The Washington union., 1858-03-10


diplomatic expenses Of the government for the year
ending June 80, 1853
Mr. KETrr of South Carolina, said he should limit
himself in discussing the admission Of Kansas under the
Lecompton constitution TO two questions first the
sttutonalty of the application and second the expe
dency of her admission The first proposition naturally
oame under two heads first, the power of Congress in
the premises and second the character OF the proceed
ings in Kansas. Whatever power Congress possessed
must be derived from the constitution. The CON
sttution of the United States compact or
treaty between States delegating certain powers to
agents created or appointed by themselves for
certain purpose It different from the constitution
within the limits of State because the State oonstitu-
ton was prohibition upon the exercise of power The
federal constitution delegation Of power and Con
gress could exercise any power except that which
strictly within the spulaons of the organic act fed
era compact There could be no exercise OF implied
power by Congress except under powers delegated spcc
cay Ii it true then that the federal constitution was
compact between sovereign and independent States, and
true that they could exercise but powers specified,
the question back 10 The power Congress had in the
premises that in the constitution No power was
granted this subject except in these words .New
States may be admitted by Congress into the Union.
What was a State 1t political term represent
ing two deas--a certain amount of land laid of on
the surface of the earth, and population, not
in the sense of individuals but in the sense
of people who could not die people pcrpeuated gen
Grafton after generation The absorption of these two
IDEAS the blending of the spiritual with the cofporea in
the concrete form of political society State. 1t was
State such the old thirteen that declared their
independence and maintained it by force of anhe
power to admit State the power to treat with
am equal This clause did not cndow Congress with
power to rear and train up and form State, TO ma
npulate Territory into the maturity of State but
gave it only power to treat with an equal and when they
treated with Kansas they treated with equal. The
next clause was that the United States should guaranty
every State republican form OF government and that
meant any form of government which corresponded with
the of any one OF the original thirteen States
J,c ,,;r Tho
ton of power into the great departments Of Legislative
executive and judicial Were not all powers divided
under the constitution of Kansas between the legislative
executive, and judicial departments and was not that re-
publican Under the constitution the power of Con-
gress was exhausted when it had inspected the form of
government.
He came next to the proceedings in Kansas. The fed
era government being itself founded by political socic
ties could know nothing but political society All IN
terror matters all municipal affairs absolutely
within the scope and compass of State jurisdiction State
constitution sprung from mass OF men, but the federal
constitution sprung from organized political societies
State might therefore know individuals but the federal
constitution know only political society The Kan
sas bill organized government and made political
cety This government of course perpeuated itself and
nothing could be known except what came through it
The only authority existing in Kansas the only organ
lied political society through their necessary FORMS call
ed upon the people to know whether not they wond
have convention and form constitution They said
they would That convention was formed and was the
of sovereignty They could only know the spirit of the
government through its FORM and government itself
nothing but higher form through which society vedand
was expressed The ratification of the constitution
vesng the march of mankind and blotng out the expe
rence of ages Could society live without law and order
and without FORM and could it have these with the nvid
u put above society," and society elevated above the gov
crn He concurIcd with his colleague in the Senate
Mr HAAMoND, that constitutions made by the mi
nority 1t true there two great objects in all
governments personal rights and property rights In a
government like ours the personal rights pos
sessed by each man, and they safe Improperly
in the hands of the minority and was constantly in
danger of aggression.
In his opinion, the people could not change their
sttuon before 1864 Society itself but the acc,eton
of individuals, and government but the instrument by
which society kept together. He admitted that the
sovereignty of the people did reside in the original
ycnon and admitted that sovereignty could not bind
another but the sovereignty Of to day could put checks in
the way of invoking the sovereignty o tomorrow. They
might tell him that when the convention met it
eirntv but they must understand they conioundng
natural right with the social right and if they put checks
upon the only agent which could call them together,
then when it met it would be nothing thana mass
meeting
Mr.. CLEMENS, of Virginia. inquired how the gentle
man reconccd that argument with the provision in the
constitution of Kansas which provides that the people
of Kansas have all times the right to change THEN
form of government.
Mr. KETrr Who are the people of Kansas Are
the people organized under the form of government the
people outside of the government The gentleman
must make distinction between inhabitants and people.
The people only known through the forms of gov
crnmen and not outside, and therefore the people OF
Kansas can only be called together through the forms
Mr. CLEMENS inquired now he coniendcd that where
the constitution specified particular mode it restrained
the power in another part
Mr. KElrr replied that the general declaration in the
bill of rights like preamble and was restricted by
the provisions of the bill itself. The argument would
make sovereignty like toy to be played with 1t
question between the government and the people OF
Kansas and he was willing TO leave it with them
There was no spectacle more imposing than that which
presented itself before them Three States with const
tuons in their hands asking admission into the
federal Union. Minnesota from the land of prai-
res, and though her admission sweled the free State
power the South caped her outsretched hands. Oregon
came from the Pacific sum- and though she too had joined
the free State baud TO her cordial welcome given
Kansas came, born with southern sun, and maturcl
through trouble and agitation and would they of the
North give her a welcome Ii not. why did they reject
herr Was it because of slavery in her constitution
few days ago the great leader of party in this country
Mr. SEWARD said the bnttle fought and the victory
won and that they required but little organiza
ton of the North for the North take possession of the
government and WELD oil its powers for her especial in
tercst They had said that slave State should ever be
admitted into the Union. Was it to fix the South in o
hopeless minority that through the instrumentay 1t as
government they might oppress and plundcr it Was
the South be chained to the chariot wheels of the Northf
If so they had reckoned without their host. If they
told the South that slave State should again be admit
ted they would shake every pillar of the federal edi
fee Tell the South they meant to keep her in n
minority and he would tell them that federal tax
gathercr who came beyond the region of the North
would ever again tread their soil The republican party
with their ceremonial might take possession of the gov