The Constitutional. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1860-1861, 1860-10-06

spear. In this respect he may profit by the teach
ings of Nature. When Spring, with its balm,
breezes, and genial showers, walks smilin.
| through the land, the oak of the fores
clothes himself with a green and beautiful
| foliage, but when Winter comes with it.
fence tempests, and its gloomy skies, tn,
Monarch of the woods shakes down his greer
! glories to the earth, and prepares himself witt
| naked arms to battle with the Storm. The polit
| zeal horizon is black with the signs Of a coming
tempest. The Winter is upon us and what tn,
| people need to enable them to pass through it I'M
harmed, is the naked truth, sternly and fearless y
| uttered
l charge the Democracy with having dragged
| the slavery question from the obscure pups of Z
! few crazy fanatics, and thrust it upon a nalioua
| theatre to disturb the ace and cmbttcr the so
clal relations of the dc. cnt mem rs of the Con.
| federacy. Previous to 1910 no one had even
| thought of cXtr; citing from slavery an element o
political power. Occasionally some gloomy preach.
er, or discOntentcd rturer, held forth tos arty al
dlrnces upon the horrors of African slavery: but
| they Were for most part regarded even al the
North as ruIn-mad phiIanthropists or pity drma-
| gogucs, ambitious Of nciGhborhood no, lily. In
that year the Democratic party found ;Sclr trcmh-
ling on the verge of defeat. The preceding years
| of Slr. Van Burcn's administration had scattered
| the seeds of discomfort so widely that it was evil
dent he must be defeated uni s. the votes of the
Southern States could be concentrated upon him.
In this emergency a consultation was held among
the leaders at Washington. A plan of campaign
was adopted and a circular letter addressed
to the falthfl throughout the savcholdiu" States.
In that letter Gen. Harrison was charged with
being an AbOlitonist. The extrrur sensitive
ness of the Southern people to any,thrcat,ncd ag-
erosion upon their rights in this particular de-
scTiption of property, was well md, r~;uod, and il
was hoped that fifteen States might b. driven by
ia. Zig t..u,sg f.,f...
From Delaware to Louisiana the " was a. once
caught up bv the Democratic editor, and orators,
and the hero OF the Thames who hal spent an or
binary lifetime in the service of his country; who
was born in Virginia, and whose ancestors w,r.
sleeping beneath its soil, was arraicucd 4, GRIM
nal whose terrible fnatici,m invicd ;,c ,ppljca-
ton Of the torch to the dwellings,, and the inif,
to his kindred and friends
1t was here that The slavery agitation received
its first dangerous impetus. The attrInp. to make
political capital against Cen Harrison at the South
by charging him Win hostility to slavery, bad
the necessary and natural effect of making capt.
tai for him at the North, where different domestic
institutions prevailed. Worse than HAT. it fur
nished Northern politicians with plausible cx-
cusc for charging us with design to convert the
Government into grand SLAYER p!opag;mdi,m.
1t opened the eyes of the Northern d,.magoyuc 70
the use which might be- made OF the ~, iid,crS Of
his ncighbO.s, and supplied the pet, iol resort
ing u it.
1t was in this way, and at this point that tn.
political agitation of the slavery question began.
Who kept it alive, aud who are now tanning the
flames, are questions to which tn citizens in this
day of peril have right 20 demand an answer
If he is true 10 himself, hr will also inquire what
plausibility there was in the first accusaliur and
now far it was justified by after cvcntsl
What Gen. Harrison might have done, can
not know, except so far an opinion may BE-
formed from the history Of his past IL. lie wa,
called l,way before his policy WAS developed. and
the grave closed alike on hi, mortal body and the
plans of government he had formed or va, form
ing. But happily We are no; lift IN tlc same il
rance As to his opponent. Mr. Van Barren was
the Democratic candidate. We ", r. tod that hr
was a Northern man with Soulhc-n principles"
and that in his Keeping all the int'r.>tS of the
Stakeholder would BE- secure. Eight vcar~ after
wards this same Martin Van Buren, was he ab,li-
ton candidate for President and bed on with To-
morsclcss energy the blacklist of the Northern
to tho most fearful battle, which had Nj been
fought against the institutions of tn, South
Here then we have incontrovrrtnlc evidence that
in at least one instance, the Democracy were ia
tally mistaken. Granting that th'y wrrr honest
admitting that they dragged the slavery question
into the arena of politics from the b,.t motives:
still the fact remains that they did it wiki such
bad judgment prudent people should b. very
it,eiv
I'm ISli Urnr, o. It'll. -. =,
Wbie n,rtv III. 10y 49,! '.'.'', % '.',
and 3v edHr.,ior iEa,,t,',t,ia5T, ~ y Di''n
d,nce and ,ssoci,t;on 10 Loi i,.',' -'i'E -.
the Hons, of RrTr,..,,, - ~. VI
Scre,,,,, .f ST. onI 80, W "i'ii,"';
every VII of ,,,LI;, Gf' n,I n'u ui'"
ruisied abov, his ,,r.at ~ u.S,iH-
did NOT nrotrct hin, fro,, ,.,-,ti,,,, ''''
dspracffnl character II US .,,,,,,o.I -
to advance the interests nf :, ~ L.. $500, ,'.
him Will nandcrin,, ., N,,,tI,.Il, 's: t''' r'ly
the man at ,ybn.n to,L - 49,; - anu
kneels in revarnti,I .,,,. w. - .m INV
with the slime of c,lumnv 90 wv
In This canvass intolqrancc ,,.,.o hir.r, -,
other of that wicked and d,np,.r,,s Lr,,,d IL,
Providence as = nunisbu,a,t g., ,,,, ~, l. 'o'''
ia he turned Ioo..
taurbt TO distrust one anofI,r Ii,,.,.c,, Ill
been conceded that rs eyer. ,,., ,t .Lc la,'.I
was eouallv interested g, 49,. ,,,a, ,' ii
time and lovaI IN Tin. c,,,.t;.,,,i,,,I ;l.
section. Now for the first fine THAT fJlit,, ,,,s
called into ouestion. The cLa,r,. n,.,I. .,,,i,,,,
Mr.. CLAY was annI;,d viii -. I;T,l. L,,.,.'.,,
hi, friends. and is r,pr,,,.l hi. Lrur ,,,,,. .L
men as John Bell and 4 n St,,,j,.,,. -tl.,,rI -
Toombs. J. T. BENJAMIN. r / 1Ii.',,,,.,, -
j. A. pcarc,. have Obtained ;,b.Iti Ia, ;ni,,,,,,l
the Brccb KIM. Dire rank.
As might have been ,.xp, r,c,l su,I ,,,,,sat;,,s
did more To provoke eIlmiiirs tiau to maxi. com
v,rts and If Thorn Ia. any, S,u.I,,.-,. H.; -: