel of flesh and blood, and flatter myself into the dream that while every Juan on earth, from Maurice back to Abel, who ever tried to testify against the world, has been laughed at, misunderstood, slandered, and that, bitter- est of all, by the very people he loveil best, and understood best, I alone am to escape ^fy path is clear, and I will follow it." The introduction l)y Mr. Howclls is a recogid- tion of the high (pia.ities of Kingsley as a man i;iid a preacher, and a tril)u e to his worth. In regard to tlie ])resent volume Mr. Tiowells remarks: '"This iittle book seems to me singularly full in its ropresentaiion or! tlie didactic side of his mind. It is fervent in appeal at eveiy ])a<:e, strong in faith, and luminous and ixMietrating in exhortation. One cannot read it without feeling tht^ b:(»tli- erhood of a soul that has suffered and has learne