New-York daily tribune., 1856-05-24


legislation was Slavery regarded in any o'her light
than as deplorable evil, to be mention d win
regret, and 10 be touched With extrenest c.1ioa.
AL the North, and nearly all the South concarrod
IN iamentlng its existence, and in deprecstlng IL
growth Its radical inco consistency with the prnci-
pies of our Government, and with every acknowi-
edged prime pie of civil liberty, the miseries it n-
fiIcts On the subject race, the ignorance and I'm.
morality which it engenders among th- domins-
ting race the danger OF insurrecton, and the diff
culties OF bringing il 10 an end-inyested the whole
subject with an ugly and distressing aspect. Bat
Mr.. Calhoun undertook 10 change all this. he an
DOuHced that Iegrces were made ~ be slaves; that
the condition OF slavery was the happie.t for them,
ard the most advantageous for the whites; and that
the Government, so far from re.tricHg the system,
ought to give il an unlimited scope. MUn.tfous IS
the conclusion seems by availiGe hm-elf of she
ttlfish nterests OF the sayehOldeI. he found easy
converts to il at the South; and, working upon the
fears OF dsuniOD, be found willing tools tor it among
the politicians at the North. Yet, not satisfied with
the defense Of Slavery local usage 0f the South
he Insisted that twas special iayorte OF the Fed
eTal Constitution lie persuaded Congress to ln-
fringe the sacred right Of petition in behalf Ofit he
organized sectional party for it. extension; ne IN
tOductd it into our diplomacy, TO the disgrace OF the
whole Republic in the eyes OF mankind; and ne
fomented foreign cOnquests in order to extend lts
boundaries and 10 enlarge It's influences in the Cen
erel Government; aud out of these a,rociOus doc
trines and schemes OF Mr. Calhoun have grown the
enormous pretensiOns which the Slave Power has
since neutrality-suspicious. which exclude every
man who is not its instrument from participating IN
Federal ofices-uhich have converted the whole
North Tito hunting ground for 'layes-which have
repealed the most venerable con pscss-snd which
have thrown open to the curses of human bondage
q territory Us large as that of some Of the most
powerful empires Of the world. Never before IN
our annals has siEgle man attempted more tre-
mendous wickedness Never before have we been
made to exhibit pitlu figure in history. Never
before have we been exposed TO such deep and
vital Distractions and if any blight ofcIyl war, any
curse of disubicn, falls upon our Couederacy, 1t Is
upon Mr.. Calhoun that pOsterity will visit the
larger share of It's eXecration.
On the great questions of Protection and Inter
nal Improvement, Mr. Calhouns course, while 1t
subjected him to the reprOach Of inconsistency was
.teadfastly governed by the fundamental views al
ready indicated That he was originally both
Protectionist and an advocate Of grand, compre-
lensve ~ stem of National Public Works, is abun-
dainty known: that he became and long remained
the most conspicuous aud determined enemy of
Protection, aid the decided opponent Of National
Internal Improvements, is equally notorious. 80
late rs 1624 he was recognized as at least equally
with Mr. Clay the champion of the National as
opposed TO the Radical policy represented by Mr..
Crawford, whose election to the Presidency he
ought not to have resisted had he then entertained
the views which distinguished his later career. His
first election to the Vice-Presdency, by the votes
of New. England, New-YoIk and Pennsy yania, at
test the Nationality Of his position in 1924 But 10
one so welded to the Slave system he, IL re-
ouired the touchstone of actual experiment to
demonstrate the incOmpatbility of Slave Labor
with the naturalization and diffusion Of Manufac-
tures-n other words, of a varied and intelligent
National ILdustry-or with that rapid upspringing
Of cities at the head of navigation every river,
and of thrifty, bustlng villages at every principal
road.crossng, which can alone justify and sustain
a system of River and HarbOr improvements and
of internal Public Works. That demonstration
once reached. Mr. Calhoun became as active and
wholesale an adversary Of the Protective Policy as
he had been a jealous and unhesitating champion.
Hencefcrtb, tariffs, in his eyes, were only cOnstitu-
tional when levied for revenue alone; and, had
the apparent interest of the Slave States required
il. be would have been rs earnest and at
least as logical an opponent of any tariff what
ever az he was of tariff with details adjusted
10 favor the introduction of new or the sustenta-
tion and development of feeble branches Of Home
Industry. When in 1Sl6 be recommended and
carried minimum duty Of six cents per square
yard on American cotton fabrics, he supposed that
these would naturally be produced, to great e1.
tent. on the soi which grew the cotton and by
labor identical in kind with that employed in the
field; but when this anticipation proved deiu.iye
and nearly all but the very cOarsest cotton worn in
the South was taken to the North to be spun AMI
woven. and sent back to the South in the form of
cloth. he became the implacabe enemy Of the
" hole Protective policy. HeDeeforth it was in hi.
ewes but another scheme 10 build up the North a,
the cost of the Scuth-to depress and DESTROY the
value of Slave sbor-unconstitutionsl, oppressive
and oyerreaching. II was idle to argue with him
vain to strive patiently sud forcbly to make
him see that the end contemplated By Protection
was not narrow and sel6sh, but expansive and bu.
msne--not the ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Of class, but the
permanent well beire of the entire commupi,y-nO,
an enhancement of the price Of calico or sheeting
bu, the enfranchisemcnt and elevation of Labor bv
bringing producer and consumer into more inn.
mate and truthful relations, and lifting from thar