The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1861-02-02

- J. e 50
-, + asssl s5Aa1ua Cd
b u Maihsson. II allssl.
II DsAR Ssr
Yoss sssss.sd nv x ~ lfth - be
slkss. .iss.ls ALI v.ry great ni.asder
handing b the public mind % TO the present
'oudiiiae u eEairs = the Cspital Of the nation.
b rslssion % ~ demands Of the
ils1ni6disss Upon the Union men Of the Nostb.i
md that the impsession prevails quite extea
lively shss the .Cnttenden proposiden,s q It Is
called. b simply :. Fe-establishment Of the Mia
souri conpronise iine. This.is very far from the
truth. +. !, *. $50. Is ':'s a i.
= Mr. Crittendsn peoDoees 10 extend the line ~
SO deg. 20 min. through TO the Pacific ocean, aad;
70 agree BY Constitutional provision y protect
and defend slayery in al q the territory Of the
Uaited States South Of that line. Nor y this all
81 ssr proposes tass tkis rossst 70 Sssssvy NAL
~ extended b ~ territory aka may hsvsat'sr %
,eqs;rsd SosaA Of 1tat xa@ The sam and s uss,.
stanes of The whole N stter 10 that Ne are asked,
'foe she sake Of peace, to surrender all OF our
chsrished ideas on the subject Of slavery, and 60
gree in effect, to provide : Save code Tor the
Territories south Of rs deg. s0min., and for ths
Mexican provinces as soon - they shall be
brought within our jurisdiction. It Is demanded
,of. " that We shall consent to change the Con-
.sisasion inso,a genuine pro-slsvery instrument,
and 70 convert the government into : great
dave breeding, slavery extending empire. a
Every man blessed with ordinary foresight
must 80 what would he the inevitable and almost
immediate consequence Of the adoption Of this
provision as part of the Constitution. II would
disclose itselfto be the very reverse ofa measure
Of peace. Raids would At once begin upon the
provinces Of Mexico; war would ensue; the an
nexation Of Sonora, Chihuahua, Cohahuila, Nue..
.yoleon, Tamaulipas aud other provinces would
follow they would be converted, At the instant
of their acquisition, from free into slave terrific
ries, and ultimately be admitted into the Union
a Slave States. Much - I love peace and seek
to pursue it Fam not prepared to pay this price
for it. Let no man in lows imagine for 1 mo.
ment that the Crittenden proposition i for a
mere restoration of the Compromise line ofis2o.
It is simply and truly the 4ppaication Of the
Breckenridge platform to all territory nov .ac-
quired or hereafter T. BE acquired south Of So deg:
80 min., and would result, if adopted, in the ac-
QUESTION and admission Of new Slave States for
the ostensible purpose Of restoring what is called
the equilibrium Of the sections The restoration
Of the Missouri Compromise line has been offered
to the disunionists and contemptuously rejected
Their maxim is "rule or RUM 4 ~
s confess that look with amazenent upon
the course of the Northern sympathisers with
the disunionists. Six yenrs ago they assisted to
break down a compromise Of thirty.four years
standing, and defended their action by what they
claimed to be the right of the people to deter
mine for themselves what should be the charac
ter Of their own domestic Institutions There
was much plausibility in their argument They
made party creed of it. Now, after the lapse
Of six short years, they have become 40 pro-sla
very in their opinions that they are willing tc
ignore the past and recognize and protect sli
very in the very country which they boastet
that their own act had made free. 9aj
There, are other provisions in the Crittender
resolutions which to my mind are wholly mad
missible, but let them pass. Ny objection is te
any compromise. will never consent to com
promises or the imposition of terms upon me o.
the people represent under threats of breaking
up the government. will mot give reasons un
der compulsionn No surer or more effectual VIA.
could be devised for converting this into reyo
lutionary government than the adoption Of I
compromise expedient at this time. - Us
Eight months ago the four political parties o
this country. in their. several conventions, AZ
nounced certain abstract propositions in theil
platforms which each believed 70 be true, ant
which, If acted upon, would in their opinion
most conduce to the prosperity of the whole
country. The issue upon these propositions wal
submitted to the people through the ballot boxes
One party yss sneeessfnlsas either might have
been but for the lack Of votes, and now one o
the vanquished parties seeks to overthrow tn,
government because they we're not themselves
the yictors, and win only consent to stay thei
work Of demolition upon the condition that w
will agree to make their platform, which is ah
horrent to ,us, part Of the Constitution Of thu
couatry. After taking their chances for success
aud being defeated in fair and manly contest
| they now seek to overthrow the government un
der which they live and to which they owe thei
allegiance. How rapidly are we following in thu
footsteps of the governments Of Mexico ant
South America! AH
do not believe that the public mind is now il
. condition to calmly consider the great ques
tions involved in the amendments proposed. Blu
suppose the people were willing and anxious thai
submitted to them; suppose they were in pro
per frame of mind to weigh them and decide
upon their adoption, suppose their adoption wa!
not attempted to be enforced by threats, cal
we. have any assurance that this is the last de
maud to be made upon usi Can we be certain
that success in this instance will not whet ths
appetite for new concessions and new demands
and that similar threats of secession and revolu
biOH VIII succSSu cSCty iosusC
election? Will the demand for new guarantees
stop here? Shall we not be as liable to have oul
trade pafalyzed, our finances deranged, our ia
tonal flag insuIted, the public property wrested
from us and destroyed and the government itsel
overthrow four years hence, If we amend tho
Constitution, rs we should be if we now stand
firmly by our principles and uphold the authority
Of the government! -. ~
The question before the country, it seems to
me, has assumed gigantic proportions. 1t has
become something more than an Issue on the
Slavery question growing out Of the construc
ton Of the Constitution. The issue now befsre
US is whether we have country, whether or NOT
this is nation Is this Government which
Florida With $4,000 people can destroy by re.
solving herself out Of the Union and seizing the
Forts and A,senals within her borders !? That
Is the question presented us for our decision:
Can great and prosperous nation Of Ss oo0,.
900 of people be destroyed by an act OF seces-
sion of some Of its members Florida and her