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% Kit wood Flabor 4k Edwtm De Leon, i T E&MS.AAi -^ ( DAILY, #M> 00 TKl-WKEKLY, '* ' 4 <*? IV . KltLY, ...... SOU $f - Subscriptions psrtNe ta advance. Any pop. soo MMinar Hue subscribers abaU nwlrt wwcu^ grata. All tetters to the Editors to be COBT-iMjja. PRIXTFD BT O. k. SAOK, Omcw, Pe?n<rlmiii Avenue south side, WtWeak 3 i and 41 straoU. . t .. < SLAVERY Iff THE TEKR1T0RIKS. W SPEECH OP Mr. A W. VENABLE, of North Carolina, 1m Tftc Iiovta or Iti:par.teNT4,Tivs?f . t Junt 1, 1H4S. In Committee etf the Mole, upon the jtoteer qf Concrete to legislate upon the. subject of slavery in the Territories. Mr. \ ENABLE said: Mr. CiiAfaauti: The extent to which Congress may exercise legislative authority over the Territories of the United States, has be-' conic a subject of most absorbing interest. It is felt to be so in every portion of our country ?has been the source of deep feeling and agitating debate, ami will continue to excite and disturb the renose of the country until definite action shall fix a conclusion for the popular * mind. 1 am not one of those who belive that ^ jAl; + 1>AILY . . * ' t| . Vol. 1. Washington, Monday, July 8, IS50. Ho. 18. ff.i! , , _J i . - ., . , ?, . . II! ,| , ' . ? ? .. i u , . .i ? evil must grow out of full and fair discussion amongst statesmen, on great constitutional questions involving our rights; nor shall I be deterred from a thorough investigation, bv a clamor about abstractions, often raised to prevent the analysis of the principles which are contained in an important line of policy. Every fundamental truth is an abstraction, and he only is a great statesman who can first analyze a question, und then, by his mental balance, weigh the result of the operation, and ascertain the proper force and value of the elements wliieh couqtose it. Facts often mislead us, because we assign wrong causes for their existence; and when this is done, the most plausible array of facts, the most ingenious deductions therefrom, are delusive, for the same reason. Truth reduced to its elementary principles, affords the only safe guide to investigation, and the only satisfactory conclusions are those which are formed from such a development This subject, Mr. Chairman, has become one of great practical importance, and I avail myself of this occasion to present my views to the committee and the country?to assert the rights of my constituents and the State which I In part represent, to the common property of all the people of ail the States. A convention recently held at Raleigh, speaking the sentiments of .the Democracy of North Carolina, most distinctly asserted their opposition to thp doctrines recently made prominent, by their tendency to restrict the occupation of the territorial possessions of the United States to those citizens who reside in States where slavery does not exist. The clear and temperate but decided manner in wliich their determination to resist such opinions is expressed, admonish me of the propriety of urgimr their wishes upon this House; whilst I assure you that their conclusions are not- referable to impetuosity in action, nor have they been rash in their adoption. Their history is that of a quiet, reflecting people, never involved in the vortex of high party impulse?patient of wrongs, when the remedy was to be seen in the fundamental laws of the country?devoted to the Union and the Constitution?ready to make sacrifices where" prudence or patriotism required them, but never willing to abandon either their principles or their rights; always ready to assert them as patriots should, but always expecting that enlightened statesmanship, and the high sense of justice, which should characterise their fellow-citizens who were c .lied to legislate for our common country, would accord to them what was due, and remedy or remove any cause of compl int. In asking the indulgence of the committee whilst I endeavor to argue this question, I sincerely hope that I may be believed when I declare that my purpose is not to agitate but to compose?to pour oil on the waters wlueh have been troubled?to present no useless, and distracting issues, nor to place our friends in the IVorth and West in a false position before their constituents. We desire no sacrifices of the kind ; \vr> rmlv nslr for t.hn nf Constitution; and wo feel assured that we shall ** not ask in vain. I trust, sir, that I shall be able to present such a view of this question that all of us may at least acquiesee in biking a position which secures the honor of all, and does equ. 1 justice to all; that a good understanding may be established, and peace and good-will be , restored to our deliberations. The heirs of a common inheritance, won by the sacrifices and the valor of our ancestors, or accumulated by the progress of our own greatnoss, should never descend from their high station to wrangle about the position, or permit folly to estrange those who ought to be bound together by the most sacred bonds. ""With this view, sir, I declare that we are content to abide the Missouri Compromise; not that we believe that Congress had any right to annex any such condition, or to enact any such law; but the compromise having been made and acquiesced in for near thirty years, there is no purpose entertained by any Southern statesman to disturb it now. If this compromise would. < adjust this difference, if it would cdropose this i troubleT we are content to abide it and the re- i newal of its operation recognized by the laws admitting Texas into the Union, and adjusting its territorial limits. In doning this, and enter* . i ing our protest as to the power of Congress to make the compromise, we say to our fellowcitizens of the non-slaveholding States, We have made large concessions; we have given up a large territory, to which our slaveholders can not remove; we*nave consented to maKcrtcx-i clusivcly yours; whilst we have placed uo restriction to prevent you from the occupation of the territories to which we are permitted - come. This concession abridges our rights, without the promise of a consideration; it enlarges yours, without any equivalent being, paid by you; yet. lor peace, harmony, and goodwill. we have acquiesced, and will continue to acquiesce; and are now willing that the same parallel of latitude may be recognized until it reach the Pacitic shore, if that is the hist con* cession which shall be demanded. And here lot me ask gentlemen, when, in the history of our mitional progress, did any Southern statesman j invade the institutions of the North ? \Vhcn were demands made for peculiar or exclusive i privileges, from which any other citizens of our i common country were excluded? If this be < true, we ask that the offensive doctrines of the i Wilniot Proviso be withdrawn from the Oregon 1 bill; that this obstruction be removed from the progress of that measure. The whole country i is above the parallel of 36 dcg. 30 min., and is 1 within the spirit and meaning of the Missouri ] Compromise. Why do they seek