4-55 
 
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SPEECH 
 
 OF THE 
 
 HON. JOHN L. TAYLOR, OF OHIO, 
 
 ON THE 
 
 NEBRASKA AND KANSAS TEHHITOPJAL BILL. 
 
 DELIVERED 
 
 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, APRIL 26, 1854. 
 
 The House being; in Committee of the Whole 
 on the state of the Union — 
 
 Mr. TAYLOR, of Ohio, said: Mr. Chairman, 
 if there has ever been a time, during my short po- 
 litical life, when I appeared before a committee of 
 this House with some reluctance, and with much 
 hesitancy, it is upon this occasion; because I shall 
 feel it to be my duty, in the course of the remarks 
 which I may make, to recur to some other subjects 
 than that which has principally engrossed the 
 attention of Congress during the last four or five 
 months. I shall, however, be constrained, from 
 the fact that 1 occupy a very humble place upon the 
 Committee on Territories — being one of the two 
 Whigs among the nine members of that committee 
 — to refer for a few moments to that exciting ques- 
 tion. In doing this, I wish, at the outset, to dis- 
 daim any personal ill-feeling towards any member 
 o this committee, and to declare that I have no 
 Other than kind and fraternal feelings towards every 
 section of this Union. Though 1 stand here as a 
 Representative of the State of Ohio, I feel that I 
 am bound to discharge my duty as a Representa- 
 tive of the whole Union; and ! would resign my 
 Beat if 1 could lose sight of my national obliga- 
 t-ons. 
 
 I regret, Mr. Chairman, that I am constrained 
 by the duty which I owe to my constituents, as 
 well as that which I owe to myself, to speak at 
 all upon this subject. I have sat here for nearly 
 five months listening to the speeches of a distracted 
 Congres.^ — distracted by a sectional question, by 
 whom introduced seems yet to be disputed. We 
 heard it asserted, as early as the 26th of January 
 last, by gentlemen on the other side of the House 
 who are supporters of the Administration, not that 
 they knew it was introduced by the Administra- 
 tion, but that they believed this territorial organic 
 bill to be an Administration measure. And here, 
 instead of progressing with the subjects of legisla- 
 tion on our Calendar, which the people demand 
 at our hands, and endeavoring to discharge our 
 duty first to the people and then to the adminis- 
 trators of the Government, we are tied down, day 
 after day, by a sectional question, which, as a 
 Whig member of this Congress, I disclaim having 
 any part in introducing here; nor do I believe that 
 the party to which 1 belong first instigated or 
 encouraged its introduction. 
 
 Sir, this theme for agitation was not introduced 
 into Congress by the Whig party of the United 
 States, i have too much respect for that party — 
 to which I belong — to believe that they would 
 ever have instigated the introduction of a question 
 involving a sectional issue, which, in my humble 
 judgment, lar transcends any question which has 
 
 occupied the attention of the Congress of the 
 United States since 1320. The great question 
 which then agitated this country for three years, 
 and to adjust which, and to save the Union, 
 brought into requisition all the talents, experJence, 
 and wisdom, all the conciliation and kindness of 
 feeling, all the desire for a sacrifice of sectional 
 prejudice of the great men who lived at that day, 
 IS now revived; and by whom is it revived r 1 am 
 not prepared to stand here and utter denunciations 
 against the Senator from Illinois, [Mr. Douglas,] 
 the chairman of the Committee on Territories, who 
 introduced this bill in the Senate, and for which he 
 has been hung in effigy, and denounced all over 
 the country. I do not impute to him the sole re- 
 sponsibility; but I think that he should share it 
 with othereminent men, far beyond him in political 
 experince, and of greater wisdom, who advocated 
 this measure in the Senate — who have advocated 
 it with a zeal and ability far superior to that man- 
 ifested by the Senator from Illinois himself. Nor 
 do I upbraid him for his aspirations to the Presi- 
 dency. Nor do I make the charge that the Presi- 
 dent of the United States and his Cabinet brought 
 this measure officially before Congress. They 
 ! have not officially done so; for we have had no 
 official communications upon that subject. 
 I I shall endeavor presently to show some reasons 
 for the belief I entertain, that this bill for theorgani- 
 zation of Nebraska andKansas was an Administra- 
 tion measure, introduced here for the purpose of 
 ! reviving a crumbling, failing, and distracted Ad- 
 I ministration; nay, if possible, to infuse new life 
 1 and vigor into it, so as to command, in some de- 
 ! gree, the confidence of its own party and the coun- 
 ' try'. The gentlemen who introduced these bills 
 into the House of Piepresentatives are to take their 
 I due share only of any odium v/hich may attach 
 ' to them. If there be one consideration which 
 would induce the House of Representatives of the 
 United States to stand up, as it were, as one man, 
 against the measure, it should be the idea that the 
 ! Administration to be sustained, must carry this 
 measure in this House, either by persuasion, or 
 by the denunciations and threats of their regular 
 organs. As a representative of a free people, 
 wishing to preserve the powers, the privileges, and 
 J immunities of this body, and, like the great man 
 from Missouri, [Mr. BEKToy,] who delighted ua 
 yesterday with his examination of the history of 
 this great question, and denounced the impro- 
 I priety of bringing it forward now to disturb the 
 I great compromise of 1S20, 1 stand up for the pow- 
 ' ers, privileges, and immunities of this House, " as 
 the master branch of the American Government." 
 ! The business is now reversed. When the fathers 
 

 
 of the Republic built up this Government, and 
 framed its Constitution, they designed that the 
 judicial, legislative, and executive powers of the 
 Government should be as independent of each 
 other as possible. 
 
 From a small nation of three or four millions, 
 we have grown to be twenty-five millions, and 
 have advanced in prosperity, wealth, power, and 
 greatness, far beyond the expectations of those 
 who framed the Government. We have increased 
 in territorial extent, in population and wealth, 
 until our glorious country has become a great Re- 
 public, which commands not only the admiration 
 of our own people, but of the whole world. 
 
 The powers of these respective departments of 
 the Government have not kept equal pace with 
 each other during our progress as a nation. Thank 
 Heaven, the judicial branch of the country yet 
 stands in all its purity, majesty, and power, and 
 construes our legislation with justice and equity. 
 
 The legislative power of the country has been, 
 in a great degree, in my humble judgment, over- 
 shadowed by the Executive authority of the na- 
 tion, no matter in what hands that authority has 
 fallen. For myself, lam independent of all Pres- 
 idents, never having received special favors from 
 any of them, never having sought any, and never 
 expecting any. But I do say, that as Representa- 
 tives of &n intelligent and patriotic people, repre- 
 senting here a part of the sovereign power of this 
 country, i do say, that we, the legislative power, 
 ought to scorn and look down with contempt 
 upon any effort made either through a political 
 organ, or an official communication, to drive the 
 Representatives of the people from the due course 
 of legislation, or to divert them from the proper 
 subjects of legislation to sectional questions, either 
 now or in all time to come. 
 
