Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1856-02-07


yloi government at any place n its dscfe
3 tion, of course by the same enactment i
Il had the less and the included power 70 fl,
r /, temporarily.
e Nevertheless, the allegation Tint the sef,
J. Of The legislative assembly were ilIera b,
). reason o. this removal Of it's plecc of sea
e sion was brought forward 10 justify the sr.t
Q great movement in disregard Of law within
the Territory. One of the acts o. IT,, lcg.
i islative assembly provided for the election
d OF delegate to the present Congress, a,d
:; delegate was elected under The law. Bn,
i subsequently, to this, a portion Of the people
!; of the Territory proceeded without autbgri.
= ty OF law to elect another delegate
n Following upon this movement vas on.
: other and more important one of the same
e general character. Persons confessedly no;
constituting the body polite, or all the I'm.
. habitants, but merely party of the inbabi.
tants, and without law, have undertaken to
: summon a convention fof the purps1a a,
; transforming the Territory into a State and
, have framed constitution, adopted it. and
/ under it elected governor and other off.
| GERS, and representative 10 Congress.
, In extenuation of these illegal acts, it is
alleged that the States Of California, Michi.
gan, and others, were self.organized, end,
as such, wsre admitted into the Union with
out previous enabling act of Congress-
1t IS true that, whie IN u majority el cases
a previous act of Congress has been passed
to authorize the Territory to present itself
as State, and that this is deemed the
most regular course, yet such an act has
not been held to be indispensable, and, in
some cases, the Territory has proceeded
without it, and has nevertheless been ad-
mitted into the Union as State. It lies
with Congress to authorize beforehand, or
to confirm afterwards, in its discretion. -
But in no instance has State been sd-
mttsd upon the application OF PEI sons act
ing against authorities duly constituted bv
act OF Congress. In every case it is the
eplel of the Territory, not party a.
inong them, who have the power to form
constitution, and ask for admission as a
State, No yrinciple OF public law, no
no practice or precedent under the consti-
tuition of TIE United States, no rule of rea-
son, right, or Common sense, confcrs ary
such power as that now claimed by mere
party in the Territory. In fact, what has
been done is Of revolutionary Character
1t is avowedly so in motive and in aim as
resHe@ts the local law of the Territory. 1t
will become reasonable insurrecton il it
reach the elgth Of organized resistance by
force TO the fundamental or any other ieder-
al law, and to the authority Of the general
I government.
In such an event, the path of duty for
the Executive is plain. The constitution
reqoirisg him tcs:ake ears that the laws
of the United States 5e faithfully executed
| if they be opposed in the Territory of
Kansas he may and should place at the
disposal of the marshall any public force
OF the United States which happens to be
within the iurisdCtion, 10 be used as
portion Of the posse comitctuS; and, if that
do not suffice TO maintain order, then he
may cull forth the militia of one or more
States for that object or employ for tho
same object any part Of the land Or naval
70 Q Of the United Stntes. So al o, i! the
obstruction be TO the laws of the Territory
and it be duly presented to him as case
, of insurrection, he may employ for its sup
, preston the militia Of any State, or the
4 land or naval force Of the United States.--
! And if the Territory be invaded by the
8 citizens OF other States, whether for the
s purpose of deciding elections or for any
other, and the local Authorities find them
e selves unable to repel or Withstand il,
e they will be entitled 20, and upon the fact
0 being fully ascertained they shall most cer-
t tainly receive, the aid of the general gov
r ernment.
. But it is no. the duty of the Presiden:
C of the United States to volunteer irterposi
f ton by force to preserve the purity of elec,
y tions either in State or Territory TIC
8 do so weuld be subversive of public free
e dom. And whether law be wise or un
). wise, Just or unjust, 10 not a question fol
l. him to Judge. II it be constitutionul-tha
G Is, i. it be the law of the lanG-it is hi:
IS duty to caDse it to be executed, or to sus
q tain the authorities of any State or Terri
h tory in executing ii in opposition to all in
'r surrectionary movements.
IS Our system affords no Justification D
y revolutionary acts; for the consttutisna
l. means of relieving the people of unjust ad
is ministration and laws, by change of pub
ID lie agents and by repeal, are ample, an
20 more prompt and effective than illegal vic
" ence. These cons utional means must b
m scrupuously guarded-ths great prorogatiV
is of popular sovereignty scarcely respected
1t is the updoubted right of the peaceab
D. and orderly people of the Territory of Kan
Of sas to elect their own legislative booy,mak
do their owr laws, and regulate their own'so
- clal institution. Interference. on one hant
n to procure the abolition or prohibit IN G
ht slave labor in the Territory, has produce
~ mischievous interference, on the other, 70
mt it's maintenance or introduction. One wron
of begets another. Statements entirely un
3, founded, or grossly exaggerated, concernin
for events within the Territory are sedulou'
It's " dffused through remote States to fee
ii! the fame of sectional animosity there an
We the aritators there exert themselves inde
IL fstigaby in return to encourage and stim1
ms, late strife within the Territory
,er The inhsmmalnry agitation, of which tn
nt. nresen. is but a pat, has Tor twenty yeaI
dy produced no hing save uhmitigaed ev
he Nsrth and South. But for it the charact
nc, Of the domestic sttu inns o. the fuu