Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1858-07-02

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never differed.
The several points of the Dred Scott decis-
ion, in connection with Senator Douglas
"care not" " policy, constitute the piece of
machinery in its present state of advancement.
The ,corking points of that machinery are :;
First, that no negro slave, imported as such
from Africa, and no descendant of such slave,
can ever be n citisen of any State, in the sense
of that term as used in the Constitution of
the United States. This point is made in or
der to deprive the negro, in every possible
event, of the benefit of that provision of the
United States Constitution which declares
{" That the citizens of each State shall be en-
titled to all privileges and immunities of cti-
zens in the several States"
Secondly, that " subject to the Constitu-
tion of the United States, rether Congress
nor Territorial Legislature can exclude
Slavery from any United States Territory"
This point is made in order that individual
men may fill up the Territories with Slaves,
without danger of losing them MS property,
and thus to enhance the chances of perma-
nency to the institution through all the fu-
ture.
Thirdly, that whether the holding negro
in actual slavery in Free State makes him
free as against the holder, the United States
Souito Will bOt ucCiut, Dup Will icstNt W pO
decided by the Courts of any Slave State the
negro may be forced into by the master,
This point is made not to be pressed imme-
diately; but, if acquiesced in for while, and
apparently indorsed by the people at an cleo
tion, then to sustain the logical conclusion,
that what Dred Scott's master might lawfully
do with Dred Scott in the Free State of Hi
nois, every other master may lawfully do
with any other ono or one thousand slaves in
Illinois or in any other Free State. Auxiliary
to all this, and working hand in hand with
it, the Nebraska doctrine, or what is left oft,
is to educate and mold public opinion, at least
Northern public opinion, not to care whether
Slavery is voted doWn or up. This shows
exactly where we now are, and partially, also
whittier we are tending.
1t will throw additional light on the latter,
to go back, and run the mind over the string
Of historical facts already stated. Several
things will nop appear less dark and myster-
ious then they did ,rhen they We're transpir-
ing. The people were to be left perfectly
free" "subject only to the Constitution.
What the Constitution had to do with it,
outsiders could not then see. Plainly enough
noc, it was an exactly fitted niche for the
Dred Scott decision to afterwards come in,
and declare that perfect freedom of the people
to be just no freedom at all. Why was the
amendment, expressly declaring the right of
the people to exclude Slavery, Lvotcd down?
Plainly enough no,o, the adoption of it would
have spoiled the niche for the Dred Scott
decision. Why was the Court decision held
up? Why, even the Senator's individual
opinion withheld till after the Presidential
election? Plainly enough nop. the speaking
out then would have endangered the stpertecf-
ly free" argument upon which the question
was to be carried. Why the outgoing Presi-
dent S felicitation on the endorsement? Why
the DELAY of the re-arpument? Nby the in
coming Presidents adrance exhortation in
favor Of the decision?
These things look like the cautious patting
and pett,ng spirited horse, preparatory to
mounting him, when it is dreaded that he
may. give tho rider fall And whv the has
ty after Endorsements OF the decision by the
President and Others! we cannot absolute
ly hnop that all these exact adaptations are
the result OF preconcert. But when we see
lot OF framed tlmbers, different portions q, OF
which we know have been gotten out at dil-
terent times and places and ny different work
men-Stephen, Franklin, Roger and James,
tor instance when we see these timbers
joined together, and see they exactly make
the frame OF a house or mill, all the lemons
and mortices exactly fitting, and all the
lengths and proportions OF the different pee
cs exactly adapted to their respective places,
and not piece too many or too tew-not
emitting even scah1lding-or, II single
| piece be lacking, we can sec the place IN the
frame exactly fitted and prepared to,yet bring
this piece in-in such a case we find 1T impos-
and Roger and James all understood one
| another from the DppInlnp and all worked
upon common plan or d,ah drawn up be-
fore the first lick was struck.
1t should not be overlooked that, by thu
Nebraska bill, the people ofa STATE as wei
Territory were to be left "per'ectly free,
"su61ed only 10 the Constitution" WIZ
mention State? They were legislatng FOL
Territories and not for or about Stats. Ger
tainly the people OF STATE are and ought 4
be subject to the Constitution of the United
States; but why is mention OF this lugged
into this merely Ierritoriallaw Why arr
the people ofa Territory and the people of
Slate therein Jumped together, and their re
lation to the Constitution therein treated a
being precisely the same? While theoplnlol
of The Court, by Chief Justice Taney, in the
Dred Scott case, and the separate opinions o
all the concurring Judges, expressly declar
that the Constitution of the United State
neither permits Congress nor Territora
Legislature to exclude Slavery from an
United States Territory, they all omit to dc
clare whether or not the same Constirutio
permits a State, or the people of State, t
it.
Possibly, this was mere OMISSION bu
who can be quite sure, if Mclean or Curt
had sought to get into the opinion de
claration of unlimited power in tn
! people of IA State to exclude Slavery frol
their limits, Just as Chase and Mace sougl
to get such declaration in behalf of the PEE
Pile of territory into the Nebraska bill
ask, who can be quite sure that it would nj
have been voted down in the one case as