Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1857-1858, 1857-12-25
Letter Of Hon. Robert J. Walker,
REIGNING THE OFFICE or
GOVERNOR OF KANSAS.
WAsHIEGTON CRY, December Is, 1857.


message to Congress, and in recent Instructions in
connection with the events Transporting here
and in Kansas, admouish NE, that a. governor of
that Territory, it will no longer be IL my power to
PR serve the peace or promote the public welfare.
At the earnest solicitation Of the President after
repeated refusas, the last being in writing finally
excepted this Office, upon his letter showing the
dangers and difficulties Of the Kansas question and
the necessity Of my undertaking the task of adjust
ment. UndeTthese Circumstances, notwithstanding
tn great sacrhces to me personal, political and
pecuniary, l felt that could more refuse such
a call from my country, through her c. ief Magis-
trate than the soldier in battle who is ordt red TO
command forlOrn hope
/ accepted, however, on the express condition
that I should advocate the subu ssion of tne con-
stituoh to the vote of the people for ratification
or T, ctiOn.
These views were clearly understood by the
President and ali his Cabinet. They were distinct
IL set forth in my letter Of acceptance of this Office
of the 26h OF March last and reiterated in my in
augura address of the 2fth of May last as follows:
"Indeed l cannot doubt that the convention, Of
ter having framed a State constitution, will submit
it for ratification rel ction by majority of the
then actual bona tide resident settlers of Kansas.
"Wth these views well known TO the President
and Cabinet, and approved by them, l accepted
the appointment of Governor of Kansas. My in
structIons from the President, through the SecTe-
tary of State, under date of the 3Oth March last,
sustain the regular legislature Of the Territory IN
ASSEMBLING convention to form constitution,
and they express the opinion of the President,
that 't0hsn such constitution shall be submitted
to the people Of the Territory, they must be pro-
teeted ia the exercise Of their RIGHT eff VOting FOR
or AGAINST that instrument; and the fair oppression
of hepopaaT tOiH mast not be interrupted By fraud
or violence
81 repeat, then, as my clear conviction, that uns
less the convention submit the constitution to the
vote of all the actual resident settlers of Kansas
and the election be fairly and justly conducted, the
constitution will be, and ought to be, rejected by
Congress"
This Inaugural most distinctly asserted that it
was not the question of slavery merely (which |
bel eyed to be of little practical Importance then in
its application to Kansas) but the entire constitu-
ton which should be submitted to the people for
ratification or r lection. These were my words on
that subject in my Inaugural. at is not merely
shall slavery exist in or disappear from Kansas,
but shall the great principles of self-government
and State sovereignty be maintained or sabvert-
edl" In that Inaugural proceed further to say,
that the people 'may by a subsequent vote defeat
the ratification of the constitution" designate
this great constitutional right" and add shat
the convention is the servant and not the master of
the people"
In my official dispatch to you of 2d June last a
copy of that inaugural address was transmitted to
you for the further Information of the President
ana his Cabinet. No exception was ever taken to
anv portion of that address; on the contrary it is
sage, with cOmmendable frankness, that my instruc.
tiOns in favor Of the submission of the constitution
to the vote OF the people were general and IN
qualified" By that Inaugural and subsequent adj
dresses, was pl dyed to the people of Kansas to
oppose by all "lawful means" the adoption of any
constitution which not fairly and fully submit
ted to their votes for ratification or r, lection
These pledges ! cannot recall or violate without
personal dshonOr and the abandonment of funda-
mental principles, and therefore it is impossible for
me to support what is called the Lecompton con-
sttutiOn, because it is not submitted to a vote of
the people for ratification or rejection.
I have ever uniformly maintained the principle
that sovereignty IS vested exclusively in the people
of each State, and it performs its first and highest
function in forming State government and State
constitution. This highest act of sovereignty, IN
my judgment, can only be performed by the people
themselves and cannot be delegated to conVen-
tions or other intermediate bodies.
