The weekly Mississippian. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1859-1864, 1860-08-01
"For time at last sets all things even,
And if we do but watch the hour,
There never yet was human power
Who could evade, if unforgiven,
The patient search and vigil long,
OF him who treasures up a wrong"

Who could evade, if unforgiven,
The patient search and vigil long,
OF him who treasures up wrong"
Applause
Mr.. Dickinson next took up the subject {
squatter sovereignty, and said it was tru
that he was the first to introduce into Con
greSs the principle of non-intervention an
qualified popular sovereignty, but that he wa
not the author OF the doctrine of squatter so
vereignty, for he never believed in it at ALL
Glancing at the Kansas ebraska bill and tn
Dred Scott decision, he stated the objection
Of the South to Mr.. Douglas to be as follows
The South did not object to Mr.. Dougla
because of his principles Of non-intervention
not because OF his doctrines ofqualified popu
lar sovereignty in the territories, as is SO Otter
and so pompously alleged; but their opposi
ton to him arioet, to say nothing of his unfor
tunate controversy with the administration
from his advocacy of what they regard as q
most rank and mischievous error, the SQUAT.
ter sovereignty heresy contending, as he
does, as we have already seen, that notwith-
standing the decision Of the supreme court,
in the Dred Scott case. holding that all citi-
zens with their property are to be admit ted
there ON equal terms slave property included,
| terri torlal legislature may, by its enacted
| law, exclude slave property from the territory;
thus virtually investing a territorial legisla-
ture with power to annual this provision of
| the Constitution as construed by the highest
| tribunal known to the law.
These are the articles of creed proposed bv
Mr.. Douglas, to which the South object. In
the celebrated compaign debate with Mr.. Lin
coin, previous to the Dred Scott decision. in
answer to certain questions proposed by Mr..
Lincoln, Mr.. Douglas, answered as follows:
"The next question propounded to me by
MIR. Loncoln is, can the people of the territory
in any lawful way, against the wishes of the
United States, exclude slavery from their
limits prior to the formation ofa state consti-
tuition | answer emphatically, as Mr.. Lin
coin has heard me answer a hundred times
from every stump in Illinois, that. in nv
opinion, the people of a territory can, by law
full means, exclude slavery from their limits
prior to the formation of state constitution.
Mr.. Lincoln knew that had answered that
question over and over again. He heard me
argue the Nebraska bill on that principle all
over the State in 1854, in 1855, and in 1856.
and ne has no excuse for pretending to be in
doubt as to my position on that question"
After the bred Scott decision had been
pronounced and published, Mr.. Douglas states
his position thus
"A matters not aohat souy the Supreme Court
may hereafter decide as to the abstract question.
a0het'1er SLAVERY may or may not 90 into a ter
TTtory under the Constitution, the people have
the taigftI means to introduce it as hey please,
for that slavery cannot exist day or an hour
anywhere unless it is supported by local DO
lice regulations. Those police regulations
can only be established by the local legisla-
ture; and if the people are opposed to slavery
they will elect representatives to that BODY
who will, by unlriendly legislation, effectually
prevent the introduction of it into their midst,
1t, on the contrary, they are tor it, their le-
gislation will favor its extension. Hence.
no matter tohat the decision of the Supreme
Court may be on that abstract question, still
the night Of the people to make sL1ve territory
out Of a free territory is perfect and complete
under the Nebraska bsH. l hope Mr. Lincoln
deems my answer satisfactory on that point.
fit be true that the territorial legislature
can, by an act, exclude the citizens of a
southern State, with his slave property, from
all enjoyments Of and participation in the
common territorial property OF all the States,
as is asserted by Mr.. Douglas the Constitu-
ton, and the decisions of the Supreme Court
and the rights of person and property there,
are the playthings of territorial legislature,
to be put up and down-to be given or taken
away at pleasure.
In relation to slave code in the territories
he emphatically denied that the Breckinridge
platform, which he read, endorsed any such
doctrine. He concluded as follows
Gentlemen, the democratic nominees
Great applause-threec cheers for Breckenridge
and Lane-hisses and cries of put him
down.') No, no, don't put him out Rome
was saved from destruction by the cackling of
geese and we may be saved by the kissing of
one. (Great laughter) Breckenridge and
Lane, their names, their history constitute
for them the best eulogy. It needs none from
me. They were nominated, not by machine
ry but they were nominated by the sentiment
of the democratic States. They will certain
ly carry thirteen States, and the other ticket
will not get one electoral vote, the shadow
of one. (Three cheers for Dickinson.) They
say that Douglas and johnson are the regu-
lar nominations, and SO all in favor of such
must stand by these exceedingly regular no
limitations. Qaughter,) aver that the con-
vention which nominated Mr.. Douglas had
no show of regularity in any shape. It was a
fraction of convention from a fraction of the
republican States. and l mean States that
have clearly q republican, majority, and was
partly filled up by bugus delegates from other
States. The whole trouble in this matter is
that.the democratic party, like the serpent
in the fable, undertook to run tail foremost
and could not do it. 1t had no head. Gen
eral. Gushing the president left tit and presided
over the convention nominating Breckenridge;
it had no democratic vote, because the demo-
cratic States were outside, it had but the skel-
eton Of the republican States, and the rest of
it was bogus tail, and won't get single vote.
Uaughter.) @
No one pretends that the nomination of
Breckenridge and Lane have the authority of
a regular national convention, according to the
usages of the party. But, they have more
claim to regularity than the other. This con-
vention had head in the president of the
whole convention. 1t had democratic BODY
in the regular delegations from all the sure
democratic States-a majority of the States
of the Union-it had no bogus extremity, and
it had platform of manly principles-of lib
erty, equality and fraternity upon which eve
ry true democrat of the whole Union can
stand together. [Laugther.] ..
The question recurs, what shall we do p
Do? Why stand resolutely by principle,
and let the storm rage on-there is sunshine
beyond the clouds-shun all entangline alli-
ances of every name and kind. The readiest.
surest, speediest, most honorable way to sue
cess, is to repudiate all fusions, all factions,
all patchwork, all devices, all expedients, ali
efforts to be aAPeIa both eue, and stand Dy our
candidates and our creed. We shall then
commence to deserve success, and if we per-
severe in the stern path of constitutional rec
titude, we shall preserve our self-respect
command the respect of all others, and our
efforts will be crowned with triumph for our
party and our principles, the good influences
of which will last when party managers and
tricksters and their vile schemes are forgotten
or remembered only to be hated and execra-
ted. a s., f.-. ~. =
From tie NJ O. True Delta.