 This question, Mr. Chairman, has paralyzed us 
 in the legislation of the country. This is the 26th 
 day of April, and yet we have notgot through the 
 first page of the Calendar. It is with difficulty 
 that we effect the passage of any appropriation 
 bill; and the deficiency bill has not yet finally 
 passed the House or Senate. On the 26th of .Tan- 
 uary last, when the gentleman from Virginia [Mr. 
 Smith] was upon the floor, he said in his place, 
 that he believed this very measure, which excites 
 the whole nation, was an Administration measure; 
 or, in other words, that he believed that the Ad- 
 ministration v/as a unit in respect to it. I speak 
 of it as I understood him. I have looked at his 
 speech this morning; and I think that he, on that 
 occasion, asserted his belief that the Administra- 
 tion was a unit in favor of this measure. This 
 was as early as the 26th of January; and here we 
 stand to-day, with a mass of business staring us 
 in the face 
 
 Mr. SMITH, of Virginia. Will the gentleman 
 from Ohio permit me to make an explanation 
 here } 
 
 Mr. TAYLOR. With great pleasure. 
 
 Mr. SMITH. What 1 stated was, that I be- 
 lieved that the Administration was a unit. 
 
 Mr. TAYLOR. So 1 have represented you as 
 having said. 
 
 Mr. SMITH. But I did not say that any im- 
 proper influences were attempted to be used by 
 the Administration in favor of the measure. 
 
 Mr. TAYLOR. Nor did I attribute any such 
 statement to you. What I assert here is simply 
 this: that that gentleman, high in theconfidence 
 of his party, distinguished for his devotion to the 
 
 Administration, and for his admiration of our 
 present President, said here, on the 26th of Jan- 
 uary last, that he believed this to be an Adminis- 
 tration measure, and that all good Democrats 
 should support that measure, and, in doing so, 
 support the Administration. 
 
 And what do we also find in the Union news- 
 paper, of this city, on the 5th of February ? I do 
 not know whether that paper is the organ of the 
 Administration, or whether the Administration 
 has any organ. But the Union is generally con- 
 sidered to be the official organ of the present Ad- 
 ministration; and, at all events, its editor, at that 
 time, was the public printer to this House, and 
 was sustained by a large Democratic majority 
 here, as such printer. I do not mean to refer to 
 anything improper; and should I happen to do 
 so, I would be most happy, on all occasions, to 
 retract whatever I might not have been justified 
 in saying. I find in the Union of the date I have 
 mentioned, an editorial article to this efl^'ect, or 
 rather, I should say, a quotation from the Detroit 
 Free Press, in which I find the words wliich I will 
 quote. It is under the head of " Renewal of Sla- 
 very Agitation':" 
 
 " Tke territorial bill reported hy Mr. Douglas is an ^d- 
 ininislration measure. Every trne Democrat and every 
 truepatriot in Congress will vole for it. It sets at rest for- 
 ever llie vexatious slavery ditRciilty. It defines the powers 
 of tbe General Government and of the people of the Terri- 
 tories, pquariniitheni by the plainest principles of the Con- 
 stitution. It proclaims that the doctrines advocated by 
 Lewis Cass in 1848 are right. It erects a platform upon 
 which the Democratic party of every section can stand, and 
 will stand. It is a test that will determine who are patriots 
 and who are sectionalists." 
 
 That was introduced by an elaborate editorial, 
 in which I find this sentence: 
 
 " But we do not care to repeat the argument that the 
 principles of the compromise of 1850 superseded those of 
 the Missouri compromise. If the speech of Judge Dono- 
 UAS does not carry conviction on this point wherever it is 
 read and studied, We may well distrust our ability to make 
 the argument more conclusive. We are perfectly willing 
 to meet the question on its merits as an original proposition, 
 and to maintain, upon principle, that if the compromise of 
 1850 did not repeal that of 1820, il ought to liave done so, 
 and tliat there can he no better time than the present to fin- 
 i sh the work." 
 
 Now, Mr. Chairman, what are we Whigs to 
 believe from this — we who are in a minority upon 
 this floor, but not in a very small minority in the 
 country, sir? Are we not to take the statement 
 made in the official paper of the Administration — 
 for such it is regarded by members here, and by 
 men evfrywhere, and by the declaration of the 
 friends of the Administration upon this floor — that 
 it is an Administration measure? The testimony 
 would seem to be conclusive; and yet I do not 
 undertake to say that the President has introduced 
 this measure in our halls of legislation; but from 
 these statements I believe it is an Admini.stration 
 measure. Not exclusively so, for eminent gentle- 
 men of both parties, in this and the other branch 
 of Congress, desire not to be behind their political 
 friends in advocating what they consider to be 
 great fundamental rights — " non-intervention," 
 •' squatter sovereignty," the right of twenty, fifty, 
 or a few hundred people in anew Tei-ritory of the 
 United States to govern themselves. Hence we 
 find that they are ambitious to vie with each other 
 in making splendid orations in upholding these 
 principles. 
 
 Nor do I complain, as some of my friends, and 
 as others do, of gentlemen for having aspirations 
 for the Presidency, and for making this a step- 
 ping-stonejt^Jiat end. Sir, «' it is an aid to genius 
 
 MM 
 
 i9i7 
 
to have great objects in view." It is the right of 
 every man in this country, every citizen of the 
 United States, who lias the constitutional qualifi- 
 cations, to aspire to that high otHce, although 1 
 know the people very naturally look to the higher 
 branch of the National Legislature, the Senate of 
 the United States, for a candidate for the Presi- 
 dency. I heard it remarked a short time since — 
 facetiously remarked — that there were, in tliat 
 body, not less than forty of them; yet I do not 
 believe that all the wise men of ihe nation are con- 
 fined to the Senate of the United States. I see 
 many men before me in this Hall who would 
 make as good Presidents as we have had for the 
 last twenty years, and who would uphold the 
 Constitution of the United States with quite as 
 much ability, and with as much success for the 
 happiness of the people of the country, as any 
 gentleman in the Senate. 
 
 Nor would I confineaspirationsto thePresiden- 
 cy to gentlemen in this or the otlier branch of 
 the Congress of the United States. There are 
 very many men in private life — eminently quali- 
 fied — who would, if elected to that high office, ful- 
 fill its duties with credit to themselves, and with 
 advantage to the best interests of this country. 1 
 believe that, for the future, it would be the wiser 
 course for both parties of the country t6 select 
 some retired, unambitious, intelligent patriot and 
 experienced man as their candidate, respectively, 
 to take the chief Executive chair, and thus put an 
 end to this canvassing for thePresidency by mem- 
 bers of Congress. 
 
 I have been led into these preliminary and des- 
 ultory remarks because i know ttiat no matter 
 hov/ 1 may speak upon this question, I shall beset 
 down as one of those northern agitators who go 
 against the Nebraska bill, and as anti-slavery in 
 my opinions. But my past history in the Con- 
 gress of the United States might be referred to by 
 me — yet others may judge for themselves — to 
 show that my action here, as a member of Con- 
 gress, has been as national, as conservative, and 
 indicating as patriotic a disposition to do justice 
 to the South and to the North, as thatof any man 
 in public life. 
 
