The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1860-05-25

live who have not changed their opinions.
Men who have more regard for truth than
consistency will change whenever convinced
| of their error. Hence l do not condemn
Alabama for boiling now for the very rea.
son that she assigned for going in the Gin.
clnnati convention in 1856, but it is not to
De expected that we who accepted her alti-
matum then, and have ever since observed
1t IN good faith, should be satisfied to be
denounced as enemies to the south, for hold.
ing last TO the same principles which she
then proclaimed.
repeat that am willing to stand by
those terms and conditions that Alabama
prescribed as her ultimatum in 1856.
must do this justice to the Democracy of
Alabama l do not believe the Democracy
of that State indorse or approve of this
attempt to break up the Democratic party
of the Union because the party would not
change the platform. I believe the people
OF Alabama are now as much attached to
the principles of the Democratic party, as
they understood them themselves and pro-
claimed them to the world, as they were in
1856. do not believe that Alabama will
follow Mr.. Yancey now in his mad scheme
to break up the Democratic party in quest
of congressional Intervention any more than
she did in l848, when he attempted the
same thing.
At this point, the honorable Senator
yielded to a motion to adjourn.
WEDNESDAY, May l6.
Mr.. Douglas. Mr.. President, feel that
it is due to the Senate to express my sin.
cere thanks for the courtesy they extended
to me yesterday, in postponing the remainder
of my remarks until to-day, when it was
evident that was physically exhausted. I
fear that l shall be under the necessity of
claiming the indulgence of the body also for
the desultory manner in which I shall pre-
sent my views to-day, and possibly for my
inability to say all that would like to have
presented to the Senate on this question. A
recurrence of severe disease of the throat,
which l contracted some years ago, in dis
cussions in the open air IN vindication of
the principle of nOn-intervention against the
assaults of the Republican party, has severe
~ affected my voice and impaired my phys
ical strength. However, I will proceed as
best l may, to conclude what have to say
upon the question.
Mr.. DOUGLAS here proceeds to answer the
charge that be has given wrong construc>
ton to the Kansas-N Nebraska bill, in assert
ing that under it, the people of Territory
can legislate upon the slavery question. He
shows from the record, that it was the IN.
Outstanding of the Democracy of the Senate,
that it authorized the people of Territory
to introduce, exclude, protect or prohibit
slavery, as to them seemed best. He then
says:
The amendment offered by my colleague,
in 1856, TO the Toombs bill, and my vote
against it, have been cited as evidence that
it was not the intention or the understand
ing of any ofus, when the Kansas Nebraska
bill passed, to allow the people to act on
this question. I will ask that the Trunbull
amendment be also read. The bill to which
that amendment was offered was a bill
known as The Toombs bill, to authorize the
people OF Kansas to form constitution and
come into the Union as State. 1t was
not offered as an amendment to territorial
bill but to State bill and. as an amend
ment to State bill, was fixing construc-
ton to territorial bill which was to cease
to operate by an admission of State under
the bill which we then were passing.
Mr.. Pugh read as follows:
"And be 1t further enacted, That the provi-
sion in the act ito organize the Territories of
Kansas and Nebl aska.' which declares 1t to be
the true intent and meaning of said act not
to legislate slavery into any Territory or State,
ortO exclude it therefrOm but to leave the
people thereof perfectly free to form and
regulate their own institutions in their own
way, subject only to the Constitution of the
United States, ,cas intended to and does confer
upon or leare to the people Of the Territory of
Kansas full po,cer at any time through its Te,,i.
tOridl Legislature to exclude Slavery from said
Terrific 9, or to recognise or regulate it therein.'
Mr.. Douglas. Thus it will bill be seen
that the amendment of my colleague was to
declare, in the bill for the admission of a
State into the Union, that it was the intent
of the act Of Congress organizing that fer.
ritory. to allow the people of the Territory
either to introduce or exclude slavery as
they saw proper. This amendment. was
rejected by the Senate on two grounds.
One was, that it was irrelevant to append it
to State bill, when it was declaring the
intent of Territorial bill. The other ground
was, that it was an act of usurpation for the
Congress of the United States to attempt
to adjudcate the meaning of that Terrific
rial bill that the question what its true
intent and meaning was after it passed, be.
longed to the courts, and not to the Senate
or House of Representatives and the at
tempt OF Congress thus to expound it was
an act of usurpation. to prove that such
was the case, l will ask to have read brief
extracts from various speeches which have
collected, showing the grounds on which the
Trumbul amendment was opposed. l will
remark, that no man intimated, pending
that debate, that the Trumbull amendment
did not contain the true meaning OF the bill
but they said, we will not by act of Con-
gress attempt to expound Territorial act.
Mr.. Pugh read as follows:
"Mr. Cass said Now, in respect to myself,
suppose the Senate knows clearly my views.
believe the original act gave the Territorial
Legislature of Kansas full power to exclude or
allow slavery" $50 "This
being my view. shall vote against the amend
ment. o.. .,4r
'Mr, Douglas said The reading of the