Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1856-01-23

1
of any government abandoned its trust in time
| of extreme danger, that case is to be found in
the present condition Of the House of Repre-
sentatives. 1t is their duty to put stop to
this 80 imminent civil war, in which the first
considerable battle cannot be fought without
involving many States. 1t will, in six months
| after the frat battle in Kansas, rago fiercely
| along the banks of the Ohio, or little faith is
to be placed IN the signs of popular sentiment
along the banks of that river, those south Of
it being as determined to back those struggling
for what they hold to be their rights, rs those
nerth of it to back their champions in Kansas
How, in the name of Heaven, is this collision,
which all peaceable and truly patriotic men
deplOre and dread, to be warded off, but
through direct action of Congress What can
Congress possibly do in the premises with the
House in its present condition Is it to be
wondered that the persistence of the House
under such circumstances as exist, in refusing
to organize, has already generated storm Of
contempt everywhere for that branch Of Con-
gress2
The Missouri Compromise Among the
funniest things conceivable to US is tho gravity
with which tho anti-slavery party, both in
the violation of the Missouri compromise by
those who enacted the Nebraska bill-that
Pandora's box of evils for the future of the
State, according to the logic of those gentle
men. Since 1912 and 1843, wo have very
rarely failed to be present in the hall when
the House has been in session, and in all tn at
time until very shortly before the triumph of
the Nebraska bill, we never know Mr.. Gid
dings and his legislative coadjut9rs to ap-
prOach the subject of the Missouri COIN promise
without charactsrizing it as q sort of compact
with hell to perpetuate human slavery, as
Garrison Co. say Of the Constitution of the
United States. From the day Of its enact
me ut Tin the admission of Missouri rs State
of the UniOn) down to very near the period Of
tho enactment of the Nebraska bill, no bill or
resolution has been up for consideration be-
fore Congress upon which it was possible to
hinge vote or speech against the Missouri
compromise, that its now so enthusiastic sup
porters and defenders failed to denounce and
essay to destroyit.
This fact is patent in the records Of Con-
gress, from the day of the admission of Mis-
souri, until the Nebraska controversy arose.
Under these circumstances, is il wonderful
that We place no reliance whatever on the
Acknowledgements prOte5tations and lamen-
tations Of Messrs. Giddings, Greeley Il Co?
1t will be we'll for some gentleman to put to
these brag defenders Of the Missouri compro-
mise, whether their party is prepared to
pledge itself hereafter to carry out on &C.
curing territory, the principle of the Missouri
compromise, if the friends of the Nebraska
bill will consent to its restoration upon the
statute book? Our life on it, their answer
would be promptly and fatty in the negative
A Feasible Plan We rest under the i'm
preston that in the course Of the coming week
luton to elect by the plurality rule, excluding
the three gentlemen who have up to this time
received the highest number of votes We
on--- - -
subject with gentlemen belonging to all three
parties. We believe that the Democrats.
who, one and all, greatly deplore the existing
condition Of things as casting a lamentable
stigma on our system Of government, will vote
for such proposition, il the spirit actuating
the Hon. Howell Cobb, when remarking not
long since in debate, that the reason why that
party opposed the plurality rule with so great
persistence, was, simply, because they would
not consent to the election Of Mr. Banks under
1T; and not because they are unwilling to per-
NIT the opposition majority to elect some other
gentleman who may be veil known as con-
seTyative member. ar election ever to be eff
fected, must be brought about by the adop-
ton Of proposition similar to the one we
state above, which We believe if offered TO.
morrow, will receive the votes of all the Demo
Gratis, three fOurths Of the American party, and
twenty FIVE or thirty Of those who have sup
ported Mr.. Banks Judging from recent re.
cent remarks Of the I1teilteencsr, this plan
Will meet the appreciation Of the conductors of
that journal. We hope tomorrow to find in
Its columns strong appeal in favor of a re-
sort to some such method of effccting a settle
ment of the vexed and vexatious controversy
Crime in the United States and its Au.
thors.-It is often hippanty asserted that the
great mass Of crime in the United States is
committed by foreigners 1t is a convenient
argument, but one which will be found, on
examination, to he merely assertion, without
facts to sustain it. We observe in the Ameri-
can Almanac for 1855, "a work prepared with
great skill and accuracy, and consequently Of
high statistical authority a statement care
fully collected from the returns of the clerks
OF the courts, under the head of Crime, from
which it appears that of the IA ,998 convictions
had before the courts of the United States
from lo4l to 1854 inclusive-a period of four
teen years., 548 were Of natives of the United
etates, and $3.50 foreigners. So that SO far
as the crusade against foreigners, now going