, 1860-05-05
The Cincinnati Platform.

The Cincinnati Platform.
The following is the substance Of that part Of
tho Cincinnati platform upon the slave iasue in
the Territories:
J.. Desiring the cooperation Of oil who regard
the Union under the Constitution as tue para
mount issue; repudiating all sectional parties
on slavery, whose purposes, it consummated,
must end in civil WAr mud disunion, and adopt
ing as the only sound and safe solution of the
slavery question, for tue conservatism Of the
Union, non-iatecfer<acs By Congr<1 with sLartry
in State or Territory, or in the Distric: Of Co
IumJiu.
2. That this was the basis OF the compromises
Of 1850, and was rightly applied to the organi-
zation Of Territories in ls5 s., and by its uniform
aud the admission Of new States, with or with
out slavery, as they may elect. the equal rights
OF I'LL the States in the Territories will be pre-
served, the original compact Of the Constitution
maintained, and the peFpetuity and expansion
ofthe Union over the continent insured.
3. "That We recognize the right of the people
of gil the Territories, acting through the legally
aud fairly expressed will OF Z majority Of actual
resi- and 1ohen The number Of thtir inAa5i.
t4nts sju.tjfes it. to form, Constitution, with or
without domestic slavery, and be admitted into
the Union upon terms Of perfect equality With
the other States"
THE DAED SCOTT pEC161oS.
4uV t4uuhAAE AlE 5Ak4 EAllAska AIUlu LIZ Urea
Scott decision as bear upon the issues before
the Convention:
''The powers Of the Government, md the
rights and privileges Of the citizens, are 1cSula.
ted and pln:nly defined By the Constitution
ITSELF" "The Territory being part Of the
,k unted States. the G9sernmsnt and ths ci.iEeus
stitution, with their respective rights defined
and marked out, and the Federal Government
can exercise no power over his person or prop.
erty beyond what thu. instrument confcrs, nor
lawfully dcny any right which it has reserved"
The Constitution provides that no person
shall be deprived Of life. liberty, and property,
without due process Of law" and if Congress
itself cannot do this aud it is beyond the powers
conferred on the Federal Government, it will
be admitted,w presume, that it could not au-
thorize Territorial Government to exercise
them. It could confer no power on any local
Government established by its authority to vio-
late the provisions Of the Constitution. And il
the Constitution recognizes the right Of proper
| " ofthc master in slave, and makes no dis
distinction between that description Of property
bunal acting under the authority Of the United
States, whether It be legislative, executive, or
Judicial, has right to draw such distinction,
| OF to deny it the benefit and provisions Of the
guarantees which have been provided for the
protection Of private property against the en-
l CFuhEuAtuL VI LIE t0Fe[HQltG&.
And the Government, in express terms, ia
pledged to protect il {property IN slaro) in all
future 1ime, if the slave escapes from his owner.
This is done in plain words-too plain to be
misunderstood. And no word cnn be found IN
the Constitution which gives Congress greater
power over slsve property, or which entities
property Of that kind to less protection than
property Of any other description. The only
power conferred is the power coupled with the
duty Of guarding and protecting the owner i'll
1t was not only within the scope Of its (tbe Cen
era1 Government's) power, but it was its duty to
pass such laws and establish such {Te1Fitorial}
Government as would enable those BY whose
authority they acted Uhe people Of the several
Ssates} TO reap the advantages anticipated from
its acnufsitinn