The Feliciana Democrat. (Clinton, La.) 1855-186?, 1857-05-23

against South, or Fast against West. But
now the all.absorbing question Of the day is
negro slavery.
The nonslavchoding States disregard alto.
gcther the great measures Of government, upon
which alone political parties can be legitimate.
ly organized. Their single point of operations,
upon which they are all united, with the ex.
ccption Of noble band of indomitabe Demo.
Gratis, is antogonism, unreasoning and unrclent-
ing, to our domestic institution. They count
their host of fanatica assailants Of the South.
by hundreds upon hundreds Of thousands. In
the late Presidential election they met us open.
ly and boldly, and with force that induced
Southern men, the most loyal, conservative
and fearless, to counsel preparation for an
event which they contemplated with q sadness
similar to that with which disappearing Prov
dcnce must look down upon fallen angels -
DIsUNIoN is u word not recognized in the po.'
litical nomenclature of the fathers of the re-.
public But now it is becoming much more
familiar than the precepts and principles incul-
Gated by those great and good men, whose
virtues taught them that the spirit of liberty
was an cmanation from the same source, to
which The Christian religion owes its existence
the one intended for the temporal, the other
for the eternal happiness Of mankind And
what their virtues taught them to be true,
their wisdom enabled them to embody and
adapt to their country.
The CONSTITUTION illustrates liberty in its
only practical light And as long as the prin.
ciplcs it proclaims those rights which it dc.
mands for the federal government, and those
which it demands to the States, were acknowl.
edged and observed by all parties AMI all sec
tons, the UNION was revcred as the sanctuary
Of freedom. But since the sovereignty of Che
States is assailcd, the interests Of the South
endangered, and our system OF government
threatened with prostitution of the principles
and powers of liberty. to tyranny, insult and
outrage, upon fifteen sovereign States of this
conicdcracy the Southern people, when they
talk Of n dissolution of the Union, are advocat-
ing an adherence to those principles upon
which our government was organized, and
manfcsting the same spirit which prompted
the declaration of independence. As yet the
Union is inact, and safe for four years at least.
The threats of the traitors who would sucri-
flee one section to the envy, ambition and hypO-
criSy OF the other, can never accomplish dis
rupton of the confcderacy, until the anti.slavc-
ry party possess the power to execute them
Ohio and Massachusetts may enact laws for
the protection Of fugitive slaves, and send rep.
rcscntaiivcs to Congress to preach the treason
which their States are practicing; the abolition
press may vilify the South and the institutions
Of the South; all Yankccdom may rcsounts
with 'shrieks for freedom" but the Union will
endure until the Federal government is brought
under the control of men who will abuse its
authority by denying the sovereignty of the
States or, otherwise, so impair its eilicacy for
Iits intended ends, rs to make the interests Of
! Al.
Went to another. Occasions have already
arisen on which the South has made serious
sacrifices for the sake of the Union. And those
occasions were almost as alarming as the
strength and mien of abotionism now. They
were the prcmonitory symptoms of the rank.
ling malady with which we are now contend.
ing, to save the vital organs of onr government
from its destructive touch
Compromises between tIFs North and South,
can no longer receive the sanction even of the
most tcmporizing men They have always
been injudicious And The time llas come
when the principles of the government rh,,sa
either be emphatically approved or denounced
The fanatics Of the North have declared war.
without quarter, upon our institutions, wtli
flaming ircbrands and the fury of ficnds, they
are rallying their routed forces tor 1860; ansA
the South, to stand against the onset, must
meet them in compact column. If they sue
coed, the Union must be sundcred If they
are beaten, we may expect it's pcrpetuity.
The South, if left alone to battle with any
united North would be driven to separation
at once. But throughout the territory of the.
enemy there is an organized Democracy ready
to make Thcrmopyle of every pass. The
national Democrats of the North are patriot
heroes, whom history and posterty will well
remember. Whetherin defeat or victory, they
are men to be marked by the South, and new
err forgotten by the nation. In Vermont or
in Maine as in Illinois or Pennsylvania, those
gallant defenders of the Constitution, who
have been and are still contesting every inch
of ground with the enemies Of our institutions,
even if they can muster only corporal's guard,
deserve to be applauded by every lover Of lib
erty in this and in every other country
On the issue of slavery they are as steady
and staunch as when party lines were drawn
upon other and less exciting questions. Ii is
true, there are thousands OF our old allies in
the North, who have deserted to the anti.
Dat a.