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EDITED Bl’ TIIOHAS HAYNES. i;sq. VOL. 111. NO. 22. J 3 Yr. 31. IRXOTiUSDIIV, Publisher (By Authority,) of the Laus of the United States : Office ou Give tie Street nearly oppo site the Market. lisucd cveiy Tuesday morning,at $3 per annum. No subscription taken for less than a year, •nd no paper discontinued, but at the option of the publisher, until ah arrearages are paid. Advertuomests conspicuously inserted at the usual rates —those not limited when handed in, will be inserted ’till forbid, aid charged accord ■giy- I'ssiesss, licseiorratic Htf>ublican Ticket, FOR PRESIDENT, MARTIN VAN BUREN. FOR VICE-PRESIDENT, RICHARD M. JOHNSON. ELECTORAL TICKET. THOM\S F. HENDERSON, of Franklin. WM. I. BULLOCH, of Chatham. SAMUEL GROVES, of Madison. THOMAS HAYNES, of Baldwin. REUBEN JORDAN, of Jones. WILSON LUMYKIN, of Walton. WILLIAM PENTICOST, of Jackson. THOMAS SPALDING, of Mclntosh. JAMES C. WATSON, of Muscogee. WM. B. WOFFORD, of Habersham. THOMAS WOOTEN, of Wilkes. [By Authority.] LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES, ra««K» XT TUB TWENTY-FOURTH COXCCESS, riasT cession. ([Public —No. 24.] AN ACT explanatory of the act entitled " An act to prevent defalcations on tlie part of-dis bursing agents of the Government, and for other purposes." Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Bepresentatiees of the United States of Ameri ca i» Congress assembled, That, the act enti tled '• An act to prevent defalcations ou the part ol disbursing agents of the Government, and for other puqioses,’’ approved the twenty ■fth of January, eighteen hundred and twenty ••ght, shall not be .construed to authorize the pension of anypeaunoner of the United States to be withheld. Affmoved, May 20,183 G. [Public —No. 25.] AN ACT authorizing the Presideutof the United States to accept the service of volunteers, and toraise an additional regiment of dragoons or mounted rilleuieu. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre sentatives of the United States of America in Con gressassembled, That the President of the Uni ted States be, and be hereby is authorized to ac cept volunteers who may offer their services either as infantry or cavalry uot exceeding ten thousand meu, to serve six ur twelve months after they shall have arrived at the place of rendezvous, unless sooner discharged; mid the said volunteers shall furmsb their own clothes, and, if cavalry, their own horses, and when mustered into service, shall be armed and equiped at the expense of the United States. Sec. 2. And be it further enacted. That the . •aid volunteers shall be liable M be called upon to do military duty only iu cases of Indian hos tilities, or to repel invasions, whenever the Pre sident shall judge proper, and when called into actual service and while remaining therein shall be subject to the rules and articles of war, and shall be iu all respects, except as to clothing, placed on the same footing with similar corps of the United States army; aud in lieu of clothing, eve ry non commissioned officer aud private, in any company, who may thus offer themselves, shall be entitled when called into actual service, to re ceive in money a sum equal to the cost of the clo thing of a Doti-commissioned ufficer or private (as the case may be) iu the regular troops of the United States. Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That the ■•id volunteers, so offering their services, shall be accepted by the President in companies, battal ions, squadrons, regiments, brigades or divisions, whose officers shall be appointed in the manner prescribed by law iu the several States and Ter ritories, to which such companies, battalions, squadron, regiments, brigades, or divisions, shall respectively belong. Provided, That, where any company, battalion, squadron, regiment, brigade, •r division, of militia, already organized, shall tender their voluntary services to the U. States, such company, battalion, squadron, regiment brigade, or division, shall continue to be command ed by the officers holding commissions in the same at the time of such tender; and any vacancy thereafter occurring shall be filled in the mode pointed out by law in the State or Territory Wherein the said company, battalliou, squadron, regiment, brigade, or division, shall have been Prininully raised. #ec. 4, And be. it further enacted, That the Presdeut of the United States be and he is hereby authorized to organize companies, so ten dering their service*, into battalions or squad rons, battailions or squadrons into regiments, re giments into brigades, aud brigades iuto divisions, ••soon as the number of volunteers shall render Such oigauization in his judgment expedient; and the President shall, if ueccssary, apportion the staff, field amj general officers among the respec tive States or Territories from which the voluu- i leers shall lender their services as he may deem proper; but until called into actual service, such comparing, battalions, squadron, regiments, bri gades, or divisions shall not be considered as ex empt from die performance of militia duty as is required by law, in like manner us before the passage of this act. Sec. 5, And be ii further enacted, That the volunteers who may be received into the service of the United Staes, by virtue of the provisions of this get, shall be entitled to all the benefits which may be conferred on persons wounded in the ser vice of the United States. Sec, B. And be it further enacted, That there be raised and organized, under the direction •f the President of the United States, one addition al regiment of dragoons or mounted riflemen, to be composed of the same number and rank of the •fficers, non-commissioned officers, musicians and Mirales, pqpipiising (he regiment of dragoons now |q ffie »eivice of |h<i United States, who shall te- T«jye thp yapfe pay and allowances, bo subject to 'be samp ruips ipifl regulation*, and bengaged for •he like term and upon the same conditions, iu all ’MMcu whatever as are stipulated for the said r *|’meotof dragoons now iu the service. The Standard of Union. 