Free Soil Banner, Indianapolis, Marion County, 22 September 1848 — Page 1

T H E

FREE SOIL BANNER,

EDITED AND PUBLISHED BY W. B. GREER & L. WALLACE ]

''HE IS THE FREEMAN, WHOM TRUTH MAKES FREE; AND ALL ARE SLAVES BESIDE.”

[PRINTED BY DOUGLASS & ELDER.

VOL. I.

INDIANAPOLIS, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 1848.

NO. 5.

PUBLICATION OFFICE OF THE / statesmen in our country, one who, by

the suffrages of his fellow-citizens, has already filled the highest office in the

BANNER IS ON

PENNSYLVANIA STREET, Three doors north of Washington Street.

Free Soil Polka. WRITTEN TOR THE PEN YAN FREEMEN'S CLUB. Air—Jim Crow Polka. What means this crowd that's gath’ring here, They’re coming still, from far and near, With shouis resounding high and clear, We are the Free Soil Voters. CHORUS. Oh, come then, boys, and strike to-day, For Freedom, and for Freedom’s sway; Oh, how delightful 'tis to say, Tm a Free Soil Voter. We plant our flag upon the wall, Resolved with it to stand or fall, In fighting for the rights of all, We are the Free Soil Voters. Let others work for place and spoil, For Natural Rights we’ll ever toil, Our motto is—"Free Men---Free Soil" We are the Free Soil Voters. The curse of Slavery shall not be The wedding gift of Liberty, Our Territories shall be Free; We are the Free Soil Voters. Our country shall not bear the shame, With which the South would load her name; On every hill burns Freedom’s flame; We are the Free Sou. Voters. Come one, come all, this is the hour, When Freemen must make known their power; And Slavery will fall and cower, Before the Free Soil Voters.

Meeting

nation’s gift; one who. with an unsullied, amiable and dignified private character, in the maturity of his intellectual strength, in “the second sober thought” of his riper years, has come forth the fearless and efficient, defender of the rights of Freemen against the aggressions of the slave power. Resolved, That in the resolutions of Massachusetts, from which we have quoted, we recognize the spirit of an honest,sincere and devoted advocate of the principles of Liberty, tiie involuntary and acknowledged leader hailed as worthy to shape the policy of the Commonwealth upon all the great questions of Freedom, CHARLES FRANCIS ADAMS, who has shown himself ever ready for these purposes “to co-operate with all, without distinction, who may claim to he the friends of Human Liberty.”— Though deserted by others, he has not betrayed Massachusetts,nor abandoned her position, and we will not abandon him. Doing honor alike to his il- lustrious ancestry and his country, in the position he has assumed in favor of Free Soil and Free Men, we recognize in him that integrity of character, that determination of purpose,and that capacity of action, which the times demand, and which entitle him to the esteem and confidence, of his country-

men.

David Dudley Field, of NewYork, followed up the resolutions in a speech of great power and beauty. Joshua Leavitt, and Mr. Hunter, of Illinois, followed, enchaining the attention of the audience to a late hour, in unabated interest. The Hurrah Song of the Hutchinsons concluded the proceedings of the meeting, which has seldom been surpassed in its character or in its enthusiasm.—Ohio Standard.

gry word, is a new thing in modern / they were forced to do it—that they political movements. In this respect, /had done it from fear—that they had

it far exceeded my most sanguine hopes. It was the object doubtless which, under God, gave character to it. A great

been driven to it by the Van Buren

movement of the North.”

Now the absurdity of such an asser-

moral object will attract from the rnul-/ tion can in no way better be shown,

The Great Ratification Meeting in Boston The great Ratification Meeting in Boston, on Tueday night was the largest held in that city since 1840. The Hall, says the Republican, was crammed, floor, galleries, window-seats, and all, with as enthusiastic and intelligent an audience as ever met together on any public occa-

sion.

CHARLES SUMNHR presided,assisted by a score of Vice Presidents, and a lot of Secretaries, first among whom we notice Marcus Morton, Jr. Mr. Sumner on taking the chair, spoke with great eloquence and power, in vindication of the positions of the party, and in support of its great princi-

ples.

