of thinking quickly, placed him in the front rank of debaters, and every year increased his thought.

It has been said that Senator Morton was a partisan, a strong partisan, and this is true. In the estimation of some this detracts from his fame. That evils arise from extreme partisanship, there can be no doubt. But it should not be forgotten that all free governments are party governments. Our great Americans have been great partisans. Senator Morton was not more partisan than Adams, Jefferson, Jackson, Clay, Calhoun, Benton, Marshall, Taney, or Chase. Strong men must have strong convictions, and "one man with a belief is a greater power than a thousand that have only interests." Partisanship is opinion crystallized, and party organizations are the scaffoldings whereon citizens stand while they build up the wall of their national temple. Organizations may change or dissolve; but when parties cease to exist, liberty will perish.

In conclusion, let me say that the memory of Governor Morton will be forever cherished and honored by the soldiers of Ohio. They fought side by side with the soldiers of Indiana, and on a hundred glorious fields his name was the battle-cry of the noble regiments which he had organized and inspired with his own lofty spirit.

To the nation he has left the legacy of his patriotism, and the example of a great and eventful life.

LINCOLN AND EMANCIPATION.

ADDRESS DELIVERED IN THE HALL OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

FEBRUARY 12, 1878.

JANUARY 16, 1878, the following communication was presented to the House of Representatives:

"TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED. "Your petitioner most respectfully represents as follows:

"The Proclamation of Emancipation by President Lincoln was one of the great historic events of the century, - scarcely second in importance to any in our national annals. The historical painting celebrating this act, executed under the direct supervision of President Lincoln at the Executive mansion in 1864, has become widely known through engraved copies which may be seen hanging upon the walls of thousands of homes throughout the land. The public press has from time to time given expression to the popular desire that this painting, associated as it is with the memory of the lamented Lincoln, should be preserved among the other historic art-works of the national Capitol.

"But the enforced economy in public expenditures, approved by all good citizens, has of late years restricted, and probably for many years to come will restrict, the purchase of works of art by Congress. Meanwhile, there is danger that this painting may be lost to the country by accident, as was the original written proclamation by the burning of Chicago.

"Your petitioner has, therefore, purchased this painting of the artist, whose earnest study and labor upon it have been protracted through many years, and now respectfully requests that you receive the same as a gift to the nation. Your petitioner has also been moved by the fact that President Lincoln, a few weeks before his death, expressed the wish that this historic painting should become the property of the nation, and be preserved in the national Capitol.

"Your petitioner ventures the hope that, should her gift meet the approval of Congress, an hour may be designated, on Lincoln's birthday, February 12, to receive the painting.

"NEW YORK, January 9, 1878."

"ELIZABETH THOMPSON.

Mr. Garfield moved that this memorial be spread upon the Journal of the House; to which there was no objection. He then introduced this joint resolution, which was agreed to:

"Whereas, Mrs. Elizabeth Thompson, of New York City, has tendered

66

to Congress Carpenter's painting of President Lincoln and his Cabinet, at the time of his first reading of the Proclamation of Emancipation: Therefore,

"Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the said painting is hereby accepted in the name of the people of the United States; and the thanks of Congress are tendered to the donor for the generous and patriotic gift. And be it further resolved, That the Joint Committee on the Library are hereby instructed to make arrangements for the formal presentation of said painting to Congress, on Tuesday, the 12th of February next; and said committee shall cause said painting to be placed in an appropriate and conspicuous place in the Capitol, and shall carefully provide for its preservation.

“And be it further resolved, That the President is requested to cause a copy of these Resolutions to be forwarded to Mrs. Thompson."

The Senate also adopted the resolution, and in pursuance of its provisions the hour of two o'clock P. M., Tuesday, February 12, was fixed for the formal presentation and acceptance of the painting.

At two o'clock, the Assistant Doorkeeper of the House announced the Senate of the United States. Preceded by the Vice-President of the United States and accompanied by their Secretary and Sergeant-at-Arms, the Senators entered and took the seats assigned them. The donor of the picture, Mrs. Elizabeth Thompson, with her escort, and the artist, Mr. F. B. Carpenter, also occupied seats on the floor. The painting, which had been covered with the American flag, hung unveiled behind the Speaker's desk.

