The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1858-12-16
Presidents Message.

with what it was one year ago, at the meeting
Of Congress, We have reason for gratitude to
that Almighty Providence, which has never
failed to interpose for our relief ut the most
critical period Of our history. One year ago,
the sectional strife between the North and
the South on the dangerous subject of slavery,
hadakain become so intense as to- threatened
the peace and psrpetuity of the confederacy.
The application for the admission Of Kansas
as a State into the Union, fostered this nm
happy agitation, and brought the whole sub
jdct once more before Congress. IL was the
desire Of, every patriot that such measures of
legislation might be adopted, as would remove
the excitement frsm the States and confne it
to the territory where it legitima.ely belong
ed. Mt has been done, am happy to say,
towards the. accomplishment of this object,
during the last session of Congress,
The Supreme Court of the United States
had previously decided, that oil American
citizens have an equal right to take into the
territories, hatever is held as property un-
der the laws of any of the States, and to hold
such property there under the guardianship
Of the federal constitution, so long as the ter
ritorial condition shall remain.
IA This is now well established position, and
the proceedings of the last session were alone
wanting to give il practical effect The pr'n-
ciple has been recognized In some form other
by an almost unanimous vote of both houses
Of Congress, that territory has right to
come into the Union either as free or a
slave State, according to a will of majority
Of its people. The just equality OF all the
States has thus been vndicated, and fruitful
source of dangerous dissension among them
has been removed.
< Whilst such has been the beneficial tenden-
sy Of your legislative proceedings outside OF
Kansas the 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 any exter-
nal influence, the revolutionary Topeka or
ranization aud all resistance to the territori-
al government established by Congress have
been finally abandoned. AS natural con-
sequence, that fine territory now appears to
be tranauile and prosperous, and,is attracting
increasing thousands of immigrants to make
it their happy home.
The past unfortunate experience OF Kansas
has enforced the lesson so often already
taught. that resistance to lawful authority
under the form of government, cannot fail in
'the end to prove disasterous to its authors
Had the people of the territories yielded obe-
eience to the laws enacted by their legisla-
ture. it would at the present moment have
contained large additional population OF in
dustrious and enterprising citizens, who have
been deferred from entering its borders by
the existence Of civil st ife and organized re-
bellion.
Iswas the resistance to rightful authority
AMI the persevering attempts to establish a
revolutionary government under the Topeka
constitution which caused the pc pie OF Kan
cas- to commit the grave error OF refusing to
vote for delegates TO the convention to frame
q constitution under law not denied to be
fair and Just in its provisions This refusal
TO vote has been the prolific source OF all the
evils which have followed In their hostility
TO the territoria! government they disregar-
ded tho principle, absolutely essential 10 the
working of our forms of government that
majority of those who vote--not the majority
Who NAV remain at home, from whatever
cause must decide the result of an election
For this reason, seeking to take advantage OF
their own error, they denied the authority OF
the convention thus elected to frame consti-
sutton.
The convention, notwithstanding, proceed
ed TO ADOPT a constitution unexceptional In
its general features, and providing for the
submission Of the slavery question to vote
Of the people, which, in my opinion, they
we're bound to do under the Kansas and Ne
braska Act. This was the all important
ouestion which had alone cow ulsed the ter
ritory; and yet the opponents of the lawful
government, persi.tiug in their first error,
.refrair, from exercising their right to vote,
and perfarring that slavery should continue
rather than surrender their revolutiona. Y
TopeSa organization :,
4 wiser and better spirit seemed to prevail
before the first Monday ofJannary last, when
An election was held under the constitution.
= a. fbon yntei for n
Goyernor and other S ate Officers, for mem-
'bers Of Congress. and members Of the State
Legislature. This election was warmly con-
tested by the two political parties in Kansas,
and q greater vote was polled than at any
previous election. A large majority OF the
members of the legislature elect belonged to
that party which had previously refused to
vote The anti-slavery party were thus
pla,ed in the ascendant, and the political
power Of the state was in their own hands
Had Congress admitted Kansas into the Un-
ion under the Lecompton constitution, the
legislature might, at its very first session,
have submitted the question to vote Of the
psople, whether they would or would not have
o convention to amend the constitution, either
on the slavery or any other question, and
have adopted all necessary means for giving
speedy effect to the will Of the majority
Thus the h2uSaS qdeSticu Wouia uoNe oeeu
Immediately and finally settled.
Under these circumstances, submitted to
Congress the constitution thus framed, with
all the officers already elected necessary to
put the State government into operation, ac-
companied by q strong recommendation in
favor Of the admission Of Kansas as State.
In the course of my long public life have
never performed any official act, which, in
the retrospect has afforded more heartfelt
satisfaction. It's admission could have in
fictsd no possible injury on any human be-
ine, whilst would within q brief period. have
restored peace 70 Kansas and harmony to the
Union. In that event the slavery question
Nould ere this been finally settled. according
70 the legally expressed will of majority Of
The voters, and popular sovereignty would
thus have been vindicated in constitutional
manner. 49, -
With my deep conviction Of duty, could
have pursued no other course. 1t is true,
that, - an individual, had expressed an
opinion, both before and during the conven-
tion, in favor Of submitting the remaining
clauses Of the constitution, ae we'll as that
concerning slavery, to the people. But, act
Ing In an ofiicial character, neither myself
nor any human authority had the power 10
s.sA>, H. - h.