San Andreas independent., 1858-01-23

sanguinary collision with the Federai.arHy
ana civii war must have ensued, extending, 10
,e"reu, throughout the Uni0n.,
inoceu, the whole idea of an inaugural adj
uIess originated in the alarming intelligence
.:,l VIII nao reached Washington city of the
Th:' Rus , "hu incipitent rebellion in Kansas
ecuon was rendered still more for
''iiu'o'e on my reaching the Territory by the
near approach of the assombl;n,x &c ;ba ravo~
iutionary State Legislature and ,ha very mn
merous mass conventions bv which il was
sustained In truth. | had to cbooso hatwee,u
% "e 'i"e instruction Mt yhateyer.eost
u '.'i,"' oiood, by the Federal army. or to
p'e'."t 'ne terrible catastrophe, as did, .by
my pieuees 70 the people of the exertior Of all
ny - " o"s"', lair election, and the
submission OF the Constitution 80 a. - sr
the people for ratification or rc;so,;" s"s
My inaugural and other oSdra
therefore, really in the nature of ofnrorln,,.,:,.
$50 often issued by Presidents and Ca-.
with n view to prevent MS they d;d' ~ M
case, civil war and insurrcction. - '''''
Now, by my oath of Office, was sworn a.
support the Constitution of the United St,,,<
which have shown, in my Judgment. rean;roa
the submission of the Constitution to the cs,,e
of the people. | was sworn also to take care
that the Kansas and Nebraska bill 'shoph be
faithfully executed" which bill, in my iudg-
ment as heretofore stated: required that tho
Constitution should be submitted to thc.vote
of the people, and was therefore only per-
forming q solemn duty, when, as Governor of
the Territory, to whose people my first obliga-
tions were due, endcayored to sccure.to them
these results. The idea entertained by sumg b.
that should see the Federal Constitution and
the kansas-Ncbraska bill ovcrthrown and dis
regarded, and that, playing the part of mute
in pantommc of ruin, should acquieScc b%.
/ x-cilNn in cpsn
such acquiescence involved, as an immediate~
consequence, disastrous and sanguinary civil
war, seems to me to be most prepostcrous.--.
Not drop of blood has been shed by the Fed.
eral troops in Kansas during my administra-...
ton. But insurrection and civil war, EXTEND.
ing, | fear, throughout the country, were alone
prevented by the course pursued by me on.
those occasions, and the whole people, aband--.
oning revolutionary violence, were induced by
me to go, for the first time into general and
peaceful election. .~~
These important results constitute sufir. .
cicnt consolation for all the unjust assaults.
made upon me on this subject. | do not. un-
derstand that these assaults have ever receiy-. ,
ed the slightest countenancc from the Presi->
dent; on the contrary, his message clearly in-s-
dicates an approval of my course up to the.
present most unfortunate difference about the.
so-callcd Lecompton Constitution. lnasmuch, ~
however, this difference is upon vital :,
question, involving practical results and new
instructions, it is certainly much more respect =
full to the President on my part to resign. the
Office of Governor, and give him an opportu-
nifty of filling it, rs is his right under the Con-.
sttution with one who concurs with him in
| his present opinions, rather than go to Kansas
and force him to remove me by disobedeicncc.~
to his instructions. This latter course, in my
judgment, would be incompatible with pro- .
per respect for the Chief Magistrate of the
Union, inconsistent with the rules of moral :
rectitude proprety, and could be adopted
with no other view than to force the President
to remove me from office. Such course, it .
is alledgcd, would present me to the public as
political martyr in the defence of the great
principle of scf-government but to 90 to.
Kansas with any such purpose, or with certain
knowledge that such a result must follow,
would be alike unjust and improper. Ny only
alternative, then, is that of respectful rcsig-
nation, in the hope that Kansas and our be-.
loved country may be shielded from that civil
war with which fear both are threatened, By
any attempt to force the so-called Lecompton
Constitution upon the people Of Kansas.
state it fact based on long. and inii-
mate association with the people of Kansas,
that an overwhelming majority of that people
are opposed to that instrument, and my letters
state that but one out of twenty of the press of
Kansas sustains it. Some oppose it because
so many counties were disfranchised and un-
represented in the Convention. Some, who
are opposed to paper money, because it autho-
rizes bank of enormous capital for Kansas,
nearly unlimited in its issues, and in the de-
nomination of its notes, from dollar up and
down. Some because of what they consider
Know Nothing clause, By requiring that the
| Governor shall have been twenty years citi-
zen of the United States. Some, because the
elective franchise is not free as they cannot
vote against the Constitution, but only on the
single issue, whether any more slaves may be
imported, and then only upon that issue by
voting for the Constitution to which they are
opposed They regard this rs but mockery
of the elective franchise, and perous sport
ing with the sacred rights of the people
Some oppose because the Constitution dis
tinctly recognises and adopts the Oxford fraud,
in apportonng legislative members for John
son county, upon the fraudulent and fictitious
returns, falsely called, from that precinct,
which recognition of that fraud in the Con-
stitution, is abhorrent to the moral sense of
the people. Others oppose because, although
in other cases, the Presidents of Conventions
have been authorized to issue writs of cleo
tion to the regular Territorial or State officers
with usual judges, with the established pre-
cincts and adjudication Of returns, im this case
|
en- to the president of the Convention to make
the precincts, the judges, and to decide finally
upon the returns. From the grant of these
unusual and enormous powers, and from 9TH
er reasons connected with the fraudulent re-
turns of Oxford and McGhee, an overwhelm-
ing majority of the people of Kansas have no
faith in the validity of these returns, anu
therefore will not vote. Indeed, disguise IL
as we may. to ourselves under the influence
of the present excitement, the facts will de-
monstrate that any attempt by Congress To
force this Constitution upon the people of Kan
sas will be an effort to substitute the will of y
small minority for that of an overwhelming
majority of the people of Kansas: that it will
not settle the Kansas question or locaIize the
issue that it will, fear, be attended by civil
war, extending. perhaps, throughout the Uni
on thus, bringing this question back again .
upon Congress and before the people in its
most dangerous and alarming aspect.