Loudon free press. (Loudon, Tenn.) 1852-1855, 1854-04-04
VA HiNGroX, Feb. 25. 1854.


in which you say that some of my friends are
surprised at the position | have assumed upon
the Nebraska question, and desire to he made
acquainted with the grounds upon which my
opposition was based.
i had determined not to be forced into the
political arena by anything an enemy might
say, but that rule has no application to the
misapprehension Of friends | am opposed to
the biIl of Mr.. Douglas because it is supported
upon the avOwed ground that the people OF
Territory, while il remaiuS Territory. may reg
ulate the subject of slavery for themselves
This; you will remember, was the doctrine of
Gen. Ca<S Nicholson letter, which was repudl
ajed by the entire South in 1873. The Wings
charged it upon him as gr.eyous poliica! Of
fence, and the Democrats, evading the issue
by placing Il different construction up.in the
le;ter.-Subsequen ut the session of lS4950,
when Gen. Cass ;lvOwed that the Northern
construction Of his letter was the correct one,
it Mas al once diScaimcd hy the whole body
of SoutLerJ Senators, including the present
Secretary of War. jud se D IL tlls in alluding
to the letter stated that the doubts entertained
by the then Senator from Mississippi, (Col. Da
vIS. hail caused MIN to be lukewarm In his sup
port ui Gen. Cass.-Col. Davis instantly replied:
II had doubts, fears and arprrhersions, which
reached Ia u conviction that the Senator, tGen.
Cass,) was wrong upon the question 0f the pow
er Of the Territorial inhabitants: vet sir, took
him as choice of evils. | say il in no terms
of disre spcct. The Senator from Michigan
knows thought it was n wrong doctrine, 6c.
Col Davis was warmly sustained hv Judge But
Ter: and Col. King emphaiically declared that
he never did, and never could, subscribe to the
the doctrine held by Gen. CaSs. There was
no disagreement that | am aware Of, among us
all held that it WAS dangerous doctrine,
and one which as efftctually excluded us from
the Territories rs the Wilmot ProviSO ITSELF
Let me add that such is the opinion now enter
taiIled by the President OF the United States
himself But few days since, in converSa-
ton with a Northern Senator and myself, he
gave il as his dee ded opinion, that Douglas
bill was a proposition in favor of freedom and
added. that it 1t should pass. although we might
absorb the whole of Mexico. not another slave
State would ever come into the Union He ex-
pressed great surprise at the opposition it met
with from the North, aud equal surprise that
the South should be willing To take it. | agreed
with him fully, and could not help recurring to
the s;ratayem by which the Greeks effected the
destruction of Troy.
The only quotation Mr.. Calhoun was ever
fcyeHtes," aud il ever there was time VIXEN it
should be repeated as warming to the South,
it is the present. A Northern man, unasked
and unsolicited brings forward proposition
proftssedlv for our benefit. bat in reahty, an
nsldiouS attempt TO steal away from US all the
fruits of our former trials and struggles The
Citadel which has resisted every open assault,
is about to be DESTROYED by the iUosh cGt
dence of its deirn lers in a deluSive gift, which
only serves to convey the ehcmy without the
walls.
In 1850. the doctrine Of the South was act
rs alone."-We asked nothing from Congre IS
we wanted uothiug-the emphatic language
of judge Butler was heartily responded to eve
rywhere-al we ask is, that you will keep yonr
hands off. We want no extension. Let us
alone This is all we ASK
hold to that doctrine yet; and that is the
substance Of nv date letter to Mr.. Van Buren,
about which so much has been said. but which
no one has vet attempted to analyse and rclute.
have other Objections TO Mr.. Douglas bill
which are insuperablc Of themselves. 1t pro-
vides that a ioreifner who has merely declared
his intention to become a citizen shall be ves-
ted with the ri -ht of voting, and thus places it
in the power of the foreign pauperS and crInl.
mails 20 deprive an American citizen OF his prop
eriv or drive him from the Territory with his
slaves do rct speak for any mans conslitu-
rnts There may be communities who viii
sustain their representative in this great out
rage up0u their ri glts, hui if there he / pity
the dcluSion under which they are laboring.
The Bill states the substance that the com
promise Of 1920 was repealed by the compro-
mise of $50 Now this is either true or It Is
not. Iftrue, where is the necessity OF repeal
Ing ii over again Il is an anomaly IN leegiSla-
iion to repeal the statute which IS already re-
pealed VI hat end can he attained, except
thai of placing dangerous weapon inthe hands
of Northern 4 gitatoFs. il gives them an op-
portumty to deceive the ignorant and uIthimk-
ing by representing the South as faithless-by
asserting that we seized the first moment OF
power to repeal solemn compact, and that no
reliance can he placed upon any compromise
we may make, They viii assert thai enc com.
promise is n0 more sacred than another, that
as we have repealed the Misse uri restriction
they may and ought to rcpeal the fugitive slave
bill, and thus revived that dangerous agitation
which all good men hoped, was happily an end
knew the common answer to this view OF 'nS nc
object, but it is false one, and II II shou'u
impose upon our people, it will not upon the
North. We are told that Northern me" Niol'',
ted the COMPROMISE of 1870, and we are no
longer hound by it. This Is mlsco"ceP''on' p
The Missouri compromise applied to the IL. derrl-
tory of louisiana, anil to that alone. inere
was no provision that it should be extended 70