Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1857-12-23
Congress and the Message.

where forseen before it was published
The unexpected denouement has come
IN the forn of a sudden and bold oppo.
rition to the Kansas policy of the ad min
istre,ion. on The part Of the great leade,
sf Che Missouri Compromise repeal
Stephen A. Douglas himself.
The message, 10 its style, is a decided
improvement upon the school boy decla-
nations of Frank Pierce, and in mosi
that relates to the foreign policy of the
country. and its denunciation of fllibust-
ernI will meet with appreciation of mod.
crate men of all parties. The points in
which the p%artizan character of the
Pfesident's politics appears are. LIST. A
sweeping denunciation of banks and pa.
-4per- currency; ed, An evident determi-
nation to quarrel with Spain, if a quarrel
can be picked, in any way; 3rd, The
advocacy Of the extreme Southern route
for a Pacific Railroad: and 4th, The
adoption of the ultra Border Rufian
Kansas policy.
Theflatter of these points is the only
Q one which is likely to be a subject for
legislative action by Congress. Mr..
Buchanan admits that both in his own
inaugural and,in his directions TO Gov.
walker he assumed that no Constitution
would be made for Kansas. without Civ
ing the settlers a full and fair opportuni.
ty Of accepting or rejecting it by their
votes. But he adopts The special plead
ing of the.nllra South, and argues that
the Slavery question is submitted by the
Bogus Convention. and that this is all
the Kansas people can rightly demand.
He declares the Bogus Lecompton Con-
ssntion a legal body. and their Bogus
Constitution a legal instrument, and dis
Itinctly shows it to be a determination Of
the administration that Kansas shall ac-
eept that Constitution whether her people
like it or not, or she shall not come into
the Union at all.
Upon the heels Of the message follow
some acts of the President, quite as sig
i.ni6cant as his words. Governor Walker
was already in disgrace at the White
House. for having tried to be honest in
carrying out the promises of his and the
Presidents inaugurals, and TO save the
people from the swipdle of the bogus
election returns in which whole pages Of
.thes Cincinnati Directory weie copied iu or
der to give the Rufian candidate. a ma
jority in the territorial legislature. The
Governor was reprimanded for bis hon
esty by the President, and returned tc
Washington 10 defend the course he had
taken. He refu=ed to swerve from the
line he had chosen, and was forced
ie (many say 6ri6ed by a promise of a for
eign mission TO resign his -~governorshin
Of the Territory.
aseIn the absence of Governor Walker,
Secretary Stanton Eas the acting execu-
tive of Kansas, and in obedience TO the
wish of the all the citiz.ns OF The Terri
tory. expressed through mass conven-
1tion, Stanton called together the new
Territorial legislature, a month in ad-
vance of the regular session. The rea-
son for so doing was HAT the Bogus
Constitutional Convention had taken
steps TO usurp all authority and to keep
the control of affairs at all hazards.-
The meeting of the legislature was there
fore absolutely necessary 10 prevent
civil war.
TO- the hands of the free state men, for
the new legislature was two to one
against the rufians, and the President.
true to his ultra southern policy. took
Offence at this act Of Stanton, and at
once removed him, thereby showing the
Bogus Convention hat he was willing
60 go all lengths with them in crushing
out freedom, and enabling a mere hand
ful Of Slaveocrats to rule the whole Ter
Sitory against the will Of nine-tenths of
her people.
This has been the course of tbs ad
ADMINISTRATION. S. A. Douglas, Forney
r-ELMLE aE-a
and seme other leading men in the
Democratic ranks havz sense enough TO
see that il is a course which in the long
run cannet win. That the people of the
whole Union are exasperated 10 a point
where a very slight outbreak in Kansas
woaid be sufficient to;kindle q civil war.
Mr.. Douglas rose in the Senate on the
first day of the session and declared bis
opposition to the part of tie message re-
Gerring to Kansas, and on the next day
delivered a lengthy and powerful speech
in which he took his stand On The position
that the whole people of Kansas must
by allowed to adopt or reject any consti-
tuition they please, and that unless the
administration will take this ground. he
will put himself in open opposition to it.
lie exposed in a mastery manner the
'farvs of allowing the people to vote fer
dhe Bogus Constitution with Slavery. or
Cor the Bogus Constitution without Sla-
0esy, and with seathihg sarcasm he rid
icu.ed the reasons given By the admins,
tration for their course, land humbly re-
peatedia the TRANQUIL Den,ocrct of week
Gsfors LAST viz: that the majority of the
people. Of Kansas didn't want the Bogus
Constitution and would vote it down if
they had g chance, and therefore they
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