Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1854-03-23

sion Of slavery. As an origiEM propSsHpn, !
would maintain this docsrinsa Bg lie point
sist oa it t n na.s been ilias' in
To show how well / am sustained in the
views have SO imperieetly expressed, will
read a few short extracts from the speeches Of
Mr.. Calhoun, and one or two others, on the doe
trine of squAtser sovereignty. On. the first Of
June, lS4S, Mr.. Calhoun said:
..There are three questions involved in this en-
tangled affair. The first is the power of Congress
to legislate upon this subject, as 10 prevent the
slayehoding portion ofihe Union from emgrating
with their property TO any Territory The next
question is the right ofMe inhabitants Of Terri
tory make lais erelading thu citizens Of these
States from emigrating hither Nth their property
and the third is The power of Congress 10 vest the
people of Territory with that right
The TERRITORY rs orEN TO ALL THE CITIZENS or
THE UNITED STATES; AND 1T MUST REMAIN OPEN.
AND CANNOT CLOSED But BY THE PEOPLE or THE
TERRIToRY WHEN THEY COME TO FORM THEIR own
CONSTITUTION; and then they do they
please
On the 9th of June, ls4s, Mr.. Calhoun
spoke at length on this subject. i read from
his speech, at page 81 Of the Appendix to the
Congressional Globe. Having disposed of the
power of Congress over the subject, he said:
81 now go one step further, and propose to show
that neither the inhabitants OF The Territories
nor their legislatures have any such right. Ifthe
Territories belong 10 the United States, il the
ownership. donnon, and Sovereignty over them
be in the States ofthe Union, then neither the in
habitah,s Of the Territories nor their legislatures
can exercise any power but what IS subordinate
10 them" 4 But if the reverse be true ii
the dominion and sovereignty over the Territories
be in the inhabitants, they might ex-
clude whom they pleased and what they pleased
But, in that case they would cease 10 be Terrific
ries of the United States the moment we acquired
them and permitted them 10 be inhabited. The
first half dozen of squatters would become the
soveregns. with full dominion and sovereignty
over them"
! forbear to read Mr.. Calhoun's argument.
1t was like all that came from him-fuf, COM
plete, lucid, and convincing.
On the 18th of July, lS49, the present Sec
rotary of War, then member of this body,
spoke at length on the territorial question.
read from his speech, rs find it recorded at
pages 90S 900, and $40 Of the Globes Appen-
dix for that year:
"The various modes which have been proposed
10 exclude Shareholders from entering territory of
the United States with their property may he re-
ferred TO three sources OF power: the federal gov
ernment, the territorial inhabitants and the law of
the land anterior 10 its acquisition by the United
States
After discussing at length the power of the
federal government over slavery in the Terri
tories, and concluding that no authority for its
exclusion was lodged in Congress, the speaker
continued:
MANY of the reasons and principles presented
10 establish the absence Of power in the federal
government 10 exclude slavery from territory be-
longing 10 the United States bear with like force
against the second class of opinions-that the
power rests in the territorial inhabitants. In the
-, AZ A.. Il
ton of our government, have sought in every
quarter for fhc fountains OF power by which the
sovereignty of the States might be submerged,
this, until recen,ly, remained undiscovered"
The senator was neither unjust nor iliberal
towards the carly settlers in Territory. Hear
him:
!" To the citizen who presses beyond the limits
Of civilization to open up 10 cultivation and settle
ment the forest domain of the United States,
have always been willing 10 extend protection
and such peculiar advantages over other Joint
services he has thus rendered 10 the common in
terest. But the civil rights, the political princi-
pies of our government, are not 10 be transferred
TO those who shall be first in the race 10 reach
newly acquired possessions, or who shall by acc-
dent be found upon them.n
To show the conclusion reached By the
speaker, I read his own remarks:
u
| sources from which il is claimed 10 draw the
| power 10 prohibit slavery in territory Of the
! United States From the considerations present
1 ed, my conclusion is, that il cannot properly be
! done in either OF the modes proposed; that, not
/ being among the delegated powers OF the federal
/ government or necessary TO the exercise of any
! OF its grants Congress cannot pass law for that
purpose that the territorial government is subor-
! dnate to the federal government, from which II
derives It's authority and support; and that neither
separately nor united can they invade the undele-
4 gated sovereignty of ihc States over their terri
! tory
| To fortify my own position, might multiply
authorities like these almost indefinitely. 1t
| may be sufficient to say that, so far as know,
| no strict .constructionist in the south has ever
/ yielded the point that the inhabitants of Ter
ritory could exclude slavery. All have stood
| upon the common ground that the people, when
| they come to form State constitution, being
duly eutitled by their numbers and position in
the government to make such an instrument,
may. if they think proper, exclude slavery, and
| then its exclusion forms no just ground of COM
| plant.
Justice, Mr. President requires thatI should,
/ at this point, recur to a speech delivered by
myself in the House of Representatives, on the
Sd of June, ls48. 1t will be found at page 64s
Of the Appendix to the Globe. l then said:
1.-THE people hold the Territories as tenants in
! common, and all, or any part of them, may enter
these Territories from any and all parts Of the
/ United States, and take with them their property.
! They may enac, laws for their personal protection
! and the preservation Of their property; but they
| cannot exclude others who come after them from
the possession and enjoyment Of equal rights with
themselves.
The FIRST who enter Territory cannot assume
sovereignty which belongs TO all. The specific
exercise of sovereignty over the question of slave.
nv is held in allegiance until the people of the Ter.
rtory ask admission into the Union a State, ac-
cording 10 the Constitution; and being admitted,
the State becomes sovereign within her limits"
will not detain the Senate with areproduc.
ton Of arguments employed by me atthat time.
Ny consistency is vindicated in what have
read. Isummed up as follows:
"The conclusions Mr.. Chairman, to which my
own mind has arrived, on the several points in
volved are briefly these That every citizen Of
the United States may go 10 the Territories and
take with him his property, be il slaves or any
| other des rirtion of property. That neither the
United States Congress nor territorial legislature
,kn.s, ,l,,lA a,l