The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1858-12-15
PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
Fellow- Citizens of the Senate
and House Of Represenfotives:

HeDOD- CtttzeHS OF Me SGnQt6
and House Of Representatives:
When we compare the condition of the
country at the present day with what it
was one year ago, at the meeting of Con
gress, We have much reason fer gratitude
to that Almighty Providence, which has
never failed to interpose for our re lief q,
the N ost critical periods of our history
One year ago, the sectional strife between
the North and the South on the danger
Gus subject of slavery, had again become
so intense as to threaten the peace and
perpetuity of the confederacy. The sp-
plication for the admission Of Kansas as .
State into the Union, fostered this unhap-
py agitation, and brought the whole SUBJ
ject once more before Congress. It was
the desire Of every patriot that such meas
ures oflegislation might be adopted, as
would remove the excitement from the
States, and conine it to the Territory
where it legit,mately belonged. Much
has been done, / am happy to say, towards
the accomplishment of this subject during
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 the Territories, whatever is held
as property under the laws of any of the
States, and to hold such property there
under the guardianship of the federal con-
stitution, 80 long as the territorial condi-
tion shall remain.
This is now well established position,
and the proceedings of the last session
were alone wanting to give it practical ef-
feet. The principle has been recognized
in some form or other, by an almost unani-
nous vote ofboth houses of Congress, that
Territory has a right to come into the
Union either as a free ora slave State,
according tn the will of q majority of ITS
people. The just equality of all the States
has thus been vindicated, aud fruitful
source of dangerous disssnsion among them
has been removed. r5leaE3 1a" z.s
Whilst such has been the beneficial
tendency of your legislative proceedings
outside of Kansas, there influence has
been nowhere SO happy as within that
Territory itself. Left to manage and
control its own affairs in its own way.
without the pressure of external influence,
the revolutionary Topeka organization
and all resistance to the territorial gov
ernment established by Congress, have
been finally abandoned. As patural
consequence. that fine Territory now ap-
pears to be tranquil and prosperous, and
is attracting increasing thousands of i'm.
migrants to. make it their happy home
The past unfortunate experience ot
Kansas has enforced the lesson so often
already taught, that resistance to Lawful
authority, under our form of government
cannot fail in the end to prove disastrou
to it's authors. Had the people of The
Territory yielded obedience to the law.
= enacted by their Legislature, it would al
the present moment have contained large
additional population of industrious ant
enterprising citizens. who have been de
i, tered from entering its borders by th,
) existence efcivil strife and organized re
bellion. ar e, rg8p35;, iasa.s1Hi
}! Itwas the resistance to -ightfnl au
,I thority and the perseveriug attempts tt
f establish a revolutionary government un
der the Topeka constitution, which caused
!, the people of Ksnsas to commit the gray,
; error OF refusing to vote for delegates {,
> the convention to frame constitution
, under law not denied to be fair an,
l and just in its provisions. This refusa
7 to vote has been the prolific source Of al
4 the evils which have followed. In thei
j hostility to- the Territorial governmen
they disregarded the principle, absolutely
(! essential to the working of our form o
s government, that a majority of those VIII
8 vote-not the majority who may remai
at home, from whatever cause--must de
eide the result of an election. For thi
; reason, seeking to take advantage of thei
own error, they denied the authority Q
the convention thus elected to frame
constitution aen a~i 81 a'.i
The convention, Notwithstanding, pro
ceeded to adopt constitution unexcep
tional in its general features, and providing
. for the submission of the slavery question
to vote of the people, which, in m
: opinion, they were bound to do under th
!. Kansas and Nebraska act This was tn
] all-important question which had alon
convuIsed the territory; and yet the oppo
. nents of the lawful government, presistin
in their FIRST error, refrained from exercis
ing their right to vote. and preferred tha
t slavery should continue rather than surren
!. der their revolutionary Topeka organi
zation. 7I
: A wiser and better spirit seemed t
prevail before the FIRST Monday of J anoar
D last, when an election was held under tn
: constitution. A majority of the peopl
then voted for q Governor and othe
: State officers, for member of Congres,
D and members of the Sta,e Legislature
This election was warmly contested b
: the two political parties in Kansas, and
r greater vote was polled than at any pre-
; vinns election. A large majority of th
? members of the Legislature elect belonge
s to that party which had previously refus
ed to vote. The anti slavery party wer