Wabash express. [volume] (Terre-Haute, Vigo Co[unty], Ind.) 1841-186?, 1860-08-08

repeal as he did in 1850, and re- &
lied 10 Mr. Douglas in the same words he
id TO Mr. Davis, " so long as God allows
he vital currant to flow through my veins,
will never, never, never by word or
hought. by mind or will, aid in admitting
me rood of free Territory-to the everlast-
ne curse of human bondage" And,
gain. he tells the American Senate, 81
am content that the law as it exists shall
prevail You will also observe that the
provisions of the Acts of 1885, which re-
auired all the laws of the Territorial leg
stature to be submitted TO the Congress of
the United States for approval, for some
reason does not appear in the Acts of 1854. |
Let US return TO that provision of the Ne |
Bill, which declares Gin !
operative and void the Missouri Com |
promise, and see what else was done, the |
reason therefor and the fraud intended 10
be practiced In the first place, "the
Constitution and all laws of the United
States" not "locally inapplieable," are
declared "to have the same force and eff
feet within the said Territory as elsewhere
in the United States" This was the milk
and honey for the South, the wine which
would inspire with Joy the fire eater as he
cloquently depicted the glories of Consti-
tutional rights in the Territories, his right
of property therein guaranteed by the
Const tuition. Tell him that slavery is the
creature of positive, local law, and with
out that law had no legal existence, and he
at once with frey Indignation repealed the
idea, scorned the old fogy notion, pointed
to the fact that by the Nebraska-Kansas
Bill, the Constitution had the "same force
and effect in the Territory rs in the
States, and claimed by virtue of that in
strument he had the right to take his
slaves into the Territory, to hold them,
and if necessary to demand the protection
of the strong arm of the Government.
| The non Intervention which he deduced
/ from the Kansas-N ebraslxa Bill, was no in
PREVENTION by any power under Heaven.
with this new born constitutional right.
which makes slavery the rule and freedom
the exception.
This was the democratic doctrine for the
South. The slavery propagandists were
satisfied, elated. triumphant. The work
of appessing the Northern Democracy for
the "foul wrong" which was being COM
mitted next demanded attention. How
could that be done? was the anxious in
quiry. Already the constitution was de-
declared 10 have the same "force and effect
in the Territory as in the States, the
Missouri Compromise pronounced "inop-
erative' by enacting falls ehood, and well
they knew thatit would be political death to
every Northern conspirator engaged 10
this infamous crusade against the long es-
tablished and repeatedly recognised policy
of the government, if they left the object
of the repeal exposed in all its hideous de-
formity. Hence the additional provi.
, sion immortalIzed by the ridicule of Ben
, ton as a "stump speech injected into the
belly of the bill" What honest profes
sions-honeyed words-perfect liberty
yet intended by its authors to cheat and
defraud. They heard the mutteriDg of the
distant thunder hIch betokened a storm
of popular wrath at this uncalled for act
and then the author Of the mschie
proposes, by way of excuse and justification
that it is "the true intent and meaning o.
) this act not to legislate slavery into any
: territory or State, nor to exclude it there
: from, but to leave the people thereof per
r fectly free to form and regulate their do
n nestle institutions in their own way" tt
: which the South agree, prorided the simpl,
n provision. subject only to the Constitu
y ton of the United States" be added. Thu
Il was the saving clause for the constitutions
: Democracy, and the other, to use the Ian
5 guage of one Of the illustrious dead was de
: signed "to mystify, bamboozle, obfusticat
: and befog the "sluaIter sovereigns" b.
4 making them believe that they We're equa
f to States, and might have black slaves O
: not, as they pleased, while in reality the,
= themselves were TO be made into whit
. slaves, under that head clause io the Bill
which spreads the Constitution of tn
: United States over them, carrying "Dig
gordon" along with it, and fastening it OF
>. their sovereign backs beyond their powe
{ to kick it off, or the power of Congress t
!. lift it off, or of any law to keep it off -
II Afterwards the Democratic leaders met il
c national convention at Cincinnati in st
p endorsed this double dealing deception
/ and Janus faced provision, and went t
!: the people for endorsement, and how Wa
u it procured? Was it by fair, honest an
II uniform expression of principle? Did tn
: Democrat Of Alabama concede the sam
y power to the people under the Nebrask
y Kansas Bill that was claimed for them b
u the Democrat of Ohio2 No, neverl Will
If the leaders of the Democracy Of the Mort
g were attempting to defend this provisio
Y and Justify the action of Congress befor
e the people on the ground that it was bel
t, ter Wilmot proviso than the Missoul
II compromise, while they were blisterin
= their ihroats aud wearing out their lung
Is in preaching to the people. you are not
l. for the first time since Adam perfect
e free to form and regulate your domesti
r institutions in your own way" those otEt
h ominous words pregnant with fearfr
! meaning, occasionally came quietly fioa
II ing upon the Southern breeze, "subjet
. only to the Constitution of the Unite
J States"
e While the Democrat Of the North wa
/ defendiny "squatter sovereignty" as
It great measure for the extension of freed on
IT telling how it would withdraw the excl
e ing question of slavery from the halls ,
5 Congress and the States. how "pesfectl
e free" the territorial legislature would
, after having invited the master to ent.
with his slaves. to kick him out as an il
truder, and were thus seeking to palliat,
% excuse and justify before the people thei
q departure from the faith, the Democrs
down South was defending that same plat
e form. bu: for widely different purpose
He told the people that the legal effec
!, of the Nebraska Kansas bill was 10 practi
= cally cut off all legislation whatever in ref
;, erence to slavery except to protect, for tn
= reoson, that by the terms of the bill ever
thing to be done was subject to the Con
e stitution OF the United States" and as tina
instrument was in full force over the terri
e tory. it guaranteed to him rights which n
q human power could impair so long a.
d remained territory. And in confirmation
/ of this, referred to the fact that when Mr.
d Chase of Ohio proposed his amendment T.
o the bill empow ering the territorial legisla
e ture to exclude slavery, it was voted down
# When the Republicans in SO charged upor
d the Democratic leaders that they preache,
r. one doctrine South and another North in
o Iconsistent with each other, that their plat
# form was Janus faced and subject to vari
: Gus constructions, that they were practi
: cling fraud upon the people. carrying th,
flag of Free Kansas and Protective Ia
: riff in Pennsylvania and "Free Trade ant
b Kansas a slave State in Alabama, that tn,
], Nebraska Kansas Bill was a cheat and
! swindle, they felt the crushing truth of tn,
charge and could only evade it by th,
!. clsp-trap cry of "Black Republican,
kansas lie, ""Abolition." When we TOLD
you in '56 that the object of tearing owl
the Missouri Compromise was 10 extenc
slavery into free territory. that such wan
I ton violation of the long settled policy o.