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Show 242 'rHE MISSOURI QUESTION. as the whole collected wisdom of the nation to frame a constitution. Competent or not, the people of Missouri have the right, and they must exercise it without nny restriction which is not common to all the States. If you begin t 0 prescribe rc trictions, you may pnrsuc. the course. without limitn.lion or control. You may prcscnbc the qualifications of electors and candidates; the powers and orgauiz.alion of every branch of their government, till self-government is lost, and their liberty is but au empty name. ':rho doctrin e, sir, is alarming. ]3nt one security from its baleful influence is in tho independence of the people. They will not I ubmit. H is not the question whether the thing rcqui rc1l is right or wrong in itself, but whether you have the right to impose it. The principle of taxation, or the amount levied, bad 11o influence in bringing on tho American Revolution; but the right of Parliament, in wllich the colonies ltal1 no representatiou, to impose the tax. They persi leu, and a bloody war en ucd ; and the decision was in favor of thai side where jn,'tice was. I exhort to moderation and justice. Look at the I tarving poor in England. H ear the clanking chains of despoiiHm throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa. The cries of oppression are heard in every region, and the cause of' injured humanity rends every American bosom. Bnt will our commiseration justify onr iuterfercnce? Sllall we become a nation of knigltt-errnnts, and involve t110 country in war with all the rest of the world to establish free government in other quarters of the globe? We may pity other nn· tions, but we have no rio·ht to intermeddle with th eir policies; and to attempt it would be the extreme of madness. Still more cautious should we be about intermeddling with the right of properly and self-government in Missouri. In so doing, you will jeopardize the harmony of the Union, which may possibly ultimate in a civil war. Itecollcct, Greece was destroyed bv division, and Romo by consolida· 'l'Jfl~ MTS~OUlU QUES'l'TON. 243 .. tion. Then let us ho content wi Lh our inheritance, and profit by their exam pic; lest, in onr zeal to perform what we cannot ace om plish, we one day become what G rocco and Rome now are. I will readily admit, sir, that the non-slavcholding States arc comr o. ed of brave and virtuouR citizens, but merit docs not exclusively attach to them. vV e will not shrink from the comparison, whether we look at periods or principlesthe Revolution, tho late war; internal policy, republican principles, moral character, or religions practice. 'l'hc authors of this discussion are welcome to all the advantages they can derive from the com pari. on. There is no essential difference of character among all the different sections of this community. A general coincidence of sentiment strengthens their mutnal attachments, which I trust the demon of discord will never be able to dissolve. Yes, sir, the Union is founded in the affections of the people1 cemented by the blood of our fathers, endeared by common suffering, and secured by common interest. Future generations, remembering that their fathers mingled their blood in one common cause, and their a hcs in one common urn, will still feel like brothers, when ambition shall have wa ted its efforts; and the blessings of the confederacy shall bo long enjoyed after oblivion shall have drawn a vail over the disturbers of its peace. The history of other nations is before us, and they should be marked as beacons of warning. Remember the unhappy record of the ten tribes of I rael, and the miserable consequences, whenever you contemplate the effects of local jealousies. Before we are aware, we are too apt to excite our own pa sions as well as others, and rush precipitately into measures which will leave us to regret our folly when it shall be too late to retract. But another cause of complaint is recently brought to light. In the ratio of representation and direct taxation, |
