. (READ AND CIRCULATE.)
WHIG'TESTIMONY AGAINST THE ELECTION OF
GENERAL SCOTT
TO THE PRESIDENCY OF THE U. S.
OPINIONS OF
HENRY CLAY-THOS. G. PRATT-GEO. E. BADGER,
AND OTHER DISTINGUISHED WHIGS, AND THE WHIG PRESS.

" In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. ';

It is admitted by all unprejudiced minds, -who have examined the facts
in the case, that the nomination of Genl. Scott for the Presidency, was se
cured through the influence of W. H. Seward, of N. Y., a man who is
styled, by members of his own party, an "abolitionist, arch intriguer, de
magogue, enemy to his country, not worthy to hold a se&t in the U. S.
Senate, and the worst man in America." We think we shall be able to
prove to every impartial reader, by distinguished Whig testimony, 1st.
That W. H. Seward is an enemy to the Constitution of our happy coun
try and her cherished institutions. 2nd. That through the influence of
Seward and his coadjutors, namely, such men as Johnson, of Pa., Greely,
Weed, Kellog & Co., Genl. Scott was nominated at Baltimore as the can
didate ofthe Whig party for the Presidency, and that these men will control his
administration should he unfortunately be elected. Without further remark,
we will introduce the testimony. During the discussion on the compromise
measures ofthe 31st Congress, Mr. Badger, a prominent Whig senator
from North Carolina, said : —
" Now, Mr. President, I have submitted these views to gentlemen, and
those only who 'told themselves bound by constitutional obligations. If
the sentiments uttered upon this subject by the honorable Senator from
New York, LMr. Seward,] the other day, are the sentiments of this body,
I should not, and if I believed them to be the sentiments of this body, I
certainly would not, have sp'ent my time in submitting any remarks to the
Senate. And if the sentiments he has avowed here are the sentiments of
the northern people generally — if he speaks even the opinions and feelings
ofthe great mass of his constituents, in New York — I say it is vain to ex
pect that mutual attachment and concord can be restored between the dif
ferent portions of this country. What does the Senator say ?
C- Aiexandeh, Printer.

1 *( ; ' ;, / :•¦'.,',.' " M
" We deem the principle of "the law, for the recapture of fugitive slaves, unjust, unconsti
tutional, and immoral ; and thus, while patriotism withholds its approbation, the conscience
of our people condemn it. You will say that these corivictions of ours are disloyal. Grant
it, for the sake of .argument. They are nevertheless/honest ; and the law; is to be executed
among us, not among you ; not by us, but by the Fed eral' authority . Has any Government
ever succeeded in changing the moral convictions of its subjects by force,.' But these convic
tions imply no disloyalty. We reverence the Constitution, although we perceive this defect,
just as we acknowledge the splendor and the power ofthe sun, although its surface is tar
nished with here anct there an opaque spot.
" We cannot, in our judgment, be ^either true christians or real freemen, if we impose .on
another a chain that we defy all human power to fasten on ourselves.' You believe and think
otherwise, and, doubtless with equal sincerity. We judge you hot, and He alone, who or
dained the conscience of man and its laws of action, can judge us. Do we then, in this con
flict, demand of you an unreasonable thing, in- asking that, since you will have property
that can and will exercise human powers to effectits escape, ;you, shall be your own police,
and in acting among us as such, you shall conform to principles indispensible to the security
of admitted rights of freemen? If you will have this law executed, you must alleviate, not
increase its rigors. . ,
" The Constitution regulates our stewardship ; the Constitution devotes the domain' to
union, to justice, to defence, to welfare, and to liberty. ¦, (
* " But there is a higher law than the Constitution, which regulates our authority over the
domain, and devotes it to the same noble purposes."
" Now, sir, here is a distinct announcement, impossible to be misunder
stood, that, though the persons for whom the Senator speaks, reverence
the Constitution, yet they consider a law for the surrender of fugitive
slaves^ passed in pursuance of the Constitution, as a violation of the Con
stitution, and as immoral. Here is a distinct announcement that they con
sider it as a discharge ofthe high duties of hospitality, when they receive
our fugitive slaves, entertain them, and withhold them from us. Here is
an open and direct encouragement on the part ofthe Senator from New
York, [Mr. Seward,} for slaves to escape to the freemen of the North}
and for northern freemen to aid them in escaping. He assumes, then, that
all will be received with open arms, and that the freemen of the North will
be considered as having therein discharged the high duty of hospitality.
Now, sir, if that is the case, how perfectly idle it is for gentlemen to talk
about respecting the. Constitution ! He who obeys the Constitution only
in what he thinks right, does not pbey the Constitution at' all — he but fol
lows his own inclination ; and he who, having taken ,an oath to support
the Constitution, refuses to obey it, because he thinks there is some " law
above the Constitution" which forbids slavery, places himself in the same
position-staking for his guide his own individual judgment and. opinion,
above and against, the Constitution, which he can rightfully do only after
surrendering the office he holds, and which he holds on the condition
which that oath implies and intends to enforce."
HENRY CLAY QN SEWARDISM AND HIGHER LAW.
Read attentively the' following extract from a speech, delivered in the
U. S. Senate, by that great patriot and statesman, Henry Clay, of Ky.,
on the monstrous doctrine advanced and advocated by W. H. Seward, of
N. Y. Mr. Clay said :
"There is one opinion prevailing — I hope not extensively — in some
of the non-slave-holdihg States, which nothihg we:can do can conciliate.
I allude to that opinion that asserts that there is a higher law — a divine
law — a naturailaw — which entitles a man, under whose roof a runaway
has come, to give him assistance — and succor — and hospitality. Where
& the; difference between receiving and harboring a known fugi
tive slave, and going to the plantation of his master and stealing