to annex tliis ; feature to the bill? Is it to obtain another pre- 1 cedent?to shake the chains in our luces, and j 1 tench the South the humiliating truth that tb?y j are powerless whenever a bare majority of votes i c in be obtained here ? Can any good resnlt < from this policy, either in the advance of na- 1 tional prosperity or the cultivation of kind and J patriotic feeling* in our great family ? Permit < mes sir, to say, with all respect, that in such a .1 work aa this, demagogue* find their proper occu- i pition, agitators their appropriate employment < The petty politician, whose horiron ta ctreum- 1 scribed by the events of a single enmp:dgn, 1 whose little heart is filled to overflowing wrth 1 but small success, may labor it) such a cause ' with ardor and with 2eal; but the elevated .1 ss iteaman, the high-souled patriot, whose enter- J prise is his country's glory, whose vision, extending to fatureagve,looks through the vista,1 and realises sU of happinem, prosperity mid rw I powp, wfcfcb hA Jove.M cwiHIHhWif U V hi* countrymen shall secure, will frown upon the first cilint to mar the harmony and destroy the confidence of bit countrymen in each other. Iii* reward wdl be rich: it will i?e the gratitude of jvMrterity. I trust, air, that the Oregon hill will be passed; tiwi it-will not be delayed by this unnecessary proviso; that the <JTV of distress, wftfcb reaches us from the miseries ol'savage warfare, may be forever hushed, bv sending promptly & territorial government and a military forte to their immediate relief. ! hare said thus mueh, sir. in passing, in relation to the Missouri Compromise aud its legitimate results, as tendering one-platform on which We all can stand, both North and South: the South, indeed, shorn of some of her privileges, but willing to concede thein for tranquility and repose: yielding, but with a pi-otctfnndo; acquiescing in, but not approving, the means, or Acknowledging the right to enact it. But, sir, the consummation of a peace with Mexico, (which, I suppose, may now be considered a fixed fact,) presents this question in an interesting and practical jmsltion before us, involving most im-1 portant results, una leading direct I v to the development of the policy to be adopted in relation to the territories of the United States. We are culled upon to meet the question directly, and to decide whether the Wilniot Proviso shall In brought to bear upon the territorial acquisitions of the Mexican war, or in what other manner this vexed question is to be settled. -And here, sir, permit me to say, that I adopt the doctrine of non-intervention on the port of Congress in its fullest extent. As 1 deny the right of Congress to legislate slavery into existence in anv territory of the UnitedStates, so I also dei\v the riglrt to forbid it. I adopt the language .of the resolution of the late Baltimore Convention, as meeting niy approbation : 44 That all efforts of the Aboftionists, or others, to induce Congress to interfere wifh questions of slavery, of to take incipient steps thereto, aro calculated to lead to the most alarming and dangerous consequences, and thfit all such efforts have an inevitable tendency to diminish the happiness of the people, and to endanger the stability and permanence of the Union, and ought .apt to be countenanced by any friend of our political institutions Lauguage which most strikingly illustrates the folly, as well us the deplorable consequences of assuming the right of Congress to interfere with this relation,?a declaration which, if adopted and sustained in good faith, in all its intent and meaning, must forever re move from all our deliberation and intercourse this exasperating difficulty. If the right of Congress to legislate in the premises be granted then the whole question is settled. There is no limit but their discretion, no safety but thoelem oncy of a majority. But, sir, the'framers of that instrument were wise men. whose urofound so gjcity and immaculate virtue, combined with a patriotism unsurpassed in all human history, qualified them to guard tfio infancy of the nation whieh sprung into existence by their prowess, as well as to provide for the development of that greatness wliich they distinctly foresaw. No aspect of the future escaped their observation, no contingency which might arise was omitted in their provisions; and It is to this Constitution that we refer to adjust this question and fix the principles on wliich, I trust, we may agree. The extent of legislative power over the territories of the United States, whieh may be constitutionally exercised by Congress, is to be Found in the third section of tin) fourth article of the Constitution, which provides that " Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful rnles and regulations respecting the territory and other property of the TJnitoif "Htntes; and nothing in tiiis Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice the claims of the United States or of any particular State." The clear and. unquestionable meaning of which must be, tluit territory is regarded as property, and the rules and regulations referred to are such as shall be necessary to make the territories and other property available. Any rule needful for this purpose, is coutrary to the intent and meaningof the provision. No person can suppose that the words "disposeof can have any meaning by which Congress shall have power to waste, to cede away, or otherwise render the territories of the United States unavailable for the great purpose of supplying the national treasury and ministering to the wants of the people of the United States. Any other construction of those words might transfer the treaty-making power to Congress, and give authority to cede awav the public domain. It is true, that the power to acquire territory implies the power to govern it when acquired; but it is also true, that such government must be in accordance with the Constitution^ But Congress does not acquire territory. The people of the United States acquire it, and have the right to govern it, and have limited Congress, as their trustee, in the name of Government, by the Constitution. Congress oould have no power to establish religion or to create titles of nobility in the territories, because expressly denied by the Constitution; and when the laws of the United States are extended over a tefritory. it must be understood that, the Constitution and laws are so extended, and that nothing repugnant to the Constitution can be in force as a law. I know that it is asserted, and j that by Southern statesmen, that Congress has unlimited-power of legislation over the territories ; but it" this be true, thejt Congress may, by law, cpnunit (lie entire government of tin- per- i sons and property iri the territories to the will of' a single individual, and thus present the anomaly of a despotism created and sustained by the Constitution itself.?a conclusion so-monstrous as only to require the annunciation to carrv homo ! the conviction of its fid lacy to every mind. There can be no doubt of the proposition,' that whatever was property when toe Fed- j eral Government came into existence, under i our Constitution, so far as that Government is | concerned, must ever remain property. The | States, as sovereigns, alone can alter the j rights of tilings within their own jurisdiction.1 and that by virtue of their sovereignty. The i Federal Government is therefore bound to eon-j sider as property all that was so considered at its i adoption, and the Constitution guaranties the ; enjoyment of that jiroperty fn tranquility and ^ Heeivrity to ah the holders, so* far as the laws of j the United States arc operative in the premises, j And this is true whenever that property is pin-; led under the jurisdiction of the laws of the I United States. Now, the territories ary the public domain, the common property of nil the citizens of the States?acquired by the expenditure of the common purse, or purchased by lis- j valor of our people, without reference to geo graphical distinctions, or domestic municipal regulations. It follows, then, that in the territories ' ,/ tk, a, i j. . , I i/i ?n viiiwQ cones, even oeiore an oigat)i2c<i Snernment ia instituted, the Constitution and ws recognise the right of property; for none tin for a moment assume thLt toe territories of the United States, are without law, or tb .t it is necessary that s temporary government should exist to 'bring them under the operation of thu [aw. The Government is bound to protect them from invasion and injury,, Wctuse they are the property of the United States.? Then the question arises?wh ,t is the Qjfeot ef the organiz .tion of a territorial government upon the rights of property amongst the inhabituita of the territory so pLced under organic law < If the previous reasoning be correct, before such fcfsrardxation all the citizens of the United States bad fight to go law the territories, ?ad ^ * r carry with them those subjects recognised as property by the Constitution. If this right be t either weakened or destroyed, it must be from the effort of territorial organization. In order to ertve that effort, the organization must communicate tiio attribute of sovereignly, or bo itaoif the Mt of a so\orcigo?*wor. We then inquire, is the Congress of toe United States sovereign ? or as to wh^t aubjecU is it sovereign? rCo one can claim sovereignty, prr se, for a delegated authority. Sb fir as power ia delegated, so far is its operation dual and complete, asm no further. The Constitution, with aixiiidaut caution, guards Una point* by declaring, that whatever power ia r.ot expressly ceded bye I tiie States in tlutt instrument, is reserved to the Stales respectively and the people of the States; thus declaring that the Pcderal Government is a lucre trusted for the sovereign State? of this Confederacy,-witli wetl-dcfincd and strictly limited powers. If, then, all the citizens of all the States had a right to go with tlieir property upon tliepublic domain before territorial organization: if Congress must regard ns property whatever was so regarded by the States adopting it, then it follows that a territorial organization can give Congress no powers whfeh it did not before possess under the Constitution. If Congress I does not possess the"i>bwor, then no relatiou ' created by law with the habitant of a territory 1 does communicate thiit power to either party. 1 It Juis been said, with much plauaibitfyt that, ,J territorial legislatures have exorcised powers de- ?j nied to Congress under tlic Constitution; that 1 thqy have granted bank charters and created cor- | poratfous; that they havo borrowed-monef Upon i the faith of the territorial government, and ex-M ercieed other acta of sovereignty. Conceding | the accuracy of this statement of facts, nothing is < proved but that the territorial government did < what Congress disapproved of, and that which ? they were not authorized to do. The creation ? of a corporation is one of the highest acts of sove- i reignty, for it is creating a legal ow ner to pro- i perty invested with the rights of a jwrson?an 1 authority denied to Congress, because not spe- 1 cilicd in the powers of which this Federal Gov- i eminent is a trustee. It assumes that luider the j effect of an organic law extended to a territory ] and accepted by the inhabitants, the powers of ) Congress are enlarged, and that by the approbv ' tlon of such an act of territpral legislature, Con- < gross may, by implication, charter a bank, Which i it could not do directly by its own action. Debts contracted by a territory upon its faith and credit 1 are of no legal obligation upon the people of that J Territory after it has become a State. And if 1 Congress have transcended their power in legislating for any territory, the argument derived from this usurpation is met bv the maxim, that an evil usage must be abolished. I am aware there must arrive a time wheu the power of complete sovereignty sliall be exorcised; which time, I sliall.be able to show, is fixed by the Constitution itself. Much, sir, may be learned by a reference to facts, as well as the practice of the Government. Our whole policy in territorial organization, has been with a view to the most prudent disposition of the public domain with reference to its profitable sale. . When settlers occupied so much-of the public domain as to rehder it manifest that there would be ft demand for the lands, ah organic law has been tendered to the habitant, in order that, under a civil organization, land offloes and other facilities for the sale of land and tranfer of title? should be made. In these organic laws, Congress haa repudiated the idea ol' sovereignty in the Terri tones, by reserving the right of revie'.v iny, and repealing if necessary, the law s enacted By the territorial legislature. When the inhabitants of a territory accept, the organic law with all its conditions, the government is then organized and continues until it expire*, ex ti termini, in the sovereignty of the State to be form-1 ed out of said Territory. Now, the creation of this territorial organization and the existence of tliis temporary government gave no jus accre.scendum either to this local legislature, the people of the territory, or to Congress. The laws of the United States, for the protection of persons and property, were extended over them: but it was a government consistent with and according to the Constitution?a government limited by the Constitution, and possessing no authority beyond its grants. "So that the right to govern is not in flu's case a right of absolute sovereignty, but of sovereignty qualified by the 1 provisions of fundamental law. The decision of J i the Supreme Court, declaring that the right to i < acquire territory implies the light to govern it j i when acquired, is predicated upon the aaaiunp- 1 tion that the government to be administered ] < must beaccording to tho Constitution of the i United States. They sustain rather tjian conflicts with the conclusion to which I have arrived. The question then arises, at