264 



CONGRESS, U, B. 



we are constantly and painfully reminded in 

 this Chamber that pending measures against 

 slavery are unconstitutional. Sir, this is an 

 immense mistake. Nothing against slavery can 

 be unconstitutional. It is only hesitation 

 which is unconstitutional." 



The Senator then noticed various objections 

 to the resolution, and said: "Putting aside, 

 then, all objections that have been interposed, 

 whether proceeding from open opposition or 

 from lukewarm support, the great question re- 

 curs, that question which dominates this whole 

 debate, How shall slavery be overthrown? 

 The answer is threefold: first, by the courts, 

 declaring and applying the true principles of 

 the Constitution; secondly, by Congress, in 

 the exercise of the powers which belong to it ; 

 and, thirdly, by the people, through an amend- 

 ment to the Constitution. Courts, Congress, 

 people, all may be invoked, and the occasion 

 will justify the appeal." 



Mr. Sumner closed by moving to strike out 

 the first and second sections of the report of 

 the committee, and insert the following : 



Section 1. All persons are free (equal) before the 

 law, so that no person can hold another as a slave ; 

 and the Congress may make all laws necessary 

 and proper to carry this article into effect every- 

 where within the United States and the jurisdiction 

 thereof. 



Mr. Powell, of Kentucky, in reply said: 

 " Adopt this amendment, say to the people of 

 the Southern States that they are to be depriv- 

 ed of their property and the earnings of their 

 labor, that their whole domestic policy is to be 

 overthrown, and four millions of miserable 

 blacks turned loose among them, if you please, 

 and do you think they will yield while they 

 have arms to strike ? Never, sir ; and in my 

 honest judgment (I always speak plainly what 

 I think) those fanatical gentlemen on the other 

 side of the House Avho desire the passage of 

 this measure, intend to do one of two things 

 either to destroy the institution of slavery or 

 to destroy the Union. If they can make the 

 preservation of this Union a pretext by which 

 they can be enabled to strike down slavery, 

 they will do so. If they find that they cannot, 

 in my judgment they will be willing to recog- 

 nize the South. Their whole policy indicates 

 that to my mind. Pass this amendment and 

 you make an impassable chasm, as if you were 

 to put a lake of burning fire between the ad- 

 hering States and those who are out. You will 

 then have to make it a war of conquest and 

 extermination before you can ever bring them 

 back under the flag of the Government. There 

 is no doubt about that proposition. 



" Why, sir, suppose you were to propose and 

 paps an amendment to the Constitution laying 

 your hand upon the property interest in New 

 England, I will not say equal but half equal to 

 the_ property interests of the Southern States 

 which you now propose to strike down ; does 

 any man believe that all New England would 

 net be in revolution to-morrow ? Yes, sir, one- 



half of the violation of their property rights 

 by an attempted amendment of the Consti- 

 tution of the United States inflicted upon 

 them would put all New England in revolt to- 

 morrow. 



" Knowing that this will be the best disunion 

 measure that was ever adopted, and desiring as 

 I do a restoration of the Union as it was with 

 the Constitution as it is, I oppose it, and shall 

 oppose it here and everywhere, with all the 

 power that I have. 



" The Senator from Massachusetts to-day has 

 quoted from Patrick Henry, and he has eu- 

 logized him very much. Certainly he does 

 not feel any more admiration for that distin- 

 guished orator than I do. Does not the Sena- 

 tor know that an amendment to the Constitu- 

 tion has been adopted since Patrick Henry 

 made that speech, which says that private 

 property shall not be taken for public uses ex- 

 cept on just compensation? and that is an an- 

 swer to his whole quotation from Mr. Henry. 

 I do not believe that Mr. Henry was right in 

 the position he assumed in the speech from 

 which the Senator quoted. Mr. Henry was 

 engaged at that time in making an assault on 

 the Constitution in a slave State ; he wished to 

 reject it ; he did not like it ; but even if what 

 he then stated were true, the amendment since 

 adopted explodes the whole of the Senator's 

 argument on that branch of the case, and Mr. 

 Henry's argument along with it." 



Mr. Sumner's amendment was withdrawn 

 after some discussion. 



Mr. Davis, of Kentucky, said: "Mr. Presi- 

 dent, if the men who are to pass this amend- 

 ment were as much interested in this property 

 as those who are opposing it here and else- 

 where, there is not one of them but would be 

 found in opposition to it. It is a very beauti- 

 ful operation, to be sure. They say to us, 

 'We will take from you your property; we 

 will make you no compensation for it ; and we 

 will do it under the power to amend the Con- 

 stitution.' Sir, property is a matter of State 

 or domestic institution. The General Govern- 

 ment have not legitimately, and were never 

 intended to have, any jurisdiction or authority 

 over the subject of property. What subjects 

 should constitute property, how it should bo 

 regulated, whether it should exist and continue 

 in one subject or be discontinued in another 

 subject, are questions which were never in- 

 tended to be intrusted to the General Govern- 

 ment. That is a great and fundamental feature 

 of our Federal and State system of govern- 

 ments. The proposed amendment takes that 

 principle to be true in relation to but one sub- 

 ject of property ; but if it strikes at it in re- 

 lation to one subject of property, it may in re 

 lation to all. 



" The power of amendment as now proposed 

 to be exercised imparts a power that would 

 revolutionize the whole Government, and that 

 would invest the amending power with a fac- 

 ulty of destroying and revolutionizing the 



