Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1856-01-26

| rltOry, enacs tnat tue same snail not be ex-
pended Z" until the Legislature of said Terri
seat of government" Congress, in these ex-
pressions, does net pfOfsss TO be granting the
power to fix the permanent seat Of govern
ment, but recognises the power Of one already
| granted. But how! Undoubtedly by the
comprehensive provision Of the organic act it
self, which declares that "the legislative
| power Of tbs Territory shall extend to all
rightful subjects of legislation consistent with
the Constitution Of the United States and the
provisions of this act." If, in view of this
act, the Legislative Assembly had the large
| power to fix the permanent seat Of govern
ment at any place in its discretion, Of course
| by the same enactment it had the less and
| the included power to fx il temporarily.
Nevertheless, the allegation that the acts
of the Legislative Assembly were illegal by
reason of this removal of its place Of session
| was brought forward to justify the first great
| movement in disregard of law within the Ter
ritory. One of the acts Of the Legislative As
sembly provided for the election Of a delegate
to the present Congress, aud a delegate was
elected under the law. But, subsequently, te
this, portion Of the people Of the Territory
proceeded without authority of law to elect
| another delegate.
| Following up this movement was another
and more important one Of the same general
| character. Persons confessedly not cOnstitu-
ting the body polite, or all the inhabitants,
and without law, have undertaken to summon
convention for the purpose of Transforming
the Territory into State, and have framed a
| constitution, adopted it, and under it elected
a Governor and other officers and a represent
ative to Congress.
In extenuation Of these illegal acts, it is al
legged that the States Of California, Michigan,
| ant others were self-Organized, aud, as such,
| were admitted into the Union without a pre-
vious enabling act OF Congress. 1t is true
that, while in a majority of cases a previous
| act of Congress has been passed to authorize
| the Territory to present itself as a State, and
that this is deemed the most regular course,
yet such an act has not been held to be indis
pensable, and, in some cases, the Territory
| has proceeded without ii, and has neverthe-
| less been admitted into the Union a State.
| IL lies with Congress to authorize beforehand
| or to confirm afterwards, in its discretion
| but in no instance has a State been admitted
upon the application of persons acting against
| authorities duly constituted by act of Con-
gress In every case it is the people of the
| Territory, not party among them, who have
the power to form a constitution and ask for
| admission as a State. No principle Of public
| law, no practice or precedent under the Con
stitution of the United States, no rule Of rea
SON, right, or common sense eonfers any such
power as that now claimed by mere party in
| the Territory. In fact, what has been done
/
so In motive and in aim as respects the local
law of the Territory. 1t will become treason
| able lnsurrection if it reach the length of or
gsnized resistance by force to the fundamen-
tai or any other federal law and TO the au-
| thority of the General Government.
In such an event the path of duty for the
Executive is plain. The Constitution reuuir-
ing him to take care that the laws of the
United States be faithfully executed, if they
be opposed In the Territory Of Kansas he may
| and should place at the disposal Of the mar
shal any public force of the United States
which happens to be within the jurisdiction,
| to be used as portion of the posse cOmGtatuS;
| and, if that do not suffice to maintain order
| then he may call forth the militia of one or
more States for that object, or employ for the
| same object any part of the land or naval force
of the United States. So also If the obstruc-
tiOn be to the laws Of the Territory, and it be
| duly presented to him as a case of insurrec-
tiOn, he may employ for its suppression the
militia of any State or the land or naval force
of the United States. And if the Territory be
Invaded by the citizens Of other States,
whether for the purpose of deciding elections
| or tor any other, and the local authorities find
themselves unable to repel or withstand it,
they will be entitled to, and upon the fact
being fully ascertained thoy shall most GER
tainly receive, the aid Of the General Govern
| ment.
| But it is not the duty of the President Of the
| United States to volunteer interposition by
force to preserve the purity of elections either
| In State Territory. To do so would be
subversive of public freedom. And whether
a law be wise or unwise, Just or unjust, is not
| question for him to judge. If it be consti-
| tutiOnal-that is, if it be the law of the land
1t Is his duty to cause it to be executed, or to
| sustain the authorities of any State or Terri
tory in executing il in opposition to all insur-
rectionary movements
Our system affords no justification of reyo-
| lutiOnary acts; for the constitutional means
of relieving the people Of unjust administration
| and laws, by a change of public agents and by
repeal, are ample, and more prompt and
effective than illegal violence Those consti-
| tutional means must be scrupulOusly guarded
| this great prerogative Of popular sovereignty
| sacredly respected.
tits the undoubted rightof the peaceabls and
orderly people of the Territory of IA nsas TO
| elect their own legislative body, make their
own laws, and regulate their own social inst-
| tutions, without foreign or domestic molesta-
| tiOn. Interference, on the one hand, to procure
the abolition or prohibition of slave labor in
| the Territory has produced mischievous inter
ference, on the other, for its maintenance or
Introduction. One wrong begets another.
Statements entirely unfounded, or grossly
/ exaggerated, concerning events within the
Territory, are sedulously difused through re-
| mote States to feed the fame Of sectional an
| imosity there; and the agitators there exert
| themselves indefatgably in return to encOur-
| age and stimulate strife within the Territory.
The infammatory agitation, of which the
present it but part, has for twenty years
produced nothing save unmitigated evil,
North and South But for it the character of
| the domestic institutions of the future new
State would have been matter of too little in
| terest to the inhabitants of the contiguous
| States, personally or collectively, to produce
| among them any political emotion Climate,
| soil, production, hopes of rapid advancement,
and the pursuit of happiness on the part of the
| settlers themselves, with the good wishes but |
with no interference from without, have quiet |
! ly determined the question which is at this |
| time of such disturbing character.
But we are constrained to turn our attention |
TO the circumstances of endorsement they /
now exist. 1t is the duty of the people of
Kansas to discountenance every act or purpose