24 pie on one of the plainest provisions of constitutional liberty. I Next comes the Remedy of Injustice and b Civil War—organized by Act of Congress. [.This proposition, which is also an offshoot of ithe original Remedy of Tyranny, proceeds r from the Senator from Illinois, [Mr. Douglas] K with the sanction of the Committee on Territories, and is embodied in the bill which is ■ now pressed to a vote. f, By this Bill, it is proposed as follows : “ That whenever it shall appear, by a census, to be taken nnder the direction of the Governor, by the authority of the Legislature, that there shall be 93,420 inhabitants (that ( being the number required by the present ratio of representation for a member of Congress) within the limits hereafter described as the i'erritory of Kansas, the Legislature of , said 'i'erritory shad be, a/nd is hereby authorized to pro- | tide by Lazo for the election of delegates, by the people of , said Territory, to assemble in Convention, and form a Constitution and State Government, preparatory to their admission into the Union, on an equal footing with the original States, in all respects whatsoever, by the name of the , State of Kansas.” Now, sir, consider these words carefully, and you will see that, however plausible and 1 velvet-pawed they may seem, yet in reality they are most unjust and cruel.* While affecting to initiate honest proceedings for the formation of a State, they furnish to this Territory no redress for the crime under which it suffers; nay, they recognize the very Usurpation in which the crime ended, and proceed to 1 endow it with new prerogatives. It is by the 1 authority of the Legislature that the census is to be taken, which is the first step in the 1 work. It is also by the authority of the j Legislature that a Convention is to be called for the formation of a Constitution, which is the second step. But the Legislature is not obliged to take either of these steps. To its absolute willfulness is it left to act or not to act in the premises. And since, in the ordi- 1 nary course of business, there can be no action of the Legislature till January of the next year, all these steps, which are preliminary in . their character, are postponed till after that distant day—thus keeping this great question open, to distract and irritate the country. Clearly, this is not what is required. The 1 country desires peace at once, and is determined to have it. But this objection is slight by the side of the glaring Tyranny, that, in . recognizing the Legislature, and conferring upon it these new powers, the Bill recognizes the existing Usurpation, not only as the authentic Government of the Territory for the time being, but also as possessing a creative power to reproduce itself in the new State. Pass this Bill, and you enlist Congress in the conspiracy, not only to keep the people of Kansas in their present subjugation, through- ; out their territorial existence, but also to protract this subjugation into their existence as a State, while you legalize and perpetuate the very/<2rc6 by which Slavery has been already planted there. I know that there is another deceptive clause, which seems to throw certain safe-. guards around the election of delegates to the Convention, when that Convention shall be ordered by the Legislature; but out of this very clause do I draw a condemnation of the Usurpation which the Bill recognizes. It provides that the tests, coupled with the electoral franchise, shall not prevail in the election of delegates, and thus impliedly condemns them. But if they are not to prevail on this occasion, why are they permitted at the election of the Legislature? If they are unjust in the one case, they are unjust in the other. If annulled at the election of delegates, they should be annulled at the election of the Legislature f whereas the bill of the Senator leaves all of these offensive tests in full activity at the election of the very Legislature out of which this whole proceeding is to come, and it leaves the polls at both elections in the control of the officers appointed by the Usurpation. Consider well the facts. By an existing statute, establishing the Fugitive Slave Bill as a shibboleth, a large portion of the honest citizens are excluded from voting for the Legislature, while, by another statute, all who present themselves with the fee of one dollar, whether from Missouri or not, and who can utter this shibboleth, are entitled to vote. And it is a Legislature thus chosen, under the auspices of officers appointed by the Usurpation, that you now propose to invest with the parental powers to rear the Territory into a State. You recognize and confirm the Usurpation, which you ought to annul without delay. You put the infant State, now preparing to take a place in our sisterhood, to suckle with the wolf, which you ought at once to kill. The improbable story of Baron Munchausen is verified. The bear, which thrust itself into the harness of the horse it had devoured, and then whirled flie sledge according to mere brutal bent, is recognized by this bill, and kept in its usurped place, -when the safety of all requires that, it should be shot. In characterizing this Bill as the Remedy of Injustice and Civil War, I give it a plain, self- evident title. It is a continuation of the Crime against Kansas, and as such deserves the same condemnation. It can only be defended by those who defend the Crime. Sir, you cannot expect that the people of Kansas will submit to the Usurpation which this bill sets up, and bids them bow before—as the Austrian tyrant set up his cap in the Swiss market-place. If you madly persevere, Kansas will not be without her William Tell, who will refuse at all hazards to recognize the tyrannical edict; and this will be the beginning of civil war. Next, and lastly, comes the Remedy of Jus
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