Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1858-03-25
CLOSING SPEECH OF
SENATOR DOUGLAS.
on THE
LEooMProN QUESTION.

received with loud and enthusiastic applause
which Inc deprecated by shaking his head and
making gestures to stop. There was not one
foot of vacant room in the galleries. and the re
porters were overrun by invading border.r utiians
| All the seats on the floor were occupied and the
windows near the roof were filled. The spec
tatOrs' gallery was nearly all filled by ladies.
most of whom remained over recess at o clock
aud continued through the whole sitting until
Il1d.
I On motion of Mr.. GwIN, the ladies were nd-
mtted to the floor, and in n few minutes it was
| crowded with them.
Mr.. DouGLAs said-I know not that my
strength is sufficient to enable me to prOtract
my remarks on the bill under consideration
trust 1 may be pardoned for briefly referring to
my course the Slavery question. Referring
to the Missouri Compromise line, Mr. Douglas
stated, that when in Congress at the time it was
| proposed to admit Texas, he examined into the
question OF that geographical line, and although
enable to Justify it-yct he unwilling to
awaken heart burningS, and the Slavery agita-
| ton Hence, in the proposition to admit, he
cordially acquiesccd to the insertion of n clause
with the avoweG purpose of extending that line
! to the Pacific. When New Mexico was acqul'
red, the Senate adopted, on his motion, prop
nSition to extend the !line to the Pacific Ocean.
| The record of his vote was here read by the
Clerk. This proposition was adopted by II
majority bnt the House struck out the amend
ment by 80 majority hence that proposal to de-
fine Slavery by geographical line to the Pacific
was abandoned by Congress He would not
discuss now whether that course was wise or
unwise-he would leave it to history.
Most of the Southern men, lie said, voted for
the repeal of the Missouri Conpromise-most of
the Northern men against it. 1t was argued if
Slavery was unjust, impolitic and injudicious
north Of that line, it was so south of it. The
argument was difficult to answer. In fact the
only answer that could be given was that the
line had its origin in patriotic motives, and for
the sake of peace, harmony and concord ought
to be adhered to. For that reason he felt us
much as any man when its repeal plunged the
country into an agitation that caused the wisest
and purest patriots in the country TO trcmble for
its existence. We all remember, said he, the
agitation OF 1913 and 1854, when the Sage of
Ashland WAS called from his retirement to add
the weight of his experience to the councils Of
the country, and with the assistance OF Daniel
Webster, General CasS, and other patriots form
ed n new compromise, and restored peace to the
country again. Had that Missouri Line been
extended to the Pacific, Slavery agitation would
have been closed forever, and emigration would
have sought one side line or the other, accord
| ing as they preferred. He thought if there was
to have been any advantage TO one section over
another, it would have accrued to the South, for
Southern men voted for it almost to man,
while Northern men not only went against it,
but proposed instead, law to prevent Slavery
in the Territories. These compromise meas
|
ate, and the country. Congress eventually
decided that new Territories should choose
their domestic policy for themselves. For want
of power 10 carry out his own measures, he
agreed with the new line of policy, with the
view of healing sectional strife, and restoring
peace and harmony tn the country. His object
was TO localize, not nationaliZe Slavery. But the
measure caused great excitement and lndigma
ton, and he felt it necessary to go before the
Ipeople, and he made speech ut Chicago, detin-
ing as he did now his position. The people of
Illinois, on sober reflection, approved his course
and the Legislature, with great unanimity, passed
the resolutions to that effect. subsequently as
Senator of that State and member of the Demo-
cratic party he felt it his duty to apply to the
Kansas Nebraska bill the principle which had
been substituted for the geographical line The
Wing party adopted that policy in their plat
form in 1862, and the Democrats did the same
and elected General Pierce. Hence both parties
were pledged to it. The exact words of that
principle arc, that it is not intended to legisate
Slavery into any Territory, but to leave the peo-
pie to regulate their own affairs. Now, said Mr..
Douglas the questions arise, "IS the Lecompton
Constitution in accordance with the principles
of the Compromise of 1858, and in accordance
with the organic actY Have the people of Kan
SaS been left TO manage their own affairs in their
own way, subject only to the Constitution of the
United States? Does the Lecompton Constitu-
tion embody the will of the people of Kansas ?"
If it does, you have the right to admit her into
the Union and to waive any irrcguIarlty that
may have occurred in minor details. The whole
action of this House turns on this, whether or
not they have the free expression of their will
in that act. But what evidence have we that
1T is so. He would refrain from going into n re-
tport of how many votes were fraudulent but
lsuppoSing them all legal, how can we accept it
as the will of the people when they could only
vote for, and not against it, and mt the subsequent
election against it there were 10000.
This was evidence to his mind that Lccompton
is not the expression of the will of the people
1t has been said that the election of December
81, was legal, and that on January 4, was not
legal. Where do you find the law that legalizes
the election of December 2lg Only under the
law of the Lecompton Constitution, which, if it
possessed any legislative power, only possessed
as much it received from the Legislature, and
IF SO, the Legislature possessed as much power
on January 4, as on December 81 aud Februa-
ry 30.
The Convention was bound to conduct all its
proceedings in accordance with the laws of the
Legislature, and when it acted otherwise, then,
in accordance with the authority of that Legis.
! laturc, it committed an act of rebellion. IL YOU
Judge this Constitution by the technical forms
of law, it was voted down, and yet yon are called
ON now to give it vitality. But if you approach
IL in the Snirit of h;r, 80, f;D1 :,