Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1857-10-15
BUCHANAN AND HIS PEOPLE,
Progress of their Correspondence
Some Good Points for his Mex Message.

An EYE-O OpENER FOR THE President.
Some Coed Points for his Mex Message.
From the Haven Daily Palladium, Sept. %, 80
We have the pleasure of presenting to ou
readers, to-day, the Reply OF the signers o
the Memorial lately address 'ed 10 the Presi
dent Of the United States, in answer to the
letter of that distinguished funcrionary.
To this reply we ask the particular atten
rion OF every one of our readers, believing
they will regard it as thorough and mas.
terly expedition ofthe sophi,try of the Exec.
uiiye and The serious errors with which his
extraordinary document, abounds. We res
gard this Reply as respectful, manly, and
exceedingly able paper. 1t strikes at the
foundation OF Mr.. Buchanan's argument. and
shows the danger TO our UniJn, and to all
Republican Institutions. of the adoption o
such tallacious principles and reasoning as
are set forth in his letter. Read the an-wer
Of the Memorialists.
To His ExcELLEN CT JAMES BUCHANAN
President of the United States.
In July last, number of citizens Of Con.
necticut addressed to you, as Chief M4gis-
trate of this nation, a Memorial on the af.
fairs of Kansas. To this you replied. under
date of Aug. Is. 1857, in manner which
shows you Il isDDderstood, to some extent,
The ground taken by the Memorial sts, for
We could not impute to you the intention 10
misrepresent them. AS YOU have thought
proper to lay the Memorial and RepIy before
the public, large part OF the Memorials )
have conferred on the subject md elt
tn mselves compelled again to add res YOU.
We would remark, then, that The main facts
alleged in that Memorial are either passed
orcr uithout denial, or are erpiicitty arored
in your reply
These iacts are two: First, that the fun
danentai principle OF the Constitution of the
United States and of our political lnsiitu-
tions is that the people shall make their oUn
ia,cS, and elect their oUn rulers Secondly
that Gov. Walker of Kansas o,eniy repre-
sents and proclaims, that The Pres dent OF
the United States is employing through him
(Walk-D an army, one purpose O. which is
TO force the people ot Kansas to obey laws
which are not their own, nor of thp United
States; but laws which, 1t is notorious, and
established upon evidence, they ae0er made,
and rulers they neUer elected As to these
two facts, the material facts alleged Dy
your Memoriaists, and which chiefly require
vindicatiOn from you, they say that they find
no denial OF them in your reply. They do
not say that you have attempted no vindi-
cation of your acts and doings through Gov.
Walker; but only, that they can find in your
reply no plain or explicit denial Of the facts
referred to-not even what they consider
the shadow of denial. These facts an
in the Memorial then, uncontradicted by
what you evidently consider a triumphant
Reply. Why is this! Are these assertions,
on which the whole subject at issue depends,
untrue-and yet no denial OF them-not
word TO proue them untrue! Without such
denial. what can you expect your Memoir
ialists and the country 10 believe nd to sayi
What. tu that the facts, which they hle ege,
are notorious and un' eaIable!
As to the allegation respecting the funda-
mental principle of the Constitution, your
Memoria lists hope hat the time is remote
when the enli. htened citizens of this coun-
try will deny that principle; though party
zeal, in its in fatuation. may one day iram-
pie it in the dust, when, in sight of the ruin,
Liberty and Religion in exile will together
weep over the desecration.
Your FORMAL viNDIcATI IN next demands
notice.
o. this your Memorialists a:e compelled
TO say that, in their view, it is entirely
grou1dless and unsatisfactory.
Resting it solely on what you call 'the
plainest and most palpable historical facts,
you say that, at the time of your Inauggur-
alton, you found. in fact, the government
Kansas rs well established as that OF any
other Territory You then ask, was it rot
my duty to sustain this government-to pre-
vent 1t from being overturned by force; in
the language of the Constitution, 'to take
care that the laws be faithfully executed
You then add: sit was for this purpose that
! ordered military force TO Kansas 20 ACT
as posse comitatus in aiding the civil magis.
trates to carry the laws into extcut on
Here, then, is the dist net admission and
| declaration on your part, tna' you ordered a
military force to Kansas for the purpose ot
sustaining its Territorial Government and
OF enfarcing it's Territorial laws. So tar
then, in respect to one matter OF fact, you
admit the assertion OF your Mem"ralists
Your vindication. therefore, rests upor
the assertion that there was, in fact. a Gov
ernment in Kansas-such Goversmen. as
it was your duty to sustain. The esseutia
question, on which the whole controversy
turns, rs thus raised; it is simply this: Wa.
/ there Government, or were there laws in
Kansas, in the just, proper, and author izet
meaning of the language, 'when you entered
upon the duties of the Pres idental Office OF
the 4th of March last'
If this can be proved to be true. you
Memorialists will know something which
they have yet TO learn. If it cun be PROVED
not to be true, sit will present memorabl
example of the truth, that political prejudic,
is blind even to the planest and most palpa
BILE of historical facts Nor is this all
will show that you ordered an army TO Kan
sas to sustain so-calleG Government whicI
is NOT a Government, and laws which ar
not laws.
Here your Memorialists take the position
that NorHING Can BE TRULY GOVERNMENT Oh
LAW WHICH HAS NO AUTHORITY; and tha
NOTHING SHOULD BE CREATED as GOVERN
> MENT OR LAW WHICH PRESENTS NO EvIDENc
OF AUTHORITY.
Can anything whici tramples under .oo
all human rights, and is a known outrag
; upon our Constitution and our political in
,, stitulions, whatever be its name or form, b
: Justly regarded as government or law havln
authority under our Constitution! Can sue
an outrage be clothed with authority by
President. Senate, Congress, or Who'll
Congress OF Presidentsl Con usurpatio
q beget valid government or law, or Impal
that right to govern which implies an obi