what time does the right iicerne, and to whom, to decide upon and fix the domestic institutions and the ; municipal Jaw of tlie territories I And who is j invested with that authority ? It will be seen, j by reference to.tlie same section of the Constitin- i tion referred to, as controlling the power over j territories, that "Congress may admit new .States into this Union." A reference to the Madison Pnpers will enlighten us as to this provision. A proposition was made j to authorize Congress to form new States out | of the territories belonging to tlie United States.; which was rejected, ^nd the pro\ ision above quo- j ted was adopted. Nothing could lufve been | wiser and more consistent with tlie principle*" of the trainers of the Constitution. The United j States arc sovereign States, and the Constitution is a compact, of sovereign States; and inasmuch ' as Congress Could not confer sovereignty upon tr territory, it was left to the people of the territory to assert their own sovereignty, and then, as sovereign, come into the rcueruT Union. They wisely concluded tliat an act of Congress declaring n territory a sovereign State would in f.ir.t invesl it with no attribute of severe! irntv but thnt the people of the territory, at a proper time, Itetng tie* only source of sovereignty. could make the doclaration for themselves. According! v, whenever a i" itc has been admitted into the Vuion, it h:i? been after their constitution has been adopted iind their sovereignty announced;.-ind then, as one of our i/lorioug sisterhood, she lr:s been welcomed smongst ns. Tbis power was withheld (Vom Coogi. ss, and left with tlie people. Naris tl>e Constitution silent as to tike time .vb' ivthis event shall take place. The indications in t}?c Constilt.tion arc so.clearly ioiarkcd, Mr. Chairman, as io leave no room fc?r conjecture. In the a-vona section of the first article it is provld'd that there shall be an apporttdnrttent of r-pr.. sanation to population, and ; that each State shall Imve at least one roprcsen-! Urtive. It was distinctly foreseen that Kentucky,. Tennessee, and the gryst Aorthv.estern Territory was eoun to be tilled with inhabitants?soon to demand admission into the Confederation; and with the forecast which marked all their acts, it. was fured when such a demand might be made, and when it would be the duty of Congress to moot it and comply. The Constitution, was made with reference to the extension of our institutions, sod the increase la the number of the State*. When, therefore, the minority of the territory shall have ceased?when the residents, who hove made their hemes upon the public domain, now transferred by safe to the occupants thereof shall havcamounted to a sufficient number to give them a right to claim a representation on thjs floor?thep tbey have reached a position in their owaUnce on which to oaaert their sovereignty by adopting fmtdevMBta) law for Owosejv*., fixing their own domestic policy, admitting or excluding slavery, and doing anv other thing which U not inconsistent with republican government When tills constitution is ud<q>U*l, they have a right to ask, and Congress is bound to admit, the sovereign State into the Confederacy. Itcartnotbe gravely asserted that the sovereignty accrues to the State by the acknowledgment or expression of consent on the part of Congrca. As well might the independence of a government be ascertained by its recognition by other Governments. Independence must exist before | it is recognized, and sovereignty must spring from its proper source, the action of the jieople, i and its acknowledgment by Congress admits its previous existence. When the people of a territory grow into numbers sutfu ient to constitute a State under the Constitution, and slutll abolish or establisli slavery in their constitution, no ouc lias a right to question their authority so to do. I do not iiwoke the authority of Congress to protect slaves as property in the territories. 1 ask for no legislation upon the subject. They are ulready recognized as property "by the Constitution and laws, and the courts ail'ord ample protection to the rights of pro|>orty. Legal riguts must of necessity be decided by the courts. A mere territorial government owing its existence to an act of Congress, subjecting its laws to the veto of Congress, ami leaning tor the expenses of Hs administration upon Congress, can surely lay no ilniiu to the attributes of sovereignty. The Constitution and laws which bind Congress bind them, and -they can neither create nor destroy institutions recognized and guarantied . by* that Constitution. If I am asked why any particular [hhiii 01 nine anoum oe denoted as uiul in w indi i territory may acquire and assert the sovoreignty of n State, I reply, that the reason is the same ts that which centers the right of self-dm>ction | md self-control upon an individual who has reached the age of twenty-one years. A time must be designated, and tlmt decision must be the result of prndence and sound reason. The iibject of our system is to extend republican institutions; and when a territory shall have passed the years of its minority, and acquired a population sullieieutly numerous to ontiUe it to u representative on this tloor, it has all the elements of sovereignty, and can perfect it by the proper combination and concentration of those elements. ' ' But this question ts presented in a most practical and important aspect when we consider tite results of the Mexican war. New Mexico una California are integral portions of our territory by the treaty of peace, w.iich we, luive reason to believe has been ratified between the countries. They will require a territorial organization at our hands, and we are already tohi by a gentleman from New York, [Mr. Mtntgrnr,] that inasmuch as the laws t>f those provinces already forbid .slavery, it cannot exist witnin their limits without legislative enactments. To sustain this position, he has referred to the opinion ol" Lord Mansfield in the case of Campbell against Hall, (1 Cowper's Reports,) where Lord Manslielu lays down the doctrine tliat the laws of a conquered country continue iii force until they are altered by the conqueror; a doctrine which, if taken in its full extent, secnis' subversive of alt the received principles of the law of conquest and which, however applicable to toe English Government, is totally repugnant tn our inntitu tions arid our fundamental law Tnere can be no civil dominion over any territory of the United States, which is not fotuided upon tlie Constitution. From this source it must emanate, and as soon- as either by treaty or by tlie sworn u territory is incorporate-I within the limits of the United States, tne Constitution immediately attaches to it and is operative upon it, nnd whatever is repugnant to, or subversive of, its pro visions must fall before its power. This must bo manifest; for, if otherwise, we might have an established religion in those provinces, against the express provisions of tie Constitution, and the security of