Resolved, That the Democrats of New York point to
their uniform course of action during the two years of civil war through which
we have passed, to the alacrity which they have evinced in filling the ranks of
the army, to their contributions and sacrifices, as the evidence of their
patriotism and devotion to the cause of our imperiled country. Never in the
history of civil wars has a Government been sustained with such ample resources
of means and men as the people have voluntarily placed in the hands of this
Administration.
Resolved, That as Democrats we are determined to
maintain this patriotic attitude, and despite of adverse and disheartening
circumstances to devote all our energies to sustain the cause of the Union; to
secure peace through victory and to bring back the restoration of all the
States under the safeguard of the Constitution.
Resolved, That while we will not consent to be
misapprehended upon these points we are determined not to be misunderstood in
regard to others not less essential. We demand that the Administration shall be
true to the Constitution; shall recognize and maintain the rights of the States
and the liberties of the citizen; shall everywhere outside of the lines of
necessary military occupation and the scenes of insurrection exert all its
powers to maintain the supremacy of the civil over the military law.
Resolved, That in view of these principles we
denounce the recent assumption of a military commander to seize and try a
citizen of Ohio, Clement L. Vallandigham, for no other reason than words
addressed to a public meeting in criticism of the course of the Administration
and in condemnation of the military orders of that general.
Resolved, That this assumption of power by a military
tribunal if successfully asserted not only abrogates the right of the people to
assemble and discuss the affairs of government, the liberty of speech and of
the press, the right of trial by jury, the law of evidence and the privilege of
habeas corpus, but it strikes a fatal blow at the supremacy of the law
and the authority of the State and Federal Constitutions.
Resolved, That the Constitution of the United States —
the supreme law of the land — has defined the crime of treason against the
United States to consist “only in levying war against them or adhering to their
enemies, giving them aid and comfort,” and has provided that “no person shall
be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of witnesses to the same overt
act or on confession in open court.” And it further provides that “no person
shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise infamous crime unless on a
presentment or indictment of a grand jury except in cases arising in the land
and naval forces or in the militia when in actual service in time of war or
public danger;” and further that “in all criminal prosecutions the accused
shall enjoy the right of a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury of the
State and district wherein the crime was committed.”
Resolved, That these safeguards of the rights of the
citizen against the pretensions of the arbitrary power were intended more
especially for his protection in times of civil commotion. They were secured
substantially to the English people after years of protracted civil war and
were adopted into our Constitution at the close of the Revolution. They have
stood the test of seventy-six years of trial under our republican system under
circumstances that show that while they constitute the foundation of all free
government they are the elements of the enduring stability of the Republic.
Resolved, That in adopting the language of Daniel
Webster we declare “it is the ancient and undoubted prerogative of this people to canvass public measures and the merits of public men.” It is a “homebred
right,” a fireside privilege. It had been enjoyed in every house, cottage and
cabin in the nation. It is as undoubted as the right of breathing the air or
walking on the earth. Belonging to private life as a right, it belongs to
public life as a duty, and it is the last duty which those whose representatives
we are shall find us to abandon. Aiming at all times to be courteous and
temperate in its use except when the right itself is questioned we shall place
ourselves on the extreme boundary of our right and bid defiance to any arm that
would move us from our ground. “This high constitutional privilege we shall
defend and exercise in all places — in time of peace, in time of war, and at
all times. Living, we shall assert it; and should we leave no other inheritance
to our children by the blessing of God we will leave the inheritance of free
principles and the example of a manly, independent and constitutional defense
of them.”
Resolved, That in the election of Governor Seymour
the people of this State by an emphatic majority declare their condemnation of
the system of arbitrary arrests and their determination to stand by the
Constitution. That the revival of this lawless system can have but one result:
to divide and distract the North and destroy its confidence in the purposes of
the Administration. That we deprecate it as an element of confusion at home, of
weakness to our armies in the field and as calculated to lower the estimate of
American character and magnify the apparent peril of our cause abroad. And that
regarding the blow struck at a citizen of Ohio as aimed at the rights of every
citizen of the North we denounce it as against the spirit of our laws and
Constitution and most earnestly call upon the President of the United States to
reverse the action of the military tribunal which has passed a “cruel and
unusual punishment” upon the party arrested, prohibited in terms by the
Constitution, and to restore him the liberty of which he has been deprived.
Resolved, That the president, vice-president and
secretary of this meeting be requested to transmit a copy of these resolutions
to His Excellency the President of the United States with the assurance of this
meeting of their hearty and earnest desire to support the Government in every
constitutional and lawful measure to suppress the existing rebellion.
SOURCE: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of
the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series II, Volume
5 (Serial No. 118), p. 654-6
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