Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1859-02-05
THE ADMISSION or GRECO

a majority of the committee on territories
made up Of course of administration democrats
have prepared a bill for the admission of Ore
gon into the Union as sovereign State, and
their chairman, Mr.. Stephens of Georgia, is
anxiously waiting for the opportunity, when this
committee shall be called upon in course for re-
ports for its introduction into the House of
Representatives. 1t is reported that the Re-
pubEcans will oppose the admission of Oregon
at the present time, which opposition has been
anticipated by the democracy and denounced in
no measured terms.
The time mode, and manner Of admission of
new States into the Union by Congress, is left
by the Constitution wholly with Congress. In
the exercise thereof States have been admitted,
some WITH some without, a previous act of
Congress authorizing the people of the Terri
tory to form constitution and State govern
ment. The territories of the Union have thus
been transformed into States without uniformi-
ty in the mode and manner of procedure, and
without any uniform number of population
the whole subject of the propriety of admission
having been left to the discretion of Congress
at the time of the application of the proposed
State
The two Houses Of Congress, however at
their last session. declared in their action on
the application for the admission of Kansas as
State, that its then existing population was
sufficient for its immediate admission into the
Union as slave State; but if its people were
unwilling to come into the Union with such a
constitution, they could not take the intiatory
steps for admission until their population equall-
ed the ratio of representation required for
member of the House of Representatives That
restriction received the approval of the Prcsi-
dent, and is now a law upon the statute-book
The President, not satisfied with his official APP
proval of the act at the time of its passage,
takes OCCASION in discussing the Kansas qucs-
ton in his annual message at the opening of
the present Congress, to say, relative to the adj
mission of Kansas as State: ".Surely il is not
unreasonable 10 require the people Of Kansas 10
'oaH, before makiag third attempt, until the
number IF their inhabitants shall amount to
nhety-drcc HouScad foW h,adred and t,centg."
The President in the same message, also declares
that any attempt by the people of Kansas to
form State constitution before the number of
. their population reaches the required amount,
would be sin cypress riolation Of the lroris-
ions Of an act Of Congress-"
With this law on the statute book. and with
these official declarations of the President. it is
nropoSpA q admit nrouo,, ;,,t., IL,
population less than the number required bv
this law, and with a population not exceeding,
II equal to that of the Territory of Kansas
The largest vote ever polled in Oregon was 1O,-
12l. In June last it was 1OlO5. The entire
vote of Kansas on the first of August last, was
1920, being 3,ls1 moro than wore polled in
Oregon.
The application for both Kansas and Oregon
to be admitted into the Union were presented
at the last session of Congress. Neither had
been authorized by previous act of Congress
to form a constitution, so that in that respect
they were both alike. So far as could then be
ascertained there was little or no difference as
to the number of population. Each had elected
State Legislature and other officers, and so
far they were alike prepared to enter the Union.
The only real difference that existed in the tno
cases prior to the application for either was that
Oregon had a Territorial government not un-
satisfactory to her people, and Legislature
chosen by her own citizens, while the Territorial
organization of Kansas was usurpation by
fraud and force, and its political power had
been welded by usurpers and despots.
The only reason that can possibly be urged
for this discrimination in favor of one Territory
and against another, must be found in the fact
that the political offices and political power in
Oregon are in the hands of democrats; while
the inhabitants of Kansas, although originally
mostly democrats, goaded by pro~slavery ad-
ministration and the abusive conduct of corrupt
democratic officials, are nearly all Republicans
In this as in all other measures that receive the
administration approval, our national govern
ment is made subversive to the maintenance
and necessities of the democratic party, or to
the support and reward of the placement. In
our opinion this discrimination in favor of slay-
cry and the democracy has reached crisis when
every free citizen should seek to check and re-
strain it. 10 that end we trust that Oregon
will be kept in waiting, at least until the re-
striction on the admission of Kansas is rcmov-
ed.