persons and of property might be utterly lost against all the guarantees provided for tneir protection. The conquered nation would give 1 iw to their conquerors, nnd the result of victory would be the subjection of the victors. It is true, that the laws of nations do repoguize the force of all laws, even in conquered countries, which are nocessury for peace and tranquillity, until repealed or altered by the conqueror*. But it is only of such laws as are not in conflict With the conquered Power. Whenever the laws in California and New Mexico conflict with, and are repugnant to, the Constitur?f the United States, that Constitution at once overrides such laws, and by the very act of cession or of conquest, becomes the supreme law of the land. It would be a monstrous conclusion at which to arrive, that after all the costs and sacrifices of war, the population of the conquered territory have the power to dictate the terms on which their conquerors shall occupy their country. It would be equally repugnant to the principles of right and justice so to adjust the matter, that a large portion of the citizens of the United States, aven the very men whose lives were periled in the war, should be excluded from occupying the land that they bad won witli their swords. We ieny the right of Congress to legislate u|>on the subject, eitlier to extend or to forbid slavery; we ask for no legislation at the hands of Congress in the premises: neither are we willing that tlie Mexican population, confessedly inferior in all the elements of civilization and capacity for self-government, should erect a barrier to the emigration of the citizens of fifteen States >f this Republic. No, sirwe invoke neither the aid of Congress to legislate slavery into existence there, nor will we admit t in: authority of the present population to control ft, unless in a lonclttion to be erected into a State government ?nd ready to purfeet such, an organization. The Constitution recognizes slaves as property. Whenever territory' is acquired, it is the i?roper,y of all the people of all the States, and the Constitution sis;ures to every citizen the right to >ceupy tlwt territory on equal terms with any ithcr citizen of any of our confemted Statos. Gentlemen sometimes appear astonished that his subject excites so much interest with the eprcsentatives of the Southern States. I think hat this surprise will cease when they are adiscd that in ull the phases of this matter, as preentcd in the shape of alternatives, the South uust be loser and cannot gain. If tho Missouri Compromise extended to the 1'acific prevails, (and o this we consent,) the slavcholding States snr onih'r miii'H nnA rrot midline in rohirn If I ho tVilmot Proviso is .adopted, all this lost to those States, and all the territories of the United States ire monopolized by the citizens of fifteen States o the exclusion of the other fifteen. Should it >e determined that as soon as a territorial govirnment is formed, the people of tiie territory an settle this question legislatively, the seme esult will most probably follow, inasmuch as migration is muca greater from the free States ban from the others. And lastly, shoo id the loctrine that the laws of tho portion of Mexico ;edcd to us by the treaty are in force until re >ealed ly the conquering Power, all that tdrriory is forever closed to the citizens of those states which recognize slaves ss property. 1 un sure that no person supposes that the Southern people or their Representatives are so egardless of their rights m to admit the pro priety of such concessions. I could never, s'.r, return to my constituents after approving of such measures, without a deep conviction that I deserved their contempt a?d an sMuwice thatI?Md yXftaw t* to ledTpiJrW'L t ecoive their?exoeratiou. Neither can I be iu? duced to believe, that any considerable number of our fellow-citizens in any portion of the (J nion, desire such a state of things. A demand so unreasonable, and the operation of which would beso glaringly unjust, eaunevur.be made by those who regard the rights of others, or properly estimate the great object* of tjto union of the Htatea. ' y? v. h.osjisa The wliolo of the difficulty in this vexed qliertion seems to me to be the result of a doubt which has arisen whether slaves be property under the Constitution. In these days or progress, it seems to have been discovered that they are not to be so regarded, and a philanthropic crusade is set on foot to prevent what is deemed the extension of a groat evil. So far as this Government la concerned, sir, it is a dry matter of law, and not a subject of transcendental rodomontade. Gentlemen may indulge in the recreation of philanthropic declamation, either for their own or the editioation of others. But, surely, ascertained and guarantied rights ure not to bo hazarded or questioned upon any such pretence. 1 arraign no man's motives for his opiiiious on the abstract question of slavery; it is snfficient for mo that 1 am satisfied with an institution which existed in my State before ray birth, and w ill continqe long after my death?an institution, the practical evils of Vrjiicn I have not been able to' discern, to which 1 refer much of tlve peculiar excellence of our institutions, and the absence of which would at once determine me In the choice of a residence, f have never j lived, and never expect to live, in auv portion of I tlio United States where this institution does not | ixist. Such, sir, are my opinions. It mav be that. | they are not the opinions of others. 1 arraign 1110 man for lih* taste or his conscientious convictions ; but i huvu said thus much because 1 think all rant and declamation on the general subject of slavery out of place in this discussion. Slaves were regarded as property at the formation of this Government, arid have. been so regarded by Congress whenever it was necessary to raise money by a direct tax. Even Mr. Jus tiee McLean, whose authority has been' invoked to prove that they are not property, belonged to the Congress which passed the direct-tax law, immediately at or about the close of the late war with Great Britain. . 