The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1863-11-14
Mechanics Association,

The meeting Of the Mechanics Association
for lectures and debates, held at the Library
room of the Mechanics building last evening,
was well attended The following was the
question for debate:
Resolved That it is not desirable TO restore the
States now in rebellion with the institution of Sla
very remaining in them, with the constitutional
guarantees for its protection.
n. A. Foster, Esq, appointed in the affirm
alive, commenced by saying that the question
admitted that the rebellious States were out
of the Union and the question was whether
or not these States shall be permitted to come
back with the right OF holding slaves Mr.. F.
spoke of slavery as the cause of the war. and
that since the rebels have made war upon the
Government, and refused to submit to the
laws, all the claims they had for the protec-
ton OF slavery under the constitution, had
been abrogated. He said slavery and freedom
could not exist in harmony together, and to
permit slavery to exist in any of the States, is
doing injustice to all the free States, and in
volying all the citizens thereof in the wrong.
He said, We are now suffering in conse-
quence of our past completely with slavery,
which should remind us of the course we
should pursue in the future. The President
has declared that all the slaves in the rebel
lous States are free, and they cannot be again
enslaved, and that we owe it to generations
yet unborn, TO no longer tolerate a system
that had brought upon us,and will upon them,
il permitted to remain, such untold miseries.
Mr.. Pingree, who was appointed on the
negative, spoke of the two assumptions in re-
gard to the position of the rebellious States.
He contended that these States are not out of
the Union as States, but that all who are 10y
al in them can claim to hold the same relation
to the Government as heretofore, with all the
rights and privileges enjoyed by them before
the war,-that they look upon slavery as right,
and their property in slaves as rightly held as
any other. He contended that the States can
not be brought back, without recognizing their
right to hold slaves, and it is better to have
the Union with slavery, than not to have it at
all. He spoke of the condition of things in
Louisiana as an illustration of his argument.
Mr.. Walton said that looking back over the
history of year, it could he seen that pro-
gress has been made. He contended that
slavery had been the cause of our national
calamity, and we ought not TO permit the
legal existance of the cause of all our trouble;
said, Missouri and Maryland had taken steps
to emancipate their slaves, and Kentucky and
Tennessee would follow suit
Mr.. Emery said he intended to speak in the
negative of the question but did not like the
wording of it. Mr.. Cole followed, reviewing
the arguments of the speakers on the afiirma-
tive, disagreeing with them and contending
that the rebelous States are not out of tlfe
Union, and have lost none Of their consttu-
tional rights, and therefore the Government
has no power to deprive them of the right to
hold slaves.
Mr.. Holden took the affirmative of the cues
tion-said that while the war was not COM
menced on the part of the North for the aboli-
tion OF slavery, such course has Ibeen taken
by the South that a large majority of the peo-
pie are now opposed to the recognition of the
rights Of slavery under the constitution, and
are in favor of its entire destruction.
Mr.. Emery replied to Mr.. Holden, contend
ing that the Slave States had all the rights
under the constitution they ever had, and he
who contended for anything else did so in the
face of the constitution and laws of the coun-
try, and uttered treason.
Mr.. Holden replied, contending that the
rights Of slavery, under the constitution, ceas-
ed when the Slave States withdrew from the
Union.
The question was laid on the table until the
next meeting.