Minnesota weekly times. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1854-1859, 1854-10-24


the proper course to be pursued by the people in
order to secure new grant of land. When the
proceedings of the Investigating Committee were
made public, we published them, and freely and
impartially commenting upon each point, SO that
our readers need not grope in darkness upon
matter which we believed to be of vital impor-
tance to the welfare of Minnesota. We sought
for the facts and were willing to abide by them.
AS new Developments continued to be made, our
position continued to be strengthened, until the
public mind settled down into a calm conviction
that what VIC had uttered, was true-that fraud
had been committed-that ah outrage had been
perpetrated ON the people of Minnesota. Well,
what was to be done? TO submit quietly to the
fragrant acts of speculators who sought to suck
our life's blood by deliberately committing a
crime which ought to incarcerate them in the Pen
itentiary, or to rise in our majesty and disdain-
fully rebuke them at the ballot box? The organ
of the swindle said &c let things alone-no matter
if a fraud has been committed give us a rail-
road-a railroad at any price, We objected to
this, assigning as our reasons that company with
unlimited privileges, land with 0OO OOOacres of our
best land could CONTROL not only our social but our
political relations, and further, that company
whose agents would fraudulently alter bill after
it had passed Congress in order to the lands
which Congress distinctly said should not inure to
it, deserved looking after-that such company
ought not to possess the defective charter passed
by our Legislature. Upon this point we waged
unceasing warfare, and we shall continue to do
so, until we are sure that the interests of our
Territory better secured against the avarcious
grasp of men whose only god is MONEY!
1t being conceded, then, that fraud had been
committed the charter was defective-and
that in consequence of these two things we had
lost grant, it became necessary to devise some
way, and the best way to conciliate those MEM
bers of Congress who voted for the repeal of the
bill, in order to secure their cooperation should
another bill come before them for their approval;
hence we argued that they were right in vindica-
ting themselves, by the repeal of the bill, and it
was incumbent on the people of Minnesota to give
utterance to their views on the subject by electing
no man to the Legislature who would not repudi-
ate the fraud and the perpetrators. We argued
that our silence would afford pretext for the
enemies Of Minnesota to say that We connived at
the crime. while bold, outspoken voice would
place US high on honorable ground. BY this is
sue we were willing to stand or fall.
Very we'll, them what followed? The polit-
ical pot began to boil, and as it bubbled up, it
was quite evident hot elements were below it,
Men interested in the railroad scheme could be
seen stirring up the smouldering embers, putting
and blowing, in hopes to kindle new Goals and
thereby give more steam to the great locomotive
of reform-Public Opinion. Everything was
done which could be done, to get the railroad ma
cEinery in order, so that at given signal of the
whistle, the cars would move onward, crushing all
who attempted to intercept them. Unfortunately
an obstruction was thrown across the track. The
engineer was too eager to load the cars with his
particular favorites, and the brakemcn put on the
brakes and the train was stopped. The beautiful
engine, manufactured in New York, in June last,
per order of our Delegate, stood at the Depot,
decorated with flags, but it could make no head
way, for there was mutiny among the workmen,
and they were determined that unless the cars were
dissorged of some of the offensive passengers, it
should not bulge one inch. To be ineligible, a
Know Nothing Order was established solely for
the purpose of carrying the Fall election, and
every gentleman who was known to be openly op-
posed to the fraud, was looked upon with suspi-
cion, and if he succeeded in getting within the
walls Of the society, it was by &c the skin of his
teeth,' while on the other hand those who had
been behind the throne and knew of what the
throne was composed, were taken by the arm and
led like gentle doves to the altar. The detcrmi-
nation on the part of the leaders of this society
to have the names of certain men on their ticket,
which were Objectionable, broke the mystic charm,
and away went the locomotive, smashing the cars
into a thousand atoms, and scattering the men in
every direction. Foiled in this scheme, based
upon a counterpart of the railroad swindlc, (for
We learn that the society was illegally organized)
the fuglemcn turned their attention to another ex-
pedient-''A Mass Meeting of the People,
Here was the trap into which we and others were
to be caught-here was to be the grand finale
the menagerie in which evolves in sleeps cloth
ing'' were to take a conspicuous part.
While these elements were brewing for the great
storm which was to follow, the Democrats had
met in caucus and nominated five candidates for
the House. We were in hopes that two Wings
could have been put upon their ticket, inasmuch
as VIC felt confident that no Whig ticket would be
nominated, as the editor of the Minnesotian had
publicly proclaimed that he would rather "vote
for the blackest Democrat that trod the earth,
than harmonic with the Times-that he should
not aid in bringing forth any candidates, nor
would he advocate their claims in his paper
he intended to 60 to the polls and vote as any
other citizen" Wesay, under the circumstances,
We felt confident that it was useless to run Whig
ticket, as it would only end in defeat and be the
means of electing the fraud ticket, which was
consummation not by any means to be wished
by us. 1t was a source of regret, therefore, that
the Democrats did not put two Wings on their
ticket, as the issue with them as with us, was
fraud or no fraud. This was apparent from the
manner in which a resolution condemning the
fraud, introduced into their meeting was passed;
but as matters existed we had to take them. We
were willing to wait the movements of others.
Well, what followed? Why, the Democratic
ticket was nominated, and although not accepta-
BILE in every respect to us and those Wings who
sided with US, still in view of the position had
taken felt in duty bound to support that ticket
unless new one, composed of more acceptable
men should be nominated. At this time Peo-
ple's ticket was talked Of, and those Wings who
would not identify themselves with the fraud
party, and who wished to see good men nomina-
ted and mon who wouid repudiafe the fraud