The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1850-06-12
SPEECH OF mR. BENTON,
or MISSOURI,

reported 6y he Committed Of Ixrissa dsiice,ed an the
Ssn0fs Of ihs Unned States 1ioaday, June 10, 1850
The Senate having under consideration the special
derbeing the bill 10 admit California as State INTO the
Union, establish territorial governments Tor Utah and
New Mexico and making proposals 20 Texas Tor the es-
tabshInent OF her and northern boundaries
Mr.. BENTON addressed The President, and said:
make the motion which supersedes all other motions,
and which, ITSELF can only be superseded bya motion ss
more siringen-he motion 10 lie on the table. move
the ndeipe posponsent of this bill, and in the form
required by rules, whlch is 10 day certain beyoni
the session. and to make sure Of that propose day
beyond the life OF the present Congress- IL the proper
motion 10 test the OF the Senate the aie OF a
and to time which might be lost ia useless
amendments. have waited month for the larger
amendments to be voted upon, and deem il my dniy
10 proceed with my m0on, with view 70 proceed with
the bills snRly il This bill o many one shall be put
out Of the way. Il is bill Of thirty-nine sections
forty, save one--an omnous number; and which, with
the rwo little bills which attend IT, s called compso.
mise and s pressed upon US as remedy or the national
calamities. Now, all this labor OF the committee and
all this remedy proceed upon the assumption that the
people OF the United States in miserable, distracted
condition that is their mission relieve this national
dstress and that these bills the soyeegnremedy for
that purpose. Now, ~ my opinion, all TINS is mis-
take both the condition Of the country, the mission
Of the committee, and the efficacy Of their remedy do
not believe AZ this misery and dlsiracon and distress,
and strife Of The people On ihe contrary, believe them
to be very quiet at noe aisen ting to Their cropssuch OF
them who do not mean 70 feed out o The public and
that they would be perfectly happy il the politicians
would only permit them to think 30. know Of no dis
tess in the countTy,Bo misery, sriie no distraction,
o those 1--WE gaping wounds OF which the senator
from Kentucky made enumeration on the five fingers of
his left hand, and fcl the healing Of which, all together,
and all at snce and moi one Al tme like the little Doc
TOT Taylor he has provided this capacious plaster in the
shape of tive old bills lacked together know nothing
Of all this nor OF any distress The country since got
rid Of the Bank Of the United States and since we got
possession Of the gold currency Since that time have
heard OF no pecuniay basiaess DISTRESS rotten
rency expansions and coniractlOns deranged ex
changes, decline OF public stocks laborers begging
employment produce roting upon the hands Of the
farmer property sacrificed forced sales, loss OF
confidence, three per cent month interest, call
for bankrup, act Never were the peope--the busi-
are 10 day AS for political distress, 81 all III my
eye" II is all among iae politicians. Never the
political blessings Of the country greater than at present
civil and religious liberty eminenty enjoyed; NE
liberty, and property protecied the North and the
South returning to the old belief, that they made
for each other and peace and plenty regnng through
the land. This is the condition OF sthe couniryhap-
py in the extreme and listen with amazement to the
cials which have heard this floor strife and con
tcnon, gaping wounds and streaming blood distress and
misery. feel mysihed. The senator from Kentucky,
r Clay chairman ot the committee, and reporter OF
the bill, and It's pathetic advocate, formerly delivered
many such ecita about ile lines that the tariff was 10
be increased, the National Bank chatter TO be
the deposltes to be restored. or bankrupt act TO be
passed. He has been abseni Tor years and.
turning among us. seems e osgla where he LETT on
take. There Is none OF IL ami ii there the remedy
would be in ths hands OF the peope-in the hearts OF
peope-who love their country and TO take OF
and not in the coniriyances OF politicians, who mis-
take their own for their countfys distress II is al
mistake II looks to me like joke. But when recol.
lect the imposing number OF lne committee, and how
dislingushed they all we're, and how they voted them
selves Tree from instructions and allowed the Senate to
talk but not to vote. while they out and how long
they were debeaiing when recollect all those things
| am constrained 10 believe the committee are in
earnest And as for the senator himself, chairman OF
The committee, the perfect gravity with which be brought
forward his fenedy-ihese bills and the reportbe pa
thos with which be enforced them, and the hearty
grauaiions which he addressed 10 the Senate the
United Slates and all mankind The appointment OF
his committe, preclude the idea OF intentional joke
higpa In view OF all this, find myself compelled 10
consider this proceeding serious and bound treat IL
parIiamsnarily which now proceed 10 do. And. in
the first place. let US what rs the committee has
dohe and what il Is that II has presented 10 the
sovereign remedy for the national dsempers, and which
10 swallow whole--in the ump-all or none
under the penalty Of being treated by the organs
Here are parcel OF old bills, which have been lying
upon our tables some months. and which might have
been passed, each by seli, IN some good form long ago.
and which have been carried ont by the committee and
brought back again, bundled into one, and altered just
enough 10 make eaclI one worse, and then called com
promise where there ia nothing 10 compronise--and sup
ported by report which cannot support itself Here are
te California State admission bill reported by the Com.
milee Territories three months ago-ihe two terrific
rial government bills, reported by The same committee al
The same tmehe Texas compact bill originated by me
years ago. and reproduced al the present session-ibe
iugilve slave recovery NV reported from the judiciary
Committee at the commencement OF the session.
and the slave trade suppression bill for tas District o Co
umbia which is nothing but revival Of an old Mary.
land law in orce before the District created, and
peaIed BY an old act ofCoHress These are.the BACH
hve bills taken from files altered just enough 10 spoil
EACH then tackled together, and chrstened Compromise
and pre- sed upon the Senate a sovereign remedy for
caamiiies which have existence This = the pescna-
lion OF the case ; and now for the case itself
II is the work oil majority ol the commi'iee-so The
report informs us; and, IRON the demonstrations on this
hoor we may suppose 10 have been as lean majority
as parliamentary proceedings ever exibed IL ~ the
work Of n majority OF that committee and seven Is
majority OF thirteen that this compromise. which ~
TO be swallowed whole BY the Senate. - the work Of
senator's And VI should happen to be tia, tAe
committee pusposely composed hall and basix OF
aud bali dozen OF the other--soineihlng like
jury de msaiefote flngu9 rs introduced into Brush law
ior the safety OF The Welsh against the EnglIshif this
should happen to be the case, aud bali and half com
mitiec actually appointed. with the precauion OF a
border member 10 give casting vote IN the OF te
then IL may be that the work, fact the work oil
member of the committed But that does not appear 10
The report. II says majority; and upon that basis il is
the worp of seven. And hereby new lesson ia
political ariihmeiie--seyen 10 govern the Committee o
Thirteen frat and the Senate oil sixty afterwards. For,
be il remembered this batch OF bills ~ not 10 be law,
freely made BY Congress- but compact, 10 be swallowed,
and ewallowed whole, under the penalty OF patty
tiop and political dannation. Sir, this committee has
lacked Names distinctive appellaoni and, Ter want
OF CHARACTERISTIC distinctions ~ eiefred 10 numerically m
the report AZ the Committee Of Thirteen From ls COM
POSITION il might be called tho committee dc medate
no, feun hut fsrra Tor IRON different halves of
he land with border member TO sit between, who Is to
perform The exploit hitherto deemed impossible 70 the
ox chase OF riding both SIDES OF the sapIing From
the mode of It's creation might be called the free com.
mee for Il certainly created ITSELF and tired fsef, and
tied no the Senate while IL vas out Aud IRON tbe man