Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1839-08-02
FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 1889.

! deter you from perseverance, IN a pursuit,
your only motives for which are the die.
pensation of justice to all. But should it
prove otherwise, should YOU persist in pc
| titionlng from session ~ session for the
same boon. as ~ many of your petitions is
| declared TO be your intention, the same
! respect, the same consideration. and the
same answer should, in my Judgment, be
gwen to your petitions, so long as the same
reasons should be applicable to them.
! had long INDUCED the hope that the
abolition of slavery in this ConfeJeracy
would be effected by the people of the
several States IN which il exists: as has
actually been done 10 he States Of New
York and Pennsy lvanIa. Proposals for
this most desirable contamination have, at
different times, been actually made and
discussed IN the Legls latures of MARYLAND
Virginia, and Kentucky. and the time has
been when in all those States a majority.
or very nearly ina orty. of the people
would have sanctioned the measure.--
W'h'n very lew years petition from
many hundreds of the inhabitants of the
District OF Columbia itself was presented
10 Congress praying for the abolition of
slavery there. The same spirit was then
powerful, both in Virginia and Maryland
In both those States it is now silent. # no,
extinct. The spirit Of slavery has acquired
no: only an ov"rruling ascendancy, bu, has
become at once mtoleran,. proscrlp,lve.
and sbph.sical. II has crept into the phi.
losophicaI chairs of the schools. lis cln-
ven>toot has assembled the pupl's of the
churches. Professors of colleges teach |,
as lesson of morals. Ministers of the
Gospel seek and profess to find sanctions
for It IN the Word of God!
can, therefore. no longer fa,ter myself
with the expectation that in the short
remnant fmy life slavery will be abolished
10 the States of Virginia and MARYLAND by
their Legs 'alnres, and with the consen, of
The People o: those States themselves nd
have never contemplated any other mode
OF abolition. as desirable or as snsceprible
OF receiving any countenance from an
American citizen, faithful to his country,
and friendly to the continuance of the
Union. So long as the People OF those
Two States shall be so decidedly averse to
the general abolition Of slavery. there is
very 'i'le ground to hope Iha: the People
OF the District of Columbia will be favor.
able to 1t among themselves.
'hat change of sentiment, on this sub.
)nc' VIII. IL The course Of time, take Mace
both IN The S a'es end IN the District
stii' hope, though have htIe reason TO
ant'c'pale tina, II will happen in my time.
Now, earnestly as desire that abolition.
as soon as 1t can possibly be effected with
justice to the inhabitants Of the District.
ana with safety to the peace and preserva.
ton OF the Union. am no, prepared to
stake my responsibility as Representative
o: the People upon measure which. 70,
the immediate emancipation of five or SIX
thousand slaves out of three millions, would.
as believe It would, immlueniIy hazard
both. The whole South and Southwest.
not only IN Congress. but in the nation, are
united against II. Nothing less than the
union OF the whole North and Northwest.
both IN and out of Congress. could possibly
accomplish it even IN Congress. The
President has given pledges in advance,
both before and since his election. 'ha, he
would n'erpose his veto against such bill
should il ever be carried by majorlties in
both Houses of Congress. To expect that
majorItles of two'thrds of both Houses
now, or for many years to come, would
vote for tins measure against the Preslden
,'al negative, would be nothing short of
insanity. What. then, is the meaning of
that immediate abolition which the Amer.
can AntI-slavery Society has made the ties,
OF orthodoxy to their political church, A
moral and physical lmpossIbllity.
am not aware that any one of the peti
tons which were committed by you to nv
charge required the immediate abolition of
slavery in The District or the Territories
but IN the recent report of the Executive
COMMITTEE of the American Anti slavery
Society. ! observe that the friends of free
institutions are congratulated that the doc
trne OF immediate emancipation is now
established on basis from which it canpo,
be dlslodged, either by The malice of its
enemies, or the unfathfulness of its friends
They consider the keystone of this divine
argument as placed in its eternal home by
the parliamentary liberation of the slaves
in TIC British colonies.
But if the example of British parliament
tary emancipation ls to be considered as
having solved this question upon a divine
foundation. you will please to observe that
an essential part of it is the payment of one
hundred millions of dollars TO the owners
of those emancIpated slaves by way of IN.
demnl'y for the loss of their property, as it
had been held to be under The preceding
laws, and as is held to be by the laws Of
our slaveholdlng States. This parlamen
'ary emancipation was evidently compro,
mise; in my estimation, an honest and
honorable compromise; but whatever of
divine the Executive Committee of the
American Anl'slavery Society perceive 10
the immediate emancipation of the British
Colonial slaves, do not understand them
as considering the payment of the twenty
millions of pounds sterling to indemnify the
owners of The saves as parlaking any share
of that divine authority
II | understand correctly the sen,imen,s