Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1858-03-10
EBENsBURG, MARCH 10, 1853.

formation of murders and assassinations led
on by the party fayoring opposition to the Le-
compton Convention and when the Senator
from Massachusetts made his inquiry about
the absence of officers there, | could hardly
restrain myself from giving him little piece
| of informatlon which Ireceived this morning.
General Whitfield is Federal officer there
This morning l heard the fact, and | state it
ID the Senate, that he received notice from
the Anti-iaeccinpton men to depart from the
Territory or they would assassinate him.
his might give some little reason to account
for the absence of some of the Federal off
GERS.
1t is useless to cry peace, when there is no
peace; but there is an easy way to solve this
difficulty. AS their boundaries are not ex-
cePtionatle, as the Constitution presented is
republican, as the population is sufficient, is
1t then legal Constitution | say, yes In
the hrst place, IT emanated from the people.
The people are the source of power in all
government; bat the people. although they
are the source of power, cannot, except thro'
the forms of law and equality exercise their
power SO as to make a constitution 1t does
not follow because the people are the source
OF power, that they can abrogate all the forms
of law. They can only exercise their power
| IN and through the forms of law and hence,
IN the State of Kansas. the people directed
the first vote to be taken. To place this in
contrast with what the Senator from Michi-
gan Mr.. Stewart has said, will, | think.
turn the scale in favor Of Kansas He made
use of these remarks
The people Of Territory which is sbou.
to be formed into State, have right. and,
so far as my examination has gone, Congress
meter violated this right. to say in the first
place whether they desire to form a State
/ government now or not"
This has been uniformly decided Mark,
he says the people have right to decide it.
L make this broad assertion-for | have, in
the course of my examination Oh this subject
discovered nothing to the contrary-that in
no single Instance, except in Kansas, did the
people first decide that question for them
selves In the process of the change from
Territorial to State organization. In Ohio,
Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota and all the
other States where thoy had enabling acts
the enabling act said this preliminary uues-
ton, as to whether they would have State
organization or not, should be decided BY the
Convention. The Senator from Michigan
assumes that to be OF vital Importance If So
Kansas, in that respect has consulted the
people more fairly Of it be more fair to con-
suit them IN person than through their rep
resentatives) than any other Territory ever
did before
This source of power thus deciding in favor
of a State organization, the form of law had to
be made of to make it effective, equal
uniform and just The form of law was there
} fore given by the Territorial Legislature their
. agents and representatives A convention
act was passed, providing for the registry of
, the voters. for a census OF the people, and for
the election of delegates to a convention to
: form constitution. The registry was had.
! Complaints are now made that the registry is
: not fair. l have shown that ni..e thousand
two hundred and ffty-one votes were regis
: tered. l have shown that less than three
q thousand votes remained unregistered
q have shown that the officers were driven out
of some OF tho counties and prevented from
c executing the law l have shown that the
! whole wrong in the failure of complete reg
r istruton is with the anti-Lccompton party
g the opposition to the admission of Kansas un-
0 der the Constitution adopted by the Conven
s ton at Lecompton.
8 These are facts: but it is said, and said BY
:. the Senator from Illinois, and even by The
:. the Senator from Vermont, Mr. Collamcr,
: who is usually very fair that | seldom hav.
y anything to do with him except to differ il
: Judgment, and not about facts, that nineteeI
l. counties were represented in the Convention
n and nineteen unrepersented. hold it to b,
:, the duty of Senator's in the presentation o
a any case, not to make an impression to tn,
e prejudice Of the true state of facts when the,
&C are drawn out When the remark Is mad
,r simply that nineteen counties represen
ot ted, and nineteen unrepresented, what woul,
IN the public think = That half were unreprs
seated; but that is not so. Of ali tue vote
E. IN the Territory, less than three thousan,
1
in tered, and the counties not represented, con
re tain less than fifteen hundred votes l stat
OF that in the report of the majority. and | ad
it here to it, for it is true.
D. If you will take the list Of counties in wbic
L. no registration was had, and compare it eve
a. with the last vote returned OH the 4th of j. an
it uary, you will find there were only one thou.
le and four hundred and twenty three in all
ar them together. On that occasion there wa
" n different elective franchise for votin r-n
nc residence was required; the requirement Wa
D. simply that they should be bona foe inhab
n tants, including citizens and aliens; where:
is under the Convention law under which th
n registration was made. the persons registt re
nd must be citizens of the United States. an
Y, they must have their residence in the Tcrr
to tory from the 18th of March preceding
ID For the election of the 4th of January Z
for qualification was required, except simply Il
he fact of residence you required them to
Inhabitants you did not even require the
id, to be citizens of the United States, owing a
re leg,ance to our government you let all il
nl- and with this increase brought tn swell So'
ell numbers. you got but onethousand four hu
* dred and twenty three votes in these countie
III Thus say. whatever wrong was done r
Or suited from the misconduct of the oppositio
ice second, that wrong is magnifcd by represe
ts, ting 50 many counties. Why. sir. ! asse
Sc here to day that Clay. Dickinson and Was