The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-01-17
BALTIMORE.
MONDAY, JANUARY II, 1859.

we congratulate our felIoW-cluZeLS vi III
Third Congressional District. We ought t.
have done so before, and beg pardon for our re
mssness Mr.. HARRIS has spoken. Mr.. HARRIS
their Representative, mean--the Hon. J
MORRISON HARRIs-Mr. HARRIS, of Maryland. TIL
tongue of this eminent orator and statesman ha
been unloosed, and the thought that burned
within him has found utterance in words. On
Monday last, January lOth-as we read in tn,
Geographic report of the Congressional proceed
ings of that day-about the hour of noon, imme
diately after the assembling of the House-th
Silent One lifted up his voice and sad-something
Few and weighty were his words, as are the word:
of wisdom. The following report of them is gver
in the columns of The american:
Mr.. Harris, of Maryland asked but failed to obtain
leave to offer joint resolution, requesting the Presiden
to interpose in the Mortara
Our own report agrees substantially with that
of our neighbor; it is, perhaps, little more in de-
tail, and We therefore, suboin it:
Mr.. HARRIS, of Maryland offered resolution exnress
ing sympathy for the abduction of the Jewish bow Nor
tara and calling on the Government to use its friendv
Offices with the Papa Government for the purpose of OBJ
tanning his restoration to his parents Objected to-
Mr. HARRIS gave notice that he would offer the propo
siton upon the first favorable opportunity.
From this, it will appear that the Representa-
tive of the Third Congressional District is resolved
to be no more mute, inglorous HARRIS. He
has determined that his legislative career shall no
longer be blank. His mind is fully made up to do
something "Upon the first favorable opportuni-
ty," he intends to offer proposition" He asked
leave 10 do so on Monday but refused. That was
cruel. To a member who troubles the House as
seldom as Mr.. HARRIS, some indulgence should
hoya b,,tt Al
failure of this-hs first attempt 1--WE beeve)-to
gain the ear of the House, may so far discourage
the worthy Representative, as to occasion a re-
lapse into his former silence, and so deprive his
constituents of the fruits of his recently recovered
powers of speech. Apprehensve of some such
untoward result, and fearful lest we may never
hear again of the proposition which Mr. HAN
RIs tried to introduce, but couldn't-we have
been at considerable pains to rescue from oblivion
this-the only public measure which-to the best
of our knowledge and belief, the Member for the
Third District has ever attempted to initiate. We
have procured copy of the Resolution, which,
If leave had only been granted him, Mr.. HARRIS
intended to offer on Monday last 1t has
preamble TO begin with;-most resolutions have
fWhereas,' it reads
1.-THE people of this country are believed to regard
with deep sympathy the abduction from his parents of the
Israets boy Edgar Mortara by the Papa authorities
OF Bologna and large and worthy class of fellow
citizens have memoriazed the President upon the sinh
Jec and solicited the moral aid of this Government in
eiectng his restoration; and whereas in similar case
OF persecution suffered by the Jews Damascus under
the Pasha Of Egypt in the S40 the Secretary
OF State Mr. Forsyth, by direction of President Van Blu
rem expressed through the representative of the United
States at Alexandria the anxiety Government that
the active sympathy and generous interference of the
United States should not be withheld from benevolent
an object and directed him employ all those good
Offices efforts that were compatible with Jiscretion
and his official character the end that justice and hu
anitv might be extended to those peopIe'
and whereas, the of Edgar Morara is one that VIC
ates the sanctity of the parental relation and the free
dom of conscience and religion; therefore,
BE it resoirsd By the Senate and Of Representa-
tres Of the United States IF america Congress assem-
bed That the President be requested to nerpose with
the Government of the Poncal in the case of Ed
gar Mortara all those good offices and which are
compatible with discretion and his official character
Now, as the party to which Mr. HARRIS beor ,rs
are VIGOROUSLY and preeminenty the friend, : and
champions of religious liberty in this coun. ,, and
have always manifested the greatest pc sib,o hos
Unity to every form and shape of r,.Iio;ous nro-
scnptlon and intolerance at home Is but natural
that he, as the Representative Of Third
slona District ofMaryland she mid feel doen;nteroot
IN the vindicaton of 'free3 ,om If consconc.,, in
bologna. Nay more-e..s the RIGHTS Of foroionars
% TIC lipniS vi Foreigners
,nI Dis'f''' "nen ne represents are, as every
10y Nno"s' "n oP' ,ect of especial care and atten-
'''Se Oh little foreign boy, like EDGAR
NV, |pf eals with peculiar force to his SYM
p l' "n4 -umanty. We are, therefore not in
sas2N;sed. at the course which he has
means to take, 'upon the first favorable
opportunity" and think that the appropriateness
of such step on his part will be conceded by ALL
These, however, are considerations which are pat
ent to everybody, and which do not require to be
dwelt upon. The sagacity evinced in framing the
Resolution in question, may not be equally obvious,
and is worth, perhaps, a moments attention.
