Speech Of Hon John L Thomas Jr Of Maryland On Reconstruction Delivered In The House Of Representatives April 21 1866 Classic Reprint PDF Download

Excerpt from Speech of Hon. John L. Thomas, Jr., Of Maryland, on Reconstruction: Delivered in the House of Representatives, April 21, 1866 The House, as in Committee of the Whole on the state of tho Union, having under consideration the President's annual message - Mr. J. L.Thomas said: Mr. Speaker: The great question of reconstruction and the collateral issues properly belonging to it have been agitating this country in some form or another since the first session of the Thirty-Eighth Congress. The rebellion which has been so gloriously crushed out has devolved upon us the solemn duty of dealing with its results in such a manner as that a permanent peace shall be secured and a lasting adjustment of all the irritating causes that produced it, shall be forever put at rest. I, for one, have made up my mind what course I shall pursue, and "with malice toward none, with charity for all, with determination to do the right as God giveth me to see the right" - to advocate and support such principles as will reconstruct the States lately in rebellion on a sure and loyal foundation, and that treason will never again lift its bloody hand to strike down the bulwarks of the Constitution. Differences have arisen among us as to how this can best be done. Loyal, patriotic, honest men have spoken on the subject, and while some of them differ as to the details, and others as to mere abstract questions and theoretic views of "State suicide," we all agree on one point, and that is, that no rebellious State shall be represented on this floor until her people show such unmistakable proofs of repentance and loyalty for the future as will warrant us in believing that "the Republic can receive no detriment" at the hands of its former assailants. The committee on reconstruction, to whom this House, by the unanimous vote of the majority, intrusted the investigation of the condition of the rebel States, have not as yet reported that any of them are in a condition to be represented here, with the exception of the State of Tennessee. That committee, composed as it is of some of the best and most patriotic members of this body, is entitled to our highest consideration and respect, and would not, I am sure abuse the trust that has been placed in their hands. The fact that they have not yet reported that any of these States, except the State of Tennessee, are in a condition to be represented is a strong argument to my mind why we should not be precipitate in our action. And however much that committee may have been abused by the whole copperhead press of the country, and arraigned by the President as an "irresponsible directory," I can see nothing either in the material of which it is formed or the duties which have been assigned them by the Senate and the House that detracts either from the conclusions at which they arrive or the right they have in exercising the powers allotted to them. Acting on behalf of the Senate and the House, they act as any other committee, clothed with such powers only as the Senate and the House see fit to give them. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.