Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1856-08-28
POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY.


right of the people to govern themselves, one
of the great principles for the maintenance Of
! our forefathers cast~off their allegiance the
mother country, and engaged in the long and
arduous struggle of the Revolution. Upon it
rests the corner stone of our Nationality
abridged, and our libcries would be but
! mockery.
1t was under the prctence of carrying out
this great principle of popular liberty, that the
| authors of the Repeal of the Missouri Compro-
mise advocated the passage of the kansasNe-
braska bill. 1t was to leave the people Of the
! territory perfectly free to form their own do
mestic institutions, that the time-honorcd com
pact was ruthlcssy violated and it was de-
| declared that it was not the intention to legis-
late Slavery in or out of the Territory. The
pretended comforting of this power upon the
| settlers of the Territory was dcnominated
squatter sovereignty" by which name it is
generally known
people of the Territories were delegated the
| power to exclude Slavery if they saw proper,
has been indrstronsly circulated to reconcile
! the people of the North to the removal of the
restriction imposed in the Missouri Compro
mise Northern dough-faces who would not
dare openly to favor the extension of Slavery,
say 81 would not do anything to extend slave
ry-yet am willing the people of the Terri
! tories should settle the matter for themselves" :"
! This is an ingenious and plausible position. 1t
is the common declaration of the adiuncts of
the slave-power North, and is used to mislead
and deceive the people, as we shall show
! The Southern doctrine is that as Congress
| possesses no power to legislate upon the SUBJ
ject of slavery in the Territories, it cannot de-
legate such power to a Territorial legislature
| but the Legislature of Territory while it can
neither exclude nor introduce the institution
of Slavery, may legislate for the protection of
the property (saves) of Southern men. This
is the doctrine now held by Southern politi-
clans, and (aS we will try to prove to every
candid reader) by the Democratic party.
The platform adopted at Cincinnati ignores
! this question of "Squatter sovereignty" as it
is termcd-or the right of the people of a ter
ritory to exclude slavery. The only resolution
touching the matter is the following -
Resored That we recognize the right of the peope of
all the Territories including Kansas and Nebrsk acting
through the legal and fairly expressed will of the maior
ty of actual residents and whenever the number their
inhabitants Jnsllnes II, To form constitution, with
without domestic slavery and be admitted into the Union
upon terms OF perfect equality with the other States
This resolution is so plain that it needs no
elucidation. 1t asserts the right almost uni
versally conceded, of State when presenting
| her constitution, to shape her own institutions
as she sees fit, and to admit or exclude slavery.
But there is not in the platform single line
that can be construed into leaning towards
the doctrine of popular sovereignty, as it is
| preached by Northern Buccaneers.
! The reason for this omission to endorse the
once popular doctrine, may be inferred from
the following extract from the Rich0,0nd En-
| quirer-published just before the assembling
| of the Convention at Cincinnati =
ave in the Cincinnati platform repmfiate so,tat
ter SorcTegnty and expressly assert State cG,afy We
must declare that it is the duty of the General Govern
menttO that inydiOS injrous distinctions are
made between the people the property of different sec
ons in the Territories. We do not mean to dictate II
may be that the assertion in the platform of the abstract
proposition OF state equality may suffice to carry along
with it the consequences which desire But it is Of
ten charged that the kansasNcbraska bill contains the
doctrine of suatter sovereignty and that squater
eighty the most etcie agent of Freesoilism Some
Northern Democrats hare maintained this ground. Now;
TINS GrN MIST BE SPIKED It must appear from plat
form that we maintain practical State equality and repu
date that construction Of the Kansas act which
would defeat it,"
The dictation of the Enquirer was listened
to, and the Convention having repudiated the
doctrine of squatter sovereignty, the Enquirer
thus expresses its congratulations =
With the utmost possible precision and emphasis of
language these resolutions affirm the great vital princi
pies. first of the constitutional guarantees of slavery
and secondly of the equality of the States in respect
their sovereign dignity and political rights In equally
clear and conclusive terms the doctrine OF squaer
eighty IL rcpudiaed by the platform of the Democratic
party ...
The Washington Sentinel was one of the
most jealous advocates of Mr.. BUCHANAN'sno-
mination, and since one of his warmest SUP
portcrs. 1t says in discussing the platform I:
We contended that the principles of the platform on
this subject were unequivocal and ndispuabe That by
It's very language the platform repudated the doctrine Of
that plauormthat his well known views previously
express ed sustained this opinion and his own language
elsewhere threw flood of light upon the true meaning
of his letter and that were therefore, justified in the
belief that Mr. Buchanan maintained the Southern CON
servative view of this question:
Upon this platform Mr.. BUCHANAN fastened
to place himself, declaring -
| " have been placed upon platform of which most
heartily approve and that can speak for Being the
representative of the great Democratic party and not
simply James Buchanan must square conduct accord
ing to the platform Of that party and insert new plank
nor take one from it,
This doctrine of squatter sovereignty, which
is still used in some places for the purpose of
deceiving and misleading the people, is already