Mr.. HARRIS desires that the PRESIDENT should be
requested by the Senate and House of Repre-
sentatives, to nterpose' in the case of the young
MoRTARA, "all those good offices and efforts which
"are compatible with discretion and his official
character" With whose 'dscreton' that of
the PRESIDENT or of Mr.. HARRIS? If the former
the PRESIDENT has already told us--at least he
told the Philadelphia Committee, which waited
upon him with similar ''request," a few DAYS
since-that he deems it wholly incompatible
with discretion and his official character to
''nterpose" at all. What does Mr. HARRIS
want the PRESIDENT 10 do? Does he want him to
write TO the PoPE friendly letter, requesting him,
as personal and particular favor, to restore the
boy, EDGAR MoRTARA to his parents2 Or, does
he wish our Minister at the Papal Court,
TO solicit formal interview with His Holiness
and present TO him copy, neatly engross-
ed, of his (AIr. HARRIs') preamble and resolu-
ton? His proposition is somewhat indefinite
these A uoin pnt
little late in the day with his proposed 'interposi-
'ton ~ Has not the Papal Government already
signified TO the Ambassadors of France and Sar-
dinia its determination not to give up the child,
and is it at all likely that the Holy See would
grant to the intercession of this Government what
it has positively refused to the representatives of
those Catholic Powers-particularly when that
refusal was based, as everybody knows, exclusive
ly upon religious grounds? Would there be any
sense in our interposition under such circum-
stances? But, perhaps, Mr.. HARRIS only wishes
to mark in some public and formal way, his
own and the popular reprobation of the out
rageous conduct of the Papa authorities p
Considered in that light would not
the adoption of such resolution by Congress be
regarded, and justly so, as a piece of impertnence
on our part and gratuitous insult to foreign and
a friendly Potentate? Would not the English
Parliament have just as much right-repro-
batting, as the English people universally do
or are supposed to do, the institution of
African Slavery in this country, to direct by
resolution, Her Majestys Government 10 ''inter-
pose its good Offices for the liberation of the
negroes who are held in bondage in Maryland and
other Southern States? All these objections occur
to u.s. initiating with or less force against
Mr.. HARRIS forthcoming proposition and as
confirming concusively the propriety of the course
adopted by the president, and the justice of the
views expressed by Mr.. CAss in his letter to ABRA-
HAM HART and the Philadelphia Memoralists
With respect to that gross invasion of parental
rights--out of which Mr.. HARRIS is thus obviously
endeavoring to make political capital for himself
it is, of course, unnecessary that we should
add any thing in this present connexion
to what we have already said. 1t is i'm
possible for that gentleman to feel more in
dignation at the outrage done 10 the MoRrARAs,
and through them to the moral sense of all Chris
tendon, than we have heretofore expressed: and
while we do not scruple to laugh at-as we think
it deserves-the Resolution which Mr. HARRIS has
announced his intention to introduce into the
House, we are wholly incapable of treating with
levity the subject to which it relates. Nor do we
wish to see Mr.. HARRIS lose altogether the present
opportunity-perhaps, the last he will ever have
Of ttner tIsh Inr