The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1867-08-09
Campaign 9utnluent.
THE PENDING CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT.
An Unanswerable Argument in Favor
of Manhood Suffrage.
Speech of Hon. VIM. III. WI EST, Attor-
ney General of Ohio Delivered at
Columbus, June IS, 1867.

As wave succeeds wave in the oceans
tide rising. loamng. eliminating, and sink
INK agVin to itn native depths, SO prohleT
succeeds problem in the affairs of men, tc
he agitated discussed, and solved, then
pass into history, giving rise to new prob
lens in turn. rher cgitation is sometimes
gentle, often tempestuous and full of peril
yet ever essential to avert that stagnatioi
which is the precursor of decay and i'm
part heathful life-giving vigor, respec
lively to nature and TO nations.
Scarcely has the country emerged from
one of these periods of storm, when it il
called uponto grapple with resulting is
sues kindred to those which produced it
Shall this lesson of the past be lost on the
future Shall the error which precipitated
that national convulSion be repeated in the
solution of existing questions
EMANCIPATION DESTINED TO RESULT FROM
PHYSICAL CAUSES.
When: Abraham Lincoln announced the
great truth that this nation could not per
manently endure under the equal domin-
ion of frI edom and slavery, the sentiment
was greeted as the ebuIltion of reckless IA
naticsrn. But this was erroneous. 1t was the
prophetic utterance of sagacious statesman
ship, reading results in the future through
the logic OF their existing causes. 1t was
The announcement OF no new theory. Moth
ing writteuin the book of fate was more
certain, said Jefferson in substance, near q
century before, than that African slavery,
and the institutions fouhded upon it, were
destined to perish and disappear. The fa-
naticism of the period was its blind refusal
to recognize this destiny its folly, the i'll
advised attempt to ,thwart its progress.
Emancipation was inevitable. If the re.
cognitioh of this ultimate fact bad controlled
the councils of the nation, its calamity. and
great sorrow might have been averted. In
stead, however, blind fury prevailed, hut
was successful only in preventing emanci
patton from peaceful causes that it might
arise from a baptism OF blood.
CAUSES WHICH TENDED TO EFFECT IT.
The indicia which, pointed to this des
tiny were ulmistakably palpable. Two
centuries and half OF worse than Jewish
captivity, or Saxon vassallage, or Celtic op.
preston, had fettered the soul and drunk
the blood Of the African race. An institu
tional wrong Of such magnitude had not
failed in the progress of these centuries to
concentrate against it the enlightened sen
timent and active sympathies of mankind.
1t could not long have resisted The moral
force and omnipotent power of this pub
lie opinion orthe world.
a Butiis fate was not dependent on moral
forces alone. Cooperating with, and supe-'
rior TO them, was the resislless agency of
physical causes. Slavery was essentially
and manorial-freedom as essen
TALLY democratic ard agrarian. To the one
the plantation was peculiar and indispen-
4Ia lntnaptaah tba ,in,a tin,r
vital principle Of the other. e
These organic differences rendered Ii inn
possible for them to occupy the same ter.
rltorial limits in common. The homestead
invited population. plantation excluded
it. The domain was necessarily separate
and distinct from that OF the other. If
permanent and impassabte boundaries
could have been established for them, the
existence of slavery might have been in
definitely prolonged. Bat the immutable
laws of population forbid this. The ex-
pahsive capabilities OF each system de-
manded corresponding expansion of ter
ritory. A collision of interests and strug
gle for empire was therefore inevitable, as
population drove them in quest of new
foundations.
While the opposing systems were In
their infancy each having a separate do
main greatly in excess of its immediate
wants with the boundless range of lhe con.
tinent before them, apparently ample tor
the future of both, their race for empire
was without serious collision or active
jealousy. But the rapid growth of MINI
bers, measuring With augmented ratio from
the sources. OF nature aud of emigration,
soon demonstrated that the capacity OF the
continent was not unlimited, Its exhaus-
tion was only question Of time When