Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1854-03-03

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teen Philadelphia LAWYERS TO discover il.
meaning. The Senator from Illinois, himself
had afterwards explained the object of the
equivocal language. The Senator said that
for himself, he preferred plain aad unequvo
cal language, but there we're others, Whip.
and Democrats, who preferred that the ob
Ject of the provision should be stated less dis.
tinctly.
This section, then, was intended for the ac
commodation Of those tendor- footed Demo
Gratis and Wings who, desiring to vote the
repeal of the Compromise, wished it couched
in such language that they could, accord
ing 10 the respective latitude and longitude
OF their constituents, swear that it did or did
not repeal the Missouri act The bill remain.
ed in the mean time, Mr.. Dixon, offered his
amendment which, in plain, broad and dis
tnct terms, repealed the Missouri Comprom
Use. The Senator from Kentucky, if ht
accomplished no other good by offering hi.
amendment, bad brought the Senator from
Illinois up to the scracth, and nothing could
be better than making politician Toe the
mark' The Senator then reported a new
bill, which embraced the repeal ofthe Mis-.
souri, act, because it had been superseded bv
the acts of 1850 This lasted but short
while and was found it did not answer. The
Senator then held a council of war of the
friends of the bill and prepared an amendment
which is now pending. This amendment de.
clares the time-honored Missouri compact.
void and imperative. 1t was Illinois who
proposed that compromise, and he was sorry
now to see Illinois strangng her own offspring.
This amendment prepared in the council Of
war was most singular one. 1t stated that
the Missouri act, being inconsistent with the
principles of the acts Of 1850, commonly call.
ed the Compromise measures, was void and
imperative, it being the design TO recognize
the principle established by those acts of
Congressional none-intervention &c. &c.
He had studied law to some extent. He had
learned in his reading that .here were MANY
things contained in the statutes. He heard
OF preamoles, of enacting clauses of provisos,
but never before had heard of an enactment
with a peroration. (Laughter) This pero-
ration to the enactment was after the stvle of
a tail to kite, With as much propriety
might the Senator have added to the enact.
ment portion of his Chicago speech, where,
by the force and power Of oratory, he had
resisted the fanatcism Of a mob, and put
down riot The question put by the Sena
tor from Massachusetts was perfectly right
1T it was the design to repeal the Missouri
act, why not say so directly' Why attach
to it this peroration? Why should Congress
use this language and twist and squirm round
and round the question. and then declare il
void and inoperetive? Why not say directly
"it is hereby repealed" and thus act openly :?
If the Missouri Act were to be blown up let
it be done. He would resist it. He intend
ed to act like gentleman. Laughter He
would get up no riots, no mobs. Where
is the necessity for saying the deed was done
because such and such principle was incon.
slsent with such and such an act?
Reasons might be necessary for the Sen.
ator from Illinois to justify the act before the
Nor'h, but the South did not care fo the
Senator'S reasons. All it wanted was the
repeal. and it did not care straw what rea.
sons the Senator or other Northern men
could give for the act Mr.. Smith said after
he had completed his law studies he settled
down in the beautiful village of Litchfeld,
where there were many very pretty young
ladies. Old Governor Wolcott who was a
most amiable gentleman, and who had been
in the administration Of Washington and
jefferson, got into lawsuit with petty
bank in that village. The bank, by way Of
securing the case. employed all the lawyers
in the place but himself, Smithl supposing
him not TO be Of sufficient Importance to be
afraid OF. For this reason he got the manage
ment of MIR. Wolcott's case. The ol Gov.
ernor was one Of the most honorable, upright
and sincere men he had ever known-utterly
opposed TO all artifce, cunning, chicanery and
trickery. He was frank and straight for
ward spoken man in short. real speciment
OF New England character. Loud laughter |
mean old fashioned New England charac.
ter, Renewed laughter.] wish. Sir, to be
understood as meaning real New England
character, not such as it is after being trans
planted to Illinois. Laughter During the
lawsuit | used frequently to see Gov Wolcott,
and on every occasion he used say to me.
.Mr. Smith, whenever "man gets an idea
that he is cunning be is ruined" He (Mr.
SMITH was utterly opposed to cunning leeis.
latlon. de was opposed to max no an enact
ment, adding to it excuses. The South wan
ted no excuses; they wanted the act. WHY
not, then. speak the matter out plainly? He
did not know, however, that he would dispute
much about the matter, if il was admitted
that this peroration was inserted for the
accommodation of the Senator from Illinois,
who had already brought into the world five
territories, and was loaded to the muzzle with
two more. Laughter. The Senate should
deliberate well whether the Missouri act was
to be repealed. If il should be, then il ought
to be by seperate act, and not be made the
means OF carrying through measure which,
without it, was opposed and killed by the
South at the last session. This repeal of the
Missouri act had not been expected BY the
North had been said about il in the
newspapers prior to the meeting of Congress
While speaking Of the newspapers he wished
the Senate to notice the very discordant
tunes which had beed played BY the Govern
ment organ on this subject The Senator
form Kentucky bad been denounced by it as
an agitation for proposing the repeal of the
NJ ssouri Comprom'e. aud the Senator from
Illinois landed to the skies for proposing the