Richard H. Dana, Jr. next spoke, and was followed by John A. Andrews of Boston, who presented a series of resolutions, which were unanimously adopted, and from which we have room to extract only the following: Resolved, That when the Legislature of Massachusetts adopted the words of Charles F. Adams, and resolved that the encroachment of the Slave Power upon the rights of the Freemen of the Union, “is a perversion of the principles of Republican Government—a deliberate assault upon the compromises of the constitution, and demands the strenuous, united, and persevering opposition of all persons, without distinction, who claim to be the friends of human liberty.” We took Massachusetts at her word; and when it further resolved,in the words of Charles F. Adams, that “now that the Slave Power arrogates the control of millions of freemen living beyond the State in which it exists and puts at hazard the predominance of the principles of Liberty in America, it justifies the adoption on their part, of a systematic policy of contraction, by lawful and constilu'ional means; * * and Massachusetts will co operate with any or all of the free States of the Union, in an honest endeavor, by lawful means, to restore the Constitution in every case where it has been perverted from the fulfilment of its original and noble purpose.” We then also took Massa-

chusetts at her word.

Therefore, Resolved, That, impressed with a profound respect for the ability, integrity and patriotism of

MARTIN VAN BUREN

for his fidelity to the great doctrine of Republican Equality, displayed in former years in his zealous advocacy of the measure of conceding the right of suffrage to the citizens of New York, irrespetive of color; for his steadfast opposition to the spread of Slavery over Free Territory, maintained from his entrance into public life to the present day; for his resistance of the Missouri Compromise with Slavery; for his prudence evinced when President of the United States, in promptly declining the overtures of Texas for annexation; for his sound and salutary counsel against the consummation of the same measure at the cost of his political prospects, at a more recent period, when a private citizen, and the most prominent candidate of his party for the Presidency ; for his opposition therein to the aggressive demands of

the slaveholding interest; for the man- / the aggressor upon justice and human

ly and noble stand which he has now/ rights.

taken for Free Territory, the rights of /Character of the Convention.—

titude- only those whose high moral tone sympathises with that object.— Men came to Buffalo, not to scramble for the spoils of party victory, but to intercept slaveholding aggression upon the rights of God and man. This it was that drew together the sober, wise and good, from seventeen different States, which taught them to cast themselves on the arm of the Lord for support, and gave a moral character and tone to their deportment and deliberations, which their opposers find it much easier to reproach than to imitate. The Barnburners.—A different spirit was developed in these men from what may be apprehended. They manifested no disposition to run their favorite candidate at all events. Their aims appeared to be in harmony with the great object of the Convention, to elevate principles rather then men. They promptly withdrew the name of Marlin Van Buren, at his own suggestion, in order to leave the body untrammeled, and pledged their support to the nominee that might be selected. Prominent among this class was the Hon. B. F. Butler—a name conspicuous in the Temperance and Religious movements of the day. The part he took in this connection was promptly visited, according to current, report, with Executive retribution. A telegraphic communication to Washington and back, as the report is, announced his position to Mr. Polk, and brought back his dis-

than by the fact, that the whole Whig delegation from the South, in both Houses, with one from the North, voted against it; whereas two Democrats from the South sustained the Proviso. And every Northern Democrat but four, voted for it. If the Whigs wished for the credit of the act, why did one half of the body go against it, and render necessary an equal number of Democrats to rescue the measure from de-

feat ?

'' Some of the Southern Whigs not yet quite right on that question!” Pray show us one that is.

Daniel Webster’s Speech.—The Taylor men have, at length, got their long-expected and long-heralded speech from Daniel Webster, and little good do we think it will do them. He says that “Gen. Taylor is a military man merely. He has had no training in civil affairs—he has had no participation in the councils of the Republic—he is known only by his brilliant achievements at the head of the American army. The Whigs of Massachusetts, and I among them, are of the opinion that it was not wise, nor discreet, to go to the army for our candidates for the Presidency. This is the first instance in the history of the government of the U. States, that any MERE MILITARY MAN has been proposed for that office. * * * The case therefore stands by itself, without a 'precedent in

to be, in the position and strength ol the great “free soil” movement, which he terms “a mighty party, a party above and beyond the Presidency, a party that has cast aside both the candidates of the old parties, and nominated as the representative of their free soil principles, Mr. Van Buren, who was formerly the President of the United States. Such a man would never have consented to be placed in that position unless he was convinced there was a firm foundation for the movement, and saw that the North had determined to rally on this great question of sectional su-

premacy.”

