The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1860-08-30

rial Government, whether they will have
Slavery or not.
| vi. And they have since denied
that the people have any such power
! VII They have set up The doc
trine Of nou-intoryention by Congress
touching Slavery in the Territories, and
boosted Of it as the greatest achieve.
ment of the age.
VIII. And they hove since repudi-
ated the doctrine of non-interventiou,
and called upon Congress to intervene
and protcct-that is, establish Slavery
by law in all our Territories, whether
desired by the people or not, and posi-
lively against their will
TX. They have taught that tie
Constitution Of the United States does
not extend into Territories, and have
introduced in Congress measures ia
terms extending that Constitution to
the Territories.
x. They have since denied This
teaching, and claimed that the ConsG-
tuition Of the United States is part of
the law of Territories perse. l propose
to discuss none Of these points.
Taken together they discuss them
selves, and show up the motives Of tho
propogandists.
Each and every one Of these PROPOSE
tions has had its brief and transient day,
ruling the Democratic party with tyran-
mic power while it lasted. All have been
denounced as traitors who would not
turn as they turned and bow to the new
tests they made At each step of the
process they have demanded the admis-
sion Of their latest dogma as a right, aud
threatened dissolution of the Union un-
less the demand was Acknowledged. BY
such means they have painfully distress
ed and agitated the whole country for q
series Of years. Never was there great
Cr contradiction nor greater consisten.
cy. Slavery propagandsm is the key
that harmouizes all. They have assert
ed whatever they thought at the moment
would aid the propagandism They
have abandoned every position they
have taken the moment it offered a
CLEAN Of hope TO freedom. The Con-
stitution, in their hands, is anything,
land everything and nothing. At this
moment the entire Southern Democracy
and there is no Democracy which is
not Southern, and there has not been
these fifteen years--and the nationality
Of the party in that time has been only
another name for Northern subserven-
cyl say the entire Democracy are
standing ready for treason and dissolu-
tion unless they can have all our present
and future Territories opened to these
Africans. There is nothing worth so
much in their eyes as the spread of
sIaveryl He who speaks against the
Union commits a small offence, if any;
but he who says aught against slavery
is guilty Of high treason. If they can
propagate and extend it, it is well; if
not, they are pleased that the Union and
the peace and harmony of the States
shall cease and civil war boginl Now it
will not do to call this ridiculous, though
most ridiculous, and worse than ridicu-
Ious it be. 1t is only not ridiculous, I
say, because it is great party move
ment, backed by passion and power and
Obstinately maintained! Is this govern
ment now to be broken to pieces and
destroyed because pro-slavery men can
not submit to the policy inaugurated by
Washington and followed by the govern
ment from its foundation in 1857 down
to 1854? How is such a course to be
Justified to posterity, when our day and
generation, its words and deeds, shall
come before their calm and dispassion-
ate Judgment Can it be shown that
the men of the Revolution of 1776 pass
ed through that baptism of fire and
blood to form a government whose lead
ling feature should be slavery extension?
How is such an idea to be rcconciled
with their universal expression against
its very existence while engaged in ma
king the Constitution? If they thought
that the Constitution they had made ex-
tended slavery into the Territories, why
did they, acting under that Constitution
in the very second year after it was
made, pass an act confirming the ordi-
nance Of 1887, excluding slavery?
Now it is in vain that pro-slavery men
pretend to regard themselves as defeated
in any constitutional right under such
circumstances. If the people Of the
States shall see fit in managing their
own affairs to retain slavery, that is their
constitutional right and the principles Of
the Republican party conoode it to them.
, But when pro-slavery men ask 20 fix
, their local institutions upon the nation
al domain, that is another question:
There never was a time during the ex-
istcnce Of this government when any
such right was practically known or ad-
j mitted The pro-slavery men are not
. defending an old right; they are contend
; ing for a new assumption, not sanctioned
by the letter or spirit Of the Constitu-
, ton, by its history or by the practice Of
{ tho government. It is the duty of Con-
gress to legislate for The national do
main, and make all needful rules and
regulations" concerning it, This they
, uniformly did, admitting or excluding
= slavery from 1889 to 1854 This the
, Republicans claim they shall continue
to do, and nothing more. Why is il
5 that the negro should be preferred TO tho
] white man 10 tho occupation Of our ter
: ritory2 There is no place, state, oondi-
tion or relation affecting the good of So
t, oiety, in which the negro is not inferior