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Arguments to Vote for the Wyandotte Constitution September, 1859

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Arguments to Vote for the Wyandotte Constitution September, 1859 ARGUMENTS TO VOTE FOR THE WYANDOTTE CONSTITUTION SEPTEMBER, 1859 A SPEECH BY JOHN A. MARTIN Transcribed by Ernst F. Tonsing, Ph.D. Thousand Oaks, California July 14,2004 [John A. Martin's "stump speech" advocating the adopting of the Wyandotte Constitution, in which he had no little part in authoring as Secretary of the convention, is hastily written, with many strike-outs and emendations. The ten pages of the manuscript are in the Kansas State Historical Society library. In it he is addressing citizens of the Territory of Kansas who had experienced the ravages of the "boarder ruffians" from Missouri, and who had witnessed the machinations of the Pro-slavery forces in seeking to impose the institution upon the people who were settling the forests and prairies of the new land. The twenty year-old Martin is already wise from his observations of the plight of the Territory, and suspicious of the statements of the "squatter sovereign" party. He urges his audience to stay alert to its wiles and see through its specious motives and reasons. His fears are justified, as is his confidence in his audience. -Ernst F. Tonsing] Fellow citizens: Another scene in the mingled melo-drama and tragedy of which Kansas has been the theatre, is now passing. The third Convention of the people has assembled, done its work, and the result is now in the hands of nearly every citizen of the Territory. Twice before have the Free State men—the people of Kansas—met in Convention to frame an organic act for their Government, and twice before has the slave power of the nation defeated the free expression of their will.1 A third Constitution,2 formed by delegates legally elected by the people, and commissioned with the sovereignty which belongs alone to them, a Constitution broad in its views, progressive in its policy, comprehensive in its positions; a Constitution affording the fullest and widest and largest protection to the interests and rights of the Free Labor and Free in its [?] men; a Constitution worthy of the past history of Kansas, is submitted for our consideration, and will be voted upon by us in October next. Twice before have Constitutions, eminating [sic] from the~only power which has authority to delegate its sovereign, the people, and sanctioned by their suffrages, been voted down in Washington by the partizens [sic] of that Democracy which could neither force nor bribe into compliance with its wishes. And once has a Constitution, originating in fraud, and formed by usurped authority, received the vote of the entire Democratic party in Congress. 1 A Free-state constitution had been devised in Topeka, Kansas Territory, in October, 1855, which provided that, "There shall be no slavery in this State, or involuntary servitude except for crime." It was presented to Congress and turned down. The constitution framed at Lecompton, Kansas Territory, in September through November, 1857, also was rejected. 2 The Wyandotte Constitution, for which Martin is arguing in this speech, was the fourth. A third constitution was written in Leavenworth in March, 1857, and presented to Congress. It was never voted on by either house of Congress. And now, upon the eve of the ratification a third Constitution, we find the party which framed the Lecompton Swindle and supported it,3 arrayed against the Free State Constitution of Wyantdot,4 and we have to ask what is their motive. What [is] the cause of this bitter, uncompromising opposition to our release from a territorial thraldom [sic] which is acknowledge[d] to be oppressive and unwelcome[d], and the assumption of State Sovereignty and independence. I have long since, my fellow-citizens, ceased to regard the actions of that party in the hypothesis or light its partizans [sic] give to them. Experience, which implants its lessons firmly and deeply, has taught me to fear this party—corrupt in its aims and unscrupulous as to the means of advancing them. The specious plea of Squatter Sovereignty5 with which it opened this fair Territory to the ingress of Slavery, but when successful, gave instead the sovereignty of the knife, the revolver, and the torch; the right of the people to form their own domestic institutions, of which it assumed to be the champion, but betrayed with a kiss, and gave, in place of that right, a Constitution formed by usurpers and sustained by fraud—all these specious promises, so alluringly made, so quickly broken—form a bitter experience, and have taught the people of Kansas to suspect every act of the party so debased and depraved. My experience has taught me, also, that this party does nothing at random. Every move upon its chess-board has a distinct and