Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1858-12-10

should. 10 the place OF the very large grants OF
public lands which they had demanded under
the ordinance, accept such grants as had been
made TO Minnesota and other new States. Un-
der this act, should majority reject the prop.
osition offered them, I" IL shall be deemed and
held that the people Of Kansas do not desire
admission into the Union with said Constitu-
t,ou under the conditions set forth ~ said pro-
posifion.n In that event the act authorizes the
people Of the Territory 70 elect delegates 10
form a Constitution and State Government Tor
themselves, "whepever, and not before, i'll as
certained by census. duly aud legally taken,
that the population Of said Territory equals or
exceeds the ratioof representation required for
member Of the House Of Representatives. Of
| the Congress Of the United States" The del
| eeates thus assembled @shall first determine
| BY vote whether it IL the wish Of the people
| OF the proposed State TO be admitted into the
Union a. that time, and IL SO. shall proceed to
form a constitution, and take all necessary steps
| for the establishment of State Government In
conformity with the Federal Consultation" At
ter this consultation shall have been formed,
Congress, carrying out the principles Of Popu-
| lar Sovereignty aud non n-iuterveption, have left
I" the mode and manner of It's approval or rati-
Hcaiion by the people Of the proposed State" to
he qprescribed by law" and they /" shall then
be admitted into the Union as a State under
such constitution THIS fairly aud legally made,
with or without Slavery, rs said constitution
may prescribe
pursuance Of the provisions Of this act, on the
second day Of August last, aud 1t resulted in
the rejection, by large majority Of the proposi.
/ tion submitted to the people by Congress- This
being the case, they are nov authorized to form
\ another constitution, preparatory to admission
| into the Union, but not until their number, as
ascertained by census shall equal or exceed
the ratio required to elect q member of the
House OF Representatives.
/ 1t is not probable. In the present state Of the
case, that a third Constitution can be lawfully
framed and presented to Congress by Kansas
before its population shall have reached the
i designated number. Nor is 1t to be presumed
that after their sad experience In resisting the
! Territorial laws they will attempts 20 adopt a
Constitution In express violation Of the provis-
ions Of an act Of Congress. During the session
1 Of 1856 much of the time OF Congress was occu-
pied on the question Of admitting Kansas IN.
der the Topeka Constitution. Again, nearly
the whole Of the last session was devoted TO the
question Of its admission under the Lecompton
4 Constitution. Surely it is not unreasonable to
require the people Of Kansas TO wall, before
making third attempt, until the number of
their inhabitants shall amount to ninety three
thousand four hundred and twenty. During
this brief period the harmony Of the states, as
we'll as the great business interests Of the eoun-
try. demand that the people of the Union shall
! not for third time be convulsed by another
agitation on the Kansas question. BY waiting
for a short time, and acting in obedience to law
Kansas will glide into the Union without the
slightest impeachment.
4 This excellent provision, which Congress
has applied to Kansas, ought to be extended
and rendered applicable to all territories which
NAV hereafter seek admission into the Union
: While Congress possesses the undoubted pow
: er Of admitting new state into the Union, how
ever small may be the number of its inhabi-
tants, yet this power ought not in my opinion, 70
be exercised before the population shall amount
, to the ratio required by the act for the admis-
sion of Kansas, Had this been previously the
!. rule, the country would have escaped all the
. evils and misfortunes TO which IT has been ex'
4 posed by the Kansas question.
: OF course, it would be unjust togiye this rule
a retrospective application, and exclude State
! which, acting upon the past practice of the
: elected its Legislature and other officers, and
10 now prepared to enter the Union.
, | The rule ought to be adopted, whether We con
slider its bearing on the people OF the Territories
or upon the people of the existing States. MANI
| of the serious dissensions which have prevailed
in Congress and throughout the country would
have been avoided had this rule been established
! at an earlier period of the Goserpment
II Immediately upon the formation Of new Ter
ritory, people from different states and from for
eign countries rush into it. for the laudable pur
pose of improving their condition. Their Hrs
duty to themselves is to open and cultivate farms
to construct roads, to establish schools, to erec
: places Of religions worship, and 10 devote thei
energ gies generally to reclaim the wilderness ans
| to lay the foundations of fourishing and pros
, porous commonwealth. II, In this incipient con
Z ditiop with population of q few thousand, the,
. should pfematurely enter the UnioH they are op
pressed BY the burden OF State taxation. ana th'
I means necessary for the Improvement OF the Ter
! ritory and the advancement OF their own inter
ests are thus diverted to different purpose.
!, The Federal Government has ever been Q iiber
E al parent to the Territories and generous con
tribntor to the useful enterprises OF the early set
4 tiers. II has paid the expenses or their Govern
: ment and Legislative assemblies out Of the. com
e mon treasury,and thus relieved them from heay.
= charge. Under these circumstances nothing Cal
be better calculated TO retard their material pro
gress than TO divert them from their useiui en-
D ployments by prematurey exciting angry poiitl
y cal contests among themselves, for the benefit
i aspiring iea6ers IL 10 surely no hardship foF em
: bryo Governors, Senators. and Members OF Con
. gress, to wait until the number OF inhapitant
! shall equal those Of single Congressional pis
I, trict. They surely ought not to be permitted =
: rush into the Union with population less tnal
one, half of several OF the large counties IN ID
interior Of some of the States. This was the cor
!, dition of Kansas when it made application to b
d admitted under the Topeka Constitution. Be
3 Sides 1t requires some time to render the mass
|, q population collected In new tsrritory 81 q
: homogeneous, and to unite them on anything hk
q | q fixed policy. Estab.ish the rule, and all wi
!. look forward TO it and govern themselves accord
n ingiy. az =
! But Justice to the people of the several State
: requires that this rule shonld be established b.
q Congress. Each Stats Ia entitled to two Sena
tors and at least ons Representative in Congress,
!. Should the people Of the States fail to slsat
h | Vice President, the power devolyes upon tn
) Senate to elect this officer from the two highes
| candidates on the list. In case Of the death q
: the President, the Vice. President thus eleGtel
v by the Senate, becomes this President of the u
nited States. On all questions of Legislation. th
! | Senators from the smallest States Of the Hnio
y have an equal vote with those IRON ths largss
= The same may be said in regard 70 the ratiiica
I'll tion of trssties and Of the Executive appoint
\ ments All this hes worked admirably in prae
: tice, while il conforms in principle with tn
d | character of u government instituted by Sove
\ reign States. presume no American citize
II would desire the slightest change in the ar
2 rangement. Still, is il not unjust aad unequa
: TO the existing States, TO invest some 10000 o
= $4,000 people collected in Territory with th
. attributes Of sovereignty, and place them on q
J, equal footing with Virginia and New York i
: the Senate Of ths United States
= For these ressons earnestly recommend th
s passage Of general act which shall proyid'
that upon the application of Territorial Legis
. IIatnre, declaring their belief thai the Territor
' contains number Of Inhabitants which, II in
4 | State, would entitle them TO elect member {
' Congress. il shall be the daty OF the Presiden
y Il :. = n. -