The bill was then passed by the Senate,—Yeas 19, Nays 13. Mr. Edmunds, of Vermont, Mr. Foster, of Connecticut, Mr. Grimes, of Iowa, Mr. Morgan, of New York, Mr. Poland, of Vermont, and Mr. Sumner were the only Republicans voting in the negative.
May 3d, the bill passed the House of Representatives,—Yeas 81, Nays 57,—among the latter Mr. Stevens,—and was duly presented to the President for his signature.
May 16th, the bill was returned to the Senate, with the objections of the President to its becoming a law. On motion of Mr. Wade, of Ohio, the message was laid on the table. May 21st, on motion of Mr. Hendricks, of Indiana, it was taken up and made the special order for May 29th. On this motion, Mr. Sumner, after discussing the order of business, remarked:—
I have said enough in answer to observations on the order of business by Senators who have preceded me; but there seems to have been a disposition to open the main question. Senators have expressed opinions with more or less fulness on that. I shall not follow them. This is not the time for such a discussion. That time may come. It has already been in this Chamber, and then I had ample opportunity to say what I chose. I may deem it proper to take another opportunity; but I am in no haste. I have no disposition to press the matter.
I cannot take my seat, however, without one remark, in reply to my friend from Ohio. He says that he is for the admission of Colorado now, notwithstanding the veto of the President. I rejoin, that I am against the admission of Colorado now, with or without the veto of the President. If alone, I mean to insist always, that, from this time forward, no State shall be received into the Union with a constitution disavowing the first principle of the Declaration of Independence; and I shall take advantage of every opportunity to uphold that principle, whether given me by a Senator on this floor or by the President of the United States.
The veto was never considered, and the effort for the admission of Colorado expired for that session. Had the veto been considered, Mr. Sumner would have said:—
Months have passed since the application of Colorado was presented to Congress, with a constitution disregarding that vital principle which constitutes the essential element of republican government, without which a republican government is a name and nothing more. For months representatives of Colorado have struggled to triumph over this benign principle. Meanwhile the popular voice has been heard, sounding in the ears of members of Congress, and still the efforts of these representatives of Colorado are continued. I regret this much. I regret that they did not return home and crown their labors by making the new State an example to the country.
On this occasion I shall sustain the veto of the President. I must do this, because I agree with him, that Colorado should not now be admitted as a State.