The New era. [volume] ([Portsmouth, Va.]) 1845-1847, 1847-03-13


diSeni whites will be exeluded from nust Of the
hSnd'crait and mechanical empoymen,s- II will
ne The INDECENT white men who will be Injured
more than the large stakeholder.
For the reasons have given. II is as much on
account ct the slave himself aud Of ths INDECENT
white man. as OF the slaveholder, that 1 desire
rpace to dispense them over. But the abolition
list, shutting his eyes To all these facts would
madly Try to hem in the slave in the narrowes,
boundaries, and, in the name Of humanity and
) philanthropy. would insist upon policy equally
injurious to the white man and the black.
u. SIT. humanity and philanthropy has nothing
TO DO with these proceedings, an enlip htenej love
ct liberty has still less Do you, ask the spi,a
tors on this occasion, By abolishng slavery design
to make ffeemen Of the blacks WHY. YOU do
not do that In the non .slaveholdng States. What
privilege priced by the freeman do you extend To
MIN DO yon extend TO him the right Of sui
frage, the dearest privilege Of freeman, because
!, includes all others. and secures all others? In
the late vote in New York, upon tina, very cues
tion. 1t was decided against extending to the
bisck man that inestimabe right, by majority
am told. ut upwards uf one hundred thousand -
do You permit the black man To sit on juries To-
enter The learned professions. To associate with
YOU upon an equal footing. or indeed, To- worship
by Jour sides In The houses of Gnd II ia notori.
GUS you permit none Of these things Is he less,
then, freeman. in its true meaning in the south
than the north 2 Is he less degraded class there
than here7 II is tine. he is not there the slave
OF single master, who is prompted by feeling
and interest to protect him. but he is the slave Of
the community, which has no such interest
The gentleman from Ohio. GMr. Brinkerhoff. I
with high-wronght enlogy upon Mr. Jefferson's
craftsmanship and democracy-a euloev no hiyh
or than just-reierred to his opinions uron slave.
ny. as authority to sustain the proceedings before
the committee. | admit that MIR. Jefferson had
great repugnance to slavery in the abstract, as
thn
know that he despared off practical remedy and
that he died owning more than hundred slaves ?
And does he not know-what is more To the point
that M man condemned, in more unmeasured
terms than Mr.. Jefferson did, similar proceedings
20 those. in justification of which his authority is
invoked . As the gentleman quotes Mr. J,ffrr
sons authority, he must abide by IT, hive his
opinions upon The present question before the
House. do not mean to refer Ia any general OK
pressions ct his. and ngeninusly try Ia apply
them to the proceeding before us hut | quote
upon the gentleman his opinions upon the present
question itself As the gentleman processes 10
have such reverence for Mr. Jefferson's authori.
~, hope no Will defer TO il and cease his auita
ton. Here Mr.. B. sent the following letter 10
the clerks table,
Letter TO JOHN Holmes:
MONTICELLO, April %. 1890.
thank you, dear, sir, for the copy Won have
been SO kind as to send me. of The letter 10 yuur
constituents on the Missouri question. II is per
feet justification to them had f,r luny time
ceased To read newspapers, pay any attention To
public affairs confident they were in good hands
and content to be passenger in our bark to the
shore from which am ho distant. But this mo.
mentous question. like fire. bell in the niphi
awakened and filed me with terror L consider
ed IL at once as The kneH offhe Union. IL is
hushed, for The moment; but Ibis is a repriepe
only, not final sentence. A geogr phical line
colnclding with marked principle, moral and po
iitlcai, once conceived and held up tn The angry
passions men, will never he obteraed and every
new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper.
can say, with conscious truth that there is not a
man on earth who would sacrifice mure than
would TO relieve us from this heavy reproach in
any practicable way. The cesson OF lha, kind OF
property TOR SD it is misnamed is bagalelle
wond not cost me a second thought, it, in that way
general emancipation and expairia,ion could be
effected gradnally; and with due sacrifices think
1t might be. But. as it is. we have the wolf by
the ears; and we neither hold him, nor safe
ly let him 60 Of one Thing am certain-ihat
as the passage Of SLAVES from one State 10 anoih
er ,Uouid not make slaue Of single human be
sng tcho tUomld not be so Without IL, so their
diffusion orer a greater surface ,could make
them individually happier. aud proportionally
facilitate The accomplishment Of their cnianeipo
fton by dtu,ding the burden on a greater number
OF coadjutors. An abstinence, too from this &C, Of
power, would remove the jealousy excited by the
undertaking 0i Congress TO regulate the condition
OF the different descriptions OF men Composing a
State. This certainly is the exclusive right OF
every State, which nohng in the constitution had
taken from them and given to the general govern:
ment. Could Congress, for example saw thai
the non freemen of Connecticut should be freemen
OF tina, they shall not emigrate into any other
State?
regret that am no,c TO die in the beIieffLai
The useless sacrifice IF themselves by The genera.
fion OF l776 acquire self government and han
piness TO their country. is 10 be hro,on a,uay bv
the un,o'se and un,oorthy passions Of their sons
and that my only consolation is to be, that live
not to weep over it. lfthey would but dispassion-
ately weigh the blessings they will throw away
against an abstract principle likely TO be ef.
fected by the union than by secession, thew
would pause before they perpeirated this act OF
suicide on themselves. and Of treason against the
hopes OF the world To Yourself as the faithful
advocate Of the Union, tender the Offering of hch
esteem and respect
TIL JEFFERSON.
Mr. Chairman, ! cOmmend-t tn The gentleman
from Ohio Mr.. Btinkerhoff This letter. written
by Mr.. Jefferson, whose all earthly aspirations
were at an end, and when. ailcr long life, spent
IN the service ut his country. from his philosophi-
cal retirement he could speak To his countrymen
as philosopher aud sage.
Mr.. Jefferson was right when he said that the
fell spirit of abulltiOnism had only been husIied for
moment, and that the Missouri compromise was
g "a repuse" and "not final sentence" No.
sir from that day to this, its prog ress, has been
rapid. The concessions which the south then
made. have but invited new aggressions. The de
mands Of the aboliioniss have constantly been
more and more exacting, until now, they insist
upon unconditional surrender ofaIl Ofour rights.
And this is done 10 tone as offensive, as tho de
mand is unjust.
Asa faithful sentinel on the wathtower. warn
my connrymen Of the danger which is so rapidly