The River Falls journal. (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1857-1861, 1858-03-31
The Other Side.

iioiAi tooutH Sdrollnsi, UON. IlamHOnu, is
much lauded BY the South, as a yindca-
ton OF Southern rights" and as sue
cessful vindcation of the peculiar system
OF Southern labor and political economy,
and is, on this account, attracting consid-
cradle attention at the North. 1t GER
tainly Is, in some respects, one of the most
remarkable speeches that has ever been
delivered in the Congress of the United
States. Being regarded as the true rep
resentatiye of the Slave Labor Aristocra-
cy, even as Gov. Seward is the true rep
resentativc of Free Labor Republicanism,
the South Carolinan's speech may very
properly be considered as the exposition
OF "tAe other side" of the great political
| question which Gov. Seward so ably dis
cusscd in his late speech. While the lat
ter has set forth in their strongest light,
the claims, influences and tendencies of
Free Labor in the nation, the former has
set forth the claims, influences and ten
denotes of the cause of Slave Labor, in as
strong and favorable light as any advo-
cate of that cause could possibly have
done. But what difference between
the two! The one is an eloquent enuncia-
ton in defence Of human rights while the
other is sophist;c and most preposter-
Gus argument in defence of an iniguitous
system OF human oppression. The one
glories in the advancement of human free
dom and sclfgoycrnment in the nation,
the other pronounces narrow-minded
euloglum ON sectional presumption and
the vartues of a slave-holdiug, slavc-dri-
wing, slave-breeding Arstocracy. The
difference between the day with its sun
light, and the night with its darkness,
presents not greater contrast.
Coy. Hammond is said to be cool,
dlspassIonato man, not belonging to the
tire-cating class, and whose expressions
and statements must be considered the
result Of deliberate conviction. Without
this reputation, the speech ID question
would - uothing remarkable, and unde-
serving Of more attention than we bestow
on the rash absurdities of Keitt, and his
hot-blooded coadjutors. Though ostensi-
bly, speaking on the Kansas question, he
disposes of that in few words with
the declaration that the real question and
the true object of the discussion is slavery :
and deyotes his speech to establishing the
capabilities of the South for maintaining
a separate government and her natural
superiority over the North.
The whole tone of the speech is def
ant in the last degree, and full of prepos-
ferrous pretensions. Speaking Of the ex-
tent and and natural strength of the South
he says
eff we never acquire another foot OF
territory for the South, look at her
Eight hundred and fifty thousand square
miles; as large as Great Britain, France,
Austria, Prussia and Spain. Is not that
territory enough to make an empire that
shall rule the world? With the finest
soil, the most delightful climate, whose
productions none of those great countries
can produce, we have three thousand
miles of continental shore line, and so in
dented with bays and crowded with is
lands, that, when their shore lines are ad-
ded we have 1900 miles of shore line.
Through the heart of our country, runs
the great Mississippi, the father of wa
tiers, into whose bosom are poured 36,
900 miles of tributary streams land be-
yond we have the desert prairie wastes to
protect us in our rear. Can you hem in
such territory as that? You talk of
putting up wall of fire around $4,000
square miles so situated! How absurd.
But, sir, in this territory lies the great
valley of the Mississippi, now the real,
and soon to be the acknowledged seat of
the empire of the world. The sway CT
that valley will be as great as ever the
Nile knew in the earlier ages humankind.
We own the most of that valley. The
most valuable part of it belongs to us,and
although those who have settled above
us, are now opposed to us, another gen.
Grafton will tell different tale. They
are ours by all the laws of nature: SLAVE
labor wW go over every foot of thas
great GALLEY achere At aoW be found prof.
table to use 1t, and those who do not use
it are soon to be united to us by such ties
as will make us one and inseperable.
X x X
Upon our muster rolls we have milf
ion of men. In a defensive war, upon an
emergency, every one of them would be
available. At any time the South can
raise, equip, end MAINTAIN in the field a
larger army than any Power ofthe earth
can send against her, and an army of SOL
diers-men brought up on horseback
with guns in their hands,"
| In contrast with this magnificent En-
pire, described in such exultlng terms, the
North affords but sorry picture, accor-
ding to this political philosopher:
"Ifwe take the North, even when the
two large States of Kansas and Minneso-
tn shall be admitted, her territory will be
100000 square miles short of ours. I