Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1862-05-02

Missouri, in Congress, has attracted not
little attention and has been widely copied. Ii
it Mr.. Blair processes to define and deiluc
" the Presidents Policy" on the slavery
question not, if we understand him, under
taking to speak By authority for Mr.. Lincoln
but explaining wha: Mr.. Blair believes tC
be the Presidents position, and defending
the same as just and wise.
The main ideas ol the speech. arc
First, that this Is not a sIaychvlier's re-
bcllIon-that the sllvchollcrs as body were
reluctant TO j)in it but that it has grown
out Of the " antagonism Of racc, or, in
other words, from the d" adherence OF the
non-slaycholders Of the South for cmancipa-
ton and amalgamation" and their dread Of
negro equ lily"
Second, that the effect Of the war wall be
to extinguish slavery not because the
General Government can be or will D. used
to decree tie abolition of slavery but be-
cause the political power of slavery will be
broken.
Third, that while the Government has
the physical ability to reduce the seeded
States and subject them to any terms it
chooses to dictate, and while emancipation
on the soil may be justified, If it is necessary
as a means of suppressing the rebellion, yet
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would only aggrayate the rebellion, by
making the entire white population of the
South a unit, and would make necessary the
keeping up Of as great an army to maintain
the blacks as freemen on the soil, as would
be required to set them free.
Fourth, that emancipation can be made
acceptable to the non-slayeh0lders OF the
South, by coupling with it the policy Of
o0ioni-aiioa the best place for the ne
groes Is the " Gorgeous region Of the Amer
can tropics, Central and South America, and
hat the true Iolicy-which is the Prcsiient's-
IS to ",eParats fbs races BY sending the
slaves thither.
1t is not necessary for Us to discuss all
these points either pro or coH-Jut we can
not refrain from expressing our entire dis-
sent from Mr.. Blairs main proposition. His
brother, Montgomery Blair, has before this
advanced the same idea that 1t Is not a slave
holders rebellion but how gentlemen like
the Blairs, Of intelligence and decided anti
slavery sympathi,s, canIrersuade themselves
or be persuaded, into what seems to US So
false u view, is surprising. History can be
studied, and common sense exercised ,ln that
point. as well in Vermont as in Missouri =
Washington.-an # the history Of the past
few years shows anything, 10 seems
to rs to show iucontcstably that this Is
nothing c'ss than a SHAREHOLDERS rebellion.
OF course there were SHAREHOLDERS who,
some from timidlty and some from foresight,
were reluctantly drawn into secession; but
such were not the representatives. Of their
class. II jefferson DAVIS, and Howell Cob,
and RohNrt Toomhs, and Thompson, and
A----.Oes' ""d Ilovd AMI BENJAMIN. and
Wise, and Slidell, and Mason, ana ,.y,.
Pickcns, and Wigiall, and their fellow cor-
sprators, arc not the representatives, and
leaders Of the slayeholding class. who, We
beg to ask, ave? 1t il portion of the evil
Of the system, that the 800 600 Shareholders
are the South Slavery there has absorbed
al the influence, all the power, al the au-
thority; it controls every interest OF society,
and uses for its own ends every man and
class. The non-slaycholding whites are un-
doubtedy as a whole as hearty in rebellion,
as the slave owners but it is because they
are as completely under the control Of the
Shareholders as the slayes, and are more easily
blinded than the blacks thcmsclycs To
own a slave is the summit Of the aspirations
OF the poor white man Of the South he
may have dreaded emancipation and ne
gro equality but it was because the slave
holder lyingly told him it was to be dreaded.
The leaders Of this rebellion had no fear Of
LhNlNAls 10 - AAANAA AAoAAA NA AAA NAAA
tion Of Mr.. Lincoln. They knew that he
and his party were distinctly pledged to nom
interference with slavery in the slave States,
ia pledge given, it is to be recollected, for
state Of peace and Of submission TO rightful
authority and they knew that the pledge
would be kept They rebelled because as
slaveholding aristocraoy they wou ID rather
rule in Hell than serve in Heaven, and that
is the whole long and short Of the matter.
An able communication on this subject,
in the form Of letter to Mr.. Blair, received
by US since we commenced this article, and
which appears in our columns today, rem
ders unnecessary further discussion Of it Dy
US at present. To the question Of Colonial
tion vs. Emancipation on the soil we shall
doubtless have frequent occasion to refer in
future.