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About State press. (Macon, Ga.) 1857-18?? | View Entire Issue (Feb. 11, 1858)
[From thk Washington Union.] PRESIDENTS MESSAGE. To the Senate and llouec of Representatita of the United States : I have received from J. Calhoun, Esq.. pres ident of the late constitutional convention of, Kansas, a copy duly certified by himself, of the Constitution framed by that body, » ith the ex- ' pressiun <rf a hope that I would submit the same to the consideration of Congress, with the view of the admission of Kansas into the Union as sin independent State.” In compliance with this request, I herewith transmit to Congress, for their action, the Constitution of Kansas, with the ordinance respecting the public lands, as well as the letter of Mr. Calhoun, dated at Aecompton on the J4th nit., by which they w ere accompanied. Having received but a sin gle copy of the Constitution and ordinance. I eend tliis to the Senate. A greet delusion seems te pervade the public mind in relation to the condition of partie-in Kansas. This arises from the difficulty of in ducing the American people to realize the fact that any portion of them should be in a state of rebellion against the government under which they live. When we speak of the af fairs of Kansas, we arc njit to refer merely to the existence of twoviolent political parties in that territory, divided on the question of slave ry, jnst ns we speak of such parties in the States. This presents no adequate idea ot’tlre true state of the ease. The dividing line there is not between two political parties, both ac knowledging the lawful existence of the gov ernment: but between those who are loyal to this government and those who Lave endeav ored to destroy its existence by force and by usurpation—between those who sustain, and . those who have done all in their power to overthrow the territorial government establish ed by Congress. This g, eminent they would Jongsince have subverted had it not been pro tected from their assaults by the troops of the United States. Such has been the condition of affairs since my inauguration. Ever since that period a large portion of the people of Kansas have been in a state of rebellion against the government, with a military lender at their head of a most turbulent and dangerous charac ter. They have never acknowledged, but have constantly renounced and detied the gov ernment to which they owe allegiance, and have been all the time in a state of resistance ! against its authority. They have all the time been endeavoring to subvert it and to establish a rOFolutionary government under the so-call ed Topeka Constitution, in its stead. Even at this very moment the 'Topeka Legislature are in session. Whoever has read the correspondence of Gov. Walker with the State Department, j recently communicated to the Senate, will be!, convinced that this picture is not over-drawn. , lie always protested against the withdrawal of , any portion of the military force of the United States from the Territory,deeming its presence absolutely necessary for the preservation of the regular government and the execution of the laws. In his very first dispatch to the Sec- 1 retary of State, dated dune 2d, 1857, he say -: ■“'The most alarming movement, however, pro- ; <eeds from tla*assembling on the 9th of June ofthe so-called Topeka Legislature with a view ; to the enactment of an entire code of laws.—' Os course, it will be my endeavor to prevent such a result, as it would lead to inevitable , , and disastrous collision, and, in fact, renew i the civil war in Kansas.” This was with dis- < ficulty prevented by the efforts of Governor ; Walker; but soon thereafter, on the l<Lth ci' July. we find Lin requesting Gen. Harney to furnish him a regiment of dragoons to proceed to the city of Lawrence—and this for the rea son that he had received authentic intelligence 1 verified by his own actual observation, that a dangerous rebellion had occurred, ■'involving am open defiance of the laws and the establish- I ment of an insurgent government - in that city. In the Governor's dispatch of July 15th he informs the Secretary of State that this move- , ment at Lawrence was the beginning of a plan, originating in that city, to organize insurrec tion throughout the Territory ; and e specially I in all towns, cities, or Counties, where the He- ■ publican party have a majority. Lawrence is the hot-bed of all the Abolition movements in , this Territory. It is the town established by ; the Abolition societies of the East, and whilst there are respectable people there, it is tilled by a considerable number ot mercenaries who are paid by Abolition societies to perpetuate and diffuse agitation tliroughoitt Kansas, and prevent a peaceful sottJemcat of this question. Having failed in inducing their own so-called Topeka State Legislature to organise this insur rection, Lawrence has commenced it herself, and if not arrested, the rebellion will extend throughout the Territory. And again: “In order to send this commu nication immediately by mail, I must close by assuring you that the spirit of rebellion |>er vades the great mass of the Republican party I of this Territory, instigated, as I entertain iw doubt they are, by eastern societies, having in view resnfts most disastrous to the Govern ment and to the Union ; and that the contin ued presence of Geu. Harney here is indispen sable, as originally stipulated by me, with a large body of dragoons and several batteries.” ' On the Sitth of July, 1857, Gen. Lane im-■ dertke authority of the Topeka Convention,! undertook, as Governor Walker, informs us, ' “to organize the whole so-called frec-State party into volunteers, and to take the names of all who refuse enrollment. The professed object is to protect the polls, at the election in Au- ! gust, of the new insurgent Topeka State Leg- I islature.” “The object of taking the names of all who refuse enrollment, is to terrify the free-State '• conservatives into submission. This is proved I a v recent atrocities committed on such men by ; Topekaites. The speedy location of large bod- j ies of regular troops here, with two batteries is | necessary. The Lawrence insurgents await i the developcment of this new revolutionary ' military orgrnization,” &c., &c. In the Governor's dispatch of July 27th, he ! ■says that “Gen. Lane ami hi staff every where deny the authority of the territorial Jaws, and •counsel a total disregard of these enactments." I Without making further quotations ot a sim- , ■liar character from other dispatches of Gov.. Walker, it appears by a reference to -Mr Stan ttoil's communication to Gen. Cass, of the Vth of December last, that the “important step of calling the Legislature itogether was taken af ter I [lie] had become satisfied that the election ordered by the convention on the 21st inst, could not be conducted without collision and bloodshed.’ So intense was the disloyal feel ing among the enemies of the government es taldished by Congrcw, that an election which afforded them an opportunity, if in the ma jority, wf making Kansas a free State, accord ing to their own professed desire, could not be conducted without collision and bloodshed! The truth is, that, up to the present mo ment. the enemies of the existing government, still adhere to their Topeka revolutionary Con stitution and government. The very first par agraph of the message of Gov. Robinson, dated on the 7th December, to the Topeka legisla- ! lure now assembled, at Lawrence, contains an ■ open defiance to the Constitution and laws of, the United States. The Governor says : ' The convention which framed the Constitution at Topeka originated with the people of Kansas Territory. They have adopted and ratified the same twice by a direct vote, and also indirectly through two elections of State officers and members of the State legislature. Yet it has pleased the administration to regard the whole I proceeding revolutionary.” This Topeka Government, adhered to with such treasonable pertinacity, is a government [n direct opposition to the existing government prescribed and recognized by Congress. It is an usurpation of the same character as it would be for a portion of the people of any Sjate ot the Union to undertake to establish a separate government, within ita limits, for the purpose of redressing any greivance, real or imaginary, of which they might complain, against the le gitimate State government. Such a principle, if carried into execution, would destroy all lawful authority and produce imiver.-nl an- I ftrehy, For this statement of facts, the reason be comes palpable why the enemies of the govern ment authorized by Congress have refused to r vote tor delegates to the Kansas Constitutional Convention, and also afterwards on the ques tion of slavery submitted by it to the people. It is because they have ever refused to sanction ■or recognize any other Constitution than that framed at Topeka. Had the whole Lecompton Constitution been submitted to the people, the adherents of this organization would doubtless have voted against it, because, if successful, they would thus have removed an obstacle out of the way ot their own revolutionary Constitution. I hey would have done this, not upon a consideration of the merits of the whole or any part of the Lecomp ton Constitution, but simply because they have ever resisted the authority of the government authorized by Congress, from which it ema nated. Such being the unfortunate condition of af fairs in the Territory, vv lint was the right ns well as the duty of the law-abiding peoj.le ! Were they silently and patiently to submit to : the Topeka usurpation, or adopt the necessary measures to establish a Constitution under the . ! authority of the organic law of Congress ? That this law recognized the right of the I people of the Territory, without any enabling ! act from Congress, to lorm a State Constitu tion, is too clear for argument. For Congress “to leave the people of the Territory perfect ly free,” in framing their Constitution, “ to form inf r-mlirte their domestic institutions in their own way, siilyoct only to the Constitution of the United States;” and then to say that they shall not be (lerurittcd to proceed and frame a I Constitution in their own way without an ex press authority from Congress, appears to be almost a contradiction in terms. It would be much more plausible to contend that ( ongress had no power to pa-s such mi enabling act. than to argue that the people of a Territory might be kept out of the Union for an indefinite pe- • riod, and until it might please Congress to per mit them to exercise the right of self-govern ment. This would be to adopt not “their own way,” but the way which Congress miglit prescribe. It is impossible that any people could have | proceeded with more regularity in the forma- : lion of a Constitution than the people of Kan sas have done. It was necessary, first to ascertain whither ■ it was the desire of the people to be relieved from their Territorial dependence ami establish aStategovernment. For this purpose the Terri torial legislature, in 1855, passed a law for “tak ing the sense of the people of this Territory ; upon the expediency of calling a convention to . frm a State Constitution” at the general elec- i tion to lie held in October, 185(1. The " sense | of the people"' was accordingly taken, and they decided in favor of a convention. It is true ; 1 that at this election the enemies of the 'lerrito- J i rial government did not vote, because they i were then engaged ut Topeka, without the 1 slightest pretext of lawful authority, in framing a Constitution of their own for the purpose of ■ subverting the Territorial government. In pursuance of this decision ot the people in favor of a convention, the territorial legis lature, on the 27th day ot February. 1857, ■ passed an act for the election of delegates on the third Monday of dime, 1857, to frame a State Constitution. This law is as fair in its i provisions as any that ever passed a legislative body for a similar jmrpose. The right of suf frage at this election is clearly and justly delin- i e<L “ Every bona fide inhabitant ofthc Terri- j tore of Kansas” on the third Monday of June, . i the day ot the election, who was a citizen of . the United States above the age of twenty-one, and had resided therein for three mouths pre vious to that date, was entitled to vote. In or- j der to avoid all interference from neighboring States or Territories with the freedom and fairness of the election, provision was made for the registry of the qualified voters; and in ! pursuance thereof, nine thousand two hundred and fifty-one voters were registered. Govern- I or Walker did his whole duty in urging all the qualified citizens of Kansas to vote at this ' election. In his inaugural address, on the 27th Mav last, he informed them that “under our practice the preliminary act ol framing a State Constitution is uniformly performed through the instrumentality of a convention of delegates ! chosen by the people themselves. That con ! vention is now about to be elected by you un der the call of the territorial legislature, treat- ■ ed and still recognised by the authority of Con gress, and clothed by it, in the comprehensive language of the organic law, with I'nll power to make such an enactment The territorial , legislature, then, in assembling the convention, w ere fully sustained by the acts ot Congress, the authority of the convention is distinctly recognized in my instructions from the Presi dent of the United States.” The Governor also clearly and distinctly warns them what would be the consequence if ! they should not participate in the election. — " The people of Kansas, then, (he says.) are in- i ■ vited by the highest authority known to the I Constitution, to participate, freely and fairly, ■ in the election of delegates to frame a Consti- ' tntion and State government. The law has I performed its entire appropriate function when ; it extends to the people the right of suffrage, ‘ but it cannot compel the performance of that ! duty. Throughout our whole Union, however, , and wherever free government prevails, those who abstain from the exercise of the right ot i suffrage, authorize those who do vote to act | for them in that contingency ; and the absen tees are as much bound, under the law and Constitution, where there is no fraud or vio lence, by the act of the majority of those who do vote, ns if all had participated in the elec- I tion. Otherwise, as voting must be voluntary, i self-government would be impracticable, and | monarchy or despotism would remain as the ! only alternative.” It may also be observed, that at this period j any hope, if such had existed, that the lopeka . Constitution would ever be recognized by Congress, must have been abandoned. Congress had adjourned on the 3d of March previous, having recognized the legal existence of the Territorial legislature in a variety of ‘ forms, which I need not enumerate. Indeed, the delegate elected to the House of Represeu- i tatives. under a Territorial law. had been ad mitted to his seat, and had completed his term of service on the day previous to my inaugura tion. This was the propritious moment for set- , tling ail difficulties in Kansas. This was the ■ time for abandoning the revolutionary Topeka | organization ami tor the enemies of the exist ing government to conform to the Jaws, and ! to unite with its friends in framing a State Constitution. But this they refused to do. and the consequences ot their refusal to submit to law ful authority and vote at the election of delegates, may yet prove to be of a most de- j plot-able character. Would that the respect for the laws of the land which so eminently distinguished the men of the past generation could be revived! it is a disregard and viola tion of law which have for years kept the Ter ritory of Kansas in a state of almost open re bellion against its government. It is the same spirit which has produced actual rebellion in ■ Utah. Our only safety consists in obedience and conformity to law. Should a general spir- I itagainst its enforcement prevail, this will prove ' fatal to us as a nation. We acknowledge no master but the law ; and should w e cut loose from its restraints, and every one do what seemeth good in in his own eyes, our ease will ! indeed lie hopeless. The enemies of the Territorial government I determined still to resist the authority of Con i gress. They refused to vote for delegates to , the convention, not because, from circumstances I which I need not detail, there was an omission to register the comparatively few voters who | were inhabitants of certain counties of Kansas i in the early spring of 1857, but because they had predetermined at all hazards to adhere to their revolutionary organization, and defeat the establishment of any other Constitution than that which they had framed at Topeka. : The election was therefore, suffered to pass by default; but of this result, the qualified elec ! tors who refiwed to vote can never justly com plain. Front this review, it is manifest that the Le compton convention, according to every prin ciple of constitutional law, was legally consti tuted and was invested with power to frame a Constitution. The sacred principle of popular sovereignty has been invoked in favor of the enemies of law and order in Kansas. Butin what man ner is popular sovereignty to be exercised in tiiis country, if not through the instrumentali tv of established law i In certain small repub lics of ancient times the people <fid assemble in primary meetings, passed laws, and direct ed public afl'a'rrs. In our country this is mani festly impossible. I’opular sovereignty can be exercised here only through the ballot-box; < and if the people will refuse to exercise it in ' this as they have done in Kansas nt the election of delegates, it is not for them to , complain that their rights have been violated. • 'Die Kansas convention, thus lawfully insti- ; toted, proceeded to frame a Constitution, and. having completed their work, finally adjourned 1 on the 7th day of November last. They did not think proper to submit, the whole of this ' Constitution to a popular vote; but they did ■ submit the question w hether Kansas should be a free or n slave State, to the people. This wus the question which had convulsed the Union and shaken it to its vurv centre. This was the question which had lighted up the j 11 imes of civil war in Kansas, and had pro duced dangerous sectional parties throughout ' the confederacy. It was a character so para mount in respect to the condition of Kansas, as to rivet the anxious attention ot the people of the w hole country upon it. and it alone. . No person thought of any other question. For my own part, when 1 instructed Governor Walker, in general terms, in favor of submit ting the Constitution to the people, I had no | object in view except the all absorbing question of slavery. In what manner the people of! Kansas might regulate their other concerns, i w as not a subject w hich attracted my attention. In fact, the general provisions of our recent State Constitutions, after an experience of j eighty years, are so similar and so excellent, that it would be difficult to go far wrong at 1 the present day in framing a new Constitution. ‘ I then believed and still believe, that, under the organic act. the Kansas convention w ere bound to submit this all-important question of 1 slavery to the people. It was never, howev er, my opinion that, independently of this act. they would Imve been bound to submit any portion of the Constitution to a popular vote. ' in order to give it validity. Had 1 entertained such an opinion, this would have been in op- ' position to many precedents in our history, commencing in the very best age of our Re public. It would have been in oppo-ition to the principle which pervades our institutions, and which is every day carried out into practice, ' that the people have a right to delegate to rep rcsentative-. chosen by themselves, their sov ereign power to frame Constitutions, enact laws, mid perform many other important acts, without requiring that these should bo subject ed to their subsequent approbation. It w ould be a most inconvenient limitation of their own power, imposed by the people