The Oxford intelligencer. (Oxford, Miss.) 1860-18??, 1860-08-15


that the enthusiastic gentlemen, who period f
ically profess so much of anxiety to save
the Union,7 may be led, through the mere
force of habit, 10 regard the Union as thing I
to be cminently desired, for its own sake, and
to be preserved intact under all circupstan-
ces, and without reference to anyqnestion OF
advantage or disadvantage to ourselves, con-
nected with the Union itself.
When the thirteen colonies threw off the
yoke of the mother country, and declared
their independence of the British crown, they
thereby became-not one people, or nation,
but-thirteen distinct, separate, sovereign,
independent nations, or States, each possess
ing the fullest attributes Of sovereignty. 1t
was perfectly competent fer the people of
each State, had they chosen to do so, to have
regulated all their affairs, external as well as
internal, for themselves, and without any at
tempt at consultation with the people of any
other State. But it was perceived on all
hands, at an early period of their existence,
that Union Of the States, for certain gener-
al purposes, promised advantages, to the peo-
pie Of all the States, which no State, under
taking to manage her affairs as an indepen-
dent nation, could nationally hope to realize.
Accordingly, and in order that these prospec-
tive advantages might be secured, the FEEDER
al Government was created, as the common
agent of all the States, and by their unani-
nous consent, for. certain specified objects
T enumerated in the Constitution. Except in
view of those advantages the Union could
never have been formed for the proposition
to form it addressed itself directly to the in
tercst of the people, and was commended to
them only by its apparent adaptation to the
ends in view. What those ends were, is
succinctly set forth in the preamble to the
Constitution of the L. s., in these terms =
"to establish justice, ensure domestic tran
guilty, provide for the common defence, pro
mote the general welfare, and secure the bles-
sings of liberty to ourselves and our poster
, ity."
The Union is deservedly strong in the at-
fcciions of the American people, because to
great extent, il has realized the expecta-
{ tions of the sagacious and patriotic men who
r formed it. But those men were gifted with
A no superhuman wisdom. They rere wise
! enough, however, to act with sole reference
to the state of things existing at that day
and their action possessed the merit of adap-
tation to that state of things. So far as hut
man foresight could enable men to do so,
they provided for the future; but they were
not so vain as to imagine that they had dc.
. vised a system of government which was SO
? pcrfect in itself that it conlI never be inn
c proved. by making provision for the amend
- ment of the Constitution, they proved then
f own conviction of the fact, that subsequent
change of circumstances, or some unforeseen
evil, developed in the course of the opera
+ tions Of the novel system of government
which they had instituted might render al
, teratons indispensable. The result has vim
dicatcd their political intelligence. So long
as that state of kindly feeling, between th'
i. people of the different portions Of the coun
; try, in which the Union originated, WAS pre-
L served, and so long as that state of things
/ in reference to which the Constitution wa
c framed, underwent no material alteration, st
\ long the Union answered all the reasonable
: expectations of its founders.
! When the Constitution was adopted, sla
very existed in all the States, with one OK
p ccption. It was strong enough, therefore, t.
!, p,otect itself No crusade had then beer
l. preached against it. No assault upon it wa
c threatened from any quarter. No idea wa
J entertained that the institution was in an!
J DANGER nor did any man appear to have imag
; incd that great sectional party was to arise
: based upon the single principle of opposition
TO slavery, and seeking to obtain the contro
:. of the general government with the open an'
declared object of carrying out its hosti
purposes aglinst an institution with whicl
the interests Of large minority of our poo
n pie are inseparably associated. Had thi
" danger been foreseen, it would unquestiona
= bly, have been provided against Not havin:
!, been foreseen by our fathers, it is for us, up
:, on whom the danger has come, to make tn
= = needful provision to avert it. How shall TIN
be done! Shall we best protect our right
, by declaring, beforehand, that we are s.
=. strongly attacked to the Union, that, in orde
|. to preserve il, we will surrender all our rights
n Or shall we declare our unaltcrable determi
p nation to insist upon the recognition of on
!, rights, at the hazard even of a disruption o
the Union! In other words, shall We inyit
aggression, by holding out apromise of tam
submission to all the wrongs that may be IN
= fiicted on us by the aggressors, or shall W
be more likely to command respect for oui
selves and our rights by announcing our fN
!. cd purpose TO resist, to the last extremity
IF auv invasion of those rights
e, The Black Republicans believe. they say
4 that "the Union is stronger than Slavery :
10 1t is upon this fact that they build their hope