Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1854-02-11

rghtfuy prescribe the which Will dispose Of
ate 80 the House Of Representatives by
l4 to A. really lSs 81 And trust that is deter
mined osere in respect the countries subject to the
iegsatun u the General Government"
| ask Senators particularly to mark this:
tue the compromise is supported only by the letter
Of the law repeaae by the authority which enacted II but
the of the give this law moral force
equal TO that OF positive provision OF the constitutional and
we do not hazard any thing by saying that the Constitu
ton exists in its observance. Both parties have sacrificed
much to Cancellation We cish compact kept good
JM and we trust that kind Providence will open the way
to relieve of evil which every good citizen deprecates
as the supreme curse of the country"
That, sir was the language of Marylander in 1920
He expressed the universal understanding of the country
Here then compact complete perfect irrepealable
far as compact embodied in Legislative be
said to be rrepeaabe 1t had the two sections of the conn
try for its parties, great Territory for its subject and
permanent adjustment Of dangerous controversy for its
object 1t was forced upon the free States 1t has been
literally fulfilled by the free States 1t is binding indeed
only upon honor and conscience; but, in such matter
the obligations of honor and be regarded
sacred than those of constitutional provi
sions.
Mr. President if there any principle which prevailed
in this arrangement, it that Of permitting the
tnuance of slavery in the localities where it actually
listed at the time of the acquisition of the territory and
prohibiting it in the parts Of territory in which slaves
were actually held This wide departure from the
original policy which contemplated the exclusion of sa
very from territories in which it actually existed at the
time of acquisition But the idea that slavery could
be introduced into free territory, under the sanction of
Congress- had not yet entered into any mans head
Mr.. President shall hasten to conclusion. In 1913
we acquired vast territory from Mexico. The free
States demanded that this territory free when acquired
should remain free under the Government Of the United
States. The Senator from Illinois tells that he pro-
posed the extension Of the Missouri compromise line
through this territory and he complains that it
Jected by The votes Of the free States So it And
why Because the Missouri compromise applied to terri
tory in which slavery already allowed. The Mis-
souri, prohibition exempted portion of this territory
and the larger portion from the evil 1t carried out in
respect to that the original policy Of the country. But
extension of that line through the territory acquired
from Mexico with the understanding which the Senator
from Illinois and his friends attached to it, would intro
duce slavery into vast region in which slavery at the
time of acquisition, was not allowed. To agree to it
would have been totally the original policy Of
the country and disregard the principle upon which
| the Missouri compromise based.
1t is true that when the controversy in respect to this
Territory to conclusion the provisions Of the acts
by which Territorial Governments were organized were
in respects than that proposition Of the Sena
tor While those bills proessed to leave the question Of
slavery slavery in the Territories unaffected by their
provisions to judicial decision they did, nevertheless vr
uay decide the question for all the territory covered by
them far as legislation could decide it. against free
dom. California indeed, admitted rs free State
and by her admission the scheme OF extending line OF
slave States to the Pacific for the time defeated The
principle upon which Northern friends Of the territorial
compromise acts indicated their support of them this
Slavery prohibited in these Territories by Mexican law
law is not repealed by any provision Of the acts In
deed said many ofthem slavery cannot exist in any Ter
ritory except in virtue of positive act OF Congress
such act allows slavery there there is no danger
therefore, that any slaves will be taken into the terri
tory. Southern supporters of the measures sustained
them upon quite opposite grounds Under the provisions
of Federal Constitution they said the STAKEHOLDER
hold his slaves any Territory in spite of any prohib
ton of Territorial Legislature of an act Of Con-
gress The Mexican law forbidding slavery abro-
gated at the of acquisition by the operation of
the Constitution Congress has not undertaken to impose
any prohibition We can, therefore, take our slaves
there if we please. ..u.Et
The committee tell us that this question was left in
doubt by the Territorial bills.
What then, the principle if any upon which this
! controversy was adjusted? Clearly this: That when
free territory is acquired that part it which is ready
in free State shall be admitted into the Union,
and that part which is not ready shall be organized into
territorial governments and its condition in respect to
slavery freedom shall be left in doubt during the whole
period Of its territorial existence .G
1t is quite obvious, Mr. President, how very preudi
cal such doubt must be to the settlement and improve
ment Of the territory. But must not pause upon this
The truth is that compromise acts of 1850 not
intended introduce any principle of territorial organ
zation applicable any other territory except that
yercd by them. The protested object OF the friends or
the compromise was compose the whole slavery
| agitation There various matters OF complaint
The non surrender of fugves from service was one
the existence of slavery and the slave trade here in this
District and elsewhere under the exclusive jurisdiction
of Congress, another. The apprehended introduce
ton or prohibition of slavery in the Territories furnish
ed other grounds Of controversy The slave States COM
\
ed of the slave States 1t supposed by some that
this whole agitation might be stayed and finally put at
rest by skully adjusted legislation. So sir, We had
the omnibus bill and its appendages, the fugitive slave
BILL and the District slave suppression bl,a, To
please the North to please the free States California
be admitted and the slave depots here in the Dis
trict were to be broken up To please the slave States
stringent fugitive slave to be passed. and slave
ry was to have chance to get into the Territories
The support of the Senators and Representatives from
Texas was to be gained by liberal adjustment of boun
Diary and by the assumption OF large portion OF their
State debt The general result contemplated
pete and final adjustment of all questions relating to
slavery. The passed. number of the friends Of
the signed compact pledgng themselves to sup
port no for any office who would in any way renew
the agitation The country required to acqniesce
in the settlement as absolute hlaty. No man con-
cened in carrying those through Congress- and
least Of all the distinguished whose efforts mainly
Territorial acts which formed part Of the series they
were planting the germs Of agitation. Indeed,
have proved that Of these acts contains an express
stipulation which prccludes the revival of the agitation
in the form in which it is thrust upon the country
without manifest disregard of the provisions Of those
acts themselves
have thus proved beyond controversy that the aver
of the bill which my amendment proposes to strike
is untrue. Senators, will you unite in statement
which you know to be conradcted by the history OF the
country viii you Incorporate into public statute
affirmation which is contradiced by every event which
attended followed the adoption OF the compromise
actss Will you here, acting under your nigh response
by Senators Of the free States, assert as act by
solemn VOTE that which the personal recollection OF every
Senator who was here during the discussion of those
compromise dsproves? will not believe 1t until
see it. RI you wish to break up the time honored COM
pact embodied in the Missouri compromise, transferred
into the joint resolution for the annexation OF Texas