The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1844-02-07

npairing the obligation oil contracts; nor can pass
law compelling 10 give evidence against HIM
self Thea, the exclusive legislative power that
Congress has Abe District does not give it the
power to abolish slavery because negroes acknow
lodged by the Constitution to be private property,
which that instrument says shall not be taken for
public use, except it is paid for Gentlemen say that
Congress can pay for them; but Congress has no
use Tor them. Does Congress want to purchase ne
groes to wait upon the President! Does it want
them to wait upon this body? or does it want them
to sweep Pennsylvania avenue Oh no? Then Con-
gress has for them whatever; and if they are
not wanted for the public emphatically declar-
ed by the Constitutions it has power, under that
instrument, to pay for them Upon this very princi-
pie he denied the power to the State Legislatures, be-
cause they have no right whatever 10 take private
property except for public use, with due compensa-
ton therefor So long as the Constitution exists as
the organic law of the land he deied the Abolition
lists, because under that instrument they have the
power to abolish slavery IL it should be produced,
1t must be by another st. Domingo affair, which
would be beyond the Constitution but " bile that
instrument existed, he defed the gentleman from
Massachus It's and all of the Abolitionists.
The gentleman from Ohio (hlr. Giddings) had said
that the North had to support the negroes Of the
South, which not the fact but the slave labor OF
the South had, in great measure, supported the
North IN their manufactures by raising the staple
production for them TO manufacture He said he
would examine for moment the condition Of the ne
gro in the -slayeholdng States, and went into
statistical examination OF the fact and cited the
free negroes in the States of Maine, New Hamp-
shre and Massachusetts, a large majority OF
whom were idiots, and then parallel
to those States he examined the statistics Of the
State of Louisiana, thus going from one extreme OF
the country to the other, and found that the number
OF idiots among the negro population, which was
much greater, bore comparison whatever to those
States. He then examined the subject in moral
point OF view, and proved, from the statistics of the
State prisons that the largest portion OF the convics
were negroes, whilst in the State of Mississippi and
the other Southern States, there very few in
their PRISONS he SAID this proceeded from their de-
graded posi- ion and all history justified him 10 as
serting that wherever they haze been left to Them
selves they were the most AFFECT and demorazing of
the whole human family. He had visited Italy, and
had seen the laboring population OF that country
bow down at the Popes palace in misery and want
he had also visited France and other countries, and
he boldly declared in the face Of the world that the
| condition OF the laboring population Of those coun
tries bore no kind of comparison in their comforts or
their mora to the negroes Of the Southern States
He assured the gentlemen Of the North that the
Southern people were not afraid OF their negroes and
that their doors we're thrown open Of night while
their children were asleep without any apprehension
and that was because the negroes love their mstresses
and the children and the only crimes that had been
committed in the South had been done by Yankees
But go TO Phladelph and there it would be found
that the free negro was the most degraded Of the
whole population The same state of things exist in
New York; and what had been doie to elevate the
negro? Nothing. They have not been elevated or
made eligible to any office of honor profit,
invited to dinner sit alongside of their white be-
ndactors; but the ladies of Rehoboh in the State of
Massachusetts, had been little more cons;derate for
their welfare and had pettioned the Legislature TO
abolish the law prohibiting the marriage of the white
and black populations. But, an offset TO this, the
coored ladies Of Boston had protested IN the most
solemn against the repeal of this law for fear
that the white ladies should get all Of their husbands
and they would be doomed to be old maids. The
Legislature, however, had yield to the solicitations
of the ladies of Rehoboth, and repealed the law. He
did not know who the ladies Of Rehoboth we're but
he presumed from their anxiety the subject, that
they were old maids, who in despair Of ever get
ting husbands The ladies of the South pursue diff
terent course instead of running about the streets of
nights, getting up petitions to present to their Legis
atures and TO Congress- they stay at home attending
to their children. But patriotic Massachusetts, who
refused to furnish her quota of militia during the late
war, is greatly interested in the fate Of the negro
and asking pay for those very militia that she refused
to furnish The States of Mississippi, Kentucky, and
Tennessee furnished theirquota of militia, and defend
cd n Orleans but they never troubled Congress with
petIions Before gentlemen push this question too
far let them examine this subject all of It's bear ncs
and they Will Ind that there is enemy behind the
throne greater than the throne itself and that was
Greai Britain, who had moved in this matter. Look
at the Worlds Convention" which assembled 10
London, and al which Prince Albert The great Ger
man beggar, with income of ESQ 600 bestowed
upon HIM, presiding at this Convention. But when
the President alluded to the oppression Of The Irish
people, Lord Biougham, who was also abolitionist
took exceptions to III but he ought TO have thought of
that before he had meddled with the affairs of th,
country, aud yet ii supposed that the President
of the United States should have nothing TO IA " about
England and her affairs with Ireland. Ii was humil-
iaiing enough and notifying the national Inide TO
see The head OF this nation assaied as he had been
TersD nj FIR AZ
sympathy for the Irish people-this was sufficiently
CALLING to The national pride, but they compu-
led 10 submit 10 II, however much they nigh regret
IT, because they could not abridge the liberty of the
press but when an English abolitionis-an apostare
arisiocra--a moun'ebank politician, and traitor to
his principles, tooke The liberty 10 assai the head of
tins nation, be assaulted all, because the Pre-
sdent was put where he is by the American
people, and he bad sust lined m elf on oc-
casons the mos. trying and important, and at
limc while the country in danger when
the Constitution threatened and when no one
hardly knew what day would bring forth, with a
moral hrmness worthy of Jackson himself and vet
THIS man. this traitor Brougham assails him because
the President thinks there is Justice in the movement,
OF the people of Ireland in favor Of repeal
lie would admonlsh gentlemen that the South is
not AFRAID OF this subject because there is greater
population IN the Southern States now than there
was during the Revolution. South Of Mason and
Dxon's line there population OF 900 900 of free
white men, much greater than there was in the old
original thirteen States that declared their ndepen-
dence oil Great Britain during the Revolutionary WAR;
but gentlemen of the North ask If there was war what
the south would do for coat lie would answer
them, IN the language of DR.. Franklin, during the
RevolutioD-Wc would wear our old ones He
would tell gentlemen that large majority of the re
sources OF the country in the South-tbc largest
portion of the iron nearly the whole of the lead
and all of the gold to be found there, with the
finest Sail on the face of the rh capable Of raising
10 cd lc fba haIo H.. Al
that large portion of the people Of the North w,re
with the South in their const tuonal rights. Look
at the gallant State of New Hampshire, who is true
to The Constitution; and there are some gentle
men from Ohio, and Pennsylvania whose hearts
are warm IN their attachment TO the Constitution,
In he nrrc Stata- LIN ~