The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1861-02-12
Crtttenden Compromise VS.. Popular
Sovereignty.

CT1TLSn0eh OEN~N-
Sovereignty.
A great number of memorials have been |
presented to Congress and State Legisla- |
lures favoring the adoption of the "Critten-
den Compromise, as it it called. 1t is no
compromise at all, but total surrender Of
every principle for which the Republicans
and Douglas Democrats commended, in con-
nexion with the subject of slavery, during
the last Presidential csnvasss7 The Republic
cans commended that Congress had the poteer
to IegisIate so as to exclude slavery from
the territories, or delegate it to the terrific
rial legislature at its option. The Douglas
Democrats contended that Congress had not
the power to legislate on the subject, but
that the people had the sole right to admit
or exclude slavery as they chose; and the
ncey-Breckinridge Democracy contended
that the Constitution of itself carried slave
~ into the territories, and fixed it there be-
yond the control of Congress or the people.
The Crittenden Compromise is nothing more
nor less than the Breckenridge PLATFORM
The Yanceyites in the Charleston and Balti-
trire that the Constitution, as it is, recog.
nizes and protects slavery in the territories.
They know that this doctrine can be sus-
tanned iudicially so long only as a majority
of the Judges of the Supreme Court of the
United States are capable, from imbecility
or corrupt motives, of lending themselves to
the purposes of a set of party leaders who
are traitors at heart, and who belong to that
class Of accursed miscreants who would
rather rule in hell than serve in heaven.
Hence, they want to ingraft upon the Con-
stitution, by way of amendment, the Critten-
den Compromise and thus fasten slavery
upon all territory now possessed and here
after to be acquired south of 800 30>
in spite of the people inhabiting
such territory. And now, Douglas
Democrats are Just as busy as the Yancyites
in circulating, and procuring signatures to,
memorials favoring this Crittenden Compro-
mise Among them we find brigadier gen
erals, who adhered to the doctrine of popu-
lar sovereignty in the Charleston and Balti-
more Conventions even after it was demon
strated, that if they continued to do so, it
would result in the destruction of the DEM
ocratic party. They knew that if they
yielded, their power in the North was at an
end, and hoped that by standing firm to the
end, in favor of popular sovereignty, they
might yet sustain themselves in the North
notwithstanding the loss of FIVE or six South
ern States. 1t was a matter of life and
death. If they abandoned popular sover-
eighty death was certain; and they could
only die by maintaining it to the end.
Democracy is now dead, and the leaders
even Douglas men who were members oil
the Charleston and Baltimore Conventions
and are now brigadier generals, colonel.
&c-abandon popular sovereignty and IA
vor the Yancey platform, as expressed il
the Crittenden Compromise, and exert them.
selves to delude republicans, union men
and popular sovereignty democrats, into th'
abandonment of their principles. They
have no desire that any compromise shall
be made. They are determined TO force The
republicans to abandon their principles anG
humby sue for peace and to this end they
are willing to bring the republic to the
verge of utter and eternal ruin if necessary
NThe object is not the welfare of the country
but to place the Republican party apparent
Iy in the wrong, in the hope that thereb,
democracy will be enabled again to triumph
in 1884,
If the adoption or rejection of the Crit
IL
votes of the mass of the Douglas Demo
Gratis alone they would unhesitatingly re
ject it, and it is hoped that they will, er
long, with as little hesitation, discard an
consign to deserved iufamy, as enemies @
their country, the. unprincipled politica
gamblers who would induce them to assum
an attitude which would justly subject ther
to the imputation of yielding, like dastardl
cravens, to the insolent and unreasonabl
demands of the imperious Shareholders Q
the South; who, having been accustomed
from infancy to secure implicit obedience
from negroes by force, seem to have per
suaded themselves that by the same mean
the freemen of the north can be made Il
ignore their honor and their manhood ant
lick the hand that smites them. If tn,
Douglas Democrats and Republicans do no
IN this crisis firmly, and regardless of con
sequences, resist every attempt to faster
slavery upon the territories by constitution
al provisions placing it beyond the contro
of Congress or the people, they are eraven
and fit only for slaves.
H1F- 1t was well understood at Indianap
oils that no collision had occurred between
Messrs. Heffren and MOody-the two bellig