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![handle is hein.slavery/slvextpro0001 and id is 1 raw text is:
SLAVERY EXTENSION AND PROTECTION-ITS
TENDENCIES AND DANGERS.
SPEECH
OF
HON
DANIEL CLARK,
OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. I
Delivered in the Senate of the United States, February 20, 1860.
Mr. CLARK. Here, Mr. President,
is a series of six resolutions presented
by the Senator from Iississippi. There
are nany things in them in which I do
not entirely concur; there are some
things in them from which I entirely
dissent ; but I propose, at this time, to
confine myself entirely, or almost en-
tirely, to the fourth resolution of the
series. It is this :
Resolved, That neither Congress nor a Terri-
torial Lcgislature, whether by direct legislation
or legislation of an indirect and unfriendly na-
ture, possess the power to annul or impair the
constitutional right of an4 citizen of the United
States to take his slave property into the com-
mon territories; but it is the duty of the Federal
Government there to afford, for that as for other
species of property, the needful protection; and,
if experience should at any time prove that the
judiciary does not possess power to insure ade-
quate protection, it will then become the duty of
Congress to supply such deficiency.
This resolution, Mr. President, is
bold and aggressive in its character; it
is alarming. It calls for a species of
legislation entirely new in the history of
the legislation of this Government, and
at variance with its past policy. But,
before I proceed to discuss the resolu-
tion, I want to call the attention of the
Senate to an extract from a speech made
by Hon. JoHN C. BRECKINRIDGE, Sen-
ator elect from Kentucky, at Frankfort,
in that State, on the 21st of December,
1859:
In this connection, I do not hesitate to say
that the nim of every good citizen should be to
keep the question of slavery out of Congress.
Its agitation there has been productive only of
evil to us, and that continually. In the present
condition of public affairs, I can see no motive
to thrust the Territorial question on the Congres-
sional arena, that has its origin in a feeling of
loyalty to the Union. At present, the slavery
question, in this aspect of it, is not before Con-
gress. No Southern Senator or Representative pro-
poses legislation upon it. No complaint of violated
rights comes from any Territory. No evidence
is offered that the Constitution, the laws, and
the courts, are not competent to protect personal
right and private property. Hence, while I would
never abandon a constitutional right, especially
after it had been juoicially determined, I never
would prematurely raise any question to dis-
tract the country, when no voice demands it,
North, South, East, or West.
I have read this extract, not to blame
the honorable Senator from Mississippi
[Mr. DAVIs] for introducing these reso-
lutions, nor to blame the other Senator
from Mississippi [Mr. BRowN] for in-
troducing certain resolutions which he
presented, nor to blame any Senator for
introducing any resolution; nor do I do
it to put the honorable Mr. BRECKIN-](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.slavery/slvextpro0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)