The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-08-05
THE IssU ;

! Oar enemies, and many calling themselves
friends, are constantly end avoring to beittIe
or change the issue betwee us and the social
ed Democratic party. One would change the
issue to that of Americans 4, another to that
which for long time Ike the Wing party
alive-the doctrine of prots ton. Others still
demand that there be no q hume issue except
opposition to the Democratic party, and that
the great aim should be to o. ,rthrow that party,
and secure to ourselves the. polls of Office. BY
adopting this policy, these gentlemen claim that
all opponents of the Admin 5tration can unite,
and win great victory. re do not believe
this; but if it were true, wat good would it
accomplish The new paEy, put into power
without any principles, woule be worth no more
to the cause of Freedom THAI the party now in
power, and we should have gsined just nothing
at all. The Chicago Tribune has some excel
lent remarks upon this point, which, though
written with especial reference to the campaign
in Illinois, are pertinent in. every free State.
That journal says:
" The fact should never be lost sight Of, that
the principal issue in the pending canvass in
this State is in regard to thu extension or re-
stricton of Slavery. To the former, the Democ.
racy-both the Administrative and the Douglas
factions-are uDequivocally pledged the Re.
publicans are as fully commit ed in favor of the
latter. Stripped of all extra ,eous matter, this
is in fact the sole issue involt I'd. Other ques
tons may CT me up incidenta y in the progress
OF the discussion, but they ! all subordinate
to this one, and only tend 10 show the relative
dnimuS of the two contendin parties Thus,
Mr.. Douglas, in his Chicago speech of the 9th
inst, declared his oppositiortfo the ultimate
extinction Of Slavery by tbe action of the
States in which it exists on tle ground that this
policy would lead to a uniformity of domestic
institutions in the several States, out of which
would necessarily spring lespotism, based
upon the ruins of our eeT ublican Govern
| ment."
Whether Slavery shall be permitted to pass
into and fasten itself upon DIR Territories, in
opposition to the wishes of tt . people thereof
whether the decision of the SQ creme Court, that
the Federal Constitution carr, es the institution
with 1t, and that ninety ming ,undredths of the
people of any Territory have n. power to exclude
it against the wishes of the e naming one hun
dredth of the population, sbsA receive the en-
dorsement of the freemen of S5llinois whether
it is not better to return to the early policy of
the Government and presers, our Territories
sacred to freedom and free lisbor by Congress.
sional action, and thus limit s avery to It's pres.
ent boundaries, leaving all n alters connected
with the control of the institu ion within those
| boundaries TO the States, res ectively-this is
the grand issue upon which Il contest hinges.
The Republican party is ped,ed to the policy
of letting Slavery alone where's i already has an
existence, but to hold it in che k by interposing
every constitutional barrier against its admis.
sion into our Territories; the Democracy are
pledged to carry it into all ou, Territories, and
they deny to the people thereG all right of CD.
position to it, until they set sb ,ut organizing
State Government"
The real issue which the Republican party
takes with its opponents ia her stated with dis.
tinctness, and it would seem if every intelli-
gent voter could see it at once