The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1850-06-18

was adopted by the votes mainly of Northern Re
personalities and that its spirit and design contem
plated It's extension TO the Pacific ocean. When
said, Yesterday, that if the States, having the
power in their own hands, had come to the con-
. clusion TO exclude the South from fair partlcl
patton in this territory, they would, by dong so
} inevitably drive the Southern States from the
Union. / maintain that | uttered no threat.
maintain that, by repeating the same declaration
as now deliberately do, utter no threat. What
is the state Of things' Northern statesmen assert
, the power so to construe the Constitution as to
: impose unjust and unequal restrictions upon hall
the States Of the Union. Not only do they claim
the power to give this construction, but to enforce
it; and when we of the South say that such a
course will drive us from the UnioD--from which
we have a right to go-they tell us that they Will
send their Northern regiments upon us to enforce
this construction, and hold together Union
which by the very act is abolished, because the
Constitution itself is abolished. II has been pro-
claimed at the other end of the Capitol, by one
whose voice will never more be heard, that these
principles converted the Government into one OF
l the worst of despotisms. ! maintain that this is
! true; and | maintain that all the threats which
have ever been uttered here, have been uttered by
those who assert the unconstitutional power of
maintaining by force, Confederacy which exists
only by the will of the free sovereign States that
compose it. The threats come from those who
| tell us that they will send their regiments into
the Southern States to enforce their construction
of the Constitution. | have made no threats, !
make none now. l simply warn the North of
what believe will be the inevitable consequences
if they persist. II is Justification of fact, it is
garing misinterpretation Of language, it is false
construction of words, to charge upon me, and
upon those gentlemen who stand in the same posi-
ton with me, that we threaten. What do we
threaten, Simply that we will maintain our rights
against that force which you say you will send to
destroy them. This is nothing more or less than
the threat which every oppressed people, in all
| time, have made and carried out by their strong
i right arms, when they have resisted oppression,
and poured out their blood in vindication of their
| rights. That is all we threaten. We will stand
| upon the Constitution of the country--we Will
| stand upon it to the last moment-we will stand
upon it to the DEATH in spite Of all the regiments
! which all the States of the North may array
| against us.
| withdraw the amendment.
| Mr.. TOOMBS renewed the amendment. He
desired to occupy the FIVE minutes allowed him in
calling the attention of the committee and the
country to the vote which had just been taken.
| He had long entertained and uniformly expressed
the opinion, that the pretended support Of the
Northern Wing party to what is called the Presi-
dent g plan, was fraud-that they did not and
would not support and maintain the principles OF
that plan even as unsatisfactory as it Justly was
to the South. That plan proposes to admit Cali
forna as State and refrain from legislation as to
the rest of the Territories until the inhabitants
sufficiently numerous and otherwise qualified to
be admitted into the Union, and then to allow
them to come in with or without slavery, as they
should decide for themselves. Yet We find the
/ pretended supporters of the plan throughout the
whole North and in this House, accompany their
professed adherence to it, with the declaration
| that ssno more slave States shall be admitted into
the Union" They will take so much of it as
gives them California, and doubtless will take the
rest Of the country whenever it presents an anti
Il hot
they will take the States which may hereafter be
formed, if the inhabitants should choose TO toll
crate African slavery
/ Such is the uniform tenor and character Of the
support which the Presidents plan receives from
its northern friends out of doors, and the vote just
taken refusing to give this right, Is supported by
every northern Wing in this House but the homo
rable gentleman from Pennsylvania, [Mr. Bur
LER.l The member from Boston, who a few days
since, with filsome adulation Of the author, gave
in his adhesion to the plan, to-day disavows by
his vote this principle Of the right of the people
when prepared for admission into the Union to de.
/ eide upon their own domestic institutions. This
is the only sound principle in the plan, and
that is murdered in the House, and by the hands
j of it's pretended friends | desire this fact to bt
noticed and marked by the people of the South
and by the author Of the plan. am not its sup
porter in any form, but / desire it marked thai
those men Of the North who pretend to be for 1T
are not ready to back it by their votes.
Mr.. T.. withdrew the amendment.
/ Mr.. DUER renewed the amendment, and said
When the inference was first sought to be drawn
from the vote referred to by the gentleman from
Georgia, [Mr. TooMBs,l that it was the intention
of the North to deny the principle that the people
of territory, in establishing a constitution for
their government as State, have the right either
to establish or prohibit slavery, sought to obtain
the floor for the purpose of repudiating for myself
any such inference. have publicly, declared my.
self willing to place the settlement Of this question
upon that principle. | have introduced bill fol
that purpose What have said stand to-
cannot speak for others; | speak for myself
/ What is the motive of my votes, none can know
but myself. The inference of the gentleman from
Georgia is, ms respects myself, utterly unfounded
Sir the question may be settled on that principle
if the South will support it.
i California seeks admission on that principle, and
it may be applied to the residue of the Territories
But what are Southern gentlemen asking now'
! The Missouri Compromise; the Missouri Com
promise, which, by the amendment of the gentle
| man from Virginia, is defined to be an establish
! ment or recognition of slavery south OF $50 30.
And whether so expressly declared or not, this is
what all intend Preliminary to the action Of the
| people, YOU demand the extension of slavery to
| the territory. 1t is you who ask affirmative
legislation? tits you who now, by your action,
reject the application of this principle which you
charge us with rejecting. But an amendment is
L
! signed to place false construction upon the votes
of those in favor Of the admission of California
as a seperate measure and then the charge Is
made that the North denies the right Of State to
regulate its own domestic institutions. You pro-
pose to dismember California, which has acted or
this principle Are you ready now to apply it to
the rest Of the Territory have not seen The
evidence. The gentleman from Georgia should
be more cautious in drawing his differences.
Mr.. TOOMBS draw my inference from the
vote. 1t is a legitimate inference
/ Mr. DUER. The vote! The vote. admits OF 9
very different construction. The construction as
respects myself | know, and as respects others,
believe, is erroneous. If gentlemen desire to dis
cover the truth, it is not difficult. Is 1t not easy
to see that we who desire the admission OF Cali
forna separately and at once, will vote against al
amendments embarrassing that measures Does
the gentleman from Georgia say that he does no
himself sometimes vote against propositions EN-
bodying what may abstractly be true, because h
regards them as Inappropriate l venture TIT
i opinion that he has voted so fifty times since HI
has been member of the House. 1t is a matte