The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1858-09-30

by act Of Congress, and not only 20, bat the
qualifications Of voters and Of members Of
the Territorial Legislature are also fixed by
Congressi
Such Ii the character of tho ksnsas-N Ne
braska bill reported by Douglas and adopted
by Congress, and such is the character Of oil
the Territorial bills passed before and since.
Until the year 1854 ell parties understood
that the power conferred by the Constitution
on Congress "to make all needful rules and
regulations respecting the Territory Of the
United States" meant just what it said,
GALL needful rules and regulations" and
since That time it is understood even by
Douglas and his wing Of the Democracy that
all means ALI, except those respecting the
prohibition Of slavery.
And their doctrine Of popular sovereignty
does not cover the election OF their own Gov
ernor and the choice Of their own Judges,
nor even the qualifications of voters and Of
members Of the General Assembly. All rules
and regulations respecting these matters are
fixed by Congress under Douglas bill SUBJ
stantially as they were under all former Ter
ritorial bills. So that it seems according to
the practice Of all parties at the present day
that tho power Of Congress over the Terrific
ries is not at oil limited to regulations re-
specting the disposition Of the soil, but is ex-
tended to provision Of form OF territorial
government and the appointment Of the Off.
GERS Of that government. II, then, the Con
stisution confers the power on Congress to
fix the fundamental principles, form and pol
icy of the Territorial government, it would
seem that Congress should, in doing so, pro-
vide for the well being Of the people. And
"a it is admitted that non slaveholding com
munities are more prosperous than slavehold-
ing ones, and as the people Of the States in
the North universally prohibit slavery when
they come to form constitution for them
selves, it would seem that Congress ought to
prohibit it while they exercise the power Of
regulating the affairs Of the people of Ter
ritory; and they are under % strong obliga-
ton to do this for the promotion of the well
fare of the people Of a Territory As they are
to provide them Republican form Of Gov
eminent during their Territorial condition.
Douglas and his followers admit that Con-
gress has the power 10 institute governments
for the Territories and to provide them with
officers, but they contend that this power is
an implied power originating from the power
to acquire Territory. But tho power to ac-
quire territory ia no where given to the Gov
eminent in the Constitution, and is itself an
implied power, so that Douglas contends that
the power Of Congress to form Territorial
governments 10 an implied power derived
from another implied power. And thus it is
that the new doctrine bases itself upon an
implied power at secondhand rather than
upon the power plainly conceded in the Con-
stitution and acted upon by the founders Of
the Government and every Administration
down to the present one.
The power to govern, is an implied power
derived from the implied power to acquire
territory, say Douglas and Company
/ But let it be remembered that the United
States had an immense extent Of Territory at
the very time that the Consultation was adopt
| ed. Our fathers did not overlook that fact ;
/ they did not neglect it; they possessed terri
tory deemed Of imm ense value, for the gov.
eminent of which they bad provided an ordi-
nance, and In forming the Constitution 1t was
necessary to give Congress power over this
territory. They did so, in those broad terms
call needful rules and regulations And
having adopted this Constitution, at the very
nrst session of Congress under it, the Ordi-
nance Of 1857 was re-established 40 the fun
damental frame Of government for the Terri
tories, upon which all Territorial govern
/ Congress, be it remembered, was passed By
the votes Of many Of the men who aided ia
making the Constitution, and was approved
by President Washington, who Was also Pres.
ident Of the Constitutional Convention.
We close these remarks with the following
quotation from the comm entaries on the Con.
s,tution by Justice Story. He says, (thi,
was written before 1850:
ono one has ever doubted tho authority oil
Congress- to erect Territorial governments
within the territory OF the United States, un.
der the general language Of the clause, &c
make all needful rules and regulAtions.'"
The Next Phase oGthe Kansa sQaes.
ltOn.
Soon another--may il be the last, phase !.
going to como about Kansas. The question
will be, can q Constitutional Convention
make Constitution which, even when rati.
fed by the people, can take from the slave
holder HE right to migrate into territoriea
and hold his negroes there and il grievei
me to see that our people are again to b,
deceived upon this point. Slavery, they tel
; US before the election, needs the support Of
statutes protecting and regulating it. ThsJ
no longer produce the old deception, that 1
needs statute Law TO create II. II is not
, melancholy truth that the reverse ~ true p
Slavery lives and propagates itself withou
law, yea, In tho face Of prohibitions. 1t il
the very essence Of ito existence, this tena.
cionsncss in spite Of obstacles Of every kind
! Douglas has adroitly thrown out this last de-
ception, as be did the one above stated Of
the passage Of the Kansas Nebraska bill.