Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1886-02-18

four for and seventy-three against. On the
th day OF May, Senator Wade, of Ohio
moves to take up the house bill admitting
Kansas, but was beaten by vote of twenty.
sl1 1or and thlrty-two against. On the 4tt
day OF June Charles Sumner makes O speech
in favor of admission, after silence of fou,
years, caused by the brutal assault of Pres.
ton 5. Brooks. After the discussion Hunter
OF virginia, moved a postponement of the
Kansas bill. and it carried by vote of thirty.
three Tor and twenty seven against. On the
list day OF January, 1861, the bill for the nd.
MISSION OF Kansas passes the senate by q
vote OF thlrty-si1 for and sixteen against.
Un 70, the 18th President Buchanan signs the
Dill, Kansas becomes state, the struggle is
over. the battle is won, and the good people
OF Kansas are to-day enjoying the fruits OF
victory. ! have on another occasion given
personal sketches of the members of that
convention, but the subject is not exhausted.
Columns might be written about Thacher,
hIngman, Stinson, Mcdowell, ingalls,,
Mlnchell, Blunt. and others. Two members
OF that convention have represented the
state IN the United States senate. John
:: ingalls, is now serving as senator,
his, third term in that iilustrious
body. E.. G. Ross. now gov
ernor of New Mexico, served
by appointment and election nearly
i've years as senator. S. A. Kingman was
on the supreme bench of the state for many
years, hrst as associate and then as chief
Justice of that court. S. O. Thacher. w. C.
Mcdowell and John T. Burris have adorned
the bench of the district court in their re-
Spective judicial districts, Thacher has grad
ually grown in public estimation since his
brilliant service in that convention until
now he is man of established national rep
utation, an honored citizen at home, re
Spected representative of his country abroad.
The youthful secretary of that convention,
whose years numbered only twenty-one, is
now the chief magistrate of this marvellous
commonwealth. But the list is too long. l
forbear, for your sake, further citation to
20 fact that the subsequent lives and ser
vices of the members of that body fully JUS
tify what have claimed for them.
When we turn to the several articles and Sec
tons of that instrument that have been the
subject of amendment, il will be found that
most of the amendments thereof, were not
necessitated by the inherent defects of the
instrument, but because of the RAPIDLY
changing condition of the state itself. The
first amendment, adopted November. 1861,
was allowing banking institutions to issue
circulating notes of the denomination of one
dollar, the original section forbiddino an is
sue of less than IS notes. An amendment
that is practically useless now. The next
amendment was made in November. 1854.
and by 1t section 12 of article 2, that required
that call bills shall originate in the house of
representatives, and be subject to amend
ment or rejection by the senate" was made
to read "Bills may originate in either house,
but may be amended or rejected by either"
And this was decided practical improve
ment of the original text. Section 3, of arti-
Gle 5, was amended in November. 1864,
the main object of tn, amendment being to
confer on citizens who were serving in the
volunteer army of the United States, the
right to vote, and authorizing the legislature
to make provision for taking the votes of the
absent electors. Section 2 of that same
article was amended in November, 1867, so
as to withhold the right to vote or hold Office
from those who had been dishonorably dis
charged from the service of the United
States. who had been found guilty of de-
frauding the government; who had been
guilty of giving or receiving bride, or Offer
ing to give or receive a bride, who had borne
arms voluntarily against the government, or
aided or abetted the attempt to overthrow
the government.
Section 4, of article Is, was adopted in
November, 1868. This is change from let
ting the public printing to the lowest re-
sponsible bidder to the establishment of the
office of state printer, who receives a stated
compensation for the work done. This
change is perhaps an improvement on the
method devised by the convention, and its
success may be fairly attributed to the three
faithful old Kansans who have successfully
been elected to that Offices. S. Prouty,
George w. Martin and 7. Dwight Thacher.
It can be be truly said of them and of their
work as state printers: "Well done, thou
good and faithful servants" In November,
1873. came the amendment increasing the
number of senators to 40 and the represen-
tatives to 125. At the November election,
1875, the amendment providing for biennial
sessions of the legislature. commencing with
the session of 1877, was adopted. The next
that followed was the amendment prohibit
ING the manufacture and sale of Intoxicating
liquors, except for specified purposes. This
was the introduction of new matter into the
composition of the state government-the
constitution as adopted and existing up to
hat time having made no reference to the
liquor traffic" This completes the amend
ments made to this time. | make no refer
express the wish that they may be adopted.
claim for the members of that body, who
framed fundamental law which has gov
erned state for twenty-f years-years of
marvellous growth and unexampled develop
ment-that time has demonstrated that they
had very fair conception of the wants, con-
iitions and necessities of the people for
WnOm tney aCteU, anu, NOTWITHSTANDING Tic
wonderful increase in population and pro-
luction, that instrument has accelerated
rather than retarded a growth that has never
been equaled on the American continent.
There is to-day within the boundaries of
Kansas !. 100000 people. Even the most en-
thusiastic citizen of Kansas would not, a
quarter of century ago, have VEN
tured to predict such result; and
yet an ardent admirer, an enthusiastic
but philosophical lover of Kansas. Horace
Greeley; peace to his ashes. said at Osawato-
mic on the 18th day of May, 1859, The
child is now born on Kansas soil, but will
live to see this state the fifth
in agricultural production in the union"
When the federal census of 1880 was taken,
only twenty -one years had elapsed since the
date of that prophecy and the state was
nearer the sixth than the seventh in rank,
in the amount of agricultural products, in
Guiding live stock. to which its soil is
adapted, and if we take those conventional
thirty years, which are loosely supposed to
constitute the space of time covered by one
generation, as the life of that child, We
have only to await the census
of 1880 to verify the prophecy. doubt
whether the men of to-day, any more than
those of twenty five years ago have given
thought or entertain q conception of what
grand, glorious, and prosperous common
wealth is building up among them. How this
influx of people, how this blending of blood,
how this every day intercourse between peo-
pie of different nation alities, and different