Year: 1860

us copy of his speech on the inva-
sion of States. Commens is perhaps,
expected. We give our impressions
thercupon.


In the first place we do not take is
sue with Senator Daugias.iD his posi-
lion against the President when he
denied to Governor Wise that there
was any power in the Constitution
and laws aut horizing him to render
assistance to n sovereign State inyad-
cd blythe citizens of another.


With Senator Douglas, we believe
there is remedy in the Constitution
for every evil Of tie Kind and that if
State is in actual danger of uyasion
from without. it is the plain duty of
The general government to affo:d pro-
lection. Any other doctrine is absurd
Tho President might with good
reason have declined tor. faf6ish
troops to Virginia. on the request of
Wise, alleging that there was no in
vasion calling for such assistance.
There would have been scnse in such
an excuse, hut to say, that inifo case
he could legitimaiciy furnish succor
to an invaded State, is procla;ming
sheerest nonsense. The general gov
emnscnt has such duties to perform as
is proven ly the express terms of the
Cops,iiution itself quoted hy Senatsr
Douglas. He says truly, that the
States are in n lameuiatle condition
if they parted with their right to
maintain an army and navy each to
the general government and are left
iu-retern defenceless one against tie
other. But we cannot inGogse the
proposition Of Senator Douglas to
pass an act giving that protection
which Eesays is already provided for
in the Constitution. 1t looks very
much as If the move en- The par: Of
the Honorable Senator on the eve of
the Charleston Convention was de-
signed to curry favor with the South
preparatory to that Convention
This appearance is more than
strengthened by other circumstances
attending The delivery of fthe speech.


A committee had been appointed
prio. to the delivery IF that speech. to
investigate the Harper's Ferry affair,
and to determine ifthere really exis-
ted an organized plot involving any
large number Of northern men to
subvert the institutions Of Virginia.
1t did not become Mr.. Douglas to
head off that committee. or attempt
to instruct it as he did, before the
presentation of it's report to the Sem
ate. 1t looks like the work of dem
agoguc. Certain expressions in the
speech give strong suspicion that it
is the work of a demagogue. Mr..
Douglas speaks Of the Republican
party as tie A6olition or Republican
party. lie very we'll knew the eff
feet Of such expression Oh the minds
Of ignoramuses sound on the wool,
and for such was tho speech made.
Mr. Douglas reitcrares the stale charge
that the raid Of old Brown was the
natural result of the teachings of the
Republican party. He goes further
and tells the aforesaid isnoramuses
that lie would make it a crime to get
up emigraut aid societies with view
to invade States or Territories. Now,
we would candidly put the question
10 the most inveterate Douglas man
in the world, if this was not designed
as sop to the South, with an eye to
the Charleston nomination. The in
ference is quite plain. The language
of the speech, the tine of the delive-
ry and other circumstances leave no
other conclusion. Had the gentle
man possessed the delicacy which be-
fits great man, he would have seen
the impropriety of biasing or forestall-
ing a committee composed of his peers
and assuming III advance of the~evi-
dence that an actual invasion had ta-
ken place, and of giving strong color
to the imputation of Governor Wise
that large body Of northern luen
were reengaged in conspiracy to over-
throw the institutions of a sovereign
State. The want of this delicacy is
a proof Of the demagogical intent of
the speech, and besides going to con
vict Senator Douglas of being dem-
agogue, brards him as wiIful libell-
er of the section from which he came.
1t sheuld have been his pride to hurl
back the imputation against hechar-
acter of his constituents and the peu-
pie of the North as tho plotters of
treason,