1 presume lie voted for that law, us there is no evidence to the contrary. Skives are therein declared to ho uro pcrty, ordered to be treated as aueh, taxed aa such, and the tax declared to be a Hon on the slave until paid. The marshal was authorized to sell and convey the slave under a sale for t ixes. Slaves are now and ever liave been sold by tlte tnurslutl under executions at the instance of the United States, and no one has questioned the title thus acquired by the purchaser. Whence, then, can- the power arise, by which Congress may forbid the settlement of any of the citizens of the United States on our common inheritance with that which in recognized as property? With H'nal show of justice can discriminations be made in favor of one species of property and against another? or how can u right which looks for its origin to the exercise of State sovereignty, unimpaired by surrender to the General Goveminent be brought under the control of Congress ? Sir, it is a most serious, a most responsible undertaking, to determine that any portuni of our fellow-citizens are to be excluded from the inheritance of their fathers. You ask much, indeed, ! from us when you require us to consent to see our children disinherited?to register our approbation of the decree whicli illegitimates them as American citizens. Much more is asked than will ever be granted. If this reproach is to be upon us, it must never be by our own consent. The broad lands won by our fhthers of right belong to us all. The blood which flowed upon the plains of every battle-field from Saratoga to C-uniden, come from the woundBof patriots who, from the North and South, buckled on their armor to do battle for liberty?whose bold and manly hearts were never uuder the influence of unpatriotic feelings?who sought no local or sectional advantages, but regarded all this broad land as u common treasure to enrich themselves and their posterity. Happily for them, the delusion (if one) lasted long enough to save their honored faces from a blush at our degeneracy, i Happy whs his lot who slept on the field of his glory; thrice happy those who saw in the distance their country's prosperity, and left tha world before dissensions ana distrust threatened to bring distress where they looked for happiness, and dishonor where they looked for glory. Let it not be reserved for us, now that the family or etates nan increased from thirteen to thirty? when Heaven has rained prosperity itpon us in golden showers?when the eyes of a world struggling for their rights are turned to us with ngonizmg anxiety?when theconsummation of our glory and our power as a people can scarcely be conceived by the most vivid imagination?when the obedient lightning, coursing along on the wires of communication, will ere long place our kindred on the Pacific and Atlantic shores again in the family circle, and carry in a moment Hue ta|e of joy or of sorrow over rivers, and forests, and prairies, and plains?when distance shall no longer forbid association, and light and knowledge shull make their aggressive advance on darkness and barbarism? when the resources of our territories, developed under the creative energies of our wonderful people, shall, year after year, greet us with the organization of a new State, and the introduction of a new sister into the family, bright with all the paraphernalia of virgin sovereignty; let it not, sir, be reserved for us, in an unworthy struggle for political ascendency, or a more unworthy grasping for exclusive privileges, founded on sectional claims, to create and awake the elements of a storm which shall sweep over our bright and happy country, like the angel of destruction, leaving nothing but the wreck of liberty and the ruin of social institutions; which shall show to the world the tomb of liberty, the fragments of its temples; where the friends of our race shall weep, and the : i .1 i ^i ?i ? \T_ uiieiiiius (H nun in (j an vniincmtriit sunn rejoice. *.> u, sir; let a more enlightened policy prevail, a more generous impulse give direction to our measures; let the heaven-born spirit influence us which influenced the patriarchs, who, ascending to the mountain top, agreed to divide their wealth and divide their territories, the cider giving the younger one the choice, for " it was not meet for them to differ, fbr they were brethren." L*-t the lines of the Missouri Compromise extend to the Pacific. Tuke that invaluable territory, including the richest and the bent which the sun shines upon ; but leave us our rights; shorn indeed of mucn of their extent; and although you hold in your hands the aword of the law to exclude us, we will pluco no obstruction to emigration from your portion of this great Republic. Mr. Chairman, I present to the committee the resolution of the Baltimore Convention, which denounces, in the strongest terms, the interference of Congress with the institution of slavery, or even 1 the taking of incipient steps thereto. I oner to our Northern and Western brethren the Missouri Compromise, onerous and exacting as it is upon the South extending its provisions to the Pacific, including the fine soil, the magnificent harbors, and all the looal advantages which nature baa appropriated to these geographical limits. I admit the right of the inhabitants of the territories to make their own municipal institutions, whentver they shall reach that amount of population which entitle them to a representative on this floor. I shall welcome them, whether forbidding or recognising slavery, into the Union.' I am contented to 1 leave the question in the territories up to that time, : to the learning and purity of our courts. Bat I j protest against the right of a few habit**? of a territory to exclude the citixene of fifteen States of this Union from the occupancy of the common public domain. 1 protest against the authority of a law which they may enact, which shall override ' thm PrtnatifntiAn anri ]?AVf 111 hilt thf tmDiV DSRli ' iiiiiiAiiniifiiii'iiii protect, to extent], <>r to limit slavery. Satisfied with the guarantees already existing, coeval with the Constitution, and coextensive in their operation, in the qaqne of the South, I ask yop to keep ydur hands off of this subject?leave ft where the Constitution ha* placed it, and we oak no more. We are satisfied, that whilst the Constitution overrides any law enacted by Congress which conflicts with its provisions} it will certainly override any law equating in a conquered territory equally repugnant to Us reouireaieuu. In the spirit or compromise, in the temper of patriots, let us avoid exasperating and unnecessary contests, and leach those who succeed us that all this magnificent country is their own. From the reefs of Florida to the snores of our mighty lakes ?from the beach lashed by the Atlantic wave to the broad and tranquil Pacific?from the cold regions of the North to the soft climate of our Southern boundary; the citizen of this republic has his home wherever he may choose to select it, secure in the enjoyment of hie rights, guarantied by a Constitution which is venerated and revered by millions of freemen. We, sir, are admonished thstour personal iptcrest, though great, is much smaller than that of those we shall leave behind us. Let ua who have enjoyed the inheritance which our fhthers only suw in the distance, inasmuch aa that we have ascended higher, have a more extended horizon?let us tell our children that, with counsels calm, wise, Datriotic. measures iuat. and tinu . there is a yet brighter and more glorious future for them. I speak for my own Carolina?who first gave utterance to a declaration of independence? whose hardy sons have found wealth, honor, and distinction in all the South and West?whose colonibts, penetrating her wilderness, tamed it, and called into life and sovereignty her noble daughter, Tennessee?for her and her sons 1 speak, when 1 declare that she recognizes no authority on the part