upon themselves, to exclude them from exercising their sover eignty in any lawful manner they think proper. It is true that the people of Kansas might, if they had pleased, have required the conven tion to submit the Constitution to a popular vote; but this they have not done. The only remedy, therefore, in this case, is that which ■ exists in all other similar cases. If the dele gates who framed the Kansas Constitution have j in any manner violated the will of their con stituents, the people always possess the power i to change their Constitution or their laws, ac cording to their own pleasure. The question of slavery w as submitted to an election of the people of Kansas on the 21st December last, in obedience to the mandate of the Constitution. Here again a fair opportuni ty was presented to the adherents of the Tope ka ('onslitlltion, if they were the majority, to ' decide this exciting question "in their own way." mid thus restore peace to the distract ed Territory; but they again refused to cxer- j cise their right of popular sovereignty, am: again sufl'ercd the election topass by defiiiit. I heartily rejoice that a wiser and lustier spirit prevailed among a huge majority of tlu. se people on the first Monday of January : mid that they did, on that day, vote under the Le compton Constitution lor a Governor and other i State officers, a member of Congress, and for 1 members of the legislature. This election wi. warmly contested by the parties, mid a larger vote was polled than at any previous election in the Territory. Wo may now reasonably ' hope that the revolutionary Topeka organize- , tion will lie speedily mid finally abandoned, mid this will go far towards the final settlement of the unhappy differences in Kansas. If frauds ; have been committed at this election, either ! by one or both parties, the legislature and the people of Kansas, under their Constitution, will know how to redress themselves and pun ish these detestable but too common crimes w ithout any outside interference. The people of Kansas have, then, “ in their ' own w ay,” and in strict accordance with the organic act, framed a Constitution and State Government; have submitted the all-impor tant question of slavery to the people, and have i elected a Governor, a member to represent them in Congress, members ofthc State legis lature, and other State officers. They now ask admission into the Union under this Con stitution, which is republican in its form. It ■ is lor Congress to decide w hether they w ill ad mit or reject the State which has thus been ! created. For my own part, lam decidedly in favor of its admission, and thus terminating the Kansas question. This will carry out the | great principle of non-intervention recognized and sanctioned by the organic act, w hich de -1 dares in express language in favor of uon i intervention by Congress with slavery in the States or Territories,” leaving “the people ! thereof perfectly free to form and regulate their domestic institutions in their ow n way, subject only to the Constitution of the United States.” hi this manner, by localizing the question of slavery, and confiding it to the ■ people whom it immediately concerned, every ■ patriot anxiously expected that this question would be banished from the balls of Congress, where it has always exerted a baneful iniltienee ■ throughout the w hole country. It is proper that I should briefly refer to the ! election held under an act of the territorial leg- I islature, on the first Monday of January !a*t, on the Lecompton Constitution. This election i was held after the territory had been prepared for admission into the Union as a sovereign State, and when no authority existed in the territorial legislature w hich could possibly des troy its existence or change its character. The election, which was peaceably conducted un der my instructions, involved a strange inepn i sisteney. A large majority of the persons who voted against the Lecompton Constitution, were at the very same time and place reeog ' niziug its valid existence in the most solemn j ■ and authentic manner, by voting under its pro visions. I have yet received no official infor mation of the result of the election. As a question of expediency, after the right , lias been maintained, it may be w ise to reflect upon the benefits to Kansas and to the w hole country, which would result from its iinmedi ' ate admission into the Union, as well as the disasters which may follow its rejection. Do mestic peace w ill be the happy consequence of j Its admission, mid that fine territory which has hitherto been torn by dissentious, will rapidly ' increase in population and wealth, and speed ily realize the blessings and the comforts which ■ follow in the train of agricultural and mechan ical industry. The people will then be sover- i eign, and can regulate their own affairs in their own way. If a majority of them desire to abol ' ish domestic slavery w ithin the State, there is no other possible mode by which this can be ef fected so speedily as by prompt admission. — The will of the majority is supreme and irre sistible when expressed in an orderly and law ful manner. They can make and unmake Con : stitutions V pleasure. It would be absurd to say that they can impose fetters upon theirown power which they cannot afterwards remove. If they could do this they might tie their own i hands for a hundred as well as for ten years. These are fundamental principles of Ameri can freedom, and are recognised, 1 believe, .in son e form or other, by every State Constitu tion ; and if Congress in the act of admission, should think proper to recognise them, I can perceive no objection to meh a course. This has been done emphatically in the Constitution of Kansas. It declares in the bill of right - , that “all political power is inherent in the people, and all free governments are founded on their authority and instituted for their benefit, and therefore they have at all times an inalienable and indeieasable right to alter, reform, or abol ish their form of government in such manner as they may think proper.” The great State of New York is at this moment governed under a Constitution framed and established in direct opposition to the mode prescribed by the pre vious Constitution. If, therefore, the provis ; ion changing the Kansas Constitution, alter : the year one thousand eight handled and sixty four, could by possibility be construed into a f prohibition to make such a change previous to i that period, this prohibition would lie w holly ■ unavailing. The legislature already elected j may, at its very first session, submit the ques tion to a vote of the people whether they will or will not have a convention to amend their Constitution, and adopt all ncce-sary means for giving eti'ect