THE ARGUMENT
To the heated imagination of the Honorable William Jones something
still remained to be explained, and he remained anxious to continue
the conversation on the topic foremost in his mind.
"Look around here, gentlemen," said he, extending an eloquent arm.
"Behold them mountings. Look at them trees surrounding this valley
of secrets. The spoils of war belongs to him that has fit--the
captives of the bow and spear are his'n. How said Brennus the
Gaul, when he done vanquished Rome? 'Woe to the conquered!' said
he. 'Woe to them that has fell to our arms!' Now it's the same
right here. Look at--"
"I was just going to remark," suavely broke in Judge Clayton, "that
of the many mountain views of our southern country, this seems to
me one of the most satisfactory. I have never seen a more restful
scene than this, nor a morning more beautiful. But, Missouri!" he
added almost with mournfulness. "What a record of strife and
turmoil!"
Dunwody nodded. "As when Missouri was admitted, for instance," he
said smilingly.
"Precisely!" rejoined Clayton, biting meditatively at a plucked
grass stem. "The South gets a state, the North demands one! When
Missouri came in, Illinois also was admitted--one free against one
slave state. Politics,--nothing more. Missouri would break the
balance of power if she came alone and unpaired as a slave state,
so the North paired her with Maine, and let her in, with a string
tied to her! Slavery already existed here, as in all these other
states that had been admitted with it existent. What the North
tried to do was to abolish slavery where it had _already_ existed,
legally, and under the full permission of the Constitution. All of
the Louisiana Purchase had slavery when we bought it, and under the
Constitution Congress could not legislate slavery _out_ of it."
The younger men of the party listened to him gravely, even eagerly.
Regarding the personal arbitrament of arms which they now faced,
they were indifferent; but always they were ready to hear the
arguments pro and con of that day, when indeed this loosely
organized republic had the giant wolf of slavery by the ear.
"But they claimed the right of the moral law!" said Dunwody finally.
"The moral law! Who is the judge of that? Governments are not run
by that. If we overthrow our whole system of jurisprudence, why,
I've nothing to say. That's anarchy, not government. The South is
growing faster relatively than the North. The politicians on both
sides are scared about the balance of power, and they're simply
taking advantage of this cry of morality. They're putting the
moralists out as cat's-paws to the fire!" Judge Clayton almost
abandoned his usual calm.
"I imagine," ventured Doctor Jamieson, "that Missouri had as good a
right to come in unrestricted as Louisiana had in 1812, or Arkansas
in 1836."
"That argument was admitted by statesmen, but it was denied by
politicians: I make a distinction between the two," commented
Dunwody.
"Yes," rejoined Judge Clayton. "The politicians of the House,
controlled by the North, would not give up the intention to
regulate us into a place where it could hold us down. 'Very well,'
said the Senate--and there were a few statesmen in the Senate
the--'then you shall not have Maine admitted on your own side of
the line!' And that was how Missouri sneaked into this Union--this
state, one of the richest parts of the Union--by virtue of a
compromise which even waited until Maine was ready to come in!
Talk of principles--it was _politics_, and nothing less. That's
your Missouri Compromise; but has the North ever considered it so
sacred? She's stuck to it when it was good politics, and forgotten
it when that was more to her interest. The Supreme Court of the
United States will declare the whole Missouri Compromise
unconstitutional at no late date. And what it is going to do with
Mr. Clay's compromise, of this year, the Lord only knows."
It was young Yates who at length ventured to interrupt in his soft
and drawling tones, "I don't see how the No'th can charge us up
with much. Whenever they get into trouble and want help in a
trade, or a fight, or a argument, why, they come south!"
Doctor Jamieson calmly took snuff. "Time was, when we first came
in as a state," said he, "that we didn't take these attempts of the
North to regulate us any too tamely."
[Illustration: Doctor Jamieson calmly took snuff.]
"I don't know about that," commented Judge Clayton. "Your 'moral
law,' your 'higher law,' gentlemen, I don't find in my legal
reading. It was personal liberty that took every man west, but
we've stood and stickled for the actual law, and we've been robbed
under it: robbed as a state, and now they want to rob us as
individuals. Gentlemen, these men are carrying off a girl of mine
worth, say fifteen hundred to two thousand. I say deliberately
that, when these armed invaders come to cross this state with
purposes such as that, there is full process of law under which
they can be turned back. For instance, you, Colonel Dunwody, are a
United States marshal. I've the honor to represent the Judiciary
of this state. We haven't time now to put the matter in the hands
of the courts or of the legislature. But it seems to me--"
"Men," said young Desha tersely, "we're wastin' time. We've made
our medicine. Let's hit the war trail."
Dunwody smiled at him. "You boys are hot-headed," said he.
"To hell with the Constitution!" exclaimed the Honorable William
Jones suddenly.
"Well, it's one Constitution against the other, anyhow," said
Clayton. "You can see the intent of the North now plainly enough.
Indiana openly says she's going to make the Fugitive Slave Act
impossible of enforcement. All over the North they call it immoral
and unchristian--they reserve the right of interpreting both the
Bible and the Constitution for us--as though we weren't grown men
ourselves. That's the sort of law there is back of this boat load
of fools down there."
"Men, we're wastin' time!" repeated young Desha.
"Get the horses!" ordered Dunwody of the nearest black.