The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1858-03-11

Constitution, or do any other act, I'M
der prctense Of preparing the Ter
ritory for admission into the Union
an q sovereign State" calculated or
intended 10 abrogate, impair or res
train the Legislative power Of the
Territory over all rightful subjects
Of legislation consistent with the or
ganic act. II these principles be
sound-if the doctrine Of General
Jackson's Administration in the Ar
kansas case be correct, the President
is mistaken in supposing that the
Lecompton Convention did or could
do any act, dcpriving the Territorial
Legislature Of the power and right
to pass law referring the Constitu-
ton to vote Of the people on the
4th Of January, with the view Of as
certaining the essential and all-im-
portant fact, whether it "mecis me
sense Of The people 10 be a6tc,d BY a."
The power Of the Territorial Legls-
laturc over the whole subject was az
full and absolute on the 18th day OF
December, when the law was enacted
providing for the submission Of the
Constitution to the people at tho cleo
ton on the 18th Of January, as it was
on the 18th day Of February, 1857,
when the Legislature passed the act
calling the Lecompton Convention in
10 existence. The Convention was the
creation af the Territnrial- I.egisla-
ture; WAS called into existence by
its mandate, derived whatever power
it possessed from it's enactment, and
was bound TO conduct all its pro-
ceedings "in ayid standardization 10 me
erist,ag Irrriioriai Government, !" AZ well
as in entire subscrviency to the
power Of Congress to adopt, reject,
or disregard them at their pleasure
Such being tho case. whenever the
Legislature asccrtaintcd that the
Convention, whose existence Deepen
ded upon its will had devised u
scheme TO force Constitution upon
the people without their consent, and
without any authority from Congress,
aud which was believed to be re-
pugnant to the feelings and hostile to
the interests of the people to be alice
ted by it, it became their imperative
duty to intcrposc and exert the au
thority conferred upon them by Con
gress ia the organic act, and arrest
and prevent the consummation Of the
scheme before il had gone into ope-
ration.
The Legislature deserves credit tor
the promptness, wisdom justice which
characterized its proceedings in this
respect. The members were familiar
with the wishes of the people, hav-
ing been elected after tho Lccompton
Convention assembled, and before it
concluded its labors, and ut the end
Of an exciting canvass, in which the
origin and organization of the Con.
vention, the circumstances under
which the delegates were elected,
aud their pledges to submit the Con
stitution to the people Tor ratification
or rejection, and the various provis-
ions which were to he Incorporated
into the Constitution, were all fully
and freely discussed by both parties
before the people. The Legislature
not only passed the act of the 18th
Of December authorizing the people
to vote for or against the Constitu-
ton before it should he sent to Con.
grcss for acceptance, but in order to
prevent any action by Congress be-
fore the people should have an oppor-
tunity of making their wishes known
in any authoritative and legal form,
the following preamble and rcsolu-
tons were adopted, as published in
the public prints by the unanimous
vote of the two Houses:
"PRsAanLr AND JciNr Resolutions IN
RELATION TO THE CONSTITUTION FRAMED
Ar I.gcoNrrox. KANSAS TERRITORY,
oS rHr I'm DAY ~ NOVEMBER, 1851:
HA,veds, 4 small minority Of the
people, living in nineteen of the ,hir-
tycight counties of the Territory.
availcd themselves of q law which
enabled them To ohstruct and defeat
u fair expression of the popular will,
did, by the odious and oppressive APP
plication of the provisions and par.
tisan machinery Of said law, procure
the return of the whole number of
the delegates of the Constitutional
Convention recently assembled a,
Lecompton
Had ,chertas. by reason at the de-
tectivc provisions of said law, in con-
nee ton with the neglect and miscon.
duct of the authorities charged with
the execution OF the same, the people
living within the remaining nineteen
counties of the Territory were not