him away.-* A divine law, a natural kiw ! And who are1 they that
attempt to tell us what is divine law, and what is natural law ?
Where are their credentials of prophecy ? Why, sir, we are told that the
«ther day, at a meeting of some of these people at New York, Moses and
all the Prophets were rejected, and that the name even of our blessed Sa
viour was treated with blasphemy and contempt by these propagators of a
divine law, of a natural law; which they have discovered, above all human
laws and constitutions. If Moses and, the Prophets, and our Saviour, and
all the others, are to. be rejected, will they condescend to show us their
authority for propagating this new law, this new divine law, of which they
speak ? "
Then turning to Mr. Seward, who had put himself forward as the ex
ponent ofthe " higher law" doctrine^ he continued :
" But there are persons in this age of enlightenment: and progress', and
civilization who will rise up in public assemblages, and, denouncing the
«hurch and all that is sacred that belongs to it — denouncing the founders
ofthe religion which we all profess and revere — will tell you that, not
withstanding the oath which they have taken, by kissing the sacred book,
to carry out into full effect, all the provisions of the Constitution of our
country, there is a lawof their God — a divinelaw, which they have found
out, and nobody else has — superior and paramount to all human law; and
that they do not mean to obey this human law, but the divine law, of
which, by some inspiration, by some means undisclosed, they have ob
tained a knowledge. That is the class of persons which we do not pro
pose to conciliate by any amendment, by any concession which we can
make." ,, .. ,
Listen to Thomas G. Pratt, a distinguished Whig Senator, from the
State of Maryland,
Mr. Seward, in obedience to the odious doctrine of " a higher law,"
advocated by him'^ offered the following amendment to the Compromise Bill :
""New Mexico shall, on proclamation by the President of the United States, be admitted
as a State into this Union on an equal footing with the original States ; provided that the
President,; before issuing such proclamation, shall be satisfied that the* constitution recently
formed' by the convention of New Mexico has been approved and ratified by the people of
New Mexico in the election held for the purpose of considering it on the 20th day of June
last".', . , ' ¦ .,-, _, ' :'; • ,1 . .,,,*, it *•.'.¦:¦'' I'-H"'. "' '•¦ " *-* -'•¦' i tl
Gov. Pjajtt, spoke. as follows :, , ,;
, '.'It will be within the recollection of everyone who hears me, that in the
second speech made by the Senator from. New ;Yi<?rk — ope in which he
displayed aU the preparation which I think all Senators, should give to
anything they are about tp utter in, thijs body ; one, which displayed a de
gree of labor which, if hqstqwed upon a better cause, wpuld have been
wqrthyof his qountry— he reiterated the sentiment contained in his first.
speech; and, that was, th.-$t there weretwo antagonistic ¦ principles incor
porated originally into, the Constitutjqn^-the equality of man, and the> tct
cognition of domestic sjavery., ', , , : . i
Npw, sir, the Senator from New York ;avowed further, and I think every
one, wJil), agree, with me in, this statementj tfia,t whenever this antagonistic,
principle, of -^bicjfci, he was speaking, , came in conflict with fhe Constitu
tion, that it Jwrpuld be regarded nas, the higher law, which would be qbeyed
by him, in preference tjp the ,QQn,stitutiqn: of 4h&,, United, States, itself. ., I
have, sppken .of, |his, matter to sgye^ajl.ojf.tli^j&ieqds of, that Senator,, andi
this is^^^ij.^^^J^j^ ey'er Jl#id anyrqnej say th^tithfsj.^adeiirK'

stoo4 it' differently from whkt I have stated. I said to these friends ofthe
Senatqr, when that principle was announced, that I intended to move for
the expulsion of that member from this body. I argued that, before he
tpqk his seat here,. he was bound by that article which says "that Sena
tors, before they take their .seats, shall swear to support the Constitution,"'
* to- take the oath which you administer to him. I said to his friend that,
when he, came to' be sworn, he would not have been permitted to take the
oath, or his seat here, if he had promulgated the sentiments which he en
tertains and now avows his reverence* for— the obligations of that higher
law, and his obligation to obey it in preference to the oath which you were
about to administer to him. There is not a member of this Senate who
would; have permitted him to take his seat avowing such sentiments. If
he had not concealed his understanding of the obligations which he was
about to assume upon himself, he would not have been permitted to take
his seat; and I, contended to his friends that, inasmuch as he holds these
sentiments, and, had obtained admission here by a concealment of these
opinions, we ought now to turn him out ofthe body."
The yeas and nays were ordered*
Mr. DAYTON. As the yeas and nays, have been: ordered, I believe
that the request which I was about to make cannot be complied with. I
meant; to ask the Senator from New York if it woald not comport with his
present views to withdraw this proposition ?
, Mr. CLAY. I object.
The, question being then taken on Mr. Seward's amendkment, resulted
as jfollpws:  ',
YEA— Mr. Seward— 1.
NAYS— Messrs. Atphison, Badger, Barnwell, Bell, Benton, Berrien, Bradbury, Bright,
Butler,* Cass,' Clarke, Clay; Cooper, Davis, of Mississippi, Dawson, Dayton, Dickinson,
Dodge, of Iowa, Douglas, Downs, Felch, Foote, Greene, Hunter, Jones, King, Mason,
Morton, Pratt, Rmsk,, Sebastjan, Shields, Smith, Soule, Spruance,* Sturgeon, Turney, Un
derwood, Wales, Walker, Whitcomb, and Yulee— 42. — See Appendix to Cong.. Globe, 1st
session, 31st Congress, page 144.
Sqithe amendment was rejected.
SEWARD'S INFLUENCE AT THE BALTIMORE WHIG
''.',,„..,.,. CONVENTION. ,
His dangerous character and pretensions as shown by Whig authority.
Haying, we think, fully sustained our first proposition, we noy proceed
with the testimony to prove the second, namely, that through the influence
of Seward and his coadjutors, Gen. Scott was nominated as the candidate
of the Whig party.
. The Hon. E. C. Cabell, of Fla., Hon. C. H. Williams and Hon. M. P.
Gentry, of Tenn., all distinguished Whigs of the' present Congress, able
debaters, and possessing greatinfluence with, their party, in discussing the
Presidential question in the House of Representatives, before the nom
ination5 of Gen'l Scott,, ihade the follpwing remarks :
Mr. Cabell, in his speech referring to Gen'l Scott, said:
" His best friend'canhot s-a'y that'heis not now controlled by Sewurd'and
kisfollowers. For,j if it be ture, that he is in favor of the maintenance', of
all the compromise 'measures, including the fugitive slave law^no possible
reason or motiHe can be assigned for1 the conceaflment of his dpihibn's exdept
a desire to propitiate the free-soil arid ^nti-fugltlve slave law sentiment of
the North. Their avPwa'l' would gtfeatly*bfene'fit him in 'ill the Southern
States, 'and can dhly. injure him almPrtg'the en^riii'es^f tfrecknh-pTdtiiiSe ahd

the advocates ofthe repeal ofthe fugitive slave law; It cannot, therefore,
be denied that his present deticm is controlled by them, and our people nat
urally think they have reason to fear that the same influences will control
his administration. : : "
Mr. Chairman, the organization to which General Scott would owe
his election, would be the same as that which could how, and' may in 1866,
elect Mr. Seward, and would control ithe administration of both or either.
The election of the Senator from New York,, and of General Soott, by
such; an organization, would lead to precisely the same results, and the
former would follow as the necessary consequence of the latter, if the
Union held together till 1856. The effect would be to ¦ open wide the
flood-gates of; abolition agitation, and to prostrate every constitutional
compromise Whig at the North, all of whom will be proscribed, and
treated as " outside barbarians.^ Far better will it be for the national
men. of our party that a ctnservative Democrat be elected.
In his appointments Genera] Scott must look to the men to whom he
owes hw election. In making his selections frbm New York, it is not ex
travagant to suppose that the notorious Mr. Kellogg, removed from office
by Mr. Fillmore!, will be restored for his faithful service ; and tha't sortie
anti- compromise and anti-fugitive slave law man, in Seward's interest, will
represent the Empire State in the- Cabinet. And who would more graPei
fully and more probably; represent the Pennsylvania wing of the Free-Sol
organization in the Cabinet than Governor Johnsotf; whoipocketed the law
passed by the Pennsylvania Legislature to give efficiency to the fugitive
slave law ! Owing his. election to these men, they will be his counsellors,
and the influence of his administration must be given to them. *¦ ¦* * * *
General Scott's election, under present circumstances, would, in my
opinion, continue the Government in the hands of the Free-Soil party,
till. their fanaticism dissolved the Union."
Mr. Williams said' : * , ¦
"Mr. Chairman, if Millard Fillmore and Daniel Webster shall be set
aside, under the circumstances, and with the lights now before the country,
and Winfield Scott shall be nominated as the Whig candidate for the Pres
idency, in my opinion the people of the Southern States will protest
against " The deep damnation of their taking off.' '
, I further state, that the party which shall be guilty, at this trying time,
of nominating a man whose opinions are not known, will, in the language
of S. S. Prentiss, of Mississippi, sink so deep that a bubble will never rise-to
mark the spot at which it went down. . It must be so, it ought to be So;;
So deeply rooted and imbedded are the Compromise measures in the minds*
of both Whigs and Democrats inthe State of Tennessee, that if each mem
ber from the State— Whigs and Democrats — upon this floor, should go,
home with a nomination like that, "'coming in such a questionable shape,"
and make their utmost efforts to sustain such a nOtnlnatioft, they would
meet with overwhelming and inevitable defeat. I am gpeakin'g plainly.'
I know thafc a portion of the party with which I ami associated will mark
this speech as most mischievous. It is not so designed. I desire to play
an honorable part with my party. It is infinitely preferable for me, like ain
hojiorable and determined man, to pursue this course, 'thahto withhold my
co-operation with them after 'a nomination shall be made. I seek not to
do General Scott injustice. I have an object infinitely above. the success