The Vice-President (who occupied a chair on the right of the Speaker), said: "The Senate and House of Representatives have convened in joint session for the purpose of receiving, through the munificence of Mrs. Elizabeth Thompson, of the city of New York, Carpenter's painting, 'The Signing of the Proclamation of Emancipation.""

Mr. Garfield then delivered the following speech, presenting the picture to Congress.

M'

R. PRESIDENT, By the order of the Senate and the House, and on behalf of the donor, Mrs. Elizabeth Thompson, it is made my pleasant duty to deliver to Congress the painting which is now unveiled. It is the patriotic gift of

an American woman whose years have been devoted to gentle and generous charities and to the instruction and elevation of the laboring poor. Believing that the perpetuity and glory of her country depend upon the dignity of labor and the equal freedom of all its people, she has come to the Capitol to place in the perpetual custody of the nation, as the symbol of her faith, the representation of that great act which proclaimed "liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." Inspired by the same sentiment, the representatives of the nation have opened the doors of this chamber to receive at her hands the sacred trust.

In coming hither, these living representatives have passed under the dome and through that beautiful and venerable hall which, on another occasion, I have ventured to call the third House of the American Congress, that silent assembly whose members have received their high credentials at the impartial hand of history. Year by year, we see the circle of its immortal membership enlarging; year by year, we see the elect of their country, in eloquent silence, taking their places in this American Pantheon, bringing within its sacred precincts the wealth of those immortal memories which made their lives illustrious; and year by year, that august assembly is teaching deeper and grander lessons to those who serve in these more ephemeral houses of Congress.

Among the paintings hitherto assigned to places within the Capitol are two which mark events forever memorable in the history of mankind,- thrice memorable in the history of America. The first is the painting by Vanderlyn, which represents, though with inadequate force, the great discovery which gave to the civilized world a new hemisphere. The second, by Trumbull, represents that great Declaration which banished forever from our shores the crown and sceptre of imperial power, and proposed to found a new nation upon the broad and enduring basis of liberty.

To-day, we place upon our walls this votive tablet, which commemorates the third great act in the history of America, — the fulfilment of the promises of the Declaration.

Concerning the causes which led to that act, the motives which inspired it, the necessities which compelled it, and the consequences which followed and are yet to follow it, there have been, there are, and still will be great and honest differences of

opinion. Perhaps we are yet too near the great events of which this act formed so conspicuous a part, to understand its deep significance and to foresee its far-off consequences. The lesson of history is rarely learned by the actors themselves, especially when they read it by the fierce and dusky light of war, or amid the deeper shadows of those sorrows which war brings to both. But the unanimous voice of this House in favor of accepting the gift, and the impressive scene we here witness, bear eloquent testimony to the transcendent importance of the event portrayed on yonder canvas.

Let us pause to consider the actors in that scene. In force of character, in thoroughness and breadth of culture, in experience of public affairs, and in national reputation, the Cabinet that sat around that council-board has had no superior, perhaps no equal in our history. Seward, the finished scholar, the consummate orator, the great leader of the Senate, had come to crown his career with those achievements which placed him in the first rank of modern diplomatists. Chase, with a culture and a fame of massive grandeur, stood as the rock and pillar of the public credit, the noble embodiment of the public faith. Stanton was there, a very Titan of strength, the great organizer of victory. Eminent lawyers, men of business, leaders of states and leaders of men, completed the group.

men.

But the man who presided over that council, who inspired and guided its deliberations, was a character so unique that he stood alone, without a model in history or a parallel among Born on this day, sixty-nine years ago, to an inheritance of extremest poverty; surrounded by the rude forces of the wilderness; wholly unaided by parents; only one year in any school; never, for a day, master of his own time until he reached his majority; making his way to the profession of the law by the hardest and roughest road; — yet by force of unconquerable will and persistent, patient work, he attained a foremost place in his profession,

"And, moving up from high to higher,
Became on Fortune's crowning slope

The pillar of a people's hope,

The centre of a world's desire."

At first, it was the prevailing belief that he would be only the nominal head of his administration, that its policy would be directed by the eminent statesmen he had called to his council.