White Cloud Kansas chief. [volume] (White Cloud, Kan.) 1857-1872, 1857-12-24

AtI2M the Council organized tenn
uorarily, by electing Mr.. Mead. Of Man
haitian, President pro. tenn, and took a
recess until Tuesday at 10 o'clock.
In the House of Representatives, on
the 9Th inst, at u N. the roll was called
by Secretary Stanton; but no quorum
being present. a recess was taken until 5
o'clock P. NJ, at which time, finding no
quorum present, a recess was taken until
IL o'clock of the next day.
SECOND DAY.
The Council organized by the election
of G.. w. Babcock, President; j. Il.
Goodwin, Secretary; G. A. Cotton, As
sistant Sec; D. H. Wier, Engrossing
Clerk; A. Cutler, Sergeant alarms; w.
R. Frost, Door keeper; Rev. S. Y. Lum,
Chaplain.
HoUsE.-At 2P. NJ, aquorum being
present the House proceeded to organize
by the election of G. w. Deitzler, Presi-
dent; G. F. Currier, Chief Clerk; VIM.
B. Parsons, Assistant Clerk: G. F. War
rem, Surgant- at Arms;-Blake, Door
keeper; Gilbert Dudley. Engrossing
Clerk; Charles H. Lovejoy, Chaplaini
Robert Speer, Messenger.
Message of Gov. Stanton to the Terrific
rial Legislature.
LEcoMProN, Dec 8, 1857.
Fslloe Citizens ofthe Council and House
of REPRESENTATIVES:
In the absence of the Governor, who,
by leave of the President, has gone for a
short time to Washington, on important
public business, and while thus tempo
rarily clothed, by the Organic Act, with
all the powers and duties of the chief
Executive office of the Territory, l find
myself compelled, by sense of duty, to
call you together, in order that you may
adopt prompt legislative measures, to
avert the calamities which imminently
threaten the public peace. From the
representations of a majority ofyour own
bodies; as well as from other information
of an authentic character, l have reason
to know, that recent events have produc-
ed a profound agitation of the public
mind, and that a sense of wrong and in
Justice, whether well or ill-founded, and
an apprehension of greater evils to arise
therefrom, having aroused the people Of
the Territory to a condition Of dangerous
excitement. The proceedings of the late
Constitutional Convention are the imme-
date cause of this trouble and alarm.
The law passed at the late session of
the Legislative Assembly, providing for
the organization of a Convention to frame
Constitution for the government Of
Kansas as one Of the States Of the Union,
was adopted at period, when, unfortun-
ately, the people of the Territory were
divided by bitter hostility, resulting
from the previous state of commotion and
civil war. In consequence of this embit-
tered feeling, and the mutual distrust
naturally thereby engendered, one of the
parties. constituting large majority of
the people, RETAINED almost entirely
from any participation in the proceedings
instituted under the law aforesaid. The
census therein provided for was imper-
fectly obtained from an unwilling people,
in nineteen counties of the Territory;
while in the remaining counties, being
almost nineteen in numb Der, from various
causes. no attempt was made to comply
with the law. In some instances, people
and officers were alike averse to the pro-
ceeding; in others, the officers neglected
or refused to act; and in some, there was
but small population, and no efficient
organization, enabling the people to
secure a representation in the Convention.
Under the operation of all these causes
combined, census list was obtained of
only nine thousand two hundred and
fifty-one legal voters. confined to precisely
one-half the counties of the Territory,
though these, undoubtedly, contained
much the larger part of the population.
At the election which followed in pur-
suance of the law, only two thousand
two hundred persons. being less than
one-fourth of the registered voters, par
ticipated, in any manner, in the choice
of delegates, either by voting for those
elected, or for other persons. The aver
age aggregate vote, in favor of the sue
cessful candidates, was about eighteen
hundred.
1t thus appears, that in the election of
the 18th June last, for delegates to the
Convention, the great mass Of The people
purposely refrained from voting. and left
the whole proceeding, with all its import
ant consequences, to the active minority,
under whose auspices the law had been
enacted, and also executed, so far as that
could be done by the executive officers,
without the concurrence Of the majority
of the people.
? That the refusal Of the majority to go
into the election for delegates. was unfor-
tunate, is now too apparen: to be denied.
It has produced all the evils and dangers
of the present critical hour. 1t has en-
abled body of men, not actually repre-
senting the opinions ofthe people though
regularly and legtimately clothed with
their authority, to prepare for them form
of government, and to withhold the
greater part of its most important pro-
visions from the test of popular Judgment
and sanction. 1t has created the present
profound excitement, consequent upon
the apprehension that Congress NAV
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