The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1856-01-05

any other. Prscludes the possibility Of evils
in practice, disturbed a. political Ection is
liable to be by human passions. No form
Of Government is exempt from ineonVen.
iences; but in this case they are the result
Of the abuse, and not Of the Legitimate ex-
ercise, Of the powers reserved or conferred
in the organization Of Territory. They
are not TO be charged to the great principle
Of popular sovereignty; on the contrary they
disappear before the intelligence and patri-
otism Of the people, exerting through the
ballot-box their peaceful and silent but ire
sistable power.
have another struggle, its enemies could not
present more acceptable issue than that
,f State whose Constitution clearly EN-
braces "a Republican form OF Government"
being excluded from the Union because its
domestic institutions may not in all respects
comport with the ideas OF what is wise and
expedient entertained in some other State.
Free from groundless imputations Of breach
Of faith against others, men will commence
the agitation Of this new question with in
dubitable violation Of an express compact
between the independent sovereign powers
of the United States and the Republic Of
Texas, rs well as of the elder and equally
solemn compacts which assure the equality
Of all the States.
But deplorable as would be such VIOLA
ton Of compact in itself and in all It's direct
consequences, that is the very least of the
evils involved. When sectional agitatols
shall have succeeded in forfhihg on this is
sue, can their pretensions fail TO be met by
counter pretensiOns 3--.Will not different
States be compelled respectively to, meet
extremes with EXTREMIST And if either ex-
treme carry its point what is that SO far
forth but dissolution Of the Unioni If a
new State, formed from the territory of the
United States, be absolutely excluded from
admission thercin, that fact of itself consti-
tutcs the disruption of union between it and
the other states. But the process of dissolu-
ton could not stop there. Would not a
sectional decision producing such result by
majority of votes, either Northern or
S, uthern, of necessity drive ottt the oppress-
ed and aggrieved minority, and place in
presence of each other two irrGconCiliably
hostile confederation 1t is necessary to
speak thus plainly of projects, the offspring
of that sectional agitation now prevailing in
some ofthc States, which are as impractical
bic as they arc unconstitutional, and which,
if perseyerered in, must and will end calami-
tously. 1t is either disunion and civil war,
OF it is mere angry, idle, aimlcss dstur-
bance of public peace and tranquility
Disunion for what? If the passionate
rage of fanaticisin and partisan spirit did
not force the fact upon our attention, it
would be difficult to believe that any con-
siderable portion of the people of this en-
lightened country could have so surrendered
themselves to a fanatical devotion to the
supposed interests of the relatively few AT
ricans in the United States, as totally to
abandon and disregard the interests of the
twenty-five millions of Amcricans-to tram
pie under foot the injunctions Of moral
Constitutional obigation-and to engage
in plans of vindctivc hostility against those
who arc associated with them in the enjoy
mcnt of tile common heritage Of our nation
al Institutions.
Nor is it hostility against their fellow
citizens of. one section of the Union alone.
The interests, the honor, the duty, the peace,
and the prosperity of the people Of all sec
tions are equally involved and impered in
this question. And arc patriotic men in
any part of the Union prepared. on such an
issue, thus madly to invite all the consc-
quoncos of the forfeiture Of their coiistitu
tional engagements? 1t is impossible. The
storm Of frenzy andfaction must inevitably
dash itself in vain against the unshaken rock
of the Constitution. shall neyerdoubt it.
know that the Union is stronger thous-
and times than all the wild and chimerical
schemes Of social change, which are gener-
ated, one after another, in the unstable
minds Of visionary sophists and interested
agitators. rely confidently on the patriot
ism of the people, on the dignity and self.
respect of the States, on the wisdom o.
Congress, and; above all, on the continued
gracious favor of Almighty God to maintain
against all enemies, whether at home o
abroad, the sanctity of the Constitution anc
the integrity of the Union.
| FRANKLIN PIERCE.
| WAsHrNaToN, Dec. 81, 1855. o.