Horace Greeley, The American Conflict: A History of the Great Rebellion in the United States of America, 1860-65: its Causes, Incidents, and Results: Intended to exhibit especially its moral and political phases with the drift and progress of American opinion respecting human slavery from 1776 to the close of the War for the Union. Volume I.

[405] as her people should see fit to frame and adopt-New Mexico being at that moment a Slave Territory by act of her Legislature — to say nothing of the Dred Scott decision. That would have given the South a firm hold on nearly every acre of our present territory whereon she could rationally hope ever to plant Slavery--provided the people of New Mexico should see fit to ingraft Slavery on their State, as they seemed, under Democratic training, to have done on their Territory.

IV. The House — which had become strongly Republican through the withdrawal of most of the representatives from Cotton States passed the conciliatory and practical resolves reported by Mr. Corwin from the Committee of Thirty-three--passed them by an overwhelming majority. The Senate would have promptly concurred, had it been intimated or probable that such concurrence would have arrested and rolled back the surge of Secession.

V. Both Houses united in passing the Joint Resolve from said Committee which, being ratified by the required proportion of the States, would have precluded forever any action of Congress adverse to the perpetuation of Slavery in such States as should desire such perpetuation. This, too, would have been readily perfected, had “the South” evinced any inclination to be satisfied and pacified thereby. But it was very generally treated by them as of no value. Senator Mason, of Virginia, spoke of it derisively as, in substance, one of the planks of the Chicago [Republican] Platform. And the artillery of Secession soon dispelled all desire of, or motive for, ratifying it.

VI. There were very many Republicans-and those by no means without consideration or influence — who would have cheerfully consented to a peaceful withdrawal from the Union of the Cotton States, with such others as might have chosen to accompany them, had these accorded time for decently effecting and assenting to such a separation, after first allowing the Free States a fair opportunity to submit to and urge upon the people of the South their reasons for deprecating it. To this end, the calling of a National Convention and the election of delegates thereto were deemed indispensable prerequisites. Such a Convention could have acted decisively on the main question and all subordinate points-such as the rightful disposal, by apportionment or otherwise, of the public lands and other property belonging to the Union,with the public debt owed by it.

VII. The North did, as we have seen, organize three new Territories at this Session, in utter silence respecting Slavery, and in such manner as left “ the South” in full possession of all the rights accruing to her from the Federal Constitution, as expounded in the Dred Scott decision. This was done, not in accordance with the views and feelings of the Republicans, who reported and passed the bills, but as a peace-offering and a concession to those Southern Unionists who were constantly protesting that they cared nothing for the extension of Slavery — in fact, were rather opposed to it-but would not tamely submit to see a stigma placed on their section and her “institution” by Northern votes.

Yet all this was fruitless, because the North, in the full flush of a longawaited