Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1849-12-29

POI only himself but bis constituents and the
whole North, by saying that they would not
meet this question, he was provided for =
LEI him besPeak the fagots, Ia laugh and IL
ne mad a wife and as many children as John
rogers, let them all get their Sunday clothes
On, Tor they would want to see their daddy
for the last time. [Laughter.l
Dut II drsunion must ON he had a re-
guest to make: he spoke now not only for
us constituents, bnt for the whole Northwest
Aerritory over which the Jeflersouian ordi-
nrnce was stretched. When Southern gen.
hemen came to divide the Union, they would
nave to bear in mind that the people of that
country had a very strong idea that the Mis-
s,sslppl nver-to say nothing about the bank
OF the Mississippi river-was u part of that
territory, from its mouth TO its source. IA
laugh We furnish the water, sir, said MIR.
X lRenewed laughter.l Depend upon it,
depend upon it, (he wanted now to raise al
most as high a climax as the gentleman from
Virginia had reached depend upon II, that the
mississippi river runs free us long us water
runs down hill.
MIR. TooMBs of Ga. said 1t seems that we
are TO be inundated by ~eulogies upon the
Unlon, and denunciations of those who are
not ready 10 sacrifice national honor, essen
tal interests, and constitutional rights upon
IFS altar. Sir, l have as much attachment to
the Union of these States, under the consti-
tuition of our fathers, as any freeman ought
to have. / am ready to cobcede and sacri-
flee for it whatever a just and honorable man
ought to sacrifice-I will do no more. ] have
not hefded the aspersions of those who did
not understand, or desired to misrepresent,
my conduct and opinions in relation to these
questions, which, in my judgment, so vitality
affect 1t. The time has come when | shall
not only utter them, but make them the ba-
Sis OF my political action here. ldonot, then,
hesitate TO avow before this House and the
country, and in the presence of the living
God, that if by your legislation you seek TO
drive us from the Territories of California
and New Mexico, purchased by the common
blood and treasure of the whole people, and
to abolish slavery in this District, thereby at
tempting to fix n national degradation upon
half the States of this C~onfederacy, / am for
dispnion; and if my physical courage be
equal TO the maintenance of my convictions
of right and duty, i will devote all l am and
all have on earth to its consummation.-
From 1857 to this hour the people of the
South have asked nothing but justice-noth'
ing but the maintenance of the principles ana
tile sIsffr which controlled our fathers Ill tin
formation of the constitution. Unless we ar,
unworthy of our ancestors, we will never &C
cept less as a condition of union. A grea
constitutional right which was declared by
distinguished Northern Justice of the Su
premo Court Judge Baldwin, TO be tile cor
ner-stone of the Union, and without wliicl
he AYERS, in q Judicial decision, it would new
er have been formed, has already PRACTICAL,
been 'abrogated in all of the non-slavehold
ing States. | mean the right TO reclaim flu
gitives from labor. ] ask any and every
Northern man on this floor 10 answer me
now, if this is not true-if this great right
indispensable TO the formation Of the Union
is any longer, for any practicable purpose, {
living principle? There are none TO deny it
You admit you have not performed your con
stitutional duty that you withhold from Il!
n right which was one of our main induce
ments to the Union; yet you wonder that we
look upon your eulogies of a Union whose
most sacred principles you have thus tram
pied under foot as nothing better than mer
cenary hypocritical cant. This District wa.
ceded Immediately after the constitution wa:
formed. 1t was the gift of Maryland to hel
sister States for the location of their common
Government. Its municipal law maintained
and protected domestic slavery. YOU ac'
cepted it. Your honor was pledged for it,
maintenance as a national capital. You
faith was pledged TO the maintenance of the
rights of the people who were thus place.
under your care. Your fathers accepted the
trust, protected the stakeholder and all Other
citizens in their rights, and in all respect:
faithfully and honestly executed the trust
but they have been gathered to their fathers
and it was left to their degenerate sons tC
break their faith with us, and insolently tC
attempt to play the master where they were
admitted as brethren. TRUST, sir, if the Rep
resentatives of the North prove themselves
unworthy of their ancestors we shall moi
prove ourselves unworthy of ours; that we
have the courage TO defend what they had
the valor to win.
The Territories are the common property
of the people of the United States, purchased
by their common blood and treasure. You
are their common agents; it is your duty,
while they are in a territorial state, 10 remove
all impediments TO their free enjoyment by
all sections and people of the Union, the
stakeholder and the non-slaveholder, You
have given the strongest indications that you
will not perform this trust-that you will APP
propriate to yourselves all of this territory,
perpetrate all these wrongs which l have
enumerated; yet with these declaTatohs
upon your lips, when Southern men refused
TO act in party caucuses with you, in which
you have a controlling majority-whcn we
ask the simplest guaranty for the future-we
are denounced ont of doors as recusants and
factionists, and indoors we are met with the
cry of Union, Union" Sir, we have passed
that point. 1t is too late. ] have used all
my energies from the beginning of this ques-
ton to save the country from this CONFUSION.
! have resisted what ] deemed unnecessary
and hurtfhl agitation. ! hoped against hope,
that a sense of justice and patriotism would
induce the North to settle these questions
upon principles honorable and safe 10 both
sections of the Union. ] have planted my
self upon a national platform, resisting en-
tremes at home and abroad, willingly sub
jecting myself to the aspersions of enemies,
and, far worse than that, the misconsn1'c-