Saint Paul weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1858-1859, 1858-10-02
Address of the Republican State Oehtr"i
Committee.

The election Sooii W NC HSiu III o"i p'"'N
is one of the very greatest Importance i'm
portant in its results to our party and the
State not only, but important in its effect on
our national politics.
Upon the Legislature then to be chosen
will devolve the duty of electng Senator to
succeed General SHIELDS, and Of districtins
the State for Representatives to Congress
Allow the Democracy to elect majority CT
1T, and Minnesota will be again disgraced by
the election of fit associate of that politica'
gambler and speculator, III. Nj. RICE. ALLOW
the Democracy to carry the Legislature ana
the State will be so dstricted for Cong eSS'
that the populous and strongly Republican
Counties will be controlled by such as CasS,
Pembina, and Todd. The diStrlctlng OF the
State for the Legislature also, will be so ar
RANGED as to give them the control OF 1t Tor
long time to come.
In the struggle that has for years been 60
mo ON in the nation between Freedom aud
Slavery. it is not difficult to see the time
but a little way in the future-when the i'm
portance of one cote will be seen and felt
when one vote may decide that great moral
and political question. That time will come
scorer or later, and it may come within the
next six years, and the man that will be cho
sen Senator by the Legislature you are now
about to choose. may have the casting of thai
vote. How transcendently important, then,
does this election become ! And can it by
any possibility be decided IN favor of the
Democracy and Slavery? God forbid 1t
aaSt be decided in favor Of Freedom and
Republican principles. If the Democracy
triumph, then will Slavery and its devotees,
the Eaters of the South, and the Dough-
faces Of the North, rejoice with exceeding JOY.
If the Republicans triumph here, then Will
Freedom rejoice, and the hearts of its sup
porters everywhere be made glad. If the
Democrats succeed here, then will the Caro-
linas Alabama, and Mississippi, with their
Keitt, their Toombs and their Davis, con-
graduate victory of the Slave Power. Ii the
Republicans succeed here, then Maine, Mas
>achusetts and New Y ork, with Their Fessen-
dens and Halnllns, their Wilson's and Sum-
ners, their Stewards and Kings, will hail it as
their victory and be glad with US. And isit
not insulting to the people of our State, the
most northern and therefore naturally the
most liberty loving of them all, to ask them
hoc they desire this election to go? How
they desire the great question settled
And the effect of this election on our State
affairs is badly less important than on the
nation. Thr ugh the Democracy, our State
is di yraced at home as well as abroad. AT
the last election, as is well known, a clear
majority of the honest votes was given to
the Republican candidates, but by system
Of frauds the most glazing in character, the
will Of the people was defeated, and the candl-
dates of the democracy declared elected to
fill the State offices. The election of Gov.
RAMSEY was so well understood and so gener-
ally conceded, that an examination oil the
! matter before proper tribunal was demanded
and expected By the people, but such obsta-
cIes are thrown in the way of an examination
of the records, by Democratic officials that
a prop.r preparation OF the case Is next to
impossi5le The Legislature then chosen,
assembled IN accordance with provision OF
fine c,nstitut;o,r last December, aud without
waiting for Conrrt,ss to give the State legal
existence, proceeded at once against the
solemn protest of the r, >oublican minority,
to the business of legislation. AS soon as
possible law was passed pro vldlnS Tor the
election OF Senators, and immedi, deiy theie
after, General SHIELDS and H. NJ. r ICE were
chosen. The Republican members up 10 th'S
time protested against anything in the way
of legislation being done until the State hat.
legal existence; asking and voting Tor an
adjournment until that time should come
| the Democrats steadily and persistenty OPP
posing and voting against it. Thus were
four months of time worse than thrown away,
and many thousands of the peoples money
worse than squandered. All this time the
Secretary of the Territory, and then acting
Governor assumed to be the Governor of the
State and acted as such.
The adjourned session commenced in .JuEe,
ard it would seem that the dominant party
should have gladly embraced the opportuni-
ty, then offered, OF dong something for the
people and the interests of our young State
there t en- being no obstacle in the way OF
| legislation, the State having been admitted
by Congress. But the Democracy had more
important matters to attend to than the
wishes and necessities of the people. Gen
| SHIELDS had drawn the short term, and al
though it would not expire before another
election would be held and another Lcgisla-
ture assemble, the opportunity OF eecting q
fit associate for RICE was too tempting to be
passed by. The General had proved himsel
posses .ed of too much honesty and manhood
to bow down before the slave power and
ODE, its behes.s, and therefore could no lon
ger represent the Mocca,n Democracy. Blu
chanan Lecomptonism, too, demanded anoth
| err Senator OF the hlce STRIPE, ara ScVera
aspirants appeared anxious to show their tit
ness for the place, and an election was re
solved upon at that session. The necessary
legislation for which the people were suffer
ing was mainly passed by Or the bills allowed
to sleep in the hands of the committees, al
of which We're controlled by the party il
power. But few laws Of general importanc,
were passed, and many of these We're vetoed
by the Governor (?). More than two months
were spent in Pr pairing the way for an cleo
ton of Senator. The most outrageous pro
ceedings ever witnessed in deliberate bod.
were enacted to effect their desires but al
would not do. A few honest Democrats