Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1858-12-11
Presidents Message.
Feiloao-citissss Of the Senate and
HoUse Of Ps,yr<Se,,toy;r.o.

have much reason for gratitude to that Al
mighty Providence which has never failed TO
interpose for our relief at the most critical
periods ofour history. One year ago the sec
tional strife between the North and the South
on the dangerous subject of slavery had again
become so intense a. 10 threaten the peace
and perpetuity Of the Confederacv. The APP
plication for the admission of Kansas as
State into the Union fostered This unhappy
agitation, and brought the whole subject once
more before Congress. 1t was the desire of
every patriot that such measures Of legislation
might be adopted as would remove the ex-
eitement from the States. and confine it TO
the Territory where it legirimately belonged.
Much has been done, L am happy to say. to-
wards the accomplishment of this object, du-
ring the last session of Congress.
The Supreme Court of the United States
had previously decided that all American
citizens have an equal right to take into 'he
Territories whatever is held IA property under
the laws of any OF the States, and TO hold
sach property there under the guardianship
of the Federal Constitution, so long as the
Territorial condition shall remain.
This is now a well-established position, and
the proceedings of the last session were alone
wanting to give it practical effect. The prin-
ciple has been recognised. in some form OF
other, by almost unanimous vote of both
House of Congress, that a Territory has
right to come into the Union either az free
or a slave State, according to the will OF a
majority of its people. The just equality Of
all the States has thus been vindicated and
fruitful source of dangerous dissenslOn
among them has been removed.
When such has been the beneficial ten
dency of your legislative proceed ngs out
side oil Kansas, their influence has no where
been so happy as within hal Territory i H..
Il II nj r1I fis.I
in its own way, without the pressure of eX-
ternal influence, the revolutionary Top ka
organization and all resistance to the Terri
torial government established by Congress
have been finally aban oned. As a natural
consequence, that fine Territory now appears
to be tranquil and prosperous, and is at
tracing incre sing thousands of immigrants
to make it their happy home.
The past unfortunate exp rience of Kansas
has enforced the lesson. so often air, ady
taught. that resistance to lawful authority
under our form of government cannot fail in
the end to prove disastrous to its authors.
Had the pt ople of the Territory yield, d ODE
dience to the laws enacted by their legislature
it would at the present moment have contain
ed large additional population Of indus
trious and enterprising citizens. who have
been deferred from entering its bOrd r. by
the existence of civil strife and organized re-
bellion.
1t was the resistance to rigEtful authority
and the perseverng attempts to establish a
revolutionary government under the Topeka
constitution which caused the people Of
Kansas to commit the grave error of refus-
ing to vote for delegates to the Convention TO
frame a constitution, under law not denied
to be fair and just in its provision. This
refusal to vote has been the prolific source
of all the evils which have followed. In
Il =
they disregarded the principle. absolutely
essential to the working of our form of gov
eminent, that majority of those who vote
not the majority who may remain at home
from whatever caus-must decide the re-
suit of an election. For this reason. seek
ing to take advantage of their. own error.
they denied the authority of the Convention
thus elected to frame a constitution.
The Convention, Notwithstanding. proceed
ed to adopt a constitution uneXceptiOnable
in its general features and providing for the
submission of the slavery question to a vote of
the people, which. in my opinion, tn were
bound to dOundcr the Kansas and Nebraska
act. This was the all-important question which
hadalOne convulsCd the Territory; and vet the
opponents of the lawful government, persist
ing in their first error, refrained from cXcrcis-
ing their right to vote. and preferred that
slavery should continue rather than surren-
ucI IheH IchoiulpiialS lppir -d VI Sd'liLdtloii.
- L-..~- -r~:=4 - r-----=i
before the first Monday of January last. when
an election was held under the constitution.
A majority of the people then voted for a
Governor and other State officers, for a mem
Der of Congress and members of the State
Legislature. This election was warmly con-
tested by the two political parties in Kansas,
and greater vote was pOlled than at any
previous election. A large majority of the
members of the Legislature elect belonged to
that party which had previously refused to
vote. The anti-slavery party were thus plac-
ed in the ascendant and the political power
of the State was IN their own hands Had
Congress admitted Kansas into the Union I'M
der the Lecompton Constitution the Lrgsla-
ture might at its very first session have sub
mitted the question to a vote of the prope
whether they would or would not have Con-
ventiOn to amend their constitution either on
slavery or any other question. and have adop-
ted all necessary means for giving speedy cf-
feet to the will of the majority. Thus the
Kansas question would have been Immediate
ly and finally settled.
Under these circumstances I submitted to
Congress the constitution thus framed. with
all the officers already elected necessary to
put the State goVernn emit into OPP ration, ac-
cOmpanied by strong recommendation in
favor of the admis ion of Kansas as State
never performed any official act which, in the
retrospect, has afforded me more heartfelt sa-
tisfaction. It's admission could have inflicted
no possible injury on any human being, Will
it would, within brief priod, have restored
peace to Kansas and harmony to the Union.
In that event, the slavery question would ere
this have been finally settled, according to the
legally expressed will of majority of the
voters, aud popular sovereignty would thus
ri he. ~
manner.
With my deep conviction of duty. could
have pursued no other course. It is true that,
as an individual, had expressed an opinion,
both before and during the session of the
in favor of submitting the re-
naming clauses of the constitution, a well
as that concerning slavery. to the people.
But acting in an official character, neither
myself nor any human authority had the pow
er to rejudge the proceedings of the Conven-
ton. and declare the constitution which il
had framed to be a nullity. To have done
this would have been violation Of the Kan
sas- Nebraska act. which left the people OF the
Territory perfectly free TO form and regueate~
their domestic institutions-in their own way.
subject only to the Constitution of the Uhited
States.- 1t would equally have violated the
great principle of popular sovereignty. at the
foundation of our institutions, To deprive the
people of the power, If they thought proper
to exercise it, OF eoniidiug To delegates elect
ed by themselves the trust of framing a con-
stitution, without requiring them To subj CT
their constituents to the trouble, expense aud
delay of second election. Ii would have
been In opposition to many precedents in our
history, commencing in the very best age OF
the Republic, of the admission of Territories
as States into the Union without a previous
vote of the people approving their consttu-
ton.
Ii is to be lamented that a question so
insignificant, when viewed in its practical
effects on the people of Kansas, whether
decided one way or the other, should have
kindled such flame Excitement through
out the country. This reflection may
prove to be lesson of wisdom and of
warning for our future guidance. Prac-
tically considered, the question is simply
whether the people OF that Territory