Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1851-03-27

Daniel Webster.

The late Honorable Daniel Webster occupies
so conspicuous a place in the affairs of our Gov
eminent, that a short notice of what, politically,
he has been, now is, and probably will be, is
not select me for his biographer, especially of
his political life. Yet, the time has been when
| should have r%ejoiced to have seen him set up
as a candidate for the Presidency, instead of the
person selected by his own party. And, when
he openly e%spoused the Wilmot Proviso, and
triumphantly claimed it as his thunder, | indulg.
ed a strong expectation of his soon coming, and
bringing with him an army from the Wing par
ty, to JOIN Us in opposing the progress and az
gresssions of slavery. Many friends he had in
the New England States, not merely personal
friends, but political friends, who urged his Sc
lection as the Candidate for the President. But
the Shareholders said, no. By the failure of his
friends in his behalf, he learnt, that promo
ton cometh not from the North, but from
the South only. Can there be any want of char
ity in suspecting, and even fully believing, that
this is the key 10 unlock the sanctuary of his in
ner motives in making his late political somer-
set When Congress assembled, California
came, with her Anti Slavery Constitution, ask
ing for admission into the Union. The slave
holders opposed her admission, until they could
carry something with it, to balance its influence
in the Senate upon the subject OF slavery. A
compromise was spoken OF. MIR. Clay was about
to propose a plan of COMPROMISE. Soon Mr..
Webster was about to propose a plan that would
heal all dissentions upon the subject of slavery.
A committee was appolnted-a committee of
thirteen ~ Clay and Webster were
members of it. A report was made. A law
carrying it into effect passed the Senate, but
was defeated in the House. But the advocates
of the Bill, called the Omnibus Bill, could not
stand defeated. They had heard of the COM
pany of Jews, who, though prohibited from eat
ing swine's flesh, yet ole would eat a piece of
the ham, one of the spare-rib, some of the Shout
der, &c. &c. Thus they found eaters for all
parts of the swine. So the friends of the ON.
nibus bill cut it into many pieces, and served it
up, ard each piece was swallowed and all to-
gether formed what was called the compromise
system. By this all jar between freedom and
slavery was settled 70 the entire satisfaction of
the Shareholders. And why should not the
friends of freedom be satisfied ? After all the
fuss, and after about ten months legislation, the
Shareholders obtained nothing except all they
asked for, and all that Congress had a right TO
give, and much more. And, as a compensation
for this they condescended, (Oh, how conde-
s%cending they were 10 let the slave market in
the District of Columbia be moved from the
heart of the City, lin the face Of all the world
to a convenient place outside of the wall, not
so much exposed to public view, and also to
withhold their most cruel and unrighteous oppo.
sition to the admission Of California into the
Union.
That Mr.. Webster was one Of the Compro-
mise Committee of thirteen, and Joined in their
report of the compromise system, is now a part
of American History. His labors were deemed
meritorions indeed by the Shareholders, or they
would never have consented to his elevation
from the Senate to the highest office in the gift
of the President and Senate. The summary Of
this system of compromise, the reader will rec
ollect, is the giving to slaveholding Texas
enough of the Free Territory of New Mexico,
to form slave State, and give Texas ten mill
ions of money from the Treasury of the United
States, to induce her to release her claim to a
District of Country to which she never had any
better claim than the hawks and crows that fly
over it also placing no new barriers in the way
of their carrying slaves and slavery into New
Mexico and Utah if they choose SO to do and
her Territories should be hunting. ground for the
capture of Fugitive Slaves, and all the citizens
shall be catchers Of them, under heavy penalties
in case Of neglect or refusal. To this last pro-
vision about Fugitive Slaves, Mr.. Webster said,
in the Senate, that it always had been, and then
was, his opinion, that that subject belonged to
the States, and not to Congress but as the su.
preme Court had decided otherwise, he yielded
to their decision.
Congress having done all this work with the
consent and aid of Mr., Webster, he now pre-
sents himself before the Country as the central
head of a new party, called the Union party,
whose Platform is that odious compromise sys-