The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-05-01
THE KANSAS BILL OF MR.. DoUGLAs-QUALI
FIcATI0Ns OF VOTERS.

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white male inhabitant above the age of twenty
Zone years, who shall be an actual resident of
said Territory, and shall possess the quali6ca-
tons hereinafter prescribed, shall be entitled to
vote at the first election, and shall be eligible
j to any office within the said Territory but the
qualification of voters, and of holding Office, at
hall subsequent elections, shall be such as shall
be prescribed by the Legislative Assembly:
I Prorided, That the right of suffrage and of
holding office shall be exercised only BY citizens
/ of the United States, and those who shall have
! declared on oath their intention to become
such, and shall have taken an oath to support
4 the Constitution of the United States and the
j provisions of this act; and provided, further,
] that no officer, soldier, seaman marine, or other
: person in the army or navy of the United States,
/ or attached to troops in the service of the Uni
ted States, shall be allowed to vote or hold Of
i flee in said Territory, by reason of being on
service therein"
! The body of men, elected by Missouri votes
under this act, styling itself the Legislature of
Kansas, at its first meeting prescribed several
i additional qualifications, such as, an oath to
support the Fugitive Slave Act; the prepay
] ment of poll-tax Of one dollar, &c.
| the Bill of Mr.. Douglas, authorizing the or
ganization of State Government in Kansas,
] on certain conditions, does not recognise these
I additional qualifications, but supersedes them,
and thus defines the persons who shall be en-
titled to vote for delegates to the Constitutional
/ Convention:
/ "SEc. 2. And be it further enacted, That the
said Convention shall be composed of delegates
| from each Representative district within the
limits of the proposed State, and that each dis
trict shall elect double the number of delegates
to which it may be entitled to Representatives
| in the Territorial Legislature and that at the
said election Of delegates, all white male inhab-
1 itants who shall have arrived at the age of
I twenty-one years. and shall have been actual
residents of said Territory for the period of six
months, and in the district for the period of
), three months, next preceding the day of elec-
ton, and who shall possess the other quali6ca-
tons required by the organic act of the Terri
tory, shall be entitled to vote, and that none
others shall be permitted to vote at said cleo
| tion."
The voter must be white male adult, resi-
dent in the Territory six months, in the district
where he votes, three months next preceding
the day of election, with the other qualifca-
tons required by the organic act of the Terri
tory that is, he must be citizen of the Uni
ted States, or one who shall have declared on
oath his intention to become such, and have
sworn to support the Constitution of the Uni
ted States and the Kansas Nebraska Act-and
neither an officer, soldier, seaman, marine, or
employe in the army or navy of the United
States, or attached to troops in the United
States service. He VINO possesses these quail
fcations shall be entitled to vote, and none
other.
1t has been supposed by some, that the
phraseology used by Mr.. Douglas" shall pos
sess the other qualifications prescribed by the
organic act Of the Territory IFS disingenu-
Gus, being really intended to recognise covertly
and by indirectioD, the qualifications required
| by the sham Legislature: for, it is alleged, the
| organic act authorizes the Legislature to de-
termine the qualifications for suffrage. We
cannot see the force of the supposition. The
provision of the bill clearly refers to the condi-
tons in relation to citizenship, fidelity to the
Constitution and Kansas Nebraska Act, and
service in the army and navy of the United
States-condtions "required by the organic
act"-and not to such as might be enacted by
the Territorial Legislature. Suppose, indeed,
the sham Legislature had provided that In
dams and white males of eighteen years of age,
and that women might vote: the bill of Mr..
| Douglas enacts that none but phite male adults
shall vote for delegates to the Constitutional
| Convention, thus excluding all these classes
now, will it be contended that because the bill
further provides that voters shall possess the
other qualifications required by the organic
act, that therefore Indians, boys of eighteen,
and women, would have right to vote, because
that act empowers the Territorial Legislature
| to determine the qualifications of voters in
elections held subsequent to its first meeting,
and the Legislature had entitled such classes
to vote2
The truth is, Congress invested the Terrific
rial Legislature with that power, to be exer-
| cised during the territorial condition of the
| Territory, and it may, at any time, modify or
revoke it. In the case before us, in which the
territorial condition of Kansas is to be termina-
ted, the bill of Mr. Douglas proposes to super
sede entirely the Territorial Legislature, so far
! as determining the qualifications of voters is
concerned, and, if passed, no additional qualif-
cation can be required by Territorial legisla-
| ton. The passage of the bill will be an affirm
alton Of the right of Congress to determine the
whole question Of suffrage in Territory-of
| course, a virtual reputation of the dogma of
Popular Sovereignty" so-called.
Our object in these remarks is, not to advo-
cate the bill of Mr.. Douglas but to correct what
we deem misapprehension, that may lead to
waste of effort on point not assailable.
The real objections to the bill of Mr. Douglas
are, that it ignores the action of the People of
Kansas, who have already formed an excellent
State Constitution, which needs only the sane
ton of Congress to become Law; that it post
pones the day of their deliverance from the op-
preston of Missouri; that it recognises the va
lidity of the selfstyled Legislature imposed on
Kansas by invaders of her territory from Mis-
souri,; that, in empowering this body to super
intend all the preliminary steps necessary to
the organization of State Government, it con-
tinues power in the hands of the Slavery Prop
uganda, and subjects the Free State Party to
Despotism which, Judging from the past, will
not scruple to deprive them of their rights.
COL LANE AND HIS OLD FRIENDS.
franklin, md, april IL, 1856.
DEAR SIR: Inasmuch as the whole country
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