That is the aspect in which the question is viewed by the great statesman of the South. Who is so closely interested, who so able to form a correct

mission from the office of Attorney / view of the matter, as he ? He knows

Mr. Calhoun, in his recent Charles-/ our previous history,

ton speech, expresses his greatest fears /Again he says: “Before Gen. Tay-

to be, in the position and strength of/lor's nomination, I stated alwa

Impartial Testimony.

The following is an extract from the editorial correspondence of the Watchman of the Valley, a religious paper of the N. S. Presbyterian denomination, distinguished for its fearlessness for vindicating its own views of right.— The testimony of Mr. Goodman to the nature, spirit and character of the Buffalo Convention will be received as the word of an earnest and impartial man, deeply impressed with the religious responsibilities of American citizenship.

— Cin. HeraId.

Buflalo Convention. Were policy a stronger principle with me than love to my species, christian principle, or patriotism, I should perhaps touch delicately upon the .subject of this Convention. But my readers have learned, years ago, that I have no other policy than honesty to guide the conduct of my paper, and, whether that is the best policy or not, it is best they expect from the Watchman, in its present hands. 1 have, therefore, with characteristic unreservedness, spoken right out what 1 think and feel respecting the whole movement. And my honest conviction is that the good hand of our God is upon it. When I learned, on arriving at Buffalo, that God had moved his people to make it a subject of special prayer, in their social gatherings, daily “ rising up early” for the purpose, 1 could not but feel a delightful assurance that the Most High had taken the movement into his own hands and would crown it with as early a victory as in his wisdom it should seem best. What it has already

effected is a cheeing indication of the greater things that may yet be expected from it. It has killed the infamous

General, all during a.single speech that

he was making.

Between Mr. Butler and Mr. Chase an interesting scene took place before the Committee of Conference. Mr. Chase had been warned to be on his guard against the sinister aims of Mr. Butler, a crafty fox. The latter had been warned in like manner, against Mr. Chase, who would overreach him if he was not on his guard. These things they publicly confessed, and gave to each other, at the same time, most cordially the hand of mutual con-

fidence.

This fact I give, not as an eye witness, but on the authority of others. There was a sprit of concession at that meeting which is not characteristic of a set of greedy office seekers.— When it was asked if the Liberty men would be satisfied not to have one of the nominees selected from among them, their reply was, “ You have given us every thing, all we ever contended for; you have given us our principles ; take these, and Democrats and Whigs may divide the men among them-

selves.

The Platform.—A preliminary measure to secure unanimity in the Convention, was to agree on a platform or a declaration of principles. No little anxiety was felt on this point. The Liberty press had been warning the party against any amalgamation with the new movement which might involve an abandonment of any essential principle of their organization. The nonextension principle was not all they wanted. They could not leave their own platform to stand on that alone. But when they found that both the Committee of Conference and the Mass Convention had adopted essentially their own platform, without a dissenting voice, they perceived that all obstacles to a complete amalgamation were removed. This platform declares it the duty of the General Government to free itselt from all responsible con-

Gompromise hill which was designed /nection with Slavery; which implies

to subject our nation forever to hopeless slaveholding rule, and has since overcome the pertinacity of the Senate, and extorted from them a government lor Oregon with the Slavery restriction principle embodied in it. It is nothing hut the spread of Free-Soil sentiment, as developed in this movement, which has wrought out these results, as every attentive and candid observer must know. Whether there is strength enough in this movement to carry the election at the present campaign or not, there will he strength enough in it to act powerfully upon our national legislation. It is a mistake to consider those votes thrown away that do not elect their candidate.— Such votes have a moral effect of great value often. Every one that casts his vote in the scale of righteousness,

comes up to the help of the Lord against/ meeting, Monday evening, alluded to

the non-extension of it where it is not, and the extinction of it where it is, if

under Federal jurisdiction.

