The southern press., 1852-03-06

ance to her as mysoyeregn, j cnnot be a tfai
tor In obeying her mandates. Aud, ii she thinks
proper TO secede from this Union--as she right
fully has the power TO do--my duty and my al
legiance are due to her. Sir, the traitors to This
government, if any there be, are the consolida
tonists. They are traitors against the States
to whom alone they owe allegiance, because
they deny their sovereignty. II is they who
would break down the whole fabric of the gov
ernment, and make it simply an Austrian des
potsm, IN which their reserved rights would bs
taken away from the States. do not say they
are traitors; but say, between the two classes
of poliiiclans--.he State-rights men, who main
tain the rights of the sovereign States, affirming
that they are parties to the constitutional com
pact, and have right to secede from it when
ever they please-between them, and those who
deny the right of the States to secede, who de-
ny that the States are sovereign, and contend
here for consolidated despotism--if there be
treason, 1t is on the part of the latter. If any
are traitors, they are the tiaitors--foul, usurp
ing traitors TO their States
The Senator from Alabama further says, that
brought here into the Senate pSiuale affair
the statement concerning him, which Judge Blu
ford and Mr.. Mccall have put forth in Alabams
for more than a month past When came to
the city found this statement here. The Sena
tor says 1t is a private matter II was no pri.
vate matter. IL was a matter affecting the rep
resentative of a sovereign State, and the dignity
of this Senate. And while he talks of expul-
sion, and says that wished to vote to expel
John Quincy Adams--an assertion entirely gra-
tuitous--L can tell him, that if the facts which
these gentlemen assert, and have published in
the public papers, be true, and they had been
brought forward before the Senate when he came
here to take his seat, he never would have been
received among his compeers in this illustrous
body No, sir; never And | am not sure if he
had taken his seat, and a resolution had been
offered to expel him from the Senate, but that q
majority of this body would have passed the
resolution. On this point, will take nothing
for true but what the Senator himself admits
Mr. President, you know Judge Buford. |
know you do and more honorable and upright
and truthful man does not live in this broad
land. ] know him also. do not know Mr..
Mccall Bat now, admitting that there is a
mistake as to the fact that the Senator gave
written pledge to uphold the Wing party, which
these gentlemen. assert was seen and read by
them, signed by him, what is it that | understand
the Senator to admit? | understand him to
admit that which asserted, that at the caucus
of the Democratic party in Alabama, he and
Mr. Fitzpatrick were the candidates for the Sen
ate, and he was defeated
Mr.. CLEMENS. No, sir; never admitted
any such thing.
Mr.. RHETT. Were You not voted for in
the caucus of the Democratic party?
Mr.. CLEMENS. Ii you wish to know the
facts in relation to this NATTER will tell them to
you.
Mr.. RHETT. wish to know the truth.
Mr.. CLEMENS. Some fifteen or twenty
members of the Legislature got together for the
purpose of consultation-not to hold caucus.
Mr.. Ftzpatrick's friends, finding they had ma
jority of those present in his favor, turned in
and nominated him. The very next day, that
same caucus met and rescinded their resolu.
tons. There never was any more of that and
the Democrats who voted for me, represented .
majority of ten thousand of the voters of the
State
Mr.. RHETT. | wish to know the truth of
this matter | understand the Senator now to
say that there was no caucus OF the Democratic
party.
Mr.. CLEMENS. There was no regular eau.
Gus. A few members met for another purpose,
and the friends of Mr.. Fitzpatrick, being a una
jorty of those present. nominated him but the
next day there was caucus, and the other
resolutions were rescinded.
Mr.. RHETT. Well, Mr.. Fitzpatrick was the
nominee of the Democratic party. Wssnot that
truel
Mr.. CLEMENS. He claimed to be so, bit I
denied il.
Mr.. RHETT The Senator, then, denies that
caucus was held, or that Mr. Fitzpatrick was
the nominee Of the Democratic party. lie Ger.
tainly was not IFS nominee. A Mr. Davis, a
Wing in the caucus, (who the Senator says is a
man Of honor, and was his friend,) was author.
lied by him TO express his views and opinions
to the Wing party at Wing caucus. Do un-
derstand that to be the case!
Mr.. CLEMENS, Tin his seat.) | shall an
swer no more questions now.
Mr.. RHETT. AS the gentleman has cor.
rected me in one respect take il for granted
he will correct me again If should fall into
error. He goes TO the Whir caucus. He
authorizes friend, Wing in the Wing caucus
to state his opinions on public matters | say
nothing about the written pledge said TO have
been given but what is the result! The
Wing party, as party, come out and vote for
him in the Legislature, and he is elected Sena-
tor Of the United States, and, further STILL they
have been his supporters ever since. ] do not
wish at all 10 assert anything concerning the
Senator which is not true, but thus far under.
stand him TO admit IS true; and they place the
Senator 10 position very little different from
that which the assertions Of Judge Buford and
Mr.. Mccall place him in. As TO the conflict Of
veracity between the Senator and the writer oil
these letters, | leave that TO the people Of Ala
bama to determine. The facts asserted were
not private matters. They were public matters
public men acting on great public interests,
and affecting the well-beng Of whole State,
and the dignity Of this ilustrious body.
shall not notice all the points the Senator
has made this morning in his vindication, but
only few, rather on account Of their public i'm
portance, that for his discussion Of them I
stated that che current Of our legislation in nd.
hitting new States was, that Congress passed a
law previous to the State being admitted into
the Union for her 10 make constitution and
become State; and that after thus being a
State she was admitted into the Union. That
vas my proposition. The Senator asserts that
Florida and other States came into the Union
without any such act. Sir, he is totally misin.
formed. Before those States came in, there was
an act passed by Congress by which they were
authorized 20 form State and 10 come into the