The Washington union., 1857-09-26
THE NEW HAVEN LEGISLATORS REPLY TO THE
PRESIDENTS LETTER

ply TO the Presidents to the memorial OF the
''forty elergymen' Of Connecticut:
To MS ExoELLSoY JAMES BUCHANAN,
Presidea, Of he United Sates.
In July last number of citizens of Connecticut adj
dressed to you Chief Magistrate of this nation, me
mortal on the affairs of Kansas To this you replied,
under date of August 49, 1857 in manner which shows
that YOU Misunderstood 20 some extent, the ground
taken by the memorialists for we would not impute to
you the intention TO misrepresent them AS you have
thought proper lay the memorial and reply before the
public large part of the memoriasts have conferred
on the subject and have felt themselves compelled again
10 address you We would remark, then that the main
facts alleged that memorial either passed ieota didt,
explicitly apcwed W your rapty
These facts are two First, ''that the fundamental
principle of the constitution of the United States and OF
political institutions s that the people shall make
their oon and elect their olga rulers" Secondly, that
Governor Walker of Kansas openly represents and pro
claims that the President of the United States employ
ing through him Walker army one purpose OF which
is to force the people of Kansas to obey laws which are
not their own of the United States but laws which
il is notorious and established upon evidence, they npr
made and ruersey elected AS to these two facts,
the material facts alleged by your memorialsts, and
which chiefly require vindcaton from you they say that
they find denial of them in your reply They do not
say that you have attempted vindaon OF your acts
and dongs through Gov. Walker but only that they
can find in your reply plain explicit denial of the
facts referred tonot what they consider the shadow
of denial The facts stand in the memorial, then,
ooaradicd by what you evidently consider triumphant
reply Why is this2 Are those assertions which
the whole subject at issue depends, untrue and yet no
denh of themnot word to Prcpc them untrue With
out such denial what you expect your memoralsts
and the country to believe and to saya What but that
the facts which they aege are notorious and undena-
bleP
AS to the allegation respecting the fundamental prn-
cple of the constitution your momorass hope that the
time remote when the enlightened citizens of this coun
try will deny that principle, though party zeal in its in
fatuation may day trampe it in the dust when in
sight of the ruin liberty and religion in exile will to-
gether weep the Dissertation.
Your FORMAL yINDIcATIoN next demands notice.
OF this your memoriasts compelled to say that,
in their view it is entirely groundless and unsatisac
tory.
Resting it solely what you call the plainest and
most papabe historical facts you say that at the time
of your Inauguration you found in fact, the govern
ment of Kansas well established that of any other
Territory" You then ask, it not my duty to sustain
this prevent it from being overturned by
forcen the language of the constitution to take care
that the laws be faithfully executed r. You then add
at was for this purpose that ordered military force to
Kansas to act posse coa in aiding the civil magis
trates carry the laws into execution Here, then,
is the distinct admission and declaration your part
that YOU ordered military force to Kansas for the pur
pose of sustaining Its territorial government and of en-
forcing its territorial laws So far then, in respect
to matter of fact you admit the assertion of your
memorialists.
Your vndication therefore, rests upon the assertion
that there was in fact, government in Kansassuch
government it was your duty to sustain The essen
tia question: which the whole controversy turns, is
thus raised 1t is simply this Was there government, or
,cere there lao IN Kansas the just, proper, aud authorized
eany of Me language, 'when you entered upon the duties
of the presidential Office the 4th of March last "
If this can be proved to be true your memoralists
will know something which they have yet to learn If
can be proved not to be true t will present
ora example of the TRUTH that political prejudice is
blind to the existence of the painest and most pal
pable Of historical facts Nor Is this all 1t will show
that you ordered army to Kansas to sustain socalled
government which is not government, and laws which
not laws. ~. .....
Here your memorasts take the position that NOTHING
CAN TRULY GOVERNMENT WHICH HAS NO AuTHoRI-
AND THAT NOTHING SHOULD BE TREATED As GOVERNMENT
OR LAW PRESENTS EVIDENCE OF AUTHORITY.
Can anything which tramples under foot oil human
rights and is known outrage upon our constitution and
our political institutions whatever be its name or fom
be Justly regarded government law having author
ity under our constitution Can such an outrage be
clothed with authority by President Senate, Congress,
or a whole Congress of Presidents Can usrpation be-
get valid government or law, impart that right to
govern which implies an obligation to obeyf Its might
may make it matter of prudence to avoid its wrath by
submission but usurpation create an obligation to
obey when none exists
Suppose the Great Mogul any other tyrant had es-
tablished the same so-caed government and laws of
Kansas by the means by which, as all the world
knows they were established-by invasion and arms
would any citizen of the United States call them 'gov
crnment and laws except in derision and with loathing
Is a bogus government government? Are bogus laws
laws Is this government established p and these
i'lawS enacted yeJ kHoWu posscss otIer Vi
higher authority than that derived from BORDER Rur
FIANs Are ssWe the people OF the United States to
be stulted into the belief of such dogma? For that
result wait at least for the more absolute dominion of
tyrant
Your memoriasts will present what they consider
the fundamental of your reply. In their view, in
recognising the territorial government and laws OF Kansas
as genuine government and valid laws, you have per-
verted the general principle upon which you rest your
vndication and have violated its essential spirit and
meaning
That general principle may be thus stated When rules
of action claiming to be valid laws present the first
aspect evidence that they proceed from rghtul lawa
king power is the duty of the people and the executors
of law to recognise them authoritative To this
general principle your memoriasts subscribe. 1t is the
preventing violence and anarchy do they yield to
any man. class of men, higher estimate Of its import
ance or irmer determination to adopt and defend it
than themselves cherish But TO say that govern
ments and laws claiming to be valid must be recog
nsed executed and obeyed such preposterous
to deny the general principle itself To mistake the gen.
eydl rule for u,ipersa rule tho condition for
ditional principle must lead to aas reasoning and to
practical conclusions of the most dangerous character
This in the view of your memoralists who believe that
too wise good to err is what you they trust
Inadvertently have done
In recognising the territorial government and laws
authoritative have you not violated the whole spirit and
meaning of the general principle laid down Have you
only which it your duty to sanction must
present aidncs of rightul authority You recog
Mise the territorial laws valid What is this but to
act upon the principle that when the so-caed govern
ment and laws before you without the shadow of
evidence of their proceeding from rghtful law making