 And, sir, I come back now to say a few words 
 Hpon what I consider the importance of this ques- 
 tion; an importance which, in my humble judg- 
 ment, tran.'icends that of all the compromises which 
 have been adopted since the settlement of the com- 
 promises of the Constitution itself. The compro- 
 mises of the Constitution were the fruit of the 
 Revolution, and were adopted by the men who 
 fought in the Revolution. They were compro- 
 mises upon the subjects of taxation, representa- 
 tion, and slavery; and, as was well remarked by 
 the honorable geiuleman from Missouri [Mr. 
 Benton] yesterday, the ordinance of 1787 was 
 adopted about the same time, by many of the 
 same men, in the same spirit, upon the same 
 great questions. The compromise of 1820, called 
 the Missouri compromise, which it is now sought 
 to break down, was also one of the same charac- 
 ter, for its nationality, for its great importance, 
 and for its having been settled in the same spirit, 
 by the men, the f-minent men of the nation, who 
 were in public life at that day. 
 
 The compromisesof 1850 were also of the same 
 character, growing out of questions connected 
 with new territory which we had acquired from 
 Mexico by war and by purchase. They were 
 settled by the most eminent men of the country — 
 
 and, I may add, happily settled, in a manner 
 which met the approval of the two great parties 
 of the country as a finality, as a final settlement 
 of the slavery agitation. 
 
 It was tlien remarked by Mr. Webster that these 
 compromises comprehended every inch of terri- 
 tory not disposed of by previous legislation. And 
 now, Mr. Chairman, what is it [)roposed to do on 
 this occasion.' Not to make another compromise; 
 not to settle any great vexed question forced upon 
 us by any great national emergency; nothing of 
 this sort; but we have a proposition tohreak doicn 
 a great national compromise. 
 
 Sir, 1 call upon my southern brethren — and I 
 rejoice to speak of them as such — to adhere to 
 this compromise, and not allow themselves to 
 yield to the seductions of power, in an atten)pt to 
 break down settled principles of national legisla- 
 tion, which, for more than thirty years, have given 
 peace and quiet to the country. 
 
 Mr. Chairman, the proposition now brought 
 forward by men not confined to either political 
 party is to break down a great compromise made 
 by such men as Clay, Lowndes,Pinkney, of Mary- 
 land, Pinckney, of South Carolina, and others of 
 the great and eminent men of the nation. It is 
 proposed to break down this compromise which 
 has e.xisted for thirty-odd years, and which has 
 given peace and harmony to the country, and the 
 prosperity consequent thereupon. But, sir, sup- 
 pose this measure passes; will it stop agitation.-' I 
 speak as one of the conservative members of this 
 body, disposed at all times to do justice to all sec- 
 tions of the Union, and, as such, I say that, in 
 my humble judgment, if you repeal thisMissouri 
 compromise, it will be but setting an example — a 
 precedent, by which all the other compromises 
 may be repealed. You will place it in the power 
 of future Congresses to accomplish that end — 
 depending solely upon their patriotism and good 
 sense to repeal them or not. 
 
 Mr. Chairman, for myself I wish to stand by 
 the compromisfs of 1850. They did not super- 
 sede or repeal that of 1820. 1 voted for them, or 
 at least for the greatest portion of them. My own 
 constituency — patriotic and intelligent as any in 
 the country — desire to stand by those compro- 
 mises; and the great political party of which 1 am 
 a member, in the North as well as the South, 
 in my humble judgment, desire to stand by them. 
 The great body of the men in the North of both 
 parties, in my opinion, stand pledged to abide by 
 and maintain the compromises of 1850, as well as 
 that of 1820. But repeal that of 1820, and you 
 will absolve them from all pledges in reference to 
 others. Do this, and you have no right to expect 
 adherence from them to any others. 
 
 Mr. Chairman, I regret, at this late hour of the 
 day, to be compelled to trespass on the attention 
 of this committee; but they will bear in mind that 
 1 have, during the present session of Congress, 
 occupied but little of their time. I am constrained, 
 by the duty which I owe my constituents and 
 myself, to define my opinions and position on this 
 great question, now engaging universal attention. 
 I regret to be compelled to do so, because I find 
 on the Calendar a list of bills, to which I wish to 
 refer in the course of my remarks, in order to 
 show the country what we have before us, and 
 why we are prevented attending to the legitimate 
 legislation of the country. 
 
 The bill before us — and I believe that the Sen- 
 ate and House bills are pretty much the same — 
 
proposes to organize two Territories, Nebraska 
 and Kansas, in the territory which has heretofore 
 been called Nebraska, all that country bounded 
 on the east by Iowa and Missouri, on the south 
 by 36° 30', on the west by the Rocky Mountains, 
 or by Washington, Oregon, and Utah, and on the 
 north by the British line, a territory twelve times 
 as large as Ohio. The boundaries of the territo- 
 ries are defined, and the provisions of the bill are 
 such as are usually introduced into territorial 
 bills, with the exception of that in relation to the 
 repeal of the Missouri compromise and some res- 
 ervations in regard to Indian rights. 
 
 I have four principal objections to the bill on 
 the Calendar now in the Committee of the Whole 
 on the state of the Union. First, I do not think 
 it necessary at the present time that any stick bill 
 should pass. Why? Because, as was stated by 
 the gentleman from Missouri, [Mr. Benton,] we 
 have no petitions from the North; we have none 
 from the South, for the erection of these Territo- 
 ries with the proposition to repeal the Missouri 
 compromise. We had, in fact, when this bill was 
 introduced, no petition from any people living in 
 that country to form a government there. The 
 best part of it was Indian country, occupied by no 
 whites, except those permitted to go there as In- 
 dian agents, traders, &c., as authorized by law. 
 In fact, I think that the gentlemen of the com- 
 mittee of which I am a member will bear me out 
 when I say, that, when we came first to consider 
 this bill, there was no petition, nothing but the 
 bill introduced by my friend from Missouri, [Mr. 
 Miller,] referred to us for consideration. Some" 
 time after we had that bill under consideration 
 there was a petition sent to us from two individ- 
 uals — two Mr. Johnsons. Whether they wished 
 to be Governors of Nebraska and Kansas I can- 
 not say. That bill of my friend from Missouri 
 [Mr. Miller] was the one which passed the last 
 Congress. It contained no reference whatever to 
 the Missouri compromise. There was in it no 
 proposition of repeal. I said at the time, if I 
 could consistently with my duty, I should vote to 
 pass it through this Plouse again. 1 voted for the 
 bill at the last session, rather from representations 
 of the gentleman from near that country, than any 
 opportunity I had to examine its provisions. But 
 I voted with gentlemen from the North and South, 
 some of them now here. Many of them voted for 
 the bill as introduced by Mr. Hall, of Missouri, 
 and reported by the chairman of the Committee on 
 Territories, [Mr. Richardson.] No gentleman 
 objected then to the want of a proposition in that 
 bill to repeal the Missouri compromise; and it 
 was asserted here at a late period of the session 
 that the rights of the Indians were sufficiently 
 protected, and 1 voted for it with that understand- 
 ,ng. The bill was to organize one Territory under 
 the name of Nebraska. I confess I had no time 
 to read the provisions of that lill, or to examine 
 the necessity of action upon the subject at that 
 time. Like many other bills which are pressed 
 upon Congress, we have to vote on them accord- 
 ing to what light we can get, and trust to our con- 
 stituencies to approve our action afterwards. That 
 is my first objection. 
 
 jVy second objection is, that I am not sati-'Jied 
 with the proposed boundaries. I understand that it 
 is proposed to make the southern boundary at the 
 37th degree of north latitude, and it was originally 
 proposed to take in apart of the Territory of Utah. 
 That may be abandoned, but 1 believe the southern 
 
 boundary is at the 37th degree. Now, if we legis- 
 late upon the subject at all at this time, I would 
 include in the proposed organization from 36^ 30' 
 to the British line. I am opposed to leaving a 
 little strip of territory for future disputes. 
 
 My third objection is, that to pass a bill noic to 
 organize a Territory including the twenty-three 
 Indian tribes on the western frontier, would be in 
 violationof someof the treaties with those Indians. 
 The bill of last session contained a reservation of 
 all the rights and property of the Indian tribes. 
 Until I recently examined deliberately the varioua 
 treaties heretofore made by the United States with 
 the twenty-three Indian tribes on the western 
 border of Missouri and Iowa, I was not aware 
 of the fact, that we had stipulated by treaty— the 
 highest law of the land — that many of these tribes 
 shotild never be included within the limits of any State 
 or Territory icithout their const-fit. So far aa I can 
 learn from the report of the Commissioner of 
 Indian Affairs, that consent has not been given; 
 and much as I should be disposed to organize a 
 Territory there, I shall be constrained to vote 
 against any bill organizing such a Territory until 
 the consent of those Indian tribes has been ob- 
 tained, because I believe that by so doing we 
 should violate our treaties with the Indians. 
 
 Sir, we should observe our treaties with the 
 Indian tribes with as much care and fidelity as we 
 observe those with foreign nations. We treat 
 them as foreign nations, and our treaties should 
 be held sacred. I may overrate the importance 
 of this subject. 1 state these only as preliminary 
 objections, and not as the principal one. I shall 
 come back to the principle of the Missouri com- 
 promise, which, after all, is the great stumbling- 
 block in the way of this bill, and of all other legis- 
 lation. It seems that there are four hundred 
 thousand Indians within the limits of the territory 
 of the United States. Many tribes jreside on the 
 borders of Missouri and Iowa. The Commissioner 
 of Indian Affairs, after having visited this territory 
 last fall, endeavoring to carry out the resolution of 
 the last Congress, makes the statement that the 
 Indians were not willing to treat with us; that they 
 had no confidence in the white men's laws; but 
 that he believes civil government would be for their 
 benefit; and, to use his own words, tliat " treaties 
 might be made, if proposed in a proper way, and 
 made in April or May next, and submitted to the 
 Senate in time for Congress to establish civil gov- 
 ernments next sessionT" The Commissioner of 
 Indian Affair.s says that he could not make treaties 
 with all the tribes of Indians west of and adjoining 
 Missouri and Iowa. And the fact is well known 
 to Congress and the country, that some of the 
 chiefs of those tribes are now in Washington, 
 holding a conference with the Commissioner of 
 Indian Affairs. 
 
 In the language of Senator I^ell, in an able 
 speech made in the other branch of the National 
 Legislature, it does seem to me that the policy of 
 this country is the policy of extermination towards 
 the Indian race. You move them from the States. 
 You got, as the distinguished gentleman from Mis- 
 souri"[Mr. Benton] said yesterday, northern men 
 to aid you in appropriating money to change their 
 location — to send them west of the Mississippi. 
 You gave them all permanent homes, and stipu- 
 lated with some of them that they should never 
 be included within the limits of a State or Terri- 
 tory, without their consent. And now you are 
 found here to-day, discussing whether you will 
 
legislate them out of their possessions, before they 
 modify those treaties. Sir, I, for one, will notcon- t 
 sent to it. I will do justice to these Indian tribes, 
 as far as I can. If it is necessary to establish a 
 civil government over that portion of our territory, 
 confine it to the country which is not occupied by 
 the Indians until you obtain their consent. If it 
 is necessary for the purpose of the Pacific rail- 
 road — the proposed great highway of the nation — 
 that we should have a portion of the lands belong- 
 ing to these tribes, let us obtain those lands by fair 
 and honest treaties. 
 
 Does not our past history admonish us that the 
 time may come when we might be engaged in a 
 foreign war, or become embroiled in some civil 
 insurrection at home, or some domestic trouble, 
 when some great Indian chieftain, likeTecumseh, 
 who with great power and eloquence would rouse 
 up the indignation of the whole savage tribes against 
 our western borders, and which would give us 
 more difficulty to settle than twenty Florida wars. 
 Tecuinsehs are not unfrequently found among 
 these savage tribes — men of power and eloquence, 
 capable of successfully resisting wrong and injus- 
 tice, fearless and brave, who would unite all the 
 tribes on our western border, and who would 
 rather sacrifice every man in their nation than 
 submit to be exterminated by the white race. 
 With such people as these, we do not wish to act 
 unjustly. If necessary, we should endeavor to 
 modify our treaties with them, and then pass a 
 bill to organize the territory which they inhabit, ' 
 and whicli surrounds them; but we should first 
 obtain their lands from them fairly and honestly. 
 This is my third objection to the bill for the or- 
 ganization of this Territory. 
 
 I recur again to the fourth — I mean the propo- 
 sition to repeal the Missouri compromise. The 
 committee are familiar with the terms of this pro- 
 vision. I 
 
 The eighth section of the act to authorize the peo- 
 ple of the Missouri Territory to form a constitu- 
 tion and State government, and for the admission 
 of such State into the Union, on an equal footing 
 with the original States, and to prohibit slavery in 
 curtain Territories, approved March 6, 1820, is as 
 follows: ' 
 
 "Sec. 8. Jlmi be it further enacted, That in all Ihat j 
 territory ceded by France to the United States, under the 
 name of Louisiana, which lies north of 36° 30' north 
 latitude, not included within the limils of the State con- 
 templated hy this act, t^lavery or involuntary servitude, 
 otherwise tlian in the |)uni>hment of crimes, whereof the 
 parlies shall tiave been duly convicted, shall be, and is 
 hereby, forever prohibited: Provided ulways, That any per- 
 BOTi escaping into the same, from whom labor or service is I 
 lawfully clanned in any State or Territory of the United j 
 States, such fugitive may be lawfully claimed and con- 
 veyed to the person claiming liis or her labor or service, as 
 aforesaid." 
 
 The provision of the bill I am now discussing, 
 disguise it as you may, is a proposition to repeal 
 this Mifisouri compromise, whicii excludes slavery 
 from all that territory north of the line of 36° 30', 
 and which gives the owners of slaves the right to 
 reclaim their fugitives from labor. I desire to ad- 
 here to this compromise for the reason before as- 
 signed — because it was acomnromise passed after 
 three years'discussion by the greatest minds of this 
 country — men who had obtained a world-wide 
 reputation, and whose names are dear to every 
 patriotic heart — men who, if they were now living, 
 would lay no ruthless hand upon the compromises 
 of the Constitution — who would not countenance 
 for a moment any attempt to disturb this sacred 
 
 legislation, and thus introduce sectional agitation 
 to destroy the peace and harmony of the Union. 
 
 Aspirations for the [-"residency may incite men 
 to this. I do not object to any man being an as- 
 pirant to that high office; but no man shall ever 
 have my vote, so long as 1 have my reason, who 
 would seek to destroy the sacred compromises of 
 the Constitution. And I would hold it equally 
 important to preserve the compromise of 1820, 
 which, with all the surrounding circumstances at 
 the time of its adoption, and the peace and har- 
 mony which ensued thereupon, and have been pre- 
 served thereby for thirty-four years, make it 
 almost as sacred as the Constitution itself. 
 
 I believe, Mr. Chairman, that we have power 
 over these Territories in regard to the subject of 
 slavery. The Congress of the United States were 
 of opinion, in 1820, that they had such power. 
 They thought that they had that power in 1784, 
 as referred to yesterday by the distinguished gen- 
 tleman from Missouri, [Mr. Benton.] And I 
 here take occasion to say that, in one of the first 
 speeches which I had the honor to make in this 
 Hall — in 1848 — I referred to iheoriginalordinance, 
 penned by Mr. Jefferson, in 1784 — which I found 
 in the office of the Secretary of State, and which 
 1 suppose is now on the files there. That ordi- 
 nance was reported by a committee consisting of 
 two gentlemen from the slaveholding States, and 
 one from the free States, to wit: Mr. Jefferson, 
 of Virginia, Mr. Chase, of Maryland, and Mr. 
 Howell, of Rhode Island. And in that very ordi- 
 nance, as I stated, the Western Territory extending 
 from the 32do of north latitude— the northern 
 boundary of the Floridas — to the northern line of 
 the United States, and extending then only to the 
 Mississippi river, was called the IVestern Territory, 
 and was divided in that ordinance, thus reported 
 by these three gentlemen, into nine States, of most 
 euphonious and beautiful names. I have a copy 
 of the ordinance before me here, which has now 
 become a part of the national history. 
 
 I will read to the committee a copy of the plan 
 proposed by Messrs. Jefferson, Chase, and How- 
 ell, for the government of what was denominated 
 the "Western Territory " in 1784: 
 
 On the 1st of March, 1784, a committee, con- 
 sisting of Mr. Jefferson, of Vii-ginia, Mr. Chase, 
 of Maryland, and Mr. Howell,"of Rhode Island, 
 submitted to Congress the following plan for the 
 temporary government of the Western Terri- 
 tory: 
 
 " The committee appointed to prepare a plan for the tem- 
 porary government of the Western Territory, have agreed 
 to the following resolutions : 
 
 " Resulved, That the territory ceded, or to be ceded by 
 individual States to the United States, whensoever the 
 same shall have been purchased of the Indian inhabitants 
 and offered for sale by the United States, shall be formed 
 into additional States, bounded in the following manner, 
 as nearly as such cessions will admit; that is to say, north- 
 wardly and southwardly by parallels ollatiiude, so that each 
 State shall comprehend Irom south to north, two degrees 
 oflatitudP, beginning to couiitfrom the completinnot thirty- 
 one degrees north of the equator ; but any territory north- 
 wardly of the forty-seventh degree shall make part of the 
 State next belnw. And eastwaidly and westwardly they 
 shall be bounded, those on the IVIissi-sippi by ihat river on 
 one sidf, and the meridian of the lowest point of the rapids 
 of the Oiiio on the other ; and those adjoining on the east, 
 by the same meridian on their western side, and on their 
 eastern by the meridian of the western cape of the mouth 
 of the Great lianawha. And the territory eastward of this 
 last meridian, between the Ohio, Lake Erie, and Pennsyl- 
 vania, shall be one Slate. 
 
 "That the settlers within the territory so to be purchased 
 and offered for sale shall, either on their own petition or on 
 theorderof Congress, receive authority from them, with ap- 
 pointments of lime and place, for their free malea of full ag« 
 
6 
 
 to meet together for thf pnrposR of esfablisliiug atetnpnrary 
 governniciil lo ailopi tlit'constitulidii and laws of any one of 
 thesR Slate?, so that such laws nevertheless shall be sub- 
 ject to alteration by thf-ir ordinary Lei;islature, and to erect, 
 subject to a like alteration, counties or townships for the 
 electioii of inenibers for their Le;^islaiure. 
 
 "That such temporary government shall only continue 
 in force in any State until it shall have acquired twenty 
 thousand free inhabitants, when giving dUB proof thereof 
 to Congress, they shall receive from them authority, with 
 appointments of time and place, to call a convention of 
 representatives to establish a permanent const tiilion and 
 government for themselves: Provided, That both the tem- 
 porary and permanent governments be established on these 
 principles as their basis : 
 
 " 1. That they shall forever remain a part of the United 
 States of America. 
 
 "2. That in their persons, property, and territory, they 
 shall be sut>ject to the Government of the United States in 
 Congress assembled, and to the Articles of Coiilederation 
 in all those cases in which the original States shall be so 
 subject. 
 
 "3. Tliatthey shall besiibject to pay a partof the Federal 
 debts, conti acted or to be cimtracied, to be apportioned on 
 them by Congress, according to the same coii.mon rule and 
 measure by which apportionments thereofshall be made on 
 the other Slates. 
 
 " 4. That their respective governments shall he in repub 
 lican forms, and sliall admit no person to be a citizen who 
 holds any iiereditary title. 
 
 " 5. That after the year 1800 of the Christian era, there 
 shall he neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in any of 
 the said States, otherwise than in punishment of crimes, 
 whereof the party shall have been duly convicted to have 
 been personally giiiliy. 
 
 "That vvhf?never any of the said States shall have, of 
 free inhabitants, as many as shall then be in anyone of the 
 least numenms of the thirteen original States, each State 
 shall be admitted by its Delegates into the Congress of the 
 United States on an equal footing with the said original 
 States, aftHr which the assent of two thirds of the United 
 States, in Congress assembled, shall be requisite in all 
 those cases wherein, by the Confederation, the assent of 
 nine States is now required, provided the consent of nine 
 Slates to such admission may be obtained according lo the 
 eleventh of the Articles of Confederation. Until such ad- 
 mission by their Delegates into Congress, any of the said 
 States, after the establishment of their temporary govern- 
 ment, shall have authority to keep a sitting member in 
 Congress, with a right of debating, but not of voting. 
 
