The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1852-09-30
AN ADDRESS TO THE FREEMEN OF VERMONT
BY JUDGE HUTCHINSON, OF WOODSTOCK.

tention to the infinitely more important cleo
ton of November next. Permit me to address
you as Freemen, regardless OF the party names
by which you are designated as politicians.
This am pleased to do, because, aside from
collateral influences which too often intrude
themselves you have one common interest, very
important to your own welfare and that of
your country And here let me ask you to for
get party, and party names long enough to
look around and see where you stand, and why
you stand there, and how you came there; and
see what hope remains for our common country,
and upon what grounds that hope is founded.
For what is the use or value of political parties,
when all parties and party distinctions are
buried in the common ruin of our Republican
Government with all its boosted security for
civil and religious liberty OF what import
ance to us is the name of that usurped Govern
ment which tramples under foot all our rights.
and dictates all the measures in the admins
tratiOn of our Government What matter to
us what name is given to that usurped power,
whether King Priest, Autocrat or Democrat
IL we conclude basely to submit our necks and
shoulders, and all the political rights of which
we boast, to that usurped power, and bury in
oblivion those sacred principles of liberty those
eternal principles of right, which nerved our
Pilgrim Fathers to fly to the wilderness, to find
IA resting place for the enjoyment of those prin-
ciples, and which, at later day, nerved our
Patriot Fathers to rebel against the tyranny
exercised over them by the Crown of England ;
if we conclude thus to submit, no matter what
degradation is implied in the name given to
that usurped power. Let us look at our degrd-
ddtiOn, and not at it's name.
-. L.. ell
his powers to sit enthroned behind the curtain
and regulate, to his hearts content, all the
measures of our Republican Government, not
withstanding, the outbreaks of certain rebel
liOus individuals called abolitionists, decreed a
fndliter to all these outbreaks decreed COM
promise by which he and his subjects should
have full power to oyerrm all the territory of
each independent sovereignty in the Union, in
search of their stray property, take it at pleas
ure, with or without warrant, and compel you,
or any of you, or all of you if necessary un-
der heavy penalties, TO assist in reclamng this
stray property, and compel you to pay, from
the Treasury of the United States, the expenses
Of carrying back this stray property to the
place from which it strayed, and fOrbdding
you the exercise of all the charities of life re-
quired by the laws of humanity and by the
benign principles of the Gospel; and for their
compelling you to pay, AZ a matter of debt, one
thousand dollars for each article of such stray
property that should escape through your dis
obedience to this decree and that at all this
you must neither murmur nor complain the
King cOnsenting, in the mean time, to move his
auction slave market just out of the walls of
the great city, which may be spiritually called
Sodom and Egypt in which slavery is protect
ed by laws enacted by Congress they having
no more right to enact laws protecting slavery,
than those which protect murder and further
decreed, as sanction and security for perfect
obedience to this decree, that whoever of you
should refuse fealty, and withhold a most SOL
emn pledge to obey this decree of Compromise
should not be eligible to the Office of President
or Vice President of the United States. nor
have any reason to hope for any benefit from
the immense sources of honor and profit placed
by the Constitution under the dispensing pow
er of the President.
The mandate of the King is obeyed. The
receives all the forms to give it
force, if any forms could give it force.
You will readily perceive that the rebellious
whose rebellious conduct moved
the King to require and decree his finality
to avoid the dire penalties of this decree. This
the rest OF you who are not shut out from all
hopes from it, and by it, seem divided into two
parties, called Wings and Democrats Among
you have been found ten or fifteen aspirants to
the office of President of the United States
They all understood the decree as therein sta
ted. They each and all started and moved with
this pledge of giving full effect to the Compro.
misc DIM ba
the many asplrants to that high Office from
said two parties, two have been selected-Gen.
eral Scott from the Wing party, and General
rierce from the Democratic party. All the
rest of the aspirants are left to the disappoint-
ment and regreet, and mourning, and shame,
OF having sought even high honors, by engag-
ing in warfare upon their own rights and
those OF their country, in favor of that system
OF slavery which is condemned by the laws of
God by the laws of humanity by the common
sense of mankind, except in that dark spot in
the United States, so dark as almost to make
Gen. Lafayette regret his sacrifices and tolls
and the Drawing of dangers to aid our Patriot
Fathers to establish our independence, to es-
tabllsh that liberty which is every day despis-
ed and trodden under foot by every person who
holds men in bondage, or who aids, or assists,
or encourages the holding men in bondage.
Does not tins present the true answer to the
question, where do you stand Do you not stand
two combined armies under Generals Scott and
Pierce upon the battle mount pledged to sup
port two platforms, which gre two twin-drag-
0ns, threatening fire. brands, arrows, and death,
to all who oppose them, while they fight the
battles of King Slavery As it respects the
warfare between Freedom and Slavery, these
two armies are combined AS it respects the
question who shall receive the spoils of victory,
and divide them among his coadjutors, this, |
suppose, must be decided in favor of that gen
eral who most manfully fights the battles of
Slavery
Does any one pretend, or can any one pre-
tend, with any plausibility, that the state and
character OF the two platforms and of the Gen
erals to carry those platforms into effect, is not
here truly presented We think not What,
then, is the ground Of controversy between the
two parties, as they strive for the mastery be-
tween each other ! So far rs we can learn,
each party urges that his General is the most
tit person to conduct the army to victory and
divide the spos each utterlng many things
tending to show the unfitness of the rival Gen
erals for this great work of party conquest.
shall not trouble you with any comparison be-
tween the two Generals, as to their fitness or
unftness to lead the forces on to battle, or to
divide the spoils But upon one point like Eli.
hu of old, | will show my opinion. And it is
my decided opinion, that in each State in the
Union there are not less than eight or ten or
dozen men as fit, in point of suitable qualf-
cations for the Presidency, as either General
Scott or General Pierce; but they have not
been brought into public notice by military
epaulets and military titles nor by the haloo
that is generated by murderous warfare
and it is sad omen to our country, if military
fame is the leading passport to civil distinctions
But were these two Generals eminent above all
others, in point of general talent and stateman-
ship, coming, as they do, pledged to support
those twin platforms, would render them, or
49, 81 H., .,o0k tn ha tho Dros;ao.k -