Washington sentinel., 1854-07-13
A VOICE ABOVE THE STORM.

A VOICE ABOVE THE STORM.
In the hurly-burly and noise and confusion OF
that great movement now going on in the nom
saveholding States, among the unsound men
of freesol proclivties, to disband, break up, and
utterly destroy all of the old political parties OF
the country, and form out of the dsunited ma
terials great anti-slayery party, to repeal the
Nebraska bill and the fugitive slave law-we
say, amid the din, and over the din, of that
movement, one voice is heard in loud and en-
phatic protest. 1t is wbig voice-the voice
of the Albany State Register. The Register is
becoming alarmed 1t sees that the firm,
honest wellcemented democracy of the nation
will survive this wreck of matter and crusb
of" parties, and remain fast in its integrity. 1t
has the sagacity 10 perceive that if the northern
whig party is disbanded and its members shall
coalesce the abotionists and freesoiers, that
the profigate and revolving coalition win drive
all the constitutional wings Of the north, if
there be any, and every whig of the south, into
the support of the democratic organization.
The Register was of those who signed the
call for the Saratoga convention-a ,rithout dis
tinction Of party When it signed that call it
knew that it was to organize sectional party,
or 1T was very Ignorant. 1t takes the last horn
of the dilemma and prefers stultifying to crimi.
mating itself. It asks pardon for signing the
call-it pleads Hknow-nothingism, or, in other
words, ignorance; and, with tears in its eyes,
puts in the additional plea of humbugged, de.
bauched, violated and imposed -on-inno-
cence. 1t says after its signature:
"But we have reason to believe that the
movement, or rather the originators of it, have
something more than we supposed in a view.
and that their object is nothing more or less
than to break up1resent political organizations,
abandon all Other issues, overlook all the great
principles that uiderlay parties as they now ex
ist, and build upa great northern party, based
upon the anti'slavery sentiment alone, and re-
ly-ng upon the superior numerical force of the
tree. over the slave States, strike for supremacy
IN the Union, through the power of sectional
prejudices."
Now this may be honest contrition, or a SOD
for Cerberus, a tub for the whale-a bait for
the south. We sincerely hope that it is the
hrst-for sound northern whig is, in these de-
generate days, as hnesome as pelican in the
wilderness, or sparrow on the house top.
The Register declares that if the whig party
remains organized,t will not only elect the
legislature and State officers of New York, but
will carry the Union in 1856.
This article of the Register has more of the
smack of patriotism about it. than we have
detected in any northern whig journal for some
time past We cannot, however, altogether
diVest ourselves of the suspicion that it is
cunning device wheresth To entrap the south
ern wings. If wrong, we ask pardon. The
Register will acknowledge that there is some
ground for so apprehendng in the expressions
it uses in regard to Nebraska. Mark its Ian.
guage:
We yield to none in our opposition to the
Nebraska measure, we have denounced it from
the beginning, in language strong as we could
command. We have REGARDED Il as the wick
eldest violation of faith, the vilest piece of dem
agogueism that ever dishonored the political
history OF the country. This sentiment, we
oeieve, IS universal among the people of the
north, pervading all classes, and all organiza-
lions, political or social II is organic in the
northern mind. But the very fact of its uni.
versatility shows the folly Of an attempt to orga-
n'ze party, based upon that sentiment alone
BENG common TO all parties, no such organiza-
tlon can be needed, nor can any such be sus-
tanned"
Now, the fair inference from all this is, that
the Register does not rcnounce and denounce
the Saratoga convention, and oppose the whig
attendance at II, and fusion of the wings,
aboitionists, freesoilers, and stragglers because
of sympathy for the south and southern inter.
ests, but because it thinks that the wings can
accomplish Just as much without as with fn.
sion. True 10 the instincts of the sapacious
New York politician, il locks to the spoils. II
wants no needy and useless allies TO divide those
spoils. Thinking it can conquer without help,
it sensibly repudiatcs all alliances and entan.
clements.
We will not do injustice to the Register. II
expresses some patriotic sentiments; and il is
the first northern whig paper that we have
known to do SO for some months past.
In a few words we will tell the Register, and |
we will tell all the northern whig journals and
all the northern wbig politicians who are op-
posed to erecuttng Tic constitutional guarantees
!f slace'y, but at the same time are opposed
% breaking up the. whig party, why they are
opposed TO that disruption II is because fu-
hon Of the northern wings and abolitionists
would be 80 odious--an oHense SO rank, that It
would drive into the pure sound northern de.
nocratic organization thousands and tens Of
thousands Of northern men ofsober minds and
'atriotic impulses, and because II would force