1 . ® KC -7- And be it further enacted, Thut the Pre- I sidetit ol the United States may disband the said I regiment whenever in his opinion the public in- I terest tto longer requires their services, & the sum ot three hundred thousand dollars required t« carry I intoeffeet the provisions of this act is hereby ap propriated out of any money iu the Treasury not j otherwise appropriated. i Stic. 8. be it further enacted, That so much 11 of this act as relates to volunteers shall be in force for two years from ami after the passage of this 1 act, mid no longer. Approved May,23d, 1836. [ Public, No. 26.] I AN ACT making appropriation for the suppres sion ol hostilities by the Creek Indians. I lie it enacted by the Senate and House of Rep resentatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the sum of five hundred thousand dollars be, and the same is hereby ap propriated, oat any money itt the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to defray any expenses which have been, or may be incurred iu suppres sing hostilities by the Creek Indians, by calling out, by the President, of any part of the militia ’* the United States, according the provisions of the constitution and law ; which sum, if expended i shall be expended under the direction of the Se ; ceretary of War conformably to the provisions of the act of Congress, of second of January, seven teen hundred and ninety-five; of the act of fifth of April, eighteen hundred and thirty two, making appropriations for the support of the army : and of the act of the ninteenth March eighteen hundred and thirty six. providing for the payment of vol unteers and militia corps in the service of the United States. Approved, May 23d, 1836. Mr. Pinckney's Report. The select Committe, appointed under the following resolution of the House of Repre sentatives of the United States of the Bth of February, 1836, viz: “ Resolved, That all the memorials which have been offered, or may hereafter be presented to this Hoase praying for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia ; and also the resolutions of fered by aa honorable member from Maine. (Mr. Jarvis.) with the amendment thereto proposed by au honorable member from Virginia (Mr. Wise ;) together witn every other paper or proposition that may be submitted in relation to this subject be re ferred to a Select Committee, with instructions to report: That Congress possesses no constitu tional authority to interfere, in any way, with the institution of slavery iu any of the States of this Confederacy: and that in the opinion of this House, Congress ought not to interfere, in any way, with slavery in the District of Columbia because it would be a violation of the faith, unwise, impol itic. and dangerous to the Union : assigning such reasousfor these conclusions as, in the judgement of the committee, may he best calculated Co en lighten tit® psblic mind |to allay excitement, to repress agitation, to secure and maintain the just rights of the slave-holding States, and of the peo ple of this District and to restore harmony and tranquility amongst the various sections of this U uioa Respectfully submitted the following report in which they have unanimously concur red. The subject referred to is one of grave import. Your committee approach it with a deep sense of its magnitude and absorbing interest. They have long considered the movements iu relation to this matter as fraught with incalculable evils, not onlv to the slaveholding Slates, but to every portion ofourcommon country. They re joice, therefore, that the great body of the people of the non-slaveholditig States have come forward, as they have done in the true spirit of American patriotism, to sustain their constitutional obligations to their Southern brethern, and to arrest the distur bance of the public peace. They rejoice par ticularly that the Federal Legislature acting under a deep sense of its responsibility to the nation, has also interposed its warning voice, and given a solemn expression of its judgement upon this exciting subject ; and they feel assured, that as the Representatives have responded to the people so the peo ple will firmly and patriotically sustain the position now taken by their Representa tives. As moderation is essential to the discov ery of truth your committee will carefully abstain from every thing that may cause of fence or inflame excitement in any section of the Union. But while they would make every allowance for the motives of individ uals, where the objects contemplated are ut terly destructive to society, they cannot too strongly express their condemnation of the conduct of the abolitionists, and their utter abhorrence of the consequences to which, if persisted in it must inevitably lead. They feel assured that no man, or set of men will be permitted to put the country and the Government at defi ance by persevering in machinations which threaten to bring the citizens of the different states