Indeed the whole doctrine of the sovereignty of
conventions, 90 distinct from that of the people
of convention or delegated sovereignty as CONTRA
distinguished from State popular overeignty
has ever been discarded by me, and was never
heard Of to nv knowledge, during the great cam
OF 1856. Indeed this is the great principle of
State rights and State sovereignty maintained in
the Virginia and Kentucky resolutions 81 1898, g.,
sustained by the people in the great political revo
luton of 1900 and embraced in that amendment
to the federal constitution adopted under the aus
not delegated to the United States by the Const-
tuition, nor prohibited by il to the States, are
reserved to the States, respectively orto the PEG
Pile"
The reservation to "the States" is as separate
States, in exercising the powers granted by their
State constitutions, and the reservation to ''the
people" is TO the people of the several States admit
ted inChoate in exercising their sovereign rio
Of framing or amending their State constitution.
This view WAS set forth in my printed address
delivered at Nachez Mississippi, in January, 1888
against notification, which specch received the
complimentary sanction of the great and good
Madison, the principal founder of our Cons,iu-
ton, shown by the letter of Hon. Charles J In-
gersol, of Philadelphia published in the Globe
at Washington, in 1888. What adds much to the
force of this opinion is the ststemCn then made
by Mr.. Ma olson that these were also the views of
Mr. jefferson. By this clause Of the federal Consti
tuition the sovereignty of the people Of each State is
clearly reserved, and especially their own exclu
sive sovereign right TO form in all its entirety their
own State constitution.
I shall not enter fully into the argument of this
question at this period, but will merely state that
this is the position ! have ever occupied, and my
reasons for entertaining tits opinion are clearly
and distinctly set forth in printed pam phet pub
lished over my signature, on the 18th June, 1855,
and then extensively circulated, from which quote
az follows:
"Under our confederate system, sovereignty Is
that highest political power which, at its pleasure
creates governments and delegates authority TO
them. Sovereignty grants powers, hut not sove-
regin powers, otherwise IL might extinguish itself
by making the of its will the equal or SUI
perior of its creator. Sovereignty makes consti-
tutions, and through them establishes governments
II delegates certain powers to these governments
distributing the exercise Of the granted power
among the legislative, executive and Judicial de-
partments. The constitution is not sovereign bee
cause it is created by sovereignty. The govern
ment is not sovereignty, for the same reason much
lees any department Of that government Having
denied Sovereignty, we must not cOnfound the
power With its source Of exerciss-that is soVe-
retghty is one thing; where resides or how TO be
exercised is another. Under the system of Euro
pean despousms, sovereignty was claimed 20 re-
side In kings and emperors, under the sacrilerious
idea OF the divine right OF ki0ge;' and The bias
phemous doctrine Has, that spVeTeigns 10 lsgiti-
mate successioA although stained uash crimes
snd blackeHcd with iuiamy, we're clothed by
Deity With absolute poSer 20 rule their subjects
who held nothing bus privileges -rauted by the
crown. Such we're the absurd and impious dog
mas 20 which the people Of Europe, with few ex-
cepuOns, have been compelled TO submit by the
oayonet, sustained by the more potent authority
OF ignorance and supervision. Under this theory
the people were meFs-Gii' {srs, and crowued heads
sub-d,i ties-Ihe sole representatives on earth Of
the governing power Of tn Almighty"
Our doctrine Is just the reverse, making the
people the only source OF sovereign power. But
what peOplef With US sovereignty rests sreltlsiUs-
IL rata the people IF saeh STATE By the ReV=
olutioo, each colony, scting for itself alone sep
arated from Great Britain, aud sanctioned the
Declaration OF Independence" Each colony hav-
iDg thus become . State, and each adopting Tor
itssh separate State government, act-d for it.
seli slOn- IA accsdlng 70 the Articles Of Conied-
Grafton l71s; aud each State acted for itself alone