Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1856-09-18
M @7MG FAYETTEVILLE, TENN THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER Is, 1856 who'll

purportingto be returns in certai
'. elections held under the authority {
! one James 81. Lane; but, whethe
they are genuine documents-the re
suit of an honest transaction, or bas
forgeries, the committee have no
dared to show. by proof 1t is a rul
of law, that where man suppresse
or destroys testimony in his posses
sion, it shall be adjudged against him
and it is fair conclusion from sur
rounding circumstances, that thes,
papers are fabricated to suit the oc
casion, and that majority'of tht
committee, knowing this fact, have
loaned themselves to give them cur
rency.
In January, 1855, Governor Reed.
er ordered census to be taken oi
the inhabitants of the Territory;
which was completed about the first
of March; and on the same day he
ordered an election for members of
the Legislature, to be held on the
3Oth of that month. He admits
that in appointing judges at the polls
he gave the free State men two to
one; which proves most clearly that
a census taken under bis authority
would not be too favorable to SOUTH
ern interests. 1t is the only docu-
ment in this vast volume upon which
We can place any reliance for a state
ment of facts. 1t originated before
the deep prejudice which afterwards
followed had been stirred up. North
ern men dare not say that its state.
ments are unjust to them. Govern
or Reeder, for reasons best known to
himself ordered the former residen-
ces Of the settlers to be reported. /,
like the gentleman from Georgia,
(Mr. Stephens,) have, for the purpo-
ses of this argument, carefully coun-
ted the former residences of each
of the voters reported in the census,
and find that our figures substantially
agree; and now, after all The clamor
we have heard here and elsewhere
about "down trodden and invaded
Kansas" it does astonish honest,
plain men throughout the country,
to see that by Reeder's own census a
large majority of the settlers of that
Territory are from the Southern
States. The account stands as fol-
lows: two thousand nine hundred
and five voters are reported as the
whole number-of which one thou
sand six hundred and seventy are
from southern States, and one thou
sand and eighteen from northern
States, with a remainder of two hum
dred and seventeen foreigners and
others whose former residence is not
reported.
With this state of things before
them, the majority of the committee
have been reckless enough to bring
in report, which, if not totally false,
answers the same purpose-by sup
preston of all the facts, material and
necessary TO correct understanding
of the matters in dispute; and / am
content to apply to their nefarious
work that universalrule of all codes of
law and morals, that willful suppress
sion is criminal falsehood.
| will now compare the statements
of this report with the census of
Governor Reeder, in connection with
the election and representative dis
tricts, and show that the pro.slavery
party, by the legal votes cast, must
have elected large majority Of the
first Kansas Legislature; and, If this
be true, no matter how many Mis-
sourians may have voted, it cannot
alter either the law or equity Of
General Whitfeld's right to bis
seat. The following table will show
The strength Of parties 10 the elec-
ton districts, as exhibited by the
ELECTION DISTRICTS.
Settlers from Settlers from
District. the North. the South.
1st................2so ss
I'd ...-...;.........6 l3z
I'd .................f 80 81
4tn 20 20
5th 1923 295
9Th h...............83 155
7th ........S2 Il
9th ...............12 26
9th 10
10th ...............29 "a