in collision and to over throw the whole system of civil society it self, in the slaveholding portion* of the U nion. Your committee believe that the strength ot the agitators has been greatly exaggerated by themselves and others ; but whether their number be small or great, there catj be no doubt that they have done and are doing, incalculable evil ; and every true patriot must be aware that a crisis has now arrived in the political condition of the country, in which neutrality would be crim inal and iiiwhich he must determine between the suppression of abolition, and the destruc tion of the Union and take his stand accor dingly, for or against his country. Your commitee have learned with sur prise, that the reference of this subject has caused dissatisfaction in certain portions of the South. While they deeply regret this circumstance, they beg leave to remark, that it is not only abundantly justified bv precedent, but in entire accordance with the established usage and invariable policy, in relation to matters of this character ; me morials praying for the abolition of slavery in the Slates, or in the District of Columbia, having always been either referred or laid on the table. On the present occasion, the ! subject was referred for the express purpose l of having a report “calculated to sustain the just rights of the slaveholding States, 1 and of the people of this District, and “by i allaying excitement, and repressing tigita ' tion, to insure the future repose and per '[ inaiient tranquility of l|ie country. The [ House was unwilling, on the one side, to ' invade what was believed to be the right. GEORGIA, TLENOAY llOBiWliW, JEAE 14, 1536 of petition, (a right equally dear to every portion of our people, and which, it is thought, could not have been denied in this instance, without establishing a precedent at least as hazardous 10 the South, as to any ■ other section of the Union:) and it was desi rotis, on the other, to acsomplish for the . South, what could not have been effected i by refusing to receive memorials, the union of an overwhelming majority, in solemn and determined stand against the views and objects of the applicants. Whilst the denial of the right of petition could have produced none other than the most mischiev ous effects, your committee are thoroughly satisfied that the course adopted bv the House will produce a state ofpublicopinion and feeling in the non-slaveholding States, eminently favorable to the constitutional rights and interest of the slaveholding sec tions of the U*w>n. The resolution under which your com mittee were appointed, naturally divides it self into several branches or propositions, each ol which shall be considered in its or der. They are instructed to report, in the first place— That Congress possesses no constitution al authority to interfere in any way with the institution of slavery, in any of the States of this Confederacy. Your committee will merely allude to this proposition, in obedience to the express direction given them by the House, and not for the purpose of entering into any ar gument respecting it. Unquestionably, if there is any political or constitutional prin ciple, which the people, of the United States considered as settled beyond all pos sible dispute or controversy, it is that the institution of slavery, as it exists in the States ot this Confederacy, is municipal, not national, and that it belongs exclusive ly to the States, and can only be effected by State legislation. The power to regulate or act upon it, is one of the reserved pow ers of the States; a power which was not only not given, nor even intended to be gi ven, by the framers of the constitution, to the General Government, but which the States expressly and carefully guarded and retained to themselves, by that amendment of that instrument, [article 10] in which it is declared, that “ all powers not delegated by the constitution to the United States, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reser ved to the States respectively, or to the people.” The subject of slavery in the States, then, is not an open question or matter of debate. The fact that Congress possesses no authority whatever to legislate respecting it, is one that can neither be strengthened by argument, nor made clear by discussion. And your committee con sider it most fortunate for the peace of the country, that it is so. He is indeed but little acquainted with the human heart, and has derived but little advantage from the lessons of history, who can imagine for a moment, if he knows any thing of the general character, or considers the political and physical strength of the people of the South, thateven if the power of legislation on this subject had been expressly confer red on Congress by the constitution, it could not be exercised against the consent of the States interested, without the cer tainty of civil war, and the probable disso lution ol the Union. The declaration, however, which the House has so solemnly and decisively made upon this point, cannot fail, as your committee believe, to produce the most beneficial results. As the aboli tionists care little for emancipation in the District, except as the precurser of a far more extended and general scheme, the presumption, is, that having now no pos sible hope of Governmental interference with the States, and seeing the more than probable consequences of the exercise of such a power, il it were possessed, they will discontinue their machinations in relation to the District; a consummation devoutly to be wished by every patriot, in every sec tion of the Union. But be the issue what it may, the House of Representitives has done its duty by placing this solemn decla ration upon record. It is not only peculiar ly proper in itself, considering the present state of the abolition question, but, if any justification were necessary, it is amply justified by precedent. In ‘1790, (and from that period to the present, the abolitionists have steadily aimed at general emancipa tion) several petitions, praying for the ab olition of slavery in the States, having been presented and referred, the House finally adopted a resolution, amongst others, in which it announced to the petitioners, and to the country, “ that Congres has no au thority to interfere in the emancipation of sl.txes, or nt the treatment ol them, in any of the States, it remaining with the sev eral States alone to provide any regula tions therein, which humanity or policy may requite.” Upon the whole, your committee consider the instruction given them by the House upon this point, rath er as a decisive expression of a great fun damental principle of constitutional law, than as a < all upon them to sustain a ques tionable position. They are aware that some members voted against the instruc tion upon this point, under the impression that, whilst the principle asserted is un questionable in itself, its assertion by the House, in this form, might seem to imply doubt, and to countenance the idea that it is really debateable-. In this view, the mem bers who thus voted, may be joined per haps by many intelligent and worthy citi zens of the slaveholding Slates; but your committee cannot beleive that the assertion, ia any form, by the House of Representa tives, of a principle so important, and at the same time of so strong a local bearing, and particularly by a vote so nearly ap proueb’mg unanimity as is recorded on its journal in favor of this instruction, can have a tendency to weaken that principle, or its binding and paramount influence up on Congress and the country in all time to come. Ihesr Csnssciesste—Our Country— titerParlu< The precedent above quoted from the Congress of 1790, shows that the House of Representatives of that day, so far from fearing the effect of such action upon its part, sought to record its solemn conviction upon this question of power in themselves, and lias handed down to us its judgment, in precise accordance w ith our own. That House was largely, if not entirely, compos ed of men of the revolution and many of its members are known to have been also members of the convention which formed the Federal Constitution. Since that pe riod, nearly Haifa century has rolled away, and now that the successors of the House, acting under the same considerations, sol emnly re-afiirm the principle laid down by those great and good men, and avow’ it to be not only the settled opinion of this Con gress, but of the great body of the people ot the United States, may we not hope, and indeed conclude, that it will be hereafter deemed a solemn and deliberate exposition of the constitution, and that all attempts in future to violate those sacred compromises, which lie at the very foundation of our constitutional compact, or to excite appre hension on this subject, will be effectually counteracted and defeated. Your commit tee cannot but indulge a most confident and animated hope that these good effects will be produced by the present action of the House. Your commitee are instructed to report in the second place— That, in the opinion of this House, Congress ought not to interfere, in any way, with slavery in the District of Colum bia. Ist. Because it would be a violation of the public faith. To obey this instruction of the House in the manner pointed out by the res olution it will be necessary to exam ine, to some extent, the relations be tween the Federal Government and the Dis trict of Columbia ; the probable objects of the provision in the constitution, authori zing the cession of the District to the Uni ted Slates ; and the consequent expectations which may have been rationally entertain ed by the States that made the cession, as to the exercise, by Congress, of the pow ers granted to it over the ceded territory. Before entering upon this examination, however, it may be well to remark, that the powers of Congress over this District in volved in this discussion, are wholly inde pendent of, and derived from a source en tirely separate from, the general legisla tive powers granted to Congress by the constitution. As the legislature of con federated States, the powers of Congress are equal, and of universal application, throughout all the States, and they were given to Congress before the cession of the District, and were held and exercised inde pendently thereof. This will be made man ifest by a brief statement of facts. The first Congress under the constitution, as sembled on the 4th of March, 1789, and the Government provided for by the con stitution was organized on that day. The general powers conferred on the different branches of the Federal Government were exercised from that day forward, and the union of the States, under constitutional government was then perfected and put in practical operation. The cession from Virginia, of that portion of the District of Columbia that belonged to her was not made until the Sd of December of that year—nine months after the Federal Gov ernment had been in operation;* and the cession by Maryland of that portion of the District that belonged to