Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1858-12-15

PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.

E1o,r citizcns Of tie Senate and
House Of Representatives:
When we compare the condition of the country at
the present day with what IT one year ago, at
the meeting of Congress, we have much reason for
nraitu ie 10 that Almighty Providence, which has
never failed to intepose for relief at the most
critical periods OF our history One year ago, the
sectional strife between the North and the South
the dangerous subject of slavery had again become
50 intense as to threaten the peace and perpctuity
ortle conftderacy. The application for the atlnS-
sion OF Kansas State into the tnion fostercd
this unhappy agitation, and brought the whole sub
,.t once more before Congress. 1t the desire
or every patriot that such measures of legislation
mir!.t he adopted. would remove the excitement
t;om the States, and confine it to the Territory
wlr.,e i: le@itnatcly belonged. Much has been
done | am happy to say, towards the accomplish
mynt OF this object, during the last session of Con-
grt<S.
The Supreme Court of the United States had pre-
yio1Slv decided, that all American citizens have an
ena right to take into the Territories, whatever is
held aS property under the laws of any of the States.
anl to hold such property there under the guardian
ship of the federal constitution so long the ter
fitarial condition shall remain.
This is now well established position. and the
proceedings Gf the last session were alone wanting
to rive it practical effect. The principle has been
rccognizcd, in some form or other, by an almost
unanimous vote Of both houses Of Congress- that
Territory has right to come into the Union either
minority of its people The Just equality of all the
States has thus been vintlicated and frutfuLsource
of dangerous disscnsion among them has been re-
moved
Whilst such has been the beneficial tendency of
volr legislative proceedings outside of Kansas, their
influence has nowhere been so happy as within that
Territory itself Left to manage and control Its own
affairs in its way, without the pressure of ex-
tcrfal influence the revolutionary Topeka or5aniza
ton and all resistance to the territorial government
cd byC kaye finally ab3D-
!oncd. As natural consequence, that fine Terri
tory appears to be tranquil and prosperous, and
is attracting increasing thousands of immi grants to
make it their happy nome.
The past unfortunate experience of Kansas has
enforced the lesson often already taught that re-
sistance to lawful authority, under form of gov
ernment cannot fail in the end to prove disastrous
to its authors. Had the people of the Territory
Welded obedience to the laws enacted by their leg
i>Iature it would at the present moment have con-
tanned large additional population OF Industrious
and enterpriSing citizens, who have been deferred
from entering its borders by the existence Of civil
strife and organized rebellion.
1t was the resistance rightfll authority and the
perSeyerng attempts to establish revolutionary
government under the Topeka constitution, which
caused the people OF Kansas to commit the grave er
of refusing to vote for delegates to the conven-
ton to frame constitution, under law not denied
70 DC fair ana just in its provisions. This refusal to
vote has been the prolific of all the evils
which have followed. In their hostility to the ter
ripria government they disrcrar,le the principle,
absolutely essential to the working Of our form of
government that majority of those who vote-not
the inaOritv who may remain at home, from what
ever caltse-1nust decide the result Of an election.
For this reason seekin" to take advantage of their
own error they denied the authority of the conver-
ton TINS clc ted to frame constitution
The convention, Notwithstanding, proceedto adopt
constitution uncxceptionable in its general tea
lrc and providing for the submission of the slave
,,f ,ln hrh in nv
opinion they were bound to do, under the Kansas
and Nebraska act. This was the ail-mPortant ques
ton which had alone convused the Territory; and
vet the opponents Of the lawful government, persis
ting i'll their first error, rerancd from exercising
ter right 70 vote and preferred that slavery should
continue rather than surrender their revolutionary
Topeka organization.
wiser and better spirit seemed to prevail before
the first Monday of january last when an election
held under the constitution. a majority o
the people then voted for governor and other STATE
| officers, for member Of Congress, and members o
the State legislature This election warmly
contested by the two political parties in Kansas, ant
greater vote was polled than at any previous elec
ton \ large majority of the members OF the leg
stature elect belonged to that party which hat
previously refused to vote The anti-slavery party
We're thus placed in the ascendant, and the politlca
power of the State in their own hands Hat
Congress admitted Kansas into the Union under tn
LecomptOn constitution, the Legislature might at 1t
vote Of the people, whether they would or wou
not have a convention to amend their constitution
either on the slavery any other question, am
nave adopted all necessary means for giving speed
effect to the will of the majority. Thus the kansa
question would have been immediately and fna
settled.
Under these circumstances | submitted to Con
gress the constitution thus framed with all the off
GERS already elected necessary to put the State gov
efnment into operatien accompanied by stron
recommendation in favor of the admission of Kar
S%aS % as State. In the course of my long public lif
nave never performed any official act which, i
cle retrospect, has afforded heartfelt salts
laction Its admission could have inflicted no pos
. sIoie injury on any human being, whilst it woult
~thln brief period, have restored peace to Kansa
anu harmony to the Union. In that event. tn
slavery question would ere this have been fnall
seei t according to the legally-cxpressed will of
nyorty of the voters and popular sovereignt
"ouid thus have been vndieated in constitution.
hammer.
WIN my deep convictions of duty, could hay
ddusue, no other 1t is true that as an il
anJ ua, u l mad expressed an opinion, both befol
"H a dur!ng the session of the convention, in fave
submitting the remaining clauses of the const
noorI' as well as that concerning slavery, to tn
m,aIc But, acting in official character neitht
rcnia, nor 10 any human authority had the power
clsro lse e the proceedings of the convention, and d
null, .he constitution which it had framed to be
'' 10 have done this would have been vi