Year: 1861

WASHINGTON, March 26.-William Hickey. the
newly appointed Secretary of the Senate ,yas
sworn In, and entered upon his duties.-The Sen
ate then took up the resolution nstructinp the
Secretary of the Senate to purchase, for the use of
Senators, number of copies of the Annals of Con-
gress.-Aiter some discussion, on motion of Mr.
bingham; @ the consideration of the resolution was
postponed till omorrow.-The Senate then took mn
the Douglas resolution, and Mr.. BRECKINRIDGE
proceeded to address that body. He had some
doubts at first with regard to voting for the resou-
ton, but being desirOuS of learning the policy of the
Administration, he had concluded to sustain it.
He could not where or in what particular
the Republican party had abandoned the princples
of the Chicago platform. The extreme Southern
states had not discovered it, the Border States had
Jailed to secure any compromise, and even the
party itself could not tell wherein they had sacri
need the least of their principles. The complaint
which had sundered the Union was, that the prom.
erty OF one-half the Union could not obtain proec
ton There was not a Senator on the other side
who would agree to give the South an equal share
OF the Territories. They could not cure existing
evils by trying to deceive themselves or others as tc
the true ISSUE They had been sitting, since the
4th of March, looking at dismembered country.
at the consolidated power of the Southern Confed-
eracy and at the dscontents in the border States.
Dutno word OF Cancellation or arrangement came
rom the other side. Unless in q short time the
Northern people agreed to give the South her
equality, they would either drift into civil strife or
to enter into treaty with the seeded States
The adoption of the Crittenden resolutions at the





States except South Carolina, but unless in six
months the demands of the border States we're
met, the trouble would end in war or settle
itself by the withdrawal of State after State from
the Federal Union. H believed the Constitution
OF the Confederate States in accordance with
the true spirit of the original instrument and that
at no distant day that mig ght be the larger Confed-
eracy. He thought it strange that after a session of
three weeks, during crisis like this, the President
had communicated to no member of the Senate the
nature of his policy. He appealed to Senators on
the other side to express their views and not ait
silent and allow the country to drift into civil war;
They on the Democratic side were pOwerless What
ever was done should come from the Republicans
MIR. DOUGLAS said he intended no arraign-
ment of the motives conduct of the Senator from
Kentucky. He still contended that under the bills |
organizing territories at the last session. the people
of the South had the right to enter the territories
The Republicans had abandoned the Wilmot prov- |
so and adopted his doctrine of non-intervention. |
which he had advocated for many years. The |
Southern States now in the Union had therefore no
Just cause of complaint. He therefore surprised
that the Senator from Kentucky had denied his |
(DouglasD positions, and had contended that the |
Republicans had not yielded one iota of their OBJ
Jectonal views. lie (Mr. Breckinridge) had stated
the terms upon which alone the border States would
remain in the Union, and then said there was no |
hope of their getting those terms. On his part he
held that Kentucky had all the justice and equality
she had ever demanded, and the Senator had not |
undertaken to disprove his assertion In fact the
South had all south of 81 degrees instead of 36o
~, ha'fa degree more than proposed in the
Crittenden propositions. if the Senator's view
was correct, that the Dred Scott decision de-
cided the question for all time for all the
Territories. then they were all open to the
South. If the question had to be decided BY the
court, as it might hereafter arise in the different
territories then they were pledged to abide by such
decision. He reiterated that the Republicans
had abandoned the doctrine of prohibition of
slavery by Congress, and that the South
should be satisfied. The Senator from Ken
had demanded, and should be content. He
should go to Kentucky and tell his people that the
South had justice and equality, and urge her to ad
here to the Union. He demazde ed of every Union
man that tins TACT should be proclaimed to the peo
pie of the South to calm their apprehensions and
subdue their frenzy. The Senator should tell his
people first that they had assurance that their
rights would never be violated in the territories;
mended to the Constitution, forever securing
their rights in the States. Moreover, he could
say that Mr.. Lincoln, in his inaugural, had
by advocating a faithful execution of the fu-
gitve slave law, recognized the right of pro-
perty in slaves. He was no apologist for the
Republican party, but it was undenable that |
they had abandoned their Wilmot proviso |
views. Territorial governments had now been es- |
tabshed over every inch of territory in the United
States, and there was nothing to which to apply |
prohibition BRECKENRIDGE denied that |
he had committed any error in stating the position
OF the Republican party. He would not charge





represent him, but he had endeavored to draw from
his speech the improper inference that he favored
immediate secession. He did say that the now
dominant party had not yielded their distinctive
views, and if be believed that party were to remain
dominant, he would have little hope of the Union.
They could not save the Union by trying to per-
suade the people OF the South that they had that
which they knew they did not have, and that
the dominant party had abandoned views
which they had not abandoned. He would not
charge the Senator from Illinois with seeking to in
Jure hm personally or to deceive his people, but
sucn might De the effect of his remarks. tie would
admit that the President Of the United States had
recognized the duty of Congress or the States to
provide for the rendition of fugitiyes from labor
and to that limited extent he mig bit be said TO re-
cognize the legality of slavery in the States where
it existed but he had subscribed to tho doctrine
that freedom was the normal condition of the tor
ritores, and that neither Congress nor territorial
legislature could legaze its existence there These
plain declarations, which had never been recanted
were worth more than all the ingenious
twistngs of the Senator from Illinois
With such facts before him, be never
would tell his people that their rights were Sc
cure. The reason the Republicans did not ap-
ply the Wilmot prOvisO to the territorial bills last
session was because they had not the power, and,
moreover, felt secure of the territories then organ
lZed. They knew that the whole machinery of the
territorial governments would be with them the
PRESIDENT appointing the judges and other officers.
ct IN the face of all this, the Senator from Hi
nols persisted in urging him to tell the peope of
kentucky that they never stood in better posi-
ton as to the security of their rights. He could
not say this truthfully, nor tell the people that
the Republicans had abandoned their views. when
he knew to the contrary.-Mr. DOUGLAS re-
sPonded at some length, repeating, however that
whlcn he said in his Fpreyious speeches-Tbe
Senate then went into executive session. and after
wards adjourned.