her, (and in which the Seat of Government is in fact located,) was not made until the 19th day of December, 179 it—more than two years and nine months after the existence of the Government in its present constitution al form. Congress did not, in fact, remove to the District thus ceded, nor did the dis trict thus ceded become practically the seat of Government until the year 1800; and the laws of the States by which the District was ceded were declared, by an act of Congress of the 16 th July, 179C,$ to “be in force within the Disk until the re moval of the Government to it, and until, Congress shall otherwise by law di- It appears, then, thatil;e Federal Govern ment was in operation under the constitution nearly a year before Congress possessed any power of local legislation over any portion of the District of Columbia, and nearfy three years that power became as ex-tensive a * tne present bounds of the Dist. or included that portion of the ten miles square in which the seat of Government is in fact located. It also appears, that the first act of the Federal Le gislature in reference to its jurisdiction then partly to be was to provide for the continuances in all their force, and in eVery particular, within the District, of the laws of the States, that made the cession,until Decem ber 1800; a period of nine years after thetime when the powers of Congress, Ss a local legis lature for the District, were perfected by tho State of Maryland. Nor is this ail: by the act of 1790 it was declared, as has been al ready shown, that the laws of Maryland and Virginia should be the laws of the District, not only “ until the time fixed for the removal of the Government thereto,” but also “ until Con gress shall otherwise provide by law.” No alteration, however, to any considerable extent, has yet been made, and the laws of Virginia and Maryland w hich were in force at the 'time ol their respective cessions, and in force re spectively in the portions of the District ceded by each, still continue to be, in almost every particular, the local laws of the District of Co lumbia. Such are tho relations nt present oxist ; big between tho 1> ederal Government and the District, so far as local legislation is concerned. The powers of Congress, as tho local legislature of the District, were de rived from the cessions by Virginia, and Mary land,and the special grant of exclusive legislation and not from the general powers conferred up on it by tho constitution ; and these special and *Laws District of Columbia, p. 50, tLaws District of Columbia, p. 64, jLaws United! States vol. ii, p. 112. local powers which Congress has now possessed ! for nearly half a century, have been exercised j only to the extent above described, and from ! the best information your committee have I been able to obtain, to no other or greater ex- I tent. The right of Congress to accept the cession | of this territory from the States of Virginia and Maryland, is found in the eighth section of the first article of the Constitution of the United States, which gives it power “ to exercise ex clusive legislation in all cases whatsoever over such District, not exceeding ten miles square, is declared in the language of the constitution itself, “such District, not exceeding ten miles square, as may by cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of Government of the United States;” and the purpose for which the cession was to be made and received, is declared in the lan guage of the constitution itself, “such district as may become the Seat of Government of the U nited States.” The cession, therefore, was to be made for this purpose and for no other; and as regards its use by the Federal Government, the object of this provision evidently was sim ply to authorize Congress to accept the grant, and to exercise the powers of legislation therein provided for. It will be conceded to by the committee for the purpose of this report, that the cession was made in conformity with the power of Con gress to receive, and that, therefore, by the ces sion from Virginia and Maryland, Congress is in possesion of the powers which the constitu tion intended it should possess over the district intended to be ceded. This brings us to the inquiry, as to the probable objects of the grant of “ exclusive le gislation iu all cases whatsoever,” over the ter- : ritory which was to constitute the seat of Gov- i eminent of the United States. In consulting , the commentators upon the constitution, it will ( be found that the old Congress encountered inconveniences, and even daggers from holding their sessions where State Legislatures had ex- 1 clusivee local jurisdiction, aud where State au- ' thorilies alone were to be depended on in mat- i tors of police and personal protection. In- < deed, an adjournment us that Congress from I the State ol Pennsylvania tc New Jersey, for i a description which occurred at the close of the | revolutionary war, no doubt contributed greatly ( to the introduction of this clause into the con stitution of the Union. The proceedings of . the old Congress show distinctly, that the ac quirement ol a territory for the seat of the Fed- ’ eral Legislature, over which it should have ex- • elusive or special jurisdiction, was a favorite • idea with that body, as early as the year 1783, < aud that it continued up to the time of the for- | mation us the constitution. Upon tins point your committee will only detain the House with , a lew of the resolutions adopted by the old j j Congress that go to establish it. On the 