of this or :that man for the Presidency. I am struggling to maintain the
nationality of the party to which I have ever belonged, and to conserve the
interests of my country. <•.'. ...,,,'
Mr. Chairman, I speak only for myself. I do not assume to speak for
the people of Tennessee, nor for my constituents, as to what course they
will feel it, to be their duty to pursue, if General. Scott is nominated under
the circumstances to which I have referred. I may venture, however, to
say that, in my opinion,, if General Scott shall be nominated, surrounded as
' he is by the facts and circumstances to which I have alluded, it is my hon
est and sincere belief that there cannot be found Whigs enough of talent
and character, in the State of Tennessee, who will consent to form an ef
fective electoral ticket. [Laughter.] I know that there are gentlemen
who differ with me. Some say that he can carry Maryland. Some say
that he can carry North Carolina ; and some say that he can carry Ken
tucky and Tennessee. I have only to say that I. differ very much with
those gentlemen,. and in my humble opinion they are the worsit judges; of
public ; opinion that I ever knew. [A laugh.]"
Mr. Gentry in his speech said : •
" If I am right in these conclusions, the nomination of General Scott as
the Whig candidate for the Presidency, will not only result in a most dis
astrous party defeat, but it will also tend powerfully to sectionalize and ab-
olitionize the Whig party. It will place a distinguished Senator from
New York, (W. H. Seward,) in the same relation to the Whig party of
the Union that he now occupies in reference to the Whig party of New
York and the great States adjoining thereto, and, indeed,' to thewhole Whig
party of the North^a n.ost influential and controlling position. * * *, *
Should General Scott receive the nomination, simultaneously with that
event Mr. Seward.will practically be inaugurated into the position of ruler ,
and controller of the Whig party in the United States. If HE is to be our
leader, it is important to inquire whither we are to be led — what battles we
are to fight; and what are the objects ofthe campaign in which we are to
be. enlisted?
Sir, I do not undertake to judge the motives and objects of any man, ex
cept so far as those objects and motives are revealed and displayed by his
acts. As a public man, and in the performance of what I esteem to be a
public duty, I have a right to refer to his position andlnquire into his ob
jects and purposes. Such inquiries, in regard to the objects and purposes
of such a man, address themselves to the interests of the: Republic. It is
always a painful matter to me to be obliged to specify any individual in
public debate, and nothing but a necessity would induce me to do so now.
I have observed and studied and scrutinized Mr. Seward, for many years
past. Heis, a remarkable man. I think he has exercised a very pernicious
influence upon the politics of this country for many years past. If he is
not crushed and annihilated by public intelligerice and public virtue, he
will hereafter, if he lives, exercise a much greater and far rnore dangerous
influence over political affairs. He who has failed to scrutinize and study
him, has failed to study and comprehend a source>o.f political influence
most powerful for mischief. What are his objects, and what the means
by, which he aims to accomplish them ?. I propose to answer these ques
tions ; and in doing sq, I am of course, to be understood only as express
ing my opinions. I think those opinions are founded upon sound reasons>
which justify my conclusions. His object is to become President of the

United States \ and he intends to form a sectional anli-sla very party in the
Northern; States to accomplish this great qbject of his ambition. * * * *
Accordingly we see him at different times and places speaking and acting in
such a way as tokeep himself on this subject in sympathetic commuriication
with the extremest sectionalists, agitators and fanatics. Why do I say
this? What facts can be referred to which supportand sustain thisopinion.
, I have not had an opportunity, since I determined to discuss these ques
tions, to examine files of old newspapers, and thereby enable myself to
speak with positive certainty and exactness. But my memory on this sub-
ject at least will not, I think, fail me. Go back to the period when Mr.
Seward was Governor of New YoVk, and read a correspondence between
him and Governor McDowell, of Virginia. The latter gentleman, if I re
member correctly, as Governor of Virginia, demanded, from Mr. Seward,
as Governor of New York, that a slave charged with crime, and who had
escaped' from Virginia into New York, should be delivered up to the au
thorities of Virginia, to be tried} according to the laws of that State, for
the crime of which he was charged A long correspondence ensuedTin
the course of which the obligation of the States to this Union, under the
Constitution, upon the. subject of slavery, were very fully discussed; and
then it was that Mr. Seward asserted that higher law doctrine, the annun
ciation of which by him, in his speech in the Senate, when the compromise
measures' were under consideration, attracted so much attention. Eyejn
as far back as the period I allude to, he denied that the Constitution could
give a citizen of a Southern State the right of property in his slave; and
he firmly refused, on this ground, to comply with the demand made by the
Governor of Virginia. Go read a speech made by him at Cleveland, du
ring the last Presidential election, .and you will see in it that perpetual agi
tation on the subject of slavery, with a view to its ultimate extermination,
was announced by him as a duty to which he had devoted himself, and he
labored to persuade the Abolitionists of that region that' the best way to
accomplish this object was to sustain the Whig ticket. Arid again-, when
General Taylor died — when the compromise measures passed— when Mr.
Fillmore and Mr. Webster threw the whole weight of their influence, and gave
the country the benefit of their utmost exertion to induce the,North to accept
the compromise measures as apeaqg-offering — a final settlement of sectional
differences between the North and South — what did Mr. Seward do ? I shall
have to refer to his acts from memory, and if I make a mistake I will correct
it when.it is pointed out. According to my recollection, soon after the
passage of those measures^ he introduced a resolution into the Senate, ora
bill, to abolish slavery in theDistrict of Columbia ; thus showing to the
anti-slavery men ofthe country that he did not acquiesce in the compromise
mer.sures — that he was still for agitation.
Now, if further light is demanded as to the ends Mr. Seward aims at,
look to the fact that, when a fugitive slave was rescued by a mob at Syra
cuse — a motley crowd of men and women, white and black — when they
were arrested for this seditious obstruction of the law, Mr. Seward went
into court, and volunteered to become their bail; and if the newspapers
are to be credited, invited -them to his house and treated them to its ele^
gant hospitalities.*
'The remarks made* by Mr.Gentry, in relation to the mob at Syracuse, are sustained'by
the following extracts from strong Whig papers, in New York, dated. October 23d, 1851: *