of Congress or the inhabitants of the territories to expel them from their common inheritance, the public domain. She asks no favors but such as all may claim. She seeks no advantages but such an intelligence, energy, and industry will secure. In this noble competition sbe will contend with her sister Stales; in the glories of such a victory all will equally partake. But, sir, we meet with embarrassments on this Gubject which are exceedingly annoying. We find Southern statesmen, surrendering this great constitutional question, in the admission of the right of Congress to legislate authoritatively and without limit upon the admission of slavery into the territories. We find among ourselves those who give up the last hopes of the South, and surrender the citadel to the besiegers. Precedent is invoked to establish the right to disinherit us. The evil not only of being disinherited, but the penalty of crime, the forfeiture of felony, is fixed upon us, And we are required, as suppliants, to ask that as mercy which we should claim as a right. A distinguished Senator of my own State, [Mr., Badger,] a gentleman of high attainments and extended reputation, in a recent speech on the Oregon hill, admitted thej-jght of Congress to legislate for the exclusion of slavery in the territories, but placed the South upon the principle of expediency, and the sense of justice of the Federal Legislature. Gracious Heaven! are we reduced to this? Is our only, our last hope, the verdict of a jury whose interest, whose feelings, and whosevtrgnnizulion fix that verdict against us ? Can any man close his eyes to the fast that the progress both of opinion and of power is uiv uyu.il . u.vui y WU8 HlUlie to Southern interests?even the slave trade was legalized and protected by the Constitution? wnen the power and the interest of the South were indispensable; and never till the Missouri question arose was J.Ue power of Congress on this subject regarded as a matter of much moment. Hut the scene is changed. The rich, the lovely lands ceded by Virginia, the great mo hsr of commonwealths, have been organized into Suites, nnd she stands overshadowed, her broad disc diminishing, and, Unlike the setting sun, does not even retain her relative size, to compensate for the loss of the influence of her noonday splendor. Tlip lion's sljJlre of the | territory has been already awarded Wthe States whose municipal law does not recognize slavery. And are we left to the mere refuge of expediency, in this effort' to secure our rights? And do Southern statesmen sound the first note of retreat ? Does the flag fall first in their hands ? Are we to look, as our last'resort, to Congress, with no safeguard but expediency ? Alrendy has a Senator [Mr. Nii.es] announced that this is a question of power, and of power only. The horse-leech, and the grave may say, Enougfi; but the lust of power can never be satisfied. Gaining strength* and increasing in influence, it .will never concede the ndvnntuges attained, nor moderate its demands for those in prospect. And Southern statesmen yield the question! The best blood of the South nas flowed like water. Side by side have thev fallen, in the fiercest of the battle, with the soldiers of every Suite in the Union. And before the requiem is chanted over the clod which covers them,, their fathers and brothers and children are told, The prize is not for you; the soldier's lands cannot be inhnbited by his relatives nnd friands, because the domestic institutions n( their States differ from those who control a majority of votes in Congress. The emigrant from every portion I of the world?the convicts, the pauners. the loaf-1 eis, mid the felons of all Europe?may come and stand upon the lauds red with the blood of our bravest und our best, and turn them and their property away. They may say, It ia good land, indeed, and won with your blood, but there is a dispensation.which gives it to ua, who have no kindred feelings, no common sympathy with you. Our own children are cast out, una the stranger is admitted. Sir, I hail the emigrant to our shores. May our broad and fertile prairies, and our boundless and uncultivated domain, yield them abundance?our institutions, liberty. Let their tears of sorrow be dried, nnd the gaunt genius of famine forever depart from them. Let them become rich, and free, and happy. But cast not out the children of the soil; disown not the descendants of revolutionary fathers. Shall Southern statesmen concede the power, but deny the expediency? I remind gentlemen that those who possess power, " constrain the times to their necessities." Our constituents will hold us to a strict reckoning. It may lie true that fortune and the South part here?even here do they shake hands." We may be regarded as the receding Slates. We must bear it us we may; but we will, with dignified remonstrance, make continual claim of our rights. Par serving Gathered Flowers.?For the benefit of our lady readers, we copy from an Eastern paper the following receipt for preserving the beauty of gathered flowers: Procure a flat dish of porcelain, into which pour water *, place upon a vase of flowers, and over the vase a bell glass, with its rim in the water. The air that surrounds the flowers, being confined beneath the bell glass, is constantly moist with water, that rises into it in the form of vapor. As n? tli a iii a toe knoAiYioa ?*/\nfi<?riaAs4 it rnnu Hnurn the aide of the bell glass into the dish ; and if means be taken to enclose the water on the outside of the bell plana, no as to prevent it evaporating into the air of the Bitting room, the atmosphere around the flowers is continually damp. The plan ia design ited the Hopern Apparatus." The experiment may be tried on a small scale by inverting a tumbler over a rose-bud in a saucer of water. Touching Incident.?A lady, who arrived here from the South, Saturday evening, found when she left New Haven, that her nurse, a colored woman and slave, was missing. She could not account for it, and her friends suggested Uut the woman had availed herself of the opportunity to secure her freedom ; hot she did not believe it, and thought the train on Monday would bring her. And sure enough, on Monday she appeared, [t seems that in changing cars at Now Haven, she went back after something that on# of the children, tad forgotten. and so was left behind- And the laitbftd creeture, finding herself left, and only intent on reaching her mistress, immediately started tJT, foil owing the rails ad track as her guide, and deeping out that night, pushed on all day Sunlay, and slept out the next nieht, and reached tore Monday morning about if o'clock, Assiar (TfllliU tkl whole 60 IHUiM Mi fool.?S or in* klid N wv*ww "vrvvta W tiTtSva Vf* W "TP# I i^ I W9 fJii .-t; tattw -i Jz $ j qj J&J sow * ^ i TU *KU*8aJBw, _Tn.w??j up?bu.hrt -? *?