The Society of Congers ins one of the most ancient of the London Discussion Halls – having been established in the reign of the third George. It originally consisted of citizens of London, who met to watch the course of their representatives in London – Freedom of the Press – Freedom of Discussion – Obedience to the Laws – Loyalty to the Crown, and the Practice of Public and Social Virtue are some of its tenets. Among its early members were the Aldermen John Wilks (1756,) Sir Richard Glynn (1793,) Sir James Shaw (1813,) Sir W. Paking (1819,) and many of England’s leaders. Here Brougham and Campbell measured intellect – and both Houses have among them men who have debated her in other days.
Mr. Train, on entering the Debating Hall on the 22d ult. for the first time, was it once recognized and loudly called for – the events of the week being the theme for discussion. The audience was so pleased with his rattling digest of the late American victories, and his former able efforts, that they rose by acclamation, and there and then elected him an honorary member of the Ancient Society of Cogers.
Below, we give Mr. Train’s remarks on the American Army on this occasion:
The gentleman made me a happy hit, by calling this audience – a republic of free men – where free thought and free debate, and free opinion ruled supreme. I accept the Republican simile – and should hope that among its citizens there are none who would commit so base an act under the garb of loyalty to the Queen, as to breed treason against the Government, and seek with bloodshed its overthrow, as some other bad citizens have done in that great Republic over the way. [Hear, and applause.] Mr. O’Brien does not believe in the honesty of our president on the slave question; I am not surprised – for that there is a large party in the land who wo’d not believe any good of America or Americans, even though the Angel Gabriel whispered it in their ears. [Laughter.] The more we try to please you, the less we appear to succeed. But what can we expect when the Saturday Review lands Burnside’s naval expedition in the mountains of Western Virginia – [laughter] – and the Times makes the Confederate army march from Richmond to Bunker’s Hill in one night! – [Laughter.] Older than ourselves we have taken your advice – Dr. Russell gave you the text to ridicule and laugh at our raw recruits – as Sotheron says in Lord Dundreary – he seems to have been as mad on the American question as a Welsh wabbit. [Laughter.] You took it up and told us, that to make soldiers out of farmers, and tradesmen, and mechanics, and fishermen, there must be hard drilling. We accepted your counsel, Europe poured in upon us hundreds of her best artillery, cavalry and infantry officers, who bursting with the love of liberty, were anxious to give Union battle; look at McClellan’s staff, composed of brave generals, bold princes and future kings, who already have cried A BOURBON! A HAVELOCK! And let slip a hundred regiments, to sweep the madman from his throne. [Applause.] By this time there is not even one Richmond in the field. Drill, you said; we have drilled.
Why do you wait so long then? You asked. – We are drilling we replied. And now point you to a million of drilled men that cover a battle line of two hundred thousand miles. – Your mob, again you said, your mob never will give up Mason and Slidell. The mob did give up the traitors, and furthermore received the British officers at Boston, who were sent to wage war against us, with almost a royal welcome! [Applause.] You said you had no money and we will not lend you a shilling. Gentlemen, we never asked you for a shilling. [Hear, hear.] And as I observed on a previous occasion, the only real cause we have yet given you for breaking the blockade was the taking up of the entire Federal loan in our own land, without even consulting Mr. Sampson of the Times, Baron Rothschild, the London Stock Exchange.
You said it was impossible to blockade our ports. Gentlemen there never was a blockade so effectual, because there never was war so extensive, or people so determined, or administration so strong! There is no cathartic sufficiently powerful to remove the stones from the ruined harbor of Charleston, until the Federal Power chooses to exercise its clemency again. The Times Russell now admits the power of our navy, which you have ridiculed, and thinks, where 2,000,000 of bales of cotton are locked up, which, if let loose, would command three prices, and where all the simple necessaries of life are 150 per cent above the market, the blockade must be effectual. Foster’s scorching rebuke to Gregory in the Commons, has made more ridiculous than ever the Irish Champion of Treason. You said that the North and South would never come together! Wait a little longer! You said Republican Institutions had failed! Already the passport system is abolished, the political prisoners have been released, martial law superseded by the Civil Government, and the placid Ocean of Peace is gradually replacing the turbulent Waves of War, so that when the sunlight of Union Shines upon it, there will be reflected back from the glassy mirror myriads of faces from a happy, contented people. [Applause]
You never will know the herculean energies we have displayed. Let me paint the picture my own way. We have nine armies under nine Generals, composing a force equal to nine Waterloos, a dozen Austerlitzes, two Moscows, and larger than all the forces of all the nations that battle at Crimea. [Oh.] To give you the idea of its magnitude, I will change the battle ground.
