Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1856-10-14

many Of its readers will understand this to be the
serious statement of fact instead Of regarding it as
fun-as doubtless it was intended And then we
have to ask whether the Wing is acting honestly in
thus misleading and deceiving creduous people!
---.s.-
BLUNDERS OF TIE RICHMOND WIIIG.
The Richmond 'phiS, in its issue of Friday last.
resumes discussion which it commenced several
days previous, and cites us TO reply TO the charges
which it brings against Mr.. Breckinridge, Mr. Robert
G. Scott, !Le Richmond Enyuircr and the Democratic
party. The charge is that the Democratic candidate
for the Vice Presidency sal in one or more speech
es that the extension of slavery was part Of the
Democratic creed, that Mr. Scott repeated the sen-
ment in Philadelphia that the ERyutrr and other De-
mocraic journals wnked at this heresy and that the
Democratic party is thus convicted of attempting Il
fraud upon the people of the country. Grave charges
these certainly and we'll worthy serious reiutaiinm
First, however, we desire TO put the Wing right
Neither Mr.. breckenridge, Mr.. Scott, have nj any
time, said That it is the policy the Democratic party
10 oppose the extension of slavery II they, either OF
them had so stated, we sEuuId have denounced them,
Just as the IphiS used to lenounce the opponents Of
the KansssNebraska bill. All that these gentlemen
raj legislation this subject, whether that legislation
looked to the extension the restriction OF slavery,
and that therefore, could not be truly said of the
party party, that it pledged to The extension
Of slavery however individual members Of the party
might desire its extension.
With this qualification of the lrhig's language, we
have no hesitation in admitting, that the Democratic
party is not pledged to extend slavery beyond its pre-
sent limits. and that in saying much this, nci
ther Mr.. Breckinrilge Mr. Scott guilty of any
hertsy Whatsoever 1t has never entered into our
conceptions, TO ask Northern men to pledge them.
selves to aid lis IN extending slavery; nor so far
our knowledge extends, has any Southern States
man, ut any period Of our history, required
any such pledge "f Northern mcn. Certain.
| " Mr.. Calhoun never asked this, nor any OF
those Southern men who acted with him; and they
have usually been esteemed the most ultra Southern.
ers Of the South. This is all have asked or
| expected Of Northern men, that they would unite
with US in asserting and maintaining tho doctrine Of
non intervention 10y Congress with reterence to the
suhiec Of sIa ~, but that the people Of territory;
when it be ..Ies a State, are competent To decide
what -lla 70 the nature of their domestic insiilu-
l,ress has nO power To legisla;e slavery into State
or territory or out of State territory, but that the
people, when assembled in Convention to frame II
Constitution, whether it be in States already i'll the
Union, or States applying for admission into the
Union, are alone empowered to declare whether
slavery sFall or shall not exist among them That
there is no power lodged anywhere, which can con-
stitutionay exclude Shareholders with their slave
property from entering and remaining in, any
of the territory belonging to the United States nor
on the other hand, 70 exclude any man from Tree
State from entering and remaining in any such tern
tory but that each alike is free 10 90 into, and remain
in any such territory, equally protected by the lava
in the enjoyment OF life and property, whether
that property consist OF slaves or any other species
of property. That when territory thus settled bl
men from all sections of the Union, has the number
bona fide inhabitants which entities 1t to enter th'
Union as a State, aud the people meet 10 'o' =
| a Constitution preparatory to an hPP''ea''o" 'o nv
int, the Union it is for them, then ana t'ler
,.;do whether they will or will not have slavery
.r,., when they have decided and come 10 tn
d,ora of Congress and knock for admission into IN
Union, presenting u Constitution which Is repuOil
c.n in H. features a. the Constitution Of tile UNITED
States reourcs it shall be, that Congress canno
ro behnd that Constitution and force slavery upon
neop. who have rejected it, or deprive people of
who have adopted H. or ect the application "t suci
State for admission into the Union, whether it tol
crates or prohibits slavery.
| This is the doctrine which we understand Mr.
Breckenridge to have announced III the West MIR
! Robert G. Scott at Philadelphia, which the Richinun,
! Cnyujr,r, in common with other Southern Democrat
| ic journals has always advocated, which was efnbo
died in the Cincinnati platform, endorsed and accept
ed by Mr.. Buchanan a. the true doctrine OF the Con
situtiou emphaticaly accepted rs sound doctrine by
Democratic ratification conventions i'll every State OF
this Cnion and this day cOntendcd for by tho Demo
rra,ic editors and orators every State, from Maine
10 California, from the EXTREMIST North to the ex
tremest South. 1t is, rs we understand it, the d"c
,rine of the Kansas Nebraska bll Of the ConprOnis
measures OF $780, and Of other territorial bills whcl
have been passed from time tn time, and so far as w
are ADVISED il is all that the South has ever desired
| If more than this has ever been demanded, we shout
like TO know when, where, and by whom the demant
was made
| OF the sauary results of the general acceptanc
of this doctrine there be question. Ii trans
fers the whole subject of slavery from the halls o
Congress tu the communities Interested in its solution
md thereby, at once, ends agitation everywhere, tx
cent in those communities whose social state is no
vet determined; and even in those the question wou
soon be settled at the baot-box. What more ough
reasonable to expect what more can they desire
Who would be aggricved should slavery, by thi
process, find it's way into amy State, or be exclu
Died from any State, whether Of States alread
in the Union, or States hereafter to be admit
ted into the Union! If Massachusetts, having fair
tried free society, grows sck and weary of the cost
experiment. aud desire to establish domestic slavery
who shall deny her the nestmable privilege!
South Carolina shall hereafter desire to prohibit slave
nv, NAV she not do it! And If the people of Massa
clu,ctts assembled in convention to frame organic
laws may elect TO have slavery, and South CaroIn
to prohibit it, why may not the people of Kansas, Ne
braska, Utah or Minnesota, under similar crcGm
stances, make like election
Il is submitted to all sober, honest, thinking men
if this is no: wise, us, equitable and practicable
method of settling the controversy concerning slave
ry and if it is not the only method which finds any
countenuncr in the Constitution o.: the United States
The error of the IW,g consists in this that it stri
butes to the Democratic party dogmas which it ha
never announced, aud the error has been connte,
by bndly assuming to be true The mendacious state
msnts OF the Black Republican journals and thei
sympa,hisers in the South. These have represent
ed the whole Democratic party, North and South, II
be Southern sectional party, in opposition to th
Northern sectional pnrly which nominated Fremont
and as such pledged to extend slavery. The mos
cursory peruss of the Cincinnati platform is suili
cient to dspel that deusion. No such idea is fount
there; and that Southern man is fool who expect
the Democrats # the North to hid in extending slave
ry. just that Northern man is fool who e1pect
any true Southern to aid in aboshing slavery
All that either ought TO expect of the other is
that in good faith they resist all attempts in Congres