New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-03-05
NUMBER I.

why do it? Will you hazard desperate step while
mere possibility of any portion o the ills yon
fly from having no real existence? W24 you, whGe
certain the lifJ you fly to are greater taan all ths
real ones you lg from? Wll you risk tfse commfs-
sion Of so fearful mistaksE All profess to be
content in the Uaion it all constitutional rights can
r be maintained. Is it true, ssten, that aS7 right
plainly written in Ne Constitution has been 3enied?
think not. happily, the husaan ntnd is 50 con.
doing this. Think, r you can Of single instsnce
N |htfh as plainly written a proT.sion of the Con!
stitutfon has been deEied IT, by tie mere force Of
zurnbers, majority stSuId deprive the minority Of
fsuy clearly Constitutional right, i might, in q
1hoTat point of view, listify revolution; it cez~
| taln'y woRd. if such right were 7ftal one; bu5
snsftsn NOT onr case ~ the vital tights of the
| mIno1ties and individuals are so pls.aIy assured
| theE:by affirmation and sgations guarantees and
prohibitions in the Constitution that controversies
never arse concerning th5Ta. But no organic law
| can e7er be framed with D provision specifically
applIcabte to every questiozs which may occur in
| practicable administration
No foresight can anticipate nor any dccument
OF reasonable length contais, express provisions
| for all possible Questions. Shall fugtvess from
| labor be surrendered by national or by State au-
| thority? The Constitution does not express7 say
May Congress prohibit slavery in the Territcgies
| The Consultation does not expressly say. Must
Congress protect slavery in the Territories !? The
Constitution does not expressly say From qaes
tons OF this class spring all our constitutional con-
troversies and we divide upon them into msiorises
and minorities. If the minority will not acduies5e
the majority must or the Government must cease
there is no other alternative for continuing but ae
| quescence on one side or the other If the mno-
lty in such case will secede rather than acquiesce
| they make precedent which In time will divide
| and ruin them. For minority of their own. w.~
secede from them whenever majority chooses to-
| be controlled 5y such minority. For instance
| why may not any portion of the new Confederacy
in year or two hence, arbitrarily secede again.
precisely as portions of the present Union claim to
seeede from it 2 ALI who cherish these Union SEN
| timents are now being educated to the exact tenn
| per Of doing this. Is there such perfect identity
| of interest among the States to compose a new
| Union as to prOauCe harmony only, and prevent
renewed secession2 Plainly, the central idea Of
| secession is the essence of anarchy. A majority
held in restraint by constitutional checks and mi-
| tations, and always changing easily with deliberate
changes OF popular opinions and sentiments, is the
| only true sovereign OF free people. Whoever re-
jects it, does of necessity fly to anarchy or to des-
potism. Unanimity is impossible. The rule of the
| minority, as permanent arrangement, is wholly
| inadmissable so that rejecting the majority the
principle OF anarchy or despotism in some form is
| all that is-left.
| L do not forget the position assumed bv some
that Constitutional questions to be decided by
| the Supreme Co1rt; nor do deny that such de-
| cisons must be binding in any case upon parties
to suit as to the object of that suit, while they are
| also entitled to very high respect and consdera-
| ton. In all parGllsl cases, by all other depart
ments of the, Government and while it is obviously
possible that such decision may be erroneous in
any given case, still the evil effects following it be-
ing limited to that particular case with the chance
that it may be overruIed, and never become a pre-
| cedent for other cases. can better be borne than
| could the eYilE- Of the. different practice.
