Squatter sovereign., 1856-04-22
From the Washington Union, April 9Th.
KANSAS.

tO1ssHHHttost OF 1nS hQaSdS 0cJGsS, OJ
Ssa1tors eol9amer ans Douglas.
Mr.. Coilaner occupied two and hah
hours Yesterday. in finishing his argument
On the Kansas questions. His manner
continued to be courteous and dignifed,
with an occasional episode of waggery. to
the close; and we must say that, willis.
we dissent totally from his conclusions, as
well as many of his facts, he showed that
he had investigated the subject with great
labor. His leading object, yesterday, ,~was
10 meet the position of Judge Douglas,
fiat. If it be admitted that there were
frauds in the seven Districts in Kansas,
in which Gov. Reeder withheld certifi-
Gates, still that he gave certificates to
large majority. which constituted the Legis-
Iature valid body. MIR. Collatner under
took, by detailed reference to the docu-
rnenis, TO prove that illegal votes were
gwen in several other Districts, besides
The seven in which certificates were with
held. He showed that, whilst the census
taken by order Of the Governor, in Feb
Iuary, showed only three ihousandsvoters,
get that by the returns of the election in
March, the number of voters was six
thousand, and hence he inferred that there
were three thousand illegal votes. Judge
Duuglns, in his reply, showed that the i'm
migration TO Kansas, commenced in the
preceding fall-too late for the settlers to
make crops or to provide against the in.
clemeneies OF the winter-that they had
only time to mark out their claims and
erect temporary shanties before the cold
weather came On, when large numbers Of
them went to the neares: settlements, and
others to Illinois and Iowa and other
States, whence they had emigrated to re-
main during the winter. AS soon rs they
heard that the Governor had ordered an
eiectiod In March, they fastened back to
their " claims" and in this way the great
difference in the number os voters in
February and March, was accounted for.
Mr. Collamer undertook, to defend the
Topeka free State party against the charge
OF rebellion made against them, and for
this purpose relied upon the proceedings
OF one or two meetings Of that party, in
which there was no evidence of a revolu-
tonary character. Judge Douglas reply
on this point, was overwhelming. He
showed that Mr.. Collamer had overlooked
suppressed the proceedings of two other
meetings CT the SAME party, at both of
which, resort TO force, even to bloodshed,
was expressly threatened in the event that
peaceaSle means OF resisting the laws Of
the Legislature should fail. One of these
meetings was the constitutional conyen-
ton. at wi.lsh Mr.. Delahay, the member
elect to Congress by the free State party,
denoanced their proceedings as rebellious.
MIR. Collamer closed his speech by re-
baking Democrats for calling him and his
friends abolitionists and black republicans,
and other odious epithets. He denied be-
ing an abolitionist or black republican,
and thought it was to be regretted that the
people of Europe had been led into the
error of snpposing that the republicans
were black men. Judge Douglas retorted
rhat the lecture came with a bad grace
characterizing the Democrats as the slave
power in the Government, thereby making
the impression that the Democratic party
was governed 4Esl controlled by slaves.
Judge Douglas referred with decided
efFec, to the admission of Mr.. Collamer,
that the people of a Territory had right,
W: Ell. they formed their constitution for
admission as State, to adopt or prohibit
slavery as they pleased. Mr. Seward in
terposed. (Mr. Collamer having left the
Senate,) and said that MIR. Collamer had
net made that admission, but that he had
said that after their admission as State,
they could either adopt or abolish slavery.
Mr.. Toombs spoke out and said Judge
Douglas was right. Mr.. Seward with
dsew his correction, when Judge Douglas
proceeded to expose, in most eloquent
terms, the injustice that had been done to
him and the other supporters of the Kan
sas bill, in the charge that they had vic
lated sacred compact" when it was now
admitted that the principle of that bill, was
right. He continued for half an hour, in
strain of bold, animated, and powerful
eloquence, to araign the leaders of the
Black Republican party. He charged
that they had started out with the cry of
no more slave States, repeal of the fu-
gi,ive slave law, abolition of the slave
trade between the States, and abolition of
slavery in the District Of Columbia; that
1t was on these issues, by the help of
Known Nothingism. they had obtained the