The Port Gibson herald, and correspondent. (Port Gibson, Claiborne Co., Miss.) 1848-18??, 1851-09-12
FROM Che Piekens lAiasl Republica
Letter OF Hon. Vim. e, King.

ure OF receiving your fflenuiy letkef AZ an eur
i lier day. Ihastened to return an answer. YoI
doubtless attach to my opinions amuch create
importance than they deserve: but as one 0
!, your senators in the councils OF the nation
You have right to demand them on all poit
ical questions, and especially on tho affecting
Il your personal security and rights Of property
i shall proceed to lay them before you with thl
frankness that becomes man. Cdeseealmen
of opinions, deliberately formed, never has
and trust never will, constitute any part o
/ my character, public or private sAshall neye
1 be deferred from giving utterance from the ap
prehension that they may not be in accordance
with those which others entertain or that b,
making them known may affect injuriousl,
my standing as public man. This is wei
understood by those who have known me long
est and know me best. If fall into error, t
which every man is liable, when convinced o
it, promptly admit and retrart it bet, mucl
as desire to obtain the APPRECIATION of tht
people have the honor 70 represent, shoult
/ feel that ! was unworthy of the position il
which it has peasedth hem 10 place me it, to gair
it were TO trim my sails to every popular
breeze, and violate the obligations | own tc
our common country. | condemn no man fol
! honestly differing with me in opinion; but
have too much self.respect, and trust inde
pendence, TO surrender my own to please any
man or any set of men.
! had supposed that my action on the SO
called compromise bill of the last Congress
| together with the reasons so plainly marked
/ by my public declarations and votes as to pre-
clude the possibility of fmsapprehension. From
the tenor of your letter this seems not to be
the case. A brief statement will, trust, put
an end to all doubt or cavil for the future.
was, as you know, one of the Committee OF
Thirteen, which reported the compromise bill
Without going into detail, | will only say it
did not receive my sanction in committee, nor
aooutd 4, under any circumstances, hare giUen Il
my support as reported. The parts to which
principally objected were the admission of Cal
ifornia as Safe with a territory more exten-
sive than any three States of the Union, and
the clause which emancipates slaves brought
into the District for sale. could not fail to
see that most of those who advocated the ad-
mission of California with her extravagant linn
its would, but for the prohibition of slavery
contained in her constitution, have been the
most violent in opposition to her reception into
the Union. She owed her admission, then, to
the fact that the people of the slaveholding
States were deprived of an equal participation
TO the citizens of all the States. Finding that
there was fixed majority determined to per-
petrate this act of injustice, if brought to the
direct vote, made an effort to curtail the linn
its of the State, so that territorial govern
ment might be established south of the Sierra
Nevada. At one time the prospect was fair
that my proposition, so proper in itself, would
succeed. 1t, however, failed, and California.
| faf Al -
coast. No man could haze felt more indignant
than did at Ibis partial and unjust legislation
BUT [ AM FREE TO DECLARE THAT I
HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO SEE IN THE
MEASURES A VIOLATION OF THE CON-
STITUTION, AS CONTENDED FOR BY
MANY. Did so consider it, neither could
nor would have expressed the opinion that the
people of the South could with honor and un-
der the circumstances should, acquiesce in what
had been done. The constitution simply giyes
to Congress the power to admit new States:
and the only restriction upon the exercise of
this power is, that the State constitution shall
be republican. No territorial training is re-
CURED; no assent of Congress to the formation
OF the constitution previously given is to be
found. The whole matter rests with Congress-
to exercise sound discretion.
As respects the bill for abolishinr the slave
trade in the District of Columbia, to which YOU
particularly call my attention, wish to be dis
tinctly understood. AT an ear1g period of The
first session Of The last Congress 1 declared in
my place an the Senafe that I stood readg at ann
time 10 authorize The breaking up of those Stare
nldrtS IN The midst of the cnv-OFFENSiVE
AS THEY WERE TO DECENCY, PREJU-
DlCIAL TO HEALTH, AND, IN MANY RE-
SPECTS, SHOCKING To HUMANITY. It
was my desire to clothe the corporate author
ltles OF the city with the power to abate them
as nuisaDees, whenever they conceived it prop
er to do SO; and for such bill would unhes
ltatlngly have given my yote-having no fears
thai by such measure slavery in the District
would be affected injuriously. The people
more directly interested entertained no appre
hension of the kind, and think can say with
certainty that nine-tenths of the citizens de.
sired those slave marts TO be suppressed. /.
however, voted against the bill as it passed.
because the penalty for violating the law was
the emancipation of the slave; and aoould NOT.
a'lder any circumstances haze giren nag sanction
to emancipation IA The District of Columbia.
achether as penalty for the uiolation of Iqao or
a1a any other manner; and should feel II a 6oat,sd
en- duty TO cote for The repeal Of the emancipating
clause aehenever proposed
Permit me to advert for moment to the
other provisions of the bill, as reported by the
committee, and for which, after undergoing
several notifications, gave my vote. And.
first, as TO the boundary of Texas. I an fun
satisfied thai IN giuing my support 10 the line as
agreed on, although I had conierlded for a differ
ent boundary, soas promoting The true Interests
Of Teas and Of the whole South
THE CLAMOR WHICH HAS BEEN
RAISED AGAINST THE MEASURE. aTHAr
SLAVE TERRITORY HAD BEEN SUR
RENDERED To FREE. SOIL HAS NO |
FOUNDATION IN FACT.
Many, hosoeper, uithola giring The snl5ect
thorough examination haze been made to beliere |
thai the boundary of TeraS had been established |
al The time Of her annexation, and that her right
70 The schole territory east Of the Rio Grdnde |
from ITS mouth 10 its source, was unqltestioned |
NOTHING CAN BE MORE ERRONEOUS: |
When Mr.. Calhoun, as Secretary of State, me-
gotiated treaty with the Texas commissions
ers, he openly declared that he considered her
frite aceStern boundary TO be line draacn through
schat kno0n as he desert, hing betsceen The
Nueces and he Rio Grande. That treaty was
rejected by the Senate. At subsequent ses-
sion the resolution which passed authorizing /
the admission Of Texas, expressly reserved The /
right Of this Gorernsoem to f.r by negotiation
icih Merico her scestern boundary --uofhing soas
said Of The Rio Grdnds-and ttus Texas came
into the Union, her sUestern boundary unsettled.
The effort to settle it by negotiation having /
failed, Gen. Taylor was directed to take po- /
sition on the east bank of the river. He re.
moved from Point Isabel, and encamped oppo-
site Matamoras. The battles of Palo Alto and |
Resaca de Ia Palma followed. What scas then /