The Winchester appeal. [volume] (Winchester, Tenn.) 1856-1856, 1856-06-14

| NH'Snt, LINN, LuiilpkiH, ny vi, ANlCHoido,
Niles, Norvell, Pierce, Preston, Rives,
Roane, Robinson, Sewer, Smith Of Con.
necticut, Strange, Walker, Wall, White,
| Williams, Wright aud Young-3l.
The fifth resolution to which Mr.. Cal.
houn here referred, and which he Justly
regarded as the most important of all,
and struggled most perseveringly to have
passed without amendment, was as fol.
lows:
"Resolved, That the intcrmeddling of
any State or States, or their citizens, to
abolish slavery in this District or in any
of the Territories, on the ground or under
the pretext, that it is immoral or sinful,
or the passage of any act or measure Of
Congress, with that view, would be d..
rect and dangerous attack on the institu.
tons Of all the slaveholding States"
This resolution covered the whole
ground. 1t nett issue boldly and fully
No southern democrat can hesitate TO say
that it embodied great truth, to which
events have borne the most emphatic ties.
tmony. Mr.. Clay, of Kentuck ky, moved
to strike it out and insert the following as
substitute:
"Rcsolved, That when the District of
Columbia was coded by the States Of Vir,
ginia and Maryland to the United States,
domestic slavery existed in both Of those
States, including the coded territory; and
that, as it still continues in both of them,
it could not be abolished within the Dis.
trict without a violation of that good faith
which was implied in the cession, and in
the acceptance of the territory, nor, un,
less compensation were made for the
slaves, without manifest infringement of
the Constitution of the United States; nor
without exciting degree Of just alarm
and apprehension in the States recognize.
ing slavery, far transconding, in mischicv.
GUS tendency, any possible benefit which
would be accomplished by the abolition"
Congressional Globe, vol. 6, page 58.]
The utter insuificiency Of this temporiz.
ing amendment scarcely need be pointed
out. Objectionable'as it was, in conccd.
ing to Congress the constitutional power
to abolish slavery in the District Of Co.
lumba, and declaring against the cNcr.
else of that power only on the ground OF
cxpcdiency, it was still more so in this,
that it made no reference whatever to the
Territories of the United States. The
passage Of Mr.. Calhoun's resolution
would have committed the Senate, not
onl y against the abolition Of slavery in
the District of Columbia, but also against
the application Of the lVilmot prouiso
aud kindred measures to the Territories.
Mr.. Clay's amendment was entirely silent
on the subject. 1t is true, that in another
resolution which he proposed to have
adopted as an additional amendment, it
was declared that the abolition of slavery
in the Territory Of Florida would be
highly incnpedient, principally for the
reason "that it would be in violation Of q
solemn compromise made at memorable
and critical period in the history of the
country, by which, while slavery was
prohibited North, it was admitted South
Of the line Of thirtysix degrees thirty
minutes North latitude" The defect in
the first amendment can hardly be con.
sidered by Southern men as remedied by
another which recognized the binding
force Of the Missouri Compromise.
On the question to strike out Mr.. Cal.
houn's resolution and insert Mr.. Clay's
amendment, after ithad been modified by
striking out the part relating to the com.
pensation for slaves, the vote stood, yeas
10, nays IS. Congressional Globe, vol.
6. page 60. Mr.. BUcHANAN's name
stands recorded in the Affirmative.
On a subsequent occasion, Mr.. Cal.
houn, with a view TO infuse vitality into
Mr.. Clay's amendment, moved to insert
that any attempt Of Congress to abolish
slavery in the Territories, "would be a
dangerous attack upon the States in
which slavery exists Mr.. Buchanan
opposed the amendment-and it was in
reply to his speech that Mr.. Calhoun
made the remarks which may be found in
the third volume of his works, pages 1914
to 1876, and which he commenced by say.
ing that "thc remarks of the Senator from
Pennsylvania were of such a character
that he could not permit them to pass in
silence"
From these votes and this language of
Mr.. Buchanan, it is clear:
LIST. That he was not opposed to the
religions agitation of the slavery ques.
tion-a species Of agitation which Mr..
Calhoun Justly regarded as more fatal
than any other.
I'd. That he recognized the constitu.
tional pover of Congress to abolish sla.
very in the District Of Columbia, oppos.
ing its exercise only on the ground Of its
inexpediency-a proposition which the
position of Mr.. Van Buren, shows affords
no reliable protection to Southern insti.
tutions.
Sd. That he refused to commit himself
fully on the great question as to the pow.
err of Congress over the Territories of
the United States, and as far as he did 90,
evidently left it to be understood that the
I 4 l,,r -, tho,o