7th of |. October, 1783, a resolution was passed, that N buildings for the use of Congress be erected on or near the badks of the Delaware,* provided ; a suitable district can be procured on or near ■ the banks of the said river for a federal town, | and that the right of soil, and exclusive, or such i other jurisdiction as Congress may direct, shall , be vested in the United States.” On the 21st , of the same month (October, 1783) another ( resolution was passed, preceded by a preamble as follows : “ Whereas there is reason to ex- 1 pect that the providing buildings for the alter- 1 date residence of Congress in two places will 1 be productive of the most salutary effects, by I securing the mutual confidence aud afiections I of the States, Resolved-, That buildings be pro- s ded for the use of Congress at or near the lower | falls o-f the Potomac-,t or Georgetown, provi- | ded a suitable district on the banks of the ri- ( ver can be procured for a federal town, and the right of soil, and an exclusive jurisdiction, 1 or sucu other as Congress may direct, shall be vested in the United States.” 1 On the 20th of December, 1784, the old Con- ' gross passed, among otiters, vhe following res olutions : ( “ Resolved, That it -is expedient that Coir- 1 gross proceed to take measures for procuring < suitable buildings to be erected for their acconr- 1 modation. ( “ Resolved, That it is expedient -for Con gress at this time, to erect public build- , ings for their accommodation at more than one | place.” These resolutions by the continental Con- , gross, as to the expediency -and necessity for a -for the seat of the Federal Govern men*,, over which it should have peculiar if not 1 exclusive jurisdiction, are produced to show the 1 origin of the provision, in the constitution up- 1 on that subject, and the object for which the ' acquisition of such a territory was desired. That i object, beyond all question, was to secure a j seat for the Federal Government, where the , power of self-protection should be ample and complete, and where it might be exercised with out collision or conflict with the legislative pow- ' ers of any of the States, so far as its exercise should be required for the great national pur- 1 poses for which the peculiar or exclusive juris- ' diction was sought to be obtained. The juris- i diction was made exclusive, not as your com- i mittee believe-, and as they think every consid- i erate citizen will admit, to change the object of , the grant of the jurisdiction when it should be , made, but to secure that object more effectually by making tire Federal Government independ ent of State-interference, and of State protec tion, within the district where it was to be loca- 1 ted, and where its deliberations should be held. 1 Had the legislative power of Congress over this District not been made exclusive, one of the i great and wise objects intended to be secured, the prevention of conflict between Federal and State legislation, would have been necessarily defeated. Every statesman will admit the ex treme inconvenience and danger of granting | powers of legislation of the same character, and | 1 to be exercised within the same territory (pow- i ers of local and municipal legislation,) to two i distinct and independent legislative bodies; and the extreme difficulty, of so defining tire por tions of power to be exercised by each, as to ! prevent constant conflict and collision. This i must have been the result, if any division of the | powers of the local legislative, within the Dis- | trict of Columbia, had been made between Con- - gross and the States by which the territory was i ceded to tho United States.—Congress requir ed all that power which through all time, would bo indispensably necessary for its own protec tion, and also to render all the departments of the Federal Government independent of State authority, and entirely dependant on, and obedi- i ent to, the Federal Legislature, and it alone, in all matters of police or municipal legislation. The adoption of the Federal Constitution by the people of the several States with this pro vision in it, shows that the attainment of these objects was considered of paramount impor- •Journals of the Old Congress, vol. iv, p. 288. 'Journals of the Old Congress, p. 299, ’ tance; and hence, in the judgement of your I committee, the power in question was made ex | elusive. Assuming the correctness of these pre- I mises, the next inquiry is, what expecta | lions were the States by which the District | was ceded, as well their sister Slates authori zed to entertain as to the exericse by Con gres of the Legislative powers derived from these cessions I The cessions included not only a portion of the territory of those States, but also a portion of their citizens. To secure the great national object intended by the cession, the jurisdiction of the State over those citizens, as well as over the ter ritory, of the District, was transferred ip t!.e Federai Legislature. This transfer* from the necessity of the case, abridged the rights of the citizens within the territory, who had been formeily entitled to vote lor their Le gislators' fliiti other rulers, by subjecting them to a Government composed of persons in whose election they were to have no choice. Their governance, however, was confident to those entrusted with the com mon government of all the States; and when we reflect upon the confidence repo sed in Congress by the Slate that made the ! transfer, and by the citizens transferred, it accounts at once for