The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1859-11-12
NUMBER 65.
tFroBl ae st. Louis Evening Ne4gs, Nov. 81
Important Political Document.

Important Political Document.
Authoritative exposition Of ae position of Edgayd
: Bates on the Siarery QUestiOn-Freedonl the rule
Savery the exception.
4 Some of the Opposition papers of llis-
/ souri, (the st. Joseph West among them)
! while admitting the indecency of private
citizens, who suppose themselves candidates
/ for the Presidency, tbrusting their opinions
4 on all questions unasked, on the country,
! nevertheless appear to think that the case OF
Edward Bates is an exception. They claim
/ that Mr.. Bates stands so prominently before
I the country as possible candidate for the
! Presidency and that the anxiety of the Mis-
4 sourians is so great to declare in favor Of
/ him, if his views on the slave question are
/ acceptable to them, that Mr.. Bates ought to
make public his views on that one subject
! at least Otherwise, many citizens, after
committing themselves to his support, might
/ find themselves in a false position.
| There will be no occasion for any citizen
/ ever feeling any embarrassment on Mr..
Bates account. He is not a candidate for
the Presidency, and will not seem, by pub
fishing letters unasked, and on even the
most trifing occasion, to be courting atten-
ton to his views.
/ But if Mr.. Bates should be made candi-
date by the authoritative voice of his coun-
! trymen, he will obtain no vote upon false
pretenses. He will stand upon no juggle,
like the Cincinnati Platform, with its am
biguous and double reading. The country
| will know his position on all questions,
manifestly as in letters of living light. Till
then, Dir. Bases' views of slavery will not
| probably be more formally set forth.
| But as the EUening News, several months
| ago, presented the name of Mr.. Bates as the
tavorite OF the St. Louis Oppositionists for
| the Presidency, it is reasonably to be sup
posed that we had sufficient knowledge Of
| his opinions, on this and other subjects, to
| justify the nomination of him. 1t may be
that we know enough of his views, even
now, to satisfy the more importunate quer-
| lists in the matter. The following are what
we are sure will be found to be the views of
Edward Bates on the Slavery Question
SLAVERY NOT BENEFICIAL SOCIALLY, PoLIT-
7.E,l IcALLY or RELIGIoUsLY.
Mr.. Bates does not believe that " african
slavery is the cornerstone of liberty
He does not believe that African slavery
| is beneficial institution, either in social
| political, or religious sense. Not in social
sense, because it sets at naught the family
relation and separates man and wife, parents
and children, at the caprice, or on the ne
cesites of owners not in political sense,
| because it is productive of discords between
nations that tolerate it, and nations that do
not and because it is liable to panics, conf
/ motions, instructions and massacres, and
| has ended often in bloody revolutions; not
in religious sense because it shuts the
mind against knowledge, makes the wordsof
! God a sealed book to the slave, and gives
| his body to the service of human master,
whereas the body of every created being
should be freely given to the service of God.
ITS EXTENSION UNCONSTITUTIONAL, EXCEPT BY
- AFFIRMATIVE LEGISLATION.
Because Mr.. Bates does not believe that
slavery is a beneficial institution, either in
a social, political, OF religious sense, he is
upa0tterably opposed TO its extension into Ter
Titories already free. Mr.. Bates, in his po-
litical creed, is Henry Clay Wbig; and
MIR. Clay declared that his " "rightarm should
drop from his shoulder before he would vote
to extend slavery over one foot of territory
already free" Mr.. Bates heartily endorses
that sentiment, and holds to that creed
bIr. Bates does not believe that the Con-
stitution, by its proper yigor, carries slavery
into all the Territories that may be acquired
by the United States. He believes that
freedom is the rule, and slavery the excep-
ton. He does not believe that slavery can
exist in any territory acquired by the Gov
/ SIuIDGIlb vi tLC OuiItu tCtdlSS, bAEtpb BY tMf
positiUe Ja1c Of Congress, That positive law
Mr.. Bates would not be in favor of passing,
because for reasons already given, he is op-
posed to the extension of slavery into terri
tory already free.
DISTINCTION BETWEEN SLAVE AND OTHER
PROPERTY coEvAL WITH THE GOVERNMENT.
If it be held that tt is exclusion of slave
property from Territory "acquired by the
common blood and treasure OF the Union
establishes an inyidious distinction between
| two sections of The Union-that it denies
to the South rights that are freely given to
the North-Mr. Bates denies emphatically
that it has any such effect. The distinction
complained of is coeval with the Govern
ment. II is no new thing-no moder II
hardsbip-in fact no hardship at all. The
Locahzing of slavery-the prohibition Of its
en- igrating and establishing itself in free
territory, was embodied in the compact
of the Union, at the beginning. But for
this limitation the slave States got far more
than equivalent in being allowed in the Ma
tional Congress and in the Presidential
elections three votes for epery fire slapes.-
Slaves do not vote, but their masters vote
for them The vote of fwo men in the
South count as much as the votes of fps
men in the Free States.
| CITIZEN OF NEW YORK POSSESSING RIGHT oF
PROPERTY NOT HELD By A vIRGINIAN.
Why should this be so? If slaves are
oaly property, as the Southern man will
say, why should not the Northern man 5
property vote also2 tits all only property.
When the STAKEHOLDER is disposed to com
plain, therefore, that a distinction is made
against him--that he cant go into the com
mon territory of the country and take his
property. The citizen of the tree State can
reply: d" 1t is not property like my prop
erty that you wish to take, but it is prop
erty that VOTES, it is property that gives you
tro-and-d-Aalf Uotes 10 R'y Ofae-it is prop
erty that makes me inferior - goa, in our
relations 10 the Federal Government; and
that it is not fair when we come to occupy
what has been bought by "the common
blood and treasure of the Union"
This distinction between free property