law
abiding, to toil with misdirected zeal in the attempt to propagate their
social theories by the perversion and abuse of the powers of Congress.

The persons and the parties whom the tenor of the act to organize the
Territories of Nebraska and Kansas thwarted in the endeavor to impose,
through the agency of Congress, their particular views of social
organization on the people of the future new States now perceiving
that the policy of leaving the inhabitants of each State to judge for
themselves in this respect was ineradicably rooted in the convictions
of the people of the Union, then had recourse, in the pursuit of
their general object, to the extraordinary measure of propagandist
colonization of the Territory of Kansas to prevent the free and natural
action of its inhabitants in its internal organization, and thus to
anticipate or to force the determination of that question in this
inchoate State.

With such views associations were organized in some of the States, and
their purposes were proclaimed through the press in language extremely
irritating and offensive to those of whom the colonists were to become
the neighbors. Those designs and acts had the necessary consequence to
awaken emotions of intense indignation in States near to the Territory
of Kansas, and especially in the adjoining State of Missouri, whose
domestic peace was thus the most directly endangered; but they are far
from justifying the illegal and reprehensible countermovements which
ensued.

Under these inauspicious circumstances the primary elections for members
of the legislative assembly were held in most, if not all, of the
precincts at the time and the places and by the persons designated and
appointed by the governor according to law.

Angry accusations that illegal votes had been polled abounded on all
sides, and imputations were made both of fraud and violence. But the
governor, in the exercise of the power and the discharge of the duty
conferred and imposed by law on him alone, officially received and
considered the returns, declared a large majority of the members of
the council and the house of representatives "duly elected," withheld
certificates from others because of alleged illegality of votes,
appointed a new election to supply the places of the persons not
certified, and thus at length, in all the forms of statute, and with
his own official authentication, complete legality was given to the
first legislative assembly of the