Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1855-05-24
KANSAS AND THE CABINET.

The corrupting influence of Slavery, which
seems to have crept into every crevice and cram
ny of the American body polite, was never SO
glaringly apparent as in the late fagitious trans
actions connected with the elections of Kansas,
1t seems not only fully to have subsidized, trans
formed, and subjected to its foul and reasonable
uses, the old parties, especially the dominant
party of the country, but to have seized on the
government and completely paralyaed its action
in its most imperious duties.
In the outrages of the last Fall elections, the
President and his Cabinet might, with some show
of reason have claimed, as an excuse for not
interposing the authority of the government
that they were taken by surprise and did not
know of the rulianly treason OF the Missourians
till too late to prevent it. Butno such excuse
remains for them in regard to the still more out"
rageous and reasonable Transactions OF the
Slave Power attending he recent elections. They
were fully land in ample season,apprised of what
was going to take place, and it was clearly the
Presidents duty under the Constitution and oath
of his Office to have provided and sent on sulli'
ciept military force to have protected the free
mdn of Kansas in the unmolested exercise OF
their right of suffrage. But nota movement
was made not finger was lifted, and not II
warning rebuke was uttered, to forestal or pre-
vent these opeu and avowed acts Of defiance to
the laws and Constitution of the country. Anu
now. when the full evidence of all these imam
ous transactions, which are more deeply iraugac
with treason than were ever acts Of Aaron Burr,
is, and has been, for weeks before the PreSl'
dcns and his Cabinet, they take not ono step
towards righting the wrong,or calling the wrong
doors to account. They even have not one word
to say in condemnation Of that palpable out
rage-so palpable, indeed, that the most scrvllo
administration presses, IKE IL, 'niont Pat
riot, felt themselves compelled, for very shame,
to declare that President Pierce would annul
the election. And yet we find him and his Cabi-
net not only not setting it aside, but leaving the
world to infer, by their continued silence that
they acquiesce in if not fully appreciate it
Ii the IreSluenI uOeS HUJ approve vi luu
transaction, why does he not instruct Governor
Reeder, who has been to Washington and given
him full information on the subject, and such
information too as clearly proves the election
to bs wholly illegal, as well as reasonable ON
the part Of the Missourians, to declare the cleo
ton void and order new one! This was the
very least he could do; but instead Of that, ac-
cording to his organ, the Union, which bcstows
compliments on the Missourians, he is to do
nothing himself, and dismiss Gov. Reeder to 60
back to Kansas uninstructed and let the Missou-
rians continue to have their way in lording ii
over the subugated people of Kansas
Are the American people asleep, that they do
moi see the treason, and the virtual participa-
ion in it by the highest functionaries of our
own government! How long can these things
go Oh without civil war and revolution !