Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1848-06-20
RICHMON VA.
Monday Morning, June 10, ls4e.


GEN. TAYLOR AND FREE SOIL"
We find in the Baltimore Patriot Taylor
Wing paper, published in slaveholding Slate,
,ra,icle ,aken from The Boston Atlas, from which
ue make the following extent
sol. johnson of Upper Piqua, Ohio, who was
selected by the Wings OF Miami, as their oeiesa'e
- no Conyen,ion-a s,aunch, undoub cd Wing
who has in long iie devoted 10 Inc cause u"me
;,ars,t s.ryice-a delegate to Harrisburg in 1889,
anS ~ Baltimore iu 1874, and who has known
Gen Taylor long and intimately, writes in let
or hsiore ms that he is all that We could desire
mnon his very point. He writes that he has heard
Inn declare. with much force, that ne regarded
slavery as great evil 10 the county, ana express
.sJ strong hope that the time might arrive when
we could gel rid of ii altogether; and Col John,
,ou declares hi. hfmest conviction, that General
TAYLOR "is The last man to countenance 'ss oe'ng
ertsnaed 10 anu nsrg territory that may be brought
INTO he Unicn" Col. johnson speaks, be II re-
mpmoered. from his own personal knowieuSe,
and afer an acquaintance Q. over thirty years.
We woall DC pleased 10 learn II common re-
porl" or "priva,e information" when may &C ~
possession OF some OF the Wing party ieaoets
who NAV be conversant with Gen. Taylors op'n-
ion upon this deeply interesting subject 10 me
South, confirms the strongly expressed opinion u
Col. Johnson OF Ohio An acquaintance OF
over thirty years" would warrant Inc 'uea '"As
Col. Johnson was conversan' with Inc views o,
Gen. TAYLOR, or he wonld not venture 10 express
himself in such strong terms
Ii NAV be that this was The character OF the in
formation which gave General Taylor the Wing
pz,ty nomination, alter holding tro secret co,sesssS
in their Convention in Philadelphia. As there
are doubtless many Southern Wigs who go for
"iree territory" il is right that those who have mol
los. their loyalty to The South should desire
10 know. it Col. Johnson rightly represents the
opinion OF Gen. Taylor on this vital question.
But, farther, we observe that Northern anti.
slavery Wing politicians and presses are justify
ing their support of General Taylor, upon the
ground thar he is with them in Opposition 10 the
extension OF slavery"
Mr.. Ashmun OF Massachuseits-,h famous in.
digdual who sought 10 embarTass the French
sympathy resolutions in the House by hanging
10 j, his pestiierous abolition doctrines, $50 ably
used up by Mr.. Bayly,) ard on whose motion The
House disgraced The country By annexing 10 re-
solution of,hanks 10 Gen Taylo proviso that the
war was Unnecessarily and unconsituiionally
begun BY the Piesidenl"-ihis same Mr.. Ash
mum, delegate to The Philadelphia Ccnven.
tion, has published in The National Intelligencer
card 10 ''lhe Wings of the sixth congressional
district of Massachusetts," explaining his course
10 said Convention. he tells Them that she free
States have themselves alone TO complain Of" in
not demanding, and therefore, in not Obtaining a
"Northern candidate" While he admits lha,
General Taylor is not his preference, and while
he went for "fiee State candidate YET, as Gen
T. teas nominated, he thinks The Wings should
all 90 for him, and as justification for such
course says:
Il believe him 10 be true Wing, an honest
and capable man, opposed to The acquisition Of
TEXAS, with sound and conservative principles,
opposed TO further enlarsing the boundaries
OF The Union; and, although he lives in The lati.
tuce where slavery is tolerated, yet do not be-
lieve that he desires or approves us eItesson. HIS
declored sentiments are guaranty that he aOiH
never in the slightest manner interfere Nth the
action of Congress rhsa it shall forbid the eris-
tence of slare,y in nelctu acquired territories
Let the representatives OF the people and OF The
State be len free 10 act upon that question: an.
controlled bv EIecuttre influence and Executive
veto, and we are sale. | need MOI, am confident
give 10 you any new assurance that whenever The
question, in any form, shall be presented during
my official term, the rights OF humanity shall
find in me an unyieding advocate. The issue
will soon come; il is 10 be met in The Halls Of
Congress- and then it is 10 be decided, in all pro-
liability, during the continuance of MIR. Folks
administration. Let he people OF the free States
look 10 their Representatives."
Again, the Boston Atlas says, "Gen. Taylor is
aWhig in principles in favor Of peace-oppo-
sed 10 all war-6eliercs slavery 10 be cure 10 the
country, and desires us ertsrn,inaiion-and is sp.
posed 10 the further extension Of slave territory"
The New York Express (Whig) justifes the
support OF Gen. Taylor by the following argu-
gumen,:
Because the Southern States in the Democrat
ic Convenlion] have demanded and insisted up.
on having, as a sine qua non, candidate for The
Presidency pledged to the extension of slavery,
the Barnburners have naturally and properly
enough separated from their Southern colleagues
upon this single principle OF slavery-but as our
southern colleagues lin the Phi,adel phia Con-
yentionl nave demanded no such pledges from
our candidate, and rather on the contrary have
giren as O man pledged not to reto the acts Of
that rhich p rpetuated freed,m in the north ices
tern territoryl no such separation is necessary
ioI US, aud surely no coalition with Barnburners,
with whom, il we were TO coalesce, the result
wunld be the election of General Cass, pih the
g1nepe Of The extension Of siarerv, and the appro-
val BY the people of all the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. OF
Mr.. Polk.
Now, We DO not mean TO charge Gen. Taylor
with being in favor of the Wimot Proviso; but
We do charge tina, he has not said one word on
the subject to the public, and has moi taken the
steps 10 corrcc, The impression Generally enter
tanned al The North, as the above extracts show
naturally drawn IRON his virtual endorsement in
the Signal letter OF the Signal Editorial in favor
OF The ordinance Of g. 0he Wilmot Proviso.l-
The South have right 10 demand that he should
speak oui. and not allow Northern parlizans to
make such use Git erroneous) Of his declared
sentiments" TO which Mr.. Ashmun confidently
refers.
Gen. Cass has spoken out 10 The North and to
The South and has taken his stand on the subject.
That (unlike Gen. Taylor) he IS Justly regarded
a, the North as opposed 10 the principles OF the
Wilmol Proviso we ma Ike few quotations.
AT a meeting of The Barnburners in Utica. N
Y, the following resolution was adopted, denun.
ciatory Of Gen. Cass:
"He has abandoned the principles OF freedom
to gain the favor OF Shareholders.
HE has declared that any action by Congress,
prohibiting slavery in the Territories is uncon.
stituliona'; he ,couM therefore veto any bill con.
tanning such prohibition.
"And We see in his nomination that subseryi-
ency 10 the aggressive spirit Of slavery under
which the non-slavehodng States have SO long
suffered, and which they are now fully justified
in resisting"
Again, we find the following strong language
in the Philadelphia North American, the fayorile
Northern paper of The Southern Whips. though