The Kanzas news., 1857-12-12

adopted platform which no trae Free State
man could take exceptions to or refuse to
endorse. The people were united, and uni
yersal satisfaction prevailed. Each delegate
went back to his constituents to aid in car
rying out in good faith the unanimous wish
of the people. An felt confident that the
elements of discord had been harmonized,
and that we should march forward IS one
man to the achievement of glorious tri-
umph. But it seems thai in this they were
mistaken, and that previous political in
trigues. having for basis and object the ag-
grandisemeut of individuals, were to at
tempt to supplant the action of the people.
Among the resolutions adopted by the
Lawrence Delegate Convention was one de-
claring it to be the wish of the people that
the two Constitutions-the Topeka Consti
tuition and the Lecompton Constitution-be
submitted to full vote of the people of
Kanzas by the Territorial Legislature at lis
extra session As Chairman cf the Com
rnittee on Resolutions, James H. Lane sup
ported the resolutions, and in stirring and
effective speech in the Convention endorsed
them to the fullest extent. Surely if one
person more than another was fully com
mitted to the policy then adopted, it was
j. H. Lane. Judge then of the astonish-
ment of the Mass Convention, assembled at
Lecompton on the Monday following the
meeting OF the Delegate Convention, 10 hear
Mr.. Lane in public speech advocate de-
parfure from the line of policy so strenu-
ously advocated by himself but a few days
previously, and oppose zealously the sub
mission of the Topeka Constitution by the
extra session of the Territorial Legislature,
as measure calculated to injure Gov. Stan
ton with the Administration at Washington,
and as being inconsistent with a pledge made
ny himself to Stantou on the 23th of No
vember last, to the effect that if he (Stan-
toni would convene an extra session of the
Territorial Legislature, he (Lane) would
pledge his "honor as gentleman" that the
action of that body should be limited en-
tiFely to adopting measures in regard to the
Lecompton Constitution, and that the action
of the Delegate Convention was inconsistent
with that pledge! We are not aware of the
precise motives which prompted Mr.. Lane
to take such an extraordinary step, but it is
in effect direct blow at the Topeka Con-
stitution, to which he processes such unal-
terable devotion. and is playing into the
hands of the Democracy. Gov. Stanton is
opposed to a submission of the Topeka Con-
stitution to the people. He is opposed to
any measure which will take from the
Democracy the credit of the settlement
of the Kanzas question. He does not want
the people of Kanzas to settle this ques-
ton for themselves.
The propriety of Mr.. LINES taking it
upon himself to see that the action of the
Peoples Legislature should be this or that,
in advance of an expression of the popular
will, may be doubted, and considered an
unwarrantable stretch of authority; and
certainly no person will for moment as
sumo that the personal ''honor" of Jim Lane
or the political standing of F. P. Stanton
should for one moment be allowed to inter
pose to prevent the servants of the people
from carrying out the expressed wish of
their constituents.
Another pledge had also been made to
Stanton, which it is understood that he
{Stanton) construes into meaning similar
to the one made by Lane. This last pledge
had attached TO 1t the names of large
number of the members of the Territorial
Legislature, and without stopping to ques-
tion the genuineness of the signatures thus at
tacbed, we will state that TO our mind f.ir
Interpretation of that pledge would in no.
wise conflict with the action contemplated
by the Delegate Convention. Now who
should put construction upon it Should
Secretary Stanton be allowed to distort the
pledge of the members to suit his own plea
sure and answer his own purposes, or should
the persons making such pledge construe 1t !?
Manifesuy the latter. II an executive Off
Ger. who is in nowise responsible to the peo-
pie, is to dictate to their representatives,
what is the use of the people troubling
themselves to elect representatives
If the Representatives of the people in
the Territorial Legislature choose to disre-
gard the Vox PoPuLI. let them be prepared
to answer for it to their constituents. But
let the ''honor'' of no individual, or the
.'head" of any politician, prevent them from
carrying out the expressed wishes of The
PEOPLE.
We are grieyed that a person who has so
long enjoyed the support of the Free STATE
party of kanzas, and who possesses so exten-
Siye an influence "a lanes II Lane should