Mr. COWAN. My honorable friend will excuse me; I thought I was done being catechised; I want to finish up, and then anybody that wants to assail what I say can do so. I believe the great mass of the people never have been guilty of treason. Ilike to believe it, because it. gives me assurance of the stability and of the integrity of this Government. I like to believe it, because it enables me to think that we can restore the Union again; it enables me to think that we can have the greatest republic, and not only the greatest republic, ut. Mr. President, the greatest empire the world has ever seen. I love to believe it, because, the Union restored, all our foreign difficulty vanishes away into thin air. I love to believe it, because if the Union is restored the public credit is restored and rises with it. f the Union is restored, it is an earnest to the whole world everywhere of mans capacity for self government. I say again that like to believe these things. I do believe them, and I take pleasure in it because it is a charitable belief. A word as to the proper mode of treating these people. I asked a southern gentleman the other day, f Suppose we ct into difficulty with England or France, which side would they take? Why, ” said he, “nine out of every ten of them will stand by the flag.” Now, Mr. President, that is either true or it is not true. If it is true that 9 men out of every ten will stand by. the flag, then I say to assail them as rebels and traitors, and to treat them as criminals, and to try to deprive them of the rights they ought to have as inhabitants of free States as we are, is a gross outrage and one which will recoil upon our heads. If they are not; if they are in the condition which some gentlemen like to represent them as occupyin, then, sir, I want to know whether on will bring them to reason, whether you will bring them back to that affection which they ought to have for this Government and its flag, by such bills as this, which invade rights that they of all other people have been taught to consider as peculiarly belonging to the States and not within the province of the Government to invade. Can you bring them back by making laws which operate upon them when they are not here? Can you bring them back by giving them the same cause to rebel against you which GreatBritain gave to your ancestors? Can you bring them back here y legislating for them and yet refusing them the right of representation; Can you bring them back by amending the constitution time and again over their heads when you refuse to listen to their arguments here in the common councils of the country? I an this is worthy of the serious consideration ofyevery man who loves his country; and I put it to my brethren here in the hope that they may think of it in th is aspect. Nay, Mr. President, I know apprehensions are expressed. Apprehensions of what? What can the people of those States do if we treat them fairly and give them all their rights under the laws? What is the worst they can do? Can they rebel again? If they are going to rebel again, you are pnttin them now exactly in such a condition that they will before the world have good cause. You are putting them precisely in that situation when they can appeal to your enemies for assistance, and when they will get it. When they ask England to protect them the next time, and then when they seek an alliance with France the next time, the will suCceed. enland will not pay 50 milions more to keep her Lancashire poor from starving when she can control the cotton fields of the southern portion of these U.S. France will not much longer be bullied about the Monroe doctrine, when she by joining with the South may help to tear this Republic in 2 and shear it of its greatness. the p, I say, if the people would stand by the flag, give them their rights; and I say if they will not stand by it, let us give themtheir rights and let them do their worst, because they will do it anyway. It is far safer to treat them according to no laws that exist and do now exist without new ones to operate upon them, made while they are not here. for safer than the course We are pursuin. There are guilty people among them. hy are not those guilt people prosecuted? Why are they not punished? If JeffersonDavis is a traitor, we have him in our hands, and why is he not tried and convicted? Where are your district attorneys? Where are your judges? Have you no machine? Who resists the establishment of courts? Vho prevents the marshal from summoning nrors such as the Senfrom Nevada described a while ago? He says that there are plenty of poor men down there who have been oppressed by the slaveholding aristocracy, and who were dragged into this rebellion. That I believe to be true. He says that they would gladly be postmasters, and accept the little offices of the country at our hands. suppose they would ladly playjurors Over this man who they believe ms brought such calamities upon their country, and subjected them to such national humiliations. Are there no courts, are there no juries, is there no me chinery in the land, by which individuals can be punished, and only machinery by which the innocent, the people, can be tortured and wor iied,? and peraps driven into another rebel 10!]Mr. President, I hope we shall take better counsel. I think it cannot. be disguised that just at this moment there is a growing apprecnsion in the country that something is not right. I do not say that that apprehension has risen to alarm; but I do sayt at unless this Congress shall do something to reassure the people it will come to that. The soldier is be. inning to ask why the country is not restored. He is beginning to ask, ” Will it be restored Y” He says, “I fought the battles of the country long days and dreary nights through a terrible war for the Union for the purpose of saving the Republic one and indivisible.” Why is it not restored? Is there any resistance to this Government, any refusal on the part of the people to put all the machinery in motion? tell you, It Mr. President, when he asks this Congress why it is that all the bands are not tied, and all the means of cementing it are not made use of, there will be a terrible answer from him if he finds that we by onr, factious course prevent this restoration. What is it that binds now, I ask, the 11 States latelyin rebellion to this Union but the President? Ho is the only piece of property they have in common with us. He stun 5 like a Colossus across this chasm which it is our business to fill up and close forever. The bondholder, the man who loahed us the money to carry on this war, the manwho came up with Fortunatuss purse, almost without stint, to furnish the siuews of it, will be in to ask, why is the Union not restored; where is the obstacle, and what is the obstacle? Will it do to tell him that the hearts of that peoile are not right? He will tell you that you ha better leave that to the means of Christian race; it will be enough for him if they obeyt e laws, if they are Willing to submit themselves to the laws as other good citizens do. It will not do to assert to him that they are not to be trusted as the people, because he will tell you it was as the people and upon the faith that they as the people would restore the Government that he have his money. It will not do either to tell imand the soldier, too, that we are going to hold these people as conquered provinces. The soldier will tell you that that Will do him no good; he did not fight for conquered prov inces he did not fight to make his fellowmen vassals and serfs; he fought to bring them back to brotherhood and freedom. He wanted to make them to strengthen him and to aid him rather than to be his enemies hereafter. True, he may tell you, “IfI were a king or a noble, conuest might be of avail to me, but I am a humple citizen of this Republic, and conquest is not that for which I ventured myself upon the field of battle. ”Mr. President, I ought to apologiZe, perhaps, for leaving the subjectmatter of discussion so far behin in this debate; but if I have left iIt, beg that all the blame will not be thrown upon me, because art of the time I was not only bound to furnish the argument, but to stand a crossexamination.