Daily national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1854, 1854-03-11
In Senate, Thursday Ma,th 2, 1884.

The Senate resumed the consideration, as ii \
Committee Of the Whole, Of the bill to organiz
the Territory Of Nebraska
The pending question was the amendmen
submitted on the 18th Of February, by Mi
Chase, to add TO the l4th section Of the snbsti
tute reported from tho Committee on Terrific
rice, e amended on the motion Of MIR Doug
las, the words
Under which the people Of the Territory
through their appropriate representatives, may
if they see fit, prohibit the existence Of SLAYER
therein
So that the part Of the section relating /, /
that matter would read
That the Constitution, and oil laws of lii,
United States which are not locally inapplica
BILE shall have the same force and effect with
in the said Territory Of Nebraska as elsewhers
within the United States except the eight
section of the act preparatory to che admission
Of Missouri into tho Union, approved March
1920; which, being inconsistent with the prins
ciples of non-intervention by Congress will
Slavery in the States and Territories, as recog
Missed by the legislation of 1850, commonly
called the Compromise measures, is hereby del
clared imperative and void, it being the trud
intent and meaning of this act not to lcgislat(
Slavery into any Territory or State, nor to ex
clude it therefrom, but to leave the people
thereof perfectly free to form and regulate
their domestic institutions in their own way
subject only to the Constitution Of the United
States, under which the people Of the Terrific
~, through their appropriate representatives
may, if they see Rt, prohibit the existence Of
Slavery thereinn
Mr.. CLAYTON continued and concluded the
speech which he commenced yesterday.
Mr.. CHASE. Mr. President, what desire
"a, La, 49, 20 Al
clearly-understood and distinct vote, upon
which each Senator will be willing to stand
before the country---is the question, whether
or not, under this bill, the Senate propose to
leave the disposition Of this subject Of Slavery
in fact to the people Of the Territories? Sir
this is no idle question When first proposed
this amendment, the Senator from Michigan
Mr.. Cass well said that behind the question
which arose upon the Words subject only to
the Constitution of the United StatesO lay the
really great question to be settled, whether or
not, under that Constitution, the people Of the
Territory could exclude Slavery? Now, what
have we heard advanced on this floor in re-
spect to that matter? The Senator from Mis-
sissippi, Mr. Brown, the Senator from South
Carolina Mr.. Butler, and the Senator fropl
Virginia, Mr.. Hunter, and, as | understood
him, also, the Senator from New Jersey, Mr..
Thomson, and perhaps other Senators, have
taken the broad ground that under the Consti-
tuition of the United States, Slavery is, at the
moment of acquisition, ipso fdcto EXTENDED into
the Territories, and that all exclusion, Congress
slonal or Territorial is an unconstitutional inter-
ference with the vested right Of the Shareholder
to introduce his slaves into every national Ter
ritory, and hold them there These Senators
do not take the ground Of the Senator from
Michigan at all. They do not say that the
people of the Territories have an inalienable
right q sovereignty, in virtue Of which they
can, If they choose, exclude Slavery. They do.
not say that or anything like it, They do not
deny, as the Senator from Michigan doee, the
right Of Congress to legislate for theTerrito-
rice, except just 90 far as is necessary to sstab
lish q form Of Government Not at all; these
Senators say that the right Of the people Of the
Territories to legislate on any subject is a de-
rivative right-that it is right derived from
Congress, and flows out Of the general power
Of Congress to legislate upon all subjects in the
Territories. That 10 their doctrine; and they
assert the double proposition that Congress
cannot prohibit Slavery in the Territories, and,
therefore, that Territorial Legislatnres deri-
wing all their authority over every subject from
Congress, cannot thems Ives prohibits Slavery.
That is their Argument
Well, eir, 1t is manifest, then, that this bill
carries double aspect. IL settles nothing. II
leaves everything open t, dispute and contro-
versy hereafter. According TO the slavehold-
ing argument il confers no power at all upon
the people Of the Territories to protect them
selves from slavery but while holding out tle'
deceptive and ilIusory idea that the people VI
the Territories are clothed by IL with the power
to legislate npon every subject which interests
a. II l. A.. a.
ject only to the Constitution Of the United
States all power 10 legislato on this particu-
lar subject
In my Judgment there was no necessity for
n provision Of law extending the Constitution
of the United States over the Territory. The
moment we acquire any territory, in my judy
ment il comes under the operation Of the Con
stitution &C the United States No act Of Con-
gress is needed to extend the Constitution over
IT, II comes at once under tho Jurisdiction OF
Congress the authority OF the General Gov
eminent of the Union embraces il aud in
their action uron every subject within n Ter
ritory, the Congress Of the United States and
the General Government Of the Union are
bounded and limited by the terms OF the Con-
stitution. The General Government, and Con-
gross, as the Legislative department Of the Gen
eral Government have that power in every
Territory which tho Constitution confers, and
they have that power under the limitations
which the Constitution imposed. Bot, out Of
extreme caution, perhaps, this BILL in it's terms,
extends the Constitution and laws OF the Union
over the Territories created by it; and then ID
goes on, in subsequent paragraph, to declare
that it is not the intention of the bill to legis-
late Slavery into the Territories or out Of the
Territories but to leave that matter TO the dis
posal Of the people, subject only to the Consti.
tuition Of the United States
As have already said, the words subject
to tho Constitution OF the United States in
this connection were totally unnecessary Mel
Their Congress nor Territorial Legislature can
exercise any power prohibited by the Constitu
ton. These words, then, must havo been in
serted, as suppose, for the purpose Of giving
color TO the construction which is contended