New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-05-08
GEN. QUTrMAx ON THE KANSAS coM-
PROMISE BILL.

The following are the remarks made by Gen. Quit
man OF Mississippi. in the House OF Representatives
on the 29th Of April last, the report Of the Join
Committee Of Conference upon the bill for the ad
mission Of Kansas into the Union being under con
slderation. Simply Observing en- PEASANT, that MI
Milson of Virginia had the foor we submit tn
portion of the reported debate referred to-:
Il Mr.. ouitinan: win the gentleman allow me to sa,
a few words in reply 20 his speculatons on my pc
sition2
Mr. Q0ltman: | had not intended, after seekin,
the floor yesterday without success to trouble III
Honse with stating the reasons why opposed thi
bill, but can give them in few words. / constru
the bill reported by the committee of conference A
an express submission Of the question of the admis
| sion Of Kansas under the Lecompton Constitution
back TO the people OF Kansas, and thus virtually re
errng to them the adoption rejection of the Con
stitution, the more Objectionable because that refer
enee is not made to the quasi sovereignty which
acted upon that instrument originally, nor to tn
people acting under organized government but {,
disorganized mass of voters, who cannot speak fol
the sovereignty of State.
oppose the measure, in the second place because
it is concession upon this question which l. as d
Southern man, am not prepared to make. regard
this contest as mere incident to the slavery CUES
ton. am DESTROYS OF seeing this great issue be
tween the North and South brought to fair honest
and final settlement, which shall forever recognize
the full constitutional equality Of the save-hoding
states. II we can come TO terms, no man in the
House will rejoice more than l. III we cannot, let us
separate These are the main reasons why oppose
this bill
will answer the other question propounded by the
gentleman, that look upon the act OF the people of
Kansas complete--as an act of quasi sovereignty
with the consent Of the United States, in the orma-
ton OF Constitution. regard that act complete
and binding upon the people of Kansas, and as the
enly voice that have received here in regard to
their will have opposed the reference OF the whole
question back to the people of Kansas, or even to
any political power In Kansas +; and oppose it now
the more because it is simply reference back to the
individual men who may be entitled to vote at the
time this vote is to be taken. These are in short,
some Of the reasons why, with all respect for the
opinions Of my political friend cannot support this
bill. will not take any more of the genteman's
time by saying more.
Mr.. Millson The House will now, trust perceive
the application of the views | was endeavoring to
present at the time the gentleman from Mississippi
asked me to yield TO him. The gentleman says he
regards the act as complete and Kansas entitled to
admission Would he yield to her demand for adj
mission upon the terms proposed by her, claiming
twenty-five or thirty million acres OF the public land
Mr. Qultman ask the gentleman to allow me to
say that have regarded these propositions in
respect to land grants as forming any of the cond.
tons on which State is admitted in the Union.
wish 70 make this single other remark that Con
gress either has or has not the right to restrict the
entire rights Of State. If she does restrict them
then they are not binding upon the State, because
she can only admit the State upon one condition or
the other.
We are not surprised at Gen. Quitman's opposition
TO the English Compromise bill. Indeed we should
have been astonnded had be favored it. for the good
and sufficient reason that the DODGE by which it
is proposed to admit or reject Kansas is not at all
credltabe to Congress or the nation. The only argu
ment In Justification, worth a straw, that can be
brought forward Isl that it would possibly take an
irritating question out of the National Legislature
and tend to bring peace upon the country.
The bill, in itself, is an execrabe piece of wire
working, lodging the real issue, and evasion.
1t seeks to ratify, by indirection, part of the
work the people Of Kansas have done through their
Constitutional Convention and to undo, by direction,
the other part. II admits that the Kansas organic
law meets all the requirements of the Federal Con.
sttutionn other words that it is republican in its
character This admission is fatal to the authors and
of the BILL for II the Constitution is re-
publican in its features, the plain, unmstakable duty
OF Congress was to accept it without needless DELAY
and thus admit the new State as soon as the usual
could be conveniently gotten through with
Bat after this admission, the bill goes on to state
that the people of Kansas must vote to accept or re-
leet certain land grants prescribed in the aforesaid
bill, different from those demanded by their ordinance
TO the Constitution If they vote to accept then the
State is to be admitted under the Lecompton Const
tuition by virtue of a Presidential proclamation. If
they vote to reject then the Lecompton Constitution
and all other proceedings to be regarded as null
and void-that is, the Constitution, acknowledged by
the bill to be correct, is to be rejected An accept
ance or rejection of contemplate land grants is thus
made pivot on which is to be decided fundamental
principle Of government = the only principle for
which the South has contended during the whole Of
the Kansas controversy