definite purpose, at times as subtle and affecting results as far in the future as the well-considered words of Paul Murphy. Bold through its aims may be, infamous as are the methods it must adopt to secure their accomplishment, it never swerves from the course it has marked out. Taking its key-note from the head at Washington,6 it aims at some result, and neither the collonial [sic] policy of England nor the Russian policy of annexation is pursued with more firmness or resolve. It behooves us, then, to examine into the results which might follow the success of its present uncompromising crusade against a Free State Constitution, which its leaders in Convention, pronounced a model instrument. And I think I see in this movement a deep- laid plan for our enslavement and the Lecomptonizing of Kansas. Through the agency of 3 The Lecompton Constitution provided that a vote be taken on the "Constitution without slavery," or the "Constitution with slavery," but no vote being permitted against the constitution. The voting took place December 21, with the results of 6,226 for the "Constitution with slavery," and 569 against, the Free State party abstaining. The fraud was evident. 4 A Constitutional convention was held in July, 1859, at Wyandotte, now part of Kansas City, Kansas, with the twenty-year-old John A. Martin, too young to vote. Instead, he was appointed Secretary, and the twenty-one foot scroll in the Kansas State Historical Society bears his name at the bottom. The old "Free State" and "Pro-slavery" terms were abandoned, but the sixth section of its Bill of Rights read: "There shall be no slavery in this State, and no involuntary servitude, except for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted." A last attempt was made to suspend this section, but it was defeated twenty- eight to eleven. This was the final try to introduce slavery into the constitutioa 5 Members of Martin's audience would recall that he had assumed the ownership of the most powerful Slave-state newspaper in the Territory, the Atchison Squatter Sovereign, and, as an eighteen year-old, transformed its editorial policies and renamed it the Freedom's Champion, a paper which he was to edit throughout his life. 6 President James Buchanan favored the pro-slavery direction for the territories. a servile fidiciary [sic], Slavery has procured the sanction of the law to support its legal right to retain possession of Kansas, beyond the power of the people to prevent, while we remain a Territory. Having adopted this theory, that the constitution of the U.S. carries Slavery with it into the Territories and the people have no right to exclude it therefrom, it is proposed to make Kansas the test of the doctrine, by carrying it into practical operation. Pledged by the provisions of the English Bill,7 against our admission without a representative population, they would yet fear to reject us with a Constitution sanctioned by the vote of the people, upon the eve of a Presidential election. But if they can deceive the people into the support of their measures, if they can secure the defeat of the constitution in Kansas, and thus prevent the necessity of rejecting us, and at the same time keep us out of the Union until the national election of 1860 shall have passed, a new census will have been taken, and the ratio of representation raised probably to 120,000 or 130,000. Then the Supreme Court will be ready for another dicta. It will be declared that Slave property in a Territory is a vested right, and that the progeny is to be held as property forever within the State. The enslavement of Kansas will then be complete. This principle established, and we must yield to it, or rebel against the law and the Federal power. This plan is not imaginary—it is one predicated upon good and well-founded reasons; and if, in our fancied power we over-estimate our security, we may be wofully [sic] deceived; if, in our imaginary strength, we pressure that Democracy wold scruple at this, on us must rest the countless evils flowing from it. We thought it would not, could not, dare not, repeal the Missouri Compromised [sic],8 sanctioned as it was, by the plyted [sic] faith of the nation, and yet it did. We would not believe it could debase itself so thoroughly as to use the Federal army to establish Slavery upon our soil, and the green grassy graves of the Free State settlers, murdered for their many support of their rights, too fearfully attest its working. We deceived ourselves with the flattering hope that they would not dare pass the Lecompton Constitution; the fearful struggle and the final passage of that foul cancer of Constitutional government answered us. We believed in their specious promises of conceded rights—let the plundered homestead, the devastated field, and the murdered brother answer how they were fulfilled.
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