Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1850-1854, 1852-10-08
THE INSTITUTION OF SLAVERY.
Speech of Horace Mann -,
In the House Of Representatives, Aug. IT, 1882.
OF MASSACHUSETTS,,

| expressed myself so much at length on the rela
tons which the free States are made 10 sustain
to slavery, that did not propose at this session
! to present any further views upon this subject
But the ban which the late Baltimore Conven
tons have haughtily proclaimed against free
discussions the recent, though as | believe il
will be found the temporary siencing Of my
! friend, Mr.. Sumner, at the other end of this
| Capitol who has long desired to speak, and the
still later choking down of the gentleman from
Connecticut Mr. Cleveland,) on this floor, have
induced me TO reconsider my determination.
am willing to be reas o1ed with, and always CRATE
full when, for good cause, am convinced but
when an attempt is made to take from me all op-
ton in regard TO my exercise of clear right, |
find sufficient motive for exercising that right
in the mere act of disobedience.
must begin by taking brief retrospect
The war with Mexico was waged to rob that re-
public of her free territory, for the sake of wi
dening the domain and confirming the despotism
of slavery. On the subject of the robbery, the
country was divided into wings and democrats.
On the wicked uses to which the territory rob-
bed was to be put, it was divided into North and
South Fourteen out of the fifteen northern
states passed resolutions, most of them unani-
mously, or nearly so, in favor of excluding sla-
very by positive law from v hatever territory we
might acquire. The South did not then ask any
legislative permission to extend slavery there
But in pursuance of the doctrines of the great
ordinance of 1887, the North demanded legisla-
tive exclusion. Every body at once foresaw that
this question would be involved in the then next
presidential election. 1t was remarkable, and
certainly the historian will remember it, that no
leading man of the South came out in favor of
the Northern doctrine ; for the principles of
universal liberty are so congenial to the human
heart, that it is difficult to conceive of five or
six millions Of people, IN any age or country of
the world, without a single man among them rea
dy to assume the championship of freedom. 1t
is more remarkable that any Northern man should
have ventur9d to espouse the cause of slavery.
One, however, was found, capable OF doing it.
| Ii was strange that he should have been of the
| New England Lineage. 1t was thrice strange
that man educated, rich, honored, by people
who had themselves been rescued from all the
curses Of slavery, and blessed with all the eXu-
berant blessings of freedom by the ordinance OF
/ 1887, should have proposed to open half CONT
nent to all the curses he and his people had es-
capped and to shut it from all the blessings he and
, they had enjoyed. But such man was found.
/ General Cass thought so basely of his party at
the North, that he supposed he could carry them
against slavery restriction. If so, then their un-
ion with the proslavery south would make a tri-
umphant majority; and hence the well known
Nicholson letter. But that letter recoed upon
him, and in the canvass of l848, overthrow him.
The original temptation, however, still remained
and acted with increased force. The South stood
! firm. They were compact body of abolition
lists, though the thing they desired 10 abolish
was human freedom. They spoke out plainly,
and offered their support and their votes to the
Northern man, Wing or Democrat, who would
most thoroughly bend or break himself TO their
purposes Under the lead OF Gen Cass, many
of the Democratic party were seduced and de-
serted. BIT until the 7th of March, 1850, no
Northern Wing yielded TO their enactments.-
On that day, however, Mr.. Webster in the Sen
ate of the United States, offered to abandon tie
ordinance of l7S7-then known as the "Wilm, t
Proviso" He offered to give an additional s ave
State to Texas beyond what she could claim un-
der the unconstitutional resolutions of annexa-
ton; he offered to support 'to the fullest extent,
that most atrocious fugitive slave bill, then be-
fore the Senate, by which all customhouse Off
GERS, and the seventeen thousand postmasters of
the United States were to be made Judges, and
to be invested with power over human liberty,
and to have each one of them, not local, bat I'M
! limited jurisdiction throughout the United States
and he offered to give S200,000,000 to fortity
and perpetuate the institution of slavery, by re-
moving from the south the dreaded element of
the free colored population, Two hundred mil
lions Of dollars-a profusion and a prodigaIity
magnifcenhy Wcbsterean am here only re-
ferrng TO facts which, as everybody knows, have
become history.
Here then, we see that two conspicuous lea
ders O: the northern democrats and wings plan
ted themselves upon northern ground. When
the race for the Presidency consisted in adhesion
to the Slave Power alone, ii was not to be cx-
| pectcd that the competitors would be few. Mr..
! Buchanan forthwith caused it TO be understood,
that on his part, he was willing to run the line
So deg. 40 min-the Missouri compromise line,
so called through to the Pacific ocean, and sur
render to slavery all on its southern side. Mr..
Dallas, late Vice President under Mr. Polk, in
his letter TO Mr.. Bryan, of Texas, went further,
and proposed to incorporate the compromise
measures, and the fugitive slave law itself, mo
the constitution, so as to put their repeal beyond
the power Of northern majority. Senator
| Douglas followed. He sugared his pill. lie
told the south, that we have cotton lands, and
rice lands, and tobacco lands enough; but alas.
| said he we want more lands for sugar by which
the South perfectly understood that if they would
make him President, the annexation OF Cuba
should be their reward. This is the same gen
tIeman who has lately said, in secret session OF
the Serate, that if the Sandwich Islands should
be annexed to this country, and question should
arise about excluding slavery from them by law,
h would vote against it, During all this time,
affairs were ripening for the Baltimore nomina
tons. Mr. Fillmore offered to the South, Army
and Navy to catch poor fugitive, where only a
constables posse was needed. Mr.. Webster
trumped up false reasons by scores against Nor
thern anti-slavery men. The President travel
led North and South, making speeches redo!ent
of pro-savery. The Secretary travelled still
more, milling pro-Slavery letteys and speeches
| wherever be went. Certainly the reason why
any of the above named parties did not get NOM
ination at Baltimore, was not because OF what
the law calls laches, or "want Of reasonable dill
rence" on their part,
| come now to the Baltimore Conventions
themselves, which were held in June last. Ev-
ery one knows that the great question OF human
slavery had a controlling influence in those bo-
dies. and determined their results. With vast
majority of their members, pro-sayery or anti
s,gverv was the one overRastering motive and
end. In the Democratic Convention, the pro-sla-
very sentiment was nearly unanimous. Its men,
bers had been sold into that perIion, by the lust
of money or the ambition for Office. Yet even
they were held in check by the apprehended
tbnndars of the voice Of the DeoDle behind them.