every star in its place upon that ensign, without wealth to purchase
for him preferment or title to secure for him place, it will be his
privilege, and must be his acknowledged right, to stand unabashed even
in the presence of princes, with a proud consciousness that he is
himself one of a nation of sovereigns and that he can not in legitimate
pursuit wander so far from home that the agent whom he shall leave
behind in the place which I now occupy will not see that no rude hand
of power or tyrannical passion is laid upon him with impunity. He must
realize that upon every sea and on every soil where our enterprise may
rightfully seek the protection of our flag American citizenship is an
inviolable panoply for the security of American rights. And in this
connection it can hardly be necessary to reaffirm a principle which
should now be regarded as fundamental. The rights, security, and repose
of this Confederacy reject the idea of interference or colonization on
this side of the ocean by any foreign power beyond present jurisdiction
as utterly inadmissible.

The opportunities of observation furnished by my brief experience as a
soldier confirmed in my own mind the opinion, entertained and acted
upon by others from the formation of the Government, that the
maintenance of large standing armies in our country would be not only
dangerous, but unnecessary. They also illustrated the importance - I
might well say the absolute necessity - of the military science and
practical skill furnished in such an eminent degree by the institution
which has made your Army what it is, under the discipline and
instruction of officers not more distinguished for their solid
attainments, gallantry, and devotion to the public service than for
unobtrusive bearing and high moral tone. The Army as organized must be
the nucleus around which in every time of need the strength of your
military power, the sure bulwark of your defense - a national militia -