Union County star and Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1859-1864, 1860-01-06
The President and His Message.

for Iext Presiirntsa
The President and His Message.
In the recent Annual Message Of The PreSi
dent of the United States, is 10 be found the
following remarkable language:
al cordially yoJr upon the final sc,spi..
bv the Court the tnlr.t state qu.>-
ton Of Sia,cry tie Territories which iai presented
aspect truly formidable at tine commencement OF my
ADMINISTRATION. The right has been sstEb'tssd, uf every
citizen 10 take his property any kin including Sars
into III. common belonging equally TO All The
STATES Of the Conerracy. and protected Ll..
under the Federal Constitution Neither Congress,
aTerritoriaI Legislature any hp.nG1 por has any
authority to annu or impair this vested night again
the President says, "liad it been decdci that either
Congress or Territorial Legislature ross-sses IL.
power impair the right To property slaves,
The erii tuoHid ts iE0ieF0tLe"
For the action OF the Supreme Court, the
President probably refers 10 the decision in
the bred Scott case, made nearly three years
since. 1t is somewhat remarkable that The
President should gravely communicate 10 the
Congress OF the United States, iaj1rmGtion
that certain decision had been rendered in
the Supreme Court, when that decision had
been for years before the public and had been
as thoroughly discussed as ever was 4 Judi
cal opinion!
But the matter OF the communication IS
more remarkable still.
Mr.. Buchanan was bred 10 the law, and was
considered, forty years ago, an able prlci.-
tioner at the bar. He understood then, aud
he understands now, how 10 discriminate be-
tween the derision of Court, and the remarks
ofG member of The Court upon point "o' nee
essarily involved In the decision Of the case.
Knowing, then, how TO make this dscrimlna-
ton, We assert, withou, the fear of cunIraiic-
ton, that Mr.. Buchanan had eIlhernever read
the bred Scott case, or that, when he penned
the sbove.siated paragraph Of his Message, he
was perfectly conscious, that The Supreme
Court had nerer decided that IN act OF the Ter
ritorial Legislature, prohibiting the existence
of Slavery in the Territories, was unconsti-
tutional. There was no such pOtht erer roistd
;n the case, and there had been no action OF
Territorial Legislature, which had the reno
tes, bearing upon the question which the
Court was called upon 10 decide, viz, wheth-
er Dred Scott was or was not entitled 10 his
freedom
The REAL questions which this celebrated
case presented TO the Court were.
1st Can negro, whose ancestors were brought into
this country and sold saves, aud who has ty
legal obtained his freedom, bring suit tine
Courts Of the United states:
2nd Where a voluntarily takes his slave from
Slave Free STAT, Territory where slavery
IL prohibited BY Act Of Congress after rcsIG
therein tor years removes hun again TO slave
este the after has return, entitled to be dis
charged from bondage!
II will be observed that the frst is ques-
ton OF jurisdiction, and, according 10 all the
he I,u- 81,
adversely 10 the Plahlifi, there was no longer
either case, or question, fire lie Court. But
if the power TO decide the second question be
conceded TO the Court, and that the decision
made thereon is binding, as an exposition of
constitutional law, by the highest Judicial TIL
bunal Of the country, il does not, in the leas,
degree, deny 10 the people Of Territory,
through their legally chosen representatives,
the right 10 determine whether Slavery shall
or shall not exist in the Territory!
What, then, must be thought Of Mr.. Buchan. |
ans candor as man, and of his integrity as
an officer, when he declares tha, in virtue OF
this decision, "neither Congress, nor Terri /
torial Legislature, nor any human tribunal,
has authority to annu. or impair this vested |
right" that is, the right to hold slaves in
territory during the entire period of its terrific
ria, existencei
Mr.. Buchanan not only announces such TO
be the settled law, but he also rejoices that it
is so settled, and declares that 10 give to Con-
gress, or the People of Territory, the right
to interdict Slavery in Territory. would be
AN INTOLERABLE EVIL Thomas JEFF.
ferson was the first President of the United
States elected by the Democratic party, and
James Buchanan is the las, ore so elected.
The former. although himself ,lave-hoder,
and a resident Of a Southern Stale. believed
that the Territories of the United States
should be preserved for free labor. The lat
ter, although native and a citizen of Free
State, thinks that all the Territories of the
Union should be devoted TO Slavery, with or
without the consent OF the people residing
therein We leave it 10 our readers 10 deter
mine whether Thomas Jefferson, the author of
the Declaration of independence, or James
Buchanan, the advocate OF the Lecompton in.
iquiiy, is the better exponent Of the Democrat
ic creed!
Our objections 10 the doctrine which Mr..
Buchanan so highly praises, are, .tfrsi, that il
a once converts all Of the vast Territory of :
'he United States into s,avehodng Terrific.
RES. Second. that it deprives the people ofIh Q
1erritories Of all power to .choose for the n '
selves their own domestic institutions" TaRG, +.