Valley Spirit

The abolitionists object to slavery as an element of political power. They complain that the whites of the South vote for their negroes--that three-fifths of all the negroes are taken into the account in adjusting the ratio of Congressional representation. This, they say, gives the South more political power than she is justly entitled to.

We reply that the Constitution of the United States provides for the enumeration of three-fifths of all the Southern slaves, and that to attack this arrangement is to attack the work of the founders of our Republic. But how much better off would the North be if slavery were abolished? If the Southern negroes were set free, not merely three-fifths, but all of them. would be counted, as all negroes are now counted at the North.

There are about five million slaves in the country, three millions of whom are taken into the account in apportioning political power among the States. Set them free and the two millions who are now excluded will have to be counted. At the present ratio of representation, this would give twenty more members of Congress to the Southern States! Do the abolitionists wish to endow the Southern States with more political power than they already possess?

The rooting out of slavery would not promote Northern interests. It would directly conflict with the interests of Pennsylvania, if there is any truth in the claim that the interests of this State require an increased tariff--for the South is opposed to an increase of the tariff, and if slavery should be abolished and twenty more Representatives be added to the Southern strength in Congress, anybody of sense can see that there would be just so many more votes against an increase of tariff.

At the time we write, several days prior to the date of our paper, it is impossible to say what will be done by the Democratic National Convention. Nearly a week has been spent in organizing the Convention, settling contested seats and endeavoring to frame a platform. The fears we expressed in our last issue, that it would be difficult to harmonise the conflicting sentiments of extreme quarters of the country, have been realized. There is no disguising the fact that there is considerable danger of a disagreement that will end in the withdrawal of a portion of the Convention. This deplorable result ought to be avoided, and we do not despair of being able to announce that it has been avoided.

If the policy of the administration upon the Lecompton question had been acquiesced in by all the leading men of our party, there would have been no contention in the National Convention about a platform. That policy would not have made a permanent addition of one foot of slave territory to the Union, but it would have prevented the demand made upon us by the extreme South for a Congressional slave code. Out of the opposition to it have grown all the difficulties that lie in the way of harmonious action at Charleston.