Year: 1861




CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS.


On the Path of December Mr.. Douglas
introduced in the Sedate a joint resolu-
tion accompanied by proposed amendments
to the Consultation, which were referred to
the Compromise Committee of Thirteen.
The most important feature of the proposed
amendment is contained in the first section,
which reads as follows:


Congress shall make no laws in respect TO
slavery or seryitude in any Territory OF the
United States; and the status OF each Territory
in respect to seryitude, as the same now exists
by law shall remain unchanged until the Ierri-
tory, with such boundaries as Congress may
prescribe, shall have a population OF ifty thou
sand white inhabitants, when the white male
citizens thereof, over the age Of twenty-one
years. may proceed to form Constitution ana
government for themselves, and exercise all
the rights of self government consistent witn
the Constitution Of the United States; and when
such new State shall contain the requisite pop
ulation for member of Congress, according to
the then Federal ratio ofrepresentation, 1t shall
be admitted into the Union on an equal footing
with the original States, with or without sla-
very, as the Constitution Of such new state
shall provide at the time Of admission; and IN
the mean time such new State shall be entitled
to one delegate in the Senate, to be chosen by
the Legislature, and one delegate in the House
Of Representatives, to be chosen by the people
having the qualifications requisite for electors
of the most numerous branch of the Legislature;
and said delegate shall have all the rights and
privileges of Senators and Representatives, re-
spectiyely, except that of voting


The amendments further provide that no
more territory shall be acquired except by
treaty, or by the concurrent vote OF two
thirds of each House Of Congress; that the
new States shall contain not less than sixty
nor more than eighty thousand square miles
that the provisions of the Constitution for
delivering up fugtives from justice and fu-
gitives from labor shall have the same force
IN the Territories and new States as in the
States of the Union; that the elective fran
chise shall not be exercised by persons o.
the African race; that Congress shall have
no power to abolish slavery within the lin
its OF slave-holding States, In the District o
Columbia, nor to prohibit the transporta
tion of slaves from one State to another, Oh
to Territory in which slaves are permit
ted by law to be held; but the AfEicaI
slave trade shall be forever suppressed
Congress shall have power to acquire terri
tory in Africa and South America for th
colonization, al the expense of the Fedora
treasury, of such free negroes and mulat
toes as the several States may wish to bav
removed from their limits. In case OF th
failure of the Marshal to execute the fugi
tive slave law by violence and intimidation
or the rescue Of fugitive by force, th
United States is to pay the owner the ful
value of the slave, the county in which th
rescue was made to be responsible to tn
government for the amount paid, and tn
county to have recourse upon the rescuers


These amendments present the most prac
tical basis for a compromise of any offeret
during the present session of Congress, ant
their adoption would, in great measure
put an end to the discussion OF the SLAYER!
question. But there is little hope of an!
compromise being adopted during this ses
sion Of Congress. To amend the Constitu
tion, requires the vote of two.thirds of eacl
branch of Congress, and the ratification o
the amendments by two-thirds Of the States
1t is too much to hope that the requisite
number of Senators and Representatives o
the present Congress will agree upon any
plan of compromise.