The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1860-02-23


- euac1 slave code for its perfection,
and that popular sovereignty Eleans the
,oIwcr ct the people to vote for slavery,
E,ur ty 10 means against i. There is 20
e<ca;.e FROM this dilemma
Which side viii Mr. Douglass take
aYii lac lie bold enough to say that slav-
cay, being the creature of local law, only,
is excluded from the Territories in the
ya,4ence of positive law establishing i /;
or will he be honest enough to cancede
that, acco,dicc 70 his osRa proYosition IN
his N.w Orleans speech, slavery & ists
sjp the Territories by virtue of the r. ede-
rai Constitution lie will acithe}r be
bod cu5u@h to do the first, nor honest
Sn5uga fotio the stcopd /; apd ne viii be
acoward!y enough % 30 neither. Ap
IIante7 |, is in the position Of that
llem5 cfaiic candidate for Congress in the
Wcst, wh9 when asked 'Are yen By
chanan Of a Douglas man p answered,
= am . GGreat laughter al cheer. |
lfyou ask Mr.. Douglas, "Do YOU hold
tAat slavery is the creature Of loeaj law,
Or tl.pt 2 >iayeiloller has the rigAt tQ in
troducc his slave property where there is
$40 local law % he viii answer, " do. +"
fCoulinucd laughter and applause
: Such is Mr.. Douglas doctrine Of pop
gar sovereignty. But after having Civ
IN you SIR. Douglass own definitions in
his own words, I see you puzzled AL the
lnoie, aud you ask me again "W hat is
n33 / ~; tell yog what judgement will
be passed upon It ly future historians,
VIII may find it worth while to describe
ihis impotant attempt to daily and trife
with the loe;c of things. They will say:
MIt gas the dodge of a man who was well
n.sare that, in order to be elected Presi-
cent Of the United States, the vote of a
few Northern States must be added 10 the
nrited vote Of the South. knowing By
experience tha. the Democrqtic road to
the White House leads through the
sIaychoiding States, he broke down the
lat geographical BARRIER to the extension
Of slavery. So he ne&ut to secure the
South. But in conceding uudispated
sway TO tie slaveholding interests, he
gay that he was losing his foothoId in
fhc Northern States necessary to his
e'ccJioa; he ayailed himself Of the ire
sistibIc pressure Of the Free-State move
mcnt in Kansas, and opposed the Le-
compton Constitution. Sc he saved his
ScFatogshiE in Illinois, as the chgmpiqn
Of free labor. But the So4th fr0wned,
and Immediately after his victory he went
into the slayeholding States, and admit
ted il his speeches that slavery may 60
into the Territories without a special act
of Territorial legislation. Believing tile
South satisfied, and seeing bis chances in
the North endangered, he wrote bis uar
Magazine essay, assuming that slave
~ can exist only by virtue Of local lay.
The South frowning again, he en- }eavor-
el to make his peace With the slave
holders by declaring that he would sub
init to the Charleston Convention, and
lpstructing his nearest friends in the
House to vote for the Administration
candidate for the SPeakershiP. SO he
endeayorcd to catch both sections Of the
Union successfully in the trap of a double
flced sophistry. lie tried to please them
both in trying to cheat them both. But
h placed himself between the logic OF
liberty on one and the logic of slavery
on the other side. lie put the sword of
l,gic iptq the hands of his opponents,
aid tried tq defend himself With the emp
ty scahbard of unfuendIy legislation
Applause. Unfriendly legislation
which in one case would have been unno,
6 ssary, in the other unconstitutional
the invention Of mind without logic
aud of heart without sympathies re
cognised or all sides as a mere Gubterfuge
behind which the moral cowardice Of 8
Presidential candidate entrenched itself
Cheers
Such viii he the verdict Of future his
torians They will indulge in curious
speculations about the times whel srcI
doctrines could be passed off as sound
statesmanship-a craftsmanship, indeed
the prototype Of which may be found, moi
ip Plutarch, but in Aristophancs-but
they viii be slow to believe that there
were people dull enough to be deceived
by it. Applause
Leaving aside the stern repudiatior
which Mr.. Douglass popular sovereignty
has received at the hands of the people al
the last State elections all over the Union
it is characteristic sign of the times, tha
even one of his political friends, an anti
Lecompton Democrat, recently went st
far as to declare; on the floor Of Congress
that he would not vote for Dir. Douglas
if nominated by the Charleston Conven
ton, unless clear and uuequivocal con
structiop we're affixed to the re-afirmatior
of the Cincinnati platform. A wise pre-
caution, indeed But whatever construc