From the point of view of the political
theory of a confederation, his contention had force, and the hot-
tempered west was not likely to submit to an inferior status in the
Union. Nevertheless, the debates and votes in the Constitutional
Convention of 1787 seem to show that the fathers of the Constitution
intended to leave Congress free to impose limitations on the states
at admission. [Footnote: Elliot, Debates, V., 492.]
In the mean time, the House of Representatives was continuing the
discussion on the old lines. Although the arguments brought out
little that had not been stated in the first Missouri debate, they
were restated day after day with an amplitude and a bitterness of
feeling that aggravated the hostility between the rival forces. Even
under this provocation, most southern members expressed their
opinions on the morality and expediency of slavery in language that
affords a strange contrast to their later utterances: in almost
every case they lamented its existence and demanded its dispersion
throughout the west as a means of alleviating their misfortune.
Pages:
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245