Delaware inquirer. (Wilmington, Del.) 1859-18??, 1859-11-19

The proposition before them was MS to the
Congressional power. II they had supposed,
as the President imputes to them, that slavery
exists in territory aby virtue of the Consti-
tntion of the United States,n they would have
been saved all further argument, as, if so ex-
listing, it would clearly be beyond the reach of
Congressional power. The Presidents mistake
is in converting the absence OF an authority to
prohibit it, which was all that the Court held
into the existence of right "by virtue of the
Constitution" to hold unquestoned by terri
torial power, slave property in n territory.
The error, when pointed out, is 80 obvious, that
il must be at once corrected, to the conviction
of the merest dulard. The Attorney General
is 80 dissatisfied with the doctrine that he at
first defended, with some feeling, the President
from the charge of entertaining it. His defence
to be sure, is not such as gives the President
credit for legal acuteness. Itmakes him mere
ly to adopt and not originate it. It is to be
regretted that an equal sensibility to the repu-
tation of the Court, had not impelled "the
Observer" to vindicate the Court also by show
ing that they had fallen into no such blunder.
This would certainly have proved that although
in form 1t was one of adoption the President
was in truth its real author. But yet justice
to the highest tribunal of our country should
be done, whoever may suffer by it, "The Con-
stitution, (says the Attorney Generally GER
tainly does not establish slavery in the terrific
ries or anywhere else" and ''nobody in this
country ever thought or said so y and yet he
complains that the Douglas article does injus-
tice to Mr.. Buchanan in stating that in his
message to Congress he averred ''that slavery
exists in Kansas by virtue of the Constitution
of the United States, when, what he did say
twas only that the principle had been adjudged
by the highest judicial tribunal known to our
laws" The Constitution "certainly does no
such thing, and nobody ever thought or said
So says Mr.. Attorney, and yet his complaint
is, that the President was made so to say, when
what he did say was, that the Supreme Court
had not only so thought, but so said, in a
solemn judicial opinion. To yindicatc the
President by displaying his ignorance, may be
the only vindication the case admits Of but it
does more credit to the candor of his friend
than to the Presidents intelligence. But since
the "0bservatons" were published, Mr. At
torney, in an Appendix to new edition,
changes his ground. In this the entire ground
of censure of the course of Judge Douglas for
not correctly quoting the President is surren-
dered. 1t is here said that the President only
stated, that slavery crisis in Kansas, 'by virtue
of the Constitution" which is not saying that
it is by the authority Of the Constitution estab-
ished there. ave are in the wrong, (says Mr.
Attorney if the expression that thing crisis
| by virtue of the Constitution is equivalent to
saying that the Constitution establishes it," Is
| not this most superlative hypocrticism? What
| is ii that is said to erist2 Slavery. Where
\ and howl In the territory, and by virtue of
\ the Constitution. What then takes it there
and retains il there in opposition to congress
sional or territorial or other power? The Con-
stitution of the United States. If SO, is it not
then there established by the authority which
attends lit No, says Mr.. Attorney it is not
established there by that sanction, but only so
exists there. What is "to establish?' Lexi-
cographers tell us, sit is to fiji unalteraby,
and yet although slavery is in Kansas by vir-
tue Of the Constitution, and is there by the
same power fixed unalterably, it is not cstab-
ishcd, but only there so exists This may be
acute, but it defes ordinary comprehension
To such it must appear to be but the techni.
cality of a special pleader pushed to the very
verge, at least, of quibling. Certainly ii was
due to the Supreme Court to suggest that thi:
distinction and its apparent absurdity are MOI
to be attributed to them. In TRUTH the Presi.
dents authority TO the contrary notwithstand
ing, and though this is now in the Append,
implicitly endorsed by Mr. Attorney, the Su
preme Court never intended 10 announce tn,
doctrine in either form of expression 1t il
altogether an executive impression and bunder
not less original than erroneous. But villa
makes the attempted distinction the more idl,
is what follows, the clause which the Attorne,
| gives of the message, but which he does no
give, but let's the reader to find as best he may
| 1t is this "Kansas is therefore at this momen
as much slave State as Georgia or Soutl
Carolina" That is to say, the existence o
slavery in Kansas by virtue of the Constitution
is fixed, and established there as it is fixed
established in either of those States, Is no
slavery an established institution in Georgi
or South Carolina? Does it exist there onl,
in contradistinction to being established? Tn
question is too ridiculous to be suggested, an,
it would not be done but for the respect du
to the highest law officer of the government
Authority has sanctioned many an absurdity
but in this instance it is 30 gross as to be be
yond its power. EXISTS as used by tn
President, is an equivalent term with "estab
lished,n and no fair mind can read the who'll
paragraph without concluding that its autho
designed to express precisely the same idca
And il is equally clear from the manner il
which the observations treated the subject
that the distinction maintained in the appen
dix, was an after thought to which the Attor
ney was driven by the exigcncy of his contro
versy.
Slavery then not being so established ha
Congress the power to protect ii by legislation
The negative of this proposition would seen
necessarily to follow from the principles upoi
which the case of Scott was decided, if no
from the very terms of the decision Why il
it that there exists in Congress neither tn,
power to establish nor prohibit the institution
1t is because, in the judgment of the Court
tho territorial ciauge If ann1icahIe IN aftar q