Year: 1860

ever pass law for the protection of slave
in the territories2 Have not the
Republicans got control oi the lower House 7
ard could they not defeat such measure the
moment it was brought forwardI And 1t Is
not the Republicans alone who would vote
against the measure, There are good Demo
Gratis in that body who would vote against It
Democrats who still hold on to the old |
doctrine Of their party-that the people Of
the territories are capable of regulating their
oSl. affairs, and that the passage of slave
code 10y Congress, instead of quietng aglta-
ton, would only increase it. We do not
think there is man in the land, who believes /
that a law for the protection of slave proper
tv in the territories, could have passed Con-
grcss at the last session. If it could not have
passed then, will 1t be any more likely to
pass next session or the session after ? We
answer no, and for this reason, viz; that the
power Of he Republicans In Congress would
have first tc be greatly diminished, ed,-which
is not at all probable. The vote Of Demo
crats and others opposed to the measure,
would also have to be greatly diminish
ed, which also is not at all probable, Why
then do the Seceders clamor for law which
cannot be passed? But they may say:
Congress will pass one by and by" Vain
hope Congress never will pass such law.
Is not the anti-slavery element in both
Houses becoming stronger and stronger eve
~ day? The slave State of Missouri has


Just elected a Republican to Congress over
Democrat, and Ohio has elected Chase
Republican, to the Senate, in place 2 Demo
crat


Besides, before Congress can pass slave
code, an occasion must Grise and this occa-
sion the Seceders tell us, will be when the
Territorial Legislatures fail to protect slave
property. OF course If Congress should ever
pass such law, it will have to be done
| through the voice of the people Of the terri
tories that is to say, Congress would have to
be petitioned for law of that kind Now,
here would arise agitation after agitation.
Petitions after petitions would be showered
upon Congress, the slave holders demanding
more protection for their property, and the
Shareholders affirming that the protection
is not needed, and that the Territorial Legis-
lature afforded all the protection necessary,


The strife and tumult, would not be confined


to the territories alone The war would be
carried into the halls Of Congress. Long and


hot controversies would arise in the discuss
ion of the merits of slavery and anti-slavery


petitions, and all legislation would stop for
the time being What would be the extent
and magnitude of the tumults in the terrific
ries, we will not pretend to say; nor will we
pretend to say to what extent the agitation
would go in Congress. Let those Judge who
have watched the course Of events in the
country since the commencement of the Kan.
sls difficulties No the passage of law by
Congress for the protection of slave property


would only be the means of greatly increas-
ing the slavery agitation, which it has long
been the wish of every lover of the Union
to overt. But we are speaking of q contingency


which in all probability will never arise A


slave code cannot pass Congress until a revolu


tion in public sentiment shall have taken place.


Is 1T not strange then that we hear men, who
| deprecate the agitation of the slavery ques-
tion' demanding the passage Of a law, the
only effect of which would be to plunge the
country into an agitation unknown before ?
But what of those men of the Yancey school
those avowed disunionists and leaders of
the seeding party? They were the first to
clamor for slave code, knowing that such
code cannot pass. Their action can only be
explained on the supposition, that they intend
to make the refusal of Congress to pass such
| code, an excuse for them to secede from tho
Union, and set up their long talked of cotton
government Their secession from the Ma
tional Democracy, was step in that diree-
/ tion. 1t remains to be seen how mach fur
ther they will go. If the policy of passing a
slave code had all along been avowed by
The Democratic party, the Seceders might
nave had some excuse for leaving the Nation
al Convention, Oh the plea. that it had aban-
doned Democratic principle. But they
can advance no such plea. The Conventions
of the party and its history, refute the idea
that it favored the passage of law of that
kind. On the contrary the conventions of the
the party show that its policy has been non
Intervention by Congress- and no slave code
This slave code doctrine is q snare to the
country. BY it. the disunionists have entrap-
ped a large body of the South. Strange 1t is,
that the people should follow the lead of
avowed disunionists-of men who consider
the denial of Congress to pass certain law,
reason sufficient for disruption of the Con-
federacy.