Letter From Mr. Stern To Mr. Schurz

Bostox, AIass, Sopt 'ilth, 1330. Cakl Schurz - Daar Sir: - Hnvinor boen informad tli:it yen intend coming t.) Boaton during this Prtwidential eumpaign for tho parpóse of sddreasing the pu lic upon nbtiona] allairs, I wouM aakofyoutho favor of meeting mo, duriag your visit, lor tho purpuro oí havuig u public discussion .f torne of. i!iü díase important and pro.ninent dog mas in tlio creed of tho Republican par ty, to all of whioh I havo reaebn to be" Iiüvo that you subscribe. I wonld not havo intrüdad on you, eir, especially but f or important reasyn- Sir, you havo been heraldëd through1 out tho caun'.ry as an eninent e-po" nent and defender of the Republican creod, and an ardeDt supporter of Mr. Abraham Hlnoolo for the preaideaoy of the United Stiltes, a eandidate repraeenting onlyasection of til St;itís oomposing this oonfederacy. More th-.ui this, yo:i are put forth as the representativo of the sentiment of the gredt tnajority of tho intelligent ndopled citizent uf Germán birth and eztraotion. New sir, I expect that yon will nocept this ohalleoge more re;idily hen I inform you most rospectfully tb at l :im also an ftdopted oitizen, and like you, an exle for politica] reasona ; that I have lubored for th j causa of' a fres a i i unitod Gerrnany as uiuch as any oiher man, and that 1 have saurifioed a !ucrative posiiion and the society oí inv neareít relativos and dearest ir;ends, to live aad die a freornan. Having ben xd eys witness anl uc tor in the whole epooh of 1818 and ! i 49,, I have !o:irned enough t) be here a conicrvutive, wherea.s I was at that time a revolulionist. I sanctioned an 1 aupponed the rovoluüon, bec mse it wan an attempt of thj people to striko for thoso rights und libertiss of wfaiifa thov were deprived by a systarn of :ibsi)lute monarohisin and sham oonstitutionalism. In maroh, 184S, tne Germán pa.ple gained thoir libertie.-ï and rights. - The representativos ot Oer man knowledge, suience, litarature, jurisprudeflce and statesmanship, wo.e delegated to form a united Gerrnany - a öennany with no Austria, no fi'ussra, do B.iva ria, no Saxonia, but a un led Gertaauy Did they re.iliz tho wisius of tha peopie ? 1 sat in that faiitous oathedrul (PaulV Kü'ohe) duritg tha uxisroi-jo of that parliarnsnt; I sat in tlu EKornao Saai (Kayaereaal) during the whole etistöiiua ot ihe ooifiinittöB of fifty ; I ia! in the "Vor Parlia nent." Oh, oould l asáe:Tibl a!l tho vi-ti ns of t!ia c -azy management with w.tieh you afflicted the g od people of G-erm mv, oould I gathar tiie thousands of patriota huru Í would show thein tho vory nie;i who deetroyed uvery hope of oonalitutional Iiburty in the fetherland, havo already communued the samo work of destruction here. When i) 1818, the kinga were prostrate in the dust ; whe.i the ariny, the ohildren of tho people, weré ahnost won over to tlnj popular ciase, what did you, (I mean yourpartv) and all tbose öow swarraing in this ooanjtry, and their high autbority and induenoa tic ? Sir, twtead of consolid ,ting the distractod t'lenienig i' Q-rji-ui ihy mto a confertöracy of Bovereign 9tute, you talkö'l nbout the n I (pen le i se of U.tly and Poland, anJ all the oationa of the world. while you aeglected your own afFairs. Tne army was insuited - the "army must beaboliohsd" - and i ñatead of availing youiWve8 of the favorable positioii, and striking quiokly, you sat in tho Franfurter pavliament au:! made long speeobes, til! tha foothold gave way, and you and all of m were sjrit agnin into an Egyptiao darkneas, Having ivaste I the time for action, fínd restorad darknea and duspair at. home, you como hither to bluss the people of i lii.s oountry with your grand dogmas and thaories; to repeat proeisely tho mimo axploded experiment- und absurditiert. When your own house wan on fira, instpad of rashing up to tho reBcne o{ its inniutes, yon soundel tho big trumpet of :i '(universal ropublic" "we muet free Poland" "we m;ist fsee Italy" " all tha world mutt be Cree." - 8uoh werc your valoróos shonta. But your own ho mes wre bnroed to the foundation, your wives and ohildi'cn were made homule.ss, while