Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1860-09-27

he was then pursuing would lead him. he replied
Il do. and have checked all my baggage and taken
through tckets-that .this character Of CONVEX
saten, so frequently employed by Mr.. Douglas
with those with whom he talked made the deepest
Impression upon their Hinds, enlisted them in his
behalf, and changed in almost every instance, their
opinion Of the man." You remember the statement
of Blair--at that time the Black Republican mem
Der Of Congress from St. Louis-to the effect that
the letter which he wrote to Brown, the editor of
the Black Republican organ of ST. Louis, urging him
20 desst from his attack on Douglas, the ground
that Douglas would ultimately be with them, was
written at his, Douglas request-that the interview
sought by Mr.. Douglas with Blair was fer this pur
pose, as was testified to by Mr.. Colfax, through
whom the interview was asked. You Will also re
member the statement of Judge kellogg in the House,
and more recent statement of Senator lrum-
ball, TO the effect tEat as the time OF the
attempted passage Of the LecomptOn Constitu-
ton through Congress, Mr.. Douglas called on Mr.
Covode, a Republican member of Congress from
Pennsylvania, and requested him to go TO SenaLor
| Trumbuil and get him to agree that he Mr. Doug
las should be returned to the Senate by the Repub-
| lcans of Illinois. and in consideration Thereon ne
would fight the Republican battles IN 1861" sup
pose you have seen a report OF recent speech OF
Arson Burngame. (the same that euiogzed Mr..
| Bell in the Honse of which YOU were member. for
his vote against KaDsas delivered recently at Ban
gor Maine in which, appealing to the friends OF Mr.
/ Douglas to support Lincoln, he says: "Colfax,
RIar and myself have had frequent private inter-
I
/ occasions Mr.. Douglas freely made use of express
sions of the deepest Indignation against Southern
| dictation" For these additional reasons, ! must
again insist that there is no consistency IN your sup
| port of Mr. Douglas.
AGAIN the chief difficulty with you is our asser-
ton of the doctrine of Federal protection to our
rights in the Territories. How this feature in
| our platform? Who suggested the necessity which
| occasioned it You should remember that it comes
| in answer to the new and novel doctrine of Mr..
! Douglas conceived and promulgated by him for the
first time in his canvass with Lincoln in Illinois, of
| 'unfriendly legislation The Supreme Court had
then but recently delivered the bred Scott de-
| cision in which his theory of Squatter Sover-
eighty was thought to have been overthrow, and
it in view of this state of facts and in answer
to Mr.. Lincoln. that he said: 1T MATTERS NOT
WHAT WAY THE SrPREME COURT NAY HEREAFTER DE-
eide to the abstract question whether slavery
| may or may not go into a Territory under
the Constitution, the people have the lawful
! means to introduce it or exclude it as they
please for the reason that slavery cannot exist
| a day or an hour anywhere unless 1t IS
supported by local police regulations. Those police
regulations can only be established by the local Lee
legislature; and if the people opposed to slavery
they will elect representatives to that body who
will, by UNFRIENDLY LEGISLATION, etfectually
prevent the introduction of it in their midst This
was ahgher-lawsm but little better than the higher
lavish of Mr.. Seward and am sure you do not en-
dorse it and yet the position you occupy has that
appearance What matters it with him if the SUI
preme Court has decided against his favorite theory
of "Sauatter Sovereignty ~ He would teach the
people TO disregard the Courts. When might makes
/ right, the Constitution becomes a myth.
