The weekly Mississippian. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1859-1864, 1860-08-01

the most eeecsual extinguisher VI .nAs - =
strous beresy-Squatter sovereign ~.
D. claims for Souatters in 3 Ierr.ory, $50 So
$ Sovereignty than the United Seales ~ h SAs
Is nossesses. and gives to q Nortliet c nolue
power to destroy the rights o, tne oou.n I;ah
Shareholders in territories, uoc.llne S ~n.
crashes the equal rights of the southern olA'eS
. and of the people of those STATES ~ A4;ss
and other Territories doctrine c mn Ia
advocates in my accusers, Messls. G"lioaA anu
: Watterson who support MI. pousiAs. er-
[ Democracy also denounees sy s'et 6- u IN
e formal improvements by the General uoFern-
ment. have always adhered 70 lnls ote ''s,
a an".,,,rao vb;ch Mr.. Douglas (now supported
IN 49, .s'.,sors as a model Democrat) voted
. e.. I'D hos continued to vote for most extra
800. .naronriations for that object many
If which have been vetoed by Democratic Pre-
s;3artS f,om Jackson down to, and including
Mr.. Buchanan.
Democracy denounces assunip'io' Vi '''''0
debts. So do |.
ono hr.ncb If industry to the detrment Of
| another" So do /.
Democracy recommends "the Government
! tn enfore and practice the most ragd econo-
N.Y." So do /.
/ Democracy is opposed to a distribution of
| the proceeds of the sales of the public lands
among the States. So am l.
The Democracy says Congress has no pow
| er to charter National Bank. So do |.
The Democracy says that the Government
should keep its own funds. So do l.
The Democracy is in favor of the veto pow
er. So am /.
The Democracy is opposed to "a crusade
against Catholics and foreign born citizens
So am !.
The Democracy declares in favor of sfree
seas and progressive free trade, and that it is
in favor of enforcing the Monroe doctrine as
to the American continents" These also, are
my own opinions.
All these constitute Demo C attic fore en- and
internal policy, have been repeatedly laid
down in our party platforms, and have inva-
riably, and ever since had vote to cast, been
supported by me, and | defy my accusers
to point outa vote given by me or to a word
said by me assailing the integrity of the De-
mocratic party" as contained IN these princi-
pies. And while l thus claim a complete vim
dication from this ILL., consite'e ed and malignant
attack, I turn defiantly to my accusers and
challenge them to a defence of themselves
against the charges make, that they are this
day assailing "the integrity the Democratic
party" in endeavorins to foist upon it Mr..
Douglas, who has all his life been at war with
one of its ehiefand fundamental principles, in
voting for bills to carry ON corrupt system
ofinternal improvements by the General Gov
eminent in Northern lakes and harbors and
rivers, and in voting to sustain and carry those
measures over the vetoes of several Democratic
Presidents. to-wit: Polk, Pierce and Buchan-
an, thus Indirectly censuring one of the lead
ing political acts of that great Tennesseean,
Andrew jackson. Tito sustain "the integrity
of the Democratic party, is, to be true to its
principles, then claim to be better Demo-
GRAFT than Messrs. Carroll and Watterson, or
their chief Mr. Douglas.
As to the second allegation This seems to |
offer proofs that allegation No. l is trIe. But |
it contains three mis-statements, and therefore |
falls to the ground as proof did not seeede
from the Baltimore Convention in 1849.
| did not ION that occasion proclaim the
doctrine of Intervention or Protection for the
first time"
In what did proclaim, several States stood
by me.
The doctrine which proclaimed in that
Convention was non-intervention by Congress
on the people of q Territory to restrict slave
nor the Squatters in an unorganized Terrific
~, nor the Legislature IN an organized Ter
ritory, had a right to prevent shareholders
rom holding slaves as property in Territory.
This struck blow at Squatter Sovereignty
md the Wilmot Proviso-but preterrnitted
he protection on Intervention question In
he Committee on Platforms, nv resolution
obtained the vote of nine States-viz Penn
sylyania, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia,
Florida, Mississippi, Texas and Wisconsin.