s-
What does all this mean ?.i Is it not to encourage rebellion, insurrection
aiid; resistance to law ? Is it not to deny that the Constitution can impose
any obligation to execute -the fugitive slave law ? Is it not to deny the
constitutional validity of that law ? Is it not a hypocritical claim tbatthere
is a higher law, which absolves him from that oath of allegiance whichshe
has taken to his country, and which binds him to maintain the Constitu
tion of his country? Yet this is the doctrine he teaches, andithis man,
with that; powerful political organization which he controls*, is to be our
leader — is he ? Under his auspices General Scott became a candidate for
the Presidency; and if General Scott is nominated at Baltimore, he will
owe his nomination to William H Seward ; and, therefore, General Scott's
nomination, cannot, under any circumstances, nationalize the Whig party,
because William H. Seward's aims cannot-be accomplished otherwise than
by a sectional organization of parties.
If the compromise Whigs of the Union — if the Southern Whigs can
accept and support a candidate for the Presidency, who is commended to
From the New York Express.
THE AUBURN PILGRIMS.
A pilgrimage has been made, vpe see, from Syracuse to Auburn, and the pilgrims — broth
ers in breeches and sisters in Bloomers, in part — have been feted, entertained, welcomed, sha
ken hands with, if not, embraced, by one of our Senators in Congress from New York.
These Abolition brethren arid sisters left Syracuse, the scene of their recent outrages and or
gies, to give countenance to such of the brethren as had' been caught, — naturally enough,
being participators in the affair, uncaught, they sympathize with the parties arrested, not so
lucky in the escape as themselves ; and when in Auburn, after a Judge of the United States
Court had bound over a portion of them as prima facie guilty of a high misdemeanor, an
honorable Senator in that Congress which makes laws, not only' Sanctions the outrageous
violations of law which they have been arrested for, by volunteering to become bail, but
takes them all into his house, and substantially says, "Well done, men and women. Go it
thefirst chance again."
A negro in Cayuga county, some fewyears ago', butchered a white family, and the hon
orable Senator volunteered to snatch him from the .gallows on the plea of idiocy or. insanity;
nad now, asitseems, this confused defence of all criminals, black and white, yeliowand brovyn,
is but a sorry compliment to the brother andj sister pilgrims from Syracuse.
[From the Albany Register.]
We are credibly informed that on Monday, when Judge Conkling delivered his opinion,
abput a hundred Abolitionists, from Syracuse and Auburn,, composed of men and women,
many of the latter in Bloomer dresses, were present, and that after-Gov. Seyvajrd had become
bail for the parties bound over, the motley groupof males and long and short-skirted females,
by his invitation, formed a procession and escorted the prisoners to his house, where they
were treated to a. most gracious and hospitable reception. This conduct on his part,, can be
regarded in no other light, than as an indifect censure of the decision of Judge Conkling, a
public expression of sympathy for persons bound over to answer to the charge of criminal
offence of no ordinary turpituUe, and an approval ofthe Sentiments and principles of the fa
natical group which forrjtied their escort. We deeply regret that a United States Senator
from New York, and former, chief magistrate ofthe State, should have so far forgotten wh^t
is due' to a decent self respect, to'his high position, to public opinion, and the laws and Con
stitution of his country, as to take the lead in such a miserable an'd degrading exhibition.
From the Journal of Commerce. Senator Seward's last Abolitionist demonstration :
" It wjll be noticed that William H. Seward, who represents the iState of New York in the
Senate of the United States, went "bail for all the prisoners and took occasion to remark " that
he did not stappose that such' ah act could be regarded as a recognition of the moral obliga
tion of thefugitive slave law." When men who are honored with the highest offices within
the gift of our people, thus wantonly throw their influence on the side of rebellion, what
wonder that there should .be -resistance to the laws, and that the blood of faithful officers
should be shed while attempting to enforce them. The 'moral' guilt of SewaM in this mat
ter appears to us scarcely if at allless than that of the prisoners. iBut he'has violated no
positive law, and so will escape the punishment he deserves. As if to make the affair sa-,
premely ridiculous as well as wicked, a lot of Syracuse women, several of them in Btoomer
dress, accompanied the prisoners to Auburn, an<J were invited by Seward, in company with"
the prisoners to his residence, where Jthey were cordiaUy..entertained. ' The whole ' motley
group, (negroes and all, we presume,) moved in procession." ,'

them by such influences, ahd under such auspices as these, I think it will
require but a very slight progress in party servility to enable them to
support Mr. Seward for the Presidency four years hence. *****
As a loyal whig who ha£ never proved unfaithful to party — myself and
my Southern Whig friends will be required to fall amiably and submissively
into line, and constitute the rear guard of Mr. Seward's column, and give
him our voices to swell the* jubilant exultation. Well, perhaps I may try,
[Laughter.] But my opinion is, that my utmost effort to shout will resolve
itself into a groan Pf despair. I cannot do it. ' I will not. Put that
down in your note-book. " Well, what will I do ?" "Join the Democra
tic party?" [Laughter.] I' do not thihk I shall. I do not know what
I shall do. But I know I will do what I believe to be my duty. My
present impression is, that I shall deem it more consistent with my pride
of character, to stand aloof from the contest. But if I thought one man's
vote or one man's influence were necessary to cast the vote of Tenriessee
for Pierce and King; my voice and my vote should be given to them un
hesitatingly, against such a nomination under such circumstances. And
any .gentleman who dreams that amy Southern State will east its vote for
General Scott in the next presidential election, dreams, in my opinion, a
dream that will never be realized.
I suppose that for this I am to be a proscribed and denounced charac
ter — an excommunicated Whig. Well, gentlemen, I defy you all. [Laugh
ter.] I only insist that no man shall denounce me until he can show a
better Whig character in the past than I can. Observe this condition, and
I am willing for you to say what you please. I acknowledge, to a proper
extent, allegiance to party. But I owe to my country an allegiance high
er than any that party can impose. I should consider myself a traitor,
recreant to all the interests of those who have honored me with their con
fidence in sending me here, if I would for a moment co-operate in produ
cing such results as I have described. What shall I do ? * * * * *
I will go home. [Laughter.] In a sequestered valley in the State of
Tennessee, there is a smiling farm, with bubbling fountains', covered with
rich pasturage, and fat flocks, and all that is needful for the occupation
and enjoyment of a man of uncorrupted tastes. I will go there and pray
for Rome.
Mr. Chairman we must nationalize ourselves. It is cowardice to shrink
from tho duties arid responsibilities of the hour. If our fathers had -been
as cowardly as those men who say they see the right, and yet dare not do
it, had freedom been won ?! 'Never. We had still been the vassals of
England. If we^-their sons — cannot act up to the example they set us,
the glorious inheritance they bequeathed to us will be lost forever. I in
voke gentlemen to arouse to a correct appreciation of impending dangers,
and to awake to the obligations which they owe to their country, and
which it is a disgrace to1 any man who claims the character of a patriot
not to discharge,"
AN 'ABOLITION WTHG ON THE STAND.
Thp views expressed on the floor of Congress, by leading Whig statesmen,
in regajrf: to jMr. Seward, are corroborated by the following extract
from the speech of Rev. Theodore, Parker, rat the anti-slavery convention,
at Abington,, Massachusetts, on the 5th of July, 1-852. It shows' the esti
mation in which the fprincipal 'Scott managers are held by the abolitionists,

