The daily national Whig. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1847-1849, 1849-06-09
WASHINGTON, d. C.
SATURDAY MORNING, JUNE ., ls4s.
COL. BENTON's SPEECH.
TO the People OF Missouri.
DELIVERED IN THE CAPITOL.
JEFFERSON CRY, May &c, 1919.

IutioHS iioHi le peheiai Assembly Oh MIS-
souri, denying the right Of Congress to
iegislate upon the subject Of slavery in
misunderstanding the right of the citi-
zens Of every State to remove to the terri
tories acquired BY the blood and treasure OF
the whole Union, with their property---de-
claring it to be an insult to the States to
exclude any of their citizens from so remov-
ing and settling with their property-alleg-
ing such insult to be the cause Of alienation
among the States, and ultimately Of disu-
mon; and instrdcting the senators Of the
State, and requesting its representatives
TO vote in conformity 10 the resolves so
adopted
These instructions, Of which now only
give the substance, We're adopted by the
General Assembly after the adjournment Of
Congress, and after the time that il must
have been believed that the subject to which
they refer had been disposed Of in Congress,
and while other resolutions incompatible
with them had been given BY the previous
General Assembly, and had been complied
with by me, and were stll on hand They
are mere copy Of the Calhoun resolutions
offered IN the Senate in February, 1S47,
denounced by me at the time as a tire-brand
intended for electioneering and disunion pur-
poses, and abandoned BY him after their
introduction, without ever calling vote
upon them, for reason which will be here
after shown, produce them in order to
Justify the character give Of them, and to
show them to be the original Of those which
have received from the General Assembly
Of Missouri
THE CALHOUN RESOLUTIONS.
" Resolped, That the territories Of the
United States belong to the several States
composing this Union, and are held by them
as their joint and common property.
Resolped, That Congress, as the JOINT
agent and representatives Of the States of
this Union, has no right to make any law,
or do any act whatever that shall, directly
or by its effects, make any discrimination
between the States Of this Union, by which
any Of them shall be deprived Of its full and
equal right in any territory Of the United
States acquired or to be acquired
Resolped, That the enactment of any
law which should directly or by its effects,
deprive the citizens Of any Of the States OF
this Union from emigratlng with their pro-
perty into any Of the territories Of the United
States, will make such discrimination, and
would, therefore, be violation Of the con-
stitution and the rights of the States from
which such citizens emigrated, and In dero-
cation Of that perfect equality which belongs
to them as members OF the Union, and
would tend directly to subvert the Union
itself
/" Resolped, That as fundamental prin-
ciple in our political creed, a people in form
ing constitution, have the unconditional
right to form and adopt the government
which they may think best calculated to
secure liberty, prosperity and happiness !;
and that, IN conformity thereto, no other
condition is imposed by the Federal consti-
tuition on a State, in order to her admission
into this Union, except that its constitution
be republican, and that the imposition Of any
other by Congress would not only be in vio-
ation Of the constitution, but in direct con-
fict with the principle on which our political
system rests. J"
These resolutions were brought into the
Senate, February 10, 1917, and are the
prototype Of those sent me by the General
Assembly OF Missouri see no difference
N them but in the time contemplated for
dissolution Of the Union Mr.. Calboun's
tending " directly" and those Of Missouri
" Ultimately" to that point In other re-
spects they are identical, and this difference
IS not material, as the Missouri resolutions
pledge the State TO 6 co-epprafe" with other
saveholding States, and therefore to follow
their lead, which may he directly, as the
Accomac resolutions vouchpd to be the voice
Of the South, call for a State Convention,
as soon as bill can be passed for the pur-
pose, to organize the mode Of action. Icon
sider the Calhoun resolutions as the parent
Of those adopted By our Legislature, and
entitled to the first attention and in that
point OF view, shall speak TO them FIRST and
begin with an argument against il derived
from the conduct Of that gentleman him
sell
In the year 1890, Mr.. Calhoun was
member Of Mr. Monroe's cabinet, and as
such was required, BY the President, in
common with the rest u the cabinet, to give
ms OPINION IN writing, 10 he filed in the
Department Of state, on the question of the
power OF Congress 10 prohibit slavery in
territories, and on the consttutionalty of the
Sth section OF the act ior the admission Of
Missouri into the Union, and which section
applied the anti-slaveY clause Of the ord
nance OF 1857, to more than half Of the
whole Territory Of Louisiana The ques-
tons were momentous. The whole Union
was then conyused on the subject Of slavery,
growing out Of the Missouri controversy
Congress had just passed an act for the ad-
mission Of Missouri without restriction, but
with prohibition Of slavery IN all the terri
tory north and west Of her Thv act was
Just coming to Mr. Monroe for his approval
OF disapproval II approved by him, it be-
came law at once il disapproyed, the act
was defeated forever for it was known
that the constitutional majorities Of two
thirds Of Congress could not be obtained for
the act il dtsanuroyed hy the presiden nj