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March twenty first eighteen sixty one.

1:16

Alexander Stevens delivers the cornerstone

1:18

speech about the confederacy. I'm

1:21

John Meacham, and this is reflections of history.

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2:05

War was a hand. On this

2:07

date in eighteen sixty one, three weeks into

2:09

the presidency of Abraham Lincoln, his

2:11

old colleague from the US House Alexander

2:13

Stevens of Georgia gave a speech in

2:15

Savannah that merits our attention.

2:18

Now the vice president of the confederate states

2:20

of America Steven's articulated his

2:23

vision of the White Southern enterprise. There

2:25

was no ambiguity here, no wiggle

2:28

room. And so whenever you hear,

2:30

as amazingly, you still knew, that

2:32

the civil war was not about slavery,

2:34

but about state's rights. Consider

2:36

these words. Here is part

2:39

of what Alexander Steven said. The

2:42

new Confederate Constitution is put at

2:44

rest forever all the agitating questions

2:47

relating to our peculiar institution of

2:49

African slavery as it exists amongst

2:51

us. The proper status of the negro

2:53

in our form of civilization. This

2:56

was the immediate cause of the late rupture

2:58

and present revolution. Jefferson

3:01

in his forecast had anticipated this

3:03

as the rock upon which the old union

3:06

would split, he was right.

3:08

What was conjecture with him is now

3:10

a realized fact. But whether he

3:13

fully comprehended the great truth upon

3:15

which that rock stood and stands may

3:17

be doubted. The prevailing ideas

3:19

entertained by him and most of the leading

3:21

statesman at the time of the formation of the

3:24

old constitution, or that the enslavement

3:26

of the African was in violation of the

3:28

laws of nature, that it was wrong

3:30

in principle, socially, morally,

3:33

and politically. It was an evil they

3:35

knew not well how to deal with. But

3:37

the general opinion of the men of that day

3:39

was that somehow or other in the order

3:41

of Providence, the institution would

3:43

be effenescent and pass away.

3:46

This idea though not incorporated in

3:48

the constitution was the prevailing

3:50

idea at the time. The constitution,

3:52

it is true. Secured every essential

3:55

guarantee to the institution while it should

3:57

last. And hence, no argument can

3:59

be justly urged against the constitutional guarantees

4:02

thus secured. Because of the common

4:04

sentiment of the day. Those

4:07

ideas, however, were fundamentally wrong

4:10

They rested upon the assumption of the

4:13

equality of races. This

4:15

was an error. It was a sandy

4:17

foundation and the government built upon

4:19

it fell when the storm came

4:22

and the wind blew. Our

4:24

government is founded upon exactly the

4:26

opposite idea. Its foundations

4:28

are laid, its cornerstone rests

4:30

upon the great truth that the negro

4:32

is not equal to the white man. That

4:35

slavery subordination to the superior

4:37

race is his natural and normal

4:39

condition. This, our new

4:41

government. Is the first in the history

4:44

of the world based upon this great

4:46

physical, philosophical and

4:48

moral truth. This truth

4:50

has been slow in the process of its development,

4:53

like all of the truths in the various departments

4:55

of science. It has been so even

4:57

amongst us. Many who hear

5:00

me perhaps can recollect well that

5:02

this truth was not generally admitted even

5:04

within their day. The errors

5:06

of the past generations still clung to many

5:08

as late as twenty years ago. Those

5:11

at the north who still cling to these errors

5:13

with a zeal above knowledge, we just

5:16

lead to nominate fanatics. All

5:18

fanaticism springs from an aberration

5:20

of the mind from a defect in reasoning

5:23

is a species of insanity. One

5:27

of the most striking characteristics of insanity

5:29

in many instances is forming correct

5:31

conclusions from fancied or

5:33

erroneous premises so

5:36

with the anti slavery fanatics. They

5:38

assume that the negro is equal, and

5:41

hence conclude that he is entitled to equal

5:43

privileges and rights with the white man.

5:46

If their premises were correct, their

5:48

conclusions would be logical and just,

5:50

but their premise being wrong the

5:53

whole argument fails. I

5:55

recollect once of having heard a gentleman from

5:57

one of the northern states of great power and

5:59

ability announced in the House of Representatives

6:01

with imposing effect that we of

6:03

the South would be compelled ultimately to

6:06

yield upon the subject of slavery that

6:08

it was as impossible to war successfully

6:11

against a principle in politics as

6:13

it was in physics or mechanics. That

6:15

the principle would ultimately prevail,

6:18

that we, in maintaining slavery

6:20

as it exists with us, were warring

6:22

against a principle, a principle founded

6:25

in nature, the principle of

6:27

the equality of men. The reply

6:29

I made to him was that upon his own

6:31

grounds, we should ultimately succeed.

6:34

And that he and his associates in this crusade

6:36

against our institutions would ultimately

6:39

fail. The truth announced that

6:41

it was as impossible to war successfully against

6:43

a principal in politics, as it was

6:46

in physics and mechanics I admitted,

6:48

but told him that it was he and

6:51

those acting with him who were

6:53

warring against a principal. They

6:55

were attempting to make things equal, which

6:58

the creator had made, unequal.

7:01

So said Alexander Stevens, and

7:05

so there it all was right

7:08

from the start. Thank

7:11

you for listening to reflections of history,

7:14

a creation of shining city audio,

7:16

a c thirteen originals and John Meacham

7:18

Studio. Reflections

7:27

of history is executive produced by

7:29

me, John Meacham and Chris Corcoran,

7:31

chief content officer and founding

7:33

partner of Kadant's thirteen. Production

7:36

and editing led by Lloyd Lockridge, Margo

7:39

Grey, and Chris Bassil. Production

7:42

assistance, by Andy Chaskowitz and

7:44

Adam Mesias. Cadence

7:46

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