Randolph County journal. [volume] (Winchester, Randolph County, Ind.) 1855-1862, 1860-02-16

i
from that State present: yet it had
been drawn up by Mr.. jefferson. in
troduced by Mr.. Jefferson, and sus-
tained by Mr. .Icflerson's vote. New
ertheless. Mr.. Douglas persists in call
ing plan, from which The peculiar
JeIfersonian feature had been struck
out. the 'Jeilcrsonian plan This is
the play OF Hamlet with the character
of Hamlet omitted. Laughter. } This
charter of compact, proceeds Mr..
Douglas. with its fundamental con
ditions which were unalterable with
out the joint consent of the people in
terested in them, as well as of the Unit
ed States, then stood upon the statute
book unrepealed and irrepealable.
when on the l4th day of May, 17ST,
the federal convention met at Phila-
delphia.' Does Mr.. Douglas not know
that on the 10Th of March, 1885, a
proposition was introduced in Congress
by Rufus King. to exclude Slavery
from the States described in the re-
solve of April 23d. 1884, and to make
this provision part of the compact eS-
tablished by that resolve? Does lie not
know that this provision. restoring
the Jcffersonian feature to the 'Jeiierso-
nian plan was committed by the vote
of eigat States against four? Does he
not know that the plan of 1884 never
went into practical operation. but was
expressly set aside by Congress in
1877? Does he not know that the
ordinance of 11S7 was the first legis-
lative act ever practically organizing a
Territory of the United States, and
that one of its most prominent features
was the proviso excluding Slavery
from all the Territories then in pos
session of the United States?
Mr.. Douglass historical recollec-
tions of the ordinance of 11S1 seems to
be very indistinct. Indeed, he deems
it only worthy of an occasional, pass
ing, almost contemptuous notice. He
speaks of it as the ordinance of the
10Th of July, 1877, which was passed
by the remnant of the Congress of the
confederation, sitting in New York,
while its most eminent members were
at Philadelphia, as delegates to the
federal convention For three quar-
ters of century people were in the
habit of thinking that the ordinance of
I1S1 was an act of the highest order
of importance, but we now learn that
it was a rather Indifferent affair, pass
ed on an indifferent occasion by an ex-
ceedingly Indifferent set of fellows,
while the plan of l1S4. a mere abstract
programme completely overruled by
subsequent legislation, is represented
as the true glory of the age. How is
this? The reason is obvious.
Mr.. Douglas belongs to that class oi
historians who dwell upon those facts
which suit their convenience, and un-
tremendously drop the rest. / once
heard of Jesuit college where they
used a textbook of history, in which
the French Revolution was never men
toned. while the Emperor Napoleon
figured there only as modest marquis
Bonaparte, who held a comxyission
under Louis NVII, and fought great
battles for the glory of the Catholic
church. Laughter AMI applause. =
So it is with Mr.. Douglas and the his
tory of this country. He ignores the
universal principles of the Declaration
of independence, and represents the
great founders of great principles,
while few village politicians get up
an abusive ordinance, adverse to the
general tendency of things. But as
those Jesuits never could prevent their
students from reeping out of their
college windows into the wide world,
where they perceived very diiferen,
state of things, so Mr.. Douglas can
not prevent us from travelling ont OF
the yellow covers of Harpe.s' Maga-
zine, into the open records of history,
where we find Mr.. JefIerson's anti
Slavery cause. although evidently lost
in 1Ie4, strenuously insisted upon by
the leading spirits of the Republic, in
corporated in the great act of 1877,
solemnly reaffirmed by the first Con-
gress under the Constitution, and firm
ly maintained even against the petit
ton of the people of one of the Terri
tories. (Cheers.) This is the tr le
'Jeffersonian plan. the plan which
Jefferson framed, voted for, and which
was carried out in his spirit; not that
mangled report of 1884, which Mr..
Douglas wants us to take as the found
alton of all Territorial government,
because an historical accident happens
TO coincide with his schemes.
That true Jeiiersonian plan rested,
/ inIoo1 on fha rrinafrla of ,.,.,,lo,