The miners' express. (Dubuque, Iowa) 1849-1854, 1850-04-03

Webster's Speech.

Mr.. Webster's great speech meets with uni
versal favor, and no small share of commenda-
ton from the Whig press and Whig party. We
democrats cannothelp admring both the speech
and the man; for, in the former he puts himself
upon sound democratic ground, and therefore
stands side by side with his democratic fellow
citizens upon the Democratic Platform, ready to
battle for the Union as it was formed by the Con
stitution. And we admire the man, because he
has evinced large share of moral courage in
standing forth as the champion of a doctrine,
which has found no favor with his party, and a
ganst the advocates of which he has hitherto
contended. But what shall we say of the wlig
press and the whig party who have openly de-
nounced the doctrine now advocated by them
selves and by their greatest champions? What
shall we say of the whig press and whig party of
this State especially, who, when the late demo-
cratic Legislature refused to make themselves
ridiculous by instructing their Senators and Re-
presentatives to vote for the Wilmot Proviso,
raised the cry of Philanthropy, and denounced
the Democracy as pro-slavery party. The
time for unmasking their Hypocrisy, has come
sooner than we expected Scarcely has one short
year rolled by, ere we find the whig party re-
pudiating the position it held one year ago, a
bandoning it as untenablc, and without any ce-
rcmony stepping upon the platform of Dcmocra-
cy. But do they acknowledge their former er-
ror? Do they say to their fellow-citizens, you
were right, and we were wrong;-your doctrine
has saved the Union-ours would have rent it
into fragments, and spread ruin and devastation
over our common country' Do they acknow-
ledge this? Need we have asked this question
of any one knowing the character of the Wing
have the magnanimity to do their opponents JUS
ticc! no. Who expected that? Not we-not
the democracy. We know their character; We
know they would, as they always have done,
usurp our doctrine and our principles; aye, even
our name-rather give us credit for aught which
they may find it necessary to adopt as theirs
This Whig party has been as dead weight up
on the progress of this Nation in its passage from
the thraldom of British disposition to the free
dom of genuine liberty. Always opposed to pro-
cured, then feeding itself upon the labor of 9th
ers, and falling back into insensib;lity and re-
pose, till reused into life, and dragged along by
the onward progress of the age and times.
Perhaps it is well. Providence in its wisdom
may have designed the advancement of the
whole human race, and may have employed hu-
man means to drag along the unwilling portion
of mankind to their ultimate destiny. If such
be His will, the Democracy must bear the bur-
den with patience and resignation, and even feel
happy that they have been selected for i'm
portant mission.
Looking at our Whig brethren in this light,
we shall regard them with pity, if not with kind
ness; and though the fesh-pots Of monopoly,
privilege, baking, and speculation have been
left behind them, we shall encourage them to
contemplate with favor, the beauty Of equality,
the harmony of fraternity, and the sublmity of
perfect liberty.