The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1850-08-02

this floor and elsewhere that you shall establish
slavery in the Territories. have endeavored to
show that you have no power to do so. Slavery
Is " fixed fact = IN your system. We ask pro-
lection against all hostile impedments to the in
PRODUCTION and peaceable enjoyment of all our
property in the Territories. Whether these I'M
pediments arise from foreign laws or from any
NJ pretended domestic authority, we hold It to be
your duty to remove them Foreign laws can
only exist in acquired territory by your will, ex-
I press or implied. Ii is fraud on our rights to
permit them to remain to our prejudice This
new doctrine, asserting the right of the squatters
on the public domain to assume sovereignty over
II, in its Territorial state, was concocted only for
a Presidential campaign. 1t failed of its purpose,
and is now brought into general contempt. Ii is
believed to be without a defender except in its
puiatiye father Congress alone has the right to
legslnte for the Territories until they shall be pre-
pared for admission into the Union.
AT that period they have the right to form such
government as they may prefer, with the sole re-
striction that it shall be republican. When they
shall be admitted, and what shall be their bounda
ries, and who shall participate in the formation
of their government, proper subjects for legis-
lative discretion. Congress has no power over
the character Of their domestic institutions. Act
ing upon these principles, at the last session OF
4 Congress, gave my support to the bill for the
admission OF California into the Union, introdu-
ced by gentleman from Virginia Mr.. PREsToN,
Il who now, with so much honor to himself and ad-
vantage to the country, presldes over one OF the
great departments Of this Government. That bill
authorized the people Of California to form their
own institutions according to their own wishes.
Northern gentlemen thrust in theirant-saver pro-
= yiso, and the bill was defeated. Now find the same
gentlemen oyer-zealous for the admission of Cali
forna. 1t is from no just regard to sound prnci-
Piles that they have changed their action The
people of California have inserted the proviso for
them; they have thus secured their end, and
therefore change their policy. My objections to
the California bill Of the last session were numer
, GUS and grave, but it had the great advantage oil
settling the whole question without anyviolation
Of sound principles. | therefore overcarne my
objections, and gave it my cordial and earnest
support. The bill now before us for the admis-
sion OF California has not that merit. 1t has all
the objections that existed against the former bill
with still greater ones superadded and is without
the merit of closing the question. 1t settles no
thing but the addition of another non-savehodng
State to the Union, thus giving the predomnating
interest additional power to settle more fully the
territorial questions which it leaves unadiused.
In this state of the question cannot receive my
: support ,.,
clude slavery from the Territories, rely rather on
majority than principle to support it. They at:
firm, with singular ignorance Of, or want of fdeli
ty to- the facts, that Congress has, from the begin
ming Of the Government, uniformly claimed, and
repeatedly exercised, the power to discourage
slavery and to exclude it from the Territories
My investigation Of the subject has satisfied my
own mind that neither position is sustained by q
single precedent. exclude, ofcourse, Legislation
prohibition the African slave trade; and hold the
ordinance of 1887 not to be within the principle as
serted. For the first thirty years Of our history
this general duty to protect this great interest
equally with every other, was universally admit
ted and fairly performed by every department O.
the Government. The act OF 1893 was passed Il
secure the delivery up offugitives from labor escap
ing to the nonsavehoding States; your navigation
laws authorized their transportation on the higl
seas. The Government demanded, and repeated
ly received, compensation for the owners OF slaves
for injuries sustained in these lawful voyages by
the interference OF foreign governments. IL not
only protected us upon the high seas, but followed
us to foreign lands, where we had been driven
by the dangers of the sea- and protected slave pro-
perty when thus cast even within the jurisdcti IN
Of hostile municipal laws. The slave property Of
our people was protected against the ncurslons OF
4 Indians by your military power and public trea-
ties. The citizens of Georgia have received hum
dreds Of thousands of dollars through your treaties
for Indian depredations upon this species Of pro-
: perty. That clause Of the treaty of Client which
provided compensation for property destroyed or
J taken by the British Government, placed slavery
precisely upon the same ground with other pro-
perty; and New England man Mr.. Adams
ably and faithfully maintained the rights Of the
stakeholder under it at the Court Of st. James,
Then the Government was administered accord
ing to the Constitution and not according to what
is now called "the spirit ofthe age" Those leg
isators looked for political powers and public du-
ties in the organic law which political communities
had laid down for their guidance and government
Humanity -mongers, atheistcal socialists, who
would upturn the moral, social, and political oun-
dations of society, who would substitute the folly
of men for the wisdom Of God, were then Justly
considered as the enemies Of the human race, and
as deserving the contempt, if not the execraon, of
all mankind
Until the year 1920, your territorial legislation
was marked by the same general spirit Of fairness
4 and justice. Notwithstanding the constant asser-
tons to the contrary by gentlemen from the North,
up to that period no act was ever passed by Con-
gress maintaining or asserting the primary consti-
tutional power TO prevent any citizen of the United
States owning slaves from removing with them to
our territories, and there receiving legal protection
for this property. Until that time such persons
did so remove into all the territories owned nc
quired by the United States, except the Northwest
territory, and were there adequately protected.
The action of Congress in reference to the ordi-
nance Of 1857 does not, contravene this principle.
That ordinance was passed on the 18th July,
| 1887, before the adoption of our present Constr
tuition. 1t purported on its face to be perpetual
| compact between the State Of Virginia, the people
of the territory, and the then Government of the
| United States, and unaterable except by the con-
sent of all the parties. When Congress met for
the first time under the new governmenton the 4th
of March, 1889, it found the government thus es-
ablshed by virtue Of this ordinance in actual oper-
alton; and on the 7th OF August, 1889, it passed
| law making the Offices of governor and secretary
OF the territory conform to the Constitution of the
new government. 1t did nothing more. Il made
no reference to the sixth and last section of the
ordinance which inhibited slavery. The division
Of that territory was provided form the ordinance;
at each division, the whole Of the ordinance was
assigned by Congress to each Of its parts. This
| is the whole sum and substance of the Free-Soil
claim to legislative precedents Congress did not
assert the right to alter solemn compact entered
into with the former governments but gave its con-
sent by its legislation to the governments estab-
lished and provided for in the compact. If the
original compact was void for want Of power in
the old government to make it, as Mr.. Madison
supposed, Congress may not have been bound to
accept tit certainly bad no power to alter it.
From these facts and principles it is clear that the
legislation for the Northwest territory does not
conflict with the principle which assert, and does
not afford presidents for the hostile legislation of
Congress against slavery in the territories.
That such was neither the principle nor the poI-