Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1860-05-03


constitutional rights Of the South, and that Democ
racy is in favor Of enforcing the Fugitive Slave Law.
But recently in the State Of Wisconsin, battle has
been fought, and victory upon tins very ques
ton a Judge who had the temerity to declare the
Fugitive Slave Law constitutional, in the case of
Mr.. Booth, Of Milwaukee,, was set aside BY the Re- n
publican party, AID who would declare that law
unconstitutional was nominated in bis stead. The a
Democratic party rallied to his support they gave
him the nomination; they placed the question before
the people; obedience to the constitution or revoir
ton And when the people of Wisconsin came TO
the polls they elected The Judge who had dared pro
nounee the fugitive slave law constitutional: they
elected him triumphaDtly to the position he had
formerly occupied. So. too, in Rhode Island the
Democracy there recently achieved triumph In
Connecticut the hero Of Jheputepee was q candid
ate for Governor. He boldly attacked the enemy
and was defeated by less than half thousand The
Democracy of those States are painting to meet the
foe. Their cry is
Once more unto the breach der friends once more
We appeal to YOU we beg you not to seek to
trammelus in our efforts. Leave us free. I illus-
trated my remarks in committee by reference to
neurological lore, and, with your permission will
do so again. We are informed that once on a time
the ministerng spirits Jealousy were sent to nfst
the cradle Of the sleeping Hercules but when they
came he reached forth his infant hands and took them
by their Threats and strangled them to death
We ask, now, that you shall not paralyze our Efforts
Let us retain our power, and the serpents of Black
Republcanlsm that have, by their breathing affect
Gu tle arr anu Dy their slime tracked the eafth
will take by the Threats, and, so help Us God we
will crush to death that knows no resurrection
lCheers What injury can result to you? None |
What good can result from the adoption of the ma
jority report: None. What injury results 70 US
from that platform Defeat and the election of
Black Republican TO the Presidency Of the United
States and when that hour cOmes-yOu are already
upon the record some of youths Union is then to
be dismembered. Shall the Union be imperilled and
Its safety assalled, or viii You by pursuing the L
course that propose, to redeem the country ? /
Will you permit the time to arrive when it can no /
longer be said it has been during this convention
that nearly all the Democratic voters from the /
South! VIII you permit US to come IN and share 1
the hOnors of the triumph with you? If you give /
us what we ask, State after State viii wheel into
the Democratic column. If you refuse US what we |
ask, tell you that the few now with will be /
gone, and gone forever. ask then, and think /
have right to ask that gentlemen viii consider this
matter maturely. 1 believe that if are permit
ted TO fight the battle that have hitherto fought,
the darkness that now spreads over the horizon will
/ be dssipated | believe that the storm will dis
appear lhat the rains will cease that the waters
will subsde that the deluge will be gone. and that
the ark of State will again triumphanty rest the
brow of Ararat tremendous cheering)
Give us the opportunity II is all we ask all we
/ seek give US this and victory viii be ours and
yours. If tire convention should determine other
! wise it would be a dangerous experiment. If the
union Of the States TO be dismembered, if the
amer of our party IS to be borne TO defeat, and
Sir if this Union is to be dissolved through in
strumentaity the illustrious dead would rise from
| their graves and curse US for the part we have
! taken in producing It,
But, sir, hope the convention viii not insistupOn
this experiment We propose to give you plat
! form on which you fought in 1856 platform on
| which gallant Alabama stood, which gallant
| Mississippi stood, which the Democracy of Lou
! isiana stoOd-the platform on which the Democracy
| Of Georgia stood 1t was sound enough then 1t
was pure enough then, and propose to give 1t to
you now We cannot find it in our hearts to repu-
diate the platform which you stood then. We
propose to add to it resolutions compromising no
principle contained IN 1t. We propose TO refer all
| matters of difference between US to the courts
for determination, and when that determination
! is arrived at, by it we will abide.
Mr.. President do not go far as some do,
and saw that no State in the Union has TIE right
to Judge in case Of last resort, to the proprie
ty of a decision of the Supreme Court of the
United States. On the contrary l say that any
State may, case Of emergency, when there
| is no other remedy, have the right Of secession.