| at the same time, candid citizens must confess
| that if the policy of the Government upon vital
questions atfiictng the whole people, is to be ire
| yocabiy fixed by the decision of the Supreme
Court, the instant they made in ordinary litiga-
tions between the parties and personal actions the
people will have ceased to be their own rulers,
having to that extent practically resigned their
government into the hands of their eminent trbu-
nal is there in this view any assault upon the
| Court OF the Judges 1t is duty from which they
may not shrink to decide cases properly brought
seek to turn their decisions to political purposes
One section of our country believes slavery is
right and ought to be extended. while the other be-
leyes that it il wrong and should not be extended
This is the only substantial dispute. The fugitive
slave clause of the Constitution and the law for
the suppression of the foreign slave trade are each
as well enforced, perhaps, as any law can be in
community where the moral sense of the people
| impertectly support the law itself. The great
body Of the people abide by the dry legal oblira
ton in both cases, and the few who break over in
each think can be perfectly cured and it would
be worse III both cases. after the separation of the
| sections, than before. The foreign slave trade
| now imperfcctly suppressed, would be ultimately
revived without restriction in one section, while
| fugitive slaves, now only partially surrendered
| Won!d not be surrendered by the other
| Physically speaking, cannot separate we
cannot remove our respective sections from each
other nor build an impossible wall between them
| A husband and wife may be divorced, ana go out
of the presence and beyond the reach of each
other, but the different parts of country can
| not do this: they cannot but remain face to face
! and intercourse either amicable or hostile must
| continue between them. Is it possible then to
make that intercourse more advantageous or more
satisfactory after separation than before? Can
| aliens make treaties easier than friends can make
| laws? Can treaties be more faithfully enforced
between aliens than laws among friends
Suppose you go to war, you cannot fight always;
| and when much lose on both sides and no gain on
either, you cease fighting. The identical old oues.
| tions as to terms Of intercourse are again upon
| you.-
This country with i.s institutions belongs to the
| people who iEhabt it. Whenever they grow weary
of the existing government they can exercise their
constitutional right of amending it, OF their revo-
| lntionary rights to dsmember or overthrow it. I
! cannot be ignorant Of the fact that many worthy
| and patriotic citizens are desrous of having the
National Constitution amended. While make no
accommodation of that character, fully recognize
the rightfuI authority of the people over the whole
subject to be exercised in either of the modes pre-
| scribed in the instrument itself. and | should under
the existing circumstances favor rather than oppose
fair opportunity being afforded the people to act
| upon it, | will venture to add that to me the Con.
uehstion mode seems preferable in that it allows
amendments to originate with the people them
selves instead of only permitting them to take or
reject propositions originated by others not espec
| ally chosen for the purpose, and which might not
be precisely such as they would wish either to
| accept or refuse.
I understand the proposed amendment to the
Constitution. which amendment, however, ! have
not seen, has passed Congress, to the effect that
| the Federal Government shall never interfere with
| the domestic institutions of the States including
| that of persons held TO service. To avoid mis-
| construction of what l have said. | depart from
| my purpose not to speak OF particular amendments
so far as to say that the holding of such provision
| now to be implied constitutional law. I have no
objection to its being made express and irrevocable
The Chief Magistrate derives nll his authority from
| the peopley-1rfd they have conferred none upon
him to fix the terms for the separation of the Saea
| The people themselves do this also if they
choose; but the executive as such has moth 'ng to
| do with it. His duty is to administer the present
Government as it came into his hands, and to trans
nit it nnimpaired by him to his successor Why
should there not be patient confidence in the
ultimate justice Of the people? Is there any bet
ter equal hope in the world in present differ
| ence? Is either party without faith of being in
the right? The Almighty ruler Of nations with his
eternal truth and justice, be your side of the
North no yours of the South that truth and
that justice will surely prevail by the Judgment of
this great tribunal. The American people, by the
frame of Government under which they live this
same people have wisely given but little power for
mischief and have with equal wisdom provided
for the return of that little to their own hands at
| very short intervals.
While the people retain their virtue and vigilance,
| no administration, by any extreme of wicked
ness of folly, can very seriously nure the Govern
ment in the short space of four years. My coan
trymen, one and all, think calmly and we'll upon
| this Whole subject. Nothing can be lost by taking
| time, LII there be an object tn hurrv anv of VOu