The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1861-03-12
THE PEACE CONFERENCE.

Report of the Commissioners from, North Carolina
We present as follows, the Report of Hons
Daniel NJ Barringer, David S. Reid, Geo. Davis,
Thos. Ruin, John NJ. Morebead, Commissioners
tothe Peace Conference from North Carolina. The
Commissioners content themselves with giving
mere statement of their own action leaving the
details to be gathered from the journal Of the
Conference, which will be printed in few days,
and from which we will publish extensive extracts
when it reaches In connection with the re-
port we give the proposed amendments adopted
by the Conference, with the vote on each article
separately. The report is as follows:
WASHINGTON, Feb. 9th, 1861.
SIR Under the appointment OF the General AS
sembly, the undersigned repaired to this place for
the purpose OF meeting Commissioners from other
States, under the invitation Of the State Of Fir
gina, and uniting in devising some plan for set
ting the unhappy sectional differences which have
agitated the public mind and endangered the I'm
ion. A meeting took place at the time appointed,
viz: the 4th day of the present month, and it has
been continued from day to day until the final adj
journment on this day. The Convention sat with
closed doors, but journal of the proceedings
kept, and one of the last acts to remove the
injunction against its publication
In the progress of the meeting representatives,
from twenty one States came in; and after much
discussion and long deberation the consultation
resulted in the adoption by a majority Of the
States, of seven sections as amendments of the
Constitution of the United States, and pre-
senliBg them to the Congress now in scs-
sion, and requesting that BODY to propose them
for adoption by Convention in the several States,
an accordance with the provision in the Constitu-
ton on that subject. n printed copy OF the
amendments is enclosed for the information Of
the people and authorities of North Carolina.
Upon the final question of adopting them, the
vote of the State given unanimously for the
third and fourth sections. Upon the others, there
difference of opinion. A majority of the
Commissioners viz: Messrs. Reid, Barringer and
Davis, were of opinion that those sections ought
not to be and would not be satisfactory to North
Carolina, and therefore felt bound to cast the vote
of the State against the first, second fifth, sixth
and seventh scctions-whle the other two Com
missioners, Messrs. Ruffp and Morehead thought
it their duty not to reject absolutely any guaran-
ties, which the non-slaveholding States might Of
fer for the security of the slavehodng States, but
to submit them to the people of North Carolina
for acceptance or rejection upon their own DELHI
crate judgment, and therefore they felt bound not
to obstruct the adoption of those sections out to
give their voice for them, though not coming up
fully to what they or the people might deem right
or proper
The journal of the Convention is not yet print
ed, but it will be in few days; and the under
signed have ordered that several copies of it should
be sent to your Excellency, that the various and
numerous propositions under the consideration of
the Convention may be seen and understood and
particularly the votes them by N. Carolina.
The undeTs gned cannot antici pate what dis
position Congress viii make of this matter but a
few days must determine it. Nor do the under
signed possess any authentic information upon the
question, whether should Congress propose those
amendments, they will fail before the States, or be
ratified by a sufficient number to incorporate them
into the Constitution
We have the honor to be- with the highest
specr, your Exceencys most obedient servants,
d. NJ. BARRINGER,
DAVID S. REID,
GEO DAVIS,
THOMAS RUFFIN,
J. NJ. MOREHEAD.
To his Excellency, JNo. W. ELLIS, Raleigh, NC.
THE COMPROMISE.
The following is the compromise adopted by the
Peace Conference, and recommended by that body
to Congress as amendments to the Constitution
In connection with this We give the vote on each
section separately:
Section l. In all the present territory of the
United States north of the parallel of thirty-six
degrees thirty minutes of north latitude, involun-
tary servitude, except in punishment of crime is
prohibited. In ali the present territory south Of
that line the status of persons held to involuntary
service or labor, it exists, shall not be
changed Nor shall any law be passed by Con-
gress the Territorial Legislature to hinder or
prevent the taking of such persons from any of
the States of this Union to said Teraitory, nor to
impair the rights arising from said relation. But
the same shall be subject to judicial cognizance in
the federal courts, according to the of the
common law. When any territory north or south
of said line, with such boundary as Congress may
prescribe, shall contain populatian equal to that
required for member of Congress, it shall, if its
form of government be republican, be admitted
iuto the Union on equal footing with the original
States, with without involuntary servitude, as
the constitution of the State may provide. This
was adopted by vote of 9 to s. as follows:
Yeas-Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New
Jersey Ohio, Pennsy lvania Rhode Island and Tennes-
see.
Nays-Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, y.
Carolina New Hampshire Vermont, and Virgina-s.
Dfyded-New York and Kansas. Not voting
Indiana.
Sec. 2. No territory shall be acquired by the
United States except by discovery and for naval
and commercial stations, depots and transit routes
without the concurrence of majority of all the
Senators from States which allow involuntary
servitude, and majority of all the Senators from
States which prohibit that relation nor shall ter
rtory be acquired by treaty, unless the votes Of
majority of the Senators from each class of States
hereinbefore mentioned be cast a part of the
two-thirds majority necessary to the ratification of
such treaty. Adopted by vote of IL to s.
Yeas-Deaware, Indiana, Kentucky, MARYLAND, Mis-