The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1860-02-03

1t Is huahed, 1ndee0, Tor the mOmenC. But TINS
is reprieve only, not . final sentence. A
principle, moral and political. once conceived
and held up to the angry passions of men, will
never be obliterated and every new irritation
will mark it deeper and deeper"
And again, in speaking Of the same
measure, he says:
81 regret that / am now to die in the belief
that the useless sacrifice of themselves by the
generation Of l776, to acquire selegovernment
and happiness to their country, is to be thrown
away by the unwise and unworthy passions OF
their sons, and that my only consolation is to
be. that live not to weep over it."
The Compromise appears to have been
equally Objectionable to the North. Nearly
every representative from that section who
had favored it lost his seat in consequence
1t would require too much space to refer to
more than one instance. The Hon. Samuel
Eddy, q representative from the State OF
Rhode Island, was one of the supporters Of
the bill. Shortly after its passage public
meeting was held at Providence and an ad-
dress issued to the " Republican freemen of
Rhode Island" in which appears the fol-
lowing:
1.-THE Republicans of the town of Providence
have deemed it their duty to offer to their Re.
publican brethren in other parts of the State,
in a brief and concise manner, some of the rea
sons which have induced them to support the
Hon. Tristan Burgess as representative in
Congress, in preference to the Hon. Samuel
Eddy.
"First, his vote upon the Missouri question,
admitting slavery (Which the genius of our
government, in common with every moral and
Christian obligation, alike forbids) into that
State, stands an indelible stigma against him in
the minds of q free people. 1t was indeed re-
pugnant both to the policy and freedom Of our
civil Institutions
Mr.. Burgess was elected by large ma.
jority, and the Rhode Island Freeman, in
that connection, remarks:
"And then the slave power and slavehold-
ing oratars from the South had to meet bold
aud unfiinching defender of liberty and the con.
stitutional rights of the free States. Meyer
before had the shareholders met the man on
the floor Of Congress in whose presence they
covered and shrank."
The agitation it seems had not yet subsidized.
THE COMPROMISE AS SACRED COMPACT.
And now, having seen with what little
favor the Compromise was generally re-
ceived, we will briefly note the regard that
was paid to it by those sections of the coun.
try which are now most clamorous in claim
ing it to have been ga sacred and holy
compact" to destroy which required, in the
language of the majority of the Committee,
the "parricidal hand Of lurking destroyer"
It will be recollccted that the ComprO-
mise was attached as the eighth section to
an Enabling Act for Missouri, the first Sec
ton of which provided that Missouri
should be received into the Union " on an
equal footing with the original States in all
respects whatsoever" In accordance there
with, during the summer of the same year,
Missouri formed State Constitution, and
at the next session of the same Congress,
(182O-2D presented it to Congress and de-
handed admission into the Union. If the
Compromise was ga sacred and holy
compact" which all sections of the country
were bound TO maintain inviolate. as Re-
publican orators and writers would now fain
have us believe, then it follows that Missouri
was entitled to her admission as matter of
course, and without objection, that being a
part of the bond" But the passage of
the Compromise had failed to obviate the
objections which still continued, and with
even greater vehemence, to be urged against
her for the reason that slavery was permit
ted within her limits. In several of the
Northern States the Legislatures passed
resolutions instructing their Senator'S and
requesting their Representatives to vote
against her admission unless clause should
be inserted in her Constitution prohibiting
African slavery. In November, 1920, less
than nine months after the enactment of the
Missouri Compromise, and the signing,
sealing and delivering of the holy and sa-
cred compact" (if such it proved to have
been) the Legislature of the State of New
York passed the following resolutions.
WHEREAS. the Legislature of this State, at
the last session, did instruct their Senators and
request their Representatives in Congress to
oppose the admission as State into the Union
of any Territory not comprised within the orig
inal boundaries of the United States without
making the prohibition of slavery therein an
indispensable condition of admission; and
whereas, this Legislature is impressed with the
correctness of the sentiments so communicated
to our Senators and Representatives therefore,
Resolued, (if the honorable Senate concur
therein) That this Legislature does approve of
the principle contained in the resolutions of the
last session, and further, if the provisions con-
tanned in any proposed constitution of new
State deny to any citizens Of an existing State
the privileges and immunitiCs of citizens Of such
new State, that such proposed constitution
should not be accepted or confirmed; the same,
in the opinion of this Legislature, being void
by the Constitution of the United States. And
that our Senators be instructed and our Repre-
sentatives in Congress be requested to use
their exertions to prevent the acceptance and
confirmation Of any such G. Constitution.
Congress met shortly after, and resolu-
ton was passed in the Senate admitting
Missouri, and sent to the House. 1t was
resisted in the House, upon the nominal
ground that Missouri had placed in her
Constitution clause preventing the migra-
ton of free persons of color into that State.
Mr.. Clay says that the fame which had
been repressed at the previous session now
burst out with redelbled force and violence
throughout the whole Union, for it was very
well known that the real objection to her
admission was the. slavery clause In her
constitution, for few then doubted, and all
now admit that any State has a right to
pass just such constitutional restriction as
Missouri did in reference to free persons of
color. Indeed quite number Of the States
have since done so. Mr.. Benton, in abiding
to this controversy says =" The real struggle
was political and for the balance of power,
as frankly declared by Mr.. Rufus King. who