Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1856-07-31

mlltee III regard to this election. In some of
the districts it was impossible to ascertain the
precise number of the legal votes cast. In snch
cases the number of legal votes cast is stated
after careful reorganization of all the testino-
my aud records concerning the election.
A table, giving an abstract of the election of
March 30, 1855, by Representative Districts, we
omit, being very intricate, and not essential to
an understanding o. the report
Your Committee report the following facts
not shown by the tables:
or the Twenty-Five hundred and five voters
named in the census 70 Is, eight hundred and
thirty-one are found on the poll books. Some of
the settl rs were prevented from attending the
election by the distance of their homes from the
polls. but the great majority were deferred BY the
open ayowal that large bodies of aimed Nj issou-
rans would be al the polls to vote, and BY the
fact that they did so appear and control the cleo
ton. The sam causes deferred the Free State
sett ers from running candidates in several dis
lets. and in others induced the candid ates TO
withdraw.
The poll books of the I'd and 9Th Districts were
lost but the proof is quite clear that in the 2nd
District there were thirty, and in the 9Th Dis
tricl thlrty-eight legal votes making total of
eight bundled and ninety-eight legal voters of
the Territory, whose names are on the census
returns, and yet the proof, in the state in which
we are obliged to present it, after excluding it,
legal votes, leaves the total vote of 1910, show
ine discrepancy of 4i2. The Discrepancy is
accounted for in two ways First, the coming in
of settlers before the March election and after
the census was taken, or settlers who were omit.
led in the census or secondly, the disturbed
state of the Territory while We were investiga
ting the elections in s me OF the districts, there
by preventing US from getting testimony in rea
ton TO the names Of legal voters at the time of
the election.
If the election had been confined to the actual
settlers undeterrcd by the presence of non-Tesi-
dents, or the knowledge that they would be pres
enl in numbers sufficient to out vote them, the
testimony indicates that .he Council would have
bern composed OF seven in favor OF free State,
elected from the LIST, End, Sd, 4th and 9th Coun-
eli Districts The result in the 9Th and 10th,
aeclinp three members, would have been doubt
full, and the 5th, 9Th and 9th would have elected
three Pro 5 avery members
Under like circumstances, the House OF Rep
resentatiyes would have been composed of four
teen members in favor of making Kansas free
State, elected from the 2nd, Sd, 4th 9Th, 18th,
9Th. 9th and 10Th Representative Districts.
The result in the 18th and l4th Representa-
tive Districts, eclng five members, would have
been doubtful, and the LIST. 6 h, 18th, and 18th
districts won have elected seven Pro Slavery
members.
By the election, as conducted, the Pro Slavery
candidates in every district, received majority
of the votes and several of them, in both The
Council and House, did not, ''reside in y and
were not (" inhabitants of the district for which
they were elected, as required by The organic
law. BY that act it was declared to be - the
true intent and meaning Of this act " leave The
people thereof perfectly tee to form and regu-
late Their domestic Institutions in their own way,
subject to the Constitution OF the United States -
30 careful was Congress OF the right OF popular
sovereignty, hat to secure it to the people, with
out single petition from any portion OF the
country. they removed the restriction against
Slavery imposed by the Missouri Compromise -
And Yet this right, so carefully secured, was
thus by force and fir I'D overhrown BY portion
of the people of an adjoining State
The striking difference between this Repub ic
and other Republics on this Continent is not in
the provisions of Constitutions and laws. but
that here changes in the administration Of those
laws uIC VEGA pCeSCiuiiy aiIu quiCty
through the ballot box This invasion is the
first aud only one in the history of our Govern
nenl, by which an organized force from one
State has elected Legislature for another Stale
or Territory, and as such it should have been re-
sisted by he who'e executive power of the Ma
tonal Government.
Your Committee are Of opinion that the Con
stitul0n and laws Of the United States have in
~ ID. Il. T. ~
tory with ample power for this purpose. They
could Only &C, after ecelving authentic iniorma-
ton OF The facts, but when received, whether
before or after the certlfica es of election were
granted this power should have been exercised
to its fullest extent 1t is no, to be tolerated,
that Legislative body thus selected should as
sumo or exercise auy legislative functions; and
their enactments should be regarded as null and
void nor chou d the question Of its legal exls-
tence as legislative body, he determined by it.
self, as that would be allowing the criminal to
| judge his own crime. In section 90 of the Or
ganc act it is provided, that =" the persons hav-
ing The highest number of legal votes in each of
said Council Districts, for members of the COun-
Gil, shall be declared by the Governor t. be duly
elected to the Council, and the persons having
The highest number of legal votes for tbs House
OF Representatives, shall be declared by The Gov
crnor duly elected members of said House -
The proclamation of the Governor acquired a
verified notice of a contest. whea one was
made, to be filed with him within four days after
the election. Within that time he did not obtain
information as to force or fraud in any except
the following Districts, and in III Sc there were
material defects in the returns of election
W lthont deciding upon his power to set aside
elections for force and fraud. they were SET aside
for the following reasons:
In the LIST District, because the words '.by
awful resident voters " were stricken from the
return
In the I'd District, because the oath was ad
minlsieled by G w. Taylor, who was no, au-
thorzed to administer an oath.
! In the Sd District, besause material ensures
from the printed form of the oath we're purpose.
y made
! In the 4th District for the same le.sun.
IL the 9TH District, because the Judges were
not sworn at all.
In the llh District, because the returns show
the election TO have been held ,s,a rooe ins,eac
of by ballot
In the 10Th District because the words by
lawful residence were stricken out from tht
returns
Although the fraud and torce in other district:
were equally great as in these, yet as the Gov
ernor had no information in regard to them, ht
issued certificates according to the returns.
abstract Of Election Returns Of May %, 1876 =
No of Places Of pro-Slavery Rree-Sta;c
District. Voting Votes Votes. Scat ring Total
Lawrence 26S Is 3G6
IL Douglas I27 1877
III Snsons las l49
VII 10" &c IL 70
/ VIII C'ncil Grove 80 SO
XVI Leav nw III 500 lao is us
Total $50 500 Al 1909
Your Committee have ffb it to be their duty
not only to inquire into and collect evidence il
regard to force aud fraud attempted and pracliceo
al the elections In the Territory. but also int,