Weekly national intelligencer., 1850-05-25
SPEECH OF Nh. CLAY,
OF KENTUcR
OF KENTUCRY,
On the Pend;ag Measures of Compromise.
Is ssNATE, MAY d. 1850.

The Senate having under consideration the special ordsr
being the bill to admit California Estate into the Union,
20 establish Territorial overnmen,s for Utah and New Mex
CO.. and making proposals Texas for the establishment OF
her and northern boundaes-and Mr.. SouLE hav
ing addressed the Senate ~ ... .s.. ....
Mr.. CLAY Mr. President the debate has been conduct
ed in this with great irreguay single proposition
before the Senate and that OF aandment to part
ular sec,on relation the prohibition legislation by
the Territorial Governments on the subject o. African slavery
And although this She sole question pending before the
Senate Senators have launched out the broad ocean,
and embrace the Of their arguments the entire sub
iect sir feel constrained in vndcston Of the acts of the
committee of which was humble MEMBER to meet
of the arguments of the honorable Senators and will begin
with the last, who has just sat down. The Senator from
Louisiana finds himself unable in the scheme of
compromise which has been proposed. VIII! that Senator
cendescena to present cone pet OF his for the salts
faction and reconciliation of the people Of this country viii
be tell what he wants Sir this finding of fault, and
with the aid Of magnyng glass, discovering defects des
crying the little animacua which upon the surface OF
NATTER and which ndscerbe TO the naked nasraieye
task and may be prac,sed without any practical
benefit profitable result 1t is the duty of the Senator who
has jsst addressed us-t is the duty of all who assa this
compromise give their and better proet to tell
how they would reconcile the Interests Of this country and
harmpnize its distracted parts And say that
upon every subject of which the learned Senator has treated
he has done great .uce TO the acts OF this committee
do follow him throughout the whole of his
remarks but will take rapid notice Ct his objections the
various features Of this report. E".t~
Sir he began, If not mistaken, with that which re-
lates to the recovery and restitution of iogve slaves and
he sald with dissatisfaction OF derision
that The committee had brought back that bill with certain
embarassmens instead OF Improvements br beg you to
recoec that the greatest objections made to the amendment
relating to fugitive slaves from States which not suf
feDg under the evil of having fugitive slaves
stated here the other days what repeat again that
State perhaps the State suffering from this cause,
while the State of louisiana among those States which su
fer from it the least And yet the honorable Senator from
Louisiana, when satisfied with these provisions,
in them objections which nsurmountable And what
the embarrassmenss Of which ne complains Why sir that
the slave owner in the pursuit of his fugitive property has
carry with him record That instead OF carrying with
him. pursuit of his slave great trouble and expense wit
and loose afdavts he fortified by authentic
cord That, say is advantage and protection to the
saveholdea great advantage for that record will command
respect in the free States and will give him advantage
which oral testimony loose adavits taken before justice
of the peace could confer The record, moreover is
cuTnula i've exclusive remedy leaving him free TO
poy the provisions of the act of 1898. .@
With respect the other portion of the report which
la.es this subec-tha of trial by ury-where is the in
CONVENE of such trial taking place in the State from
which the fugitive has fed In point of fact il will be
disadvantage there will be instance in thousand
where the bond to allow trial by jury at home will ncom
mode the slave owner since the fugitive will be found to have
asked for il preex and when he gets back to his
State be will beyond all question, abandon that preext
Sir put it the honorable Senator whether he does
believe that this will he the case and this you will recoec
is proposed substitute and satisfaction TO the North Of
that trial by jury which they contend for at distance from
horne and which have already insisted would amount to
virtual surrender OF the constitutional provision Moreover
il granting 10 the slave only the right which he nds
putaby possesses in all the avehodng States, of esorng
their tribunals of justice to establish his claim to his free
dom, if he has ..a. g.s# ....t F..
Mr.. President find myself in peculiar and painful posi-
ion, in respect to the defence of this report find myself
assaled by extremists every where by under currents; by
those in high well as those in low authority but believing
do that this measure, and this measure only, will pass,
if any does pass during the present session of Congress,
shall stard up it. and 10 this report, against all objections,
springDg from whatever quarter they may.
Sir il bot the other day that found myself reproach-
ed the North for conveying alleged caumny OF their
u,iors by saying that the trial BY jury, in this particular
description Of case could not be relied upon remedy to
the who had lost his slave if had made any such
charge Northern judges and jures, in ordinary cases. in
the way Of repoach had apauded the administration
of justice both State and our Federal courts generally
But urged that, if in Massachusetts,, you require Ken
uckan, going in pursuit Of his slave there, to resort to trial
by jury the question of freedom slavery of fugitive,
would be requ consequence of such assertion OF
privilege the part Of the fugitive that the parties should
produce testimony from the Stale of Kentucky that you will
have 10 delay the ts from time to time that there must be
power TO grant trial, and that supervis ry power
would be necessary when yoI final trial that dis
aud foreign would be called administer the
unknown laws of remote commonwealth and that, when
the expenses and charges the end Of the
although the may eventually recover his properly the
coates, regain would have him than il worth
that in Short he might be largely pocket and that he
would find be had better have moved all in the
ter That the argument which used and yet, at the
North, accused Of casting unmerited oppobum upon
the right Of trial y jury and the administration of justice
while at the South, another and the last extreme from
which should have expected any thing of the kind, find
that this amendment is objected creating embsrassents
the Of fugitive slaves. Sir this is smething like
the cid song ..s".". '...
"I do not like thee, Doctor Fell,
The reason why j cannot tell;
But this j know, and know full we
#. do not thee, Doctor Fell"
Such Mr.. President, their objections 10 this
Now, lei follow the honorable Senator from Louisiana
little further Of his great objections to the clause
which prohibits the Territorial Legislatures from passing any
law respec, rcan slavery within the Territories Did
the honorable SeDaL know the history of that clause Did
he know that that ella moved in the committee Of hr
by bis Colleague DID he know that that clause
voted for by every Southern member that committee
except myself if be denonina,ed contrary what
my usual habit Of denornang myself? Every Southern
that voe Tor The clause whchis the theme
OF the Senator's criticism tday, against my opinion and
that Of all the Northern members Of that committee with be-
eve solitary exception And yet, the moment it pre-
sents ITSELF although under Souhera auspices, is
objected TO
Again. ask the honorable Senator from Louisiana, if this
is be rejected, tel what you pu down in black
and white; put down your pro- ect compare with that Of
the committee, and let know tie full extent of your de-
Insnds and then shall he able pass judgment upon
tbem approving the if and DO not restrict your
selves, in this unsaiesmanke to the mere finding q