The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1856-12-13

gravated by their violence and unconstitu-
fional action; question which is one of the
most difficult of all the problems of social in
stitutions. Political economy craftsmanship
they treat with unreasoning intemperance of
thought and language. Extremes beget ex-
tremes. ..e
Violent attacks from the North finds its
inevitale consequence in the growth of a
spirit of angry defiance at the South. Thus,
in the progress of events, we have reached
that consumation which the voice of the peo-
pie has now so pointedly rebuked, of the at
tempt of portion of the States by section
al organization and movement to usurp the
control of the government of the United
States.
confidently believe that the great body
of those who inconsiderately took this fatal
step are sincerely attached to the Constitu-
ton and the Union. They would, upon de-
liberation, shrink with unaffected horror
from any conscious act of disunion or civil
war; but they have entered into path
which leads nowhere unless to civil war and
dsunion, and which has no other possible
outlet. They have proceeded thus far in
that direction in consequence of the success
i've stages of their progress having consisted
of a series of secondary issues, each of which
professed to be confined within constitutional
and peaceful limits. but which attempted in
directly what few men W re willing to do d.
re ;tly-that is, to act aggressively against
tie constitutional rights of nearly one-half of
the thirty-one States.
! In the long series of acts of indirect ag-
gression, the first was the strenuous agita-
ton by the citizens of the Northern States in
Congress and out of it, of the question Of ne
gro emancipation in the Southern States.
The second step in this path of evil consisted
in acts of the people of the Northern States
and in several instances of their governments,
aimed to facilitate the escape of persons held
to service in the Southern States, and to
prevent their eXtradition when reclaimed &C
cordng to law and in virtue of express pro-
visions of the Constitution. To promote
this object, legislative enactments and other
means were adopted to take away or defeat
rights which the Constitution solemnly
guaranteed.
In order to nurify the then existing act o.
Congress concerning the extradition of fugi-
tives from service, laws were enacted IN
many States forbiddng their officers under
the sevcrest penalties, to participate in the
execution of any act Of Congress whatever
In this way that system of harmonious CO.
operation between the authorities of the
United States, and of the several States, fol-
the maintenance of their common institu.
tons, which existed in the early years of the
Republic, was destroyed. Conflicts of juris-
diction came to be frequent, and Congress
found itself compelled, for the support of the
Constitution, and the vndication of its pow
ers, to authorize the appointment of new Of
fioorS o,,A tho off Of bo tofo he
Ministers charged with the execution of its
acts, as if they were respectively of foreign
Governments, in a state of mutual hostility
rather than fellow magistrates of common
country, peaceably subsisting under the pro-
here also aggression was followed by reac-
ton; and the attacks upon the constitution
at this point did but serve to raise new bar
riers for its defence and security.
The third stage of this unhappy sectional
controversy was in connection with the or.
ganization of territorial governments and the
admission of new States into the Union
When it was proposed to admit the State O
Maine by sPeration of territory from that O
Massachusetts,, and the state of Missouri
formed portion of the territory coded by
France to the United States, her representa-
WV III OOAe COS OADCClCu " tuC dullllSSiOu ~
the latter unless with conditions suited tc
particular views of public policy. The i'm
position of such condition was successfully
resisted, but at the same period the question
was presented of imposing restrictions upon
the residue OF the territory ceded by France
That question was for the time disposed o.
by the adoption of a geographical line of linn
itation. In this connection it should not be
J tor rot ny, hat e E1,,
resolved for considerations of the most fal
sighted sagacity to cede Louisiana to the
United States, and that cession was accept
pressly engaged that inhabitants of the ce
ded territory should be incorporated in the
Union of the United States, and admitted as
soon as possible, according to the principles
of the Federal Constitution, to the enjoy.
ment of all the rights, advantages and immu
mites of citizens of the United States, and in
the meantime they shall be maintained and
protected in the free enjoyment of this ir lib
erty, property, and the religion which they
protested.
That is to say, while it remains in terri
torial condition, its inhabitants are maintain
ed and protected in free enjoyment Of their
liberty and property with right then to pass
into the condition of States on footing O
perfect equality with the original States
The enactment which established the res
trictive geographical line was acquiesced in
rather than approved by the States of the
Union. 1t stood on the statute book, how.
ever, for number of years, and the people
of the respective States acauiesced in the re-
enactment of the principle as applied to Tex
as, and it was proposed to acquiescc in its
further application to the Territory acquired
by the United States from Mexico; but this
proposition was successfully resisted by the
representatives of the Northern States, who
regardless of the statute line, insisted on ap-
plying restriction to the new territory gene
rally, whether lying North or South Of it
thereby repeating it as legislative comprom-
Use, and on the part of the North, persistent
ly violating the compact, if compact there
was.
Thercupon, this enactment ceased to have
binding virtue in any sense, whether as re-
spects the North or the South, and so in eff
feet it was treated on the occasion of the ad-
mission Of the State of California, and the
organization Of the Territories of New Mex.
leo, Utah and Washington. Such was the
state of this question when the time arrived
for the organization of the Territories OF
Kansas and Nebraska. In the progress of
constitutional inquiry and reflection, it had
now at length come to be clearly seen that
that Congress does not impose restrictions of
this character upon any present or future
State of the Union.
In long series of decisions on the fullest