Old England shall represent New England; and all Europe shall be the field of action. – Time of preparation, six months; resources, all our own. With the sympathies of England and the world against us; we have placed 20,000 men under General Butler, at Cronstad; 20,000 under General Sherman, at Hamburg; 30,000 under General Burnside, at Amsterdam, 20,000 under General Halleck, at Odessa; 20,000 under General Hunter, blockading Vienna on the Danube; 40,000 under General Buell, at Trieste; 80,000 under General Grant at Marseilles; 60,000 under General Banks, on the Belgian cost; leaving some 300,000 under General McClellan, on the French shore, after crossing the Potomac of the Channel. [Here, here.] The distances in my picture are not so unequal, although populations, fortresses and languages are different. Remember that England is the point from which I take my sketch. Australia is the California, with another Union army on the Pacific shore. All those points protracted, we have England still to represent the great Union party in our Northern country with five millions more of armed men, ready to plunge into battle in defense of the nations life. [Loud cheers.]
In America, as in England, there is an uncoiled spring of magnetic intelligence, that when set in motion could only be surpassed in grandeur by the artillery batteries of Heaven! [Applause.] The next mail will bring you startling intelligence. Let me foreshadow the plan of action – the battles are already fought – if reverses were possible in one point, victory triumphs in another. The Georgians lost their mail arrangements some time ago, and now they have had their water-works cut off. [Loud laughter.] Gentlemen, it is no laughing matter, were you citizens of Savannah, to be shut off from all communication from your fellow men, [renewed laughter] who have already so vividly pictured by Arrowsmith, the reliable correspondent of the London times of “Railways and Revolvers in Georgia.” [Laughter and applause.]
Savannah is down, Charleston is taken Mobile occupied by Unionists, New Orleans besieged and Memphis occupied! Two weeks after the fall of Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, the occupation of Clarksville and Nashville, the evacuation of Columbus that Mantua of the West [cheers] and Norfolk under the stars and stripes! Beauregard, the hero of fortifications, has become the hero of evacuations; Pillow keeps up his reputation by cutting his way through the forest, at the first smell of blood [laughter] while the battle of Floyd’s Run [laughter] shall be commemorated as the Leipsic of the Confederate history. The Confederates are howling at England, calling the Minister all kinds of names, plying the Rogue’s march, singing A Perfide Albion in the dim twilight of their conspiracy, gnashing their teeth with hate and rage, in vain endeavors to cover up their ignominy and their shame.
A voice: “Where is the Sumter?” Cries of “Order! Put him out!”
The Sumter, sir, which comprises one half the Confederate navy [laughter] is corked up at Gibraltar with deserted crew watched by Tuscarora, and out of the reach of again being ordered away by your foreign office. – The Sumter can no more burn innocent merchantmen, and rob peaceful traitors two of her officers are already on their way to the American coast in a Federal war ship to receive the just punishment of an outraged power – another part of the pirate navy has just arrived at Wilmington, by express order of the Confederate Cabinet, who have their trunks all packed, and have stolen all the money they could lay their hands on preparatory to taking their chances of escaping in the Nashville from the doom that awaits them. [Cheers.]
The order to burn the cotton and tobacco, is under the mistaken idea that it would involve England in the common ruin with themselves. Bear in mind, gentlemen that this cotton and tobacco is solemnly pledged for the redemption of the Confederate paper and the Confederate loan, and now the Confederate Cabinet have got all the money they can sponge out of their deceived subjects, they solemnly order them to destroy the securities on which the loan was paid. [Hear, hear.] And all this to deceive England, or rather frighten England by a threat, the very last thing of all others – so history states – that would bring this remarkable people to book.
You should know that the crops destroyed and the cities burned are not by their owners, but by their miserable riff raff, who have nothing to lose – a riff raff as one speaker beautifully remarked who represent the dead [level] of humanity, standing on the zero of civilization, or wallowing in the mire of their own beastly sensuality, instead of floating on the wings of a virtuous imagination, or posed on the pinions of patriotic intelligence. [Cheers.]
General Banks movement on Winchester is only a feint to allow McClellan to push on to Fredericksburg, and the nature of a contest that a mail or two will announce may be estimated by the Commander-in-Chief having ordered fifteen thousand ambulances to bear away the wounded! [Sensation!] Verily, it is a terrible necessity; but the spring has arrived – the month and the hour that calls loudly for victory, two thousand years hence the Ides of March will be associated with the history of the Potomac. The beautiful lines of Bayard Taylor are in my memory:
“Then down the long Potomac’s line,
Shout like a storm one bills of pine.
Till ramrods ring and bayonets shine!
Advance! The chieftain’s call is mine.
MARCH! [Loud cheers and applause.]
– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday , May 3, 1862, p. 2
