He supported this resolution in a long speech, in which he tried hard to leave the Administration without a leg to stand on. As a death-blow to Pierce, the effort was eminently successful. In conclusion, he moved to lay the whole subject on the table. Having shot his parthian arrow into the side of the National Democracy, Prince John was not disposed to give its friends a chance to be heard. A sharp running debate now took place between Mr. Kelly and Mr. Van Buren. The New York Herald published a synopsis of it:
“Mr. John Kelly, of New York, hoped the gentleman would not press his motion, but would give other gentlemen an opportunity of expressing their sentiments.”
Mr. Van Buren: “I will withdraw it, for I am going to dinner (laughter), provided you or the gentleman who shall speak last agrees to renew it in my name.”
Mr. Kelly: “I will agree to that if the Convention agrees to go to dinner now.” (Laughter.)
Mr. Van Buren: “But if the Convention does not now take a recess, I want to make the same bargain. I want the last man who speaks to renew the motion in my name.”
Mr. Kelly: “I will do no such thing.”
Mr. Van Buren: “Then I insist on my motion.”
Mr. Kelly: “I expected more generosity from the gentleman from the Thirteenth District of New York, than to do anything of this kind.”
At this point a recess was taken until 3 o’clock P. M. On the re-assembling of the body Mr. John Kelly addressed the Convention, and showed a determination not to be choked off by Mr. John Van Buren and the Seward contingent of Disunionists and Abolitionists, who, notwithstanding their noisy demonstrations, constituted only about one-third of the Convention. He made a powerful speech in defense of the National Democracy, and the Administration of General Pierce. He reviewed, in scathing terms, the treason to Cass and Butler on the part of the bolting Barnburners in 1848, and when he declared sternly and with unmistakable indignation, that, if this treason was now to be repeated he would leave the Convention, and never again affiliate with Barnburners, a great sensation occurred, and it became evident that the schemes of the fanatics had been arrested and thwarted by Mr. Kelly. A hurried consultation took place between the friends and opponents of the Administration. Mr. Kelly’s demand that a delegation of true Democrats, and not Seward Democrats, should be sent to the Cincinnati National Convention, and that a platform endorsing the territorial legislation of Congress in 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska bill (in effect a re-affirmation of the Webster-Clay Compromise of 1850) should be adopted, was reluctantly but finally conceded. The sectional and disturbing resolutions of Jenkins, Church and Hunt were withdrawn, and in return for these concessions it was agreed to by Kelly and his friends that the appointment of the delegation to Cincinnati should be postponed to a later day, and the drafting of an address and resolutions expressive of National Democratic principles should be deferred until the meeting of another convention, at which the National Convention delegates should be chosen. In view of this compromise any further conflict over the Van Buren Free-soil resolution was avoided, and it was adopted by the Convention.
No full report of Mr. Kelly’s important speech, which brought about the administration victory, was taken down at the time of its delivery, indeed none of the speeches before the convention was fully reported. The New York Herald, of September 1st, 1855, contained the following synopsis of what he said: