Allow me to acknowledge the receipt of your kind favor of the 21st ult., inviting me to meet in Convention at Lexington, Mo., on the 12th inst. Your letter having been addressed to me at Carlisle, instead of Forest Retreat, Kentucky, delayed its reception a few days, in consequence of which this reply may not reach you in due time for your meeting. It would indeed afford me great pleasure to meet you on that patriotic occasion. But, the delicacy of my health at present, although it has not cut off all hope of ultimate recovery, is such as to forbid me from attempting the journey to Lexington.
If I am not ungraciously and unfairly treated by my friends of the Louisville Journal, a second letter of mine must by this time be published in that paper, intended as a reply to their editorial commentary upon the first—the one referred to in your postscript. My first letter that appeared in the Journal, had been elicited by one previously received from a friend in that place, whose pleasure it was to hand it over for publication, to the editor of that paper; and it was published accordingly, with a long editorial commentary, in which, although kind and even generous enough in a personal point of view, they did not fail, politically, to give Old Stonehammer a right severe pelting with their ingenious and hard-twisted sophisms, intended to cast great blame and all sorts of dishonor upon the southern section, for having supported the Nebraska bill, &c.
Believing myself, that the North had redeemed itself from the disgrace—the dishonor of having disregarded its constitutional obligations in refusing to admit Missouri as a State, except upon the condition of restriction, north of 36° 30', and not then, except by a few votes from that section—the most of whom were condemned and prostrated by their constituents respectively, who at that time denied that the few truant votes of the North constituted a bargain on their part, or placed that section under any legal or moral obligation to abide by it, I was induced in my feeble way to vindicate the voters, North and South, who supported the Nebraska bill. It is true, that in 1820 the southern section yielded to the glaring imposition of restriction, rather than keep Missouri any longer out of her constitutional right of admission, that being the only alternative presented by the North for the time being. But, did not all the parties know full well that no power was lodged in that Congress to repeal, alter or modify any one of the constitutional rights of succeeding generations? Was it not well understood by all, that the Federal Convention alone had the right to fix upon the line of 36° 30', or upon any other line? and just as well known that the Union would never have been formed if such an alternative had been presented to our illustrious forefathers of that Convention? If in 1820 Congress had the power to legislate upon the subject at all, by what means has the same body been deprived of the right of legislation upon the same subject in 1855?
To put any other construction than this upon the intention or designs of the Congress of 1820, would, to my mind, amount to an imputation of great arrogance on the part of that body, in the assumption of power not conferred upon it. Admit the right of a subsequent Congress to alter or obliterate the line of 36° 30', and let this latter compromise be sustained, together with the Fugitive Slave Law, and all will be well for the future. Repeal these acts, and we shall soon hear of retaliation in other forms than described by Mr. Calhoun, which God forbid. But, pardon my brevity, and allow me to refer you to my forthcoming letter, expected in the Louisville Journal, for my further views touching this question.
With many sincere thanks for your kind invitation, allow me respectfully to subscribe myself your honored and ob't servant,
THOS. METCALF.
Messrs. T. M. EWING, WM. SHIELDS, WM. T. WOOD, F. A. KOWNSLAR.
P. S.—It is my intention to visit Missouri, if I can once more recover my health so as to justify the undertaking; and in that event will certainly call on my Lexington friends of the Committee.
T. M.
Mr. F. A. Kownslar, of Lafayette, offered the following resolution, which was adopted: