Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1848-07-14

sci on, by saying Ina, he would net assess wnas
bs an m, nnow 10 b. true. Now webe'ieVe Tue
Canaan. incapable o! speaking ia'se'si %.
cav he charge vas made carelessly and "'''"''
dnc examination Of The facts. We ugelly cenS
its truth and challenge Capt. W. 10 me f!o0"
II he sill adhcres 10 ii, let him lu'n'shfo ''s Puv
lie, through the public papers, his essience'
ran b.. me, and disproved. What strange IN.
consistency this OF attempting 10 renoef Hene'"'
Cass di,;asieful 10 Wing audiencc-by proving
him Federais;!
! nGeneral Cass had been all his lie mere OF.
fee seeker and Office holder ander the Executive
! And pray wha: else has General Taylor oeeni-
! General Cass is undoubtedly alnhi'ious and mas
sousb, ofice be. never Otherwise than BY lar and
honorable means The position OF UsS. oeha'
Tor itself sufficient said Alr. Clay, 10 satisfy any
mans ambii;oa) was MOI gotten IRON The E&ecu-
tive. He Was chosen by The sovereign Stale VI
Michigan II isa little singular that Gen. Cass
should be dscreded Tor holding higher and more
honorable and more varied Offices Than Gen. lay
| lor.
The Captain next made an onslaught upon
the Baltimore platform He assaiied par'icu
| larly the resolution on Internal improvements
"Southern men, utterly opposed 70 Inc sss'en'
were found voting in the Convention along siue
of Northwestern men, its warmest advocates
There is nothing singular in this. When was
nerfect COINCIDENCE Of opinion ever found IN SO
| large Convention, assembled from all parts oil
the country Cancellation and compromise
must be exercised on all such occasions. IL me
resolution die not go as far as Southern men
could wish, it yet secured lie opposition OF our
candidates to general SystCn Of Internal I'M
movements General Cas-, (sad Captain Wa
had voted for The River am Harbor bill, and
yet subscribed TO this resolution. With that
candor, which we hope always to show IN The
discussion of political questions, We confess that
General Cass' course on this question has not
been entirely satisfactory TO US His duties, as
the representative of Michigan, were very diff
ferent from what they will be as President OF
the United States In his vote he was but car
rying out the known will Of his constituents =
As President and as Representative of the
doubt feel himself bound by the Baltimore reso
luton. Such was the course Of Vice President
Dallas, and such will be the course Of every
honest man and consistent Democrat. The
PENNSYLVANIA politicians, Wing and Democratic,
were known 10 be Tariff men-and yet Nj!
Dallas, true 10 his honor, TO his pledges, and 10
his country, nobly came forward and care ms
casting rots for the Tariff Of lS46-and yet the
Wings tell US there IS no virtue in pledges!
Now, what is Genera! Taylor's position on
this subject Of Internal improvements ANY
system Of improvements, however obnoxious in
its character, however general, or however
partial aud local, which corrupt and log-rolling
Congress may carry ont, General Taylor is
pledged NOT 10 reio.
The Captain next assaed the Baltimore resc-
Ialion IN he subject Of Slavesy: "llerc is this
Southern Democratic party, The selt.ccnstitnled
champions OF Southern rights, meeting their
Northern allies in Convention, and resolving
what? Simply that Cong cant abolish slavery
in the States The most ianaticai abolilionisl
would not have disputed !ais GiGdinss, Sade,
and Palfrey Che might have added Fillmore y
have always admitted this" Now il The resoiu.
ton had stopped here, it might very Justly have
constituted iex Tor a Wing sermon. But the
Captain thought proper TO make no ausion what.
soever TO The remaining lwo.lhirds Of The resolu-
ton which assert, that "a efforts OF The aboli
tonisls or others made TO induce Congress 10 in
terierc lat all with The question OF slavery or
(even take incpent steps in relation thereto, are
calculated 10 lead 10 The most alarming and dan
serous consequences; and that all such efforts
have an inevitable tendency 10 diminish The hap
piness of the people, and endanger The stability
and permanency OF The Unon, n,J o"~i' :.
Uy any Trfeud Of oay PliHical
| institutions"
"Bui the Virginia Democracy solemniy pledg.
ed themselves in Convention assembled, under
no political necessity whatsoever to support for
the Presidency candidate who did not deny, as
well the power o. Congress as that OF the terri.
tories themselves, to proaibi, slavery therein
and then went 10 the Baltimore Convention. and
boted-he Baltimore resolution no; having come
up to this standard, and having Only had refer
i VI.
The Virginia Convention did not pledge them
selves not 10 support The nominee OF the Demo.
cratic party unle's the nominating Convention
adopted resolution similar 10, or Identical with
their own They only pledged themselves not 10
support candidate who vas moi The "avowed
advocate" OF The doctrines contained in their
slavery resolutions. Now they say that Gen.
Cass, in his Nicholson letter, is The avowed advo.
cate OF those very dottrines He denies, first, the
power OF Congress 10 prohibit slavery in the ter
ritories because he say hat Congress has moi
the power Of legislains, directly, for the terrific
ries, at all. Bu' the power Of legislation must
reside somewhere, is necessary for set-pre
seryaiion. II is as necessary for the body poll
lie as food is for the boiy natural. The power
says he, of legislalng for the territories does not
reside in Congress, but in The people Of The terrific
ries That is, The mere power Of legislation, for
sefpreservalion, belongs i the people of the Ter.
rilories; but they do no! possess any ot the pow.
ers Of sovereignty They are Two very different
things. Under The one, they nay regulate, pro.
tec and preserve, under The oher orly can thew
prohibit, exclude or abolish. The people OF the
territories possess the mere powers Of lesis,a
ton, buI their rights are uchoae, and they pos
ssss more of Tic attributes Of souereignty; their lie
gisaiion must be subordinate 10 the Constitution
and in entire compatibility rli he ;cletions then
bear 10 The confederation. And N.al arc those re-.
la'ions2 Gen. Cass expressly declares 10 his
letter. tina, Tie territories are Tie nero propcyiy If The
people Of the STATES.
Such is Gen. Cass' position on The slavery
question. Capt. Wicher did not enter into en-
examination Of Gen. Taylors position on The
same question. We will execute The Task for
him. Gen. Taylor has expressed in his Signal
lelier high opinion and decided approval Of
The sentiment" that 'the extension OF the ordi
nance Of 1857 THAT is the Wilnot Prov;so n,;o