the readiness with which the cession was effected. Still, the question recurs, what expectation might rea sonably by entertained by the State making the cession, by the other States of the Con federacy, so far as their interests were di rectly or indirectly involved, and by the cit zens thus placed under the peculiar care of Congress, as to its exercises of the powers j conferred upon it by this cession of lerrito- j ries for a seat of the Federal Government? ■ Your committee have no hesitation to gty, in answer to this eniqniry, that those expectations, by all the parties interested, not only might, but must have been, that Congress would exercise the powers confer red, so far as their exercise should be found necessary for the great national objects of the cession, with strict reference to the ac complishment of those objects; and that all other powers confeired by the cession would be exercised with an equally strict reference to the interest and welfare of the inhabitants of the District—those citizens of two free States uho had been made dependent on Congress for their local Legislation, for the protection of life, liberty, and property — rights guaranteed by the Constitution to all the citizens ol the Confederacy-—in order that a seat for the Federal Government, sub ject to the exclusive control of Congress, i might be granted to it. If these positions i are correct, it follows necessarily that the I institutions, the customs, the rights, the property, and every other incident pertain- - ing to those citizens, and municipal in its ciiaracter, which they enjoyed as citizens of the State to which they belonged before the cession of the District, and which did not then, and have not yet, interfered with the great national rights and privileges in tended to be secured by the cession, should have been hitherto and should be in all time to come, guarded and preserved with the same paternal care and kindness with which the Legislatures of the-States to which they belonged would have guarded and protec- j led them if they had continued to be entrust ed to their respective jurisdictions. Your committee tely confidently-upon this as the great rule ftrr the faithful action of Congress in reference to this subject. They feel assurd that no rational man will differ with them. Two questions, then, remain to be'eonsidcred, to determine u hetln er Congress should, or should not attempt to interfere with slavery in the District of Columbia, viz-: 1. Do the great national object which were intended to be secured to the Federal Government by the cession of the territory require such action on kite part of Con gress ? Yofir committee will make no argument upon so plain a proposition. No individual within their knowledge, not even the most deluded fanatic, lias ever asked, or attempt ed to justify, a measure of this description upon such a pretext-. The seiurity and independence of Co.igress, from th • mo ment of its removal to this District to the present hour, have been as perfect as the constitution could have desired. No inti mation has ever been heard that the exis tence of slavery in the District of Columbia has ever produced the slightest danger, or inconvenience, either to the interests or to the officers ol the federal Government with-, in it. Surely, then, Congress cannot be called upon to interfere with that institution uithin the District, as one of its duties grow ing out of the national objects connected with the cession, and if such interference is demanded from it, the demand must grow out of its relations to the District as a local Legislature. This brings the committee to the remaining question. 2. Would the States of Maryland and | Virginia, if the cession of this territory to ] the Federal Government had not been I made, from any thing which has been shown i to Congress, be induced to interfere with, I or abolish the institution of domestic slave- i ry within it? At the time of the cession from those j States, slavery existed in every portion of their territory, m the same degree, and ' subject to the same laws aud regulations by ! which it was authorized and regulated in I the territory ceded to the Federal Govern-J , ment. It still exists in those States with- i out any variation or modification I of their laws respecting it. As those States, I then, have not abolished it within the ter- - jitories remaining under their jurisdiction, i is it reasonable to suppose that they would ’ have abolished it in the tertitory compri sing this District, had they continued tore tain their original jurisdiction over it? Can any reason whatever be given for the abo lition of slavery in this particular district,' which does not apply with equal force to every other slaveholding section of the country? Can any cause be shown why the States of Maryland and Virginia would ( PUBLIBEIKP Bl I>. £. KOUIASON. W M OBaE re O. 125. have abolished, or would now abolish, sla very in ibis District, had it continued to form a part of those States respectively, which would not have warranted or pro duced general abolition throughout those States ? Most unquestionably not ! As those Slates,then,have not abolish’d slavery in the residue of their territory, it js evident that they would not have abolished it in ’he District ol Columbia, it’ it had continned subject to their action. It follows conclu sively, therefore, that Congress, as the lo cal Legislature of the District, and acting independently of the national consideration* connected witw its powers over it, is bound, for