Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1850-06-28

tne terms OF annexation, are now free tC
them, neither Texas nor the General Gov
ernment have any right to make. The
terms of annexation chnstitute the com
pact Of union between Texas and the 9TH
er States of the confederacy--and this
compact secures irrevocably to the people
of the slaveholding States the right of
entering with their property all her terri
tory lying south of &c deg. so min, north
latitude-whilst from a | her territory
lying north of that line they are excluded
The bill in the Senate makes no provision
for carrying out these terms of the com
pact, but leaves in doubt the right of
the southened people, throughout all the
rtory proposed TO be purchased
whilst many who support the bill declare
thatin effect it excludes entirely the peo-
pie Of the southern States from all the
territory purchased. The least evil there
fore, the bill can bring to the people of
the southern States on entering it, will
be contention, harassment and litigation.
But you will have very inadequate
conception of the Importance of the ter
ritory taken from Texas by the bill, if you
conine your views to Texas, If you will
look at The map Of the United States,
You viii perceive that the territory pro-
posed to be surrendered by Texas lies
throughout lis whole extent along The
western frontier of the Indian territory.
This is now a slaveholding country; and
must be considered rs a part Of the
South. Place along their whole western
boundary two non-slavcholding States,
ard how long will the Indians be able TO
maintain the institution e slavery? If
the agency of Congress is not used to
abolish directly slavery in the Indian ter
ritory. this end can be easily accomplish
cd by the very means now in operation
against slvaycry in the Southern States,
which the Indian will have but little pow
erto resist. The effect will be, that the
Indian territory, large enough for two
more States, will be controlled by the
non-slaveholding States. Thus by these
two points in the report, the South will
lose four large States in California, two
in Texas, and two in the Indian territory.
Nor is this all. The non-slaveholding
States will be brought to the western
boundary Of Missouri and Arkansas,
along their whole extent, and will bound
Texas on her whole northern and western
frontier Thus the southern States will
be hcmmed in by the non, slavcholding
States on their whole western border-a
policy which they have declared essen
tial TO the end of abolishing slavery in
the southern States. What can compen-
safe the south for such enormous wrong
and spoliation.
But this is not the end Of your conces-
sioDs by this report. We must not yield
to the interests, but to the prejudiccs of
the northern people Slavery existed in
the District Of Columbia when Congress
accepted the ccssion of the territory COM
posing it from the States of Maryland
and Virginia. No one can suppose that
Maryland and Virginia, slaveholding
States then and slaveholding States now,
could have designed to give Congress
any power over the institution of slavery
in this territory. Independently of the
wrong to the people of the District to
cmancipate their slaves, it would be an
intolcrable evil to have district between
them, where emancipation prevails by
the authority of Congress. Congress, in
the bill reported as part of the so-called
compromise, now begins the work Of
emancipation by declaring that if any
slave is brought into the District for sale,
he shall be CELEBRATED and free" If a
slave is liberated because, he is brought
into district, the next step, to liberate
him because he as an the district, is not
difficult. The power to emancipate the
slaves in he District of Columbia is thus
claimed and exercised by Congress.
Many of the ablest men of the South
Lave denied that Congress possesses any
such power, whilst all agreed, until late
ly, that for Congress to interfere with
this institution, whilst slavery existed in
. Maryland and Virginia, would be a gross
breach of faith towards those States, and
an outrage upon the whole south. How
long will that facility which yields to the
prejudice against the buying and selling
of slaves be able to resist the greater
prejudice which exists against the hold
ing of slaves at all in the District of Co
lumbia?
For all these sacrifices to the interest
and prcjudices of the people of the north