The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1858-09-04
The Great TrumbuII Lic..Aa Attempt 70
BOlsfer IL an.


which was worn out on hundred stumps
in 1855, and therefore now excites no notice
or comment. But the other half of his
speech is new, and emanating from a Sena.
tor Of the I. S, is deserving of notice. 1t
is characterized by Trunbull's usual vndic-
tiveness and utter disregard Of truth. In
deed, we know Of no other instance where
man Of Trumbuirs reputation for ability,
has, in speech of equal length, strung to-
ee,her 20 many false statements, and done
it so bunglingly that the falsehoods detect
themselves. The new half Of his present
speech covers but two material points. One
IS shallow attempt to make political CAPT
tai by diStortng and exaggcrating the ex-
penditures Of the present democratic admin
Stration; and the other is the humbus
charge against Judge Douglas, that, in his
action upon the "Toombs Kansas BILL" he
attempted t" force upon the people of Kan
sas slavery Constitution against their will
We shall haye at present to do only with
this latter charge.
This charge, as We said, was first made
at Chicago. 1t was in this shape: That
when the Toombs bill was originally intro
duced in the Senate, it contained clause
requiring the Constitution Of Kansas to be
submitted TO vote Of the people that
Doug las had stricken this clause out; and
that, therefore the pretence OF Judge Doug
las now. that he had always been in favor
of allowing the people Of Kansas to adopt
just such constitution as a majority of
them should approve, was a hypocri,ical
pretcnce.
This charge. az cur readers are aware,
was promptly met, when first made at Chi.
cnso, Ivy the Times Of that city, and on it's
reproduction here, was met by Us, and prov
ed to he utterly and malicou>ly false. 1t
was shown from the record, that the Toombs
bill never did, and never was intended to
contain clause requiring the Kansas Con-
stitu,ioL to be submitted to the people, and
therefore Judge Douglas could have strick.
such clause out that Trumbul nd-
| mitted this in 4 speech he made in the Sen.
| ate at the time; that the trainers Of the
ToombS bill omitted such a clause because
it would have been unusual, having never
been inserted in any other territorial bill,
but tina, they all agreed at the time that the
democracy stood pledged that whatever
constitution was formed under the Toombs
bill, it must be submitted to q vote of the
people by the Kansas Convention or at least
must be such constitution as should he
acceptable to a majority Of the people, and
that, if such a constitution was not formed,
Judge Douglas stood just As much pledged
| and was just as free, and was therefore just
| sion of Kansas under that constitution as
| he was to oppose admission under the LIE.
compton constitution.
! These answers having thus demolished
the only part of Trumbull's new speech that
really amounted to anything, it became ne
cessary, on its re-dslivery at Alton, that he
should either omit this Part entirely, or
bolster it up with new falsehoods. 1t ap-
pears he took the latter course, and in the
Chicago Press Dc Tribune Of Tuesday, We
have the new version. He now says. in
view of the evidence above alluded 10, lad
hitting tn: pretence that the omission OF q
clause in the Toombs bill requiring the Con-
stitulion to be submitted, was Intentional
and because it was believed, the bill being
silent on the subject the Constitution would
necessarily be submitted" l propose to
show, that other clauses nsre INTENDED in
tie bill (t'y Judge d. putting it adsolueety
out IF the pouer Of the contention to submit
tie Constitution to the people," This is his
new charge, and this is the way he proves
it. He says Judge Douglas had added to
the 1lta section Of the Toombs bill these
! words:
And Unit, the complete execution o,this act. 9TH
er election shall be held IL said territory"
Trumbul is at his old trick-he can't
| quote the whole section, for that would ex-
pose the fraud-so he gives a detached
clause. What does it mean? Trumbull
SAYS in his Alton speech. that it meant that
the people are prohibited from having an
election on the adoption Of the Constitution
TO be formed under the Toomhs bill So he
says no,o. Unfortunately, on the 81 Of Ju-
", 1856. (~ee App. Cong. Globe. p. IT'S
Judge Trumbull quoted this same clause in
the L. S. Senate. and then he gave it very
different meaning. He said:
1.-THE eIe zenith section of the bill now before de-
c'ares that until the competition Of thi, act other
al ad provided for territorial election in October
next whel be determined whether the people
preparatory to az: mission Union &c. but thi
bill tclHuse, treats MI that ason as void and declares
that the people shall hon. no con ON the LIST OF Osto
Der, rs he territorial Law provided
Brayeiy and honestly SAL Sc the CLAUSE
had reference only to an election fixed ~
the territorial legislature to he held befor
the election Of the constitutional conventi.r
contemplated hy the TOombs bill. An'
this, indeed, is all that It did mean. Blu
Chase suggested that if this constitutions
convention should not he held. or the con
stitu,ion should be roted dOrn! then under
this clause there could thereafter be no cleo
|, iion in the territory for members Of the leg
islature. and thereupon. to meet this ohjec
ton. Mr.. Douglas moved to am. nd tn,
,, clause which Trumbu'l had quoted and nov
so miserably perverts, 80 as to read 70,
, lows:
To avoid all conflict IN the complete execution
t;, act all other elections said territory hereby
postponed until such time sasd conoetsos shdu up
point" -. .
And in this shape, without opposition
the section was adopted. Again. to shov
: that Trumbull had no thought that IN
e clause he QUO. ed at Alton would interior
!. | with the Suhmi, Linn thu constitution to