New-York daily tribune., 1858-10-18


counterfeit II s wild densOn-if you vii not E
So far as to call j; mpos.iiO1 aud lie lAPeanse'
Popular sovereignty, 10 tie true scn-e oi ie ~
means tie sovereignty "i All .hdVdnaIsi 90
a. 20 ry. 4 common expression o. the 90 leciiye VIII
resraiIed only by tie natural right Of Individual Ii,h,
H. foundation can 10 other than the recoguu"h VI
III. equal rights OF Ell men. II can be buii hPch 10
other presumption bat that al men ar iiee. aug tAn'
institution, which cOhtTGGct- me illL' pc -H7 az
pr,0r, right to esl-;. =
But what means Mr. Douglass great priaeple oi
Popular Sovereignty He says that the people ci
Territory shan decide for themselves whether they
will have Slavery or not-iha' Is 10 say, whether the
employer nav own his lAborer. or whether ne -ha.l
hire him Did Slavery exist in those IeTTierles Al
the time Of the enactment of the Nebraska on ""
II did not We'll now tie people shall decide tor
,bemseve- b.. what shall BE- the rule, what shall
he the law before the people shall have gwen thelr
verdict by positive legislation Shall TIE presump
ton be in favor Of Freedom, according 10 the innGa
mental PRINCIPE Of the good Anglo-safon common
No. Sir: the STAKEHOLDER shall have the 4 Priori
right to 20 into the Territory with his slaves and 10
hold them there as slaves; the night ct man 10 org
his aborer Is pyOri, recognized by the Kansas and
Nebraska bill. And here lei me add that the Dred
Scott decision is most logical construction Of the
Nebraska bll loud cheers and acknowledged % be
such by Mr.. Douglas himself and that his quibbes
between his Sluatter Sovereignty and that decision
are the most contemplate subterfu-es by which even
n pettifogger made hiusef ridiculous. lContnued
applause. Thus IIr. Douglass Popular SoveFei 5nty
j. based upon presumption IN favor g SMrtfy!
ruon the PRESUMPTION that Slavery exists of rtgat,
where it is not prohibited by positive legislation.
lCheers.
Common sense tells you that true Popular Sover-
eighty can have other basic than the hbertyot al
men: that true Popular Sovereignty means the re-
moysl Of all barriers which the ingenuity of despot-
i'm has set to human liberty. Cheers.l But Mr.
Douglas tels you that the true foundation Of Ameri-
can Popular Sovereignty is the right Of Slavery 10
ist where is not expressly prohibited and that ii
means the removal Of all barriers which American
patriotism has set to human bondage. Applause.
If you could ask Washington, Franklin, Jefferson,
JAY Madison and Henry Clay for their opinion, who
Of them would chrsten this abomnable mixture with
the great name OF Popular Severe gnty. They would
have sgmatiZed It az contemplate bastard, begot-
ten in the sduterous embrace Of Democracy and Slav
ery with the features of liberty lie face but with
the black of despoism in It's heart. Loud aud
continued applause
Irepeat il, Sir, tLis so-called Popular Sovereignty
is but embodiment of the old antagonisul, but
new sign board to the old concern new melody to
the old song Icheers; anew trap. set for old fools
lThundering applause II is the old mistake the old
tyufusion OF ideas; there is nothing il it but
feature. I'D that is its very worst.
marks deea new PsIEa IN ,e I,cg FrdSTgg O ii onj
Slavery struck by the fathers of ts kepubhc and the
SUBSEQUENT generation of statesmen were compro-
mises between principle and IN interest. Enucav-
Oring to reconcile the social institutions Oi TINS couh
Try TO the fundamental ideas upon which this Govern
mcnt was built, the fathers of this Republic abOred
for the gradual abolition of Slavery, wherever they
could reach il. But. unable to eXtngush IT at once,
they made concessions to Slavery as 10 an uniortu-
nately existing fact, without recognizing in il any
principle from which il might derive any national
right. 10 them, Freedom was the ruling, the funda-
mental the rational principle, and Slavery Local in
stitution, which existed only by suierance, and TO
which concessions were made for .hv Of tempo
rary expediency. This spirit governed the councils
Of the nation in al acts relating to slavery and Con
yress therefore did not hesitate o exclude from the
hat
The manifest tendency was to remove the cOntra1c-
ion between the fundamental principles OF our Gov
.rnment and social institution by sacrificing the lat.
er lCheers.l Even the Missouri Compromise, 50
ar as il excluded Slavery lrom CERTAIN Territories,
was dictated by this spirit.
The Nebraska bill, in opening the National Terri
tories to Slavery elevated Slavery from the rank OF
mere obnoxious fact 20 the rank Of a national prncl-
pie. According to that measure, Slavery shall have
The right to exist everywhere by virtue Of the ma
ional law, where il is not abolished and prohibited
by local legislation. Before Mr.. Douglas, Popular
sovereignty, Slavery and Freedom stand apparently
A. equal claimants. But in fact, Slavery has ac-
auired The right Of precedence over Freedom. This
: the principle which Douglas has introduced into
the policy this country, in place Of the leading ideas
Of the revolution. lie may claim the merit OF being
The first who succeeded in dspaclng the political
development of this Republic from the solid basis Of
the Declaration Of lndepender Co. The Nebraska bill,
very far from being progressive movement, was the
boldest step in the reaction against the principles oi
the Revolution.
10 not say that | am ndulgug in mere play with
abstract ideas and theoretical Determinations, and
that things might look better III reality for tell You,
what is Ill theory you viii never make sense
in practice.
iknow M Douglass priccipa position, that the
people Of the Territories should be left free to settle
tie question Of Slavery for themselves, carries some
Iausibility with it. But why could 1t not be fairly
and quietly executed Because everybody tired I"
execute it as he pretended to understand it. Yes, Sir,
no sooner was tie word spoken, than the con,raiic
ton which lay hidden in the measure, broke out
in n practical conflict. This not astonishing -
ire, lor cannot be otherwise, when the construction
Of ambiguous is put into the haudso antag
onist.c interests. Cheers.
Look at the Constitution of the United States. It
words are the same for Mr. Gerrit Smith OF Newlork
and for Mr.. Hammond OF South Carolina: But how
Goes il happen that these gentlemen understand its
meaning SO differently How does it happen that the
sane words which signify Liberty to Gerrit Smith
signify Slavery to Hammond II is because their
The ole looks at It from the hills OF Free New-York
the other, from the mlry soil of South Carolina cot
ton-feld. The antagOnism between Liberty and
Slavery has drawn III its whir the OF human
thought and the reasoning faculties of the human
mind But if such i the case even with the Federal
Constitution of which Madison said that il should
tain nothing which might remind coming generations
that such an abominaton Slavery existed in
this r. public what will be tie fate Of such measures
which are nothing but new embodiment Of the old
contradiction and antagonsn between Democracy and
Slavery As soon as such measure Is enacted, both
principles and both sections OF tue country represent
ing them will seize upon il and try to monopolze it,
construction, and what is construed 10 mean Liberty
here will be construed TO mean Slavery there: and
this is natural FOR to the STAKEHOLDER the principal
meaning of Liberty il that man shall have right 10
hold his iellow-man as property. LCheers.
Was ( not so with the Kansas Nebraska bin No
sooner that measure passed by Congress than the
slay holding interest succeeded monopOizing its
onstru, ,tioa, and while poor Democrats il the
Northoru States descantng on the beauties Of