Daily Republican., 1880-08-04
Mr.. EnEIish and His Lecompton
TFeachery In 1855.

Mr. EuEltsh ana HIS LecOmptOn
Troachery In 1858.
From the West Chester Record.
II is probably not worth while to pay
much attention TO the tall ofthe Dem
ocratic ticket. MIR. English certainly
will not help General Hancock any
where outside OF Indiana, il he does
there, except 30 far as he may give
money toward the campaign expenses.
But there may be some interest In an
Investigation Of Mr.. EuglIsh's brief
term Of public service-his eight years
In Congress from 1858 to 1861-for it
refers to o period Of time which old Re-
publicans do not readily forget.
Mr.. English's chief performance, and
that by which he gets place in the
history Of that day, was his production
of the "English Bill" This was at
the first session Of the 35th Congress
in the winter of 1878. The struggle
in Kansas had progressed to the point
where Buchanan, serving supinely his
slaveholding masters, was using all the
force Of the national administration to
drive the infamous Lecompton CoDstitu-
tion through Congress, and against 1t
the young Republican party was mar.
shaled in solid ranks, with the assist
ance of that much smaller but vigor-
GUS and gallant body Of "Anti-Lecomp-
ton Democrats" among whom stood
John Hickman, Of Chester county. The
Republican leaders in the Senate were
Seward, Wilson, Sumner and Ben
Wade, and in the House such men as
Howard OF Michigan, Grow Of Pennsyl-
vania, Bingham Of Ohio, and Burlin-
game.of Massachusetts,. Douglass stood
at the head Of the Democrats, in the
Senate, supported BY Stuart and Brod-
erick, while in the House there we're
% Democratic Representatives who had
thus far been faithful to the principle
of free government against all the pres
sure of the South in its efforts to en-
slave the Territory Of Kansas.
1t was at this conjunction that
Euglish came in with his bill. He, one
Of the %, made the motion to betray
them. The Lecompton Bill passed the
Senate, March %, 1858, by vote Of 80
to 25, but in the House, on the motion
Of Montgomery, from the Washington
district Of this State, the essential ad-
dition was made that the constitution
(Lecompten) before becoming operative,
should be submitted to a vote of the
people of Kansas. Upon this amend
ment conference between the two
chambers was ordered, and the COM
mittee from the House consisted Of How
ard, (Rsp.,) English, (anti-L Lecompton
Democrat and Stephens, (Lecomptop
Dsmocrat.) In the conference 1t was
English that turned traitor. He agreed
to new amendment Of the bill, such
as the pro slavery men demanded. and
Joined with Stephens against howard
In reporting it back to the House in
shape which then Became known aa
"the English Bill" and which was re-
gardel as . betrayal Of the cause which
he had professed to be maintaining. In
brief, the plan he agreed to was this:
that while the frame Of government
fixed upon by the Lecompton gauge OF
border rufisns should 60 TO the people
for Q vote, it was to be accompanied By
"oondition." II the people voted to
take 1t they were to receive large
land grant, and immediate admission
as . State Of the Union; but if they de-
cided to reject it. they were to receive
no land, and were to remain indefinitely
a Tefritory-to be harrassed and torn
by Buchanan and the bands Of pro-sla-
very rufiAns.
Such was Ehglish's treschery. His
bill was a surrender to Buchanan and
the enemies of Free Kansas. 1t was SO
regarded on both sides. The Lecomp.
ton Democrats strained every nerve to
pass it. In the Senate, Stuart, the
companion of Douglass, denounced il
as "a miserable, ingeniously concocted
measure to smuggle through Congress
and fasten upon the necks Of the peo'
pie OF Kansas, an obnoxious organic
law" Henry Wilson declared it "a
conglOmeration of bribes, menaces, and
frauds. 1t goes to the people of Kan
sas," he said, "with q bribe in one
hand and a penalty in the other" In
the House IL men out of the rs stood
firm. English had deserted, and sc
Ihad Cox, Of Ohio, and others. Sun
doubtedly," says John B. Haskin, Of
New York, one of the IL, "some of the
Anti. Lecompton Democrats who finally
voted for the English bill were infu-
enced by official patronage, and some ol
them, perhaps, by oficial gifts"
The 12 men who opposed the Eng
lish bill were Thomas L. Harris, Isaac
N. Morris, Aaron Shaw, Robert Smith
and Samuel 8. Marshall, Of Illinois ;
John G. Davis, of Indiana; Horace F.
Clark and John B. Haskin, OF New
York; Garnett B. Adrian, Of New Jer-
sey Joseph c. MeKibbin, from Cali
fornia and two sturdy men from Penn
sylvania, Henry Chapman, Of Bucks,
and John Hickman, OF Chester. Mont
gomery, himself, went with English,
and so did Owen Jones, of Montgomery
county-the act buryiug him deep
under a phenomenal Republican ma
jority for Hon. John Wood, when the
October election came around.
We cannot, at this moment, present
any of the views Of gohn Hickman on
the English bill and its author. He
denounced it and voted against it. He
thought English, after protesting to be
man of principle, had betrayed the
Lecempton Democrats. That sturdy
and honorable gentlenan Of the old
school, Henry Chapman, took the same
ground. And so history has recorded.
Mr.. English stayed in Congress one
term more and then returned to obscu-
rity, but he had fixed himself forever
| in the annals of the time ss the author
HaRG