Who did it?

That is the question. What great influence forced the Oregon bill with the Wilmot Proviso attached, through Congress? Assuredly those most nearly and strongly interested in opposition to the Proviso, will understand best to what quarter to attribute the victory against themselves. John C. Calhoun says it was caused by the great Northern movement for “Free Soil,” and through the recreancy of two Southern Democratic Senators. Yet. we have those among us who attribute that great Northern triumph to Whig votes and Whig influence solely ! .Judge Barton, in his speech at the Taylor

there is nothing more to be feared from one than the other of the old parties, as now constituted ; that Northern Democrats and Northern Whigs have alike risen in rebellion to Southern domination—and what most galls him is, that both are uniting in support of the great Northern statesman who was ostraeised*by his party because he would not how low enough to the South.— The Buffalo movement has caused the great consternation in which the slaveocrats ai»e now thrown, and was the very thing which forced through Congress the Wilmot Proviso. The late South Carolina meeting which nominated Taylor & Butler for the Presidency and Vice Presidency, as the surest instruments to extend Southern rights, directed the great volume of their indignation at this same free soil movement calling it the immediate cause of their alarm, lest other defeats than in Congress should await them— one great one at the polls. Mr. Calhoun thinks the “Free Soil” party will be “a most powerful one,” and if nowdefeated, will triumph at the polls in the Presidential contest of 1852. In which case he bemoans the fallen fortunes of the “peculiar institution.”— What greater inducement could we

have to press on ?

But, the inconsistency of calling the Wilmot Provisoa Whig principle, since the recent Tuylorizatipn of the party, is too apparent to he thought of for a moment. Why, it is one of the very first things that was struck from the creed of the party, immediately upon its as^emhlingatPhiladelphia—“not ten votes being in its favor!” in that immense Convention. Talk no more now about the Whig principles of the Wilmot Proviso. The Macon (Georgia.) Republican, a staunch Whig paper, explains the matter rightly, as follows : “A resolution was introduced into the Whig National Convention, recognizing and adopting the Wilmot Proviso ; hut it was rejected almost unanimously, without discussion. It was treated iL7*as a stranger—as a thing entirely OUT OF PLACE. The only wonder is, how it, came there—being, as it is, a bantling of Locofoco paternity. (LrTlio thing was generated and warmed into life by the Democracy, nursed and sustained by its natural parent, and ol course possessed no affinity with wh igfierip—and consequently it was HOOTED OUT OF THE CONVEN-

TION.”^)

Remember, here, that the bargain was made beforehand, between the Northern and Southern Delegates, that the motion for the expulsion of the Proviso should he made by a Northern member, so as thus more effectually to give a Northern sanction to the purification of the Whig creed. Could a party, thus completely disrobed of all affiliation with this principle, have had any agency toward passing the Proviso!

Freemen, and of Free Labor, we tender him the tribute of our heartfelt thanks, and account him worthy of the gratitude of every true and free heart in the nation. We congratulate the friends of Free Soil throughout the country, that they have, in him, so distinguished and efficient an advocate of their cause, one of the first class of

Another indication of God’s hand and spirit upon the Buffalo movement might he witnessed in the character and de-

the passage ol the Oregon bill with the /It is absurd. 'The cause existed in the

Proviso attached, as follows : “Now he would ask, who had done

this? Had it been done by the Free Soil party? No. It had been done by the Whigs, that is the Northern

portment of this vast assembly. Such / Whigs, for he knew that some of the a political meeting, so free apparently/ Southern Whigs were not yet quite

from all selfish collisions; such a mass of sober, considerate men, where there seemed the entire absence of the tainted breath, the profane oath, or the an-

PEOPLE of the North, rising in contempt of party, and putting up a FREE SOIL candidate for the Presidency.—

Mass. Spy.

