True American. [volume] (Steubenville [Ohio]) 1855-1861, 1858-01-06

he whole game is denOminated, Popular
Sovereignty.
What is worse, the President Of the
United States argues that this would be
! fair settlement Of the question, and that
a lhe exercise Of such choice, The glo-
,ious doctrine of Popular Sovereignty is
amply applied aud vindicaIed. He admits
hat "lhe correct principle - as in the case
Df Minnesota, is to refer the Constitution
TO the approval and ratification Of the
people,; he admits that the only mode in
which The will 0flhe people can be ''au-
lhensically ascertsined i by q direct
vote"; he admits that the "friends and
supporters OF the Kansas Nebraska Act,
when struggling to sustain i!s provisions
before the great tribunal Of the American
people, !" .'eyeryWhere. throughout the
Union, publicly pledged their faith and
honor" to submit the question Of their
domestic institutions "to the decision of
the bOna,f ,fde people of Kansas, without
any qualification orrestrction whateyer";
but then, land here is the subterfuge,--I
"domeslc institutions" means only the
single institution Of slavery; and the Con-
venIion, in consenting to yield that and
This only in appearauce) to the arbitra-
ment of the people, has fully satisfied all
the mands Of the principle Of Popular
Sovereignty Their other questions are
all political; The questions as to the
organization of their executive, legislative,
and judicial departments, as to their cleo
tive franchise, their distribution Of dis
triCts, their banks, their rates and modes
OF taxation, etc., etc., are not domestic
questions, but political and provided
the people are suffered to. vote on the
future (nOt the exsting) condition Of
slaves. faith has been sufficiently kept
Popular Sovereignty means pertaining
10 negroes,"--not the negroes already in
The Territory, but those who may be here
after introduced; for the monopoly ofthat
branch OF trade and merchandise, which
is already established. and the future
growth and increase Of it, must not be
interlered with, even by Popular Sovel-
eighty, because that would be "an act Of
gross Injustice" In other words, Pop.
ular Sovereignty is merely designed TO
cover the right of the people to vote on a
single question, especially presented BY
an illegal body, under electoral arrange
ments made by its new officers, (which
officers not only receive, but count the
votes, and make the returns,-while all
the rest is merely unimportant and trivial.
Its just the sort of sovereignty for which
Louis Napoleon provided when he wished
10 procure a popular sanction for the
numberless atrocities Of The coup-detat
of the I'd December.
An old authority tells US that cit is
hard to kick against the pricks"; and the
President appears to have experienced the
difficulty, in kicking against the prcks
Of his conscience. He had committed
himself to principle which he is now
compelled by The policy Of his Southern
masters TO evade, and is painfully embar-
rassed as to how he shall hide his tracks.
He knows. as all the world knows, that
this jugglery in Kansas has been perform
ed for no other purpose than to secure a
foothold for Slavery there, against the
deponstrated opinion of nine-tenths of
The people; he knows, as all the world
knows, that il the Convention had had
the least desire to arrive at a fair express
sion Of the popular will, on the question
Of Slavery or any other question, it was
easy to make a candid and honorable
submission Of it to an election TO be held
honestly under the recognized officers of
the Territory; but he knows, also, that
under such circumstances the case would
have been carried overwhelmingly against
the "domestio Institutions" and thus
have rebuked, with all the emphasis that
an outraged community could give to the
expression Of its will, the nefarlous con-
duct which "the party" has pursued from
the begining,--and this was consum-
nation not to be wished. He therefore
wriggIes and shuffles, with an absurd and
transparent inconsistency, to defeat the
popular will, and yet mouth i, bravely
about "the great principle Of Popular
Sovereignty" ,st r.a al t..y
The President thinks that it is time
that these troubles in Kansas were at an
end, and we cordially agree with him in
the sentiment; but he needs scarcely 10
be reminded that they never will be a. an
end, until the wicked schemes, which
have been so long persisted in, to over
ride the convictions and hopes and inter-
ests Of large majority Of the Kansas
settlers, are utterly abandoned by those
who are in power. t.4 IS ".s' Fa.
OF the remaining and mostly routine
topics Of the Message we have no acca.
sion.to speak and weionly regret that the
|, deficiencies of the most impor!an. part.
! are SO glaripg as to obige US 10 treat them
with undlsguised severity. II .s ..g
. DEADLY EFFECTS OF SPIRIruALIsM.-
$ An intelligent young lady Of Newark
8 IN. j. writing 10 The Junior" give
] The details of "horrible transaction" il