 "That the territory northward of the forty fifth degree, 
 that is to say, of the completion of forty five degrees from 
 the equator, and extending to the Lake of the Woods, shall 
 be called Stflvanin; that of the territory under the forty- 
 fifth and forty fourth degrees, that which lies westward of 
 Lake Michigan, shall be called Michigania ; and that 
 which is eastward thereof, within the peninsula formed by 
 the lakes and waters of Michigan, Huron, St. Clair, and 
 Erie, shall be called Cheronesus, and shall include any part 
 of the peninsula which may extend above the forty fifth 
 degree. Of the territory under the forty third and forty- 
 second degrees, that to the westward, through which llie 
 Assenisipi or Rock river runs, shall be ctilled Jlnsenisipia ; 
 and tliat to the eastward, in which are the fountains of the 
 Muskingum, the two Miamies of the Ohio, the Wabash, 
 the Illinois, the Miami of the Jjake, and the Sandusky 
 rivers, shall be called Metrojiotamia. Ofllie territory which 
 lies under the forty-first and fortieth degrees, the western, 
 through which the river Illinois runs, shall be called Illi 
 noia ; that next adjoinins, to the eastward, Saratosia; and 
 that between this last and Pennsylvania, and extending 
 from the Ohio to I^ake Erie, shall be called li^askin^ton. 
 Of the territory which lies under the thirty ninth and thir- 
 ty eighth degrees, to which shall be added so much of the 
 point of land within the fork of the Ohio and Mississippi 
 as lies under the Ihirly-sevenlh degree, that to the west- 
 ward, within and adjacent to which are the confluences of 
 the rivers Wabash, Shawanee, Tanisee, Ohio, Illinois, 
 Mississippi, and Missouri, shall be called Polypntdmin ; 
 and that to the eastward, further up the Ohio, otherwise 
 called the Pelisipi, shall be called Peli<sii>ia. 
 
 "That all the preceding articles shall be formed into a 
 charter of compact, shall be duly executed by the President 
 of the United States, in Congress assembled, under his hand 
 and the seal of the United States, shall be promulgated, and 
 shall stand as fundamental conditions between the thirteen 
 original States and those newly described, unalterable but 
 by the joint consent of the United States, in Congress as- 
 sembled, and of the particular Slate within which such 
 alteration is proposed to be made." 
 
 In that plan to organize that Western Territory, 
 
 Ohio was called "Washington." There were also 
 eight other States desciibed by lines of latitude 
 and limits. But in that whole country, from the 
 thirty-second des^ree of north latitude, the propo- 
 sition at that early day was, that, after 1800, no 
 slavery or involuntary servitude should exist. I 
 know that the article prohibiting slavery was 
 stricken out subsequently, on motion of a gentle- 
 man from North Carolina, and the ordinance went 
 into operation without it for about three years, and 
 until 1787. But in 1787 the ordinance of that date 
 was adopted, excluding slavery from the North- 
 western Territory ; and it was adopted on this great 
 principle of compromise of the conflicting inter- 
 ests of the two great sections of the country. It 
 was a wise act at that day to enter into that com- 
 promise. 
 
 It was said yesterday, Mr. Chairman, by the 
 gentleman from Missouri, [Mr. Benton,] and it 
 was, in my opinion, rightly said, that the com- 
 promise of 1820 was but a continuation of the 
 same national feeling, the same national principles 
 that dictated the compromise extending the line to 
 the territory which was then known as the Lou- 
 isiana purchase. Sir, without that spirit of conr- 
 promise, we never would have existed as a nation. 
 And, on looking over thedebates of theconvention 
 which framed the Constitution, the Madison pa- 
 pers especially, it will be seen how the sectional 
 feeling of the men of that day save way to accom- 
 modate and harmonize with the various sections 
 of the Union, and to come upon the saine general 
 platform on which all the States of the Union 
 might stand as a band of brothers, as a Union of 
 Stales, under the wise provision of the glorious 
 Constitution of the United Stales of America. 
 
 There were but few members of Congress in 
 the Convention which framed the Constitution. 
 Washington was there, and others, whose names 
 1 mightcite; hut/iis name was a tower of strength. 
 Sherman was there, and Franklin was there. Men 
 celebrated in political life in both the Carolinas and 
 Virginia were there. There were some thirty-odd 
 or forty in all, who gave us a form of government, 
 under which we have grown up to be a mighty 
 nation, which has become the pride of all Ameri- 
 can citizens, and the admiration of the whole 
 world. And all, in my humble opinion, was based, 
 Mr. Chairman, upon the spirit of compromise, 
 concession, conciliation, and patriotism. If the 
 various sections of the country had stood upon 
 their own separate interests, we never should have 
 had a Constitution. The same necessity for con- 
 ciliation and compromise exists at this day. There 
 is the same necessity for statesmen who look over 
 the whole country, and who rejoice in the pros- 
 perity of all the States — who will not narrow their 
 views to some little sectional point, to some district 
 which they may happen to represent for a mo- 
 ment, but which they must cease to represent after 
 a little while — who should look over the whole of 
 this great country, and should endeavor to com- 
 prehend its interests vital to hutnan liberty, and 
 vital to your own liberty. The liberty secured by 
 the Constitution is not licentiousness. It does not 
 tolerate any of that licentiousness, or liberty with- 
 out law, which some men occasionally advocate. 
 But the liberty which is sustained by the American 
 Constitution is the liberty which was given to ua 
 by our revolutionary fathers — republican liberty — 
 liberty regulated by law; the greatest political 
 blessing ever vouchsafed to man. 
 
 Nothing, Mr. Chairman, will disturb this ad- 
 
rame of Government bvU euch an effort 
 / being made; and hence I raise my feeble | 
 inst it; and if it were the last time 1 should ! 
 the world, I would reject tlie men who i 
 jreak down these compromises, for t!iey 
 ereby lead the way, unwittingly perhaps, i 
 struction of the glorious Union itself, 
 ngton, who was the President of the : 
 on which gave us our Constitution, in ! 
 ... ^ orewell Address, which I think it would be : 
 profitable to the people of the United States if; 
 we were to send it out annually to them with our 
 congressional documents, said, in reference to this 
 geographical discrimination and sectional preju- 
 dice, some of the wisest words which ever fell 
 from human lips. I will read a clause. He said: 
 
 " It is of infinite moment that you should properly esti- i 
 mate the immense value of your national Union to your [ 
 colUciiveaiid individual liappincss ; that you should cherish | 
 a cordial, liahitual, and immovabit; attachment to it; ac j 
 cust(Uiiing yourselves to think and speak of it as of the pal- i 
 ladium of your political safety and prosperity ; watchin^for j 
 its preservation with jealous anxiety; discountenancing j 
 whatever may suggest even a suspicion that it can in any i 
 event be abandoned; and indignantly frowning upon the 
 first dawning of every attempt to alienate any portion of ; 
 our country from the rest, or to enfeeble the sacred ties j 
 which now link together the various parts. ! 
 
 " For this you have every inducement of sympathy and I 
 Interest. Citizens, by hirlh or choice, of a common coun- 
 try, that country has a right to concentrate your alfections. \ 
 The name of American, which belongs to you, in your 
 national cap.iclly, muj^t always exalt the just pride of patriot 
 ism, more than any appellation derived from local discrim- | 
 illations." 
 
