Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1858-01-20
kansas Affairs---Gov. Wise.


invitation TO participate in the celeorauon Vi
the sth of January, at Tammany Hall, Ne"
York has kicked up regular "rumpus IN tne
Do,oocratic household. The letter emoodles
The Governors views on the Kansas Oonsttu-
zion and. in various particulars, we are disposed
to think he is right, whatever may nave oeen
his motives in assuming the novel position ne mas
taken in regard to the admission OF Kansas lie
;s right in the opinion that force and fraud have
boon attempted on both sides and to some ex-
tent prevailed in the struggle over the question
of slavery. He is entirely and emphaucaiiy
right in the opinion that the 'ohote Oonstltu'ion
onght TO have been submitted to the people LOT
their ratification or rejection, ifsuomltteu a' dill
and that the reference of the Slavery clause
merely, was virtually thrusting the oonstiVu'ion'
Cbsrripe the question of Slavery down tne
tbroats of the people, noteRS 0otens. III 'niS
view the Governor differs with the PRESIDENT
and we agree with the Governor. AS 10 .ne
n,sn proposed by Gov. Wise, which is to solve
all difficulties and stake all the asses over 'n'
bridge of shrieks, we are not so well asSureu'
His proposition is, as we understand II, tha'
Congress receive the Lecompton Oonstitution,
.rb;ect 70 a fair and legal vote of the people OF
Kansas. according to law to be preserloeu III
their territorial Legislature. In other "oruS
that Congress shall say to the people when 'ney
present their Constitution, we are not aiSpoSeu
70 reject this instrument; so far as the Oonstl'u
tion itself is concerned we make nosobjection TO
il but we are not convinced that you the peo-
ple are satisfied with It yourselves, and there
fore we will receive it only upon this dlstlnct
understanding, viz: that you are TO suouilC Tue
whole affair to vote of the people before we
can invest YOU with all the attributes OF State
sovereignty. Now we can perceive notnins ~
be gained by such action towards setuenlen'
of the difficulties. 1t will be equivalent 10
rejection of the Constitution, renew with ten-
fold violence all the strife and discord that mas
attended the struggle for ascendarcy IN the Ter
ritory, lead to further frauds, and perhaps
more disastrous exhibition of force on both Sides
without attaining more favorable results than
we have now. If the Lecompton Constitution
ia the result of shameless fraud and unveiled
trickery," it is the fault OF the Kansas oin'
which certainly did not, in plain and eSphci'
LANGUAGE require the whole Constitution to be
submitted to the people, nor did it, in our opin-
ion, require any part of it to be submitted IL
left the people free to regulate their domestic IN
situations in their own way" Ihis tney pro-
oeseded to do through their agents, the mem
hers of the Convention, without lnstructlng
those agents to refer their work back to the u
nal tribunal--the people-for ratification or re-
lection. Accordingly the Convention framed
this Lecompton Constitution, and lett Tree TO
exercise their own judgments, they saw Mt to
snbmit one clause of it merely to the people,
Fully empowered to act for the people, without
restraint, save the indefinite language ofthe Kansas
bill they undoubtedly had the right to submit
all or none of it, and we presume, by like rea-
soning mad the right to submit only part we
saw that so far as the principle OF the thing Is
concerned they ought to have submitted 1t all
bnt that the matter was entirely within the
scope of their legitimate power, to do soor not as
thew saw fit. They chose middle course, ana
in this they are sustained by President Buch-
anan IF then the Lecompton Constitution
was the result of "fraud and triokery," it is due
+o the blunders of the trainers of the Kansas
hill and the no less culpable blunders OF the
President in his instructions to Walker.
Our own disposition is to admit kansas as
soon as possible, under almost any sort OF con-
st;tution, so that she may be enabled to attend
70 her own business Without the Intervention OF
tho Federal Government. We should be entire
II wiling to 'les her 10" under the LecomPton
Constitution, unless indeed thar Instrument Ssaily
eontsips susl s5SpaiIAble provisions as are allu-
ded 10 by our Senator, Mr.. Stuart elsewhere ~
this paper
Gov. Wise finds himself almost alone at the
South in his peculiar views, and we expect soon
to see him read out of the party. We publish
in another column the indignat remarks OF the
"Sonth-side Democrat" The South pokes him
under the short ribs with long pole. The
Legislature adopted resolutions directly in the
teeth of his sentiments by an overwhelming
majority, and even the "Richmond Enqui
rer pronounoes his letter 'ill-timed and indis-
GREET Alas and alack-a-day Whitherto
shall he flee, save into the arms of his trusty
friend of the "Richmond Wing" The Governor
wonld indeed be in pitiable condition but for
the increased popularity which this letter has
given him at the North. The Black Republican
New York Times is in raptures with it, and re-
CARDS our Governor as the only specimen ofunde-
filed Democracy in Virginia. Some are suspi-
cious enough to suppose that the letter was
written to court the favor of Northern Demo-
Gratis and Black Republicans, and it is believed
in some quarters, that there is combined and
deep Wise and Douglas movement against the
President. The "Times" remarks that "his ex-
perience as governor has doubtless given him a
taste for Executive duties, and he probably
thinks it would be great deal pleasanter, and
somewhat more patriotic, to be President of the
Union than to be its destroyer.
Town improvement.
The 'sVindicator" suggests that another sto-
ry be added to the Market House now in course
of erection, for the purpose of affording 8 room
L. H.