The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1857-11-26

The SLAVERY QUESTION AND THE DEMocRA-
CY-TRoUBLE IN A NEW QUARTER clash
ing opinions between the leading democratic
journals OF the North and those of the South,
in reference to the State constitution of the
Kansas Lecompton Convention, indicate
stormy time upon that subject in Congress.
Among the foremost journals in the indignant
Reputation Of the work of the Lecompton con-
stitution makers were Colonel Forney's Phila-
delphia Press, and the Chicago Times the home
organ Of Senator Douglas. So unqualified, too,
are the terms in which these two prominent de-
mocratic papers have denounced these Lecomp-
ton doings, that it will perhaps be difficult to
make this Lecompton programme palatable to
many of the Northern democratic members of
the new Congress, elected upon the principle Of
popular sovereignty" in Kansas in its fullest
extent.
But the Washington Union has raised breeze
issue, compared with which the Kansas ques-
ton is as Insignificant as the dirty little rivuet
called the Tibcr, or Goose creek, which flows
| through the city of Washington, would be
alongside the vast volume of the Mis-
| sissippi river. This new issue is simply
this, as argued by the Onion, to wit-That
all the constitutions and all the laws Of all the
Northern States prohibiting the Introduction
| and employment of slave property from the
slave States, are unconstitutional for, says
| the Union
The constitution declares that the citizens of each
State shall be entitled TO all the privileges and imunies
tnfr IN TIM r,ftn arn
State coming into another State has therefore, right to
the protection Of his person. and that property which is
any law Of the State to the contrary Notwithstanding So far
from any State having right to deprive him Of his
property, IT is its bounden duty to protect him in its
possession.
This is "going the entire animal y for, with
| the establishment Of this doctrine, every State
| in the Union instantly becomes, in law, slave
State. Should the democracy adopt this new
article into their national creed, Mr.. Toombs
may perhaps, still live to "call the roll of his
slaves on Bunker Hill," or sell them at auction
| in front of the Office of the New York Tribune,
to the utter prostration of poor Greeley.
| Mr.. Senator Douglas, however, cannot swal-
low this new prescription. He tastes it and re-
jects it with the keenest disgust The Chicago
Tsmes-his especial organ-denounces it as 80
bold and infamous attempt to destroy the demo-
cratic party" and as doctrine utterly hostile
to the democratic platform, and destructive of
| State sovereignty and national union" Nor
is it necessary here to repeat the law and
gospel upon which Mr. Douglas, through his
organ, proves his position; for the absurdity
of this new dogma of the Washington Union
is only equalled by its cool and unblushing i'm
pudence.
| We do not care now to enter into this debate.
There will be time enough for that when il is
| preached in Congress But in this matter there
| is "a wheel within wheel, we suspect, both at
Washington and Chicago. The Washington
| Union, perhaps, is laboring to recover its lost
ground with the Southern fre-eaters, in view of
the Congress printing, and thus runs gaily be-
fore the wind in spreading the constitutional
rights of slavery smack up to our Canadian
| frontier. On the other hand, Mr.. Senator
| Douglas, from his experiments at two or three
national democratic Conventions, has probably
come to the conclusion that holding horses for
the Southern fire-eaters does not pay expenses
| and that his own section, and the constitutional
rights interests and sympathies Of his own sec
ton, can only be relied upon for Presidential
capital This is all that we have to say at pre-
| sent upon this new ground Of quarrel between
the Washington Union and the home organ of
Mr.. Douglas. We care nothing for the outside
husk and shell of the case; but give us taste
of the kernel, or a view of the wheel within
the Wheel" and we can soon solve the argument
on both sides We may expect some astound-
ing developments in the Senate within month
| message.