The Abbeville banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1847-1869, 1858-03-18

to send back the Lccompton Constitution
and another was to be framed, in the slow
way in which we do public business here
before it would reach Congress, in another
year, perhaps the majority would be turned
the other way.
Sir, whenever YOU 60 outside of the reg
ular forms Of law and constitutions to seek
for the will Of the people, you arc wander
ing III a wildcrness-a wilderness of thorns
If this was Il minority constitution, do not
know that that would be an objection to
it, Constitutions are made for minoritics
Perhaps minoritics ought TO have the right
TO make constitutions, for they arc admin.
istered by majorities. The Constitution of
this Union was made by minority, and as
late us 1910, n minority had it in their
hands, and could have altered or abolished
1t; for, in 1910, six out Of the twcnty-six
States of the Union held the numerical
majority.
The Senator from Illinois has, upon his
VIC" Vi tuC l-cSohil'loi SoHStitulIou anu
the present situation Of affairs in Kansas,
raised the cry of popular sovereignty. The
Senator from New York, Mr.. Seward YES.
tcr'lay made himself facctious about it, and
called it "sIuater sovereignty" There is
, II popular sovereignty which is the basis of
our Government. and l am unwilling that
the Senator should have the benefit of uni
ting sluat'er sovereignty with popular SOW
creiynty. Sir, in all countries ani in all
time. it Is well understood that the numcr-
ical majority of the people, if they chose,
exercise the sovereignty of the country {;
but for want of Intelligence, and for want
Of leaders, they have never yet been able
successfully to combine and form Il popu-
lar government. They have often attempt
ed, hu, it has always turned out, instead Of
a popular sovereignty, a populons sovcr-
ci"n,v, and dcma%ogucs, placing themselves
upon the movement, have invariably led
them into miltary dcspotism.
! think that the popular sovereignty
which the Senator from Illinois would de-
rive from the acts of his Territorial Legis-
laturc, and from the information received
from partisans and partisan presses, would
lead MS directly into populous sovereignty,
and not popular sovereignty. The first or
sanization OF ofpopuIar sovcrci .nty OH a prop
cr basis, took place in this country. The
first gun Of the Revolution was a salute to
new organization Of popular sovereignty
that WAS embodied in the Declaration OF In
dependence, developed, elaborated, and in
auguratel forever in the Constitution of the
United States and the true pillars of lit were
representation and the lot-Lox-tle lc-
gal and constitutional ballot. box ordained
.ly the people. In the division Of power,
i'll distributing the sovereign powers among
the various departments Of the Govern
mcnt, the people retained for themselves
the single power of the bailot-box and Il
great power 1t was. Through that power
they were able to control all the depart
ments Of the Government. 1t was not fol
the people to be exercising political power
in detail ; it was not for them to be annoycd
with the cares Of government; but, from
time to time, through the ballot-box, to cx-
ert their power to control the whole organ.
ization, and sovereignty remained with
them. This is spopular sovereignty, the pop.
ular sovereignty Of a legal, constitutional
baIlot-box; and when spoken through tha,
box, the voice of the people, for all politi-
cal purposes, is the voice of God; but
when it is outside of that, it is the voice of
demon, the doctrine of the reign of ter
ror.
Permit me to say, that in passing I omit
ted to answer question that the Senator
from Illinois has, I believe, repeatedly asked
and that is, what were the legal powers o
the Territorial Legislature after the forma
ton and adoption of the Lecompton Con
sttution That had nothing to do with
the Territorial Legislature. They moved
in totally different spheres. The Terrific
rial Legislature was provisional govern
mcnt, almost without power, appointed and
paid by this Government The Lecomp
ton Constitution was the act Of people
and the sovereign acts of a people. They
moved in different spheres and on different
planes, and could not come in contact Al
all without usurpation on the one part Of
the other. 1t was not competent for the
Lecompton Constitution to overturn tho
Territorial government and set up a gov
ernment in place of it, because that Con
stitution, until acknowledged by Congress
was nothing; it was not in being. Il
could well order the people of Kansas ,e
pass upon it.; it could do whatever wa
necessary to perfect that constitution, bu
nothing beyond that, until Congress hat
agreed to accept it. In the mean time til,