Daily national Democrat., 1860-08-17
!" The nsserters, Position.n

! that those who last year supported the Ad-
ministration ticket in this State, aud now
support Douglas, have surrendered their
principles and are therefore deserters 1t is
an easy thing to assert the truth Of pro-
position, but to prove by argument that the
proposition is well founded is quite differ
eut matter. And when the arguments ad-
vanced to sustain an assertion are SO fiimsy
that they will not bear scrutiny, it were bet
ter for the cause they were intended to sus-
tain, that they had never been brought for
ward. Now, let us see what the arguments
of the Express are worth. In attempting to
show that certain papers and individuals IN
this State are deserters, it says:
"Tbe same principles are involved in this cam
paign that distinguished the last, and precisely
The same issue is made. Douglas has not repud-
ated his squattcr sovereignty doctrine, but has
made that the great hubby upon which he hopes
to ride in to the White House, while Mr.. Breckln-
ridge is the representative oi Inc principles 10
which the Democracy OF California have time ana
again committed themselves
What were the principles involved in the
last State campaign The principles pro-
claimed by the Administration party were
set forth in the resolutions adopted by the
Convention which nominated Milton 5. La
than for Governor. The first of those reso-
lutions is as follows.
"REs0LYED, That the Democracy Of Califor.
| MIA, in Convention assembled, again reiterate
| their firm determination to stand by and main
tain in all their integrity the wise just end iber-
! al principles announced IN the Cincinnati Plat
form by the Democratic party of the Union
Was there member of the Adminirtra-
tion party in the State who did not accept
this resolution? Was it not sustained by the
whole press and all the speakers of that par.
ty throughout the entire canvass? Now, we
ask the Express whether it indorses that res
| olution nonc If it does not. then its princi-
pies are not those it professed to maintain last
year If it still indorses the resolution. it
follows that it must repudiate the action Of
a majority of the Southern States in the
Charleston Convention, in voting against a
similar resolution which is as follows:
"REsoLvED. That we, the Democracy of the
| Union, IA Convention assembled, hereby declare
! our affirmation of the Resolutions unanimously
adopted and declared as a Platform of Principles
| by the Democratic Convention at Cincinnati, in
the year 1855, believing that Democratic princi-
pies are unchangeabe in their nature, when ap.
Piled to the same subject matter"
This resolution was also voted against by
three>fouyths of the California delegation.
But, we may be told that the Convention
which nominated Breckinridge did re-afirm
the Cincinnati platform. They pretend to
have re affirmed it. They hardly dared to
say they repudiated it entirely, and there
fore passed resolutions which they tell us are
explanatory of that platform. The fact is,
they wanted slave CODE and as there is
nothing of that sort whatever in the Cincin-
natl platform, they adopted the following
resolution, as erpiandtatory:
That it is the duty of the General Govern.
mems, IN all It's departments to protect, when
necessary, the rights Of persons and property in
the Territories, and wherever else its constitu-
tional authority extends"
The whole Administration party in Cali
fornia thought, last year, that the Cincinnati
platform as it stood was good enough for
them. Nobody pretended that it gave to
the Federal Government the right to enact a
slave code for the Territories. 1t will be
seen from the following resolution, adopted
by the convention which nominated Milton
S. Latham for Governor, what the position
of the Administration party in this State was
last year
RESOLVED, That the organized Territories o.
4 m
the attributes of sovereignty, are yet Justly enti
tied the rights of selfgovernment, and the undis-
turbed regulation Of their domestic or local afairs
subject to the Constitution of the United States,
and that any attempt by Congress or any of the
States to establish, prohibit or abolish the relation
! of master and slave in a Territory, would be
departure from the original doctrine of our Amer
ican institutions, and that we adhere immovaby
TO the principles of "non-nteryentiOn" by Con-
gress with slavery in the States or Territories as
declared in the "Kansas Nebraska Bill" and
openly discaim fellowship with those, whether at
the South, the North, or the West who counsel
the abandonment limitation or avoidance of that
principle.
The Express tells us that "Mr. Douglas has
not repudiated his sQuatter sovereignty doc
trine, and that therefore "the same princi-
pies are involved in this eampain which dis
tinguished the last" The resolution lust
| quoted sets forth the views once held by its
party in this State Mr.. Douglas never claimed
more for the Territories, than is conceded in
that resolution. 1t is popular sovereignty
the whole of it-and was adopted as setting
forth doctrine of the Cincinnati platform
When the California delegation at Charles
ton voted with majority of Southern States
against the resolution re-afirming the Gin
einnati platform. and especially when they
voted for the erplanatatory slave code resolu-
tions of the Seceders Convention, they repu-
dated the platform adopted by the Admins
tration party of this State.
BY indorsng in full the action of the se>
ceding delegates, the Express must necessa-
rily indorse their vote against re affirming
the Cincinnati platform, and by SO doing,
repudiates its own course last year; for it
will hardly say that it did not then indorse
and approve that platform, the full meaning
and intent of which, on the Territorial ques-
ton, was set forth in the resolutions adopted
by the Convention of its party at Sacramen
to last year.
In this connection it may be well enough
to remark that the Breckenridge party in
this State have been not at all backward in
Proelaiming their approval by resolutions,
of the entire action of the California deiega-
tion. OF course, they approve the vote
against the Cincinnati platform-the very
platform which they maintained, last wear,
to be par excellence the embodiment of Dem.
oeratic principles.