New-York daily tribune., 1858-11-17

month. of almost daily discussion or canyassing
winch followed. Mr.. Lncons speeches justified the
confidence and sdmirstion Of hi. supporters. The
Chi.0go Timfs made i.s worst mistake 10 endra'-
oring to disparoge those speeches aud representing
tseir author a. unquaif, to enter the lists with
such an antagonist as Douglas.
And ,et-since nothing human is quite perfect
we found or fsncied in the tenor OF Mr. Lincoln
speeches too little attention TO the single point on
which Mr.. Douglas ia strong with the uurrfrcting
and und.cernng. We aliudc Of course to Pop
ular sover'igny"-'be a'surnpt on that the inhaoi-
tants Of Territory have natural right to estab-
Bsh as well as TO prob bit slavehcdne on the soil
of that Territory. This assumption Is plausible
aid naturally commends Itself to the thonghtlr's
many who regard sl-yeholding as n question OF
convenience and profit merely-an affair Of latitude
and temperature-having no moral character what
ever. "Wbat can be fairer," they triumphantly
ak. ethan TO let each territory decide for itself
whether to uphold OF reject Slayeryl"
To winch we make answer:
l. 1t is decidedly, manifesty fsirer to let each
person decide for himself, not merely whether to
hold slaves or not hold them. but also whether to
be slave or not be one. This ia genuine Popular
Sovereignty, and Individual Sovereignty as well.
ii In case it were right for community to de-
eide by vote whether Ii should be slsseholding or
non holding, then the cisss race who are to
be slaves if there be such, ought clearly to be al
low ed an equal vote with Others To let A. d-cids
whether B. shall be slave or not, is not genuine
Popular Sovereignty. Mr.. Lincoln tersey raid at
Springfield that the Douglas doctrine Of Popular
Sovereignty amounted to ths-If A. chooses to
make 3. his saye G.. shall not Interfere. But it is
reilly worse Than this. 1t amounts fully to this:
A. B. and c. vote to decide whether d. +, +. and
G.. shall be slaves or freemen; and, t@o of them
voting for Slavery to one against it, Slavery Is by
that vote established. But we say Not so! Let
us take the votes of d, E. F. and G. also, and, If
they vote Gas we know they willy not to be slaves,
then Slavery is voted down. Mr. Douglass Ne
braska bill contradicts Mr. Douglass vaunted prn
cipie of Popular Sovereignty, BY making one class
arbiters of the destiny of another.
III. If the People Of a Territory are by vote to
establish or reject Slavery, there must be time for
so doing When shall IT be- The Cincinnati Plat
form very clearly fixes the time for taking such
vote, at Me formation Of State Constitution. This
demolisbes at blow toe phantom Of Popular
Sovereignty" as applied to the Territories. 1t
leaves tbem at least with regard to Slavery depen-
dents or wards of the Federal Government to be
allowed 10 vote when they come of age, and not
till II en-. The Douglas query, "Why should not
"the People Of a Territory freely accept or reject
" Slavery, as well as those Of a State :" is thu,
blown back into his face. The Cincinnati Platform
comedies them no such right. and Mr Douglas os-
ten,atiously plants himself on that Platform.
w. Suppose it were conceded that Territory
might freely accept or reject Slavery, when should
IT be at liberty to exercise that power' May the
6rst ten settlers, by q majority vote, establish or
exclude Slavery If not the first ten, may the
first twenty thirty ftty7 one hundred 7 FIVE
hundred or any other definite numberl May the
first Territorial Legislature decide tns momentOus
question: If not this, which onel May the de-
ci.on Of this year be upset by popular vote next
year If not. how thea And nhat shall be the
law cf the Territories respecting Slarery UNTIL
such decision shall hare been ndds'
V. How is Popular Sovereignty (of the Douglas
stript) in the Territories to be harmonzed with
the Dred Scott dccsion' Or, if you like it better
this way, how much room is left for Popular Sow
ergpty after accepting und ndorsiDg that decision
Such are a few Of the points we should have
pressed, the questi, should have insisted on,
had We stood in Mr.. Lncelns place through the
late canvsss-pressed them not once only, nor casu
ally and incidentally, but in every discussion and
every speech until all but the most oesoted parti
sans should have been made tOsee that the yauuted
doctrine OF Popular Sovereignty" regarded as
solution of the problem Of Slavery in the Terrific
ries under the Democratic Platform, is an "airy
nothing jugele, phantasy, gross de!uslon.
Mr.. Lincoin's speeches were doubtless more at
trsctive to their hearers, far more readable by
others. than they word bavc been bad he devoted
them manly to the demolition of Mr. Douglass
castle yet We believe they might have been rem
dered more effective BY a rigid adherence to the
Napoeonic rule Of wariare-tO be the stronger If
possible on the pon, where the fortune Of the day
il to be decided even at the cost of being deplora
bly, weaker, if needfu, everywhere else. While
we think no man could have upborne the Republi-
can standard more gallsnily than Mr. Lincoln has
DONE il seems TO us possible to have done 80 more
sAillfully-thereiore effectively. If this crti.
cism seems unkind. we shall regret the misappre.
Lension, not the frankncss which iupeed it.
|
The African saye-tIade seems at this moment 10
ho IN . dacideiy bad Wsy We have acsounts of