10
and they are likely to know their men. After stating the* various elements
comprised in the free-soil or abolition party, and alluding to the position of
several persons who have been more or less prominent in the advocacy of
sectional parties, the reverend gentleman refers to the position of Hon. W.
H. Seward as follows :
" Then there is another man of great/mark on the same side. 1 mean Mr. Seward. He
is nominally with the Whigs, but he is really of the political anti-slavery party — the chief
man in it. Just now he has more influence than any man in the Northern States, and is the
only prominent Whig politician of whom we might predict a brilliant future. General Scott,
I take it, owes his, nomination to Senator Seward. In the convention, he seemsto have wish
ed for three things—I. To defeat Mr. Webster avt all events. 2. To defeat Mr. Fillmore, if
possible. 3. To have the nomination of Scott without a platform, if possible ; but if not,
with a platform — even; with the present platform." -
SCOTT'S NOMINATION— ITS EFFECT AT THE TIME,
, AND PROBABLE RESULT.
, Notwithstanding all that was said against. the nomination, by; the na
tional men of the- Whig party, the deed was done. Let us see how it was
received. The Hon. Robt. Toombs, heretofore a distinguished leader of
the Whig party, in a speech delivered in the House of Representatives,
July 3rd, 1852, said :,',,,
" I do not know of a* single sentiment ever uttered by General Scott in
relation to the principles settled by the compromise, or in relation to the
subject of slavery in general, that is in unison with my own, or the convic
tions ofthe slavehold,ing States of this Union. If he had stood upon these
great questions where he ought to have stood, there would have been no
need for his friend, the Senator, from New York, [Mr. Seward,] -attempt
ing to relieve him by a letter to the public from somewhat of the odium
of his alliance. But he did: not stand there. For more than a year Ge
neral Scott has been the known, candidate o,f the Free-Soil wing of the
Whig party. Even his friends in the South co-operated with them to
strangle all acknowledgment of the compromise in Congress or the Con
vention. They finally gave,him the nomination ; to them he must look
for his election; to them he must mainly look, if elected, for aid and ad
vice in carrying on the Government: His, election would reopen the sec
tional strife which we have just terminated, and imperil all that was gained
, to the country by the adjustment. Under these circumstances he can
never receive my support. Let the compromise men everywhere — Union
Whigs in the North and the South — rally once more in support of their
principles. Let them make an open and manly resistance to the election
of General Scott; use all honorable ways and means to defeat him;; if we
succeed, we shall have. "conquered a peace," a lasting, enduring peace;
and whatever maybe the result, we shall have done our duty to ourselves,
our principles, and our country. "
Read, too, the following extract from a card, published in the National
Intelligencer, dated July 3d, 1852, signed by prominent whigs in Congress :
" We consider Cen. Scott as the favorite candidate of thefree-soil wing
of the whig party'. That his policy, if he should be elected, would be
warped and shaped to conform to their views, and to elevate them to
power in the administration ofthe government, can but be considered as a
legitimate and probable result. And believing as we do,1 that the views
of that faction of mischievous men are dangerous not only to the just and
constitutional rights of the southern States ^(which we represent in part),
but to the peace and quiet of the whole country, and to the permanent

11
union of the States, we regard it as the highest duty of the well-wishers
ofthe country everywhere, whatever else they may do, to at least withhold
from him. their support. ,,This we intend to do. (
Alexander H. Stephens, of Ga., James AbercroMbie, of Ala.,
Charles Jas. Faulkner, of Va., R. Toombs, of Ga.j
W. Brooke, of Miss., , ,.-,:' James Johnson, of Ga.
Alex. White, of Ala.,
For reasons to some extent indicated in speechesand addresses hereto-,
fore made by {he undersigned, they deem it to be their duty to withhold
their support from Gen. Scott as a- candidate for the presidency. If it
. should seem to be necessary, we will hereafter, in some form, exhibit
more fully to our constituents the facts and reasons which have brought us
to this deter rnination. M.; P. Gentry, Tenn.,
,,"., C. H. Williams, Tenn.,.
THE VOICE OF THE PRESS.
We shall close this branch ofthe subject with some extracts of g. forci
ble character from the Whig press : ;:
General Scott in the Interior of New York.
A truthful and graphic statement of the grave issues involved by the se
lection of General Scott as the noi>iinee ofthe whig party, is found in the
following extract, from an article in the Daily Star, an able whig paper
published at Syracuse, New York. It is calculated to arrest the attention
ofthe country. This, with other articles ofthe same tenor, (all from whig
sources,) which will follow, must convince the truly patriotic and national
members of that party, and of all parties, that Scott's elevation to the pre
sidency would be the triumph of William H. Seward,, the creator and ar
biter of 'Scott's political fortunes, and who, .standing behind the. throne1,
would be stronger than the throne itself :.
" The issue is not whether General Scott, on the one.side, or Millard Fillmore or Daniel ,
Webster on the otffer, shall receive the, nomination, qf the convention for President, but whe
ther the country shall be plunged:"back into the vortex, from which it has but just emerged —
whether the patriotic and auspicious work of the, past two years which fgund its imbodiment
and consummation in; the passage ofthe compromise measures,, and in ageneral acquiescence
in them on the part .of the people, shall be put at hazard, or perhaps'be entirely undone —
WHETHER THE VULTURES OF AGITATION AND INTERSECTIONAL STRIFE, WHO HAD BEEN DIPPING
THEIR BEAKS AND BURYING THEIR TALONS INTO THE , MOST VITAL PORTIONS OF THE NATIONAL
SYSTEM, AND WHO HAD BY THE (TRIUMPH 0]J A CONSERVATIVE AND NATIONAL SENTIMENT BEEN
CLIPPED OF THEIR WINGS AND DRIVEN TO HOLES AND DARK PLACES  WHETHER THEY SHALL
BE PLUMED AND ARMED AND POISED AGAIN IN HEIGHT FROM WHENCE THEY MAY BE ABLE AGAIN
TO RENEW THEIR FATAL SWOOPS AND, FEED UPON THE' VERY, HEART AND LIFE-BLOOD OF THE
NATION. ',.,,. ' .;.¦¦
" General Scott's political 'relations, connexions, and dependencies)' most unfortunately
identify him with hopes, interests, and schemes,that are built upon a renewal and reopening
• of the slavery agitation, and an overthrow or stripping ofthe adjustment measured of all
binding force and'vitality. In his cause are all, who entertain such, embarked — in his
triumph would all such have' their triumph — in his nomination or defeat, is, therefore, . in-
¦ volved the retaining or losing of the vantage-ground won by the passage of, the peace; mea-,
sures. The battle waged between those'who support him arid' those who do not, is a con
stitutional, battle— whether;that instrument shall receive a construction , which makes it, so
far as it.lays its injunctions upon northern fanaticism.,, mere waste paper, or whether it shall
have its' true enforcements from the highest statute-books and tribunals of the country.
"Such, to our mindsj is the grouhd of opposition in the convention upon which tfioise
stand Who oppose. General Scott. It is a radical, vital, deep-seated sentiment of opposition,
that cannot admit of compromise or accommodation. It has kept him in a minority for fifty
ballots— it will continue to keep him there, we believe, so long as his name is before the'
convention.. . ¦>,;, . , * '-*
* , "The propositions made to adjourn skw Vindicate, we think, a state of feeling and pur-
pose^in the convention most dangerous, and which is not to-be, trifled with. It discloses

