The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1860-10-08

event, Lincoln, Bell and Breckenridge
would go to the House, yet everybody
knows that the House could not elect, and
Lane acould be President, for the Senate
would not hesitate an hour between him and
Hamlin The result would be a complete
triumph of the very DIsUNIoN element which
our Kentucky friends dread so much. How
would they like that?
But if it is certain that Bell will carry
"nearly the whole of the Southern States"
it is because they are opposed to disunion,
for no disunionist can vote for him. And
if "nearly the whole of the Southern States
are are opposed to disunion, the threat to
secede and break up the Union is idle and
absolutely childish for how can few dis
appointed politicians break up the Union
aginst the wishes of nearly the whole of
the Southern States p
No man who votes for Bell considers the
election of Lincoln cause for disunion.-
Hence, if nearly the whole of the South
ern States vote for him, those who do so
consider it, are largely in the minority; and
that ends the controversy, for 1t leaves
" nearly the whole" South for the Union in
any event.
Then, if a few Southern States heve no
r hit to secede; if f" nearly the whole
South is against disunion; if those who are
running one sectional candidate could find
no decent apology for breaking up the I'm
| ion in consequence of the success of another
sectional candidate; if it is wrong to make
concession to reasonable threats Of diSun-
| ion; if by making such concessions we
should foster and not crush the treason
! why should we, who have stood so long
midway between the extremes, battling
| against both and for our own principles of
| a., L
admit that there is no merit in our own Or
! ganization, and go over to an obnoxious
| and ancient adversary to he so completely
| absorbed as to have no district name or
| place hereafter Such an act would be
without palliation or apology.
! Our Kentucky friends should recOllect
that in their State the Douglas element is
too weak to stand up by itself and make
I fight against anybody. Its conscious i'm
becilitX causes it to look around for some
| ally by whose aid it can inf1ict wound up
on Mr.. Breckenridge and his friends while
its malice and desperation prompt it to strike
with any weapon that may be mt hand
even though it be the " bloody weapon of
Know Nothingism," as they have so often
called it. And if our friends there can make
this element useful by absorbing it into
| themselves and inducing it to come to their
|
thas destroy it and thereby make themselves
stronger. But in our State we are the
| weaker element, and if we show that we
are as ready, from any cause, to lay down
our principles and disregard the professions
of our whole lives, as the Douglas men OF
Kentucky have done, and go over to them,
are are the party to be absorbed. The strong
er may absorb the weaker in Kentucky
but can the weaker absorb the stronger
here Hence, to my mind, it is clear that
this is question of life and death with con-
servatism in Indiana. We have stood firm
ly and manfully for long time-yielding
| nothing to the defiance of either of our adj
Observation-Disclosures we thought our friends
| in the sEave States needed our assistance in
| rebuking alike the slavery agitators of both
/ North and South. But now, all at once
| as suddenly as if we were surprised by a
flash of lightning from clear sky-these
same friends, for whose benefit we have so
firmly maintained our stand, counsel-us to
give way, dispense and demoralize our little
army, and openly acknowledge before the
world that what we have been all along
proclaiming, to justify our separate existence
as a party, is mere leather and prunella."
They have certainly yielded too readily to a
sudden impulse frequent fault of the
| III ost generous natures. But, upon second
thought, they cannot fail to see that when
they have thus destroyed our conservatism
we shall have left no check to the unlicens-
ed war of factions, and the eye of Omnis-
cience alone can see the result.
This picture is not overweight. We
profess to believe and have constantly de-
clared that the repeal of the Missouri Com
promise was the cause of the renewal OF
slavery agitation after the compromise oil
1850, and that it was the means of giving
increased strength to the Republican party.
This was the ground upon which we justi-
fed our organization and the establishment
OF the Constitutional Union party, as set
forth by those who inaugurated the move
ment Ia the last address which was issued
bv our Central Executive Committee at
Washington, IN August last, it is repeat
ed in strong and emphatic terms. And act
ing upon this idea we declared in our last
State Convention that we would fuse with
neither of the other parties. Mr.. Douglas
is the author of this repeal. IT was his
hand that struck down a "eanonized " COM
promise and opened again the flood gates
of passion, and we are now asked to reward
him by our confidence and votes for the
act More than that, Mr.. Hendricks voted
with him to repeal the Missouri COmpro-
mise, and we are asked to vote for him also,
to wipe out with single ballot every word
that we have said in condemnation of the
act, stultify ourselves and give both Office
and adulation to the author of all the mis-
chief. esteem Mr.. Douglas and Mr.. Hend-
ricks very highly, and would readily defend
either of then, as | have done more than
once, against unmerited assault. would
go as far as any living to oblige orr
friends OF Kentucky, but it is impossible
for me TO consent that the honor of our lit
tie party may be furnished. As it has al
ways priced its honor more than office, I am
unwilling, for one, to barter it away for the
mere promise of success which may turn
out to be delusive. If our party ever shall
prevail, desire to see it do 50 by virtue of
It's principles, and not by becoming the ally
of Democracy and the authors of repeal
of the Missouri Compromise. If its princi-
pies are worth anything they are worth
maintaining ''through good and evil report"
If they are not, let us say SO at once and