ties to that confederacy, one was the north and the other was
the south. On every question, great and small, that division in
American life and American politics arose. Before the war and
during the war party lines were drawn on the sectional line, north
and south. The parties in this country were sectional parties,
and even up to this time we have not broken down the asperity which
existed, growing out of this sectional condition of affairs.

"Now that slavery is gone, parties ought to be based on other
conditions than sectional lines. There is no question now existing
between the north and the south, and politicians will soon find
that they must base their divisions of party lines upon some other
question than between the north and the south. I see growing up
every day the evidence of that feeling that this sectional controversy
is at an end. Although the ghost is not buried--the dead body lies
mouldering in the grave.

"What then, is the first duty of both sections, now that slavery
is abolished. It is to base party divisions upon other than
sectional lines. It is to adopt a policy approved by the patriotic
men of both sections, that will develop the resources, improve the
conditions, and advance the interests of the whole people. The
north is ready for this consummation. There never was a time in
the history of this government, from the time the constitution was
framed to this hour, when there was less party spirit among the
mass of the people of the United States. Nearly all that is left
is among mere politicians. The people of the United States desire
to see these differences buried, and new questions, living questions
of the present and future, form the line of demarkation between
parties. The north has made enormous growth and development since
the war. Immense capital is seeking investment, and millions of
idle men are seeking employment. The south, from a state of chaos,
is showing marked evidence of growth and progress, and these two
sections, no longer divided by slavery, can be united again by the
same bonds that united our fathers of the revolution.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, let me state briefly the conditions
upon which the new south can secure the greatest amount of good
for its people--conditions that can be accepted by men who served
in either army (who wore the blue or the gray), both Confederate
and Union soldiers. If these elemental conditions are accepted
fairly, as I hope th