Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1860-04-12
THE MADISON, KY, TRoyBLEs.
Cassius n. Ciay's Appea'. s
FeHo,c eifsens Of Madison County:
Learning from areliable source


are to meet in Richmond on next Monday,
to take into consideration who,are seaiu,to
besproscribed; and having understood tiiat
| only escaped their announcement last
Tuesday by small majority. and that l
am to be CONSIDERED again on Monday, 4
avail myself Of this means of making my
protest and defense. would greatly pre-
fer always meeting my -accnsers face to
face. and there have my defense; but as
friends have insisted on my avoiding any
pretense for conflict, yield to their wish
es,a and make this written appeal: = ..,a
In the irstsplace. as a free citizen OF a
constitutional Commonwealth, / most sol
emily protest against any power on earth,
but the legal and regularly constituted au-
therities of my country, to decide in any
mannerupon my 'life, liberty orproperty.' ~
regard. all impartial men will regard,
him as the worst enemy oftrue liberty, who
acquiesees In any usurpation on the part of
any man, or set of men. of the sovereign
power of the State Ifevery man in Mad
ison was to consent, to the usurpation, it
would lie none-the less an overthrow of the
Constitution, which can be annulled,
set aside, changed, or disobcyed with inpu-
nifty, only by the legal representatives of the
people IN convention assembled. I. But ac-
cording to known facts, but about fourth
part OF the county signed the papers pro-
testing against the doctrine and action OF
the Radical Abolitionists' John G
Fee and others. Aud it is very well known
that very large number of those signing
that paper, were and are utterly opposed to
any other than legal proceedings against
those unhappy men, women, and children.
So that the Committee have not even the
show of authority, three fourths of the
county having absolutely refused, amid
threats of intimidation on the part of the
movers, to sanction their illegal action
But waving all these considerations. do
not fear to plead to you, on the merits OF
my canse. faulf
If it was crime to resist the will and
action Of this Revolutionary movement. !
have not done even that, except y the
high moral power of an earnest protest;
refusing TO join by force of arms in xcom
mon defence with the exiles. My reasons
for this are these: | regarded the radical
doctrine, that ..there is no law for Slavery
as revolutionary. 10 deny the potency Of
the Constitution and the law is to set up an
Independent government in opposition to
the existing government and laws, the two
distinct policies AMI Jurisdictions of which
must inevitably at last, come into physical
conflict. And while am opposed to sla-
very on all possible grounds, my love and
respect for my Constitution and my coun-
try override all other political considcra.
tons. My theory is, that Slavery, is a
creature of law, and the subject ofsupport
modification, increase or destruction, as
any other policy; and to be reached in the
same way only by moral suasion, by speech
by the press, by the laws, and by the Con
stitution. That so long as it constitutes
property. by laws. that the laws must be
respected and enforced in good faith. That
the majority have he right to rule: because
we know of no other or better way as pro,
noting the en'ls of the government. tho
safety and happiness of the whole of the
governed. That if tho Shareholders thus
rule we will acquiesce. And therefore the
Republicans in Kentucky have been op,
posed to, and have steadily denounced any
illegal interference with slaves, from al
home or abroad-they have given no coun
tenance to the escape Of slaves, to insub
ordination. or servile Instruction. Hence
on the 4th of July, 1886. at the Slate Licl
Springs, in this county, when the Rev
j ohm g. Fee avowed from the stump til,
radical Abolition doctrine, denounced i
/ from the stump. lie was corresponding
Secretary of the Central Republican Club
at our first meeting in Richmond he wa.
displaced. and Republican elected in hi,
stead. When he was mobbcd in severa
places-when his co-laborer, the Rev. Jas
I S. Davis. asked my aid in defending Mr.
Fee, addressed letter, dated October s
1857, declining to identify myself in any
way with MIR. Fees doctrine or action
These letters were first published in tn,
Washington Republic, in the face of tn,
world and were republished in the Louis
vile jon rnal and other Kentucky papers
( Again, when the movement was mad
against the Bereaus, | took the same neu
/ trail ground in letters addressed to the Rich
mond Messenger and to Cincinnati papers
one copy of which was published in TIL
Cincinnati Commercial, dated White Hall
KY, December 2sth, 1859, but which,
\ know not by villa. means, failed to reacl
Judge Field until the Monday following
and the exiles being gone, went into til
Messenger office and took it away. a
the occasion for its publication had passed
! Again, heard that j. G. Hanson, on
of the cxiles, had returned, went. on Fri
nay last to the house of Alexander McWill
Jams, where we talked the matter over; an,
we conceded in our opinion, as we Away
had done-that our friends should seperat
their fortunes altogether from Hanson an
his party. - ~ 80. ~ -. E. -, :.
On Saturday, with John II. Rawlings,
went to Berea. and there used all my in
fluencc to persuade my Republican friend
not to identify themselves at oil in an
manner with Hanson, but to ask him t
sell his mill, and remove from the State, o
his presence Md be continual source (
discomfort, and might possibly involve I'll
Republicans in a conflict, when innocen
men might be killed. l staid all nigh
with VIM. Stapp. where the same. view
were uttered anu ooncurred In. return