Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1853-09-12
SENATOR CHASE,s sPEECU.
At a Mass Meeting in Syracuse, august 81,


Hon. SALMON z. CHASE spoke as follows:
thpnl you, my friends and fellow citizens, for
your presence here this evening. am here by
the invitation Of the State committee of the indie
pendent Democrats of New York. for the purpose
Of extendngIlo them the greetings of the Democ-
racy eff Ohio. (Applause.) From that State,
secured to freedom by the ordinance of 1857
and she renewed that pledge TO freedom both in
her original constitution and in her new consiitu-
ton, by perpetual exclusion of slavery from her
broad limits-from that State, ] say, il is ft that
greeting should come 10 those whose proud mot
to, vindicated trust, by this days proceedings,
is Excelsior Excelsior la that State, too ii
Is my satisfaction and my pride 10 say, the knee
has never been bowed 10 Baal, in the shape of
Baltimore Platforms (Applause) They are
not recognised as part of the creed of any party
in my State, unless that recognition may be infer
red from the fact that the candidates nominated
upon those platforms have received the support of
their respective party organizations. So great has
been the dissatisfaction of these political parties
that from that day which those nominations
took place in 1852, down to the present moment,
there has been no convention of either party call
ed IN which those platforms have stood possible
chance OF approval. There was an attempt in
democratic convention to approve of them, bat
the resolution to that effect was laid upon the
table by an overwhelming majority.
But, my friends, mere resolutions are of little
WORTH 1t is the spirit, the determination, the
resolution which animates the heart oflhe people,
upon which we must rely TO carry US through the
crisis which now impends. In my humble iudg-
ment, there has been greater political error COM
mitted, than was committed by the preparation
and the enforced adoption of these platforms, by
the Wing and Democratic parties in 1852. Who
does not know that those slavery resolutions have
met with the hearty and intelligent appreciation
of scarcely any portion of the free States Did
the delegates from my own State acqulesce in
the platform because they loved ii? Not at ALL
We know perfectly well with what scorn and
contempt it was treated throughout the State =
They acquiesced from fear that if they did not
adhere to the platform, the Wing party, under
the banner of 'Compronse,' would achieve a
a victory in the coming election That was one
reason. Another was, because leading statesmen
had been previously committed to this platform,
in the course of the passage of the Compromise
through Congress.
Now, at the risk of being somewhat tedious,
wshto trace briefly the character of these mea-
sures in their progress through Congress, and the
action of the Baltimore Conventions upon them,
and to infer, if can, nelligenty, nationally, and
logically, what may be expected as the result
You are aware that all those measures were
adopted during the period Of my services there
The First of them was the assumption of the
State debt of Texas. We know perfectly we'll
that this old lie Democracy in its national creed,
had proclaimed over and over again, that the as
sumption of State debts was an outrage upon the
maxims of Democracy. And yet here we have
$4,000, 900 Of the State debt of Texas assumed
in a single measure. And we know that now,
while am speaking, this measure ofthe assump-
ton of this State debt is pressed to its legitimate
consequence, and Congress is called upon to as.
sumessnd pay the entire debt of that State. Here
was direct violation of the ancient Democratic
faith
But that was not all. When we annexed Texas
we did it under resolution, carefully guarding
against the possibility of the assumption of this
debt. When the United States acquired the ter
riory now constituting Ohio, Indiana, Illinois,
Michigan, and other States, she took all the lands
and sold them, and put the proceeds into the ma
llona treasury, bat when we annexed Texas,
greater in extent than three such States as Ohio,
we declined receiving from her the whole of her
public lands, and stipulated with her that she
should pay her debt herself. In the face of the
stipulation wantonly, without excuse and against
principles regarded sacred by Democrats, we as.
sumed the payment Of FIVE millions Of dollars and
IN addition to that we took upon ourselves to pay
Texas five millions Of dollars for the reinqush-
ment of her claim to public land Col. Benton,
who is as thoroughly acquainted with the geo.
graphical relations Of that country as any man,
declared from his place in the Senate, that if one
foot of New Mexico should be ceded to Texas,
she would not have Just claim upon the Treas.
ury Of the United States by way of compensation
for a single larthiIg. But what did we do? We
gave her 10000 square miles, and gave her S.
100000 for relinquishing her claim to the residue.
We did it under menace too, for Texas was then
threatning to invade the territory of the United
States, and take by force the garrlsons Of New
Mexico. recolect, when | made poor speech
in the Senate, against that measure, was an
swered by distinguished Wing Senator, that be
would prefer that the line between US and Texas
should be traced in yellow, rather than red that
Is that copous showers Of gold should be scatter
ed along the line, rather than risk an invasion
from Texas. And what added much to this
remarkable speech was the fact, that at that very
time Texas had memorial before both Houses
of Congress, asking for a regiment of IT, S SOL
diers to keep off the Camanches.
Well, we gave Texas five millions, and this is
one of the compromises. know the money can
not be recalled, but 1t is important TO look at the
character of this compromise for the purpose of
determining the merits of the actors in it. The
money is gone, and more is likely to follow, but
IL Is OT you ~ ueleIDHe whether lDdl small De Inc
case or not, and you pass your judgment upon
the actors in this compromise, upon those who
violated the principles Of the democratic faith,
and paid this enormous sum upon SO shallow
pretext.
Another compromise was in respect TO the ter
rltories. New York was blazing all over, in IA
vor of maintaining the freedom Of these terrific
rles. No man rislted himself before the people
here, or in the State Of Ohio, except upon
pledge to maintain the freedom of these territor.
les inyiolate. Well, we got together Congress
with majority in the House pledged 10 the Pro-
viso, and with the Senators of IA free States
instructed in favor Of the Provso, with every
prospect that it would pass both Houses of Con-
gress But soon this thing was changed. Gen.
Taylor's plan came 10 be thought Of lavorably by
great many That plan was not the plan which
the people of the free States had anticipated and
for which they had been voting and wishing
What was the plan the people wanted! It was
that this territory should be organized and the
Proviso' applied to it, as it was to the Northwest
territory and that these norions of The ferritorv