The Kansas herald of freedom., 1855-10-13

though on this great subject, the De-
mocraey of our day differed with him !;
yet he believed it possible, tha. posterity
might after all pronounce him as great a
man as Franklin Pierce or Stephen A.
Douglas.
This plan of Mr.. Jefferson had ma
jority of two to one of the delegates
present, but failed because it could not
comply with the constitutional provision,
which required all the States to be rep
resented. Ii an absent member from
New Jersey had been present on that
day, the subject of slavery would have
been settled forever.
Three years after, when a convention
met to frame Constitution, the slave
States demanded some security, that the
question of slavery within their own
limits, should be left to themselves
They demanded this guarantee because
they felt that without it, Congress would
pass general act for the abolition of
slavery, and that Virginia might not be
ready for emancipation as soon as Mary
land, and South Carolina not as soon as
Virginia, therefore it was left for each
State to provide for emancipation, when
the fit period might come, and under this
arrangement the slave property of the
South became entitled to twenty-one rep
resentatives in Congress-precisely the
same number to which Ohio was en-
titled.
Under the compacts they obtained
another thing. These provided not only
for the recognition of the records of 9TH
er States, and for the arrest of fugitiyes
from justice, but also that of fugitives
from labor.
He did not believe the Fugitive Slave
Law a proper execution of that act, he
believed. with Mr.. Webster, that it con-
ferred certain rights and devolyed GER
tain duties on the States, but gave no au-
thority to Congress to legislate on that
subject. Mr. w. had yielded against
his own convictions to the decision of
the Supreme Court, but he believed he
(Webster J was right.
In 1887 slavery was prohibited in the
North West Territory, which is now
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and
Michigan.
This was designed to render perrna-
nent the ascendency of the free States
and to guard against slavery propagan
dism. But afterwards when the slave
power began to feel its strength, it be-
gan to cast about for the means of main
tanning that power, and then was silently
created asentiment, that whenever Amer
lean liberty should be in pregnant con-
dition, and about to bring forth new
States, that it should have twins, one of
them should be black baby, (laughter)
or that free and slave State should be
admitted at the same time Struggles
followed. Louisiana had about DO, 900
slaves, and was admitted with them
A few slaves were scattered along up
the riyer-some at st. Geneiveva-some
at st. Louis, and on the strength of these
Missouri claimed to be admitted as a
slave State.
By. the concession of some northern
members acting in defiance of the wish
es of their constituents she was admit
ted. But they yielded because they
supposed they were obtaining, in the
Compromise line 36 degrees 80 minutes,
something positive for freedom--some-
thing so sacred and SO permanent that it
must thenceforth stand as part of the
Constitution.
He then read from the Niles Register,
published in Baltimore about this period,
passages going to show that this Com
promise was regarded as irrepealable
and permanent as the Constitution
itself.
At length we wanted railroad to the
Pacific, and one step towards obtaining
it was to organize and settle the Terri
tory through which it was to run. At
that moment plot was found already
hatched to give it over to slavery. 1t
was not then enough to have white ba-
by and black baby, but all the babies
were to be black. And this had been
done on the wretehed pretense that
slavery would not be established in that
Territory. AS thoughaneighbor should
let down the bars of your corn-feld, and
say in extenuation that he knew his hogs
loved corn, but he did MT think they
would go in, and if they did you could
keep them out, and this too by a line fence,
which he had bound himself to keepup
and protect you from depredations from
his side.
1t has been supposed the people would
aegaiesce in this case as they did in the
case OF Utah and New Mexico, and in
every other, and he had perhaps done
them wrong in the appeal that on the
passage of the Nebraska act they had
set forth to the people. He had penned
that appeal more as a despairing than
hoping man, and he was rejoiced to
learn that he had no ground for these
gloomy apprehensions. 1t was evident
that the slave power had entered upon
a propagandisnl, the end of which none
could foresee, but to which it was al
ready evident the people of the North
must become the vassals.
Cannon had been planted on the north
of the Capitol to celebrate the passage
of the bill, and were booming as they
went, sad and few, to their homes, on
that eyentful night. But, thank God !
that cannon, intended to celebrate the
death of freedom, has woke up the
slumbering freeman OF the NORTH
(Applause-
Danger to the Union did not lie in
manly opposition to slavery but in sub
mission TO that CALLING yoke which would
grow so intolerable than it could not be
borne. There was The danger
While others were eontending shout