Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1850-06-15
SPEECH OF Mr.. BENTON,
OF MISSOURI.
Oh his motion to postpone indefinitely the bill re
ported by The Committee Of TAsrteen. &
liz srsArE. MospAr, Jusr 10, 1850

ported 0y IHs ConaD1tffee Of Iiarteen.
E Is SENATE, MospAr, JusE 10, 1850.
The Senate then ptocsedsdo the consideration Of the bill
providing for the admission Of California the Union
State, for establishing Territorial Governments for Utah
New Mexico, and making proposals TO Texas for the settle
ment OF her northern and western boundary
Mr. BENTON then addressed the President and said
make the motion which superedes all other motions and
which, ITSELF only be superseded by motion still more
strngent-the motion to lie the table, move the inde
mite poponement of this hill and in the form required by
rules which is to day certain beyond the session and
to make Of that propose day beyond the life of the
present Congress II is the proper motion to test the
Of the Senate the fate Of measure and to save time which
might be lost in useless amendments have waited month
for the larger amendments to be voted upon and
it my duty to proceed with my notion with view to pro-
coed with The bills sngy, this BILL of many in one shall be
put Of the way 1t is bill of thirty nine seconsforty
omnous number and which, with the two little
bills which attend il, is called compromise and is pressed
upon remedy for the national calamites Now this
labor of the committee, and all this remedy, proceed upon
the assumption that the people Of the United States
miserable distracted condition that is their mission to re-
eve this national DISTRESS and that these bills the sovereign
remedy for that purpose Now, in my opinion, all this
mistake both to the condition of the country, the mission
of the committee, and the efficacy of their remedy. do
believe this misery and Distraction and Distress and strife
Of the people On the contrary believe them be very quiet
home attending their crops such of them who do
to feed out of the public crib and that they would be perfectly
happy if the politicians would only permit them think So
know OF no distress in the country no misery no strife,
dsac on of those five gaping wounds of which the
Senator from Kentucky made enumeration the five fingers
of bis left hand and for the healing Of which, ell together and
all at once, and not at time, like the little Doctor Tay
or he has provided this capaous plaster in the shape Of
five old bills tackled together know nothing of all this,
OF distress in the country since got rid OF the Bank Of
the United States and since got possession of the gold
currency Since that time have heard of pecuniary
business Distress rotten currency expansions and
fractions deranged exchanges decline of public stocks
no abores begging employment no produce rotng upon the
hands of the farmer no property sacrificed at forced Sales
loss of confidence three cent amonth interest," call
for bankrupt act Never were the peope-the business
doing and the working peopleas well off they to-day
As for political distress, sit is all in my eye" Iii all among
the politicians Never the political blessings of the
country greater than present civil and religious liberty emil
neny enoyed life, liberty, and property protected the
North and the South returning to the old belief that they
were made for each other and and plenty regning
through the land This the condition OF the counyhap
py in the extreme; and listen with amazemen to the reci
tails which have heard this floor of strife and contention
gaping wounds aud streaming blood, distress and misery
feel mysti6ed The Senator from Kentucky, (Mr. CLAr
chairman Of the committee, and reporter of the bill and its
pathetic advocate, formerly delivered many such recas,
about the times that the tariff be increased the Ma
ona Bank charter 10 be renewed the deposes be restored
bankrupt act TO be passed He has been absent for
years and, returning among seems to begin where
he left of. He the old dish Of distress Sir,
it is mistake. There is of it and if there was,
the remedy would be in the hands of the peoplein the
hearts Of the peope-who love their country, and to
mistake their for their country distress. Iii all mis-
take. It looks like joke. But when recollec the
imposing number ofthe COMMITTEES and how distinguished
they all were, and how they voted themselves free from in
stuctons and allowed the Senate to talk, but not to yote
while they out, and how long they celebrating
when recoect all these things, constrained to believe
the committee in earnest And for the Senator him
self chairman Of the committee, the perfect gravity with
which he brought forward his remedy-these bills and the
repor-he pahos with which he enforced them, and the
hearty congratulations which he addressed to the Senate to
the United States and all mankind the appointment of his
committee, preclude the idea of intentional Joke his
part In view Of all this, find myself compelled consider
this proceeding serious and bound to treat il parliament
tary which proceed to do. And, in the first place.
let what the committee has done, and what that
has presented to the sovereign remedy for the national
distempers and which swallow whole-n the lump
all noneunder the penalty of being treated by the
gans enemies to the country. ..... Il
Here parcel of old bills which have been lying upon
tables months and which might have been passed.
each by ITSELF in good form, long ago, and which
have been carried by the committee, and brought back
again, bundled into one, and altered just enough to make
each one worse and then called compomse-where there
is nothing compromise-and supported by report which
support ITSELF Here the California State admission
bill, reported by the Committee Territories three months
ago-the two Territorial Government bills reported by the
committee at the time-the Texas compact bill,
originated by years ago. and reproduced at the present
sesson-he fugitive slave recovery BILL reported from the u
dietary committee at the OF the sessionand
the slave trade suppression bill for this District of Columbia
force before the District Created and repealed by old
of Congress. These the batchfve bills taken from
files altered just enough spoil EACH then tackled oge
her and chrsened compromise, and pre- ssed upon the Sc
sovereign remedy for calames which have
istence This is the presentation of the and now for
the case itself. t. ,&
1t is the work Of majority Of the committee: so the report
informs and, from the demonstrations this floor,
may suppose it to have been lean majority parliament
ary proceedings exhibited the work of majority
of that committee and is majority Of thirteen
that this compromise which is to be swallowed whole by the
Senate, is the work of Senators And if it should
happen 10 be that the committee purposely COM
posed half and half - six Of and half dozen of
the other - something like jury de medietate kngua
first introduced into British law for the safety Of the
Welsh against the Engish-if this should happen TO be
the CASE and half and half committee was actually appoint
ed with the pecauion OF border member to give casting
in the of te-lhen may be, that the work, in
fact the work Of member Of the committee But that
does appear in the report 1t says majority and upon
that basis it is the work of And hereby comes
lesson in political arhmetic-seven govern the Committee
of Thirteen FIRST and the Senate of sixty afterwards. For,
be remembered this batch of bills is not to be law, freely
made by Congress- but compact to be swallowed, and swa
lowed WHOLE under the penalty Of party execution and po
tica damnaton Sir this committee has lacked name-a
distinctive appeIla,ion and for want Of characteristic dis
tncon, referred numerically in the report as the Com
mittee of Thirteen From It's composition might be called
the committee de medietate not Hngua, but terra for
from different halves Of the land with border member
to sit between, who is to perform the exploit hitherto DEEM
ed impossible in the fox chase of riding both sides of
the sapng From the mode OF its CREATION it might be
called the free committee; for it certainly created ITSELF and
freed ITSELF and tied up the Senate while it was out And
from the manner in which majority Of first govern
hreen and then propose govern the Senate and then the
whole United States, it might be called the arithctcai COM