Poland is yet enslaved, and Italy ia freed, not bv your aid, but by her own exartions, unaided by Frankfurter pnrliaments and Germán doctors and pbilosophera. InBtead of tlitioriziuj1, astoad of kalking about "sooiahsm and eonjmonis:n" and n división of property, tho Italiana havo aciei, and tberein liea the saurot of thoir anaces?). But to roturn to my proposition. - Although Bot reared like you sir, in a collage or university, and having but a plain and limited eduoation, lam lesrned enough to undorstand the Oonstitution of tfrs ciourstry, whioh tsaches me that this Republic :i eonfederacy of independent sovereign States, eaofi entitled ti) ennot its own lawa for tha proper minagetnent of its own loual affairs, without dictation frotñ any other Ktate, or frotn the Oongressof the Unitod States, or (rom any power outsida the jurisiliction of uuoh State. In proposinr myself as nti opponent to v(1u, I hopu you wil! be too enerous to class me with those Germana whom your party olrirgos with following tho democratie bahner through ignoranoe. - Against this charge vvliich has buen re peatedly made by your party, I most golemn'y protest, and s.ill further do I protest np;inst the uniounded boast that a mnjority of tho adoptad oitizens - and by " ciüzans" 1 mean raen who havo a nght to volo, havo any syinpathy with the dogmas of 'he Republicaa party. The industrinus (rieoiiaiiic know only too vtí!l th-ithis labor wil] be ro wanled properly on]y so long a wo maintsin the Uuion, and t'iat he wil! gain notliiücr, hut letting loóse a horde of African negrre'', witn no URpirations, and no wsntufnmniar to the European or Atnsnonn mochn-jK; fio kni wei: th:;t al! the oriái Lbo;it the poor 1) i -,.l ii;m, are only próffored n tlio hope ol blninii íí'ilt ( fcce thereby : beeausa Ik; lus the undöD.nible faut bufore Ir.s yes that no man, even the most fana:ical Aboliiioiiist, i v' t!l tl)0 , frioa ' l'"ce buril m;ii). pe ple know too woll Uiat the i. ,- mi 1I10 Btirrup froni irhiuh the negro tfrirahippar inena to vault into tho seat of power. [ti point oí faut, nuatiy all ihosn of ourtiwuntryinn who mate ro tnuoh no'ne aboutthi slavery question, uro ihj i:ii ïigi-aiits, the tnyorit,v not abl to sponk the Bngliah languaga, and not yet eutitled to vote. Sic, thesi are tha uuwses wlio form the in ij u-iiy of the "intelligent Qrmans." yon nd your purty so loudly proclui.n as your sappitrür.s, Uut sir Uio mrtsse.s of' tho Qermuu aáopted tizona who have a nghtto vote aro loyal to the Cqnstitution trunsmittèd to 'is by the Father ol tlie American republic, ai.d oonsider that Baored instrument as tho magna charta of par potitical righta and libertiox, and not, its your aociata do, "un agreomont with doath and acovenant with heil." The myority of tha (iortn:in adoptad citizons will lo.low no !o;Jer who will not nphold the flng and " keep stop tu tho musió ol tho Union," - a unión of sláva átate and free 8 tatas a uiio:i formad by tlia paople oftwelre slava Statea an! b'.U oie íi-j.; Stuta. Wo declare further that wo hold only to th.it kind of higharlaw whioh has ís foundation in the Constitution and is in porfect harrnony with that iilatrument, and not to thu kind of higher law i originatesin theibrains of theorists, expeFÍmeotaltst8 an I utopians. [f ii duus not uit you to meet m in Bjston, whioh appearsto aio tho most ittins place, I am wilüng to meet you in any townorcity, this or tho other sido of Mason o" Dixon'a line- Phila delpliia, Milwai'kej, lïiohuioid, Va., or Noiv ürleans, La. Sir, t took yon the other day, three !i ur and a half ta ubuáaone m.in with out ever proving onc poiot sgainst liis doctniios to whioh, lot me toll yon, I do aoijitttjf ia all tiiuir details, subscribe, but I, a plain, humble, unejucated man, (originally a méchanio - a oabioot maker) proposo to deinolish the whole structarö of the Röpublican party iu fií'ie-n minutes, providad you vvill answer all the questions I siiall put to jrou {uirly and scjuarely. I hopt) you vvïil receive this communioation in tliu samo kind spirit in whioh it is tendered you, and havo tliu honor bo subscribe inyself, Youra rospeetfully,