 "In contemplating the causes which may disturb our ] 
 Union, it occurs as mattPr of serious concern, that any ', 
 ground should have been furnished fiir characterizing par- I 
 ties by geosriijihical discriminations; iiorfhern nud south- [ 
 em, Jllhntlic and uestcrn ; whence designing men may] 
 endeavor to excite a belief that there is a real difference j 
 of local interests and views. One of the expedients of i 
 party to accniire influence within particular districts, is to j 
 misrepresent iheopinionsand aims of other districts. You 
 cannot shield yourselves too much against the jealousies 
 and heart burnings which spring from these misrepresenta- 
 tions; they tend to render alien to each other those who 
 ought to be bound together by fraternal atfection." 
 
 Now, air, I do not wish to misrepresent any 
 section of the country; and I am always pained 
 when I see my friends introduce into their discus- 
 sion sectional questions and inflimmatory denunci- 
 ations au;ainsl any party. I believe that the great 
 body of all the parties of the country is patriotic, 
 intelligent, and attached to the Constitution of the 
 United Slates. I endeavor to avoid denouncing 
 any great party, or any large section of any par- 
 ty, as enemies of my country. It was with re- 
 gret that I he:ud my friend from Georgia, [Mr. 
 Stephens,] and the geiuleinan from North Caro- 
 lina, [Mr. Clingmav,] allude, in the terms they 
 did, to a paper, publislied in this District, (the 
 National Intelligencer.) I do not believe it claims 
 to be the organ of the Whig party, nor do I know 
 that the Whig party, as a party, claim to have any 
 particular organ. I regretted to hear my friend | 
 from North Carolina, [Mr. Clivgm.in,] in much 
 the same strain, when referrintc to the northern sec- 
 tion of the Whig party in tliis country, connecting 
 it with the National Intelligencer of this city. 1 
 regret that he denounced that paper ns being on the 
 side of despotism, and against the side of liberty, 
 in all the great contests of this country with foreign \ 
 nations. I believe that there areas patriotic men ' 
 in the North as in the South. 1 believe that in the 
 South there are as patriotic men as in the North. 
 I am proud to believe that my whole country is 
 filled with sufficient intelligence and patriotism to 
 
 guard and defend all their rights, and to maintain 
 them whenever called upon to do so. It is my 
 pride to believe that we have the most intelligent 
 population, in proportion to numbers, upon the 
 face of the globe, demonstrating thereby , to foreign 
 Governments, the benefits of cnnstitutioiial liberty. 
 We have brave, intelligent, and patriotic men all 
 over our country, with intelligent and patriotic 
 women, adorned with heavenly beauty and angelic 
 virtues. [Laughter and applause.] And, sir, I 
 would not say a word to prejudice any section of 
 any great party in this country, or to detract from 
 the greatness, grandeur, or prosperity of our be- 
 loved and glorious Confederacy. Sir, we should 
 stand up to the recommendations of the Father of 
 our Country, and not denounce any great section. 
 And I heard with regret the other day the gentle- 
 man from North Carolina [Mr. Clivgman] re- 
 proaching the National Intelligencer as taking the 
 side of despotism against the side of lilerty. I 
 quote from the late speech of the gentleman from 
 North Carolina, as published: 
 
 "The gentleman from Georgia, [Mr. Stephens,] 1 re- 
 member, commented upon the course of the National In- 
 telligencer. Now, [ think that journal i.s a faithful exponent 
 of the parly I allude to. Its regard for this Missouri com- 
 promise has been assumed only for the present occasion. 
 [ remember very well that during the struggle, up to 1850, 
 that paper never came out for this Missouri line, although 
 the Soulh was battling for it for years ; nor did it once as- 
 sert our right to occupy the Territory in common with the 
 petiple of the North, clear and indisputable as that right 
 was. Its whole weight and influence were covertly but 
 adroitly thrown against us, and on the anti-slavery side. I 
 never attributed this course to any love of liberty on the 
 part of the conductors of that paper. On the contrary, in 
 every struggle between liberty and despotism, it takes the 
 side of despotism ; in every contest between the United 
 States and any foreign country, it takes ground against the 
 United States. It would be marvelous if our Government 
 were, in fact, always wrong on every issue with a foreign 
 nation. I presume, therefore, that it is because oursis the 
 freest Government upon earth that this journal always is 
 found taking sides against it, and for our enemies." 
 
 When I heard these remarks, I could but recol- 
 lect the fi\cts fts recorded, that during the last war 
 with Great Britain, the British came to this Capi- 
 tol and burnt it; then they went to the President's 
 house and burnt that, and then to the office of the 
 National Intelligencer, and burnt that also. Was 
 that because the National Intelligencer was on 
 the side of despotism, and against the side of lib- 
 erty.' I say that although 1 do not consider that 
 paper as the special organ of the Whig party — for 
 I do not know that tliey have any £uch organ — 
 that the National Intelligencer is one of the ablest 
 advocates of Whis: principles in our coun'ry; and 
 the gentleman from Georgia, [.Mr. Stephens,] 
 with nearly every Whisj member of this House, 
 voted for Mr. Joseph Gales, one of its editors, for 
 our public ]irinter, at the commencement of our 
 session. Its honored editors need no defense from 
 me. They can always defend themselves when 
 necessary.' But I will say, that for general Intel- „ 
 ligence, great ability, patriotism, and decorum, 
 the National Intelligencer might well be regarded 
 as a model for other newspapers, and inany of the 
 statesmen of our country. It will take care of 
 itself, and the Whig party will take care of itself. 
 
 But, sir, I believe this great question of the re- 
 peal of the Missouri compromise is a measure of 
 the present Administration. And what are the 
 objects proposed to be gained by that Administra- 
 tion.' Sir, if you will recur to the re#ords of the 
 votes cast in the last presidential election, you 
 will find that there were in all about three million 
 votes cast, and that the present incumbent of the 
 
8 
 
 presidential chair was elected by about two hun- 
 dred thousand majority. With the exception of 
 a few votes cast for a third candidate, all the other 
 votes were cast for General Scott, showing that 
 the majority of the Administration over the'Whig 
 party upon the popular vote, was comparatively 
 very small. Now, sir, in my opinion, the intro- 
 duction of this proposition, as an Administration 
 measure, i.? one of the measures by which they 
 attempt to break down the Whig party of the 
 country. Do you, sir, does any man, believe, that 
 if General Scott had been President, this attempt 
 would have been made to break down the com- 
 
 Fromise of 1830? No, sir; no, sir. Thispower, 
 repeat, is exerted, come from what quarter it 
 may, in my humble judgment, for the purpose in 
 part, of breaking down the Whig party of the 
 country; a party powerful still in numbers and 
 talent, although it may be feebly represented, nu- 
 merically, upon this floor, and able to wield a 
 powerful influence upon the country. 
 
 Mr. Chairman, I trust we sliall hear hut little more upon 
 tliis subject in this House. I have, with great rehietance, 
 occupied the time of the comniitt(;e upon tliis occasion, be- 
 cause, from the position I liold as a member of the coin- 
 mittee which reported this bill to the House, upon which I 
 have been placed by the Speaker, I felt it due to myself to 
 explain my own position in reference to this measure. 
 
