Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1855-11-26
WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP.

debts due by citizens OF that state 90 citzens
of any State wherein, by failure 10 execute
the fugitive slave Law after due notice and ap
plication, a Georgian may have been in
jured and thus to indemnify any citizen of
Georgia who may be a loser by tho fsiIure
aforesaid. 1t is further proposed to legalze
the naturalization of loser of slave property
under such circumstances, by execution upon
any properly in the State of Georgia of any
citizen of the offending State. e.sg
We take it for granted that this bill will not
become law, though wc hold it to be but Just
that community that fails to obey law of
the land through apopular prejudice among its
inhabitants against that law, and by that
failure Injuries member of another commu.
nifty it has covenanted to protect in the point
covered By the repudiated law, is fairly and
honestly liable to make good the injury done.
If there were not a solemn pledge in the Con-
stitution to return fugitive slaves, there would
be no such union of the States of this oonfed
eracy as exists, with its tenfold greater advan-
tages to the North, than to the South The re-
pudiation Of the fugitive slave law is nulifica.
tion in its worst form; because it is reputation
of the plainest right guaranteed and obligation
given in the Constitution. If the parties who,
in person, wrong the Southern citizen by set
ting the obligations of the law at defiance can
not be reached, the commonwealth, which,
being their sovereign, permits them thus TO
wrong him, should indemnify him. And if it
does not, of abstract right he may seek his
Indemnity as the Legislature of Georgia pro-
poses to accord it,.
But how will this theory of ours work in
practice? There's the rub. The frat result
would be to greatly decrease the habit of the
people of Georgia in running in debt to the
people Of the Northern States. In go doing
it would undoubtedly do good, if they do not
make up for it by going in debt elsewhere; as,
the less the people Of such State as Georgia
buy on credit from North, South, or from
each other, the better off will they be in the
end. Pay as you go" is a glorious rule ior
any ones conduct, and as far as the enactment
of any such law would help to make it opera
tive throughout Georgia, its effect would be
salutary.
But not a dollar moro of credit would Geor
gia get at the North after the enactment Of
the proposed statute; nor would any property
of Northern persons be left for an hour in the
State after it could be withdrawn. The re-
suit would be non-intercourse in matters Of
business between Georgia and the North. If
that is what the Legislature aims to bring
about, with its inevitable political conse-
quenees, if attempted by but a single State,
they have but rigidly to enforce such statute
for year or two.
We are among those who are for such a
union and front in the South, as will COM
pei the business interests Of the North to
rescue public opinion around them from the
reasonable state towards the constitution Of
the United States in which it rests Unior,
and we'll conceived plans among the Southern
people, to transact their business hereafter at
home, TO manufacture at home, to use as little
as possible not produced in tho South, and to
cut of, in every possible way, the hundreds of
millions of revenue which the South annually
pays to the North, until the latter shall feel
that 1t is costing her more to be faithleSs to
her obligation to return fugitive slaves, than it
IS worth to pander to the demagogism of the
hour, is tie plan by which the Northern sense
of right may be reached. We would bring
every voter Of every Southern State into enc
grand Society, pledged to abstain frcm pur.
chasing aught from the North, if possible,
until its public opinion" shall become so cor
rectsd, as that the obligation of the constitu
ton once more becomes operative.
We believe that such an organization could
be effected, and that its result would be, in
turn, to induce nearly every man in the North
who would lose pecuniariy directly or indi-
rectly, by this cessation of commerce with the
South, 70 labor zealously to bring back the
northern public mind from the orotehets and
qzavers and isms by which it is so grieyously
beset. We believe that in nearly every ma
terial interest, society at the North, except in
the mere matter Of the accumulation of wealth
and IN the progress Of the arts and sciences.
has rapidly deteriorated in the last twenty
five years; that rationalism is eating out the
vitals of its society in matters of religion, NOR
ais, and politics-in fine, that its people arc
fast repudiating the control Of any elements
entering into government, Of the individual or
the community, but those Of the individual :
and conmunity's passions, prejudices, and i'm
mediate interests. In fine; that they are fast
becoming as unfit for self-govcnmcnt as the
people of France are, VIGOROUSLY; or no sound
lesson may be drawn from the failure of all
their efforts to govern themselves though
equally as cultivated and enlightened as their
neighbors of Switzerland, who, as VIGOROUSLY
govern themselves quite as we'll as We do
In truth, the disease is in the prevalence
of practical and unrestrained rationalism,
throughout the North which is to be checked
only by forcing those interested in northern
capital, however engaged, TO labor with might
and main to reform northern public opinion
on sound principles; and we think we point
ba 1vJi.h -.