A majority of the House, an
even division of the Senate--Listen, my dear friend, this is not
idle talk, and these are no idle promises! I am serious. I speak
to you in no wise ill-advised. To tell you the truth, we are
frightened. She has stolen all our peace of mind, and stolen also
some of our thunder--some of our cast-off and unthundered thunder."
"In what way?"
"Oh, nothing. It is of very little consequence. It is a
bagatelle. All she proposes to do is to purchase all the slaves in
the United States--out of her own funds--and ship them out of
America."
"Great God!"
"Yes. We didn't dare it. She does. We didn't begin. She has
begun. And since it has begun, who knows what army of the
people--what _new party_--may fall in behind her? We want you to
forestall all that. We don't want you to head that new party. We
think you will do better to fall in with us, to accept the
compliment of a European mission--and to take this fair firebrand
with you. We are afraid to have her in Washington.
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