The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-12-22

Michigan expressed his apprehension, because
OF the vote taken the previous day, ard for other
reasons, that no good result was likely to fol-
low from this committee, that it would be better
to lay aside all the pending business Of the Sen
ate, and take up the fugitive slave bill, and act
upon that alone-lt WAS to this stage of the
proceedings that the Senator from Mississippi
had reference, presume. when he said that be
had conversation with the Senator from Mich
igan, and other senators, who had expressed n
desire to have this law taken up; and that he
consulted witt the chairman, of the Judiciary
Committee and myself and we differed from him
in opinion. | shall not discuss the question ss
to who was right and who was wrong in our
decisions as to the eXpediency of carrying Ont
the suggestion of the Senator from Michigan. |
know considered in my best Judgment that
was right, AID that he was wrong; and acted
accordingly What Was the state of thirgss
The resolutions of the Senator from Kentucky.
Mr. CLAY think some eight in number.
were intended to cover the whole ground then
agitated before this body. The seventh resolu.
ton had immediate reference to this fugitive
slave bill 1t is in these words
7lh Resolved, That more effectual provision
ought to be made by law, according TO the re-
quIrements of the Cor stItuton, for the restitution
and delivery of persons bound 10 service or labor
IN any State, who may escape into any other
State or Territory of the Union."
The proposition Of the Senator from Missis-
slppi was TO refer the resolutions Of the Senator
from Kentucky, and everything contained in
them, to this special committee, which commit
tee, by it's deliberations on all the subjects TINS
connected, might be enabled to prevent such a
series of measures rs would tranquilize and
quiet the public mind upon this entire subject.
The resolution to refer was in these words
" Resoiped, That the Presidents message and
accompanying documents. on the subject Of admit
ting California, be referred to special committee
or hfteen, afterwards amended to thirteen to be
chosen by ballot, whose duty it shall be TO CON
slider the same and also to take into consideration
the various propositions now before the Senate
relating to the same subject, in connection with
the subject of domestic slavery in all its vaiious
bearings and to report, if they find it practe able
to do SO, a plan for the deflntlve settlement of the
present unhappy controversy and rescue from
impending pers the sacred Union itself''
The resolution, Then, was to refer The whole
subject embracing the resolutions of the Senator
from Kentucky andlof the Senator from Tenne..
see, to this committee, for a great practical, and
wise end requiring of the committee to report
such series of measures, embracing the whole
subject committed as would tranauize tho
pubic mind, and make a final disposition of the
subject committed | went for it earnestly and
zealously. There are some senators from
Southern States-one of whom, | more cs
peclally recollect, was the very ilustrious
Senator who then in part represented the State
OF South Caroliona, and who is now no more
Mr. CALHOUN, who thought it would be bet
ter to defer raising that committee until the de-
bate had ended. ! differed from that distin-
gnished Senator with great diliidence and great
distrust of my own Judgment; but differed
and believed that it was our duty--a dnty we
owed to the subject and the coun.ry-to take
the "chance," as expressed by the Senator from
Michigan, of some good resulting from the de-
alterations OF such committee. AS the best
evidence OF he opinions of senators represent.
ing slave States on the expediency of raising
this committee, advert to the fact that ON the
vote which startled the apprehension of the
Senator from hlichigan-the vote of "a to %
on taking up these resolutions-of the "a yeas
II were from the Southern States, and only A
from the Southern States were in the minority
OF %. advert to this for the purpose of show.
inc that those senators who represented slave
States, including, OF course, those senators who
more immediately represented the fugitive slave
bill, went for the committee and ia every in
stance voted for the reference There we're
senators who were against it altogether. A
very distinguished Senator from Missouri. no
longer member of this body, Mr.. BENroH,1
was against IL. Certain it is that he made
strenuous efforts to except from s action the
admission OF California rs n State into the
Union. 1t was first moved by the Senator from
Connecticut The Senator from Missouri after.
wards attempted it in the form of instructiops to
the committee, that they should not deliberate
upon it, Further: the Senator from Wisconsin
Mr.. WALKER moved to except from the re-
ference to the committee this very fugitive slave
question. have memorandum of il in notes,
showing that on the 18Th of April, he moved TO
except from the reference "such parts" Of the
resolutions as related to the capture and re-
turn of the fugitives from services or labor
The vote was taken 10y yeas and nays, and the
proposition was rejected by II yeas to 27 NAYS.
Amongst the 81 nays was one Senator alone
representing State holding the institution of
slavery; that was the Senator from Missouri.
Mr. BENTON
adduce these facts for the purpose of show
ing that 1t was the policy of those with whom
acted upon the fugitive slave bill to let that sub
iect go along with the rest to the committee II
was embraced in the resolutions of the Senator
from Kentucky, directly. by separate and in
dependent resolution. It was embraced in the
proposed reference of the Senator from Alissjs
sippl, IN comprehensive as we'll as in direct term:
and every attempt that was made 10 except any
part of the general subject from that committee,
was resisted by the almost combined vote of
senators from Southern States. recollect per-
fectly land doubtless other senator's recolect-
that we considered it matter of great moment
that these questions should not be separated, if
committee was raised. know, in reference
particularly TO the bill for the admission of Cali
lorna as State, which and some others looked
upon rs the most important in the whole batch.
and against which our resistance was most stern
ly directed, every effort to exclude it from the
committee failed by the vote Of Southern sena-
tors And would ask of the Senate, and of the
Senators from Michigan and Mississippi with
what propriely, with what justice of reason
eontending as we always had commended, that if
that committee was raised, the whole subject
should go to it--contending, as we had more
especially done, that the question of the admis-
sion OF California should 90 to it---could we
have asked that this measure for the reclamation
or fugitive slaves should be alone excluded 2 Ii
would have destroyed the whole plan of opera.
ton, which, whether right or wrong. was that
th.,k tl,Nls. |. L A. Il