to the popular will. It has been solemnly adjudged by the highest I judicial tribunal known to our law s, that slavery exists in Kansas by virtue vt the Con stitution of the United States. Kansas is, therefore, nt this moment as much a slave State as Georgia or South Carolina. Without this, . the equality of the sovereign States composing ! the Union would be violated, and the use and enjoyment of a territory acquired by the com mon treasure of all the States, w ould be closed i against the people and the property of nearly I half the members of the confederacy. Slavery can therefore never be prohibited in Kansas, I except by means of a constitutional provision, and in no other manner can this be obtained so promptly, if a majority ofthe people desire it, j as by admitting it into the Union under its present Constitution. On the other hand, should Congress reject the Constitution, under the idea of affording the disaffected in Kansas a third opportunity of prohibiting slavery in the States w hich they 1 miglit have done tw ice before if in the majori ty, no man can tfll the consequences. If Congress, for the sake of those men who refused to vote for delegates to the convention when they might have excluded slavery from the Constitution, and who afterwards refused to vote on tlie'Jlst Dec.last, when they might, as they claim, have stricken slavery from the Constitution, should now reject the State be cause slavery remains in the Constitution, it is manifest that tlio agitation upon this danger ous subject will be renewed in a more alarming form than it has ever yet assumed. Every patriot in the country bad indulged the hope that the Kansas ami Nebraska act would put a final end to the slavery agitation, ! at least in Congress, w liieli had for more than twenty years, convulsed the country and en dangered the Union. Thisact involved great and fundamental principles, and if fairly car ried into effect will settle the question. Should the agitation be again revived, should the peo ple ol the sister States be again estranged from each other with more than their former bitter ness, this will arise from a cause, so far as the interests of Kansas are concerned, more trifling and insignificant than has ever stirred the cle- j ments of a great people into commotion. To the people of Kansas, the only practical ' difference between admission or rejection, de- : pends simply on the fact whether they can themselves more speedily change the present j Constitution if it docs not accord with the j 1 majority, or frame a second Constitution to be ! submitted to Congress hereafter. Even it this w ere a question of mere expediency, and not ; of right, the small difference- of time, one way or the other is of not the least, importance, i 1 when cimtiA'ted with the evils wliieh may necessarily result to the- w hole country from a ■ revival of the shivery agitation. In con -ide ring this question, it should never !>■ forgotten that, in proportion to its insig nifieim e. k-t the des isirni be what it ni.-.y, so llir as it r uiy affect the Lw thousand inhabit-! auts of Kansas, who have fiom the beginning; resisted the Con.-GHltka «;i 1 the laws. f„r this i very real-on the re ;ect.on of t!:e t oi:-t'.t;;G<>n w ill be so much the mme keenly felt by the people offourtei n ofthe StatesW this Union, where sbiverj is reeognise-l under the Con stitution o! the I lilted Mate-. Ag:.::i: The speedy admie-ion of Kansas in to the Union would reetoie peace ami quiet to the whoie country. Already the allairs of this Territory have engrossed nn 'indue proportion of public attention. They have sadly affected the friendly rehitionsol the people of the States with each other, and alarmed the fears of pa triots for the safety of the Union. Kansas once admitted into the Union, the excitement becomes localized, and will *o.m die aw ay for want of outside aliment. Then every difficulty ; will be settled at the ballot box. Besides —and this is no trilling considera tion —I shall then be enabled to withdraw the troops of the United States from Kansas, and employ them on branches of service where j they are needed. They have been kept there on the earnest importunity of Gov. Walk er to maintain the existence of the territorial government and secure the execution of the laws. He considered that at least tw o thou sand regular troops under the command ofGen. Harney, w ere necessary for this purpose. Act ing upon his reliable information, 1 have been obliged, in some degree, to interfere with the expedition to Utah, in order to keep down re bellion in Kansas. This has involved a very heavy expense to the government. Kansas once admitted, it is believed there will no longer beany occasion therefor troops ofthe United States. I have thus performed my duty on this im portant question, under a deep sense of respon sibility to God and my country. My public life will terminate w ithin a brief period; and I have no other object of earthly ambition than ! to leave my country in a peaceful and prosper ous condition, and to live in the affections and respect of my countrymen. The dark audom ! inotts clouds which now appear to be impend ing over the Union, 1 conscientiously believe ! may be dissipated with honor to every portion ■ of it, by the admission of Kansas during the present session of Congress ; whereas, it she should be rejected, I greatly fear these clouds will become darker and more ominous, than any w hieli have ever yet threatened the Con stitution and the Union. James Bcchanas. Washington, February 2d, 1858. Washington Item. —The Tariff Investigating Committee had a protracted session on Satur day. Mr. Stone has now been before them tor four days, and they have not got through with him yet. He testified that O. B. Matteson, during the pendency pf the Tariff bill, stated j that it would take at least twenty-live thou sand dollars to get the bill through Congress; that Matteson proceeded from Washington to ■ New York for the purpose ot making the ar rangement ; but be does not state whether Mat- i teson received the money. When asked by a member of the committee w hether he. had ever ' loaned any money to members ot Congress, he : hesitated and quibbled, but finally said that he i did not think they had a right to ask such a i question. The committee insisted upon an answer. He then stated that there had been ' some money loaned—how much he did not know . Mt. Banks borrowed seven thousand I dollars; another member had borrowed some, which the books of the company showed had . never been paid. The committee yesterday I applied to the House for power to arrest ah i unwilling witness. THE STATE FAIR. We had the pleasure of seeing on yesterday Dr. J. Camak, the energetic Secretary of the Southern Central Agricultural Society, who paid a visit to our city for the purpose ot ma king arrangements for the next State Fair, which, wc are advised, will be held at this place the same time this, as it was last year,— ] We ure pleased too to state that even thus ear ly in the year, prospects are promising, more ; so than usual, of a large and increased compe ; tition for the handsome premiums that the So ! ciety have determined to bestow upon the suc | cessl'nl. We trust that our cotton growers in Middle and South-Western Georgia, will not . neglect to bear away rhe prizes offered by the j Society, as they did last, and in previous : years.