 Now, sir, I have desired to address gentlemen from the 
 South as well as the North. If I have said anything in the 
 least 'degrte offensive to any gentleman, I regret it; for 
 I have none hut the kindest findings towards every member 
 upon this floor ; but, sir, I reiterate, that the time will come 
 when gentlemen who now advocate the repeal of the Mis- 
 souri compromise will thanjt God that there were some men 
 in every section of the Union patriotic enough to resist it. 
 
 Mr. SMITH, of Virginia. Will the gentleman allow me 
 to ask hiin a question .■' 
 
 Mr. TAYLOR. I have but a few minutes left, but I 
 will yield to the gentleman, asking him to be as brief as 
 possible. 
 
 Mr. SMITH. The gentleman from Ohio spoke of the 
 objedt in bringing forward this measure being to break 
 down the Whig party. Now, I wanted to know 
 
 Mr. TAYLOR. Well, sir, that is a matter in reference 
 to which I leave every man at liberty to draw his own in- 
 ference. Mr. Chairman, the object of the meeting of this 
 Congress, in my humble opinion, was to^gislate for the 
 people, and not for the Government officials and servants 
 only. We have a vast number of bills upon our Calendar. 
 We have many biils which must be passed by Congress in 
 order to carry on the operations of the Government, and 
 which, in my opinion, ought always to be placed at the 
 foot of the Calendar, so that the legislation necessary 
 for the people must of necessity be acted upon tirst. But, 
 Bir, here we are, making no progress in the legitimate busi- 
 ness of legislation, because this bill occupies our time. Sir, 
 I wash my hands of all responsibility in reference to this 
 delay. I have been in my seat constantly since the begin- 
 ning of the session, except a few days when I vvasdetaiiied 
 on account of sickness, anxious to promote the business 
 of the country; but this question, sectional in its character, 
 lias diverted a large majority of the members of the House 
 from the proper business on their hands, and paralyzed the 
 business before Congress for the present session. 
 
 Now, Mr. Chairman, in this state of the case what ought 
 we to do.' It is said that in the multitude of counsellors 
 there is wisdom. The honorable gentleman from Ken- 
 tucky, [Mr. Preston,] in a speech upon this subject the 
 other day, expressed the opinion that the bill for organizing 
 ' Nebraska and Kansas would pass, and that the Missouri 
 compromise would be repealed. Sir, from the observation 
 I have made upon the subject, I believe it will never pass 
 this House. I believe there is too much good sense among 
 the members of the House to break down a conjpromise 
 which has been in such beneficial operation for thirty-four 
 years. If you lake this step, I believe that you will take 
 one which every man of this committee will regret. It will 
 
 cultivate the agitation of this question until it will come 
 home to the door of every man. I am not for breaking 
 down the old land-marks. "Remove not the old land- 
 marks." That, I believe, is a scriptural declaration — one 
 of the wisest ever made. If two brothers have a partition 
 of property, and one uses up his portion or disposes of it, 
 why should he claim — I will not say claim, for I do not be- 
 lieve that the southern gentlemen claim this— why should 
 they expect, or even accept, the whole ? There is too much 
 honor in southern gentlemen. They would noldoitin a 
 private estate-. 
 
 The bold men who have stood on this floor and demon- 
 strated the interests of the country in adhering to these 
 con)promises, such men as my honored friend from Loui- 
 siana, [Mr. Hunt,] who in a bold and manly speech gave 
 utterance to the sentiments of a patriot and statesman of 
 the highest order, and my friend from Tennessee, [.Mr. 
 CuLLOM,] and others, well deserve the thanks of the whole 
 country. lam proud to take them by the hand, and ac- 
 knowledge my indebtedness to them for their independence 
 and patriotism. Sir, when I stood in this Hall and'voted 
 solitary and alone almost among my friends of the North- 
 west for the fugitive slave law, and when I was denounced 
 therefor, I conceived at that tiine that I was carrying out 
 an important principle of the Constitution of the United 
 Slates, and my patriotic constituency generously sustained 
 me. When I stood here and voted to s'etile the Texas bound- 
 ary, and give that State {$10,0110,000; when I stood here 
 and voted to admit New Mexico when she came up to b« 
 a State, tree or slave, as she chose, and not to give her 
 " squatter sovereignty," as now contended for — not that 
 she might regulate her affairs as a Territory, but when she 
 comes in as a State, she is to adopt slavery or not, as she 
 chooses — I say, that when I stood here, and advocated and 
 voted for these measures, I did it extending the right hand 
 of fellowship as a national Whig to my southern friends, 
 for whom, as well as those of the North, I hope I shall not 
 cherish other than the kindest and most fraternal feelings. 
 
 Do not break down the compromises made by the law and 
 Consiitiition. They are the very pillars on which rest all 
 your legislation. If you break down one, you set a prece- 
 dent to breakdown another. You cultivate disaffection. 
 You stir up those who cannot exist except by sectional ag- 
 itation. You strengthen the hands of those who are against 
 your own country ; because, in my humble judgment, Mr. 
 Chairman, the Constitulion'of the United States can never 
 be upheld unless by observing all its provisions, as well as 
 the provisions of those wise compromises, which are al- 
 most equal in importance to the Constitution itself. Let 
 us adhere to them ; and when the citizens of this Republio 
 come to this Capitol in after years — ten, twenty, thirty, 
 forty, fifty, or even five hundred years hence — I trust that 
 they will go down to Mouiu Vern(m on a pilgrimage of pa- 
 triotism, and that, while they have Washington's Farewell 
 Address in their hands, and stand by his sacred tomb, they 
 will thank God that they are the countrymen of Washing- 
 ton and his compatriots, who made them such a Govern- 
 ment. 
 
 In a recent visit which I had occasion to make to Eu- 
 rope, on account of my health, I had the opportunity, as a 
 citizen of the United States, to look at the political institu- 
 tions which I saw there. Let others admire and uphold 
 military despotisms, absolute orlimited monarchies, as they 
 may; and whilst I with truth say, I did not go there to ua- 
 derrate or overrate the artificial distinctions which 1 saw 
 among men, I came back more and more rejoiced that I 
 was born in a land of freedom, of free speech, with a free 
 press, and free government; and where every man is, in 
 some degree, a sovereign ; where every man may enjoy his 
 constitutional and absolute riiihts, of personal liberty, as se- 
 cured by our Constitution, freedom of speech and security 
 of person and of property, and none dare make him afraid. 
 I rejoiced that I was a countryman cf Wasliington. And 
 though I highly esteem and gratefully rememljer the courte- 
 sies extended to me abroad, and am ready to extend the hand 
 of friendsliip and hospitality to the foreigners who come to 
 this land for pleasure, a residence, or legitimate business — I 
 say that this country, under the Constitution, by adherence 
 to the wise legislation ofour revolutionary fathers ; by stand- 
 ing by the compromises which they made ami uplield, is 
 destined to be the greatest, as it is the freest, the most pros- 
 perous, and happy on the face of the slobe, and of which 
 we may well be pri)ud as citizens of the United States of 
 America. I thank the committee for its attention. 
 
 Printed at the Congressional Globe Office. 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
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