the preservation of the public faith, and the rights of all the parlies ""interested, io act upon the same reasons, and to exercise i the same paternal regard, which would have govenied tire Slate by which the District was ceded to- the Federal Government; And it is unnecessary to add, that Con gress had acted wisely in treating the insti tutions found in existence at the time of the cession, as the institutions of the people of the District, in continuing their laws and customs as the laws and customs to which ; they had been used, and which should nev er be altered, or interfered with, except when the people themselves may be desire ous of a t bange. lour committee must go further, and ex press their full conviction that any interfer ence by Congress with the private interest or rights of the citizens of this District with out their consent, would be a breach of the faith reposed in the Federal Government by the States that made the cession, and as violent and infraction of private rights as it would have been if those States themselves supposing their jurisdiction had remained unimpaired over their territory, had abolish ed slavery wliithin those portions of their respective limits, and had continued its ex istence, upon its present basis, in every other portion of them. And surely there is no citizen, in any quarter of the country, who has the smallest regard for our laws and institutions, State and national, or for equal justice, and an equality of rights and privileges among citizens entitled toit, who would attempt tojustify such an outrage on the part of those States. The question then is: Are the tiiizens of the District vlesierous of a change themselves? Has any request or mavement been made by them that would justify an interference w ith their private rights on the part of Congress ? ! None, whatever ! The citizens of the Dis i trict trot only have not solicited any action | on the part ofCongress, but it is well known that they earnestly deprecate such action j and regard with abhorrence the efforts that are made by others who have interest what-* ever in the District to effect it. It is im possible therefore, that any such interference on the part us Congress could be justified or even palliated, on the ground that it was sought or desired by those who are alone interested in the subject. If, therefore, Congress were to interfere with this descrip tion of property against the consent of the people of the District, your committee feel bound to say that it would be as gross a breach ol public faith, and as outrageous and tnfi act'ron of private rights, as it would have been if such an interference had been committed by the States of which the Dis trict was formerly a part, supposing that it never had been ceded to the United States. Y our committee will here anticipate an objection which may be urged against this, reasoning and these conclusions. They have shown that the powers ofCongress over this District divided themselves into two clases, national and local ; that in re ference to the forme)', tiie action of Con gress should be govt rued by the interest of the whole country so far as they are con nected w ith the branches of the Federal Government located within the District ; that in reference to the latter its powers are and its action should be those of a local and municipal lagislature extending its paternal care and protection over the citizens de pendent upon, a subjected to this branch of its authority ; that in the exercise of its powers the safest stand in reference to slave ry is, what would the Slates to which the. District originally belonged, and of which its citizens were originally citizens, have done in case their jurisdiction bad neves been transferred to Congress and that tlmso States would certainly trot have interjcrud with the institution of slavery in the District had the power to do so remained with lheir.. The objection anticipated is, that the States in question have pursued an unwise policy as to themselves, anti that their Laving;done so should not have bound Congress* as the local legislature of the District, to asuailair policy in relation to its goverwueat. To this, however, your committee consider it perfectly ccnclusive to reply, that under our institutions that people is the best gov erned which is governed most in according i with its own habits, interest and wishes- k j that t'.te policy hitherto pursued by ; gross in reference to slavery w itjuiftiibe Dis trict, your committee have every wason to. believe, has been in perfect eoulbflipity with j the wishes and interest of the citizens con-- i cerncd ; and that ilwill be time enough for i Congress, acting as the loqal legislature of the District, and tn regulators oi’its action to move any matter renting fco their private interests and lights*when (bey thtmsqlyesi. I shall ask smht»oxei»eut. There is another cousiderativm connected? with this part wf the argument* which your i committee think worthy i this: tliat there is la,w in the District I prohibiiHig the master from manumitting his slaves, which he may do at his own dis-, creliou, and without incurring; any rcspon-. sibility whatever. Certain it is that no such laws lias been passed by Congress, The citizens of the District, therefore* have no, necessity for the aid of Congress* :ffioulc( they wish the abolition of slavery them. They have only to exercise sit exis ting right and (heir wish will be accomplish-:, ed. Can there be more decisive-evident* ( then, that they do not w ish t.l(e gbo!ui°tAvA