— Atlanta Intelligencer. MACON, (JA. Thursday, February 11,1858. J-tf"JiT>GE James Jackson lias placed us under obligations for valuable Congressional documents. The length of the President's Message and the pressure of Communications, compel j us to present to-day a very limited allowance j of Editorial. This, however, is no loss to the ; reader as the selected and contributed matter with w hich our columns are tilled is no doubt more interesting than anything we could have written. PUBLIC AMUSEMENTS. The late Concert of Tn alberg and Vievxtemfß has suggested to ns some reflections on Public Amusements in general, and Circuses and “Ne- ! gro Shows” in particular. At intervals during the winter our little City has been enlivened by various exhibitions —some bad, some indif ferent, and none of them good. To take them up seriatim. First we have had the Circus and Menagerie, ! highly to the delight and edification of the “niggers” and small boys. They had with them, of course, the usual complement of sick lions, mangy monkeys, spavined horses, and superannuated jokes—not forgetting that pe culiar odor of saw -dust and stables, mingled with the exhalations from the elephant and other noble beasts, which is as much a part of one of these institutions as the canvas or the clown. Os course there was no want of Y’an keeswith French names, w ho pass their livesin ■ turning somersets and standing on their heads —as good a use perhaps as such heads can be 1 put to—nor did the ever recurring Angel in tights and short petticoats fail to make her ap pearance in the usual role. These —together with a'dwarfed mule, and the Clown, whoindus triously paraded a veteran Company of Jokes, ! which were organized in the times of George i the Third, and been in activeservice ever since ! —were the main features of the Horse Opera. ! Following close upon the Circns, the “Camp- : bells” (Negro imitation Minstrels) came to town playing to very full and respectable houses. ! This Establishment is, perhaps, as good as any • of its kind, but what a kind ! White men black ing their faces, and endeavoring to make “nig- ! gers" of themselves, und with very poor sue- ! cess at that—perpetrating jokes worn thread- ; bare with constant use, and in general perform- ■ ing such antics as ought to amuse nobody but children. Finally Thalbekg and Y’ieuxtemps appear upon the Stage—the elite of the town assem ble to hear them —the lovely Kemp sings a song, and Viei xti'Ml's plays the fiddle —snobs encore and flunkeys applaud—all profess to be ! er.riipturcd w ith w hat few i nderstaml und none i enjoy- and Mr. Raiston's Hal! is inaugurated w ith a blaze of success'. As hmg as the people must be amused, let us have a good Theatre, wlikii relines the taste, cultivates the understanding, ami combines in struction w ith amusement, if the legitimate Drama is encouraged, the people will soon ac quire a distai-te IGr the wdgarities ot the Cir cus and the nonsense ofthc “negro shows. Nevertheless a Circus or a “ Nigger Show" is always sure of a crowded house in Macon— while a well-appointed Ballet or a good Theat rical Company, w ould no d mbt be pronounced indellicate and immoral by many refined and pious people of both sexes who flock to see one man imitate the dancing of a negro and to hear another say “ dis ” and “ dat.” ACADEMY FOR THE BLIND. In our advertising columns appears a notice to Contractors for sealed proposals for building the new Academy for the Blind, for which a liberal appropriation was made by the late Leg islature. The plan adopted by the Board of Trustees wassubmitted by Mr. Voi.xey Fierce, a skillful architect of this city. It is a most excellent design, beautiful in all its proportions and admirably adapted for such an Institution. If completed according to Mr. Pierce’s draw ing, this building will be the chief ornament of Macon. FREE FIGHT IN CONGRESS. The Abolition members would be kept in better order, if the South w ould send to Con gress more of her true sons like Brooks and Keitt, and not so many on the national order of Mr. Speaker Our. The Philadelphia BuZZc tin hits off the late muss in the House in the following capital stile: Washington, Feb. 6.—The city is all excite ment to-day in regard to the affray in the House of Representatives tliis morning. The accounts of the scene differ only slightly, and the true state ol the case seems to be as fol lows: About a quarter before two o’clock, while various motions to kill time and prevent defin i ite action were put, and while many members, I knowing that there was no special business on hand and no likelihood of a vote, were loung ing ami dosing in their seats and moving pro miscuously about the Hall, Mr. Grow, of Penn sylvania, whose seat is about the centre ofthe w estern side of the House, where the Republi can members nearly all sit, found himself on I - the opposite side, whose inlgibitants are chiefly I Democrats. There is a passage or aisle between the seats, leading from the North-east corner ofthe Hall 1 to the speaker's chair, making a radius of the 1 circle of members' desks. Mr. Grow was qui ; etlv w alking down the aisle, when Mr. Keitt. j of South Carolina, and Mr. Reuben Davis, of Mississippi, approached him. Mr. Quitman had risen, and Mr. Grow hod objected to his speaking. Said Mr. Keitt, “if yon want to object, you had better go to your own side ofthe House.” “ This is a free hall,” said Mr. Grow, “and every man has a right to go where he pleases.” | “ What do you mean by such an answer as | that I” said Mr. Keitt. ' “ 1 mean w hat I said,” replied Mr. Grow and repeated the remark. Mr. Keitt then seized him by the collar, ex claiming. “ 1 w ill let yon know that jou are a d—d Black Republican puppy.” Mr, Grow thrust his hand aside with vio- | 1 lenee, saying : “I shall occupy such a place as I 1 please, and no nigger driver shall crack his I ! whip over me.” Again Mr, Keitt seized him by the throat, and w as again driven off by Mr. Grow, and on , the attempt being repeated. Mr. Grow deliver ed a well-aimed blow ami knocked Mr. Keitt ; down. There was a rush of members from the oppo site side of the Hall, and from all quarters.