But that emergency has not arisen and we ask
YOU to stand where you have stood, and no right
shall be invaded, no interest endangered. Stand
by the Union of States, as we have always stood
by you, and ali will be we'll
l perceive that my time has expired Before l
retire, move to adopt the report which have
presented in place Of the report of the majority.
Mr.. BUTLER, of Massachusetts,, presented the
Cincinnati platform, pure and undefled, from the
4lC HlOfSA II a. al ~ VIZ
amendment.
Mr.. BUTLER assailed all the reports and defend
ed his own. He to-day backed by four more
States than he had yesterday. Minnesota Indiana,
and New Jersey stood with Massachusetts, to-day
in favor of the Cincinnati platform
He and his colleagues differed vitality with the
majority. He urged the same objection he did
yesterday to the pledging an endorsement OF all
the decisions the Supreme Court may hereafter
make He was asked to make concessions to the
South. When he did make concessions, he would
do It openly. He would not keep the word OF
promise to the ear and break it TO the hope
When he conceded any views he ever held on the
J territorial question, he would not leave 1t to be
Judicially defined.
Mr.. STEVENS. of Oregon was assigned the floor
2 Being a Northern and member Of the COM
mittee, he desired to explain his position. He was
born in Massachusetts,, and now represented Ore
gon. His experience enabled him to speak of the
: operation of Government in the Territories. The
{ KansasNebraska Act neither established nor pro-
I hibited slavery in the Territories. And so with
the majority report The object of .he Govern
ment was to protect persons and property. and he
was therefore, in favor Of protecting the rights Of
the South. The army sent to the Territories to
extend protection. though It was often indIferenty
. extended.
The resolutions do not establish slavery in the
territory. They merely say the rights of property
shall be protected. Is not that right? He would say
to his Northern colleagues that this majority report
1 would make others instead Of Hercules stranged,
= Hercules strengthened.
Mr. ROBERT J. BENT, of Maryland, spoke IN
n favor of the minority report of Mr. Samues. No
patriot could view the bitterness Of sectional strife
here without trembling for the fate Of the country.
+ He did not believe in either squatter popular
q sovereignty. He believed tie South had a clear
right TO exercise all of the constitutional power
: for the protection of their property in the Ter
ritOries. He could tolerate patriotic difference Of
] opinion in the party. He knew honest Democrats
t who differed with him, and he was not going to
2; fall out with them on that account He was op-
posed to the Intervention claimed by Alabama He
= referred to her change IN opinion. In 1896, she
r had proclaimed the doctrine of nOn-nteryentiOn.
The Cincinnati platform met her eXactlOns IN that
t respect Now she had changed. What has occa-
e stoned it?
!, If platforms are to be changed every four years
= the paper on which they written had better
{ be burned He was for the glorious principle Of
2 on-interventOu. Because Kansas was about to
: become a Free State, offered no adequate reason
l for this inconsistency between the former and
present position of his extreme Southern friends.
The climate and soil there did not favor slavery.
, Wherever it did slavery would go. He agreed
l that if nOninterventiOn involved a surrender of
principles he would rather the party should perish
than that the South should surrender. He did not
, think it did.
l He argued that Congressional Intervention for
protection. would afford no adequate remedy for
any assault upon the title of slavery in the Terrific
ries Such policy would, "like the dead fruit
turn to ashes on your lips" When the time arrived
that a Black Republican President is elected, and
the policy of that party carried out, the day has
arrived to dissolve the bonds Of the Union The bor
der States would staLd by the South. He desired
to avert the issue by making the fight upon the
principle of non-intervention which would insure
: US victory.
! Hin referred to John c. Calhouns speech in 1850.
who attributed the present strength of the Republ
can party to Congressional agitation Would rot Con-
gressonal Intervention feed this agitation, and a
ford the means for keeping up what Mr. Calhoun so
much deprecated?
Mr. BURROWS Of Arkansas, alluded to his labors
, on the Committee on Platform. He had yielded
with great deal of difficulty to some Of the pro-
: positions contained in the majority report. The
report Of to-day was satisfactory TO him than
that of yesterday He had signed 1t in order that
! there might be united South. telling the people
throughout the country that 1t their unanimous
voice on this question. which divided the Demo
cratic party He ALLUDED 10 the course of this
! venton, doing away with the checks and balances,
thus leavngnO remedy for the slave States which are