The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1860-11-08
n.aLaira.
Letter from Hon. j. K. Paulding.

Letter from Hon. j. K. Paulding.
EThe following letter from Hon. J. K.
Paulding, former Secretary Of the Navy,
is worthy Of attention, not only for the
sound views it contains, but also on ac-
count of the latitude from which lit
comes.l
HYDE PARK, Duchess Co., NY. T.
September 6, 1851 : =
GENTLEMEN Your letter directed tome
atNew York, conveying an invitation to
address a meeting of the citizens OF
Charleston districtsto be held in. Charles
ton, South Carolina, on the 18th inst, has
just reached me at this place, whereI now
reside.
For the compliment. thus rendered, and
the language in which it is conveyed, ]
beg you to accept my Acknowledgements,
accompanied by regrets that cannot
comply with your wishes. Distance and
space, the burden Of years should bear
2 with me- and, more than allsmy incapac-
ity for public speaking compel.me to de-
cline astaslefor which [ am totally unfit
tied. What Ishave to say, I. therefore
shope you will permit me to address to
you, through a medium. to which I am
more accustomed. -
AS it appears from the. tenor of your
letter that you are already sufficiently
aware Of the opinionI I entertain with-re-
, gard to what is whimsically called the
compromise, Il viii only trouble you with
q brief reeapitulation. In my view; it
wasa gross and palpable violation of that
& great fundamental principle of State
equality, which pervades every provision
of the Constitution, and forms the basis
of this Confederation; a most unjustifa-
BILE attack on the rights, interests, safety
and happiness Of one half the States COM
posing it, accompanied by insult and OBJ
loquy; a pretended concession, wrested
by mere force of numbers from s ininori-
ty; and that, in its consequences, it will
prove more fatal to- the repose, prosperity
and happiness, if not the very existence,
of the Union, than any measure that may
be resorted to in attempting to obtain re-
dress for the epast,or security for the fl-
.ture.
Such being my views of the subject, I
am, and always have been, of opinion,
that the stand originally taken by South
Carolina, and mostof the Southern States,
in opposition to the principles embodied
in that series of measures, was. not only
justifable, but demanded-by proper re-
gard for their rights and their. honor and
that an abandonment of the position they
then assumed, and an acquiescencee in
measures they repeatedly declared they
would resist, sat all hazards md to the
last extremity" unless accompanied by a
frank acknowledgment of having. beer
wrong in the first instance, would, in the
language of the printed resolutions ap-
pended to your letter, be "what they
could not submit to without dishonor."
If such an abandonment of all previous
pledges and declarations were the result
of a subsequent conviction of having
greatly erred in making them, it would be
honorable and magnanimeus. But such
appears not to be the case since even
the advocates Of aequiescence still contin-
me to assert the principles on which these
pledges and declarations were based, as
well as the wrongs which first called
them forth
The Association is, I believe, right in it's
SECOND esolution-declaring it's belief
that the Cooperation of any of the South
ern States with South Carolina, either in
resistance or secession, is at least improb-
able, SO long as the influence and patron
agesof the General Government are az
rayed against State rights. Nor do see
any reason for belieying.that any proba-
bic change of administration will produce
change ofmeasures since, as you will
perceive, from their repeated declarations,
all parties in the North unite in denoun-
cling slavery, and maintaining the .Consti-
tutional right of Congress, as well as its
infexible duty, to prohibit its extension
to any State that may hereafter be admit
tedinto the Union. From all present ap-
pearances, the principles embodied in the
Compromise viii continue to be the basis
of the future policy of the Government.
Itseems also probable, that the States
which have submitted to past, will be
equally quiesccnt under future wrongs.