The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-05-13


Delivered u the House OF Representatives Jan H. lag
Mr.. Chairman, whenever il shall be in ordar
l shall offer to the House the following resolu.
tion, which covers the ground that propose To
discuss: ~
" ReSotoed, That select committee N con
slst Of members, be appointed bv tn.
speaker, with instructions to inquire into the
expeoIency of providing for the acquisition of
territory either In the Contra! or South Amer
lcan States, TO be oolonized with colorad rer
scns from the United States who are now frse
or who may hereafter become free. and Who
s'ay be willing to settle in such territory "a a
dependency OF the United States, with annie
guarantees OF their personal and political
rights"
IL %as remarked by gentleman from Ten
nessee Mr. MAYNARD the other day, on this
moor, that be hoped and believed that this CUES
ton would be discussed and disposed of with
our reference to the subject of Slavery, because,
he SAID, there were no slaves in Central Amer
lca' The inquiry was made immediately, bV
many around me, /" How long will il be befoy.
there are slaves there?" This inquiry shove.
what is almost universally felt to be true. thai
tne Slavery question is at the bottom of this
whole movement. There is party in this
country who go for the extension of Slavery
ana these predatory incursions against our
neignbors are the means by which territory ia
10 De seized, planted with Slavery, annexed to
this Union, and, in combination with the pres
ent slsveholding States, made to dominate this
Government and the entire continent: or. fail
ing IN the policy of annexation, to unite with
the slave States in a Southern slaveholdjn0
Republic. l believe that there are those who
entertain such purpose. am opposed to the
whole scheme, and to every part of ii; and, in
order to oppose it successfully, / think we
should recur to the plans cherished by the
great men who founded shis Republic. think
we ought to put 1t out of the power Of any body
OF men to plant Slavery anywhere on this con.
tinsnt, by taking immediate steps to give 10 an
OF these countries that require it, and espeeiAlIv
to the Central American States, the power 10
sustain free institutions under stable Govern.
ments and, as one method Of doing this, we
might plant those countries with class of MAJ,
who are worse than useless to US, who woakf
prove themselves to be of immense ADVANTAGE
to those countries, who would attrsci the wealth
and energy of our best men to aid and direct
them In developing thu Incredible riches nf
those regions, and thus open them to our com
merce, aud the commerce Of the whola world
! reief to our enfranchised slaves, all of that
class who would willingly embrace the offer to
form themselves into COLONY, under the pro-
lection OF our flag, and the guarantee of the
Republic of every personal and political right
necessary to their safety and prosperity.
What propose Is not new; it is bottomed
On the reasoning and recommendation of Mr..
Jefferson. Speaking of proposition, similar
in many respects, urged by him upon The Lao.
islsture of his native State, be saws:
1T was, however, Soand that the nnbl;o
mind would no. yet bear the proposition. nor
will it even at this day yet the day is not far
distant when 1t must bear it and adopt il. or
worse will follow. Nothing is more certainly
written in the book of fate, than that ,bese
people 1.-THE negroes) are TO be free; nor ia il
less certain that the two races, equally free.
cannot live in the same Government. Nature
habit, opinion, have drawn indelible lines Of
distinction between them. 1t is still in our
power to drcos the process of EMANCIPATION
AND DEPORTATION, and in such slow deeree
as that the evil will wear off insensibly. and
their place be pari passu filed up BY free
whne laoorets. If, on the contrary, it is left
to force itself on, human nature must shudder
at the prospect held up. We should in vain
look LOT an example in the Spanish deports>
ton or deleiion of the Moors."
The time has ripened for the execution OF
Mr.. Jeferson's plan. By adopting it. we NAV
relieve ourselves of q people who are burden
70 US; give them an amount of happiness and
comfort they can never realize here, where
hey are treated as degraded class; reinvi0
,rate the feeble people of the southern Reuub.
les, and open up to the enterprise of our mer.
,hants the untold wealth of the intertropicaI
.egion, containing greater amount of produc-
i've land than all the balance of the continent.
put stop to the African slave trade, which IL
treated and kept up by the demand for troni.
,al productions, BY supplying that demand by
he labor OF the only class of freemen capable
Il exertion in that climate. l make this promo.
ition TO meet, oppose, and defeat that which
eeks by violence to re-establish Slavery. "a.
'pen the At.ican slave trade, subject those re.
1ons, in Walkers own language, :" to military
NE, and exclude from them the people of the
orthern States. shall discuss and comuare
hese propositions as fully as the time limited
will allow me.
Mr. Randolph, in one of his most celebrated
Peeehes IN the Senate, addressing himself to
DIR. Calhoun, said:
Dir, know there are gentlemen, not only
IRON the Southern but the Northern States,
ISEE POuRTu paar