Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-06-01
ansnd.ng tbs ooullItutlou, tsHe asksd me

RnendIng tbs Constitution, IA aakad me
% WrtlB what / thought about 81, aud I
will giEe you the substance of my reply:
Taking ths.postureo Of thenegro question
40 tits and the nation ~ it is, my. conclu-
sion is, that the Government ofthe United.
States is absolutely bound, by every con-
sideration of craftsmanship and Of safety,
to do one of two things: It is bound to use
its whole power, both of war and of peace,
to Put back the negro 4s far as possible,
into the condition he occupied before the
WaFs;suE is bound to sxterminate the
whole institution, by all the powers the
Constitution gives it or that can be obtain
ed By an amendment of that instrument.
Put back the 1eg1o to his former position,
Butas am an Antitslavery man, l say {:
EUse the whole power of the Government to
extinguish the, institution of slavery, root
and branch. Applause, long continued.
There is no legal, efectual mode of put
ting slavery in the United States ont of ex-
isteDcey but by the amendment of the Ped
eral Constitution, and the power to5make
that amendment lies with the people, mot
in Congress-; and for my own part / sin.
cerely hope they will make that amend
ment. Great upplapse.1 l think thebest
thing you, as party, can do, is to cay You
hope they will do it. You may get beaten
by saying it, but your children will gain by
it, / have been beaten many times, and
know how one feels under such cirGumstan.
ces. .-..5... y ....- .5aaa,s,) ...,iis.
But as to lodging, and throwing dust in
peoples eyes, lest you be beaten, have
nothing to ssyIagainstiit, and if can see
any advantage resulting from it after it is
done, will use it, butt will not lie for the
sake of Obtaining it. .al .aas. ,fa.-sa
H. AN ENANcIPATIoH PROPOSITION.
But there is = reason why you should
not pass such a resolution While l love
America better than l love any other eeun-
try in the world, / love Kentucky better; as
the best part of America. Now what can
| Kentucky do to get out of this difficulty,
4 as matter of policy2 80 years ego un-
dertook to prove, aud l think did prove,
that under the present Constitution OF Ken
tucky the power of the State is absolute
over those persons born after the passage
of law in regard to them, that is, that
slavery attaches on birth and not before,
and that the unborn child is not slave in
that sense that it is beyond the power OF
the Constitution. The word slaves in the
Constitution, means only those beings that
are in existence at the time and those that
law will allow to come into existence with
THE condition of seTvitude attaching to
them in an; absolute manner. If the legis-
lstors, choose to allow them to come into
I existence absolutely as slaves or it they
choose to prevent their coming in as slaves
absolutely, slavery attaches in such man
ner only as the legislative power may de-
termine under the Constitution. What
you might gain BY this view of the case is,
that if you can send to the Legislature men
I who will give that Interpretation TO the
l. oil in
4 this State at the end of the present living
generation. H.. e5.A-.. ..,. H1a ,aua
But supposing my Interpretation wrong,
you have another left you, for you can.
take the slaves and pay TOR them, ire
spectiVe of thewill of the owner, by Civ
ing just eomPepsation., suut-s r.s a.s
Mr.. Breckenridge then spoke of a
scheme that might be consummsted, by
which the General GoYeroment would
grant the State say fifty millions of acres
of public lands with which to pay for the
emancipation of slaves in Kentucky.
| We are in great peril in Kentucky. The
State is divided into three equal parts
About one. third are Sccessionists; one.
third are loyal, and may be relied upon to
the last extremity; the other third are more
dangerous than rebels, for if they can
make a combination with the Secession
lists, and are allowed to vote, they will
beat us. If those who are. disfranchised
by, law are prevented from voting, we shall
beat them. am in favor of allowing
every man to vote who is entitled to, but
no others, They have another Governor,
and another Congress. They had SOD
of mine sitting in their Congress, the
meanest thing, think, he ever did. Let
them go there; they have no business vot
ing for our Governor or members of Con-
gress. ss..E.
In conclusion, do not intend to live,
and if can help myself, will not die in
any other Government than that of the
United States; and, as long as party one
half as large as yours appears to be exists
in Kentucky, l believe she will remain
there also. .s al
The eNYSundea .at ths RattIa of NaM