*,. "The Southern Ptom,"?Weekly, ' It published every Saturday. ' ADVBBTUUI0 IUTII. (\ For am square aC 10 ttaec, three insertions, fl Qr? ? every subsequent insertion, Si Liberal deduction# Bade an yearly advertising. ?' ypp". ip f 'yi f. vrfi'', CP Individuate aaav (urward the neon at of tbeir Mibeciipuuue at ourriak Address, (| wet-paid) ELLWOOD FISHER, Wellington City. Tennyaon has given the world a new poem, entitled In Menwrimn, which is just published in London, by the bookseller, Moxon. The follow- .? ^ ing passages are from it: Ptaoe. Calm is the morn without a eound, Calm as to suit a calmer grief, And only thro' the laded leaf The chesnut pattering to the ground; Calm and deep peace on this high world, Aed on these dews that drench the furze, And all the silvery gossamers That twinkle into green and gold: Calm and still light on yon great plain That sweeps with all its autumn bowers And crowded farm# and lessening lowers, To mingle with the bounding mam; Calm and deep peace in tbia wide air, These leaves that redden tp the fell: Ana in my neart, u aim ai au, If any calm, a calm despair: Calm on the seas, and slhrsr aleep, t And waves that away thernaelvea in rest, And dead calm in that noble breast Which heaves but with the heaving deep. fteith. The unth by which we twain did eo, Which led by tracts that pleased ua well Thro* four sweet'years arose and fell, From flower to flower, from snow to snow: And we with aingjng cheer'd the way, And crown'd with all the season lent, From April ouv)o April went, And glad at heart from May to May: But where the path we walk'd began To slant the nflh autumnal slope, Aa we descended following Hope, There sat the Shadow fear'd of man; Who broke our flair companionship, And sDroad his mantle dark and cold; And wrapped thee formless in the fold, And dull'd the murmur on thy Hp; And bore thee where I could not see Nor follow, tho' I walk in haste; And think that, somewhere in the waste, The Shadow sits and waits for me. Havana, June 19, 1850. Everything is quiet, apparently, but there ia a great military fever?volunteer* are constantly drilling in all the plazas and public grounds. We were rather unexpectedly permitted to land without passports, though we had to procure permits costing fifty cents. 1 and four others, owing to some alleged informality, were taken to the guard-house on our arrival on ahore and aent back to the ship?ft?r no other reason that 1 could * understand (and I was the best Spaniard in the lot) except that we failed to give the sentinel at the landing a half dollar. This was the explanation of the affair by a resident of the city. The two prizes are anchored about 800 yards off from us, with all the prisoners on board. It is understood that they are to be liberated next week. Generally accredited rumors are in circulation that ^negotiations for the purchase of Cuba by our Government are nearly concluded. A lawyer (Foulhouze) from New Orleans, who has been somewhat conspicuous in Cuban affairs, is mud to be here in connexion with that purchase. We are indebted to him, I believe, fbr the permission granted to land. He seems, and in fact claims to be, upon the most intimate and confidential terms with the Conde de Alcoy. That the Government fears us, no one who lands here can doubt. Any one who observes the large military force in and around the city, and the heights bristling with cannon, must necessarily arrive at the conclusion that the Conde de Alcoy is equally distrustful of his own people. For it is not to be suppoiied that he would deprive Havana of the advantage of the money scattered about by some 1000 or 1200 passengers, eager to " gaatar el diuero," merely from an apprehension of civil commotion created by those passengers unassisted by the people. To my certain knowledge employees of the Government were sent off to the ship to examine the appearance of the passengers, in order to form some opinion as to their motives for going ashore, before permission ' >was granted to them to do so. There is a large Spanish naval fbrce. One 80-gun ship, a frigate,steamer, and sloop-of-war. None of our national vessels are in port. One sloop-of-war, the Albany, 1 believe, is constantly cruising off the harbor. Post Office Statistics.?The following table, compiled from official records kept at the post office, will prove interesting to the general reader, and convey a correct idea of the amount of business transacted in the foreign department of that establishment: During the quarter ending June 30, there have been received from Europe 387.048 letters, I viz: Dy British steamers, 251,213 By Bremen, " 33,909 By United States, (Collins* line,) 1,926 During the same time there were sent to Europe: By British steamers, 266,694 By Bremen " 38,064 By United States, (Collins' line,) 39,814 Total, 346,572 Jjjflik The number of California letters received 9 during the quarter, has been 95,314 The number of letters sent to California during the same poriod 108,991 Making a grand total of 455,563 letters sent to Europe and California, and 382,362 received from the same place. To this must be added 50,000 ship letters received and sent, making a grand total of 887,925 letters received and sent in the foreign department aione of the post office. During the month of June there were received from California 23,875 letters, and .there were sent to the same place 40,925. There were received .rom Europe 87,857 letters, and there were sent 108,997, making a total of foreign letters sent and received of 261,754. During the quarter there have been sent fr>m the dead letter office, to the post office here, 164 dead letters, of which 53 have been restored to their writers, and in four cases out of every seven the cause of the non-reception of letters has been that they ware improperly addressed. The sums in the dead letters thus restored have varied from f 11o |14,000.?wV. Y. Com. ' " What h Dhit.?Old Doctor Cooper, of South Carolina, used to say to his students, ? Don't be afraid of a little dirt, young gentleman. What ia dirt/ ]Yhy. nothing at all offensive, when chemically viewed, Rob a btde alkali upon that 'dirty grease spaa,' ort your coat, and it under, goes a chemical change, and becomes soap. Now rub it with a little water, and it disappears; it is neither grease, soap, water, nor dirt. 'That is not a very odorous pile of dirt,' you observe there. Well, scatter a little gypsum over it, and it is no longer dirty. Everything you call dirt is worthy your notice m students of chemistry. Analyze it! It will all separate into very dean elements. "Dirt makes corn, corn makes bread and meat, and that makes a very sweet young lady that I saw ons of you kissing last night.?So after all you were kissing dirt, particularly if she whitens nsr skin with chalk or fltHsrV earth. There is no telling, young gasman, what is dirt. Though I must say that rubbing such muff vat waafi moth?othing but diet," Vr . .. Jhmiciutiov.?The number "tit passengers arrived here from fbrsign ports during the month of Juns was 11,690- During June of 1849 the arrivals were 31,375?decree* this year, 19,685. In the first six months of 1849 the arrivals were 190,390; of 1650, 98,508. Decrees* ? 1850, onsToJ a-.A.T J hxt.' stvr1" '