The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1854-02-17

- &c" idCtS.
J The original settled policy of the Unite
States, clearly indicated by the Jefferson pro
yiso Of 1884, and by the ordinance of 1887
was non-extenson of slavery.
In 1909, Louisiana was acquired by pur
chase from France. At that time there wal
some twenty-five or thirty thousand slaves il
this Territory, most of them within what il
now the State of Louisiana; few, only, fur
ther north, on the west bank of the Mssis
sippi. Congress, instead Of providing fo
the abolition Of slavery in this new Territory
permitted its continuance. In 1912 the State
of Louisiana was organized and admitted into
the Union with slavery.
In 1918, six years later, the inhabitants o
the Territory of Missouri applied to Congress
for authority to form State constitution
and for admission into the Union. There
were, at that time, in the whole territory &C.
quired from France, outside of the State oi
Louisiana, not three thousand slaves.
There was no apology in the circumstan-
ces of the country for the continuance of sla-
very. The original national policy was a.
gainst it, and, not less, the plain language Of
the treaty under which the territory had been
acquired from France.
| Itwas proposed, therefore, to incorporate
in the bill authorizing the formation of a
State Government, provision requiring that
the constitution of the new State should con-
tain an article providing for the abolition Of
existing slavery, and prohibiting the further
introduction OF slaves.
This provision was vehemently and per-
tinacionsly opposed; but finally prevailed in
the House of Representatives by a decided
vote. In the Senate it was rejected, and, in
consequence Of the disagreement between
the two Houses, the bill was lost.
At the next session Of Congress the con.
troversy was renewed with increased vio-
lence. 1t was terminated, at length,by COM
promise. Missouri was allowed to come into
the Union with slavery, but section was
inserted in the act authorizing her admission
excluding slavery forever, from all the terri
tory acquired from France, not included in
the new State, lying north of 36 deg. 80 min.
We quote the prohibitory sections
SEC. g. Be it further enacted That in all territory
ceded by France the United States, under the name
OF louisiana which lies north Of thirty degrees and
thirty minutes of north latitude. not included within
the limits of the State by this ac slavery
and involuntary servtude otherwise than as the pun.
isment Of crimes, shall be and is hereby forever pro-
hibited."
The Question Of the constitutionality Of this
prohibition was submitted by President Mon
roe to his cabinet. John Quincy Adams was
then Secretary of State; John c. Calhoun
was Secretary of war; William H. Craw-
ford was Secretary of the Treasury; and
William Writ was Attorney General. Each
of these eminent men, three of them being
from slave States, gave written opinion,
affirming its constitutionality, and thereupon
the act received the sanction of the Presi-
dent, himself, also, from slave State.
Nothing is more certain in history than
the fact, that Missouri could not have been
admitted as slave State, had not certain
members from the free States been in favor
of the incorporation of this prohibition into
the act of admission. Nothing is more certain
than that this prohibition has been regarded
and accepted by the whole country as SOL,
emn compact against the extension of slavery
into any part of the territory acquired from
France, lying north of Sc deg. 80 min, and
not included in the new State of Missouri
The same sct-let it be ever remembered
which authorized the formation of cons ~
tion for the State, without clause forbidding
slavery, consecrated, beyond honest recall,
the whole remainder Of the territory to free
dom and free institutions forever. For more
than thirty years-during more than half the
period of our national existence under our
present constitution-ths compact has been
universally regarded and acted upon as invio-
lou, Tn, ccpforpnitu ,t;tb
Iowa was admitted as free State, and Min
nesota has been organized as free Territory.
1t is a strange and ominous fact, we'll cal
culated to awaken the worst apprehenslons,
and the most fearful forebodings OF future cal
antilles, that it is now deliberately purposed
to repeal this prohibition, by implication or
directly-the latter, certainly, the uiaEler
way-and thus to subvert this compact, and
allow slavery in all the yet unorganized ter
ritory.
We cannot, in this address, review the va
rious pretences under which it is attempted
to cloak this monstrous wrong; but we must
not altogether omit TO notice one.
It is said that the Territory OF Nebraska
austans the same relations to slavery as did
the territory acquired from Mexico prior to
1850, and that the proslavery clauses of the
bill are necessary to carry into effect the
compromises of that year.
| No assertion could be more groundless.
Three acquisitions of territory have been
made by treaty. The first was from France.
Out of this territory have been created the
three slave States of Louisiana, Arkansas,
and Missouri, and the single free State of
Iowa. The controversy which arose in re-
laton to the then unorganized portion of this
territory was closed in 1920, by the Missouri
act, contsining the slavery. prohibition, as
has been already stated. This controversy
related only to territory acquired from France.
The act, by which it was Terminated, was
confined, by its own express terms, to the
same terrltoryj and had NO relation to any
other.
! The second acquisition was from Spain,
Florida, the territory thus acquired, was yield
ed to slavery without struggle, and almost
without murmur.
The third was from Mexico. The contro-
yersv which arose from this ACQUISITION is