The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1854-11-04
The Nebraska Act.

| We commend to our readers the following
brief yet most lucid exposition of the effect
of the repeal Of the Missouri restriction. II
is by Senator Tpucey, Of Connecticut, a
gentleman whose legal attainments are un-
surpassed by those of any other person in
the country.
Speaking Of the l4,h section, he says:
"The clause declares:
"lst That the Missouri restriction shall
be imperative and void.
I'D, That the bill shall not have the e.
feet Of lcgis'atine slavery into any state or
territory, or out of it.
"3d. That it shall no. revive the old Spa.
nish or frehch laws which established or
protected slavery.
"itn. Tint ,nc people shall be left per-
icctly free to form and regulate their 'lon,cs.
tic institutions in their own WY, subject only
to the constitution Of the United States
"lf the Missouri restriction was an as
sumption of unconstitutional power, or If 1t
was inconsistent with the principles Of non
n.crvention recognized in the compromise
measures Of 1850, which so recently received
the most decisive sanction of the American
oplc, then, i'll the organization of new ter
ritorirs by the action Of congress, it ought to
be disregarlcd and declared imperative. II
it bc declared imperative, and these terrific
tories are left, as assure lily they vii b ,
without any law on the subject Of slavery,
except the supreme lgw OF the const tuition,
two questions will arise: list Whether Sla
very is the mere creature Of municipal law
which cannot live outside of the state Whose
laws uphold ity ID. Whether the constitu-
ton of the United States, by its own intrinsic
efficacy, will carry slavery into the territories
and Uphold it there! One is the prcponder-
ating opinion Of the north, the other Of the
south. Both involve meic judicial questions,
and the bill provides for the transitr OF them
to the courts Of justice, and finally, in the
asst resort, to that tribunal which the consti.
tuition has established for the adjudication of
ali questions Of this kind. And the honura-
bic senator from Delaware. who addressed
the senate yesterday, Mr. Clayton. will have
the principle presented to him to-day which
was advocated by him, and Incorporated in
the bill reported by him six years ago, by
winch these grave questions were submitted,
* t,ry ought to be, to that exalted consti,u-
tional tribunal
wv hatcNer may nc tie u'clsonS ol the
courts upon these questions, the practical re-
suit Of non-intcryeutiOn by congress will fol
low as matter Of course II it should be
decided that the constitution, by It's own in
trinsc efficacy, will carry slavery into the
territories and maintain il there, then every
one knows that any law orcongrc,s, or Of the
territorial legislatures, intcrdicling IT, would
he unconstitutional aud void because neither
the one or the other can repeal the necessary
fleet Of the constitution. IT, on the other
hand, il shall bc decided that the constitution
mas no such effect, hnt that slavery is the
mere creature of municipal law, which can
not b. maintained outside the state whose
Laws support it, il follows necessarily that il
cannot exist or he maintained in these terri
tories and that every slave carried there viii
oil course b"frcc, unless the people ofthc ter
riiorics or OF the s'att TO be formed therein,
Sell see I'll t. nj i and to establish it by
the acton oithcir respective legislatures, and
thus 10 exercise the same power which lie
ongs 10 the people o'cvcry state, as reserved
10 them by the express provision Vf the con
,tituton itself