The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-08-21
IMPORTANT POLITICAL MOVEMENTS.
La nHfesso OF GsSr,. smisn Ia shs Liberty
Party.
70 THB LIBERTY PARTY OF THE COUNTY OF
MADISON.

PIrrsBURa, Aug IL, l5c2.
7 have obeyed your wishes, aud atten led shs
Pissburg Convention. IL closed It's labors last
evening.
came 10 the Convention With very little hope.
that ii would take what deem 70 be the proper
ground OF political party IL has not taken 1t
distinctly-perhaps not at all. BIT whether 1t has,
has not taken 1t. IL has come mach nearer TO u
than feared it would Again, whilst / shalt 50
bono less dispeased with the proceedings Of the
Convention than feared should De, shill, also,
20 home entertaining far moce favorable opinions
than before Of the mass of tho aboliionists !
think am safe in saying, that OF the tnoasinis
Who came to the Convention there are not i've hur-
ared, nor three hundred, who are not With rs IN
gpirit and ia principle Not only is II true that
CHARLES DuIbee and General Paine OF Wisconsin arc
heartily and wholly with the liberty party, bat it
- also true, that those noble men are ia this res
pect, no more than fair specimens Of the great ma
jssity Of tho Western abolitionists.
The West is ahead Of the East. The ardent,
generous, cor fiding West is not so trammeled az
The East with the habit of circumspection AID cat
solation. Whilst the Eastern man pauses to reckon
Toralts the Western man pushes on to realise them.
The Eastern abohtionists are, however, making pro-
gycss. Aboltopists CT the type of Charles Fran
os Adams viii not be able to Undue with their con-
servative spirit tho reformers around them. On the
contrary, these reformers viii DO continually imbu-
ing with their radical spirit, abolti0nists OF the type
Of Charles Francis Adams.
Il have named Mr.. Adams I cannot forbear to
add, that am greatly pleased with him His cha
sseriste dignity is the perfectly natural ougrowth
pine. Was happy to see, thu. his habit of caution
and conservatism was rot proof against the atmos
pherc which surrounded him here. He made mani
1et progress in the two days-and could he mngle
Ter twenty days with Western abotionists no would
not fear, that the of liberty is in danger Of
being misdirected or harmed in their hands. In
word, il did Mr.. Adams and some other New Eng.
hand men great good to come TO the Pittsburg Con-
vention.
As have already virtually said, the immense
mass convention, as 1t was called, was prepared TO
Il
was. indeed. already on that ground. But tho Con-
veAtiOn proper, being selection from the masses,
contained as was natural, greater relative amount
ef wariness and timidity. Nevertheless, had the
convention proper, instead of appointing a commit
he to prepare PLATFORM prepared it without such
ht<rvention, have no doubt that the platform
wou)d have been distinctly and fully that Of tho
liberty party; but this committee. being selection
1rom the select, was still more characterized than
even the Convention proper by warincss and timid
ny. Indeed, have scarcely doubt, that had this
convention continued another day, its platform
would have been nearly all that we could desire.
What rapid progress the Convention made in tho
session of the last afternoon! In that session it
struck ont the most offensive Of all those wretched
resolutions, which contain limitations and impica-
tions against liberty. In that session, it very
near adopting MIR. Tappans resolution. the adop-
Aion Of which would have nullifed all those lnita
GOns and Implications; and it was in that session
that the Convention adopted, go enthusiastically,
and with but three dissenting voices, the glorious
resolution in favor OF land rcform-th reform
which s emphatically the sister Of the abolition
reform.
came to the Convention with the purpose of in.
aistipg on but two things; and adhered to NY
purpose These two things are,
list. That the Convention should organize per-
lnnnent party-and. therefore, party, which
should be comprehensive in its scope as is civil
government itself-snd, therefore, a party which
should look after all tho political interests of ali the
people. white and black, male and female.
"a. The the Convention should declare slavery
10 be utterly incarable OF legalization.
On these two things insisted, both in the COM
nittee and in the Convention. Four members Of
the committee were with me; and must do the
dozen who opposed us the justice to say that several
Of them evidently believed that the two things which
Insisted on were in their series of resolutions,
and were expressed in better language there than in
yention would not have adopted the platform which
Hhey did adopt had they not judged that these two
things were substantially in il.
Perhaps tho two things On which ! insisted are
m the platform. win not say TINT they arc not;
but if they are, they are nevertheless, obscarsly
expressed, and that, too, while things to the
s1presssd or if Dot clearly expressed, nevertheless
clearly implied. Who read the platform and
deny that its clear implication is, that slavery in
the States has not only legal existence but legal
tssonl Indeed, the platform goes so far as to al
nit, by clear implicasio that State government
10 at liberty, so far the federal constitution is
cerned, to deprive persons cot life, liberty, or pro
perty, without due process Of law"
IL was said in the Convention, and with manifest
influence, that my phrases, slavery Is incapable OF
legalization," slavery cannot be legalized,' &c,
nc are absurd. Indeed, more than once or twice,
Twas kindly told, OFT of the Convention, that If
we're not in the halit Of expressing self 50 oh.
scarcely and unintelligiby this and kindred points,
should be able to bring more persons to adopt
my views. But it seems 70 that this logic, which
had 80 much effect on the Convention, Is Of that
circular kind, which, though apt to be very
plausible and efectual. is NEVERTHELESS. very un-
sound This logic ran after this manner: +" o.
Mr.. Smith to say, that slavery cannot be legalize1.
is Isnsensical and absurd Virginia has laws for
slavery. They may be unjust laws. But there
they are outstanding and fixed facts the existence
ofwhich is rot to be disputed" The circular logi-
clans, having assumed in this case the very thing
20 be proved viz, that what they called laws AFRO
laws, obtained at least in their own en-, very
quick and easy victory over me. Ny answer to
constitutional enactment among the statutes os
Virginia no law, bat every ensctmcrt among them,
whether II does or aoes not accord with tho consti
fution Is also no law provided its pcrport and OBJ
ject such transcend the linits and powers cs
human legislation. For instance, the authorizing
men TO murder men or, what worse, the authorize
ing men 10 enslave men, transcends such limits and
powers and hence all epactments to these ends are
void, and no Law. IL lie for the like reason that a
ssumptuary law Is but nominal law, and is, in
strietness, no law. We are all prepared to say,
that enactments prescribing what we shall cat.
drink, and wear, arc no law But tho reason, why
they nc law, iE simply because the legislature
has got beyond its province, when il pre- sumes 20
meddle with such subjects. And thus might we
argue in respect 20 enactmsnts, which should pre-
sumo TO prescribe the intercourse aud eldcarments
between paren. and child"
said, that We are 81 prepared 70 treat sumr-
tuary law as nc law How grossly inconsistent sre
we thtn--nay, how grossly wicEed-Whea We &C.
ssrd to an enactment loT slavery the name dignity,
and sanction oflaw
To help me t. understand myself, those, my in
struetors in logic, would kindly put words into my
mouth and say;--"Ne understand yoa, Mr., smith
What you IncaH, ane ell what you mean Is, that
shese laws for slavery arc unius. Laws. We, also,
believe then to be unius. lave; ard hence We are
really together" Bat ] wa TOO obtgss q receive
this their kind Interpretation u myself; and, there
fore, would over ami ever again explain, or try
70 explain, the difference between az easst.nent
which call no law, and an enactment which am
Wiling 10 call but an uDjus. Law. would SOY, tina.
IN eAantmHnt fixing Tia raia 81 ip.erns rs HIGH &c