St. Cloud visiter [sic]. [volume] (St. Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1857-1858, 1858-06-17
The English-Kansas Bill.


readers to the following extract from the
speech Of Senator Seward, on the bill
which was passed in Congress admitting
Kansas into the Union, if she will ac-
ccpt the Lccompton Constitution, and re-
f,sing her admission under any other
We ask the men of Minnesota to settle
candidly in their own minds the question.
Is it right to offer Kansas 100000 dol
lars worth Of the public lands as a bride
for establishing slavery in their State !?
Would it be right to give her that much
more than MINNESOTA received; and to give
it for the express purpose Of defeating the
will of large majority of the people Of
Kansas?
Mr.. Crittenucn is southern man and
bis amendment to the Lccompton bill said
expressly that the Constitution should be
subjected to direct vote Of the people Of
Kansas. If n majority were in favor Of
it, Kansas should be proclaimed one Of the
States. If a majority were opposed to it
they might, whenever they pleased, call a
Convention, make another constitution and
come up for admission under it, just as
Minnesota did, aud in either case they
should receive their full amount Of the
public lands Was not that fair? Was
it not democratic? Was it not Squat
ter Sovereignty: Why then did almost
every Southern man, and some Northern
Democrats vote against it? The Republi-
cans every man voted for it, and we think
lid wrong in doing so; for by that vote
they said they were willing to admit Kan
sas as 4 slave State if the people of Kan
sas desired it, but they knew that the peo-
pio OF Kansas wanted free labor, and SO
they voted as they did but what about
tho democrats who voted decidedly against
permitting the people Of State to choose
their own constitution?
Read Mr. Stewards remarks:
I have to state in the fret place, that the bill
makes up end presents to the people Of Kansas,
and to the country, a-fctitious or false issue.
When | say false, l mean foreign or fictitious
question substituted for the true one. The true
issue before Congress and the country, is the
question whether the people Of Kansas shall or
shall not, as . condition Of coming into this
Union, have right to accept or reject the Le-
comton Constitution. Now, be it understood,
that Congress gives to every new State, when
i, comes into the Union, dowry taken from
tie public land within its borders. Every new
State receives it in every case. Upon the Civ
ing Of such dowry, or upon the quantity or
extent of it, speaking practically, no question
is ever raised in Congress The Lecompton
Convention sent an application demand
for u large doTly, one larger than is usally al
lowed. The Senate passed bill putting aside,
thrusling out of the way altogether, not only
the amount of the dowry, but the giving one at
al, postponing it until another day; and con-
tented itself with barely disclaiming, in the bill
FOR the admission Of Kansas which they passed
an assent to the demand which the Lccompton
Convention, speaking in the behalf Of Kansas,
lad made.
The House Of Representatives, in their bill
Off the admission of Kansas, treated the matter
III the came way. They turned to the Mime
sofa bill, and copied from it into their Kansas
bill, which they cent to the Senate, a provision
by which Kansas should receive dowry ex-
actly equal to that of Minnesota,
From the beginning Of this debate to the end,
there was no discussion, no question raised
about the amount Of the dowry, or the giving
it, or the Withholding it, and it was never
heard Of.
Then the speaker goes on to show that
Air. English makes this undisputed ques-
ton Of dover take the place of the real
question at issue.
I show the Senate next second false
issue presented in this new bill, an issue raised
concerning the actual amount Of population in
Kansas. The committee Of conference find that
there is just population enough to make q slave
State, and by no means enough, not one half
enough, to make free State. There it just
population enough to admit the State ut once if
.hp Loo ,,tSor md
not population at al enough to admit it under
any other.
Mr.. President, have shown that this bill
gives to the people only show Of choice be-
show that it provides for overriding, counter
scting, and defeating that very shadow of
choice if it shall be in favor Of freedom. The
bill Provides, not that the people Of Kansas, Or
their Legislature OF their authorities shall ap-
point the commissioners under whom the con-
taln,latcl election shall be held. and its results
nsos...-,nrd, but it constitutes board to consist
Of five persons; and while it allows two to be
named by the people Of Kansas, it asks three
for the President Of the United States. Now,
sir, there have been five agents appointed by
the President Of the United States to hold cleo
ons, and return results in the Territory OF
Kansas already, and every one Of them has
been dishonored and disgraced for having
struggled to prevent fraud, and to certify the
truth about these elections.
Upon what grounds IL this bill, thus shcw:
to be 80 deeply objectionable, recommended tc
us? First, it is recommended as a compromise
The honorable chairman tells us that whe1
there is difference there can never be q set
Element unless there is q compromise; tho
House Of Representatives has given away
something; the Senate have given away some
thing, though everybody, except myself, has
failed il .finding out what there is given Or got
ten. Still we are to accept it as a comprom
Use. If it is a compromise at all, to be urget
on me, it must be compromise that gives M
something Of freedom in exchange for much o.
slavery. What do get for freedom in Kansas
The privilege for that people to make consti
tuition vixen they shall have population of ont
hundred thousand and coming here md pre