Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1848-09-22
RIG I'll OND, VA.
Thursday Morning, September II. 1915
GEN: CAss' NICHOLSON LETTER.

GEN: CASS' NICHOLSON LETTER.
The Wing writer's and speakers resort 10 vari
ons pretences, as they seem TO US, 10 misconslrue
Gen. Cas- language in this letter into some sane.
ton OF The opinion that The people OF the newly
acquired territories have The right to ezelude
slavery from those territories by acts of their Ter
rito, ial Legislatures before they come 10 form their
Stale Constitutions. We propose TO notice some
OF the grounds on which these prelences rest
IL is admitted, as We before stated, thai General
Cass expressly declares that he is opposed 10 The
Wllmot Proviso as we'll as 40 The exercise OF
any jurisdiction by Congress over" slavery; and
the only point in regard TO which il is pretended
that he differs from The resolutions of the Demo
cratic Convention Of Virginia on this suhjec', is
in reference 10 this supposed right Of The te,ritOrial
Legislatures TO exclude slavery from The terrific
Ties. Il cannot be and is not pretended that Gen.
Cass has al any lime directly oppressed the opinion
| that the territorial Legislatures have any such
right, much Ii IS that he has expressed il in The
Nicholson letter. Indeed The terms "Terriorial
Legislatures" are moi 10 be found in The whole
| letter, and though the terms "Trrilorial Govern.
menls" occur sevea times it is only once that they
are used in any conneclionwilh The slim other
| powers over slavery, and Then they afford ground
Tor The inference that Gen. Cass had no idea thai
those governments" have any right IL eacindc il.
In the paragraph marked IS" in The letter, after
referring to the right which the people of the
territories, when they formed their Estate 90.
yernments" with all the ''attributes OF sovc
reienty," would have 10 exclude or permit
slavery, in despite Of any act which Congress
could adopt, (evcn if it had the right 10 adopt
any } he asks: as the object, them of temporary
exclusion, for SO short period as the duration Of
the territorial governments, worth the price at
which il would be purchased the dis
cord it would engender, the trial to which it
would expose our Union, and the evils that
would be the certain consequence, let that trial
result as it might" II is obvious from this, that
General Cass had no idea that the "territorial
governments" could exclude slavery, for he ma
nifestly considers, that unless Congress should
exclude it, no exclusion could be made during
the existence Of those "Governmenls, nor until
the people made their State Governments, 10
which alone would belong the "well known al
tributes of sovereignty Indeed, when we
consider how the territorial governments are
often formed, and how they were actually pro-
posed 10 be, aud must be hereafter formed for
California and New Mexico, it is Impossible to
conceive that General Cass could mean 10 give
those Governments the power TO rrelnie
ha
ICED by The appointment of officers by the
President Of the United States no, their election
BIZ The people Of The territories. Does any man
in his senses believe that Genera Cas- en'efains
the opinion that these territorial governments"
composed of Governor and The Judges appoint
ed BY the President, and who constitute the erIi-
toral Council or Legislature, had the right By
law, 10 exclude slavery from The territories The
people OF the new territories will have no voice in
the appointment ol single officer OF the govern.
menl, either legislative, executive or judicial
Now, General Cass claims The right Of The penpls
nc Sc ssy sshsy Wy & W9ga
the people Themselves 10 regulate slavery by CIV
ing in the very same breath, the right 10 exclude
il altogether, 10 governments in which The people
have no voice, AMI o7er which they have no con-
roll Gentlemen may (ooi themselves with such
an idea, but ii is neither iair nor proper 10 a.
tempt, in this way, to make tool oil Gen. Cass,
| or dupes OF The people. Bu', again: Gen. Cass
very orcibly depicts che evils that would be, he
say. "the certain consequence" Of the "exclu-
sjot" OF slavery from The new territories during
he existence Of tie "tcr,ioriql governments"
discord il would engcnder-lhe trial 10 which il
would expose our Union" Yet lhee arr those
who pretend 10 believe that he is il iavor OF that
"erct,laon" by The Legislatures ui the territories
during that very lims, though he thus eloquenily
depreca,es H. as trAusht with ccrtaix discord
amonss, the people, and serious danger to the
Union. What coul. General Cas- say which
would satisfy such determined hereiics}
But Gen. Gas, has said that he is lin favor oil
leaving TO the people of any territory, which may
be hereafter acquired The right II regulate IL
(slavery,) "for themselves, under The general
principles Of The Constitution" 10 order TO make
out that he is in favor Of the exclusion OF slavery
from these territories by the Territorial Lesl>la-
lures, one Of The devices Of our Wing friends,
sometimes resorled 10, in their speeches is 10 in.
erpolale the words sto .relnde' 10 the place oil
he words 81 regulate" We have b. fore remark,
Ell that these terms are not only diff rent, but The
reverse of each other, in their Specification. All
men mus, so consider them, Al least when applied
10 this subject. For instance, there is no one q.
hese ingenious Wings, we presume who would
hesitate To say, VIVA; is undoubtedly true, that
Congress has he right ITO regulate slavery in
the District Of Columbia. Yet even our Wing
friend would deny that in saying so, he could be
understood to mean that Congress had any righl
10 ezelatde slavery from the Disric, OF 10 abolish
i, there. Ask him why not. He must answer
that rc.,.tote doe, no, mean 10 ez,lsac, and that
willis, Congress may ,Cgul7ts slavery in the
Disric, ",he general principles Of The Cons.iIu-
ton" restrain Congress from cI1lmding il from
the District Yet, when Gen. Cass uses these
ye:y terms in reference to the RICH, of The people
ITO regulate" slavery in The new territories, thi
very Wing would insist upon j, tina, he meant 10
exclude, and that you should substitute one term
for the other. Well, lit Us try the experiment
and see what we make Of The sentence. The
people ofthe new territories then, have Inc rgh.
TO ercude s,auc,y for tiemseuss under tie general
principles Of the Constitution. Will any Wing
wi.eacre tell US what that means, or can be made
TO meant Is il not arrant NONSENSE There are
no conceivable general principles OF the Cons!i-
tuition under which the RICH, 10 e5e,mds slavery
could he exercised. Ii even one principle, spe-
cial or oener,l could be found IN Tic Consultations
which would admit the right 10 crslnde slavery
there would be an end Of the question; for then
Congress might exercise the right, and exclude il
al their pleasure. Gen. Cass says he ca see no
such principle orpuwer there. We defy The most
vivid Wing Imagination 10 conjure ~ enc; ami
r,,;, :, ia dopr we say 10 our Wing opponents,