Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1857-07-30

V Into the Union, as well as numerous othe
e acts of Congress, declared that the Missouri
G River should remain public highway, for
o ever free to all the citizens of the United
r States; yet this self-siyled Democracy, be
2 ing in power, protesting to be the peculiar
e friends OF law and order, and declaring ir
5 their political platform that every citizen o
, every section "f the country has right II
: demand and insist upon an equality of right:
5 and privileges, and to be afforded by the
f Federal Government complete and ample
protection in his person and property. suf
i fered that great national high~ay ITO be
! closed TO the immigration to Kansas from
: the Free States nearly the whole of last
f season. Numbers of persons from our own
State were last year deprived of thei: liber-
ty and property upon that river, in direct
violation of numerous acts of Congress ,and
, yet The Administration raised not finger
/ for their protection. or to prevent the out
f rage. What an example is this of an
equality Of rights to citizers from sections
of the country, protection to person and
property and of the administration of law
by the self-sty led Democracy. Had a negro
slave escaped aud been found in Boston, the
whole power of the Government, though
the army and navy, would have been brought
to bear, if necessary, to execute the law of
Congress for his recapture; but hundreds of
free white men could be imprisoned and
TO bbed, IN violation Of law, on a public
highway of the United States. and the Gov
ernment refused to interfere. In the esti-
masion of the self-styled Democracy. the
reca qture of a single negro slave escaping
from bondage is of more consequence lhan
the protection of hundreds of white men.
Shame Oh an Administration and a party
which can enforce laws to protect Slavery,
but refuses to enforce those which protec,
freemen.
! The struggle now going on in Kansas is
not whether it shall be a Free or Slave
State, though it is doubtless involved in the
issue; but the great and all important ques-
ton Is, whether the white people OF that
Territory shall have an opportunity to as
sert their rights AM be free, or whether
they shall longer be forced to submit to the
usurpation which has been established over
them by aid of the Federal Government
Shall the people of Kansas be permitted to
form their own State Constitution, or shall
! they be forced to submit 10 Constitution
having its origin in fraud and violence and
imposed upon them against their conset!-I
In this issue the great principle of selc-gov-
ernment and Tree institutions is indeed in.
rolved, and is vastly more important than
whether negro slavery shall or shall not
hereafter exist in Kansas.
The true question is, shall the white po-
pulation be permitted to assert their rights,
or shall they be enslaved by cunninglyl
devised system of fraud and violence, which
is sought to be carried out under the forms
OF law. Il is known to you all that the Ter
ritorial Legislature which frs, assembled in
Kansas was elected by Missourans, and not
by the people of that Territory This
Legislature, as was Natural, took steps to
perpetuate its power, imposed test oaths as
qualification for voting at future elections,
and undertook to pass divers other unconsti-
tutional acts. The people of the Territory
have stoutly refused to recognize the validity
OF its proceedings, and by voluntary move.
ment of their own, got up an organization
formed State Constitution and asked for
admission into the Union. This has hither-
to been refused by Congress, though d bill
to that effect passed the House of Repre-
sentatives. In the mean time a second
bogus Legislature assembled under the au-
thority Of the first, and passed an act calling
Convention to form State Consti titution,
prescribing registry of voters, their quail !
hcatlon. &C., and retaining in their own
hands the exclusive control of the election. |
Having originally usurped authority, and all |
OF them as we'll as all the Territorial officials
throughout the Territory, holding their
places against the wishes of a large MAORI
iy OF the people, it was hardly to be expect
ed that men who had attained power by such
means, would provide peaceable way for
their own overthrow. They knew that
through the registry of voters to be made |
by their instruments, they held in their own
hands perfect control of the election. In
perfect accordance with the fraud perpetrat-
ed when Kansas was first invaded, to Com
mlssioners to register voters made lust
such lists as would insure triumph to the
ro-Siavery or self-styied Democratic party;
no person whose name was not on the list
being allowed under the law to vote. The
lists returned embrace only about half the |
eouEties in the Territory, and upon those
returned the names of Pro Slavery men
alone as general thing appear-at all
events they constitute a majority Of the
listed voters; The free men, constituting
large majority, and some say fuur-f tbs OF
the population, refused under such circum-
stances to have anything TO do with the
election. Indeed but few of them could
have voted, had they desired to, as they
ere not generally registered.
With u full knowledge tina, an election
was to be held under the proclamation of
acting Gov. Stanton IN only about one-half |
the counties ia the Territory, and that in
those the Frees late men had not been gen-
orally registered, Gov. Walker had the as
surance on arriving in the Territory to is. ue
an address to the people, telling them that
they were invited TO participate freely and
fairly in the election of Delegates to frame
Constitution and State Government
What effrontery to tell the people of Kan
sas that an election to be held under such
circumstances was free and fair, and that il /
would be their own fault if they did not
vote. Tantalus, afflicted with a raging
thirst, and invited to drink of the water in
which he stood, which was made to recede
as often as he made the attempt, was not
more completely deluded or grievously for
mented than would have been the Free
State men of Kansas, had they attempted to
participate in the election to which Gov
ernor Walker they were invited.
Many persons wishing well to Kansas
have thought the free State men ought to
have participated in the recent election Of
delegates, but il the facts be as reported, it
would lave been utterly for them to have
attempted it, and they were wise in leaving
the matter wholly in the hands of the self