— I Mr. Barksdale, of Mississippi, rushed in tosep aratc the combatants. Mr. M'ashburne, of Il- linois, who has a front seat on the Republican ! side, thinking that be was going to help Keitt, hurried into the melee and knocked Mr. Barks dale’s wig off. Reinforcements arrived from all quarters, and for a couple of minutes there was a furious contest, but fortunately no one was hurt, and by the aid of the Seargent at Arms, the prin cipal combatants were parted and order was restored. Speaker Orr, who is a colleague and friend of Keitt, was pale as a sheet, but composed and collected in manner. The moment the com batants were separated, there was a quiet that was startling in its efl'ect. The Speaker direct ed the roll to be called on a motion to excuse a member from voting, and the business of Ilic session went on. A QUESTION OF VERACITY. “CHEIL” VS "QUILP." Messrs. Editors: Permit me to correct a mistake made by your correspondent ‘Quilp” in reference to the ‘hole* he says he fell in. It was no hole made by the workmen, and for which he blames the -‘CITY FATHERS" (as he calls them.) It was the naked ditch itself, only that it was clothed in Egyptian darkness, for it was the darkest night, perhaps, that ever was. If I was a member of Conned, I would prosecute him for slander, and have the ditch for a witness ; for it is just where it has been for lo these many years, and the water gliding quietly nt the Irottom. And if he did not feel his foot in it, he did net miss it far, and if yew had been within hearing you would have thought he had lost his temper as well as his footing. If he trys it again, he will break his leg or neck, or both, for it is worse now ; and then the nine little Q s w ould be a poor fatherless little crowd. CIIIEL. MACON COUNTY RESOLUTIONS. At a late public meeting held in the town of Oglethorpe, the following Resolutions were re ported by Samiki. Hai.i., Esq., and the meet ing adjourned to the 3d Tuesday in March next: Resolved, That while we accord to the mem bers of the present General Assembly of the State of Georgia, feelings of patriotism, and a sincere desire to advance the interests of their constituents and promote the prosperity of the State, we can but regard their action in the passage of an act entitled “an act to provide against the forfeiture of the several bank char ters in this State, on account of non specie payment for a given time, and for other purpo ses therein named ”as a grave error; and subsequent experience and developements have convinced us that the provisions ofthe act are unwise and oppressive. Resolted, That, in the opinion ot this meet ing, the said act should have enjoined it us a duty on the 1 auks to afford indemnity to the people for the indulgence thus granted them. I and in omitting so to do the Legislature has . enabled them, by removing all apprehension 1 of the loss of their valuable privileges and fran chises, to speculate upon those unfortunately j dependent upon them for a circulating medi um ; for we cannot consider a release from their obligations a remedy for the evils that now atleet the country, and regard an exten sion of their inflated circulation, without secu rity, as a sure precursor of their lilial insolven cy and inability to redeem their liabilities. Reside: d, I'hat the great desideratum of the people is a stable and unitorm currency of e qual value, not only in this but every other civilized mid commercial coimtry mid in the worl I. But while banks of cirenhition are not only chartered but encouraged by law, we have slight hope of securing :.n olject so desirable, or of relieving the community from the disas trous consequences mscperabie- from sudden mid violent convulsion i in the monetary affairs ofthe country, whieli reverse all the laws of trade, and especially the great law of supply and demand, causing prices to ! e regulated by the expansions and contractions of lank is sues. Rewired, That direct trade with foreign na tions is greatly to the intere ' ofthe Southern people, and that the greatest obstacle in the way of their commercial independence is the paper currency, and consequently the first and most efficient step towards securing this object would be the establishment of a currency not liable to sudden and violent fluctuations. The supply of our great staple does not exceed the demand ami it being improbable, as expe rience demonstrates, to grow it to advantage and profit in the other quarters of the globe, European markets are dependent upon us for their supplies, and if they could not use the a gency of those who manufacture and issue an inferior currency, they would seek our ports, purchase our products and pay for them in siiecie, ami by this means would save to the planter the profits now made by the Banks and Northern factors and commission mer chants. Resolted, That exchange is the cost of trans porting specie from one point to another, and any arrangement by which a bank exacts a larger premium under that name is extortion, not warranted even by. the spirit and intent of the act as the last General Assembly of this State legalizing suspension. Resolted, That the teachings of our fore fathers, who had seen the evils of mi inflated paper currency, and who have embodied in the Constitution of the U. S. their objections thereto, lead us to believe that they designed nothing but coin as a circulating medium, as is apparent from the power given to Congress to coin ihoney and regulate the value thereof and the prohibition to the States to “coin money,” “emit bills of credit” or “make any thing but gold mid silver coin a tender in payment of debts.” Rewired, That our thanks are eminently due and arc hereby tendered to the President of the U. S. mid the Hon. Secretary of the Treasury for tlieirexertions to procure the pas sage of a general compulsory bankrupt law, to enable those who suffer by bank and rail road corporation suspensions, to put such suspended bank and railroad corporations into immediate liquidation, mid we hereby request our Sena tors and Representatives in Congress to use their best endeavors to procure the passage of such 1} law, Resulted, That the influence of the banks over every interest of the country has increased so such an alarming extent, that each and all of them arc subject to their power, and that such power should be gradually diminished by wise and cautions Legislation until it is entirely destroyed, and to this end, and as a preparation for this change, wa recommend to the next session of our General Assembly the passage first of an act dissolving all connexion be tween, and rendering the State Treasury inde pendent of, the banks. 