Weekly national intelligencer., 1850-03-09
SPEECH OF Mn. BISSELL,
OF ILLINOIS,
ON THE SLAVERY QUESTION.

OF ILLINOIS,
ON THE SLAVERY QUESTION.
House. REPRESENTATIVES, Fen. 81, 1850.
The House being in Committee of the Whole the state
Of the Union on the Resolutions referring the President
Message to appropriate Standing Committees
Mr. BISSELL said Mr.. Chairman our discussions in this
committee have already produced profound and painful
saon througho the Union The public mind has become
agated and anxious and oppressed with appehensons
impending calamity This state OF things sir, ought to
continue Or any rate that uncertainty which makes the
future terrible than would perhaps the realization of our
worst fears ought TO be removed If this Government of
really its end gentlemen here declare it
its longer continuance depends upon contingencies
uncertain it were we'll that knew it now, that we might
make timely PREPARATION If the other hand, the appre
tensions have spoken Of groundle the people ought
iu mercy be undeceived They ought be undeceivd
at once SIR in order that they may have that repose and
security which they entitled under Govern
ment created and sustained by their own hands
Reluctant as am to add to the public anxiety, vet do
not feel liberty withhold the expression of my own
opinion upon the absorbing topic of this discussion and
of the day And do not hesitate to declare my settled
conviction that unless Representatives who have assumed
speak for the slavehodng States have greatly mistaken the
purposes and intentions Of the people of those States war
and boodhed consequent upon attempt to overthrow this
Government inevitable This declaration desire should
go forth to the country, and with the upon which
my opinion based These found in the extracts
which shall quote FIRST from the speech of the honorable
gentleman from Mississippi, (Mr. BRows.) Here are the
| extracts
you have been heapng outrage upon outrage add
Of Union question has bssn
all its bearings and our minds are made up.
"We owe YOU to ourselves to our common country
the friends of freedom throughout the world to you
| we intend to submit no longer.
Long years of outrage upon feelings and disregard
rights have awakened in every Southern heart feeling
resistance Think what you will, say what you WILL
perpetrae again and again will these acts Of awles
anny the day and the hour at hand when every Southern
justice or give us death.
$50 home and tell your people the made up they
choose between non-ntererence with Southern
rights the side and dissolution Of the Union the
| other.
in the Union, you mistaken Our love tor the Union
with the of the Union We love oppres
sion, nor hug tyranny to our bosoms.
81 tell you candidy, have calculated the value of the
Union Your injustice has driven to it. Your oppression
do freely and fearessy Your press your people,
your pulpit may denounce this treason be it You
may sing hosannas to the Unionit is WELL British lords
called treason in fathers when they resisted British y
ranny British eloquent their eulpgiums
the British Grown Our fathers felt the oppression they
the hand that aimed the blow and resolved resist The
suit is before the world We will resist trust God
| our own stout hearts for the consequences.
sThe South afraid of dssolying the Union Why should
fear What is there alarm awaken apprehen-
sIons Are not able to maintain ourselves Shall eight
millions Of freemen with more than one hundred millions OF
annual EXPORTS fear to take their position among the nations
of the earth With cotton sugar. rce and tobacco pro-
duets OF Southern soil, yielding annually than
| world WI.
'Have any tear dissolution Of the Union
the inquiry Can any thing be expected from the
fears the Southern people Do not deceive yourselves
look at things they really For myself can say with
clear conscience, do fear appalled, at
prospect before deprecate dsunon but do
fear it we know our position too well for that.
Have any thing to fear from you in tie event of dis
solution little gasconade and sometimes threat or two
As to there being any conflict Of growing Of
dissolution have not thought it at all probable You
plain Of your association with slaves in the Union. We pro-
to take them out of the Unono dissolve the unpleasant
carnage this oathsome association take granted
that you will not But if you should poot you TO the
cord OF the past and you by its boodsane6 pages that
We shall be ready to meet YOU.
These from the speech of the gentleman from Mis-
sissppi (Mr BaowS sufficient for present purpose
The gentleman from North Carolina (Mr CIrsoMAs)
tells US cat the ceo presented in prospect TO many Of
the highest nteects of the South y and is substantially
this that separate Confederacy the slavehong States
might expend much the United States did in
time of peace to the beginning of General Jacksons ad
minsraton and still have hand twenty-five millions of
dollars devote the making railroads. opening harbors and
rivers, and for other domestic purposes The gentle
man has thus disposed in advance, of little matters
pertaining to the interior regulations of the Southern conede
racy to be The Nohern tier of counties in Kentucky says
he, woud perhaps be obliged their slaves the
South But there would be to her advantages the change
similar to those of Mary land. Kentucky supplies the South
with live stock great extent but she has encounter
The competition of Ohio and other Northwestern States. If
the productions Of these States subject to dutg she
might for time have monopoly in the trade. doubt
not sir that will astonish the people of the great and
Northwest to find that the fathers of the Southern Con-
derac have disposed Of the navigation Of the Mississippi
with such celery, much will the people of Kentucky
to learn that their slaves henceforh be removed South
instead Of North. The gentleman (Mr. CLISeMAs)
has dvuged his plan for removing though not quite SO
gently all those in Kentucky and the other savehoding
States who hesitate about swearing allegiance this South
ern Contederacy He ntimaes that will not take long
to hang them as did the sTores in the Revolution"
Think Mr. Chairman, that have given extracts
enough to justify the opinion expressed the Of my
remarks. We cannot fail that if the feelings pur-
pose and intentions of the people of the slaveholdng States
may well apprehend the fearful caanities The sub
jec has been calmly considered in all its aspects by the high
est ntes of the South It has been ascertaned by calcu
aion that the Southern States were separated from the
Northern not only would they escape from Northern ag
gresson in future but they would also derive direct pecu
mary advantage of S25 000 600 per And though
does not appear that the amount Of duty to be paid by the
people of the West and Northwest to the Southern Con-
ederacy for the privilege of navigating the Mississippi
has yet been hxed nevertheless does appear that such
duty to be exacled alude to these things sir show
the minute calculations that have been entered in refer
to the altered condition of things consequent upon the
med'aed dissolution of the Union They show advanced
stage in the progress of this which, in my udg
nen, will astouud the country.
Now, sir, let if CLEAN from these gentle
NETS speeches the shadowiEg forth of any plan by which
this movement is to be commenced and carried first
quote from the speech of the gentleman from Alabama (Mr
ISeE)
"Wil the Representatives of the North attempt by the
power numbers to outrage the constitution and degrade the
| " msyion Of Tprrt