Pretty Good.—A democrat remarked

that the only thing which rendered the - . ... ... , /lvr .. - result in this State at all questionable, was ball0 » oi ^ well-known “Wilmot Pro- | the mischievous attempts of a few dissat-1 VIS0 ’ which heads the Barnburners'

the men who had iought the battle,j i s fi e d democrats to run a third ticket with confession, and lays down the principle,

they were the men who had gained the Mr. Cass as the candidate.—IVw York

right on that question. They were

lor’s nomination, I stated always, when the subject was mentioned by my friends, that I did not, and could not recommend the nomination of a military man to the people of the United States for the office of President. It was against my conviction of what was due to the best interests of the, country, and the character of the Republic.— * * * I stand upon the same ground now. 1 considered that such a nomination it was NOT FIT for the

Whigs to make.”

The drift of the speech is the same as that of the Taylor papers—assuming, without sufficient reason, as we think, that either Cass or Taylor must he elected — bad as the nomination is, it must be supported in order to defeat Cass, and to preserve the unity of the party. The argument is not very strongly put, not so strongly, we think, as we have seen it in some of the Whig papers. The whole speech wears the appearance of an effort, as an advocate, to sustain a position averse to the convictions of the speaker, and is therefore entirely unworthy of the fame and reputation of Daniel Webster. We have already said that it would do the Taylor party little good. The speaker does not even say they shall have his vote. If he had, it would assure them one more than they were before certain of, and that, we think, is about the extent of the benefit which they are destined to derive from it. The speaker was verv severe upon those who nominated Gen. Taylor.— He said “that sagacious, wise, far-see-ing doctrine of availability, lies at the bottom of the whole matter.” A portion of the speech is occupied in showing that, in the evils of the influence of slave legislation, the North has borne her full share, and that in all the cases of slave extension, it has been done by Northern votes. This is true, and it always will he so, so long as we have parties in office who depend on the slave power to sustain them. Both of the old parties do depend upon it, and are therefore inefficient for good, and can interpose no barrier against that power. But the Free Soil party, based upon opposition to the encroachments of slavery, offers a firm and substantial foothold for all the friends of Freedom, both North and South, to rally upon; and in its hands the interests ot Freedom will be safe. Once in power, as it inevitably must be, before long, and we shall no more witness this truckling to slavery, this voting away the rights of freemen for the sake of securing the influence of the South.

—Mass. Spy.

Movement of the German Democrats in favor of Van Buren and Free Soil.—The St. Louis Republican gives the following extract from a German Democratic paper of considerable influence, published at Herman, in Missouri, which is supposed to speak the sentiments of the Germans in that quarter. It will be seen that the editor abandons the support of Cass and comes out for Van Buren. it will not, however, probably affect the vote of the Stale materially, but it may be considered important as showing the views of the large German population, which controls the vote of several Western

States.

From the Hermann Wochenblatt.

Our readers already know, from a former declaration in our paper, that we cannot coincide with that part of the Democratic party which considers slavery in the newly acquired territories, New Mexico and California as possibly permissible—we will say admissible. Therefore we cannot support for the Presidency the candidate who is brought out by that party as their representative—we mean Mr. Cass ; hut we take side with that Democratic party called Radical Democrats, or Barnburners, and who have put up Van Buren as their candidate for the Presidency. We therefore, declare our appro-

believe Congress has a right to preclude forever, by way of legislation, the possibility of the introduction of slavery into the thus far free, now annexed territories of Mexico. Cass disputes the power of Congress, and he thereby, together with the party he represents, puts himself in direct opposition to the acts and the principles of the fathers of our revolution, the authors of the. glorious Declaration of Independence, and the ordinance of 1787, which forever excluded slavery from the great Northwestern territory as it existed at that time. Could it possibly be brought about on the part of the Radical Democrats or Barnburners in this State, to get up a special ticket for Presidential electors, we would be very much gratified, hut if even this cannot be, we owe to our principles and our dignity as republican citizens, openly to step forward with our opinion; as it could not be. otherwise expected of us, of those who know us, as well with regard to politics, as with regard to .religion. With us, it is a matter always to remain true to the principles we have proved —to confess them openly, no matter whether a few or many share them with us. The principles of Radical Democracy, however, call upon us to stand on the side of the Wilmot Pro-

viso.

