The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1861-01-05
tn. Equ.l..y OF IN. s,.t..

We 6nd an article IN tbe, CMcinnal oazssVs
from the Princeton Review for January, upo
..The State Of the Country, which appears to U
| to be . very candid statement Of the matters
Tissue between the Free and Slave States. w
have not room for the whole of it, but max
room for the following on the Equality Of th
States" of which We have heard 20 much:
Another ground Of complaint is that the Sout
has lost its equality in the Union: or that the
are denied equal rights. This complaint has tn
more force on the popular mind from its Vague
ness, and from its appealing 70 a aense OF ju
tice. A denial of equal rights to any part OF th
confederacy would be indeed just ground
complaint This grievance II presented in ditel
ent lights by our Southern brethren. 1t somt
times means one thing and sometimes another
1t often has special reference TO the Territories
These are the common property of the country
The North, South, East and West have an equs
1 right to their possession and occupancy. Henc
it is.infsrrsd that if immigrants from the Mort
are allowed to take every species of their pre-
pertv into the Territories immigrants from tn
South have the right to take everything whic
the laws of the South declare to be property. -
To deny this, is to deny equal rights in the Tel
ritories To this it is answered,
l. That there s no restriction peculiar to th
slsvsholding States. The people Of those State
may take into tie Territories everything that tn
people from the North are allowed to take
They are placed on terms Of perfect equality il
this respect
| 2. That the restriction with regard to slaves
which bears equally upon ALL whether citizen o
| foreigner, whether FROM the North or from th'
| South, il not founded on any assumed superio
| ,l~ ,ocx b> ha horft n
/ the country, but simply on the principle tha
Slavery is q municipal institution, and therefore
can exist only where there is some law to create
and to enforce it. Carolina cannot justly claim
! that her slave laws should have authority il
France, or England, or in the Northern States
or anywhere else beyond her own territory
Whether this reasoning be correct or not, ye
since the doctrine that Slavery is a municipa
Institution was the common faith of the country
when the Constitution was adopted, and whsH
the Southern States entered the Union, as it wal
held by all our Presidents and statesmen unit
the time of Mr.. Calhoun, with few, if any excep
tions it cannot NC be justly regarded a q
grievance. .. Z,
3. 1t may be further answered to this com
plant, that all difficulty on this score was avoid
cd by the Missouri Compromise, and might be
removed by q restoration of that agreement. II
is at best theoretical difficulty, as the South
has neither freemen nor slaves to spare for the
Territories. Their slaves are toe valuable where
they are, to send them into regions where their
labor could be turned TO little or 70 account.
At other times, Ly equality of the States ID
meant an equal control in the administration Of
the Government. In the past history of the
country the South has been dominant. Although
in minority as to population, it has shaped the
whole policy Of the country. A compact minor
ity in almost all Governments holds the balance
of power. The Germans, although not more
than third of the people, secured the control
Of the State Of Pennsylvania through great
part of its history. And so the South, by throw
ing her weight into one party or the other, has
hitherto secured the sscendcncy. A protecting
tariff, national bank, internal improvements.
were the policy Of the country SO long as the
South was in their favor; when she turned
of things is passing away. By the inevitable
progress of events, the sceptre il changing
hands. The more rapid increase of the free
States in number and population, is more and
more reducing the relative Importance and pow
er of the South. This result has been long fore.
seen. Southern statesmen have predicted that
the time must come when the South could no
longer control the policy of the country. Not to
command, however, is in their estimation to sub
nit. Not to be masters, in the logic of the ex-
tremists, is to be slaves. And hence the frequent
and fervid declamations addressed to the people
against the tyranny of the North, and the inevi.
table servitudc of the South, should it remain in
the Union. The thing complained of is not the
irresponsible power of a ma jority. The founders
of our Government were fully convinced that no
democracy, where the majority had unrestricted
power. Our national Legislature is restricted
within very narrow limits by the Constitution.
1t has not the political omnpotence of the Par.
Lament Of Great Britain, which can change the
dynasty, abolish the peerage, or the church es-
tablishment, and model at pleasure the institu-
tions of the country. Our Congress has no such
power. Its authority is limited by written
Constitution. 1t is held in check by the distri-
button of power, and by the legislative authority
being vested in two houses-the one composed
Of the representatives, of the States without re-
gard to their relative size or importance. In
every way, therefore, that human wisdom could
devise, the minority is protected from the ty'
ranny of the majority. Nor is the equality
claimed by the disunionists, the equal rights OF
the. States one with another; for this is now en-
loved and secured to the fullest extent.
The thing claimed is this, viz that the slave
interest should have equal political control with
ali the other interests of the country combined.
This is what is meant by equality. Less than
this is declared to be inconsistent with their
safety and honor. This is the idea which, by the
teaching of M. Calhoun, has taken thorough
possession Of the minds of a certain class Of
Southern POLITICIANS. The correctness of this
representation is proved beyond question, by
the nature of the means proposed to correct the
inequality complained Of or dreaded. These
, remedies are all directed to the natural, peace
S,I Il II o{ thn snp
They require that the Constitution should b.
changed in order to secure the equality demand
ed. Thus it has been proposed that the number
| Of slaveholding States shall always be equal t
that of the Free States; that every new Free
| State admitted into the Union should be coun
terbalanced by a new Slave State. Thus th,
equality of the representatives of the slave in
terest in the Senate-whieh has controlling pow
er in the Goyernment-with the representative
of the Free States, would be preserved. Anoth
er proposal is, that there should be two Presi
dents-one chosen by the North and the othe
by the Southland that their concurrence shoul'
be necessary to the validity of any Presidentia
action. Still another proposition is, that tn
| Constitution should be 80 altered as to make
majority of the whole of the slaveholding States
and a majority Of the Free States, necessary t
the election of President; and further, that n
|
majority Of representatives from 10th sections G
the country. These are so many devices
make one equal to three. They amount to a
avowal on the part Of their advocates, this
Shareholders cannot live in any political comm,
ty which they do not control. The proposition
above referred to all assume that the slave il
terest must be dominant; that nothing shall b
one without its consent; no officer, whethe
divil or military, judicial or executive, shall b
appointed; no law enacted, no measure adopted
without its appreciation, and consequently for j
benefit. This supposes that the interest of th
STAKEHOLDER is antagonistic to all others, and
so important that it may rightfully be dominun
or ut least coordinate and limiting. 1t assume
that three hundred and fifty thousand shall equ
twenty millions. As this lie = physical and mo
al impossibility under our present Constitution
it is proposed to alter it, or, failing that. to di
solve the Union. This is the light in which I.
} claim to equality, es interpressd ana urged [
} the disunionists, presents Itself to the people
! the North It ia an unrighteous and unreaso
able demand. 1t is demanding far more ths
, the Constitution, which We have all sworn
! support, ever contemplated. Equality Of 9
, classes in the eye Of the law, equality of Il
, States as to rights and privileges, equal prote
: ton, equal liberty, equal facilities of advanc