St. Charles Republican intelligencer. (St. Charles [Charles City], Iowa) 1856-1857, 1857-04-16
Mr.. Walker on Kansas.

In view of the appointment Of the
Hon. Robert j. Walker as Governor of
Kansas, the following extract from a
letter which he wrote while the Presi-
dental election was pending, is inter-
esting and important. The letter was
dated September 80, 1856, and was ad-
dressed to the Democratic Committee
in Pittsburgh, Pa. It was an elabo-
rate review Of the principal topics of
the canvass, and contained the follow
ing sentences relative to Kansas:
IF this question, as provided by
the Kansas and Nebraska bill, should
be left to the people of the Territory
in forming their State Constitution, it
will be determined by soil, climate,
production, and the laws which govern
the movements of population. Here,
the North, aided by it's greatly superb
or numbers, by European non-slave-
holding emigrants, by the greater IA
cility of movement, unincumbered by
the transport of slaves, or the appre-
hension Of their ultimate condition
where taken, have great advantages
over the South in the settlement of
new territories and should be perfect
ly satisfied with the principle which
leaves the determination of this ques-
ton, when they become State, to a
majority Of the people of the Territory.
This is the Kansas Nebraska bill. This
is Observation-Disclosures non-in-
reference by the federal government.
This is the doctrine of the Constitution.
This is that rule Of absolute equality
of rights of all the States, which lays
at the foundation of the confederacy-
This is that constitutional right, recog-
nized in the admission of new States,
that they come into the Union upon an
equal footing with the other States, in
all respects whatsoever. But the equal
ity does not exist, if other States did
accede or come into the Union with or
without slavery, at their pleasure, and
Kansas cannot do so.
| There is another reason not hereto.
fore adverted to, which seems to rem.
der it impracticable long to maintain
slavery in Kansas. In all the slave
States there is large majority of vo-
tiers who are non-slaveholders, but they
are devoted to the institutions of the
South-they would defend them with
their ives-and on this question, the
South are united people. This class,
composed of many small farmers, oil
merchants, professional men, mechan.
les, overseers and other industrial
classes, constitute mainly the patrol OF
the South, and cheerfully unite in car
rying out those laws essential to pre-
serve the institution. Against pow
erful minority and constant agitation,
slavery could not long exist in any
State. 1t is a well-known fact that
this result would have followed soon,
in several of the slave States, but for
the unanimity speedily produced there
by the abolition agitators and inter
meddlers of the North. Now Kansas
is much divided on the question of
slavery there; there is powerful mi
nority there, if not majority. A party
not neutral, but bitterly hostile to the
institution: and for this, in addition to
the reasons before given, I do not be-
l'ere Kansas acill become slave State"
| If Mr. Walkers official acts are gov.
erned by the views herein presented,
and the principle of popular sovereign.
ty is administered with thorouph i'm.
Partially, the friends of free Kansas
can reasonably expect nothing further
of the new Governor in the advance.
ment Of their own ideas of the true
destiny of the territory.