Columbia Democrat and Bloomsburg general advertiser. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1850-1866, 1860-07-14

ding by that grave and with the memories
of the great dead about him, "thc mere
legerdemain of politics" appeared contcmp-
tible to him, What reproach was Clay's
life on the false policy which would tride
with great and upright people IF l
were to write his epitaph," said Breckin-
ridge, "I would inscribe, as the highest
eulogy, on the stone which shall mark his
resting place, Here lies man who in the
public service for fifty years, and never
attempted to deceive his countrymcn
In the Thirty second Congress-, Mr..
Breckenridge was instrumental in securing
an appropriation for the completion of the
cemetery near the city of Mexico, in which
the remains of the officers and soldiers who
fell i'll battle or otherwise in or near the
city of Mexico should be inferred He
also favored an appropriation for weekly
mail with the Pacific, and advocated put
ting these contracts out to the lowest bid
der.
Though Mr.. Breckenridge did not seek
to be constantly before the House, he took
very distinguished position, and some-
times in debate was sharp and effective.
Mr.. Giddings, in the course of 4 speech
(lGth Of March, 1852 on the Compromise
Measures and Fugitive Slave Law, denied
that the Federal Government had power
to pass laws by which 'to compel our
officers and people to seize and carry back
fugitive slaves" Mr.. Breckenridge briefly
pu he'd him into an enunciation of his most
extreme doctrines, and then said against
the impotcnt rawlings of his baflled fanati-
cism pl ace the plain words Of the Consti-
tuition. To his coarse and offensive Ian
guagc | have no reply"
With the debate on the Nebraska Bill,
il March, 1854, Thirty. third Congress,
Mr.. Breckinrdge's name is intimately
woion. 1t was during this discussion that
he declared himself i'll favor OF perfect nom
intervention, and said that he would not
vote for the bill if it proposed to legislate
slavery into Nebraska and Kansas. The
right to cstablish,' said he, "ilrolycs the
correlatiye right to prol.ibt; and deny
ing both, would vote for neither go
further, and express the opinion that n
.lalse log,lating slavery into those Terri
tories would lot command one Southern
vote in this House" Abiding to the re-
stliction Of lo2O, and its consistc cncy with
the Compromise Of 1850, he said the effect
Of the repeal of the former was neither
to establish nor to exclude, but to leayc
the future condition of the Territories de-
pendent holly upon the action of the in
habtants, subject only to such limitations
Us the Federal Constitution may impose"
Sir he said, i'll continuation, IL care
nothing about refined distinctions or the
subtletics of verbal criticism. repeat the
broad and plain proposition, that if Con-
gress may intervene on this subject it may
intervene on any other; and having thus
surrendered the principle, and broken away
from constitutional limitations, you are
driven into the very lap of arbitrary power.
BY this doctrine you may erect despotism
under the American system. The whole
theory is a libel on our institutions. 1t
carries us back to the abhorrcnt principles
OF British colonial authority, against which
We made the issue of Independence. |
have never acquiesced in this odious claim,
and will not believe that it can abide the
test of public scrutiny
In recognition of Mr. Brccknridge's 5
Identification with the views of the Admin
istration, President Pierce rendered to him
the mission to Spain; but the honor was
respectfully declined, family matters COM
pelling Mr.. Breckinridge to this course
lie was delegate to the Cincinnati Con.
vention in June, 1856. After the nomina-
ton Of Buchanan for the Presidency, sew
eral names were offered for the second
office, among others that of ohm C. Breck-
inridge, proposed by the Louisiana dclcga-
ton, through General j. L. Lewis. Ac
knowledging the fiatterng manifestation Of
good will, Mr.. Breckenridge begged that
his name would be withdrawn. On the
first ballot, however, the Vermont delega-
ton, through Mr.. Smalley, believing that
no Democrat has right to refuse his ser.
vices when his country calls, cast its five
votes for Breckenridge, Many other States
followed, and of the total he received fifty
one votes, second on the list, and only
eight under the frst,-General Quitman.
On the second ballot, Maine, New Hamp-
shire and Vermont led off for Breckn-
ridge; Massachusetts, followed with eleven