Important Rebel Manifesto

Tiie foliowing joint prentnblö and icsolution, uith the unnexed maüiÍBSto, were introduced m tho rebel Seuate by Mr. Bill, of Georgia, adopted in eeerfe Bession, and sent to the Honso, whicl body, fiíicr a fccret dobale of severa liourn' duration, adopted them sub Btantiuüy as they carne from toe pénate with sono 8ig!it mndifivaliou oí' lan guago. The injnnelion f eeruey was Uien removed from tliis important. doc umont by the Hoasfc, though not b} (he Sonate. Tho manifestó s as fol lows : JOINT KE-OI UTIONS DKCLAIÍING TUK DIS ppS!T:o ov rruxciPLES and ruiu-oi:.s ■OF. TUK OO.MEDEIÍAIK KTATK-S I Nr RKLATIÜX TO THE EX1STIKQ WAK WITH THE UNITED STATES. " Wterens, It is duelo tbo grcat causo ol humamty :iiui i-ivilization, and to ;!;; he'oic sa'ofifices of thuir gillant arniy in the fielt), th'at. no mean. consistent wiUi il proper eelf-respeet and llio oppnrved 83ge of natíons shiinld bs omitted by Ice Confedeïate Staten to eirfighten tho public opinión ol the uorld in regard to the true churacter of the strngo;lo in which they are engtiged, and the dispositions, priuciples, and pnrposes by which they are actualed ; thereforo, Resol red, hy the Congress of t?e ConJbílerate Siatesjif América, That thel'ollowiüg RHinífo.sto be isned in their name, ar.d by their authoriíy, and that tho President bo requested to cause öopies thereot to be trai'.snii'.ted to our comiiiissioneBS abroad, to the end that the same may be laid before forvign goverument? : MANIFESTÓ OF TIIB CONQHF.SS OF TIIE CONi'EDEKATE STATEii OF AMERICA RELATIVB TO THE KXISTIXG WAR WITU TI1E UNITED STATES. Tho Congress of tho Confedérate States of' America, acknowiedginj their respbneibilities to the opinión of the civilized world, to the great law of Ohrisñan phüanthropy, md to the Supreme IJuler oí the nniverse, for the part they have heen compeüed to beur in the Ba-d spectac'e (.f the war and carnage ahich thís continent has for the hist three years eshibited to the eyes ol iifflicted liuiiiunity, deern the present a fitting occasion to declaro the principies, the sentimefifcs, and (he purposas by bich they liuve beenband are h t III, aetuated. They have over deeply deplorêi! the necessity which constrained them to take tip anns in defeuse of their rights, and of the free iustitutions derivad from their iuiet'stoiv ; tmd there is notbing they more ardetr.ly desire than peace, whensoever t'inir enemy, by ceasing irom the unhallowed war wagf.'d upon them, tihull permit them to enjoy in peace the sheitering protection of ihose hertditary rights and those cherished ittstituiionft. Tho teries of suceesses wiih which it has pleased Aimighty God in so -ignal a manner to bless Óur arma on almost every point oí our invuded border, BJnce the opening of .the present oampaign, enables ns to profesa this dcï-irs of peace in the interest of civiiization and humanity, without danger of having. our nwtivea misinterpreted, of the declaration being aseribed to any unmanly sentiment or any mistrust of our ability fully to maintwin óür cause. The repeated and disastrous check, f re.-hadowing ultimáte discomfilure, which their gigantio army, directed against tho eupital oí the eoufederacy, bas already met with, are but a continuation of the same providential successes tor uk. We do not recur to the sucuesse.s in any spirit of va in baast ing, but in hurnble acknowlodgmeut of that Almiglity protection which has 'f voucbsafed and Vaqted them. The world must now see that eight inillioii ol people, tilhubitJiig go exten sivo a territory, wit-h suoh varied resources, tnd auch numeroua faoilitles f oi' deleuso as the biviignant bounty ol nature has bestowed upon uw, and animated. vvith ono spirit to encounter every sacrifica of' ease, of health, of property, of life tself, rather than bc degruded trom the condiüon of free and independent status, iuto whieh ihey were boni, can never be conquered. Will not our adversarias theuisolves bü gin to feel thut humanity hns bied long enougli ; that teur.s aud blood and treasure euough havo been expended in u bootless undertaking, covering t.heir own land, no less than ourn, vritii a pall of moumiiig, iiid expoging tiiein far more thau ourxelves to the catastrophe 'Jjf financial uxhaustion and bankrupl cy, not to speak of the loss of their libertiea by tiio despotism engenderd in an aggresiiivo warlure, upon the liborti';s of anolher and kinthed peoplo ? Will they be willing, by a loig-r perseveiauce in a wanton and hopelews Contest to make this contiueat which they tio long boantod to ba the chosen aboda of liberty and solj-govoniiawit, of peuee and u higher civilization, the