Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1858-04-19


The fact cannot well be doubted, that those
who did not vote were mainly mass of Ger
man and native anti-slaveTy extremists
MANY of them aliens-followers of Lane and
adherents to the revolutionary Topeka consti-
tuition, who, from the beginning, have coun-
seled resistance to the government establish
ed by authority of the United States, even, to
use their own language. - to the bloody is
sue" If there were those who were entitled
to vote, and did not vote, it is certainly be-
cause they refused to vote, denying, as they
did. the validity of the Territorial laws. and
openly resisting the authority of the estab-
lished government. l propose, in this con-
nection. to give some glimpses of history
throwing light upon the uniform conduct of
such men as refused to vote, and ! appeal 10
gentlemen if. aft r contemplating such facts,
they can conscientiously feel that they are in
the line of their duty in standing by this body
OF law-breakers against the whole mass of
law-abiding citizens of Kansas.
Senator Douglas, who now opposes the Lee
compton constitution on the ground that it
does not embody the will of the whole people,
himself traced, III able reports in the Senate
in 1856, 81 p by step. the dsorderly move
mants of these law-viOlating men down to the
adoption OF the revolutionary constitution at
Topeka, and their traitorOus r solves that they
- owe no allegiance to the Territorial Legis-
lature-that the Territorial " laws have no
binding force" upon thrm-that d" every free
man among us is at full liberty, consistently
with his obligations as a citizen and a man.
to defy and resist them 1.-THE Territorial laws)
if he choose so to do'-that we will endure
and submit to these laws no longer than the
best interests Of the Territory require, as the
least OF two evils. and, and will resist the m to
the bloody issue as soon as we ascertain that
pcaceable remedies shall fail, and forcihle re-
sistance shall furnish any reasonable prosp ct
of snccrss-and that, in the meantime, we
recommend to our friends throughout the Ter
ritory the organization and discipline of vol
unteer compani $, and the procurement and
preparation of arms.
Mr.. Douglas then informs us that = those
who were opposed to allowing the people of
the Territory, pre- paratory to their admis sion
into the Union as a State, to decide the slave
ry question for themselves, p - finding Opposi-
ton to the principles of the (Kansas Nebras-
KAY act unavailing in the halls of Congress"
resorted TO 8 the machinery of cmigrant aid
societies. The plan adopted he adds,
- was to make it the interest of a large body
Of men who sympathiZed with them in the OBJ
Jects OF the corporation, to proceed to Kansas.
and acquire whatever residence and do what
ever acts light be found necessary to enable
them to vote at the elections, and through
the ballot-boX if possible. to gain control
over the legislation Of the Territory
been sent out by the Massachus It's Emgrant
Aid Company and their affiliated societies
passed through the State of Missouri in large
NUMBERS on their way 10 Kansas. the viOl nee
# their language and the unm' stakable iudica-
tiOns of their determined hostility to the do
nestle institutions Of that State. created ap-
prehensions that the object Of the company
was to abOlitioniZe Kansas, as ii means of
prosecuting a relentless warfare upon the in
Sri M with in no Of
souri," These men enter d Kansas in large
numbers. followed by pro-slav,ry men, who
came in to settle or counteract this abolition
Influence; and, says Mr.. Douglas " disputes,
quarrels, violence, and bloodShcd might have
been expected as the natural and inevitable
consequences" Al the fir election held in
the T, rritory, in November 1854 for a dele
gate in Congress, the prO-slaveTy men were
triumphant. Whereupon the emigraGt aid
men loudly complained that the MissOurians
had invaded the Territory and controlled the
elections. But, SAYS. Mr.. Douglas. this charge
was made " in the absence Of all proof and
probable tr'ah" In March, 1853, the clcclions
were held for members Of the Legislature,
when the pro-slavery men again succeed, in
electing large majority. Frauds were again
loudly alleged by the emgrant aid. or aboli-
ton party; but Mr.. Douglas tells us that Gov
ernor Reed r having adiudgtd them to have
been duly elected, acc' riingly granted them
certificates of el ctOn, &c.
Soon after this Governor Recdcr was re-
moved; and Mr.. Douglas notes the fact that
- a few days after Governor Reeder dissolved
his official relations with the Legislature"
the incipient step was taken in the Top ka
movement to form a revolutionary State gov
eminent. He shows that their first open dec
laratiOn was, that - the people of Kansas
Territory have been since its settlement, and
now arc without any lawmaking power" He
traces them through their various steps Of at
tempted revolutions shows that they had or
ganized secret military lcgion-had pledged
themselves to = make Kansas free State
were backed by "a powerful corporation,
with capital OF five millions of dollars. in
vested in houses and lands, in merchandise
and mills in cannon and rifles in powder and
Irad''-and that they decided on ''rcpudiating
the laws, and ovcrthrOwng the Territorial
government in defiance of the authority of
Congress- 1t will be well remembered what
noisy boasts they made of the efficacy of
their Sharps rifles. Such are the men who
have failed to vote in the 81 ctons determine
ing the constitution with which Kansas APP
plies for admission into the Union-and |
have chosen TO draw these facts from the
statements of one whom the opposition to ud-
mission will hardly question. Many of those
mru, | learn, are Foreigners, Germans and 9TH
ers, who have not been naturalZcd, who are
not entitled to vote. and who know a. little
of the principles Of our constitution as they
do of the virtues Of law aud order. But they
were not the less noisy followers of Lane and
Topeka. This revolutionary Topeka move
mcnt has been kept up till within the last few
weeks. On the eve Of the lawful election of
delegates To the Lecompton convention il
cam near producing civil war; and Governor
Walker FASTENED a dispatch to the State De
partment, announcing that the most alarming
movement proceeds from the assembling. Oh
tn 9th Of June, of the so-calltd Topeka Leg.
islature with view 10 the enactment of an
entire code of laws and predicting that such
a result would lead to Inevitable and disas-
trous collisions" Soon aft,r the election of
d lceates to the convention, we find Govern
or Walker writing to General Harvey TO send
him a reJiRiem Of dragons to put down re
bcllion at Lawrence, - involving an open de-
fauce nf the laws and the establishment of
an insurgent government in that city, The
next day the Governor informs the ; cretary
of State, that this was the beginning of
plan TO organize insurrection throughout the
Territory
A few days after, it was found, says Gov
ernor Walker, that General Lane was organ
izng. under the sanction of the Topeka con
vention, "the whole social d frce-Slatc party
into volunteers and taking the names of all
who refus, enrolment with view TO ter
rify the free-State conservatives into submis-
mission as is proved by recent atrocities
committed on such men by Topekaitrs.n A.
gain, just on the eve of the ass, milling of the
convention ut Locomptna TO frame a State
constitution. Gov. Walker informed the State
Department that General Lane and his taft
everywhere deny the authority of the Terrific
rial laws, and counsel total disregard of
those enactments.' And again, Immediately
before tine vote was To be taken to determine
,vhpth,r the constitution should rpcoguizp ar
iguore slavery acting Governor Stanton wrote
TO the Secretary OF State that he had become
satisfied that the election ordered by the con-
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