victory. But it had been said that

Banner.

that in no part of the Union can slavery be legally introduced — and we

German Free Soil Paper.—We are glad to perceive that the German friends of Free Soil in this city, have succeeded in starting a daily paper, in German, to support the Buffalo Platform and nominees. It is called the True Democrat, and is edited by a very competent person, Mr. George Walker. Its success already has been very great. On the issue of its third number, it had four hundred subscribers. It will he an efficient agent in the good cause.— There are now five daily, and twenty weekly papers supporting Van Buren and Adams in this State. This list does not include any of the whig papers who refuse to support Taylor, but who have not yet declared in favor of Van Buren. Of course, their influence is in our favor. We believe the daily Van Buren papers are as numerous as those for Cass.—Chi. Herald.

“This is an ago of enervation in medicine, sure enough!” said Mrs. Partington, as she glanced at the column of new and remarkable specifics; “why will people run after metaphysics and them nostrums, when by taking some simple purgatory they can get well so soon ? It’s all nonsense, it is, and if people instead of dosing themselves with calumny and bitters, would only take exercise and air a little more and wash themselves with care and a crash towel, they would be all the better for it.” She said this on her own experience. As for "diet drink” and summer beverages, Mrs. P. is high, she is. We are happy to understand, by private letters, that Gen. Cass firmly stands to the ground which he has taken. . Being applied to formally by a man or two of the Wilmot Proviso stamp, he declared unhesitatingly that he adhered to the Nicholson letter and to the Baltimore platform, and that if elected President he WOULD VETO THE WILMOT PROVISO.— Washington Union.

The Wisconsin Barnburner.—This is is the title ot a neat little paper published at Milwaukie, Wisconsin. Mr. Booth is its editor. Wisconsin is declared to be certain for Van Buren and Adams.

Cass in the South. A remark of Senator Foote, of Mississippi, in the debate on the Oregon Bill, with respect to the success of Gen. Cass being hazarded by its passage, having been misapprehended, that gentleman appears in the Union in an explanatory letter. After giving a history of the struggle on the Oregon Bill, he,concludes-as follows: If any are disposed to conjecture that the last scenes in the Senate augur 'the enfeeblement of our ticket in the South, let me assure them that never have I seen such signs of concord and brotherly love among Uemoerats from the North, South, East and West, ( with very slight exceptions, indeed) as those same closing scenes unfolded. I may go farther, and declare, as I did by their express authority, on last Wednesday, in Virginia, that distinguished Democratic leaders from the South, heretofore lukewarm or hostile to our ticket, eneouraged by the assurances givcn that Northern Oernocrats will hereafter concur and co-op-erate with Southern Democrats and Southern Whigs in bringing about a fair equitable compromise of the territorial question. Will now support our nominees cordially, actively, and to the end. 1 could go yet farther, and state what I personally know to be actually true—the Southern Whigs, as leading and influential men as any in the whole South, seeing the united and unanimous opposition of Northern Whigs in Congress to the constiuuional rights of the South—beholding the extraordinary indications now disclosing themselves, of a general disposition among the Whigs of the North to fraternize with the Barnburners in support of Mr. Van Buren and Adams—perceiving, as all discerning men must now at last perceive, that General Taylor has really no strength anywhere, and that the only hope of defeating the abolition ticket of Buffalo, and thus securing the safety of the South and the integrity of the Union, lies in the success of the Democratic ticket, have not hesitated to avow a strong doubt whether it is not their duty, as true patriots and Southern men, to come with all their weight and influence to the support of Cass and Butler. I speak not hastily on this point; and those who receive this suggestion lightly, will in a very short time find it made good, and even transcended, by actual facts.” Gen. Cass is relied on then, it will be seen, at the South, as their best security, in extending slavery, and according to Mr. Foote’s own declaration the choice is between Cass, the slavery ex - teitsionist, and Van Buren, the free soil nominee. We trust that free soil men who now support Cass or Taylor will bear this in mind and act accordingly. Cass or Van Buren—which will you choose?—Ohio Standard.