The southern aegis, and Harford County intelligencer. (Bel Air, Md.) 1862-1864, 1862-03-29


10 directed To the above facts. y 80 -
The Presidents Emancipation Scheme.
Most of our exchanges condemn the passage, by
the United Suites House of Representatives, of
the resolution recommended in the Presidents
message, in regard to. slavery in the Border
States Where the House of Representatives
found the authority to use the public money to
purchase slaves, we do not know, unless it may
be found in the Chicago Platform, it certainly
cannot be found in the Constitution. The New
York argus, in an article on the resolution
recommended by the President to Congress, says:
''Under it States will be organized like New
Virginia, which under the protection of bayouets
viii elect Legislatures to initiate the abolition of
slavery, accepting compensation therefor in is
sues of Federal stock, granted not to the owners
Of slaves necessarily, but to the State itself.
We believe that the initiation of this policy
win protract the war, add thousand millions
TO the national debt, and subvert wholly our
system Of national and State governments. 1t is
nearly year since General Banks proclaimed
that our Government had ended and it is but
yesterday that Carl Schurz reiterated, amid the
applause of large partisan meeting-'the Union
is gone. You cannot restore it---neyer That
circle of ideas in which the political transactions
of the old Union moved, is forever broken; it
cannot be restored. The mutual confidence on
which the political transactions of the old Union
rested has been discovered to be illusory: 1T is
IRRETRIEYABLY GONE s.ts ,. h...
Consciously, or unconsciously, we fear the
President is playing into the hands of these de-
structiyes.ai 13 H3 H#tr
HLet us hope that this opositon-which
only shows how far we are drifting from consti-
tutional duty-will share the fate of the Presi-
dental scheme for colonization, and be consider
ed only to be dismissed and forgotten
1t win be seen from this extract that the argus
has no hesitation in proclaiming that new States
are to be organized and new Legislatures are to
be elected, to initiate the abolition of Slavery
This the Argus seems to think is the ultimate
purpose of the resolution. The New York argus,
however, is not the only Northern paper which
speaks harshly of the proposition. The Colum-
bia (Pa) Democrat, in an able editorial on the
same subject, after speaking of the purposes of
the ''passage of the resolution by Congress to
the effect that the United States ought to give
pecuniary aid to such States as will adopt the
policy of emancipation, u and of the message of
the President of December last, in which he
recommended that deportation follow emancipa-
ton and proposed the acquisition of territory
for that purpose stating it to be substantial
ly the same project as that urged by Mr.. Doc
little "who placed his negro paradise, or land Of
promise, in some of the unhealthy, earthquake
shaken countries of the American Isthmus''-
continues: " fsl gfi#
"We much misjudge the temper and opinions
ofthe people of Pennsylvania, IL they will ever
consent be taxed for the purpose of purchasing
negroes, or any other purpose connected with
emancipation in Southern States. " y
No power to purchase or export negroes to buy
lands for them abroad, to support them ON ma
tive or foreign soil, or to make agreements with
States for emancipation involving payment of
money, has ever been conferred upon the Gene
ral Government - fnA - DC
Emancipation being q question for each State
to decide for ITSELF in view of its interests. we
have no conce m with it beyond our own borders.
and ought not to be taxed with reference to 1t.
sTbe President appears, in his remarks, to
limit his project to the Border Slave States but
there is no such Limitations in the resolution he !
proposes. 1t applies generally to all the Slave |
States; and there can be no reason hereafter to
The argument that to detach some OF the |
Border States from the list Of Slave States, win
weaken the rebellion and tend to close the war, I
would not, even iftrue, Justify this project. For
the Government has no right to assume q power |
not granted to il BY the Constitution, and apply
the money Of the people to an object to which |
they have not given their assent. But the argn-
ment itself s unfounded as well as insufficient.
~ y n |
''The President abjures the Abolition doctrine
Of emancipation By force; Of confiscation of pris
poses BY the enemy, and SO far conforms his no.
sition to public sentiment, to the principles Of
the Constellation, and 10 the laws Of civilized |
warfare Bat the project Of this message Is one
Of folly and evil aud should be met by q general
protest we feel confident, whatever else may
never agree that they snail be taxed to secure
emancipation In other States 4, III n go
80 - ssast.t |