In the Convention, it received Sc votes, |
VIZ: Maryland l. South Carolina 8, Georgia
2, Florida 2, Alabama 8, Arkansas 3, Tennes-
see l, Kentucky l. Fire, instead Of mot
single State" stood by me--and votes from
three other States endorsed the principle
To-day the unanimous votes of twelve De-
mocratic States, and a majority of the votes
Of six other States, stand recorded by nv side
on this question. Of these six, Virginia gave
Il for to against Tennessee give IL for to
] against; Kentucky gave 81 for to 2%
against it. So that even in Tennessee the far
seeing wisdom of my views in 184S stand ac-
knowledged & confessed by its representative;
and the charge that what did at Baltimore
m l849 and in 1850 was "a conspiracy as well
against the integrity of the Democratic party |
as against the Union" stands equally true as
q charge against the Democra " of Tennessee.
If it is designed to be intimated by these
accusers that voted against Cass and Butler,
/ reply that the statement is simply untrue.
The instructions to the delegates by the Con-
vention of Alabama were not to vote for any
one entertaining Squatter Sovereignty views;
and the Convention of which | was a men,
Der, by resolution pledged itself to the country
not to support such nomination. Thus, in
not voting at all, acted upon and obeyed |
mutual pledges and instructions. The issue /
made with me by the Democracy in Alabama,
in l848, was that Gen. Cass was not for Squat
ter Sovereignty. / asserted he was, and Gen.
Cass afterwards, IN the Senate, declared that |
my construction was correct
As to the third allegation, it is wholly false |
was not a member Of the Convention OF 1852, |
and therefore offered no proposition, and was
not voted down eyenmore emphatically than
before
There is not a word of truth in the fourth |
allegation. / was not delegate to the Con-
vention in 1856, and did not there, or any |
where else, advocate "the reverse of his [myl |
old doctrine Of Intervention for Protection. -
/ presume this misstatement has been derived /
by these reckless &C users from Mr.. Douglas I
late speech in the Senate, in which both my |
State and myself were freely misrepresented. /
take this occasion to correct both. The De- I
mocracy of Alabama. in Convention in Janu-
airy, 1856, passed series of resolutions affirm |
ing their views and opinions of the great issues
Of the day. The first resolution declared |
list. The perfect equality of privileges, |
ciyl, religious and political, Of every citizen of
OF this country, without reference to the place |
Of his birth,
I'd. The unqualified right of the people of |
the slayeholding States to the protection of |
their property m the States, in the Territories
and In the wilderness In which territorial gov
srnments are as yet unorganized. The DEM
ocratic platform is based on the recognition
not of one, but of both Of these principles
and when efforts are made to separate these
two questions, the Democratic party, resting
on its platform, says" We cannot compromise
either proposition, bit stand united upon BOTH
And yet in the face of this clear, concise,
unequivocal recognition Of that glorious prin-
cipls, adopted and confirmed by the Conyen-
ton that nominated Breckenridge and Lane,
both Mr.. Douglas and his Tennessee sattel-
ltes reeklessly make the assertion that Ala
hama and myself in 1855 abandoned the doc
trine of protection, and advocated the contra
~ doctrine of Squatter Sovereignty What
measure of credit can any fair mind yiefd to
the partizan statements of such men
/ pass on to the fifth aIlegatinn. The only
truth i is that was leader in organizing
the Southern Lesgre>-Che two misstate-
ments in It are-fTst, that It was ''orgaE,ized
avowedly to break up the Union.' Second,
that the article quoted formed part Of its
Constitution.
Its auotced as well Is real object was the
very reyerse--and its Constitution contains
no such article as Messrs. Carroll and Wat
ferson have pretended to quote with verbal
accuracy! Toproye it, | copy here that Con.
stitution, as follows:
CONSTITUTION OF THE MONTGOMERY LEAGUE
OF UNITED soUTHERNERs.
Believing that the South is in need Of some
efficient and organized mode of concentrating
public opinion upon public men and measures,
and of influencing and guiding political par
/ ties with view to the advancement and pro-
lection of her Constitutional rights-and that
fha want of this has enabled all nalitinaI an