The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-03-14

mocracy. No northern man had voted for the an
nexation of Texas for the reason imputed TO them.
On the contrary, they had the correspondence of
MIR. CALHOUN, in which he advocated the annexa-
ton OF Texas ON the ground Of its oonnexion with
the slavery question, before them, and they all re-
pudiated supporting It on that ground. Because
The treaty was framed on that ground. they repu-
dated the treaty, and rejected the proposition.
The northern Democracy supported the annexa-
ton OF Texas on purely national grounds, and for
| national glory andonational purposes, and wholly
unconnected with slavery The Senator from South
Carolina Is welcome to the consolation that he had
more TO do with the annexation of Texas than any
one else, but he (Mr d. would say that man
did more to hazard the affair than did that Senator
He had heard much of North and South, as ii they
were the only sections of this country He would
remind Senators there the great northwest,
| who would soon have more power than either Of
| them, and would control the nation; the heart OF
the Government would be on the Mississippi. That
| river and the st. Lawrence would be under their
/ control, and they would claim and have the right
Of navigating them to the ocean. That free navi-
CATION they would preserve; this Union they would
preserve; and all this would be done by strict adj
! herence to the Constitution.
! Mr.. DODGE of Iowa, read an extract from a
speech by MIR. Owen, of the House of Representa-
tives, TO show the grounds which the northern
| Democrats voted for the annexation of Texas.
Mr. DOUGLAS said the northern Democrats all
supported annexation on national grounds, and in
dependent OF the subject OF slavery. Nor had they
made such bad bargain. By the resolutions OF
annexation, all that part of Texas north Of 800 30,
which then was slave territory made free forever
4 thus five and half degrees of territory added
to the free territory of the North and sufficient
to make free State The resolutions of annexa-
ton provided for the admission of four States
to be formed out of Texas, and the Senator from
Massachusetts, supposed these would be slave States
He Mr.. d. thought that out of Texas there could
be but one slave State formed, and if any others
were ever made, they would be free.
/ Mr.. d. then reviewed the events attending the
last Presidential election, contending that General
Taylor was run as Wilmot proviso man, or that
he would approve 1t if passed (; and that on that
ground he was elected, and could not have been
elected otherwise. He was elected bya system of
double dealing, and now afraid to avow his
sentiments on this subject. The President has SUBJ
mited his plan for the settlement of the difficulties
and 1t is the do nothing plan and this plan is the
only one he could recommend, for it calls upon him
| to show no sentiment and thus he is not required
to break any pledge made by his friends. The
Senator from New York, in his speech, had passed
over the plan of the President very lightly, al
though the Senator had doubtless pledged to the
people OF New York that the President was friend
TO the Wiimot provso
MIR. SEWARD said that he had expressed his own
opinion only to the people of New York. He told
the matter to Congress, and would not veto the
Wilmot proviso if passed, as he expected it would
MIR. DOUGLAS said the Senator had aided in
cheating the people, and now passed over the Presi
If General CAss had been elected, how different
would the case be, Could General TAYLOR, he
asked have received the vote of New York, if Tho
people had not believed he would oppose the vii
mot proviso?
Mr. SEWARD said he did not think he could
MIR. DOUGLAS said that if General CAss hae
been elected, none of the present difficulties woule
have occurred. The Senator had msled the PEG
pie of New York, had thereby got the Legislature
and secured to himself a seat in the Senate.
He then gave the history of the Wilmot provis,
| ment moved by Mr.. WilInot to the three million
bill, requiring that all territory acquired by thu
money appropriated by that bill should be foreve
, free. IL was an attempt to control by majority
vote OF the House the treaty making power and L
deprive the people of the territory of the right
self-government. 1t was well known that no treat,
, with such provision could be ratified, anC
hence 1t was intended to defeat the acquisition Of al
territory.
Several southern taking this view voted 70
it. The resolutions of New York, passed abou
that time, show that this then the true natur
and character of the Wilmot proviso a very diff
, ferent thing from that which now bears the name
The treaty was made, and the territory acquired
and the Wilmot proviso was dead forever. Tn
name has been kept up to aid the new party, calle
> the Free Sellers, in their schemes; and the nam
is now applied TO a which is nothing NOR
than prohibition of slavery in the Territories
Such prohibition had been moved by Mr.. WIN
!. rnRoP TO the Oregon bill, year before MIR. VIII
MOT came TO Congress. There was now no maj
who supported the real Wilmot proviso.
AS regarded the Territories. he considered then
as the property Of the Union. Neither the Mort
nor South, as such, had any rights there. IL
: violation Of southern rights to prohibit SLAYER.
s there and 1t violation of northern rights :
= leave them open TO slavery.
= He believed that any movement on the subiec
. was an unwarrantable interference with the right
of the people who inhabit the Territories The PEG
pie there had the sole right and the people of Cali
fornia had the same right. He believed that tn
: people OF the North and the South had right to e
there with their property, that property TO be sub
ject to the local laws of the country
The Senator from South Carolina had charges
that the ordinance of 81 the first Of a series
aggressions on the South. That it excluded tn
South and southern property from the whole North
western Territory. One half of the settlers Of Ohio
one-half Of the settlers of Indiana, and four ths
the settlers OF Illinois, from the slave States
| In defiance OF the ordinance, slaves brougii
into Illinois; and the convention which framed tn
y constitution composed of half Of slave
" holders. And even in lS40 the census shows tina
- there still remained in Illinois three hundred an
c fourteen slaves. Slavery would have been ther
still if it had suited the people to have il.
Another error Of the Senator's in stating ths
= the Missouri compromise was an aggression on In
2 South.
le II was originally adopted by southern votes Tw
~ years ago he had renewed il In the Senate as
amendment TO the Oregon BILL and il received III
vote OF every southern Senator, and amongst ther
~ that Of the Senator himself When in the House
Representatives, he had proposed this nc Of 300 80
: and every southern man, Wing and Democra
voted for IT, Was this any evidence that the Sout
- had considered IL as aggression For his cours
he had been denounced and vilifed IA a dough
face, and with having sold himself 10 the South.
=. The next error Of the Senator was in supposin
" that the South had been excluded from Oregon
Shareholders would have gone there, an
~ slavery excluded from that country by th
laws Of the provisional government, esiablishe
~ there twelve years ago.
The North was disposed to do justice. The fug
A. tive slave bill would be carried out The Mort
80 carried II out before the decision Of the supren
~ Court took from them the responsibility Of 30 doinl
IA On this subject the States who make the most moi
~ are those who lost a slave. South Caron
n and Vermont, New Hampshire and Alabama Ne
~ York and louisiana made the greatest compar,
=. tive noise this subject Illinois and Indiana ha
80 no difficulty with their slaveholding neghbors
y North and South each claimed full share in Il
60 Territories. Neither entitled TO any shar,
~ each had right 10 enter with his property, sui
" iect 10 the locallaws The southern man could M
m carry his slave because the laws prohibited sIav
- ry; the northern man could not carry his ban
81 because it's existence depended on the law Of
hc State. In Oregon, the northern or southern ma
" could introduce no whisky, no slaves, nor no bank
~ all were excluded by the local laws Of the countr
He next adyerted to the proposed amendment
q | he tuffo tn. ot,t