The Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, Ohio) 1853-1861, 1854-08-19
THE PERRYSBURG JOURNAL.


ed for withdrawal of our squadron from
the coast Of Africa, thus proclaiming to the
civilized world that the export slave trade
may be carried on without resistance from
the United States. This same senator has
moved for a suspension of the neutrality
laws, existing between this country and
Spain, to enable bands of armed marauders
to invade Cuba from the United States with
out check or resistance, with the avowed
purpose Of preventing Spain from emanci-
pating her slaves, and ultimately anneXing
| the island to the United States as slave
states.
The slave power has always been exercised
against cheap postage, and in defence of the
tTanking privilege. 1t has always been op-
posed to the democratic doctrine of granting
homes to the homeless and such sale and
distribution of the public lands as would
dispose of them for actual occupancy to in
dividuaL settlers. At this moment, while
three-fourths of all the commerce and travel
which would conduCG to support railroad
from the Atlantic to the Pacific, exists and
concentrates in the free states, it is seriously
maturing plans for the establishment of a
railroad within its own territory and lati
tude, by the use of the money of the nation,
and the public lands, which belong to the
people
But the most notable illustrations Of the
perversion of political power to its own self
ish purposes, are the suppression of the right
of petition in congress for many long years,
and at a lat ar period the passage of the inta-
nous fugitive slave law. We have no time
to unfold the enormities of that law at
length. Sui ice it to say, that it converts
and tortures a mandatory clause in the con-
stitutiOn to the free states to deliver up
tugitves fro N justice and service, into
power to 90 into free state and seize tu
gitive converts frcemen like yourselves into
slave hunters, or fines and imprlsOns you if
you refuse slrbvert every known procedure
i'll courts of law, by remanding man to
slavery on purely Grpartc evidence, (thuS
incuyring the risk of booming to slavery men
as free as ourselves as has been done III sew
Ieral instances under the operation of this
law:) abrogates the most sacred constitutions
al rights OF trial by jury and writ Of habeas
corpus; lays our ,peaceablc cities under mar
tial law, and places ropes and chains, mer-
cenary soldiery and hired ruiiians and black
legs around the halls of justice in free state,
under which, and b fore whom the state au-
LI4OIi lies are W CIOuCu uIlI tlCG
roD5 the common treasury of the whole peo-
pie of hundreds of thousands of dollars to
aid i'll executing law revolving to the great
mass Of the people, and believed by many of
them 10 be clearly unconstitutional
The northern states have been again and
again asked to concede, to yield, to compro-
mise for the sake Of harmony; but every
new concession is seized upon as a stepping
stone for further aggressions and more eXhor-
bitant demands.
When President Pierce came into power,
he sacredly pledged himself on the steps Of
the national capital to abide by the com
promises, as he then found them, and that
during his term of Office they should not BE
disturbed, if he had power to prevent it
But few short months had elapsed however,
before these voluntary pledges were falsiliod,
and aggressions unprovcked and uncallcd for,
have been committed without the shadow Of
an excuse, and that too, under the influence,
power and sanction Of This administration.
A compromise, that had been reluctantly
entered into on the part of the north, but
which, after agreed upon, she had refused to
disturb, and which had been regarded by the
nation as sacred and binding for over thirty
three years, has been disregarded and tramp
led under foot by the reckless, domincering
and covenant breaking mower The aC0ui-