Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1858-03-06


was done by the Wings in the Legislature.
Understanding that the measure was intended
to proceed on the principles of the New Mexico
and Utah bills: and, at the same time, to
furnish the foundation for a contest in Kansas,
and also in Nebraska, if there should be any
temptation to it there. as to the establishment
of a slave State, without repeating the Mis-
souri, compromise in express terms, what did
the Wings do? Before they could have any,
advice, any information. any knowledge OF.
the motives and feelings prevalent here, they
urged resolution of this kind:
s'Rezoeed Thst we cordially approve Of the amend
mept proposed by the Hon Archibald Dixon, of Ken
tucy IN the bill reported the Senate of the United
States by the Committee Territories for the organ
and Nebraska
That amendment proposed a direct repeal
of the Missouri compromise. This reminds
me OF conversation / had with one of my
late colleagues i'm the Senate as TO that bill,
and the eauivocal language in which it was
presented. which was unexpected by me alto-
gether: for though l was a member of the
committee. had not reached Washington in
time to attend the first meetings Of the COM
mittee He told me he was not willing il
should stand in that way and agreed with
him that, if the intention was to create an
agitation on this subject, to make question
before the country for the purpose of uniting
North. it should be done openly. The next
thing | heard was the introduction of Mr..
Dixon's amendment. | do not say that it
was dictated by me; but / am speaking of
private conversation, in which / declared that,
if the Missouri compromise was to he repeal
ed il should he done openly and palpably, so
that the people of the North and South could
see it. But it was not exactly so at the last.
am sorry To allude to, or review the discus
oil of / hau
never considered them credtable to our Gov
ernment, nor crcditable TO the principle q
popular rights and popular sovereignty 50
much dwelt on yesterday. L do not like the
idea of getting up parcel of words, sylla-
bles, and lines of such equivocal and uncer-
tain import in the nature of the worst sort of
clap-trap that was ever used in legislation. /
did not approve of it then. That il the char
acter of those resolutions introduced into the
Legislature during the tendency of that bill.
l thought it was perfectly right myself that
the party in the ascendancy here should be
required 10 act III such a manner that their ac-
ton should be understood. | am sorry to
talk so much about party. Irespcct the larg-
est portion of all parties, for the largest por
ton of the public IL honest and patriotic.
dislike TO say anything that would seem to
characterize one party as less worthy than
another but | never could have conceived,
and did not conceive, when the proposition of
Mr.. Dixon, of Kentucky, was introduced in
the Senate that it would be embraced by the
honorable Senator who had charge of that
bill
Lei me do him the justice to say. not from
my direct personal knowledge, but from cir
cumstances and evidence that are equally sat
isf;lctory to me, that the honorable Senator
from Illinois Was sincere in the course he took
finally after he had made report against the
repeal of the Missouri compromise, and de-
picted its consequences in manner which
was calculated to strike the whole country.
He Welded. The Administration you know.
sir. pronounced against the measure through
its ordinary organ. 1t was understood that
the Administration was decidedly opposed to
Mr.. DiXon's amendment. He was charged
with attempting to stir up all those mischey
GUS and dang agitatiOns on the question
of slavery, which had before shaken the Tn
ion to its center in 1920 and 1850. Never
thelcss in q few days afterwards the Admins
tration came into the support of the measure
simultaneously, / believe, with the majority
of the Senate.
There is nothing, then, in the resolutions o.
1854, which can b. taken as of binding force
There was the sort of game play, d there thai
was attempted here. | did not know tn
heart of Mr.. Dixon, or what his purposes were
but did not believe at the time the amend
ment was introduced, that he had any sucL
purpose. | need not 20 into detail Of how
the contest waXed warmer and warmer An
CRY debates took place between members who
represented the northern feeling and til,
southern feeling on that subject. a man had
To take his position on one side or the Other
on all questions which arose. There was no
opinion among the people of Tennessee, at
the time these resolutions were introduced.
They were ready to follow their friends and
leaders on both sides. 1t was question on
which they had no assuI ed and confident con-
victions that the measure was very right or
very wrong. They were ready to act, as is
usual in such communities, in the South par
ticularly, when anything is presented that
looks us if it would add To the strength or
security of that institution which they all
consider to be one which needs all the guards
against the growing power of the North that
can be thrown around it. 1 say nothing Of
their disposition, but the growing power and
prepond rance of the population of the North.
Every sensible man in the South has those
feelings. / have them myself. The people
understood that their leaders in Congress,
both Democrats and Wings, We're going for
the measure AID it would he natural, under
such circumstances, to suppose that it must
be right.
now come to the next point my colleague
made in opposition TO my remarks on the
second resolution of the series before us which
expresses the opinion that the people OF Teu-
nes-ee had pronounced against my course in
..the recent elections" which presumed TO
include the election of 1888. | have MY
doubts whether they meant to include it or
not, but | infer il. The late election would
afford them better ground than the presiden-
tial election. because everybody knows that
Mr.. Buchanan carried the State by seven
thousand five hundred majority. i doubt
whether they meant TO include the election of
1855 at all, which cam, of fifteen months
after the passage of the Nebraska bill How
does INV colleague attempt To bolster up the
idea that thlt election settled this question:
He does not deny that Mt that time both
branches of the Legislature Were carried by
the party in opposition to the Democratic
party in the STATE. hut he says this question
was in issue, and he knows IT, because he was
in the canvass. as the candidate of the Demo
cratic party for Governor. ii. says that this
was one Of tn" main questions in the canvass.
i stated the contrary of that yesterday aud
state ii now, not meaning To impugn his opin-
ion on the subject. i rcaifirm that il was not
the principal subject of controversy in 1855.
| was in Tennessee during considerable part
of that canvass at all events, and know some
thing about IL.
The declaration of my colleague on this
point is in these words
''But my honorable colleague spoke Of the contest
~ 1855. He viii pardon me for making the allusion
hut was engaged in that contest. was one of the
candidates for Governor. | canvasscd the state from
the mountains Of Johnson county Ia tho Chickasaw
Rlus In shelby county. WAS In nearly every county
in the State and well do l recOect the exciting
events that took place during that canvass had
competitor who WAS anqncut, Nho n known 81 many
members at tits House. Whu v. IN nr every
stump the state one Of the leading issues that
canvass the kansas Nebraska hill. pressed my
compel tor upon II before every alience, and there
We're scarcely such turn-outs in the STATE dur
ing that canvass. II OF the issues be-
Nv cen him and me-
said that Amcricanism was the main Issue,
and almost the exclusive Issue; for | had
perfect recollection that the canvass was
op med on the part Of thu Americans with the
most assured and confident feeling that they