Washington telegraph., 1856-05-07
r Rather Pointed.

fare of the whole country.
Miade1, Herald
Rather Pointed.
Many of the papers in this State, devo-
ted to the foreign interest, pretend to be
in ectasies over the speech delivered by
Mr.. Cobb, on the Goth Dee.-a speech
which his real friends, and the friends of
the country everywhere deplored-but
they never mention little episode which
that day varied the dull monotony of the
ordinary proceedings of the House We
refer to Mr. Campbell's charge against
him, viz: that he Gov. Cobb had voted
for the slavery restriction feature in the
Texas bill-a feature much more obiec-
tionable than that contended for by Mr..
Campbell and the balance of the freesoil-
ers.
We copy the following from the Nation
al Intelligencers report of the proceedings
of the House of Representatives on the
Doth of Dec
Mr. Campbell, of Ohio, desired to know
why it was that the gentleman from Geor-
gia had charged the LOG men who voted
for the honorable gentleman from Massa-
chusetts Mr. Banks) with entertaining
principles adverse to the constitution p
Did it grow out of the fact that they claim
ed the right, under the constitution, to
exclude slavery from the common terrific
ries of the government In other words,
did the gentleman consider what was com
monty called the Wilmot proviso, viola
ton of the Constitution of the United
States?
Mr.. Cobb. Whenever have the floor
Mr. Campbell (interrupting) You
have it now.
Mir, Cobb. And when the gentleman
from Ohio sees proper to PROFOUND that
question to me, with an unlimited control
of the floor to speak as may be necessary
to answer him, will reply with great
pleasure. / see that the gentleman has
been reading the Congressional Globe, and
I should Judge that he POUNDS his ques-
tions upon position heretofore taken By
me-
Mr. Campbell We claim here the
right, under the constitution, to exclude
slavery from the common territories of
the country | understand the gentleman
to charge that in this respect we defy the
principles of the constitution; and should
submit it to the House and the country
that, having made that charge, the gen
tleman should answer the question |
have propounded. The gentleman may
tell me that he perceives [ have been
reading the Congressional Globe. More
than that let me tell the gentleman that
have been reading the journals OF Con
gress. When he charges me with section
alism and disposition to violate the con-
stitution of the country because | main
tain principles like these, / mean to justi-
fy myself by the highest authority known
to this government If | desired, could
also justify myself by the action of the
honorable gentleman himself; and, that
he may be more careful in future, will
refer to the records OF the past by way of
vindicating our position.
In 1916 there was a question before
this body of vast consequence to our coun-
try-the annexation of Texas and pend
ing that proposition here, the following
proviso was introduced by the honorable
1
then a member of the House:
provided, however, That in such State
as shall be formed out of the Territories
North of said Missouri Compromise line,
slavery or involuntary servitude,- except
for crime, shall be prohibited.
He wished the country to bear in mind
that this proviso did not seek to place
restriction upon territories, but it went
far beyond anything claimed by the LOG
members who were voting for Mr.. Banks
1t provided that even when Territory
should form a State Constitution and be
ready to come into the Union as an inde
pendent sovereignty, the people thereof
should not have the right to tolerate sla-
very
lie had not risen to make a speech, but
for the purpose of justifying, by the vote
upon the proviso he had quoted, the posi-
ton occupied upon that question by the
106 members with whom he was acting
And he would call the attention of the
House to the fact that upon that vote the
name of the distinguished gentleman from
Georgia was recorded in the affirmative.
[ Applause. ;.
Having thus vindieated himself and those
who were acting with him from the charge
of sectionalism, he desired to say that, as
to the matter Of Americanism, he stood
prepared to defend all of the leading char
acteristics of that organization lAp-
plause. The present, however, was not
the time to enter into a discussion OF that