12
THE PRECIPICE UPON WHICH THE WHIG PARTY STANDS. SHOULD ScOTT BE THRUST UPON THE
CONVENTION BY ANY ACCIDENT OR TERGIVERSATION, WE, SHOULD UTReWbLE FOR ,T;HE CONSE
QUENCES. We should1 fear that those who ha^e RESISTED HIS NOMINATION, SO DESPER
ATELY AND FIRMLY WOULD LOOK UPON HIS DEFEAT! AS BETTER WORTH CONTENDING FOR THAN
HIS TRIUMPH, AND THAT THE REPUTATION OF THE WHIG PARTY AS THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY
OF THE COUNTRY WOULD FIND A- BETTER AND MORF. .HONORABLE VINDICATION IN SUCH DEFEAT
THAN IN ANY TRIUMPH WITH HIM. '**''
The Boston Courier- "responds" as follows:
"Yesterday the Baltimore Convention nominated General, Scott as candidate for President
on fifty-third ballot. With patience exhausted^ nerves u^trung by sleepless nights,, and the
thermometer at ninety, those who had stood out through fifty ballottirigs, "-caved in''' at last,
and put an end to the struggle. This, at least, is the story.1
"The announcement of the result in Boston produced such $n ejlfeotias might have been
expected from the well known predilections ofthe inhabitants ,pf this; city. It fell like a
funeral pall upon their spirits. From the imm'ense crowd of citizens assembled in State
street, a few faint and hardly-audible cheers went up as the intelligence was proclaimed;
We understand these proceeded chiefly from individuals of the free-soil parly. We will, add.
that an American flag hoisted^qn the old .State House, as the signal of General Scott's nomi
nation, caught the vane in its ascent, and ruptured the union — an omen which did not fail to
excite the comments of the spectators,." . .,, , ¦-;,,¦•
v , * >.
[From Ike Boston Bee.] i ,
" The nomination fell like a SHOWER* OF ICE over the, city. The intelligence was re
garded as the announcement of a PUBLIC CALAMITY. '
[From the Boston Daily Advertiser.] *
" We . fear , that, it borebodes disastrous c,0N$EeuENCES to thje whig party and the
COUNTRY, in putting the party upon an effort which we conceive to he HOPELESS.
But the New York Day Book — a staunch and active Whig sheet — talks
even plainer and louder. It says :
"The whig nomination. — The nomination of General Scott falls like a Viet blanket on the
Whigs, of this city. Among all that we met. yesterday and heard speak of the nomination —
and tjiey were hundreds — we heard but one solitary Whig who did not declare openly that he
would not vote for General Scott — and that one was an abolitionist and a believer in spirit rap-
pings. The Whigs of this city are disappointed, chagrinned, and mortified beyond expres
sion, and they can vent their feelings only ira execrating the* means that brought about so
contemptible a nomination. i
" That the Whigs should, repudiate such an administration — that it should thrpw.over-
board such a man as Daniel Webster j after all that has been done, for it, arid take up* such a
conceited, ill-tempered, and foq'lish creature as General Scott— is past all .comprehension, and
must be mortifying in the extreme to every sensible man of the party. It shows what it is
composed of, and how contemptible and utterly Worthless it is in every respect. It has
repudiated Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, John J. Crittenden, and Millard Fillmore, forsuch
men as Winfield Scott, Wm. H. Seward, John M. IBotts, and James C. Jones."
" Who wants anything to do with such a party ? ' " Who: will belolig to it? Who will sup
port it, work for it, and go with it? Who? Why, the "Bloomers, the anti-renters, the
Mormons, the Fourierites, the socialists, the spirit-rappers, the abolitionists, and the advo
cates of women's rights— the Finkles, the Joe Smiths, and the Lloyd Garrisons. The
Whigs — bah ! who will say he is a Whig now1? Not we, surely. We would as soon sup
port Greeley or Abby'Kelly Folsom as Winfield Scott, Wm. H. Seward, and Sim Drap'er.
The Southern Whigs may take them.and hug them to then*- bosoms, if they chqose; but die
Yorkers hevei**1 will. Perhaps Scott, with his abolition supporters here, and John M. Clayton,
John M. Botts, Governor Jones, and the Hon. Leslie Coombs in the 'South, may cari-y
Kentucky, Tennessee and Maryland; but we can tell thfem, that .they will, carry but just one
northern State. They will* get' Vermont, and nothing else. , Mark what we say: General
Scott will carry but one State north of Mason and Dixon's line, and that will be Vermont,
the only State that has nullified 'the fugitive-slave law."
The New York Express publishes the subjoined communication, re
marking that " the truth will out, and it is impossible to suppress it:
"But where is the party? For .some years an organizartiQn has been growing up within
the Whig party, which, supporting Whig measures', is ; yet utterly foreign in principle and
character, and imbued with the modt fanatical radicalism in all respects. After a struggle of
years,. this faction has reached the supreme control of the Whig party, by the result ofthe
great campaign and the five days' battle we have just passed through. I confess Imever ex
pected this. I never expected to see the party for which I have- labored, with Webster,
Clay, Fillmore, ,&c, &e., controlled by Seward, Weed, Greeley, Johnston, and the Syra-