We had boosted throughout the country that there
was great conservative principle in the Kansas
BILL which, if endorsed and sustained by the people
would settle this question upon just and honorable
terms which principle was to organize the Terri
tories upon plan that would secure to the free
States and the slave States every right to which
they were respectively entitled under the Constitu-
ton; those rights to be determined by the Courts
and when determined to be acqulesced IN by all
parties. Mr. Douglas violated his plighted faith and
became champion of unfriendly legislation" His in
innate relation to the Kansas BILL when that measure
was pending before Congress and the country, gave
great Importance to his new doctrine, and the ma
tional Democracy throughout the country were
called upon to know what they had to say to it
The Democracy of Tennessee, when they assembled
in Convention the following March, 1859. adopted
in their platform the following fourth resolution as
their response
"That we are satisfied with the views announced
by the Supreme Court of the United States in the
celebrated of bred Scott the rights of slave
holders andhe status of slavery in the Territories
and are willing to abide by the principles annOunc-
ed in that decision. Slavery and the rights of slave
holders are protected by the Constitution of the Un
ted State and by appeal to the action of the judi
cal tribunals of the Union, until the formation of
Constitution by the people off Territory, and then
the State must decide for itself on that well as
other legitimate subjects of government"
Upon the committee who drafted this resolution
was Geo. w. Bridges, Douglas elector for the third
district; L. H. Cardwell, Douglas Elector for the
fourth district and J. KEox Walker and B. II. Viii
hanson, prominent supporters of Mr.. Douglas from
the 10th district. Everywhere throughout the coun
try this doctrine of Mr. Douglas was repudiated ex
cept by his followers in a few Black Republican
States and the principle declared that against such
unfriendly legislation, IN disregard OF the Constl-
tuition and the decision of the Supreme Court il
would be the duty of the Federal Government to
furnish protection, whenever necessary. Prepare
tory to The meeting of our National Convention
when the Democracy of Tennessee had assembled in
| Nashville to appoint delegates thereto. and when
YOU were selected in compliment your faithful pub
lie services preside over their deliberations they
| again resolved:
THAT the Federal Government has no power to
interfere with slavery in the States to introduce
into exclude it from the Territories, and no duty
to perform in relation thereto, but to protect the
! rights of the owner from wrong, and TO restore
fugitIves from labor these duties it cannot With
hold without violation of the Constitution"
Again when assembled in Convention atCharlestOn,
ma jOrity of the committee on resolutions, repre-
senting every slave State and two free States, and
| rejecting the views of every Democratic State but
one, reported the following
| RESOLVED, That the platform adopted by the DEM
ocratic party at Cincinnati be affirmed with the fol
lowing explanatory resolutions
| FIRST, That the government of Territory organ
lied by act of Congress provisional and tempo
rary, and during its existence all citizens of the
/ United States have an equal right to settle with
their property in the Territory without their rights
either of person property, being destroyed or
pared by Congressional or Territorial legislation.
Second, That it is the duty of the Federal govern
ment IN all its departments to protect when
sary the rights of persons andproperty in the Ter
| ritories, and wherever else its constitutional
| authority extends
Third, That when the settler in a Territory have
an adequate population to form State Consti-
htCfyo
ing cOnsummated by admission into the Union, they
stand on equal footing with the people Of other
States and the State thus organized ought to be ad
mitted into the Federal Union whether its COnsttu-
ton prohibits or recognizes the institution OF slave
! ry.
| These were but in response to the new doctrine
of 'unfriendly legislation or hgher-lawism, orlg-
mated and put foot by Mr. Douglas with the view
of avoiding the decision of the Court and defeating
the lust rights of the South, and were IN strict
! sonance with the action of the two previous Demo
cratic Conventions in your own State, over one of
WEIGH you presided and yet you charge that they
are in direct conflict and anagonism with the great
Democratic principles declared in the Cincinnati
| PLATFORM and opening of the slavery question
with all the agitatiOns incident thereto" Strange
| and astonishing haucinaton, showing how peryerse
and unreliable are the best minds when once led
into error, and then excited by an overanxious de-
sire to appear consistent!
But sir there are still more important reasons
| than any have yet assigned. why you should not
support Mr.. Douglas. The leading feature of your
history as public man. has been open and undis-
guised hostility to corrupt men and corrupt prac
tees and to every species of extravaganza in pub
lie affairs This has been your speciality You have
a reputation in this respect second to no man In the
Union. 1t has done more to secure you the conf
dencc of your former constituents than everything
else in your history. By your support of Mr. Doug
las YOU are abandoning all this. You yourself have
characterized him to man whose admins
tratiOn would be unsafe to the country. You have
deprecated his acts in connection with questions of
public expenditure as reckless and extravagant.
You have spoken of his surroundings in the event
of his elevation the Presidency, as of most OBJ
ieetionable and pernicious character. Your long
Familiarity with the lobby influences about Wash
ington. enabled you to speak adyisedly. You are
an honest man and meant what you said; nor is it
your practice to talk about such things under the
hush: therefore feel that there is lmpropriety
in abiding to these facts: by way of showing that
it is you and not your old friends and former con-
stituents who are deviating from the beaten |
nath of consistency. You know, and | am sure
will have the candor to admit, that Mr.. Douglas has
given more Federal upon questions OF eXpendl
ture in the last ten twelve years and has wandered