Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1860-01-13

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Mr.. HurrisOn's Anu-NiilItary Invasion Bill
Mr. Monroe, from the Select Committee to
whom was referred Mr.. IIarrlsOns bill "To pre-
vent the setting on foot of Military Expeditions
IN Ohio against the territory or people of any
Oftheso United States, !" submitted the follow
ing minority report:
The undersigned, minority of tho Com nittee
to whom was referred Senate Bill No. !, being
bill to prohibit the people of Ohio from en-
gaging in military expeditions against neigh.
boring States, HIS had the same under eonsid.
Grafton, and bAgs leave respectfully to- submit
the following
REPORT.
After the most careful reflection, / find my.
self, for the following reasons, unable 10 re-
commend the passage Of the bill
l. The bill is unnecessary. 1t is Unnecessa.
ry, in the first place, because the offence which
it proposes 10 punish with confinement in the
peultentiaTy for period of time not exceeding
ing ten years, is an offence which never has
EXISTED, does not exist and never will exist
in the State of Ohio. There is no tedency
among our people to engage in military exPe.
dItiOns against other States. | have seen no
man, have heard of no man who proposes
any thing Of the sort. l am not aware that q
single human. being in the State is even sus'
pected of any such purpose. And, although
not, long since, Gov. Chase, Gov. DennisOn,
ho-r
being implicated in an invasion of Virginia,
must be permitted to regard this as piece of pO-
lilieal pleasantly ATTENDED with no evil result,
/ except some increased alarm to the people Of
that Commonwealth. Ohio would probably be
the very last member OF this Union TO engage
in hostile raids against other States. There Is
no Sta which has recently endured so many
insults from the slave power Of the country,
without complaining, as Ohio The fact itself,
that, with these outrages upon the liberty OF
our people fresh in memory, and without having
uttered one wcrd of indignant protest against
them, we are engaged in the unneceis Iry work
of discussing law to prevent our people from
organizing military invaslOns against slavehOld
ing communities-this very fact, say, affords
evidence of meekness, humility, and self
abnegaliCn OH our part which must assign US a
very high rank in the cultivation of the milder
| graees, and ought to give an everlasting guar
antee 10 the world that we shall never wage
war upon any other State.
| Undoubtedly two or three persons who were
at Harper's Ferry, had formerly resided 10
Ohio. But not one of them went directly from
Ohio to engage directly in the raid; not one Of
them formed IN Ohio his purpose of so doing
and Ohio is no more responsible for their eOnN
duct than Canada, or Virginia, or any other
territory in which they may have temporarily
remained lie u, then attend to the protection
of the invaded liberty of our own citizens-tO
questions of internal economy at home, and
defer legislation of this sort until it shall be
needed.
In the meantime, should any portion Of our
citizens find themselves unexpectedly engaged
in military operations, such as have been men
toned, they win have difficulties enough to en-
counter. The Governor of Ohio, as the high
est peace officer of the State, would aid in ar
resting and confining them, as he might any
other rloters-a course which Gov. Chase would
certainly have pursued on a recent occasion,
had there teen anybody to arrest. Or should
auy such persons succeed in escaping from
Ohio, and alarming some country village in
| Virginia, there would be no lack of govern
ments to assume jurisdictlUn,of their case, OF
courts to try, or OF ropes to hang them. In the
affair at Harper's Ferry, two mighty sovereign
lies commended for the luxury OF strangling an
| old man and his two negro allies-l mean the
Federal Government and the State of Virginia
the Federal Government however, with that
facile urbanity which distinguishes its inter-
course with shareholders, soon eoncedi the
business to Virginia, which took care that it
should be dispatched with vigor and prompt
less. Thus We see that citizens of Ohio, OF
/ ibelIigerent prOpensities, have already every
facility for being arrested, imprisoned, tried,
and ctoked, without our passing law to give
them, in addition, ten years confinement in the
Penitentiary.
But such law as the one proposed is not
only unnecessary as a law, but it is uDneces-
sary even as letter of coincidence and sy I'M.
pathy-as an assurance of peaceable intentions
| to the people OF Virginia Such an assurance
they have alieady received in the letter of Gov.
/ Chase to Gov. Wise, Such assurances they
have received from every newspaper OF the
/ State-whether Republican or Democratic,
commercial or religious. 1t is not necessary,
therefore, to express here, in the form of a
solemn enactment, those sentiments Of loyalty
and patriotism which ( re an excellent thing in
their place, but which more commonly obtain
vent in resolutions, platforms, stump speeches
2 I am further opposed 10 this bill, not only
because it is, in all points of view, unnecessary,
but also because, if passed, it will do positive
injury. 1t will make an impression altogether
different from what its friends intend. If we
pass this bill, we shall be regarded as assuming
that there is a necessity for 1t in the character
of our people 10 the slave States, the natural
inference will be that there is a considerable
IA To-
tile expeditions against their territories. The
slovehOlders of Virginia and Kentucky will say,
these people have told US all along that there
is no sympathy among them for these armed
assaults upon our insti u:ions, but now they
have been compelled to admit that there is such
sympathy, by passing laws for its suppression.
The passage of this bill, therefore, will increase
ratherthan allay the alarm OfOur Southern neis b
bOrs, and it will injure rather thanimprove our
reputable standing in the great cOnfedeTaey OF
which we form part. Twill never, by voting
for this bill, virtually proclaim to the whole ma
ton that the people of Ohio can be restrained
from assaulting their neighbOrs in other States
only by laws providing the seyerest penalties.
On the other hand cur own citizens, knowing
very wellthat no hostile demonstrations among
themselves have given occasion for such bill
as this, viii be apt to see in it what its author
certainly never intended piece of gratuiious
ssryilty to the slave power. That is sort of
thing of which the people are becoming tired
and the less occasion we give them to charge il
upon US as legislative body, the better it viii
be for our reputation
8 l object again, to this bill, because, should
it become law, it will be made the occasion
Of harrassing and prosecuting innocent men
Political feeling on the subject OF slavery runs
high in the State, and may continue to do SC
for many years. Experience has shown thst
warm snti-slavery men viii be surrounded by
those by whom they will be wrongfully susrec.
ted and watched. Prejudice, folly, party rancol
IL rnrannnI ermiiu will tnrl,,ra innncanI