Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1858-04-15

4th OF January last, vote was ordered to b
taken for and against this constitution by tn
legislature. which is recognized as valid by al
parties in the Territory, aud by the President
in declaring to Governor Denver that the pee
pie must be protected in voting for or agains
the constitution on that day Almost clever
thousand voters protested then against tina
constitution, as not embodyng their will On
the 2lst of December, the vote was only 81,
thousand five hundred and twenty-six, half O
which has been proven fraudulent by the in
VeStigating committee ordered by the legisla
ture so that not more than three Thousand
legal votes were cast on the proposition ther
submitted, leaving a majority of from sever
to eight thousand against this constitution
Yet we are asked to enact it into the organic
law of the people, and to institute under it a
| State government of officers elected by fraud.
We are asked to cast aside the vote of the
people on the 4th of January, because they
did not vote at the preceding elections.
That election, it is said, was illegal, though
it is not denied that it expressed the popular
will but that the people could not vote on
their constitution at any other election than
the one fixed by the delegates to the conven-
tion 1t was the same legislative power that
fixed the election of the 4th of January that
called the convention with the exception that
the legislature that fixed the election derived
its power from the people, while the one that
called the convention was usurpaton. But
| treating them both as valid, the last one had
as much power as the first and was the legis-
lative power of the Territory, and must con-
tinue to be till it is superseded by some gov
ernment, with the consent of Congress. Until
that time it has full legislative power to enact,
repeal, or modify any existing laws of the Ter
ritory and if the Lecompton convention pre-
vents that, then, in the language of the Presi-
dent, it would be rebellion for the territorial
| government would be superseded without the
| consent of Congress. Why does he not send
his army to put down this constitution and its
supporters, as he did to put down the Topeka
party on the 4th of July, 1856? If the terri
tOrial Legislature does not possess the legisla-
| tive power of the Territory, then the people
have parted with their sovereignty, rrevoca-
bly,, for four months, or until the action of
Congress upon this constitution. If so, they
could as well part with it forever, and thus
your reason would subvert all the maxims Of
| our system of government. The time and
mode of voting on the 4th of January was es-
tablished by the legislative authority of the
Territory, an authority as valid and as legal
as was the same authority in calling the con-
! vehton
| 1t is argued that though this constitution
does not embody the will of the people, yet
| they must submit to it because they did not
vote before its formation, though they did af-
terwards. 1t is a new and O strange doctrine
that the people of this country, who are the
| depositarieS of the sovereignty of the govern
ment, have not the right to vote upon the
same subject tomorrow because they refuse to
! go to the polls today. 1t is one of the rights
! of American citizens to absent themselves from
elections if they choose aid | grant you that
when all have the privilege of voting, those
who do not vote must submit to the action OF
those who do. But when the majority do vote,
where is the reason for turning deaf ear to
their voice? If the people withhold their
! votes at a primary election, does that deprive
| them of the right to vote upon the great ques
tion of what shall be their fundamental law
They did vote on the 4th of January and
why disregard the will of the people fully ex'
pressed at the balot-box? This is not ques
! ton of whether the minority shall control the
State because the minority have not voted
for in this case they went to the polls and did
vote. But you say they shall not vote to-day
because they refused to vote yesterday. That
is q matter which does not concern you. The
people themselves are the ones to decide under
what circumstances they will vote, or withhold
their votes. They voted at the first election
held in that Territory, at which fair expires
sion of the public will could be given
At the election for the call of convention
the test oaths were upon the statute-books o
Kansas, which would disfranchise all who woulC
not submit to degradation all the tests ant
laws which were declared by General Cass, il
the Senate to be " disgrace to the age anC
the country" Senator Bayard said they wer,
shocking to the moral sense )" and Senate
Weller that they were Infamous in thei
character" " in violation of the Constitution,
and revolving to every feeling of humanity.
Mr.. Clayton denounced them as unjust, ini
quitous, oppressive and infamous laws"
These test laws were thus denounced upol
the floor of the Senate of the United State
by men who could not be charged with fanat
cism No one, then, could vote on the call TO
the convention who was not ready to submit
to those test oaths and but 2,670 votes wer
polled for the convention, though the dele
gate to Congress, at the same election, recelv
ed 4,276 These test oaths were repealed
it is true, before the election of delegates bu
in the election of delegates half of the countie
were disfranchised, and that, too, by no faul
of theirs. Fifteen of the counties were entrel
disfranchised, and four others partially. Gov
ernor Walker, in his letter to General Gas
of the 18th December, 1857, says
ain nineteen of these counties there was no censu
and therefore there could be such apporonment the
of delegates based upon such census And in fifteen
these counties there registry of voters These
teen counties including many of the oldest organize
counties of the Territory entirely dsfranchsed an
did give and (by fault of their own) could not CIV
a solitary vote for delegates TO the convention"
In fifteen counties ont of thrtyfour, there was
registry, and not solitary vote given or could
for deenatas the cnnVentinn In OF these cON