Columbus Democrat. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 18??-18??, 1851-08-23
For he Democrat.

For he Democrat.
TuE efforts of the Resistance marty in Mis-.
sissippi are calculated to put the State in false
position toward the Geaeral Govemment--the
non slayeholdiug States-the slayeholding States
and herself; or in shorter speech, they are cal.
culated 10 put The State in convention assembled
in the predicament Of fool upon an errand, who,
a, the end OF his Journey, cannot extract from his
bewldcred brain the cause Of his coming. A
convention is to be held: for WHAT Strange
to say this has become mooed question, Ac-
cording to he iancies Of the resistance gentle
men OF the presen, day, the objects which are TO
| engage the attention OF the people in their sew
e,eign capacity are to be fixed by stump spec.
! ches by platforms made by meetings called at
the court house or cross roads by resolutions
passed by States rights associations, Southern
States rights associations, Democratic States
rights associations and associations of all other
immaginable. chivalric names, which have or
which still come into being in this prolific age.
There is not a village in the State so obscure as
not to have claimed the right to dictate the mea.
surss TO be considered and the acts to he done
! by the approaching convention. Some advocate
secession as the dghuul and peaceabia remedy
for past grievances others condemn it and say
| that there is no right of secession; that might
makes right; that secession is rebellion, war
and boodshed, aud that the remedy for Northern
/ aggressons on Southern rights is the taxing
power Of the State, which, though we are pro-
bbued by the constitution from using against the
other States Of the Union, can by an ingenious
hocuspocus against said constitution be so WELD
ed against our own citizens as "to spite" the
Yankees without giving cause of complaint Tor a
breach or tina; instrument. The true issue, that
IS, the objects for which the convention will as
sembe, ranges from one to the other Of the
aforesaid extremes.
No one can deny that our citizens have q
right 10 meet in town or country, discuss Nhatso
ever political sGlge they please, make platforms,
pass resolutions, and harangue and be harangncd
but when the people are called together in the
majesty of their sovereign power, it must be for
some great, dednile and fixed object. Sever
eighty must never be left to wander over all the
latitude OF the aforesaid extremes in search Of
the true issue, lest shc might fall into worse
confusion than that of Babel Or get beioggcd
in hopeless Mississippi fog, or be laughed at
as having bee in her bonnet, according to the
Scotch phrase, Or as being at sea without sail
rudder or compass, as sailors say or should, lin
common parance,) get her brains so added as
to lose sight Of her own identity. The dignity
Of sovereignty in such a prcdicament could be
saved only by speedy adjournment sine die
The question then rccurs ; for what purpose
is the convention to be heidi This is in truth
no doubtful question. The purposes we're fixed
before the convention was called. Gentlemen
of the resistance, throw away your platforms,
your resolutions and your stump speeches, and
you will find no difficulty in ascertanng the OBJ
lect of the convention. The true issue will be
no longer mooted question, but it will be a
fixed fact Better come up to the issue, gen
tlemen, fairly and canddIy. Don't get votes by
substituting your platforms, resolutions and stump
speeches for the true issue, for if successful, you
will get State sovereignty belogged past hope
Of redemption.
To ascertain for what purpose this convention
is to be held, we must 60 back to its origin and
| the act of the Legislature which gave birth to it,
Its origin may be found in the call of the Gov.
ernor for the special session Of the Legislature
/ in November, 1850, and the message setting
| forth the grievances to be considered, and the
mode and measure of redress 10 be adopted
The Legislature adopted the views Of the Gov
ernsr, and to disseminate those views among
! the people in an imposing form, 10000 (twenty
thousand) copies of the message were ordered
to be printed and the members of the Legisla-
ture who composed the majority which adopted
the Governors views met IN convention and ap.
pointed committee Of learned and influential
gentlemen to write an address to the people
That committee accordingly issued their address
on the 10th December, 1850. The Governors
message is the legitimate exponent of the act o.
the Legislature and the address is high authority
as n commentary thereon. The first duty of the
convention will be TO enquire into its powers
for this convention will not be omnpotent al
some enormously suppose. Its powers will be
limited to the objects and purposes for which ]
was called. Il will not be convention Of thu
people in their sovereign capacity except as t
those specific objects for which the member
were elected. 1t will not, for instance, have
power to change the sea. of Government from
jackson 10 any other place, nor to abrogaie thu