Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1854-01-26

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requires reference and no investigation; but
havingm lowered general inclination to let
the easy % the Judiciary Committee, / shall
refrailho / entering on the discussion of the
questis,. Il the committee shall have made
their d. q i
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IA From the Springfield Telegraph
saa~sE TER FROM MIR. BARBER.
To the 4 I,for Of the Springfield Telegraph:
SIR Il II have accidentally come into the pos
session. 1.-Two Numbers of your paper, one dated
Decehs- Both, 1853, and one dated Jan. 9th,
1854, ii. ZACH Of which find a communication
from A. 5. Barton, Esq, under the head of
" Trial in Progress-Fmther Testimony" or
/" Further Disclosures These articles were
evidently written to excite prejudice, in the
niind4 IF .the Free Democracy, against Mr..
FieldWf Newfane, and myself, and are imbued
withs 4spHit, and characterised by statements
which Iiow that their author was determined
to accomplish his purpose, cost what it might,
in the way of perversion and misstatement.
confess myself utterly astounded at some of the
charges made by your correspondent against my
self, charges which he knew were without
foundation, unless he believed that had been
guilty of downright fllsehood, in statements
whicEaI had made to him before he left Mont
pelier! Under such circumstances, l claim at
your hands sufficient space in the Telegraph to
vindicate myself from the aspirations so wan
tonly cast upon me-
Your correspondent, and some other individ-
uals, seem to be united in a concerted attempt
to Undue the minds of the Free Soilers OF the
State with the idea that the majority OF the
Free Democratic members Of the legislature, In
uniting with the old line democrats, against the
wings, were guilty of an abandonment OF the
principles and organization of their party, and
that the "unyielding fifteen were the only ones
who maintained consistency of principle and
sustained the party organization. 1t becomes
necessary, in the first place, to examine the
claim to exalted purity on the part OF those who
thus arraign U.s. =.
Before the assembling of the legislature, it
was generally thought, by men OF all parties
that if any union was effected, it would be be
tween the two minority parties. SO tar as l
had any communication with Free Sellers, that
was not only their expectation, but their wish.
So strong was the feeling inclined that way,
that thought it would be likely to operate
against our obtaining as favorable results tor
our party, as we might, if it was understood
that we should not make such an arrangement
with the old line democrats, unless they would
unite on as favorable terms as the wings. Toput
our friends on their guard against committing
themselves to a union with the old liners alone.
| wrote, u short time before the setting of the
legislature, a communication to the Green Noun
tain Freeman, over the signature Of ARIsTlDEs,
in which took the ground, that although it
would be most natural for the two smaller par
ties to unite against the predominant party,
considering that their views upon matters OF
State policy, and upon other political questions,
independent of slavery, were more nearly iden-
teal than those of the Free Soil and Wing par
ties, ys< that it did by no means follow, that
the Ua.i2n must necessarily be between the two
democr Pic parties-that, with the Free Democ-
racy, N issues crossing out of slavery were par
amount, and that, having power in the legisla-
ture, they ought to WELD it in the manner best
calculated to advance their own principles, and
that if the old line democracy were not dis
posed to treat us and our principles with as
much respect as the wings, we should unite
with the latter. Soon after, the Burlington
Sentinel having come out with manifesto
against its party helping to elect Free Soil
Senator, replied to it in another communica-
ton to the Freeman, over the signature, think,
of" A JeferSonian Democrat" which was pub
lished in the same paper with the former one.
To those who assert or think that | went to
Montpelier, committed to bring about coali-
ton with the old line democrats, at all events,
| refer to those commune ations, as containing
moof flat &C urie1 no 8 lch ground They wer
written before the assembling of the Legislature,
and were written without my ever having had
any consultation with any wing or old line dem
ocrat about union with either of the parties.
About the time that these communications APP
peared in the Freeman, was at Brandon, and
was conversing with the editor of the PrSt in
relation to this very topic, in which converse
ton he informed me that he was opposed to
forming any alliance with the whigs-that they
were oyerbearing and insolent-had used all
their power to crush the Free Democracy-that
nothing could be done to cffectually secure the
ascendancy of our own party until their supre-
macy in the State was overthrown-and that he
his paper in which he had assumed the ground
that the Free Sellers ought to make no union
with the Wings l demonstrated with him
against taking that position, as its tendency
would be to prevent our using our power to the
best advantage in the legislature-that even il
all he should say was true, it did not follow that
we might not find it necessary to unite with the
wings, as the best means of accomplishing the
success Of our own principles. He said that
his paper was then in type, and he could not
change it. | have been frequently charged with
writing that article, and particularly by your
correspondent at Montpelier. He referred to
that article as written by me, and proclaimed il
as proof positive that | came to Montpelier with
a fixed determination not to unite with the wings
ION any terms. He even insinuated it against me,
after had positively denied its authorship to
him, and stated to him my conversation with the
editor of the Post in relation to it, in presence
OF that editor, who confirmed to Mr.. Barton
himself the truth of what stated | have
never heard of Mr.. BIS retracting that charge
| never expect to- inasmuch as find him reit-
Grating other charges against me which | have
as explicitly denied as the above, and as
will show before close my communications.
The "unyielding" or ''immortal'' ''fiftcen, v
as they style themselves or have been styled by
others, charge the majority of the Free Soil
members of the legislature, with having aban-
doned their protessed principles-with having
been guiltysof deretction Of principles, in
forming a coalition with the old hne pro-slarery
democrats. The dereliction consists, we are IN
formed, in voting for the candidates of party,
committed to a pro-slavery platform. They
charge that whatever may be the personal opin-
ion of John s. Robinson, Jefferson p. Kidder,
and John Page, on the subject of slavery, its
extension and domination, they are connected
with, and supporters Of, party whose creed is
to support the principles of their party. II
this doctrine is correct, it will apply with,
equal force to the support of the candidates of
any other party which is pro-slavery, as well as
the democratic party. fit is an abandonment
of principles to vote for the candidates of the
old line party, it would be like abandonment
to vote for the candidates of any other party
which is equally pro-slavery. Tried by the rule
which the "unyielding fifteen" lay down to
determine whether party is pro-savery and
its candidates pro-slavery, the Wing party is