The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1856-07-31

the man, In the case of Fremont, belong To the
South. He may be opposed, like MrtClay, to
the extension Of slavery into free territory; but
let him reach the goal of the Presidency, that
highest aspiration of the American, and let him
thus be free from the partizan divisions Of a
Presidential canvass, and we dare say that the
South will find him, from his early instincts, edu-
cation and associations true to their constitutional
rights, and his administration of that broad and
general character which covers the whole Union.
Next for this point of secession 1t strikes us
that our secession correspondents, to whom we
devote this article, are as much deceived in their
estimates of the feasibility of disunon as in the
advantages which the South are to derive from a
separate Southern republic Let us bring few
statistics to bear upon this question.
According to the census of 1850 there are BAT :
525 shareholders in the Union. OF these the num-
Der holding over five slaves is l05,000. Deduct
women and minors, and the aggregate of voting
shareholders owning over five slaves will proba-
bly, be reduced to $4,000. Taking this number
as the political basis of that party in the South
which regards slavery and the extension of slave
ry as the Alpha and Omega Of the Union and as
the test of secession, we have $4,000 men at the
back of Mr.. Toombs and his secession pronuncia-
mento. We assume that with those persons owning
only five slaves or less the Union is more important
than Kansas or the defeat of Mr.. Buchanan. But
taking the whole number of Southern voting
Shareholders, large and small at three hundred
thousand, and as secessionists, there is yet, of
Southern men who are not shareholders, the pow
erful force of FIVE hundred thousand voters, ac-
cording to the Presidential returns of 1852
These five hundred thousand men are not of the
Southern aristocracy Of Shareholders BUTT is this
aristocratic minority which speaks for the whole
South. The non-slaveholding white population
have no newspaper organs, no electioneering
agents, no vent, no voice in the politics Of the day
except their silent vote. Yet late Charleston pa
per has let US into most important secret to wit
that not only is there large body Of Southern
men opposed to the secession extremists, but OPP
posed to the institution of slavery or at least to
its further extension. Why should this not be
the case? Do not the non. slaveholding Southern
whites hold the same relations Of antagonism to
the shareholders that our Northern laborers do to
other monopolies? Let the problem be brought
to practical test, upon a direct issue Of seces-
sion. for example, and Mr.. Toombs will find, in
this element which he has overlooked, the certain
defeat of his calculations.
We have an inklng in the way of practical
illustration in the Fremont electoral ticket of
Kentucky-a ticket of highly respectable men.
u ~
We may expect more enlarged illustrations of
this sort before the expiration of the next six
weeks. Indeed. we should not be surprised
if Fremont were yet to prove more popular in the
South than Fillmore. At all events. this cry of
secession in the event of Fremont's election is
sheer claptrap and nonsense There is rich mine
in the popular vote Of the South, which we have
indicated, but which, still, in regard to this can
vass, remains TO be explored. Let Mr.. Toombsbear
in mind that there are 500 900 non-slaveholding
voters in the South, against 300, 900 voting slave
holders, at the highest estimate and he will pro-
baby lower his voice when he speaks Of secession
as the consequence of the election of Fremont to
the Presidency-a man who il neither abolition
ist nor secessionist, nor yet stakeholder; but
who is for the constitution and the Union, and
who though adopted by the North, is still
Southern man, representing the bulk of those
five hundred thousand voters of the South who
own no slaves.
When Mr.. Toombs shall have digested this
branch Of our argument we shall be happy to
hear from him. for the benefit Of Mr.. Fillmore
and Mr.. Buchanan.