Litchfield enquirer., 1836-02-25


 RepTescntBIives, and in . manner which dem Onstrates, what before seemed sufficiently Ob- v;ous. that the course VI Which has been pursued bv thc abOItiOnisis. in pressing She question unon inc attention Of Congress at the present lime. was extremely iIl advised. There were
 inc strongest reasons for fOrbcaring to bring
 th;s subject into discussion m Congress m inc nresent state of popular feeling upon H' throughout the country. It was KnO"n 'O every one. that it would serve 'O produce az i,a,i0n. and to increase the popular eAc"e' roent, and it must have Oeen "PPS'e"I !"
 .rv nsrson of the slightest degree of discern ,o.0t that inc discussion could not lead to , .n, rssuIt favorable to the views of the peti- t;oners. A more uOprOpiliOus moment, Tor
 inc adoption of measures for the abolition Or regulation of slavery in the District ot COIum- hia could not have been selected. Yet re-
 gardiess of the great evil of keeping up an ex- Ecited state of feeling throughout the country
 and of adding nutrment tO the growing ant
 mostly of the people of the South towards
 those of the North, the aholitionlsts have seized upon this opportunity to thrust tOr"alo their petitions. We are now able to see what , has been the result. The House Of Repre- 1 sentatves has decided, by vote ot %0l to 7. l that "Congress possesses no cOnstltnt'Ona'
 authority to interfere in any way with the ln'
 stitution of slavery in any ofthe States Ot th's
 confederacy." On this question we confess
 the abolitionsts have gained more than we
 expected. We did not suppose that even
 seven members would be found to vote m the
 negative of this proposition. They have tur- ther decided, by vote of l6S to 48-more than three to one-that in their opinion |" Congress ought not to intertere soith Stucery in the District of Columbia."' And they have still further, by majority of l27 to 76, de- clared, that in their opinion, such an interfer- ence with slavery in the District only, "would be viOlation of the public aith. wn'O'se, impol- itic, and dangerous to the constitution" Such decision, it is true, is not literally irrevoca- ble. SO as to preclude future congress from acting in opposition to it, if they see fit; but it is decision which will renderit more diff- cult, if not practically impossible for any fn ture Congress to make any regulation of slave ] " in the District of Columbia, and it is to be feared that it will afford an object of perpetual and useless effort, just plausible and difficult enough, to keep alive the zeal ofthe abolition 1 ists, and at the same time to divide the excr ! tions, and paralize the influence of the people of the Northern States, on all questions of practical utility, as long as the Union shall last Boston Mess.
 ". Skorp, whom all the papers, and our town among the number, have accused of run 1 ming away with the funds of the Lebanon .(Ohiol Shakers, and taking away with him also. one of the trembling sisterhood. has au- thOrized the editor of the Cincinnati Gazette to make an investigation of the whole affair and the editor says that Sharp was the busi- ness agent Ofthe Shaker community. and has separated from it to be sure, and that there is some difference of pecuniary character, a. bout some ten or twelve thousand dollars. which the parties expect io adjust annicahly. though it may lead to litigation As to the amount of the one hundred thousand dollars, which we took from the Zanesville Gazette, 1 as we did all the rest of the statement, it was ] only 50 much moonshine.-COM. and Eng. Washington, Feb. 13.-To a stranger. per- haps, there is DO scene more interesting than l the celebration of Divine Service in the Rep
 resentatives' Hall of Congress. It cannot fail
 to awaken deep and thrilling sensations.
 which everything around will tend to strength
 en. The noble Hall itself, SO stuPendous in
 its structure. SO perfect in its architectural
 beauty, seems fit temple for the Most High.
 have always thought that it must resemble.
 in great degree. service in the old English Cathedrals. The carpeted floor, rendering
 scarcely distnguishable the foot falls of the
 corners in, the rich draperies, and the soften
 ed. subdued light which harmonises 80 pccuI-
 iarIy with devout feelings, serve to increase
 the resemblance. The circumstance that will
 fasien soonest upon the attention of the stran- ger. IS the change which is produced by the
 oaoOath in place which, on other days, isl too often the arena of fierce and bitter alter cation. On every side are grouped the very . 'noN'duals, now silent, attentive, and compo- g sed, who yesterday, perhaps, were ready to s denOunce each other. It is also one of the 7. very few occasions, even in this land of prac . tical republicanism. in which all men, for @ while, are apparently free and equal.
 IL is much to be regretted that, in the archi. lecture of the Representatives" Hall, no atten-
 ton should have been paid to acoustics. It
 is no place for the display of oratory. To
 be heard, the voice must be raised far above its natural tones, and this atsetto strain efec- B tually precludes those fine n,odulations which s produce such thrilling effects in public speak. a ing. MT. Clay is the only individual l ever B heard-and l have heard him often-who could speak with ease and in natural tone in this Hall. Without apparent exertion to has never failed to fIl the vast room, and to be distinctly heard by even the most remote listener.-JOur. cf Com.
 WASHINGTON, Feb. I5.
 The city has to day been filled N ith rumors
 respecting onr foreign relations. It is conf
 dentIy asserted. that despstches have been
 received at the State Department. announc-
 ing that the instalments now due by France
 under the treaty of 1881. would be immedi-