The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1856-01-08

their inability to heal admitted and palpaoIe
social evils of their own, and which are
completely within their jurisdiction they /
engage in the offensive and hopeless under
taking of reforming the domestlc llStito-
t;ous 1f other States wholly beyond their
CONTROL and authority. In the vain pursuit
I'll. nv tLcm entirely unattainable, and
,vLicb tho NAV not legally attemptto COM
ms tLev peril the very existence OF the
Pa,,etitr+;on. and all the countless benefits
,.L;cb # has conferred. While the people
e -. .,u+Icrn States cOnfinc their attcn-
81, 70 their own affairs. not presumin% Of
fciaIIv to intermcddlc with the social instI-
tutionS Of the northern States, too many OF
thc inhabitants of the latter arc permanent
" organized i'll associations to intiIct INJURY
ON the former, by wrongful acts winch
would be cause Of war a. between foreign
powers. and only fail to br such IN our sTs-
TEN, because pcrpctratcd uhuer cover % TIC
Union.
l. If no--fblc to present this subject as
+rntb and the occasion require, without
,,nticiu.e the reiterated, but groundlcSS ale
cation. that the South has presiStcntly
serted claims and obtained advantages in
the practical administration of the general
Government. to the prejudice Of the North,
ami IN which the latter has acquiesced.-
That Is. the Stiacs which either promote or
tolerate attacks on the rights of persons and
of property in other Suites, to disguise their
own injustice, pretend or imagine, and con-
stamtv aver, that they, whose constitutional
rights are thus systematically assaulted, are
themselves the ag@ressors. At tine present
time, this imputed aggression, resting, as It
does, only in the vague dcclamatory charges
of political u@itatorS, resolves itself into mis-
apprehension, or miSintcrprctation, Of the
principles and facts of the political or@ani
cation of the new Territories If the United
States.
What i the voice of history When the
ordinance, which provided for the govern
mcmt Of the territory northwest OF the river
Ohio, and for its eventual ub-divl>lon into
new States, was adopted III the Congress of
the confederation, it l. not to br supposed
that the question of future relative power,
a. between the States which retained, and
those which did not retain, Il numerous
colorcd population, escaped notice, or failed
to be- considered. And yet the concession
of that vast territory to the interests and
opinions of the northcrs States, Il territory
now the seat of five among the largest MEM
bcrs of the Union, was, in great measure,
the act of the State of Virginia and Of the
South.
When Louisiana was acquired by the
United States, it was an acquisition not less
to the North than to the South; for while
it was important to the country at the mouth
of the river Mississippi to become the en-
porium of the country above il. 50 also 1t
was even more Important to the whole Union
to have that emporium and although the
new province, by reason of its imperfect
settlement was mainly regarded as on the
Gulf Of Mexico, vet. in fact, ii extended to
the opposite boundaries IF the United States,
with far greater bYcadth above than below,
and WAS in territory, a. in everything else,
equally at least an accession to the northern
Statc<. 1t i mere dciusion and prejudice,
therefore, to speak of Louisiana AZ aciUisi-
ton in the special interest of the South.
The patriotic and Just mon who purtici-
ted in that act were influenced by motives
!;jr above all sectional jcHlou>icS. 1t was in
truth the great event, which, bt completing
for Us the possession of the valley OF the
Mississippi, with commercial access to the
Gulf of Mexico, impaired unity and strength
To the whole confederation, and attached
together by indiS>olublc ties the East and
tie West, a. we'll as the North and the
South.
A. to Florida, that was Lut the transfer
by Spain to the United States of territory
on the east side of the river Mississippi, in
cxahau.-c for llr@c territory. which the Uni
ted Stats transferred to Spain on the west
history of the transaction serves to demon
str;,tc. Moreover, it was an acquisition
demanded hy the commercial Interests and
The security of the whole Union.
In the meantime the people Of the United
Statds had grown up to Il proper conscious
ness Of their strength, and in brief contest
with France. and in Il second serious war
with Great Britain, they had shaken off all
which remained of undue reverence for
Europe, and cIhrr@cd from the atmosphere
of those ripnS-Atlamtic Influences which
surrounded the infant republic, and had be-
gun 10 turn their attention to the full and
systematic Development of the internal
resources of tie Union.
Among the cvamc>ccut controversies of
that period the most conspicuous was the
question of regulation by Congress of the
social condition of the future States to be
founded in the territory of Louisiana.
The ordinance for the government of the
territory northwest of the river Ohio had
contained provision, which prohibited the
Use of sCryilc labor therein, subject to the
conditions of tU~itivcS from service due in
any other part OF the United States. Sub
scqurutly t" tine adoption ot the constitution,
this provision ceased to remain as law;
for lis operation as such was absolutely su-
PrrSrdcd by the constitution. Bat the re-
collection Of the fact excited the zeal of
social PruVr~andiSm in some sections Of the
'"n'rdnra!iou: and, when second State,
that "f Missouri, came to be formed in the
territory OF Louisiana. proposition WAS made
t" extend t. the latter territory the rcstric-
ti"n originally applied to The country Situa-
ted between The IiyrrS Ohio and MiSSiSS;Dui.
Most questionable was this proposition
in all its constitutional relations, ncvcrthc-
less ii received the sanction of Congress,
with SOME slight notifications of line, to
save the existing rights OF the intended new
State. 1t was reluctantly acquiesccd in by
southern States Il sacrifice to the cause ,
of peace and Of the Union, not only of the
rights stipulated by tn" treaty of Louisiana. !
but of the principle of equality among the
States guaranteed by the constitution. 1t
WAS received by the northern States with
angry and rcscuttul condemnation and COM
plant, because it did not conccde all which
they had exactly demanded. Having passed
through the forms OF lc@islation it took its