Nashville daily patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1855-1857, 1856-01-12


sectional issues, and to the past and prospec-
tive action of the Democratic party, and are
as follows:
| ResolUed, That the perils which now threaten the
integrity sad peace Of the conederacy, arising from
the aseendency in Of the free States OF spiri.
of sectional anaticism, made successful and power
fui at tue North by tie aid OF the secret machinery
1 OF know nothingism, call upon all national men,
! shether democrats wings, 10 unite in one COM
mon organizatiOhandt 70 make common cause against
their common foe for the safety OF the . nion upon
I the platform furnished BY the compromises Of tie
! constitution IN regard slavery, aud upon the
! principles OF non Intervention, applicable alike 20
( the State and territories, adopted by the united
votes of democrats and wings in the passage Of the
! series OF measures in 1880 known as the Compro-
mise measures and re-affrmed by their united votes
in the passage Of the Kansas and Nebraska act in
! 1858; and to this end hereby solemny and
| earnestly renew the pledge Of our devotion 10 the
democratic platform, sdoptedin Baltimore in 1852;
and az by thaHplatform all true democrats are bound
to abide by and adhere to faithful execution OF the
! Compromise measures of 1850, 20 now We pledge
ourselves in like to abide by and adhere to
a faithful execution OF the Kansas and Nebraska
/ act, passed in 1853, as final settlement Of all
sectional questions ia regard slavery in the terri
tories; and upon this PLATFORM and under the demo
fellowship to all national men, North, South, East
and West, and invite them TO cooperate with us in
avertng the perils which threasen our common
| Union.
Resolved That the principles announced in the fore
going resolution furnish basis for the fnal settle
ment of all questions to slavery that can arise
! between the North and the South which secures
equal justice to both sections conforms strictly to
the provisions of the Constitution, and removes
forever all pretext for renewing in Congress in
the States, agitation of sectional issues; aud,
| Southern men devoted TO the Union, and claiming
for the South no more than the equality of rights
guaranteed to it by the Constitution, and resolved
to submit TO no further encroachmenis on those
rights, and no renewal by Congress Of arbitrary,
unjust, degrading and unconstitutional violation
against our rights to equal participation in the
enjoyment Of the common property Of the Union, we
rely, With undated confidence, upon the future CO.
operation Of those national democrats at the North
whose effective devotion to the compromises Of the
Constitution has enabled US in past cou6cts to
sist with success the contemplated aggressions of
sectional fanaticism; therefore earnestly and in
dgnanty repudiate and reject the false assumption
Of our opponents that the democratic party of the
North is denationaIised that its cooperation with
the democracy of the South, sound national
platform, will be less earnest and effective in the
uext than it was in the last Presidential contest.
These resolutions presuppose that the
people of Tennessee, like the members of
the Convention, are entirely obliviOuS of
the political history of the past four years
that they have forgotten the manner in
which the Democracy falsifed the pledges
of the platform of 1852, and renewed
the agitation of slavery issues by repeal
ing the Missouri Compromise. But we
can tell their authors that the people
have not been asleep, that they are SEN
sibe of the sins of the democratic party,
and we verify believe intend to punish the
guilty as they deserve. The people know
that the "perils which now threaten the
integrity and peace Of the confederacy,
arising from the ascendancy in most Of the
free States of spirit of sectional fanati-
cism," was not "made successful and pow
erful at the North by the aid Of the secret
machinery" of the American party. They
know that had not the Democracy falSified
their pledges to abide by the Compromise
Of 1850, and to resist all attempts to re-
new the agitation of slavery issues, these
perils would not now be hanging over
the nation. To the repeal of the Mis-
souri, Compromise, piece of mischief which |
originated in the fertile brain of that arch |
demagogue, Stephen A. Douglas, and to
that alone, are we indebted for the pres
ent posture Of political affairs. so far as
sectional controversies are concerned. The
country, acquiescing in the Compromise
Measures Of 1850, was tranquil, and eve
rything denoted season of calm, unin-
terrupted by controversies such as had
brought the government to the verge of
ruin; but so soon as that unfortunate
proposition triumphed, nearly the entire
population of the Free States, shocked by
what they deemed an act of ba faith,
sprung into the political arena, and made
common war upon all who had participated
in the consummation of the repeal. The
Wing party, North, became disorganized,
and passed away-the Northern democracy,
the Wanted allies Of the South, panic-strick-
en-, either went over to the enemy or raj
lied under construction of the Nebras-
ka Kansas act hostile to Southern rights,
and succeeded in saving but small rem
nant of the overwhelming majority they
had possessed in the popular branch Of
Congress. But for the Intervention of the
American party, the triumph of the Black
Republicans would have been complete.
The perls which threaten the country, be-
ing the necessary consequence of the false
ness of the democratic leaders to the pledg-
es Of 1852, it does not become any section
of that party to ask national men of other
parties to unite with it to avert the CON-
mon danger, howsoeyer solemnly it may
renew the violated pledges. If the times
call for union Of all national men, let it
be under some other standards than those
of the Democracy. From the depths of
our hearts do we commSerate the Wing,
who, after years of gallant struggle against
democracy, and its innumerable evils,
who after nobly endeavOring to save the
country from the baleful effects of its des-
potism and its corruption, can now bend his
knee and bow his neck to receive the yoke
which has been 10 him heretofore but
symbol of the iEfamy and degradation Of