i!3
« . >
cuse and Christianna rioters—the men of abolition, anti-rent, ahd all manner of 'fefns' — but
so it is. It is of principles, forced upon our new masters by that remnant of conservatives
who have since been put down in the final contest. We know the men, and they are not
the men we cap trust to sustain these principles. They stooped to conquer, and their object
— treachery as to principles — does not challenge; our increased! confidence.
"The oligarchy which now controls the whig party is identified, from first to last,' with
nought but the bitterest opposition to every distinctively conservative and national principle.
'"Where am I to go?' I have no. longer a party to which I can claim affinity. My party
is revolutionized — it has 'new lords and new laws,' such as I will cut off my hand sooner
than sustain. Conservative Whigs generally, and in the southern States universally, it ap
pears to me, must consider the party as in effect broken up. Southern men at least, although
defeated, cannot surrender to the treacherous foe whose knife' has so long sought their throats.
lt follows, and the election will show it, that the party will' no longer have a show of national
existence. In the North it may hang together under Seward <& Co*,,in a decimated condi
tion, until after November, When it will fall into acknowledged helplessness in every State,
not excepting even Vermont." !'
GENERAL SCOTT IN NORTH CAROLINA.
The Wilmington [N. C] Journal has the following :
" To say that General Scott's nomination has beeW ¦received'* here With coldness — nay,
with anger and disgust — would be but t6 statethe simple truth, ihwhich we will be borne
out by all parties. We know the; power of' party associations, arid the efforts that will 'be
made to bring the.Whig party in North Carolina up to the support of 'the ticket, and we* have
no doubt but that these efforts' will' be successful in very1 mariy instances ; still we know that
there are many intelligent and reflecting Whigs, who cannot either be whipped into the tra-
ees, or wheedled round to vote for General Scott. The strictly sectional vote by Which he
was nominated, and the startling fact that the General's mostdevoted body-guard of sixty-six
votes from his strong holds, refused to sustain the platform — all these fact's will Weigh heavily
against any. electioneering efforts that may hereafter be made in his favor."
A "voice" from a leading and widely-circulated Whig journal- of 'Georgia — the Augusta
Chronicle and Sentinel— sets forth the "reasons" why that Journal ' " will moi support Glen.
Scott." ' /' ' '
" The Whig Nominations. — It'will be seen, by reference to our telegraphic despatches,
that Gen. Scott and the Hon. W. A. Graham have beeto nominated by the National Whig
Convention. as their. candidates for President and Vice-President. The nomination of Gen.
Scott under any circumstances would not havebeen acceptable to the people of Georgia. It
is not, therefore, to be wondered at that the news of his nomination- yesterday was not only
a source of deep and heartfelt mortification, but of universal 'condemnation among the Whigs
and Union men of the city. We have heard of no man — not a single one — who approves it ;
and unless there* is a very great chauge in public sentiment,* few, if'atay, will support;him.
" In our opinion, he has no claims upon thecountry to theidistinguished office to which he
aspires — for we regard his military services as constituting an objection rather than a reeom-
meridation. We want a ei"vilianu^-a statesriian— toe Who is' fariiiliar with the duties arid' re
sponsibilities of that important office-. General Scott canno'l' be so regarded byany impartial
mind. In addition to this, he is the avowed advocate of the annexation of Canada, unless
he may find it expedient to change his views. Arid last, tholigh hot least, he is the candi
date ofthe free-soil and 'higher-law' wing- of the'Whig party, whdse instrumefit we regard
him, and to whose discretion. -will* be .yielded* the distribution of the spoils, if he should be
elected. For these. -reasons we will not s-opbort General Scott."
From the Macon Messenger and Journal.
"There are a few facts connected with the nomination of General ScOtt which ouight hot to
be overlooked by southern' Whigs or lost sight of in the ¦ blindiiess of party zeal. Scott* was
proposed as a candidate for the presidency by the free*-soil wing of the Whigparty. He
has:plaGed himself in the hands of this faction, and they' have sealed Ms lips upon the sub
ject of the Compromise,. an'd;didtat*ed- to-him'his policy arid liis cOUrsSe as a candidate. He
has been presented to- the Whig Ctaiverition 'as the peculiar candidate of that portion of the
Whig party of the North who have been loudest in their' dteHHriciations of the institution of
•Slavery, and most unprincipled and reckless in their aggr^fsions upon therights of the South.
Seward' has been Ma -Sponsor, and the Tribune and the Tittiesshave be'eii his -organs. In the
Whig; Convention ; Johnston;,) of Pennsylvania, aridi-Daytbti1,' of New Jersey', 'we're his active
partisans, andiharsh-Sl'led-tahis support the motley crew of abolition, free-soil arid higher-
law." , - " F*oifiyB*6w*iIoW's: Knoxville ?(Tenn^'WHfgi
Tbe W»i» NoMlNATioNS.^TfoedeJed'iS Aojiei'-'-Wi^fkld'-Stiitt is- 'the Whig candidate for
the Presidency ! After a site day's1 fight in 'the GonlperiiionV arid after ballbtling;50 times,
Wearkgout the;patiMice of the Delegate's; arid disgusting the thoiisand'spectators present,
Ite popular willwas t*od<d*s» under footbyari UftpWri-iipledbaHld'-Of Ab'olitioMists, hea'ded'by
'WilliamH. Seward, the worst man in America, and the whole South was forced to eat ndrtSi-
trnivst ! The nationality of the Whig party is destroyed ; and the man above all others—

14
Fillmpke, who was entiUfed to, the nomination, and who would have been acceptable to his
party, has been ungenerously set aside by the wire-working, intrigue, lying, and vile man
agement. of as corrupt a faction as ever was banded together; for similar purposes, -this side
of .the infernal regions !
It will not be more than, one month from the day on which Scott was nominated, until
every sensible man will see. that, he can't get the electoral vote of a single State southof the
Potomac — not one. He ought not to get one .vote. It is > due to'theWhiks 'of the'South,
that they should at once wash their hands of the nomination, and shake their skirts of its
odium, shame and disgrace. Tennessee will go for Pierce amd King, by a majority of no
less than TEN THOUSAND VOTES. Never having voted for a Democratic Presidential
ticket,, we do not, expect to vote. for Pierce and King; but if we- could believe that one vote
would .give them this State, and the Union, against Scotl and Seward ticket now before the
country, our vote would be given to them with as mueh cheerfulnese as ever we cast it in
our, lives ! They will not need our humble efforts— the *raee will be a one sided race — Pierce
and. King will sweep.the entire South — they ought to do it, against the corrupt and Free Soil
ticket the Whigs have put forth — and we pray God they may do it ! ¦¦'¦¦¦
Listen to the leading aljolijiofi Scott organ, the New Vork Tribune, 'speaking of the plat
form of principles adopted by the whig convention, it says : ,, ,
" Hence our emphatic objection to and protest against a portion ofthe so-called 'platform
of principles,' set forth at theWhig National Convention. They were never intended* to be
a statement, of the grounds whereon the whig party is united, and the ends whichiit unani
mously meditates. On the contrary, they were forced upon a: portion of the delegates in
fujl view ofthe fact that they did not express their, convictions — were driven through by the
argument of menace and terror — were.rammed down by the potent intimation; 'Swallow in
silence or we bolt !' Yet, in the face of every, en treaty and threat, sixty-six of the delegates
(seventy as we count,*); voted No when, the yeas and nays were called on , their passage.
Here w,as one*fourth of the; convention whom not even the imperilling ofthe nomination
of their beloved candidate, and the prospect, of breaking up; the party,- could deter, from pro
testing against the gross wrong. The 'platform,' therefore, is not that of the entire whig
party, as the records ofthe convention attest, but that of a majority only — a majority which
had, and could have, no claim to bind any who dissent from their declaration. We are of
that sort, and there are many more such."
" But, by 'the question thus settled,', the plank evidently means to cover all questions re
lative to slavery, and to denounce all, discussion, criticism, or remonstrance respecting the
existence of slavery in this country as perilous and wrong. All this is alike futile and pre
posterous. We defy it, e/cecraleU, spit upon it." ¦ . ; ':
Commenting. on this, the New York Mirror has the following : .
"Spitting on the Platform. — We should, perhaps,, apologize to our .readers for the
word used in the heading of this article, but we choos e to let the Tribune's jnsblt go, forth
in ali its filthy force to the eyes, ears, and stomachs of those chivalrous delegates, from Ten
nessee, Missouri, and Virginia, who abandoned Fillmore in the convention, and gave their
votes for Scott. Horace Greeley, the champion of the .abolitionists, the pet of Seward, whp
calls the constitution of , the, United States " an atrooious bargain," says to the Baltimore
delegates;," I spit -up'on.yodr platform," And this man is the conductor of the leading
organ, of the, whig party! For, i§neer as.we may at, the isias-and absurdities of the Tribune,
ijtjreaehes more northern readersin its daily and weekly issues, than any other journal. It
Is affiliated with the Albany Evening Journal, and the entire abolition press ofthe country.
And why are al| these rampant, radical, anti-compromise-journals in favor of General Scott,
who is wellknow^i to be conservative,, even to the verge of , aristocracy, by nature, chabit,
education, and vocation ? Is it not that they may kill off Fillmore, Webster, and all others
who have had a. hand in framing, adopting, and executing the fugitiver&lave law? Is it not
that, after " bargaining" with the Sputh; for », platform, in, order to secure their man, they
may insult the. very man they haye inveigled, by "spitting'' upon their principles, and
crowing over the " Yankee tricks" played in the.great national farce at.Baltimore?,
" The Union men have been abused without measure or mercy, for the last three years;
by the woolly editors and woolly politicians of the, North .; and now, .since iboth National
Conventions have adopted their ;principles,,fwhile,sacrificing the , champions and, defenders
of ;thqse principles, Greely and his faction ' spit upon the platform, 'while -embracing* with
a, fatal hug the candidate, who .apcepts and stands upon that platform ! Oh, consistency t
thou art a jewel unknown to politicians! ,u-A
"Itis dpubtless impolitic to assert thfisg , unpalatable facts just at this time ; but policy is
not our guiding star. We ¦shqjd-d; do ,-violence to the truth, and. to our own impulses,, if we
hesitated to give utteranceto thk.in-dignation'with whiph.the great conservative heart of the
cpuntry beats under the insult which, in plain English, reads thus : 'We made a sham hargavq,
to take your platform m exchange for our m<wi,; we have got oivr man and j •jiotiMUft spit on i your, plat
form." . * ,1 ';,:>,  .;.' .1. ir,) ¦ , ,lw>..'.' '' , «*iv *i

