, 1861-04-03

The Constitution adopted by the Congress
Of Montgomery has been published to the
world, That document is one which to me Is
in the highest degree Objectionable. Z ean-
i'm ,oitHout feeling thai am false to the faith
.o1ich I haue prefsssed ever since I had a po-
ZuicaI faith. The first and the greatest error
In the opinion which have long held, ever
since held an opinion on political subjects,
the first and the greatest error which our
that compromise with the Northern States,
by which two-ffths Of the Rlayes in the
Southern States were excluded in the nu-
mericA basis Of representation. That, in my
opinion. has been the great source Of all the
mischief that has taken place since. That
originated the assumption, on the part Of the
Northern States, Of the superiority Of nom
slayeholdipg state Of society over slave
holding state Of society. Our ancestors, By
consenting to that compromise, yielded the
advantage; they yielded the numerical power
which they onght to have possessed; and
they yielded what was much more, the moral
power which they would have possessed if
they had asserted then our equality OF rights.
That was the original great error Of the
South. thought that, after that tyrannlcal
and corrupt Government had been shaken
off. we should at least behold the principles
Of States Rights and Free Trade triumph
ant, but as the first Act Of the new Confeder
acy I find the very worst point Of the old
Constitution is to be perpetuated. II
seven States which have seeded, the lneaual-
ity would not very great. Still it would be
considerable; and, as matter of principle, I
should be unwilling to give that advantage to
our eonfederates. I should be unwilling to
give to Georgia and Alabama, which have
smaller slave population in proportion to the
whites than VIC nave, that advantage over US:
Bnt. if the other Southern States secede, If
Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Ken
tucky. Missouri and Arkansas come in, then
a very great inequality will exist Tennessee,
Kentucky and Missouri, Missouri especially,
are almost non-slave-holding States: Mis-
souri has scarcely one slave TO ten
Confederation, would have all the ad-
yaptaees over us that tho Northern
States had over US formerly under this basis
Of representation. But this Montgomery
scheme contemplated something more than
the admission Of all the slayeholding States
into our Confederacy. It contemplated the
Grand and magnificent idea, Il it Ia true, Of
ssecnring the alliance OF the Northwest, Of
bringing into the Confederaey Indiana and
Illinois, and also Pennsylvania, New York,
.nd finally perhaps New Eng LAND itself. That
nav have been matter Of mere conjecture.
Very little Of the proceedings OF the Mont
eonlery Congress were allowed to be made
| public, but find an ayowal recently made by
The highest althoEity, distinctly showing the
| fact, I fiGd in an address made by Mr. Ste
phens few days since in The city OF savan
lah, tile following language:
III. Gregg quoted Stephens speech on the
subject Of the extension Of the Confederate
Staies Northward. Mr.. Gregg mentioned
| that many Of the delegates to the s G. CON
yention had been elected under express
pledges to oppose all idea Of 90 reconstruct
! ing The government IS to admit ncnslave
| holding States into the Southern Confederacy