The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-04-01

! Nero to Nicholas. Y on can find no such laws
on any statute beck. They were unconstitu
tional; and even GENERAL Cas-, on this floor,
was compelled to ay that they we're infamous
and disgracefal TO she age; but yet the Senate
of the United Stats would not repeal them.
The Senator fro j Louisiana d not touch on
this subject. He assed it by as easily and %
lightly a. he couls He dwelt on the beauties
of old Judge Tam more than he did on the
frauds and violeeQe in Kansas. He talked
about the Toombs bill, and said we would not
vote for it. He ssid the people of the Terri
tory sent here petitions, and wanted Congress
to accept the Topeka Constitution, but the ma
jority in this body gould not do that, but were
willing to pass al ensbliEg act. There ID .
little curious hist ~ mixed up with that act,
which has come oet at thia session. 1t is all OF
a piece with the o,ndle-btx frauds, and shows
that that was in ended as q snap judgment.
The Toombs bill gas plsasible upon its face,
and really the greas objection to it at the time
| was the state of Ii Terri, Dry. 1t was then in
the hands of the + order Z Afises, the usurpers,
and it was impose pie to 1t off GERS there who
would act with a ~ fairp sss, cr give any GER
taiDty that anythi, e like lstics would be done.
| That was our rea, object On to it, for was in
py heart 80 cons nced IL 1t the principle was
| universally ackno' lodged that Constitution
| formed by q Conv,e ltion ght 10 be submitted
to the people, tbs did Tot know but it was
contained in that ILL., / as off my guard. /
could not believe. ny An erican citizen would
endeavor to rob 4. peopt of this God given
! right of forming their os institutions, espe-
cislly as you had sid that be people of Kansas,
above al others, s,hould ,e perfectly free to
/ make their own institutio g in their own way.
How was that :: hav learned during the
session, By what has come out at side bar here,
| that this was a m alter of elaboration at that
| day; that the Conmittee on Territories, as
| have understood e state lent, were summon
ed to the house of their dief, there to sit in
judgment on this very clsf Sc, whether the pee
pie should or shot1d not Fave this right; and
understand that there sach clause in the
first bill was stricken out, and it was passed
by this BODY without any sach clause.
Mr.. HALE. FsT spec liar reasons" q.
Mr.. WADE. Yes, sir, or peculiar reasons.
1t was matter Of preme iitation. 1t did not
| happen by sccideu@ You did not intend, at
that period or at any otller, that the people
| should have the right to 81; in judgment on the
| Constitution by WHICH they were to be governed.
A running DISCUSSION here took place in
regard to the meeting of the committee and It's
deliberations, in which NJ. Bigler reaAirmed
what he had previously said about the striking
out of the clsuse fer submitting the Constitu.
ton to the people. 1t was finally cut short by
the motion to adjoI IN. On the following Mon
day, Mr.. WADE resumed
THE LITTLE \ ,YSTERIES OF POLITICS
Mr.. President, when | ALLUDED on Saturday
to that enabling act which vas called the
Toombs bill, had 10 ides that was about to
wake up 30 many reminiscences as have, in
almost every direction, in this Chamber call
ed attention to it, DOT will any purpose what.
ever of raising ant quest IN over the manner
in which clause in that bill seemed to have
been stricken out. / do D 1t care who struck it
out; do not care what deliberations were had
about 1t. The reason, a I'd the only reason,
why alluded to it was, that thought the Sen.
ator from Louisiana, Mr.. liESJAMIN, in calling
attention to 1t, hal given. it a consequence to
which it was not entitled I; and had some OBJ.
servations that l thought proper to make on
that point. But tts S9na !or from Pennsylva.
MIA, Mr.. BIGLER slways exceedingly jealous
OF any lmputslion 30 to BIS differing with the
President on any question supposed that some
one was about arr8:gning him for departure
| from the Democrstic faith on this subject.
| Now, sir, should fave been the last man in
| the world to suspect him &C any such thing. /
| supposed he and the President were Just as
much alike as the siamesN twins Laughter.
supposed what QUO thong At the other thought;
what befel one, alSsays b fel the other at the
| same time. l have no do lbt that he is always
orthodox. l hardts kno', from his remarks,
! who was the great fiscov{ Ter of this improved
idea of popular so1.7reigntS. The President, to
be sure, tells US th,t, in egard to submitting
| Constitutions to tn peor le, he formerly held
that this Constitution mus be submitted to the
people of Kansas, Il The W ole people, and that
they must have 4 ir opp rtunity to vote on it,
and must not be iterrufe ed by fraud or VIC,
lence but in his !, ie mestage be tells US that
bis mind at that per cd was fixed entirely on the
Slavery clause he did not think of anything
else. | understand the Senator from Pennsyl-
vsnia to have dec tred on Saturday that he
formerly held thaS Constitution certainly
should be submittet to the people, for their APP
ptosGl or dissent bat he also observed that he,
like the President, Chen be said 30, thought Of
nothing except thsr Slavery clause. | do not
know but that it M y be prudent, in the view of
some, to withhold she whole of Constitution
trola the consideration of She people who are to
i've under it at the,ime. 1t might be an over
dosej it might be aaittle too nuch for the stom-
achs of the people y take whole Constitution;
aAd if the people a&e not to Judge of it, who can
do it better than Hoctor Buchanan, or the SEN
ator from Pennsy rania? They give it to the
people by clauses ,they suppose there are some
things too high FOL the coDsideration of the peo-
| pie, when they colss to Investigate Constitu.
tioM. There are other matters, if understand
them, which 1t lie US 20 iDtrust the people with,
and they are to BIZ the judges OF Shst shall be
| submitted.
But, sir, was led to this course of remark
from the zeal Of gentlemen to define their posi-
tons on this subject. | suppose it is a princi
| pie OF the Demo- ratic party always TO be in
line with the Press Gent on all subjects. | sup
pose, if he takes snuff, every true Democrat
ought to sneezs, OF Slse be read out of the party;
and l suppose all true Democrats are willing
to do that. haze taken it for granted that
such would be the fact. But will state my OBJ
| ject IN Calling att milton to the Toombs bill. /
was not invited il 70 tie famous council where
| all the clauses o that bill were taken under
consideration, snt yet doubt not that under
stand it just ablr as well as they did, ard they
| will correct me II ! do not state it Alright. A
bill admitting 4 .nsss under whst was called
the Topeka Com tuition had lately passed the
House of Represe 1ta;ives, at the period at which
the Toombs bill as framed. 1t was sent here;
| and this body hal voted it down. The Rspub
| Leans voted fer Il, and the Democracy voted
| against it. We ere outnumbered, and the To-
peks Constitution was killed. As the Presiden-
tial campaign wal approaching, it did not look
exactly right, col sideriDg the commotiors To ct
had taken placs in Kansas Territory, that,
af'er voting dow the proposition the people of
the Territory hae given you, you should go into
the eanvasa SlthS 1t substituting anything for it.
II ~ss TO que % aS%, sho4id think that
council was held Tor the purpose OF getting EP
q very plausible neasure, which they knew the
Republicans VOL Id have to vote against, and
which could not ass the House of Representa-
tives, and which would be 8 very good thing
to take on the stump in the canvass. Ny
opinion is, that tat is about all the importance
that Is TO be att .ched to what Raa called the