Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1858-04-13

Woodson, Wilson, Greenwood, Godfrey and
Hunter.
OF these thirteen counties nine had but
small population in them. This apart from
the statement of Mr.. Calhoun and other relia-
BILE information. clearly appears from the re-
turns of the election on the 4th January last
the official announcement of which is filled
with the papers of this report. From that it
will be seen that not a vote was returned as
having been cast in that election in seueq Of the
thirteen counties about the Acknowledgement of
which so much complaint has been made.
These seven counties are Weller, Wise, But
Ter, Wilson, Godfrey, Greenwood and Hun
ter. Nor was there vote at that election in
either of the three unorganized counties of
Washington, Clay and Dickinson.
In two of the thirteen counties stated above
-to-wit: Madison and Woodson-there We're
hut 80 votes cast-40 in the former and so in
the latter; and but I135 in the four remain
ing-tO-wit: Franklin, 304; Breckenridge 1911:
Coffee, 453; and Anderson, III: so that if the
election of the 4th January should be receiv-
ed az evidence of anything. it would prove
nothing more conclusively than that the
-clamor about the disfranchisement of half the
people. or even a considerable portion of the
Territory, is utterly groundless. and resOrted
to only as preteXt for the want of something
more solid. This pretext becomes the more
glaring when the cause of there being no re-
gistry in these four counties of Franklin,
Breckenridge, Anderson, and Coffee is under
stood. This is fully explained not only by
the statement of Mr.. Calhoun alluded to, but
by the deposition of Geo. Wilson, 10 be found
in Senate Document No. 81 at this session
From these and other notorious facts the real
and true cause of failure of registry of vot-
ers IN these counties. and consequent failure
! of representation being apportioned to them
! in the convention, too clearly appears to need
much explanation. The parties in whose be-
! half the cry of Acknowledgement is now raised
| prevented the registry themselves Since the
| organization of that Territory there has been
| in it class of men whose avOwed object was
| to oppose and overthrow all legal authority.
| They went there with this purpose. Their
| object was to set up an ineerium in in,peyio. In
| the language of the President, they have ben
| in estate of rebellion" against the legally
| constituted authorities from the beginning.
| This is fully established by numerous reports
of Governors Shannon, Cary. and Walker.
| and 'cretary Stanton. They were. to a great
! extent the emissaries of those who denounced
! thu Kansas bill when it passed as a great
! wrong and an outrage" and who were
! resolved to ut its peaceful operation.
To show the ground leseness of the first cla-
| NOR. as well as the last we might here inquire
! what was the wrong or outrage of that bill?
| Was il a great wrong or outrage to permit
! the pope of \ w York, Mas achusetis, or
| other States of the North. as well as the pnO-
| pie of the South going into new Territory,
| the common property Of all, to be as free as
they were at their native homes; and in form
| ing new States to enjoy the same rights which
! their fathers did in the formation Of all our
present State constitutions and governments:
| This is Just what that bill did on the main
question of controversy in Kansas-nOthing
| more-nothing less But, rather than this
great principle OF right, Justice, and equality
carried out. this class Of men went to that
Territory to defeat it at every hazard. S. ting
themselves up in defiance of law from the be-
ginning, they now denOunca constitution
made by those who cOnformed to law as "a
fraud" "a cheat" and "a swindle." But thu
more ultra of the same party elsewhere have
long since said much worse things of the con-
stitutiOn of the United States This class OF
malcOntents in Kansas are organized in q
party having the control Of some of the cnun-
ties They refused to recognize the validity
of the law requiring the registry to be made.
| They opposed its execution. both by with
holding their own names in some instances.
and in others by driving the officers, whose
duty it was 10 make it. from the country. with
threats to take the life of any who should at
tempt it, This was particularly the case in
Anderson and Franklin counties. If. then
venton, their distranchiSeme,h was the work OF
their own people. Another significant fact
to be noticed from their registry and appor-
tonment together with the official report OF
the 4th January, is this: that the five cOun-
ties-to-wit: LeavcnwOrth. AtchisOn. Doug
las, Doniphan, and JeAerSon-at that election
cast an aggregate vote of 5.llS, which is
majority of the whole vote reported to have
been cast throughout the entire Territory
tba nd vol oil thps,
counties were represented in the convention
They had 80 of the GO delegates of which that
BODY was composed. Now, if ii be true that
the opponents of the constitution are so
largely in the majority in those counties and
are so violent in their opposition, as they are
represented to be, why did they not elect men
to the convention, who would have formed
constitution more to their liking? These coun-
ties alone, by the registry, had within -four
votes of twO-thirds of the convention, and
could have made just such constitution
would have been most agreeable to their peO-
pie. If they refused to act at the proper time
why do they complain now? If others. con
forming to the law. went into the convention
and formed constitution to suit themselves.
was il not their tur. just, aud legal right to
do it? These complaints come too late, even
if they come from orderly, law-abiding citi-
Zens. As w ii might the thousand who alb
stained from the polls. or threw away Their
votes, at the last presidential election, now
come forward and claim that the present adj
mnistration Is Illegal, and should be set aside.
because the intugurated Chief Magistrate did
not receive majority of all the legal voters
of the u lifted States. for these people now
| to C, mplhin of the result of th"ir own lQches
/ or Illegal acts. or to seek to remedy ii by any
/ snch irregular proceedings as the vote taken
on the 4th January against the constitution,
after it had been legally adopted.