The weekly north Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1857-1867, 1859-05-04
McGREGoR, IOWA, WEDNESDAY, MAY l. 1859.

From tue Chicago Times.
The Late Jefferson Festival I'm Boston.
A few leading Republicans of Massachu-
sets, made festival to Jefferson, last week,
in Boston. Mr.. Lincoln, of this State,
wrote letter and SO did Seward, of New
York. Carl Schurz, of Wisconsin, the red
republican incendiary, attended and made a
speech A pretty kettle of fish to serve up
at a festival to the immortal Democrat,
Thomas Jeffcrson 1t will not be wonder
ed at, if we tell our readers that the Boston
papers-almost without respect of party
are making great fun over the strange affair.
Among the best newspaper articles we have
seen on the subject, is one from the Boston
Courier, of which the following is an ex-
tract. 1t appeared on the morning of the
day Of the festival, and was specially direct
ed to those then about to participate in its
intellectual and gastronomic exercises. We
don't marvel that they WINGED under such
strokes as these: -.......
NJ. Jefferson was Of the opinion that sla-
very agitaron py persons fivfng IN nee
States, was unwise; as being opposed to
the spirit of the Constitution, and likely to
postpone or defeat emancipation. Randalrs
Life, vol. 3, p. 667.
The Republican party declares that the
Constitution confers upon Congress sover-
eign power over the territories Of the United
States for their government, and that it is
both the right and the duty of Congress to
prohibit slavery in the territories. Mr.. JEFF
ferson would have denied to Congress the
constitutional right to exercise such power !;
and if enjoyed by that body he would have
considered it highly inexpedient to put it in
force. He held that it was expedient to let
slavery spread into the States that desired
it; that the emigration of slavery into the
States formed out of French Louisiana would
not increase the number of slaves, while the
diffusion of the same number over a large
space would make emancipation an easier
process. He also strongly deprecated any
thing like geographical division of par
ties.
No candid man can read the life Of Mr..
Jefferson, or study his political record, with
out admitting the absolute truth of what we
have said in the last written paragraph
But quite sufficient amount of evidence to
prove our position, may he found in the
third volume of RandalFs Life, from pages
452 to 45S, comprising copious extracts from
his correspondence on the Missouri question,
subject which filled him with uneasiness
and alarm. He was opposed to the slavery
restriction clause of the original bill, and
equally so to the establishment of the Com
promise line We give a few citations.
To William Short, April Is, 1920, writes
1.-The Missouri question aroused and filled
me with alarm. The old schism of Federal
andRepublican threatened nothing because it
existed in every State, and united them to-
gether by the fraternism of party. But the
coincidence of a marked principle, moral
and political, with a geographical line, once
conceived, feared would never be obliter-
ated from the mind; that it would be re-
curing on every occasion and renewing ir-
ritations until it would kindle such mutual
and moral hatred as to render separation
preferable to eternal discord."
To John Holmes, April %, he writes,
"An abstinence too from this act of power
would remove the jealousy excited by the
undertaking of Congress to regulate the
condition of the different descriptions Of
'.sori composing State. TfIfs certainly is
the exclusive right of every State, which
nothing In the constitution has taken from
them, and given to the general govern
ment'
To William Pinkney, September 90, he
writes, "The leaders of federalism =
are taking advantage of the virtuous feel
lngs OF the people to effect division oil
parties by geographical line; they expect
this will ensure them on local principles the
majority they never could obtain on princi-
piles of Federalism.
10 Lafayette, December Goth, he writes
TT (the Missouri question: lis not a moral
question, but one merely of power. Its
object is to raise geographical principle for
the choice President, and the noise will be
kept up till that is effected. All know that
permitting the slaves of the south to spread
into the west, will not add one being to that
unfortunate condition; that it will increase
the happiness of those existing, and by
spreading them over larger surface will
dilute the evil everywhere, and facilitate the
means of finally getting rid of it; an event
more anxiously wished by those on whom
it presses than by the noisy pretenders to
exclusive humanity. In the meantime it is
ladder for rivals climbing to power"
The subject expands as we go on: and
we are obliged, for want of room to omit
some things which we had proposed to say.
But we submit that we have said enough to
prove that this attempt on the part Of the
Republican party to make capital out of Mr..
Jefferson's name and influence, is one of the
boldest experiments on the ignorance and
credulity of the community, that this age of
political quackery can show. 1t is farce
OF free Democracy in which the part of
Democracy is left out. And, to keep up the
allegory, the play bills and posters, while
they are very communicative on some
points, are very reserved on others. While
they are careful to announce the expected
presence of that "emincnt German Repub-
lican" of Milwaukee, Carl Schurtz, they do
not say whether the festivities will be graced
by the presence of those eminent Massa-
chusetts Republicans, Richard II. Dana, jr.,
Charles Francis Adams, and Josiah Quincy
The last named gentleman, especially, is
competent beyond any living member of
the Republican party, to speak with author
ity upon Mr.. Jefferson's policy and conduct,
besides being able to entertain the company
with very interesting personal "reminiscences
of the "apostle of State rights
Crabbe says:
"It Is impossible for man to tell
That which in nature is impossible
Or out Of nature or to whom,
Or for what purpose ghost may come"
If the ghost Of Thomas jefferson does
not appear this evening to rebuke the mis-
chievous agitators, who, under the sanction
Of his great name, are met together to help
on that work of sectional agitation and geo.
graphical division which he so abhorred, we
may be assured that nothing ever can or
bring up ghost from the unknown world.
From the Dubuque Times.
ELKADER, Feb. 18th.
Located on both sides of the Turkey riv-
er, in the midst of a young growth Of tim
Der, with high banks on either side, also