Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1860-07-19
SsDAY MORNING, july l9, 1860.

phrase, the status of persons inhabiting
Tue territory about which they were lepis-
lntlng On the 9TH of April, 1898, Con-
gross passed ian act for an amicuble set
tIcment OF limits with the State ofGeorgin,
and authorizing the establishments of alyoy-
ernment in the Mississippi Territory The
seventh section reads as follows: "Section
Z. And be it further enacted, That from
and after the establishment Of the aforc-
SAID government, it shall not he lawful for
any person or persons to import ur bring.
'nto the said Mississippi Territory from any
port or place without the limits of the
United States, or to cause or procure to be
so imported or brought or knowingly to
Ald or assist in so importing or bringing
any slave or slaves, and that every person
so offending and being thereof convicted
before any Court within the said Terri
tory, having competent Jurisdiction, shall
forfeit and pay for every slave so imported
or brought, the sum of three hundred dol
larsi one moiety for the use of the United
States and the other moiety for the use of
any person or persons, who shall sue for
the same; and that every slave so import
ed or brought shall thereupon become en-
titled to and receive his or her freedom y
See same volume, page $40. This act was
passed ten whole years before CONGRESS
derived from the Constitution anv general
power to abolish the slave trade. It can
be supported, therefore, only on the ground
OF the general constitutional power Of
Congress to legislate for the Territories
and to determine what kind of peoDle
shall inhanit there.
On the 26th of March, 1904, Congress
passed Gan act erecting Louisiana into
two Territories and providing the tempo
rary government thereof" See second
Volu ie statutes at large, page 283. This
act erects the Territory of Orleans, con-
sisting of the present State of Louisi.
ana, provides Territorial Legislature.
And amongst many other provisions,
enacts that "The Governor shall publish
throughout said Territory oil 4hI~ I-o...
time to time report the same to the
President of the United States, to be
laid before Congress, which if disApprov-
ed of by Congress shall thenceforth be of
no force" The first clause of the tenth
section ofthis act is nm exact reprint of
the Seventh section of the Act of the Tth
April 1898, before quoted, word for word,
letter for letter, except making barely
change enough to adopt it to the Orleans
territory. 1t then goes on to forbid the
taking or importing into said Orleans Ter
ritory any slave or slaves, who had been
imported into tie United States since the
first of May, 1898, or that might be impor-
ted after the passage of the Act. And
forbids the Introduction of any slave or
slaves Of any description into the Terrific
ry "except by IL citizen of the United
States removing into said territory for ac-
tual settlement, and being at the time of
each removal bona fde owner of such slave
or slaves" And also inAictS q penalty
of three hundred dollars for each slave un-
lawfully imported, and grantliberty to such
slave
The twelfth section erects the Territory
ofLouisiana, comprising all the remainder
of the French purchase, and provides a
territorial lnw-making power, and makes
the following the provisions:-"Th
Governor shall publish throughout the
said district all the laws which may be
made as aforesaid, and shall from time to
time report the same to the President of
the United States to be laid before Con-
gress, which if disapprovcd of by Congress
shall theuCefOrth cease and be of no effect.
On the third of March, 1905, Congress
passed another statute entitled can act
further providing for the government of
the district of Louisiana" and making
material changes in the structure of its
government but containing the same pro-
vision for laying all the territorial laws
before Congress, (which, if disnPproved
Of by Congress, shall thenceforth cease and
be of no effect. Sec same volume page
33l. On the 4th of June, 1912, the name of
this Territory was, by act of Congress,
changed to Missouri.
On the 9th of March, 1920, Congress
passed IAN act to authorize the people Of
the Missouri territory to form Il CoustiLu-
ton and state government, and for the ad-
mission of such State into the Union, on
equal footing with the original states and
to prohibit slavery in certain Territories.
The eighth and last section of this act is
the celebrated Missouri Compromise, and is
in the following words:-"And be it fur
ther enacted, That in ali that Territory
ccdcd by France to the United States under
the name of Louisiana, which lies north of
thirty six degrees and thirty minutes north
latitude not included within the limits of
the state contemplated by this act, slavery
and involuntary servitudc, otherwise than
for the punishment of crimes whereof the
parties shall have been duly convicted,
shall he, and is hereby forever prohibited.
Provided, dIaCGys, That any person escaping
into the same, from whom labor or service
is lawfully claimed, in any State or Terri
tory OF the United States, such fugitive
may be lawfully reclaimed and conveyed
to the person claiming his or her labor or
service as aforesaid" This act was laid
by Mr. Monroe before his cabinet and was
approved by him on the 9th of March
1920. l have not now access to the old
journals of Congress without expeding en-
ormous labor. But state from memory
that on the passage of this act the yeas
were one hundred and thirty four, the nays
forty two, and there is not much fear ofmy
being materially wrong. OF the nays very
few were from the South.
On the goth of April, 1886, Congress
passed "An Act establishing the Terrific
rial Government of Wisconsin" See VOL
acts "That the legislative power of the
Territory shalt extend to all rightful sub
jects of legislation, but no law shall be
passed interfering with the primary dispo-