The Whig standard. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1843-1844, 1844-06-07
THE BALANCE OF POWER.


ton is to strengthen the Southern States in the
Federal Legislature, and thereby avert thou
sand appreheuded ills from the predomnance Of
the North. We are far from thinking that any
respectable portion of the Northern people are
inimical to the South or cherish the purpose Of
invading their constitutional rights. They doubt
less differ from the South upon some points of
national policy, but upon those points Of differ
ence, both the North and the South are divided
among themselves. The policy of protective
tariff, for instance, is subject upon which the
Southern people themselves are by no means
agreed and while the Southern friends of annex
alton openly declare their object to be the desruc-
tim Of the protective system by the augmenta-
ton Of Southern strength, the Northern advocates
of the project as boldly declare that annexation
will tend to the maintenance of the tariff policy
by extending the cultivation of sugar.
The English public, seem, have adopt-it would
ed the Southern view of the subject, and there
fore abate much of the Indignation which annex
alton would otherwise have excited, from the pros
pect of its bringing the concomitant good to them
of dwelling our protective system.
w Z Will mere VcHluTG d lew COuJcCtuIcs VI Jul
own upon the consequences of annexation to the
North and South, in so far it may affect the re-
atve strength and Importance of those grand d.
visions of the country.
We are not accustomed to indulge in more
than feeling Of momentary surprise at any evil
dence which may be given, by English writer's,
of total ignorance about whatever concerns the
United States ;,but we have felt the most un-
feigned establishment that American citizens, hold
ing high political stations, should evince so shall
low an acquaintance with the circumstances and
situation of the country which gave them birth.
Englishmen habitually think and speak of our re-
publican country with contempt; and their igno-
rance of it may therefore be easily accounted for;
but we see no way by which to account for that
of our countrymen.
| 1t has been boldly declared, and undoubtingly
assented to, that the immediate, or not very re-
mote consequences of annexation, will be the
preponderance Of Southern power, and the de-
struction of the protective policy. But is it SO
Let US examine the matter
| If Texas be supposed to embrace all the coun-
| try between the borders of the United States and
the Rio del Norte, it will contain area, accord
ing to geographers, Of two hundred and forty
thousand square miles, equal to five States of the
size of New York or North Carolina. Of this
territory, about half lies south and west of the
Red river, all nearly all of which is adapted to
the growth of cotton, sugar. and rice while the
northern half of the republic is either mountain
GUS or barren, and consequently adapted to the
growth of neither of those staples The planting
half is about equal in extent to twice the of
Virginia and contains the entire population with
the exception of the Mexican settlements upon
the Rio del Norte. If Texas is annexed to the
Union by treaty or otherwise, it will still remain
with Congress to divide it into States, and to de-
termine what portion shall admit the extension Of
slavery II would be the furthest stretch of pro-
liability to suppose that the Northern States would
allow the institution of slavery in more than half
of the newly acquired terrtory-and that the
Southern half of it SO that the acquisition OF
Texas will add as much to the territorial extent
Of the North, as of the South.
But that is trifng circumstance compared
with the collateral but necessary consequence of
annexation-the withdrawal of the bulk of the
slave population from the more northern of the
slaveholding States, and their change of feelings
and interests, with change of circumstances
Texas at present has barely population enough to
enttle her to admission into the Union-not more
than enough to give her two representatives upon
the floor of Congress at most. Upon question
of admitting her into the Union, therefore, it
would be necessary to form the whole Southern
half into one State, or make such division as
would throw the great bulk OF the population to-
gether, leaving the western part of the territory
(the Southern half of it we mean) under terri
torial form of government, without political
weight or influence. We believe the former
course would be adopted in conformity with the
wishes and attachments of the people. Nothing
is SO repugnant to people as the ACKNOWLEDGMENT
of their nation. They may form leagues and al