Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1860-10-30


make its defence their peculiar concern"
With reference to the objection to tn
purchase, there is no citizen who has any at
tachncnt TO the Republic who is not well salts
fed that the country embraced in the territor,
acquired, constituting almost Il dozen State
and organized territories stretching from tn
Atlantic to The Pacific, is now worth p hundre,
time: as much as we gave for it. 1t may well b
asked what would we be without its posses
sion: Apart from It's geographical and poti
cal value, its luXuriant fields contribute no
only to the good of the whole Union, but like
wise as mniStcring angel 10 the wide world:
good. 1t annually pours lis millions upon mil
lions o; dollars into the lap Of New York. New
England, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio ant
Illinois, in exchange for the surplus products
Of their industry and otherwise.
Nor was it alone Clinton and Bailey Of New
York, in those days of patriotisln-broad
magnanimous patriotSm-who stood unllinch
inglv shoulder to shoulder with Brcckinridgt
and Brown Of Kentucky. Logan and Macay
Of Pennsylvania cordially co.operated in the
same body, for the nations dearest interests,
with Anderson and Cooke of Tennessee; Brad
ley and Smith Of Vermont, with Taylor and
Nicholas of Virginia. Jefferson, and Madison,
and Monroe, and Livingston were the eXecu
tive officers, statesmen and ncgotiators who
achieved the annexation Of the sLtce territory
Of Louisiana to the United States that JeiTcr.
son, that Madison, that Monroe whose names
the champions Of Black Repubicansm have
the downright clrontery to call to their assist
ancc in their reckless warfare against the Con
stitution. Could those departed sagcs and pa
triots speak in human accents Of things as
they are, compared with what they were in
their day and generation, their language would
doubtless be like that of Cicero with reference
to Rome There was that yirtue once in
America that wicked citizen was held more
execrablc than the dradicSt foe" Such times
there were, indced--timcs when even mad fac.
ton thought not Of laying hold Of the pillars
Of our commodious politica! temple To endr:''
ror to involve all contained in it in common
rrin-tlnes when little mcn Of little names
had not learned to aspire to the siezing OF the
rcins of rule through tiiSunionizing, diSorsan-
izing, dcmuralizing ismS. Well has the qucS-
ton been POLITICALLY asked and often quoted
SIS there not SOME secret curse,
soms hidden thunder red with immortal WRATH
To blast the wretch who Il owe Gis greatness
To his countrys ruin ::
The 9Th article Of the Constitution provides
that "thc Congress, whenever two.thirdS OF
both houses shall deem it necessary, shall pro-
pose amendments to this Constitution, or, on
the application Of the Legislatures of two
thirds of the several States shall call Con-
vention for proposing amendments, which in
either case shall be valid, to all intcnts and
purposes, AS a part Of this Constitution, when
ratified by the Legislatures of threc.iourths OF
the scTcral States, nr by Convention in three.
luurlls, M the one or the other mode Of ratifca'
ton may he proposed By Congress Under this
provisiorl twelve additional articles have been
appended to the Constitulion--tlie substance
Of ten Of which we have explained. The 18th,
whcl relates TO the election of President and
Vice President, was ratified in 1901. In none
of those articles can be found 4 restrictive
clauSc--a Squattcr Sovereignty or Wimot Pro-
vso clause--advcrse to the rights or interests
Of the Slavcholding States, Notwithstanding The
last amendment WAS adopted after our acquis
ton of the slave territory of Louisiana. Tho
spirit of "lnutual Difference and concession
which animated patriot hearts in the North at
that time, forbade the attempt at such a
grant act Of injustice.
The most enormous political wrong that ever
was committed in this Union was the enacton
Of the so.called Missouri Compromise. twas
as unwarrantcd as Il measure Of justice rs il
was deliberate violation Of the spirit o
the Constitution After an existence, however
of two score years and more, it ceased to dis
grace our statute book. The seal of condem
nation was not only placed upon by Congress
but subsequently by the decision of the high
est tribunal in our land Until Missouri pre-
sentcd herself for admission, there was not
perhaps, a solitary disunionist in the South
That division of the Republic, geographically
was the division of inilexible patriotic abodcs
As in peace so in war, the South was devoted t
the Federal Union. What was its shock at tn
first manifest bad faith Of the North, whel
Rufus King, then Senator from New York
rose in his place, at the time the Constitution
Of Missouri was presented, and, among othei
things, grlvcly declared that he "~0HId rathf
sec Missouri remain Jorcrtr u haunt ior Tlb
Lsasts than to enter tie L,hi0a on tie Side .
slarcry" And what would have been TIT
shock Of the North, if Southern Senator hat
made a similar declaration with reference Il
the admission of 4 non.slavehoding State?-
Mr.. King, possessing large experience and EN-
incnt ability, was the leader in the Senate 10
the restriction Mr. Pinckney, the matches
orator and logican Of his day, was the leade
of the free admission party. 1t is related tina
Mr.. King, after hearing the unanswcrable con
Guiding argument Of Mr.. Pnckncy, wherein
he asserted, in defiant languagc-"sIr, yo'
cannot make the Union, rs to the new States
what it is not as to the old'-said, some
what dcspondingly, 10 the friends wh'
were near him, ~ AN no longer certain
that am right" 1t is to be dcplored tina
the South for the sake Of harmony, yielted t'
such compromise. 1t was the compromise
misht-an ''irrepressiblc conflict compromls
in the sense Of Sewardisln--a compromise hk'
that of the solitary traveller with bandits, b.
which he consents to give up all thai. he has
they will agree to save his liie-and no NOR
binding. Had it been rcsisted-had the Slave
holding States exercised their sovereignty pro
perly, by preparing themselves 10 retire fron
the Union, whose bond had been violatcd-th
serpent of abolitionism which then entered ou
Eden, would have been eilectually strangled
l., friI'