Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1849-11-23

lion TO their numbers as the citizens Of any of the
States They were distinguished for their prowess
IA many hard fought battle but now they are to be
told that restrictions must be imposed on their right
to enjoy the conquest Can we, should we yield the
fruits of Yalor, and surrender with it our const
tutional right Of equality? Congress cannot deprive
US of it. and ought not if it could cannot say, that
we go, we must leave our property behind u.s. Prop
erty constitutes the means of enjoyment and to ex
clude the property Of the people Of the Southern
States is in effect to exclude the people and appro
pirate the country to the Northern States. Such a
sovereignty it could not be rghtfply exercised even
by monarchy The property of the South consists
mostly in slaves and to interdiet its own
SOIL would not only be unjust but an arbitrary vio
lation of the constitution 1t is vain to talk of our
right to the territories if we may be deprived of the
means of enjoying those rights. The mere soil is
nothing it Is the use that we may make of it which
renders it valuable.
AS well might Congress interdict the use of any
other property there if it exclude slave it may
exclude horse or an Wedo not derive the right
to hold either from the constitution. That instru-
ment is but subservent to their use. But why it
that must be deprived of this privilege Because,
say our Northern brethren, slavery is a moral and
political evil. Who has right to determine that it
is SO? Let them eradicate moral evils from their
own land we can take care of our own morals. Is
it possible it has to this that Congress has the
right, under limited grant Of power to travel into
the wide field of ethics and regulate our moral
duct? That is question for our conscience Nor
talty is twin sister to religion they as nsepara
bly, allied and effect; the power to regulate
necessarily implies the power to regulate the 9th
Is it possible that in defiance of the guards in
the constitution, Congress will encroach SO deli
cate, sacred subject? If there is any thing dear
to American, it is his liberty of conscience-his
right to worship his God at the altar of his choice
must admonish my Methodist and my Baptist friends
to be on their guard. You may soon be told that
your religion is q moral evil and must be extermina
ted for if Congress has the right to legisate the
ground of Moral evils, "To this complexion must it
at last But who has right to say that it is
political evil We do not find such doctrine in
culcated by the constitution Congress may decide
questions of expediency within the range of the
delegated powers but that cannot be political evil
within the reach of its legislative power which is
CURED to the citizen and prohibited to Congress.
Congress has no power to say that constitutional
rights are political evils. To that body nothing is
political evil which is secured to the States to the
people. Moral and political evils themes which
open wide fields for investigation, and if Congress
may occupy them as the groundwork of its action,
the constitution is worthless Instead of limited
we have unlimited government. If the people,
the fountain of power, should determine that po-
Gtical evil exists they may apply the remedy but it
is not with Congress This political and moral evil
it seems is exclusively in the South, and those who
have determined it to be So and wish to eradicate it,
reside in the North. AS sovereign States have
the power to judge Of and to correct moral and po-
ltical evils within our limits. We ask not the inter
ference of the North to correct morals in
situations We do not intrude upon them but only
demand to be permitted to equality in the joy
ment of our common property Congress, 1t is true,
may establish government in the territory, but that
government must be founded in equality. 1t must
protect the property of the common owner we'll as
his person. Whether this power is derived under
the third section of the fourth article of the consttu-
ton, whether it is derived from the power to
quire territory, the and treaty making power,
is not material-it must be exercised to pre-
serve inviolate every principle of the constitution
But in the efforts to exclude property from that
territory, another false doctrine is promulgated,
which is equally disastrous to us. We told that,
slavery prohibited by the laws of Mexico, we
cannot take slaves there without the authority of
law permitting it. This is the doctrine of class of
politicians in country who look further than
the surface of the law If this error were confined
to politicians, it might be passed harmless
but it is also the doctrine which has been
niously promulgated by a member of the Supreme
Bench. We could overlook the groundless fallacies
of few politicians; but when the sanctity of the
bench is perverted, and it's influence thrown as an
element into the exciting cause of malcontent and
strife, there is ground of complaint If this could be
judicial question in any shape, that tribunal
before which it might come With the decision the
American people ECuld have rested satisfied.
Quiet would ',s.ye been restored. 1t great
constitutional question, and on such questions the
people of the United States have been taught to look
to the decisions of the Supreme Court with yenera-
ton; but they have not been accustomed to have
them promulgated in advance, and startled at
thus seeing them The effect is almost injurious
to decision regularly pronounced, because it
has deferred the South from equal paricipancy in
the territories whilst it has embodened the North to
persist in its efforts 1t has caused party to be-
1eve that it right and the other to fear that it
was wrong. From position it has made tthe worse
appear the better cause 1t is not true that slavery
does not exist in California, although it may have
been prohibited by the laws of Mexico. True, the
conquering country may permit the municipal laws
of the conquered country to remain in force but this
only true of private strictly municipal laws
is not true as regards political laws By elementary
political and municipal Political laws are such as
are organic and confer power and form on the gov
eminent They give it vitality as organized body
These political laws are sometimes reduced to the
form of constitution, which becomes supreme and
paramount to all other laws either public private
Our constitution is the law of our being-it is the
sence of our governmental is the combination Of
certain great principles, between each of which
there is connection and dependency, and the ag
gregate constitutes unit. To withdraw or destroy
any of them would break the entire fabric 1t would
lop off essential part of our political power. Wher
we acquired California, it became ubect to con
stitution-our whole constituton-our constitution
as entire thing. The territory did not become
subject to part of our government only, but every
principle of the constitution prevailed there
tive principle, and superseded of necessity, whateve
was repugnant to any of them. No abridgement o
4 the rights of any of the corners would be permit
ted The vested rights of the citizens there at thu
time acquired it, may be protected by principle
not inconsistent with this position The consequence
is that we have right to take our slaves there, be
cause they are property, secured to us as sucf
by the principles of our paramount political law