Year: 1859







AUTHORIZED PUBLISHERS OF THE UNITED STATE
The Wilmot Proviso-.-Popular Sovereignty


The kansas-Nebraska Act.


Ever since 1S47, when the Wilmot Proviso was
offered in the House of Representatives, the people
of the South, acting in concert with the national
Democracy, have been anxious to remove the slave
ry question from the halls of Congress and conine
it to the people of the Territories to be Immediately
affected by it. That Proviso and its history are
too we'll known to render it necessary that we
should dwell upon them. 1t is sufficient to remind
our readers that it was proposed by Mr. Wilmot and
others that no territory should be received from
Mexico at the close of the war, unless upon condi-
ton that African slavery should be forever prohibit
ed therein; the free States thereby manifesting a
determination not only to monopolize all territory
north of the Missouri line, but all south Of it. as it
should be acquired Mr.. buchanan was the first of
the prominent Democrats Of the free States to lead
off against the Proviso he did in his celebrated
Berks County letter; and Gen. Cass soon followed
in his Nicholson letter. The effort then was to ex
tend the Missouri line to the Pacific ocean, Mr.. Cal
houn, Mr.. Cobb and other Southern men uniting
with Mr.. Buchanan, Gen. Cass, and Judge Douglas
to effect this object But the effort failed and at
length the "Comprcmise measures" of 1850 were
adopted Meanwhile California came in with
Constitution prohibiting slavery, which was the re-
suit of irregular action proceeding from military
camp, under the auspices of the Taylor administra
ton. The "Compromise" as to Utah and New
Mexico provided that those Territories when organ
Stoto 6o od, into TpiC
with or without slavery" as their Constitutions
should prescribe. This was regarded as to some
extent triumph for the South, inasmuch as the
whole of Utah and portion of New Mexico are
north of the Missouri line. The acts organizing
those Territories substantially abrogated the Mis-
souri, restriction; but it was not until 1854, when
the Kansas Nebraska act was passed, that this re-
striction was, in so many words, repealed


The leading object, we have stated, of the
the disturbing question of slavery from Congress,
and to conne it to the people Of the Territories.
At late period in the struggle, however, Southern
statesmen struck boldly for the repeal of the Mis-
souri, restriction, and were aided in the movement
by the true men of the national Democracy in the
free States. This the inevitable effect of the
doctrine of nonintervention proclaimed in 1853 and
1854 for without it. and with the existence Of that
line and its extension to the Pacific, the doctrine
would have been Intervention on one side and non-
Intervention on the other. 1t eas great principle
wAcA soas contended tor rather than the hope that
slavery would secure permanent foothold in Ncbras-
ka and Kansas,-th principle that the people of
the South were joint owners with those of the
North of all the Territories, and had good right
to emigrate to them with their property as the
North had with theirs All hope that Congress
would do Justice to the South in the common Terri
tories had long since vanished AS early as Sep
tember, 1S4s, we said in this journal sit is idle
to calculate for one moment that the Representatives
in Congress from the non-slaveholdng States
stituting as they do the majority, and holding the
power-will ever vote to establish slavery, enact
laus to protect it, in these new Territories" Our
reliance was therefore, on the people OF the Terri
tories; on the federal Constitution, which we insist
ed then, and still insist, carried slavery into and
protected it in the Territories; and on the Supreme
Court of the United States, which has recently fully
confirmed and sustained the Southern view of the
subject This, however, was not all that large
portion of the Southern people thought they had a
right to expect; but it regarded as greatly pre-
ferable to continued agitation in Congress, and to
the Wimot Poviso ITSELF which the Freesolers in
sisted, and may Southern men admitted, Congress
could constitutonay pass.


Having said thus much by way of introduction,
we shall refer in our next to the recent debate in
the Senate on Popular Sovereignty and the Kansas
Nebraska act and submit such views on these sub
jects as we deem just and proper. Our purpose is
if we can do with strict and jealous regard for
Southern rghts-to continue to cooperate with the
national Democratic party; because we believe that
the preservation and the ascendency of that party
are indispensable to constitutional perpetuation of
the Union. Our opinion is that continue
thus to co-operate but the party in both sections
must act with prudence between this and the
Charleston Convention, and in that body to render
this cooperation certain and successful.


FIFTH CONGRESSIONAL Observation-Disclosures q Wad-
dell, ESQ., Of Chatham announces himself in the last
Registsr as candidate for Congress in this District
Mr. Wad6el1 Withdraw two vears aVo for the benefit