15
. And now, fellow citizens, having demonstrated as we think conclusively1*,
the propositions with which we set out,and that top exclusively upon Whig
authority, we ask, can you vote for such a candidate ? Will you do it and
thus endanger the safety of our happy country ? We think, if you will se
riously reflect, you cannot. Then we appeal, yes, most earnestly appeal
to you to cast your votes for Pierce and King.
. WILLIAM F. JOHNSON; OF PA.
Having some space at our disposal, it may not b© amiss to call the atten
tion of the country to the personage whose name appears above.
Elevated to the position of Governor of Pennsylvania by the combined
support of Whigs and abolitionists, he pursued a course during his guber
natorial term, calculated to weaken the- .bonds which bind the Union to
gether by giving full scqpe to the fell spirit of abolition. This man; next
to Mr. Seward, is among the most prominent and active of General Scott's
supporters, ahd will, in all probability, occupy a place in his cabinet, if
successful. "Who?" asks Mr. Cabell, in: his speech delivered in the
House of Representatives on the Presidential questipn, "would more
likely represent the Pennsylvania wing of the free-soil organization in the
cabinet than Governor Johnson, who pocketed the law passed by the
Pennsylvania legislature to give efficiency to the fugitive slave law."
Not only did he' pocket the law allowing, the use of the county jails of the
State for the confinement of runaway' slaves, but when a most excellent
citizen of Maryland in pursuit of his slave property was inhumanly mur
dered by a band of negroes in Lancaster county, urged on by abolitionists,
he exhibited such heartlessness, inhumanity and fanaticism, as excited
horror and disgust in every christian mind. His indirect agency in that
horrible affair, which is no doubt fresh in the minds of all, and his crimi
nality in neglecting to take prompt action for the punishment of the mur
derers, are so graphically delineated in a letter published shortly after the
occurrence by the Rev. J. S. Gorsuch, of the M. E. Churchy and son of
the murdered man, that we subjoin it. '
, Washington, Sept., 18, 1851.
The undersigned,1 a son of the late Edward Gorsuch, the victim of abolitionist enthusiasm
and high handled rebellion, is sorry that so painful a duty is imposed upon him as that to
which he now addresses himself. He writes to you, sir, with no vindictive feelings, but
only to assure you, what he desires every one to know, that he thinks the lack of official
promptness on yourparthas resulted in the escape, hitherto, ofthe slaves, and some ofthe
principal murderers of his father. It would have tended in some degree to relieve the anx
iety of the family and friends of the deceased to have known that the governor of the State
in which this-foul murder was committed had acted as promptly and efficiently as the circum-
'stances demanded. <
1 know that you passed within a few yards of where the body of my father lay, the after
noon of the same day on which he was murdered. The cars stopped at the door of the
house. Some of the passengers went in to look at the ghastly spectacle -, but, sir, you did
not. You**\vho ovjght,, because of your responsible station, to have been most interested,
showed the least concern. And this is not to be wondered at. It would seem. natural that
then you should have been rejoicing at this — the first fruits of your official and personal hos
tility to the rendition of fugitive* slaves. Did we not well know what you have done to render
inoperative the law under whose protection my father entered your State to secure his prop
erty in a manner strictly legal, sbme excuse might be found in our minds for your strange in
activity. But we knew your course.' We had watched it with -plain, and we did not expect
you would be induced to change it even at this extraordinary crisis.
Allow hie, to call your, attention to a fact which, perhaps, you will remember. Those slaves
for whom my father was searching were to be free at the age of twenty-eight. They were
jKtected in selling stolen wheat to a free negro: Before the writ which was gotten out against
TOm cpuld be served , he escaped to Pennsylvania. This brother of mine, now so near to

16
death, was sent to you with a requisition from the Governor of Maryland for that free negro,
"Abe Johnson ;" but you would not deliver him up, and sent my brother home convinced
that further effort in that respect was unnecessary. That "Abe Johnson," it is said, was
present among the rebels on last Thursday morning.
I have read some letters which you wrote to some gentlemen of Philadelphia, who were
urging you to action. I have marked the strong contrast between your wqrds and actions.
Now, sir, if you were so anxious to vindicate the honor of your State, so proud to have
these offenders arrested, why did you not imitate the noble example of the Executive of the
United States ? Why did you not issue your proclamation as soon as you reached Phila
delphia? If it ought to have been done at all, were there not stronger reasons to have it done
on the first day, when the murderers were at hand, than on the fifth,, when most of them had
escaped? You cannot plead ignorance of the riet, fqr it was well known to yuu. Yqu will
not pretend to say that it was more necessary when several prominent actors in- that tragedy
were arrested, and the whole neighbcrhqqd had been secured by vigorous young gentlemen
from Maryland, by a host of your own citizens and United States military, than when every
one that desired the punishment of these murderers and traitors was afraid to move — when
the rioters, still wet with the blood of innocent and peaceable men, were triumphing in their
victory, and their confederates congratulating themselves upon successful treason ! Why,
sir, did you notshow your promptness then? You applaud the decision, energy, and prompt
ness of the Lancaster county officers, and in this I most .heartily concur ; but in proportion
as you praise them, you condemn yourself. You knew of the insurrectionary movement
before they did. If they had waited, as you did, until the fifth day to dp what ought to
have been done on the first, you could not have applauded them. You must, therefore, sir,
be self-condemned.
Do you know that thirty -six hours passed before one writ was taken out against these men?
Do you know that Mr. Thompson, the State's attorney, and Mr. Reigart, to protect their
own lives and to quell the spirit ol resistance which fortified the traitors and terrified the loyal,
had to collect a posse of men from iron works and diggings on the railroad ? Do you
know that not a magistrate or constable would act until compelled? that the sheriff refused to
act? that your attorney general, true to his superior, would not aid these men whose activity
you now so zealously commend?
With these facts, sir, before us, we cannot be charged with calumny in saying that we do
honestly believe that your proclamation would never have seen the light, had you, not feared
that the activity of others would censure your own indifference.
We believe that the majority of Pennsylvanians are right. We have been pleased at the
¦zeal and gratified with the sympathies of many we have met. But, sir, if the laws shall npw
be sustained — if the country shall be satisfied that Pennsylvania is right — if the South is to
find that this law will not be inefficient — be assured that not one particle of the honor will be
given to the governor. We will not say that he has acted traitorously— that by hisprevibus
course he has been the indirect occasion of this outrage — that the blood of Edward Gorsuch
is on his skirts ; but we must say that he has not been "clear in his great office," but recre
ant to the trust imposed in him.
Much more in sorrow than in anger, I subscribe myself your much injured friend,
J. S. GORSUCH.
Hon. Wm. F. Johnston, Governor of Pennsylvania.

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