The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1854-06-23
BELMONT, JULY 4th, 1854,

Every day reveals new features in t he Ne
braska Bill which serve to render it more
loathsome to the freedom loving man. Not
withstunding the great ado made about the
doctrine of "sqaatter sovereignty" VIII ich
the advocates of the Bill allege is embodied
in the Bill, it is the veriest libel on the name
of anything we have yet seen attempted, so
far from giving the actual settler right to u
voice in all the affairs of Government, it
oenies him those rights almost entirely
Instead of the powers of government being
vested in persons elected by the people, it is
vested in mere creatures of Congress, who
are accountable to Congress for their actions.
But we have before called the attention of
our readers to this matter Our object now
is to show who are entitled to vote in Ne
braska. The following from the New York
Evening Post will show the whole matter in
its most Internal light.
Who Can Vote in Kansas.
viii the Federal Executive, Judiciary and
Governor permit emigrants from abroa! to
vote in the new Territories. The people
generally say yes, that since the rejection of
the Clayton amendment, the right of suffrage
is incontestable. They have not fully studi-
ed the infamous Nebraska Bill, with its
subtle provisos and devishy ingenious re-
servations. Here is a section worthy of the
closest attention.
/, sFc, % And be il further enacted, That every
Tree white male inhab,tant above the age OF twenty
one years. who shall be an actual resident of said
territory and shall possess the qualifications herein.
altcr prescribed, shall be entitled TO vote the first
election, and shall he eligible to any Office within
the said territory; but qualifications of voters, and
OF holding office, at all subsequent elections, shall
be prescribed by the Legislative Assembly: Provd.
eds That the right OF suffrage and OF holding Office
shall be exercised only by cilizens of tho United
States, and those who shall have declared on their
oath their intention to become such, and shall have
taken an oath 10 support the constitution OF the
United States and the provisions OF this act
The New York Evening Post says :hat by
this provision every one may vote at the first
election but after the first election, the legis-
lature prescribes the qualifications of voters,
with a proriso that prevents them from doing
it, and limits them to the qualifications pre-
scribed By Congress.
The qualifications are citizenship, natural
or acquired, anl an oath to support the con-
sti,ution and the Nebraska bill.
The declaration of intention referred to, is
that mentioned in the naturalization acts, and
the oath to support the constitution is that
taken at the end of five years residence after
a declaration of intention. None but citizens
those who are born in the country, or by
five years naturalization, have become citi-
zens-swear to the constitution. The judges
who will be appointed will unquestionably
so hold, and esclude all others from the polls.
But the most insulting provision in this
section, and the most intolerable provision
in the whole bill, is that which makes il and