Arkansas true Democrat., 1858-09-29
The Opposition Platform.

desire. They will never have idleness forced upon them, ill our opinion.
 The Opposition Platform.
 We have read, with great deal of interest, the proceedings of the black republican and American State conventions held at Syracuse, N. Y. These conventions, held at the same place, on the same day, were for the avowed purpose of fusion. True, they did not fuse and nominated separate tickets, but they agreed upon platform, and it is believed that they will yet come together, inasmuch as standing committees of conference were appointed.
 It is useless to shut our eyes to the impor- tance of these proceedings, for the action of the opposition in the Empire State will be followed by the northern States generally. Fusion there will produce fusion elsewhere, and the result will be that two parties will sum up the po- ties of the country. In the language of the Southern Citizen:
 In other words as we have ventured to affirm more than once, there are substantially but two parties ih this country: the party of the
 
 day IS tending to consolidate, at least the north ern party, into one uubroken mass. Even the Douglas democracy has come to be perilously like to black repubicanism; they both reject new slave States, but for different reasons; they both stand up for 'squatter sovereignty which means that the federal government is not bound to give protection to slave property in territories, though it is bound to protect all otler property bound in short to protect northern men in the peaceable enjoyment of their property, but not bound 10 protect southern men. Black re- pubicanism, know nothingism and Douglas de- mocracy are approaching one another more and more closely; and while Douglas avows himself ln favor Of squatter sovereignty, Greeley and Corwln declare (we cited their words two weeks aSo) that they would not be the men to oppose the admission of new slave State, because it is a slave State: they would oppose it, like Dou- glas, for some other good reason.''
 The conventions having, each appointed conference committee they agreed on a plat form, the only dissentients being two black re- pubhcans. We ask the self-styled Americans of Arkansas to read it and hang their heads for shame. Here is the platform:
 "Gen. Nye, from the committee on confer cnce, reported that the two committees had met and compared judgment, and find a union on the question of slavery, and that we are oppos- ed to it's extension in the territories of the Unit cd States, and that each State has the supreme uncontrolled and exclusive power to decide for itself whether slavery shall cease or continue within its limits; that we agree upon the neces- sity of establishing a registry law of some kind il this State to prevent frauds upon the ballot box; that the recent frauds committed in this State under the naturalization laws induce Us to believe that 1t IS important hat the time should be extended between the naturalization and the right to vote as now provided by the constitu- ton, and that the time be extended as long as IS required of a nonresident of this State; that We mutually agree that 1t IS our duty to unite energies and efforts to defeat our common ene- my, the pro-savery party.
 Mr. Nye then stated that this report received the sanction of six out of eight of the republi- can committee; that this as far as they could go and that they now asked instructions from the convention.
 Mr. Sam. Hammond asked what peculiar difficulties there were in the way of further ac- ton.
 Ger. Wye said that in the view of two gen. tlemen on the committee these propositions were not enough, and the balance of the com mittee thought it proper to submit this much here.
 Mir. Ward Hunt. inquired if the residence of one year after naturalization before voting was required. I
 Gen. Nave--It is
 Mr. J. L. Talcott--Are further demads made?
 Gen. Nye-Not by the American committed"
 In order to see how this platform was receiv- ed in the American convention we qoute this part of the proceedngs:
 "The committee of conference here came in.
 Mir. Brooks from the committed said that it was source of regret that so much time had been occupied; but it had been unavoidable A report had been adopted d-unanimous on the part of the Americans, and nearly 50 on the part of the republicans.
 He was happy to say that each member of the committee appointed by this convention joined heart and hand in support of the report. Mir. B. then read the report, every clause of which was received with enthusiastic cheering
 The platform is the same as ir the report of the republican convention.
 Mir. Brooks said that in regard to the officers which may be nominated the republicans claim ed that they had large majority of the votes On the other hand the Americans, in view of the maintenance Of their principles and of their determination to yield no portion of them, urg- ed that they should have at least half of the ticket.
 The report was then accepted"
 While the minor differences were being ad. justed, the more zealous of the black republi- cans succeeded in nominating straght-out black republican ticket, which, of course put division of the ticket out of the question: This was denounced in the American conven- tion as unfair and unhandsome. The confer ence committees met again, the black republ- cans coming up on the stand of the know noth- ing convention. They failed to agree because they could not agree on division of the offices, and thereupon the know nothings proceeded to make up their ticket.
 We select tive resolutions passed by the Ame- rica convention to show what stuff know noth- ings are made of:
 Mir. Hovey of Syracuse, offered the follow ing resolution, stating that he did so in the pos- session of information from the republican con- vention.
 ResolUei, That the Amrican party is in favor of cooperating with the republican party upon honorable terms in common effort to overthrow the present corrupt and proaigate federal admin lsration in the ensuing canvass in this State, and