The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1856-12-10


dition of the black and white races in the
slaveholding States, which they would pro
mote, is beyond their lawful authority;
that TO them it is Il foreign object; that it
cannot he effected by any peaceful inslru-
mentality of theirs; that for them and the
State of which they are citizens the only
path to its accomplishment is thro'
burning cities and ravaged fields, and
slaughtered populations, and all that is
most terrible i'll foreign, complicated with
Icivil and survile war; and that the first
step in the attempt is the torcible disrup-
ton of Il country embracing in its broad
bosom degree of liberty, and an amount
individual and public prosperity, to which
there is no parallel in history, and sub
mitting in its place hostile governments
driven at once and inevitably into devas-
Itation, and fatricdal carnage, transfor-
ming the now peaceful and felicitous
brotherhood into vast, permanent camp
OF armed men like the rival monarchies of
! Europe and Asia. Well knowing that
such, and such only. are the means and the
Consequences of their plans and purposes,
they cndeavor to prepare the people Of the
/ United States for civil war by doing every
thing in theirpower to deprive the Cpnsli-
tntiUn aud the laws of moral authority,
and to undermine the fabric of the Union
by appeals 70 passion and sectional pre-
jndice, hy indoctrinating its people with
reciprocal haired, and by educating them
TO stand face to face as enemies, rather
than shoulder to shoulder as friends.
Is is by the agency of such unwarranta-
ble interference, foreign. and domestic,
that the minds Of many, otherwise good
citizens, have been so infamed into the
passionate condemnation of the southern
states, as at length to pass insensibly to
almost equally passionate hostility towards
their feiow-citiZens of those STATES, and
thus finally to fall into temporary fellow
ship with the avowed and active enemies
OF the Constitution. Ardently attached
TO liberty in the abstract, they do not stop
to consider practically how the objects
they would attain can be accomplished
nor TO reflect that, even if the evil were as
great as they deem it, they have no rene.
dy 10 apply and that it can only be aggra
vlted by their violence and unconstituJion
al action x question, whictIis the mos
difficult Of all the problems Of social in.
stitution, political economy and statesman.
ship. they treat with unreascning and sill
ly intemperauce of thought and language
EXttemes beget extremes. Violent attack
from the North finds its Inevitable conse.
quence in the growth of a spirit of angry
defiance at the South. Thus in the pro
snmation, which the voice of the people
has now SO pointedly rebnked, of the at
tempt of a portion of the States, by sec,
tional organization aud movement. tc
usurp the control of the government O.
the United States.
confidently believe that the great body
of those, who imcousiderately took this ia
tai STEP are sincerely attached TO the Con
stitution and the Union. They would
upon delberation, shrink with unaffected
horror from any conscious act of disunior
+ or civil war But they have entered into
Il path which leads now here unless it bt
to civil war and disunion, and which ha.
), no other possible outlet They have pro
+ reeded thus far in that direction III conse
quence of the successive stages of thei
progress having consisted of series O
secondary issues, each of which professeC
TO be confiued wilhin constitutional ani
peaceful limits, but which attempted indi.
rectly what few men were willing to de
directly, thatis to act aggressively agans
the constitutional rights ofnearly one-hal
of the thirty-one States.
In the long series Of acts of indirect ag
gression, the first was the strenuous agi
, tation, by citizens Of northern States, il
; Congress- and out Oft, of the question 0
: negro emancipation in The southern States
The second step in this patl, of evil con
sisted of acts of the people of the north
ern States, and in several instances Of lhei
governments, aimed to facilitate the escape
Of persons held to service in the southern
States, and to prevent their eXtraditiol
: when reclaimed according to law and il
virtue of express provisions OF the conSti
tuition TO promote the subject legisa
tive, enactmcnts and other means were
, adopted to take away or defeat rights
, which the Constitution solemnly guaran
t tied In order to nullify the then exist
ing act of Congress concerning the extra
di;ion of fugitives from service, laws were
: enacted in many States, forbidding their
officers under severe penalties, to par
ticipate in the execution of any act o
|. Congress whatever In this way tha
| system of harmonious cooperation be
tween the authorities Of the U. States an,
) of the several states, for the maintenane
81 of their common institutions, which cXis
: ted in the early years of the Republic
Il was destroyed; conflicts of jurisdiction
: came to be frequent; and Congress foun,
$ itself compelled, for the support of th
Y Constitution. and the vindicatinn of il
v power to authorize the appointment Q
0 new officers charged with the execution c
5 its acts, as if they and the officers of tn,
: States were the ministers, respectively, {