2d. An act altering the Constitution of the State in such manner as to prohibit the renewal of any existing char ter for a bank of issue, and prohibiting in fu ture the incorporation of any such bank of is sue. Bd. An aot requiring the banks, within a given period after the pasage thereof, to call in all their bills now in circulation under the denomination of twenty dollars, and to issue no more bills under that denomination. Resolved, That the thanks of this meeting are due and are hereby tendered to His Excel lency Joseph E. Brown, for the firm and fear less discharge of his duty in vetoing the act passed at the last General Assembly of the State, for legalizing the suspension of specie payment by the banks thereof, and also to those members of the General Assembly wh« sustained IlisExcellency in vetoing said act. “ONE OF THEM OUT” Ma. Eoitou:—A friend has called my atten tion to the following challenge, in the last Journal & Messenger. Is this sort of insolence and presumption never to end ? Are the peo ple of the up country, who have for the last half century been familiar with Banks and Banking, and have suffered from them often, to be told by young Blockheads and old Fo gies, that they know nothing about the matter? Up country Editors and orators know nothing about the things w hereof they affirm, but only utter “ gross and unfounded assumptions,” “to sustain and bolster up an ignorant and dema gogue Governor.” So we must come together and take lessons of them, like Hottentots a rotmd a Missionary. Well, we shall see how long the people will stand it. lam willing to wait and see. Flease give my reply to this young one. S. T. BAILEY. FOB THE JOURNAL AND MESSENGER. To S. T. Bailey, Esq., Bibb County: Sm : —As you are the reputed author of ths Preamble mid Resolutions passed by the (so called) “Public Meeting in Bibb,"on Saturday, the 23d day ol January last—which said Preamble and Resolutions ere believed to be a t ssue ot gross and unfounded assumptions a gainst the Legislature and the Banks, it is de sired to know whether you are willing to de fend your assumptions in public discussion be fore the people of Bibb county ? If yea—you have only to designate the time, and you may rest ,‘is-tired that you ‘•hall be confronted in the discussion by a gentleman who is in all res]>ects woithv of your steel. What say vou, Mr. Bailey? Will you come to tbc defence or not ? The terms of discus simi can be easily arranged, if you say th© word. ’ LEGISLATURE. To “ Legislature,’’ofthe hist 64 •Messenger.’* Sih:—l understand you to invite me to dis cuss with you a “ tissue of gross and unfound ed assumptions.” Now it I were not perfectly familiar with the multeity of Bank advocates, 1 should feel surprise, if not offence, at this assault, at the start, not upon my honor alone, but upon as respectable and intelligent a meeting of citizens as ever assembled any where off of Bluffs and who unani- mously ado|>tcd those Resolutions. And I miglit reply, that is not a debateable question. No gentleman, knowing that assembly, would charge them with adopting a “tissue of gioss and unfounded assumptions,” upon any subject, more es|>ecially the Banking system, with which they have become acquainted to their sorrow. But let that pass; I feel pretty sure that we all would care very little for any as sault the Bankites may make upon our charac i tors, provided wc could keep them out of our 1 pockets. lud< I. their commendation isdeem led by m-.u. as rather damaging to their cliar ! actor, among honest men. ’ But perhaps yon will say, you desire to en li/litenthe l»enigk:.<l pe«>; leof Bibb npnn Bank ing; ;• people who began to learn their lessons in 1“ 32, and have repented them ever since to their sorrow. Why. man, you don’t know of whom y»»n :»re talking- try the experiment— (’.ill the people together and tell them they are fools. f u r looking upon Banks as their enemies, and s bow long you could continue your en lightenment. But oh no; you doubtless wish to bo enlight ened yoiisclf by the discussion, (thu*» we are to understand sour modesty,) so that you can vote un i rshindingl., at the next meeting of the Legislature; that yon are after knowledge under dillicult'a‘. Well, I confess that does appeal to my charity. But, my dear fellow, if you arc not joking, excuse me, for in early life 1 taught school a spell, and found, where theit was a crowd of stupid boys in the school, it cost me infinite labor and vexation, to beat any sense into their dull pates. Yet. I confess ton foolish ambition, then, for the experiment of awakening through the epidermis. I need hardly ad I, the experiment generally tailed. But now, in the sere and yellow leaf of life, all such ambition has died out, so that I cannot consent again to undertake that sadly discouraging busim .-s, in addition to the many cares and troubles that have gathered around ; waning years. No, no, my dear boy, I must turn you over to the teachings of my friend “ Joe Brown.” No better, hornster schoolmaster ever lived than he; depend upon it, he is your friend — he will teach you no “ tissue of gross and un founded assumptions.” When your vacation is up, return to school at once, with an honest determination to learn the truth, and listen to his honest and sensible discourses, and ndy upon it, you will die a better and a wiser man. S. T. BAILEY. [communicated.] TWIGGS COUNTY MEETING. Pursuant to agreement of several citizens at a preliminary meeting held this day it is agreed and requested that a Convention of the citi zens be held at this place, irrespective of party distinction on Wednesday 17th inst., for the I purpose of sustaining the Governor in his Veto Message on the Bank Suspension Bill, and for other purposes. EQUAL RIGHTS, Marion, Feb. 3d, 1858, INFAMOUS If there is anything mean, vile and contempt, ible, it is the circulation of such infamous hoax es as the following, which we clip from a late number of the “N. Y. Mercury.” They con tain nothing which should entitle them to a place in the columns of any respectable South ern Journal; on the contrary, the London Punch or Paris or even the London Time*) which seems to have such an aptitude for swallowing Arrowsmith fables, would be the proper and Legitimate places for all such parodies upon the hospitalities us our Southern Homes : Horrid Affaib —A Real Georgia Fight.— A terrible encounter lately occurred at a hotel in Augusta, Ga., by which two gentlemen ot that place lost their lives, andtliree more were severely, if not fatally wounded. Gem Las well, a wealthy and influential, though somewhat dissipated planter, residing near Apaloosa, has for some time been in the habit ot going to the village every Saturday night with his overseer —a refined and cultivated Cuban named Gar geda—-and having a convivial supper with bu acquaintances, and extending an invitation to any respectable stranger who happened to be stoppirffe at the hotel ftt Hine,
