The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1860-06-02

.. 5. desire him to answer whether
he stands pledged to the prohibition Of the
slave-trade between the different States|'
A. do not stand pledged to the prohi
btiou of the slave-trade between the diff
ferent States.
stands pledged to prohibit slavery in all
the Territories of the United States, North
as we'll as South of the Missouri Conpro-
mise line p
A. | am implicitly, if not expressly,
pledged TO belief in the right and duty of
Congre to prohibit slavery in all the Uni
ted States Territories.
Q. 7. | desire him to answer whether lie
is opposed to the acquisition of any new
territory unless slavery is first prohibited
therein ?" ...
/ A l am not generally opposed to honest
acquisition of territory and, in any given
| case | would or would not oppose such ac-
| QUESTION, accordingly as might think such
acquisition would or would not aggravate
the slavery question among ourselves.
Now, my friends, it will be perceived up
on an examination of these questions ard
answers, that so far have only answered
| that was not pledged to this, that or the
other The Judge has not framed his in
terrogatories to ask me anything more than
this, and l have answered in strict accord
ance with the interrogatories, and have an
swered truly that | am not Ptedged at all
| upon any of the points to which ! have an
! swered. But / am not disposed to hang
upon the exact form of his interrogatory.-
am rather disposed to take up at least some
of these questions, and state what | really
| think upon them.
| The Fugitive SlaUs La1o-As to the
first one, in regard to the Fugitive Slave
| Law, have never hcsitated to say, and |
! do not now hesitate to say, that | think,
under the Constitution of the United States,
the people of the Southern States are en-
titled to Congressional Fugitive Slave
Law. Having said that, | have had moth
ing to say in regard to the existing Fugi-
tive Slave law, further than that think it
should have been framed so as to be free
from some of the objections that pertain to
| it, without lessening its efficiency. And
inasmuch as we are not now in an agitation
in regard to an alteration or modification of
that law, | would not be the man to intro
duce it as a new subject of agitation upon
the general question of slavery.
admission of SLAVE States-In regard
to the other question, of whether | am
pledged TO the admission of any more slave
States into the Union, l state to you very
frankly that l would be exceedingly sorry
ever to be put in a position of having to
pass upon that question. | should be ex-
ceedingly glad to know that there would
never be another slave State admitted into
the Union but | must add, that if slavery
shall be kept out of the Territories during
the territorial existence of any one given
Territory, and then the people shall, having
a fair chance and clear field, when they
come to adopt the Constitution, do such an
! !, to I'D Il cla
sttution, uninfluenced ny the actual pres
ence of the Institution among them, see
no alternative if we own the country, but
to admit them into the Union.
The third nterrogatory is answered by
the answer to the second, it being, as |
conceive, the same as the second.
Slavery in the District Of COLuBtbtd.-
The fourth one is in regard to the abolitio
of slavery in the District of Columbia. In
relation to that, | have my mind very dis
tinctly made up. | should be exceedingly
glad to see slavery abolished in the District
of Columbia. believe that Congress pos
sesSes the constitutional power to do it.
Yet as a member of Congress, | should OF
with my present views, be i'll favor of en-
deqvoring to abolish slavery in the District
of Columbia, unless it would be upon these
conditions: First, that the abolition should
be gradual. Second, that it should be on a
vote of the majority of the qualified voters
in the District; and third, that compensation
should be made to unwilling owners
With these three conditions, confess would
be exceedingly glad to see Congress abolish
slavery in the District of Columbia, and, in
the language of Henry Clay, "sweep from
our Capital that foul blot upon our nation"
International .SLaUe Trade.-In regard TO
the fifth interrogatory, l must say here,
that az to the question of the abolition OF
the slave-trade between the different States,
l can truly answer, as | have, that l AN
pledged to nothing about it. 1t is a subject
to which have not given that mature con-
sideration that would make me feel author
lied to state a position so as to hold myself
entirely bound by it. In other words, that
question has never been prominently enough
before me to induce me to investigate
whether we really have the constitutional
) power to do it. [ could investigate it if |
had sufficient time, to bring myself to a
conclusion upon that subject; but | have
not done so, and l say so frankly to you
here, and to Judge Douglas l must say,
: however, that if l should be of opinion that
Congress does possess the constitutional
power to abolish the slave-trade among the
different States should still not be in favor
Of the exercise of that power un}ess upon
some co'SeFputce pTWctpH MS conceive IL,
akin TO what have said in relation to the
, abolition of slavery in the District OF
Columbia.
My answer as to whether | desire that
slavery should be prohibited in all the Ter
ritories of the United States, is full and ex-
plicit within ITSELF and cannot be made
learer by any comments of mine. So
suppose III regard to the question whether
! | am opposed to the ACQUISITION OF any more
territory unless slavery is first prohibited
therein, my answer is such that could add
nothing by way of illustration, or making
myself better understood, than the answer
which have placed in writing.
Now in all fhis the Ind nn hoe me- aud h.