Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1855-07-03
THE DUTY OF PATRIoTs-THIs CON-
ssTITuTIos OUGHT TO BE PRE-

81 r. SEf6VED.t's y fpgsl Il IS
: The present condition Of American pc litics APP
peals with much power to the patriotism Of our
!, people That we are in the midst of a .crisis, no
man endowed with common observation can
doubt. That great curse, sectionalisln, against
4 winch Washington warned us, is now impending
over the country, and il behooves all good citizens
TO be mindful of kheir duty in such criiIs
AT the NortB we see great fusion Of Adolf
: tionists, Fressoilers, Wings, Know-ncthin,rs,
and all the isms. Forgetting all past differenc ss
passing over all old animosities, they seem 10 be
animated by one impulse and to look TO but ne
object Hatred to theHstitution Of slavery and
hostility to the Constitution, bind them togeth er
in firm brotherhood.
That the antislavery feeling has grown with
wonderful rapidty in the last ten years, no OBJ
server Of public affairs can doubt. There was d
time when Abolitonists were but small and de-
spised set II has been but few briefyears sin &c
the avowed Freesoers were but a small band.
They adhered together with a tenacity worthy of
I a better cause They persevered with an as 81
duty that knew no rest. They soon absorbed
| every ism, and gradually encroached upon he
old and settled parties of the country
! The first party that fell a victim to their ,e-
ductions was the Wing party, most Of who sc
I northern leaders were unfortunately imbued with
anti-slavery principles, AS the captains wei 1T,
50 went the soldiers. But few months ha We
passed since we saw whole conventions at Syr a
| cuse, Saratoga, and Auburn, submit themselv es
to the rule and guidance of that once deopis el
Nsect, the Freesoilers.
A Next came the Know-nothings, who affected
tabe the only Union-loving, Constitutional, Ind
St4e-rights party in the country. They aspired
to ontrol the destinies of the nation, and boas ted
that hey would inaugurate great political nil
\ lenniup that would not only subdue the Wings,
but void, after the fashion of Damascus, iost
mraculoNsly convert the very Paw of Denhoc-
racy. Blu, few weeks have passed since this
boastful and ambitious organization held their
n so-called Mtonal Convention in Philadelp hia.
They had scircely met before the northern no EN-
bers, with ONE few exceptions, showed the
; cloven foot oiabolitionisnl. They needed n 9TH
ing in their inane fanaticism--not even the mtng-
oil and sacred hird degree SO lately Landed tot the
sizes by the so.dtsrn Know nothing doctors, and
!, oiwhich they confidently declared that 'no man
: coNld take it and be an abohtionist!"
il lhe southern Know -nothngs in the co Ilven-
tioilvery soon showed that degree, white,
3 rbluet or scarlet, could restrain them T'he leo
pardtefused to change his spots the Ethiopian his
skin. Nor could the whale of Aboltionism be
fooledwith tub, even Their southern brethren
+, in the convention conceded much to them. They
went Sc far as to ignore slavery in the Ter ritores
9 and several other things which we recently de-
developed atlength. Nothing, howeve;, would
do. Every attempt ut pacfcation failed. The
emascuated platform passed, and the northern
: Know=nothngs quit the convention like 50 many
7 devils besprinkled with holy water. But the
2 comfort they failed to get at Phila5elphia was
{ freely given to them at Cleveland, where plat
2 form was promulgated that challenged their cor
5 dial concurrence.
, Thus we now see this startling and fearful spec
: tacle at the North. The Wings, the Know
nothings, and all the isuls in league with, and in
subsection to the anti-slavery men. They have
all combined and this is their hideous and me-
nacing platform.
lst. The repeal of the Nebraska Kansas bill.
ID. The restoration o { the restrictive clause of
the Missouri compromis {.
Cd. The abolition Of slavery in the District of
Columbia
4th The repeal of Il ls fugitive slave law.
5th. The abolition OF the interstate slave
trade.
J 9th. The exclusion of slavery from all new
Territories by means OF congressional irterven-
ton. Such is the platform on which Northern
Wings, Northern Know -nothings, with few ex-
ceptons, Northern Abo ltionists, Northern Free
; sellers, and all the isms will unite The question
. arises, what, under such circumstances, is the
duty of the friends Of law, order, the Constitu-
ton, and the rights and institutions Of the States
, We care not by what names they may hitherto
have been known. They may have been Demo
Gratis or Whigs-theyn even have been Know
nothings-yet if they love their country and de-
sire to preserve the Union, il is their bounden
duty to unite against the great enemy
; that has taken the field against them. How
, this union can and ought TO be effected we will
briefly proceed to show.
But one party in this country, as National
party, holds the true theory. But one party, as
, National party, mai ntains the Constitution and
State rights. u has done so in sunshine and in
storm. 1t has seen ias old antagonist, the Wing
party, fall down and worship the idol Of aboli-
tionism; it has seen its new antagonist, the
northern know-nothing party, do the self-same
thng-but it still stands the friend Of the States
, and the bulwark of the Constitution. This is
the DEMOCRATIC PARTY. True, il has suf.
fercd in the North from desertion and treachery.
The soft Establishments that overcarne the whole
Northern Wing and Know-nothng parties could
notfail to allure some Of the mercenary men who
E called themselves Democrats. Such men desert
, ed us, and we are happy TO be rid Of them. The
only rofes from the North for the repeal Of the
Missouri compromise were given by Democrats.
i The only votes Chat we arc aware of given by
northern against Mr.. Eliot's proposition in
the last Congress, to repeal the fugitive slave
= law, were given by Democrats!
n Then we say that.the Democratic party is til q
only National, Constitutional, State Rights con-
$ sentative party. 1t therefore behoevcs every
\ Matt