Southern standard. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1851-1856, 1852-05-01
The Whlg Caucus at WaShlngtOn---Sc0tta and
the Fugitive LaW--Tr0Hble I'm the Camp.

I
fcus held in the capital on Friday night, for the
nnrnose of arranging the time and place for the
WHO national Convention. As our readers will
have discovered there was involved IN that causus
the most important movement, by all odds, that
has sprung up at Washington since the meeuhg
of Congress. 1t is far more important than any
public measure of legislation passed or proposee'
because itinyolyes the permanent question whether
the powers Of the Fedral Government shall be sur
rendered into the hands of Seward and the anti
slavery agitators, far the Wing party are con
cerned, whether the Union, the compromise
and the Constitution shall be proclaimed as the
basis of Wing principles That is the issue be-
tween the Wings of the North and the Wings ofthe
South. That is the issue upon which Gen. Scottis
to be tried.
The two most prominent characters in this wing
cascus were Mr. Mangum, of North Carolina the
chairman, and the gallant Humphrey Marshall, of
Kentucky the leader ofthe forlornhope ofthe South
possibly with the advice and consent of Mr.. Clay,
Mr.. Truman Smith, the chief cook and bottle wash
er of the Taylor campaign, was ofcourse, on hand
and very prompt tomoye-a snap judgment upon
any thing like declaration of principles But
Marshall intercepted him in very explicit propo-
sition, requiring the Northern Wings to show their
hands upon the slavery question, before the South
were called upon TO join them IN national conven-
ton. The suspicious affiliations of Scott with Sc
ward and his piebald anti-slavery and abolition
associations, and the equivocal hide bound attitude
Of Scott on the Fugitive Slave law, were the reasons
submitted for this demand And they were enough.
Mr. Marshall will be justified before the whole
country fer graphing the bull by the horns, upon
the threshold. IfSouthern men submit to be drag
ged Internationally into national convention they
will 90 out Of it with captulaton to Seward and
his schemes and q base surrender Of their birth
right, for the very doubtful chances of mess Of
pottage. Let the Southern wings bear in mind
that if, by a surrender to Seward they succeed in
the election, il viii be the signal for renewed war
upon the South, backed up By the whole power Of
tie administration fer there will be power Behind
the throne greater than the throne itself. But4ct
them also bear in mind, that by open alliance
with Seward and his various knots and cliques of
agitatoTs they demoralize the national whig party
-destroysit in the South-with all the hazards be-
fore them of most nglorous defeat, in the
pItful contest for the spells.
There was q fair exhibitionof frmness among the
Southern wings in support ofte proposition Of AIr.
Marshall but the notice of Mr. Mangun, that he
should consider the motion out of order at the next
meeting, and the adjournment of the caucus to
meet again on Tuesday evening give siekly and
bad complexion to the whole affair. Mr.. Mangum
would undoubtedly, upon satisfactory platform bel
avery popular candidate to run with General Scott.
Perhaps his colleagues Badger, ofthe Senate
and Mr. Stanley, of the Householder ain the same
Georgia, has some aspirations for the Vice Presi
dency. At all events the apparent willingness of all
these distinguished Southern wings to take Scott
and his right bowcr-SeWard upon trust gave a
bad aspect to the whole case-the aspect of final
cavngin to The most ;nsdous and dangerous Of all
the enemies Of The South.
We have our rnisgivings hat in-the second meet
ing Of the caucus the Northern wings aided By a
few members from the South, more intent upon
.tthe sPoils" than uPon principles and fidelity tof
their own institutions, viii succeed. We have our
fears Of just that Sort of compromise upon which,
General Taylor was elected, and which resulted in |
driving the country headlong TO q verge Of civil
war the Texas question 1t is not for Us to pre-
sumo that the death of General Taylor was a Prov /
idential nerposton.for the salvation of the Union,
but we have reason to suppose that had he lived
the influence Of his Seward cabinet would have
held him to his mistaken policy, and that the very
next step in 1t would have been a war between
Texas and New Mexico 1t is hardly necessary to
follow the consequences of such astep at that time
the end, in all human probability would have been
abrupt dissolution OF Congress- the secession of
the South, and the destruction Of the Union
Now, the question is, the wings of the South /
willing to run the risks of another campaign with |
out platform We repeat that We have curl
misgiyings that Mr.. Humphrey Marshall and the
compromise wings of the South will have to Weld
the wall to the force Of numbers or secede from |
the why panty Il tE} cannot, neither
in person nor by proxy, induce Gen. Scott to show
his hand ol open his mouth upon the Fugitive law
then it will be duty which they owe to the Union
and the South to bolt, and leave the Northern
wbigs to help themselves. The late violent denun-
Citations Of the Fugitive law, upon the case of Hor-
ace Preston, by the leading organs of Seward in |
this city and State abundanuy show that there is to
be no peace upon that question-no fnality. 10 |
acquiesence on the part Of the Seward wing of the
whig party Resistance and agitation are to be /
renewed in every case Of the recapture of a run
away slave till the law is repealed and other
measures are substituted, which will secure free
dom to the fugitive upon crossing Mason and Dix
on's line or the Ohio river And this is but step
IN the abolition programme, the ultimatum of which
is nothing less than the total abolition of slavery
IN the South by peaceable-or bloody revolution.
There IS no disguise in all this. It is published to
the world by the anti-slavery societies themselves
of whom Seward is the willing organ in the Senate.
Every inch Of ground which IS lost by the South
is gain to them, and they never recede an inch
VIII then, the Southern wings knock under and
cave in to the dictation of Seward and accent his
candidate upon his own terms, to conciliate his
favor and the support of his allies. That is the
question.
The wings and the democrats of the South have
each the alternative of running an independent
ticket If their Northern allies will not toe the mark
They have thus the power of Throwing the election
into the House of Representative, whether they will
have the STRENGTH to defeat tho scLo,, e Q