The Portland daily press., 1862-06-25

amendments Of the Constitution. The Argus
complained of them on that ground; and
urged that unless new guarantees in favor of
slavery were put into the Constitution, all of
the Slave States would go out of the Union,
and that President Lincoln would be driven
from Washington and become an exile Was
the Argus then in favor of the Constitution
as it stands?
During the months of January and Febru-
airy, 1861, a political body met at Washington,
over which John Tyler, the traitor, presided,
called the Peace Congress. They submitted
propositions of compromise to Congress, in
volving change of the Constitution in favor
of the slave-holding aristocracy. John ]. Crit
ttenden submitted another scheme involving
a change of the Constitution in favor of the
shareholders. Various other schemes of COM
promise were proposed in Congress, every one
of them involving change of the Constitu-
ton against the principles Of freedom, and in
favor of the aristocracy of shareholders.
Was the Argus then in favor of the Consti-
tuition as it stands? No! No! No! 1t was in
favor of the changes in the Constitution, in
favor of the shareholders compromise propos-
ed by Mr.. Crittenden. Many times did it urge
that scheme of iniquity in favor of the aristoc-
racy in opposition to the people. Failing in
that, it was still opposed to the Constitution as
it stood and in favor of any scheme that was
proposed for changing the Constitution to ben
eft the shareholders at the expense of the
people. When the President made his call for
5000 men to maintain the laws and suppress
the rebellion, the Argus was opposed to it,
The editor said on the next day:
at is sickenng to think of the prospect that bris-
ties all over with horrors. We have been opposed to
this policy from the beginning. We do not, we
not believe in it now"
Instead of vigorous efforts to suppress the
insurrection of traitors, who had driven Maj
Anderson and his comrades out of Fort Sum-
ter, the Argus was desirous of truce and
consultation with them. If the Northern peo-
pie would not consent to make such changes
in the Constitution, as the shareholders de-
manded, then that paper was in favor of dis
solution of the Union. Here is its language
on the 18th of April, 1861:
"a suspension of hostile movements may doubtless
be obtained both sides until the people can be di-
rectly consulted. And If it shall then appear as the
result, that they will not agree terms upon which
free and slave States live together in peace then
let peaceful separation be arranged"
After the shareholders commenced the pre-
sent war, the Argus repeatedly urged upon the
Northern people, during the year 1861, that
they should consent to make such changes in
the Constitution as the shareholders demand
ed. And if the Northern people would not
consent to do that, it constantly avowed that
the Union could not be restored, and its desire
to agree upon terms for peaceful separation
Such is the paper, and such the party it rep
resents, that now raise the cry of "7he Consti-
tuition as IL is, and the Union as it tcds." The
Argus is stopped. For more than thirty years
within my recollection, it has favored all those
measures that have encouraged the slave
holders to commence this war, and SO far as |
am able to judge, during all that time it has
been opposed to the Constitution as it is.
j. c. w.