Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1848-07-07
TUESDAY EVENING, JUNE 81, 1913

ted, by a gentleman of the democratic party
though one little likely to cast his vote or his
influence to promote the election of Le~i'
CdSS
We cannot close the publication of these
Notes without expressing our obligations TO the
intelligent author of them, and our hope That
they have been canddy read and seriously con
sidercd They present the evidence clearly ant
conclusvely to prove the position that THE Ma.
| TloNAL CONGRESS- POSSESSES THE INDIsPUTABf.E
AUTHORITY UNDER THE CONSTITUTION TO EN-.
CLUDE, BY LEGISLATIVE ENACTMENT, TIE INsTI
TUITION OF DOMESTIC SLAVERY FROM THE TER.
RIruRlEs OF TIE UNIoN. Those of our readers
who may have seen Mr.. VAN BuREys rcccn,
letter TO the Utica Convention cannot fail To
have noticed how conclusively he sustains the
views of orr correspondent in relation to the
constitutional power of Congress over slavery
in the Territories. Mr.. Van Buren, quotes
ELEVEN acts Of Congress, embracing the admin
istriions of WASHINGTON, JEFFERSON, the elder
ADAMS, MONROE, MADISON, JACKSON, and his
own, TO support his argument. He then goes
on to say
"The doctrine which the late Baltimore Conven-
ton has presented for the sanction OF the nation is il,
substance, that the laws have referred to but
| many violations OF the Consiution-that this nstru-
ment coners 10 power on Congress to exclude slavery
from the territories, has often been done with the
assent OF all. This doctrine Is set forth in the pub
lishcd opinion OF the highly respectable nominee of
that Convention. who 1t is well known receired TINT
distinction because he arOired That Oj,nOn, and rhO
il is egudlIy certain r0uid not hare reccred if he
had not dome II is proposed to give this doctrine
| the most solemn sanction known to our political sys-
tenn by the election of declared advocate and sup
porter to the Presidency. II it receives the proposed
sanction OF the people OF the uited States, the result
cannot be doubtful The pclicy i'll regard to the en-
tension OF slavery to the territories OF the United
States into which it has not vet been introduced
which has existed since the commencement of the
government, and the consequences OF which have
been salutnry must cease, AND EVERY ACT OF Con-
FLA FEAT TEI'I BY The VEo T Of t HE EXECG
| TIVE
This, then, is the position Of Mr.. Cass on the
question. lie deliberately asserts that HE
DOES NOT SEE IN THE CONSTITUTION ANY GRANT
OF THE REQUISITE POWER TO CONGRESS" to ex-
clude slavery from the National Territories by
applying to them the doctrine of the Ordinance
of 81, or of the Wimot Provso. Under his
oath of Office, therefore, he stands before the
American People PLEDGED TO VETO any
legislation by Congress for the preservation of
Freedom in the Territories. Nothing can be
logic can mstify or conceal it.
And now we ask the attention of our readers
for moment TO the position occupied by Gen.
TAYLOR OH this great and important question.
T.. Al 4
our opponents to set down Gen. TAYLOR as in
f1ror oiihc extension of slavery because he is a
slatehoLicr. This is the sole argument of the
supporters of Lewis Cass, and the conclusion it
brings them to is, that their candidate is no ,rorse
on this point than Gen. TAYLOR. These astute
politicians seem to forget that n Shareholder
may be opposed to the extension of slavery, and
they entirely overlook the FACT that the political
god of their idolatry, THOMAS JEFFERSON,
was the AUTHOR OF THE ORDINANCE OF 1887,
WHICH FOREVER EXCLUDED SLAVERY FROM THE
NORTH WESTERN TERRITORIAL territory now
covered by the great Free States Of Ohio, lndi.
ana, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin! WASH
iyGToy gave the sanction of his great name to
the Constitutionality of that Ordinance, and
WASHINGTON and JEFFERSON were both Slave
holders. 1t does not fol2or, then, that General
TAyLoR is opposed to the principle of that Ord-
nance because he is, like them, Stakeholder.
And yet, this sort of negative logic, which
proves precisely nothing, is what the terrified
supporters of Cass, at the North, rely upon as
placing their own candidate and General
TAYLCR on the same ground, in relation to the
extension of Slavery But the Wines do not
stop here. They have evidence besides that
derived from the acknowledged humanity and
benevolence Of General TAyLoR's character TO
show that, on the question of propagating Sla-
very, he stands by the side Of WASHINGTON and
JEFFERSON.
But little more than year ago. the editor of
the Cincinnati Signal, a Wilmot Proviso Dem
ocratic paper, addressed letter TO Cen TAY-
Lon enclosing an elaborate editorial from his pa
per, embracing the distinct advocacy of the doc
trne of that Proviso, and asking his General
TAyLoR's) opinions thereon. The following
passage occurs in that editorial:
"The American people are about to assume the re-
SOllslDlltv oi framing Inc INSTITUTIONS OF the racine
States. We have no fears for the issue if the arena
" OF the high debate is the assemblies OF the People
4" and their Representative Hall: THE EXTEN-
sion OYER TIE CONTINENT BEYoND
4" THE RIO GRANDE OF THE ORDINANCE
"OF 1881 Is AN OBJECT TOO HIGH AND
" PERMANENTLY BE BAFFLED BY PRES /
" DENTAL VETOES. An that IRE ask of The
" highest o6fcer uader The Constitution is 10 hoid his
hand, 10 Jor 10 the cU Of the people asprOmnigat-
" ed in Legislative forms, and restrain tie erecutire
. dctioa TO ITS appropriate channel"
We beg our readers to examine critically this /
extract. and the doctrine it avows. 1t is good
sound Wing DOCTRINE, and covers the whole
question Of the extension Of Slavery. II is
PRECISELY the ground long occupied by the
Wing Party, whose opinions on the subject of
the abuse Of the Veto Power are well and uni /
versally known. All that we ask is that Con-
GREss shall make the laws and that the Pres.
dent shall cause them 10 be executed-inter.
posing the veto only in cases of pain violation
of the Constitution.
This letter was addressed to Gen. TAYLOR
in Mexico, and amid the arduous and RESPONSE
BILE duties by which he was surrounded, it is not
surprising that he had no time for an extended |
reply. Indeed, he would have been entirely
excusable if he had not replied at all. But this
is not the way the gallant and frank-hearted
old soldier meets either friends or foes. lie is
ready, as the Irishman says, with "misons" for
one and grape for the other He did make |