theater of' the must uauseK-ss aud prodigal eSusiou of bluod which the woild has ever seen, of a virlual relapso into the barbar sin of tho ruder ages, ai:d of t.l:e destniction of coustitution'a] freedom by the lawlessiTesi of usurped pow!r. These are quostioua which our adversaries will decide lor thomsolves. We döairo to stand acrjuitted beiore the tribunal of tiie vvoild, as well as in the eyes of üiuuiscient justice, of any responsibility lor the wigia or prolongation of a war as contrary to the pi-it of the age as to llie truditions and acknowledged principies ol the poliüoal system ol' Arnei ica. Oq this continent, wliatever opiuions may have prevatted êl-ewhere, it Rlis" ever been held and acknovvledgcd bv all partios that g veinuient, to 'be Uw ful, miibt be louiuled on the consent if the governed. We ere foroed to disBolve our tedei-al ooiineotion ith our former assoeiates by their aggres.-ions on the fundamental principies of our compact of uniou wiih tnem', and in doug so we exercise a riglu conseeiuted in the charter oí Am. rican libertv, thJ riglit of a free peopl, vvhen a gövcrnmttit pnuurf ucstnictive ol iLe ends for wbich it was estabJished, to rècur to tBa original principies ttiid to ihstituu n&w -guardif for tbUr Securii'v. ïiio eepatate mdepe'jrioe of the $x ies,'as the Bovcreign and coequül meinbors of the federal Union,' had nover beeu surrendered, and tha pretorsions óf-flp. plying to independent eoinmuuities, so iMiistitnted and oranizéd, the 'ordinary ruit's for coereing and rcdneing rebellious subject to obudience was a solec.sm in terms, is weil -..?. an outrngo on the princij The war made upon the Confedérate States, was therefore tv bol) y one of' asrgresbioo. Qu our siK) U. hua Úeen htiictly defensivo. Born frWrrfoir,'und the descendaats of a gallunt ancestry, we havo nt) frptfotf'êut to stand up in defense ol our lovod iiresides, of our desecialed altare, ol oür vi-olated libertfëaffifid tiifthrignt, a ij c i (I1 t!iü presertpivu instilutioiif. which guard anJ_pjote.'t them. We havo nut atevftireÓ, nor do wo tfish in [ir,y inanncr what ever. to inierforo witli the internnl peace and pro.spc:ity of the Htutñs urraved in hostüity against tii?,or with the freest dcvelopnient oí their deslinies in any ibrm of aoüon or line of pulicy tiiey may think proper to adopt lor them elies in the undistmbed enjoymenl of I those uiuiiorjable lights of 'hfo', liberty, aud the pu-suit ol happincss,' which oiïr cüiuiiioii nncestors dêclared to bu the equal heritnge oí all the parties to the social compact. Lot them lorbear aggressio.ns upon ua and the war is at an "end. If there be questions which require adjustment by nt'golintion, we havo ever been wüling atiú aro stil] willing, to enter into communication w.ifti our adveríarics in a spirit of peacn, oí éijuity, and of manly franknoss. Sirong ia the pursuastiiwi of the juslice of our cause, in the manly dovotion of our citizen soldier, and ifiho wholo body of our peopie. and abovo all in the graoious protectioü of huaven, we are r.ot ufruid to avow a sincero desire (tsr peaco on tei ms consistent with our honor and the permanent security of our iTgftti] and au earnest uspiration to seo thü world once moro restored to the beneficunt pursuits (i industry and of mutual intercoufaè and exchanares, so essenlial to to it well being. and whicli have been o gravely in errupted by the exLstence of this nnatural war in America. B;it ff oor adversarles or those whom they have placed in power, de.if to the voice oí ruuson and justice, steeled to :hu dictatt'8 of prudenoe nnd hurnanity, by n ptasurriptioiiti and dolut-ivu conti : dencïi in their own nuihbers, or thoaoöf jliick and foreign mercenaries, shall deternnoe upon an indefinita proiongation f tho coüostj upou thum be the respoDsibiüty of a dteision so ruinóos. to theinselvea and so injurinus to ttie interest and repose of mankind. For ourselves we havo no fear of the esult. The wildest picture ever drawn jy a disordered iinagiuíition comes short of the cstravaganca which would lream of the conquest of eight tnillions úf people, resolved with onu oiind ' to die freemen rather than live slaves," ind forewarned by the savate and exerminating spirit in which this war has jeen waged upon them. and by the mad avowals of the supporters of the worse thau Egyptian bondage that ' nvaits ihen: iu tiiu event of their subjugatioD. With these declarations of our dispositions, our prinui pies, aud our purposes, we cornmit our cause to the enlightened judgment of the world, to the sober rerlection of our adversarios then.seives, and to the solarán and righteoui arbitrainent of Henvcn." i