The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-04-24

tons of Principle, and nominated a man, with
out political antecedents, not implicated in any
political controversy, but invested with the
romantic interest of victories achieved in the
field against apparent impossibilities.
Again, then, the two great Parties stood ar
rayed against each other-the real evil of the
country not being the issue between them, but
being submitted to and exempted from arraign
ment-the nominations of both being accept
able to the Slave Power, and advocated by Its
champions.
The Liberty men stood their ground, still as
Stunning that it mattered little to the vital and
enduring interests of the country, what Party
succeeded, SO long as the Slave Power should
continue, without question, to govern both, and
determine the whole action of the one thai
might happen to secure the Presidential prize
But, this time, there were large accessions to its
ranks of Wings, Disguised by the Philadelphia
Convention, of Democrats, alienated by the
nomination of General Cass the former being
actuated chiefly by Anti Slavery feeling, the
latter, partly by Anti-Slavery feeling, but, fol
the most part, by personal luminosity to Gen
eral Cass. The representatives Of all classes
met at Buffalo, and the Liberty men, obtaining
the full ratification Of their Principles ana
Policy, conceded to the Barnburners the nom
nation: the result was a vote of nearly
three hundred thousand. Thenceforth, the en-
larged Party was known as the Free Soil, Oh
Free Democratic Party. Mark-whatever may
have been the motive of large majority of the
Barnburners, the Liberty men were true to
their Policy-Open, Direct Antagonism to The
Slace Poaoer. Doubtless, some of them had
their preferences as between the candidates oil
the old Parties, bat the adoption of their Poll
cy by the People they held to be of far more
importance than the success of either Wings
or Democrats, and such adoption could never
be secured, unless they adhered to that Policy,
whatsoever the inducements to abandon it. The
Wing Party, assumed to be more favorable to
Freedom, in the face of the fact that, like its
opponent, it was governed by the Slave Power,
succeeded-and what followed? The death Of
its President, the appropriation of its acting
President by the Slave Power, the abandon.
ment under his lead of the whole policy of SIa.
very Restriction, the enactment of the Fugitive
Slave Act, more criminal than the annexation
Of Texas with Slavery, and the establishment
of Compromise in which, the Slave Power
claims, is to be found the Principle that Slave
ry may of right exist in any Territory of the
United States, within or against positive law
How painfully are the availability expert
ments of 1910 and l848, assimilated, in the be-
ginning, the middle, and the eudl And how
marvellously is the wisdom of the Liberty Par
ty demonstrated in the results
This is the third great fact.
In 1852, the leaders of the old Parties, blind
still to the Truth, said the country had acqui.
esced, and was tranquil-let there be no more
agitation. And so, both Parties, through their
representatives at Baltimore, in Convention
assembled, swore to maintain the Compromise
of 1850, to enforce the Fugitive Slave Act, and
put down the agitation of the Question of Sla-
very. Both virtually swore allegiance to the
Slave Power. The Democracy called back its
Barnburners, Whigery, its Conscience Wings
and men wondered how the old Liberty men,
now known as Free-Soilers or Independent
Democrats, could be so infatuated as to keep
up their one-eyed organization. But, the vet
Grams held their Convention, reasserted their
old Policy, nominated candidates representing
1t, and, turning neither to the right hand nor
the left, Indifferent whether their action should
defeat the Wing Party or the Democratic, or
indeed, whether it should decisively affect the
struggle between them or not, they cast one
hundred and ffty-six thousand votes. Wings
had said" Come with us-General Scott is
safer for the country \" Democrats had appeal
ed to them" General Pierce is pledged against
Slavery agitation, of course will frown down all
attempts at Propagandism-come with u.s." We
turned deaf ear, told you that the Slave Pow.
er ruled you both, and would rule you to your
ruin, and we went our way. Well-the Dem
ocratic Party succeeded-the acquiescence, the
submissionist Policy triumphed-and what fol
lowed? Aye-what followed? Ruin! Did we
not tell you so? You sowed the wind, and YOU
have reaped the whirlwind; Democracy de
moralized, the Wing Party disorganized, the
Missouri Compromise trampled under foot
Border Rufianism rampant, civil war in Kansas
and your President, with army and navy, seek
ing pretexts for butchering your fellow-citzens
pioneers of Freedom, as rebels Behold the
fruits!
This is the fourth great fact.
suppose our Policy had been adopted BY tn,
People in 1910, would all these things, could
they, have happened? But, your old Partie.
have pandered to Slavery Domination, submit
ted to be governed by the Slave Power, acqui
esced In its successive usurpations, till it seem.
On the very eve of establishing itself as foreyel
Supreme.
Now, you are alarmed. The Wing organiza
ton exists no longer. The Democratic part,
in almost every free State is PROSTATE. The
people, cut adrift from all parties, demand tina
the rule of the Slave Power be broken. But
IN the chaos, an organization has sprung up, al
intent upon lodging the real issue of the coun
try as either Whigery or Democracy ever was
and thus blocks the way of union upon the polio,
OF open, direct antagonism to the Slave Power
We stand where we stood in 1910, and insis
upon this, as the only safe and effective remedy
At one time it seemed as if the masses wer
ready for it, but political managers, emerging
from that newly formed organization, or afrai,
OF its power, with a strange blindness to tn,
lessons of the past, seem inclined to try agail
the experiments of 1910 and Is4S. They woul,
play Hamlet, with the part of Hamlet omitted
They would run the line of their action, asid
from the Slave Power. They would place Oh
the retired list the men who have earned curse
by confronting and defying it. They woul