Thirty Years' View (Vol. 1 of 2) / or, A History of the Working of the American Government for Thirty Years, from 1820 to 1850

by Thomas Hart Benton

CHAPTER CXXXVIII.

ADMISSION OF THE STATES OF ARKANSAS AND MICHIGAN INTO THE UNION.

These two young States had applied to Congress for an act to enable them to hold a convention, and form State constitutions, preparatory to admission into the Union. Congress refused to pass the acts, and the people of the two territories held the convention by their own authority, formed their constitutions—sent copies to Congress, praying admission as States. They both applied at this session, and the proceedings on their respective applications were simultaneous in Congress, though in separate bills. That of Michigan was taken up first, and had been brought before each House in a message from the President in these words:

"By the act of the 11th of January, 1805, all that part of the Indian Territory lying north of a line drawn due 'east from the southerly bend or extreme of Lake Michigan until it shall intersect Lake Erie, and east of a line drawn from the said southerly bend, through the middle of said lake, to its northern extremity, and thence, due north, to the northern boundary of the United States,' was erected into a separate Territory, by the name of Michigan. The Territory comprised within these limits being part of the district of country described in the ordinance of the 13th of July, 1787, which provides that, whenever any of the States into which the same should be divided should have sixty thousand free inhabitants, such State should be admitted by its delegates 'into the Congress of the United States, on an equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever, and shall be at liberty to form a permanent constitution and State government, provided the constitution and government so to be formed shall be republican, and in conformity to the principles contained in these articles,' the inhabitants thereof have, during the present year, in pursuance of the right secured by the ordinance, formed a constitution and State government. That instrument, together with various other documents connected therewith, has been transmitted to me for the purpose of being laid before Congress, to whom the power and duty of admitting new States into the Union exclusively appertains; and the whole are herewith communicated for your early decision."

The application was referred to a select committee, Mr. Benton the chairman; and a memorial, entitled from the "Legislature of Michigan," was also referred to the same committee, though objected to by some senators as purporting to come from a State which, as yet, had no existence. But the objection was considered by others as being one of form—that it might be considered as coming from the people of Michigan—and was not even material in that point of view, as the question was already before the Senate on the President's Message. Some objection was also made to the boundaries, as being too large, and as trenching upon those of Indiana and Ohio. A bill was reported for the admission of the State, in support of which Mr. Benton said, the committee had included in the proposed limits a considerable portion of territory on the northwest, and had estimated the superficial contents of the State at 60,000 square miles. The territory attached contained but a very small portion of Indian population. It was necessary to make her large and strong, being a frontier State both to the Indians and to the British possessions. It should have a large front on Lake Superior. The principal points of objection, of a permanent character, were, that the proceedings of the people were revolutionary, in forming a constitution without a previous act of Congress; and her constitution inconsistent with that of the United States in admitting aliens to vote before naturalization. To the first it was answered that she had applied for an act of Congress two years ago, and was denied by the then dominant party, and that it was contradictory to object to her, for not having that which had been refused to be given; and on the second, that the same thing had been done for a quarter of a century. On the latter point Mr. Buchanan said:

"Michigan confined herself to such residents and inhabitants of her territory as were there at the signing of her constitution; and to those alone she extended the right of suffrage. Now, we had admitted Ohio and Illinois into this Union; two sister States, of whom we ought certainly to be very proud. He would refer senators to the provision in the constitution of Ohio on that subject. By it, all white male inhabitants, twenty-one years of age, or upwards, having resided one year in the State, are entitled to vote. Michigan had made the proper distinction; she had very properly confined the elective franchise to inhabitants within the State at the time of the adoption of her constitution; but Ohio had given the right of suffrage as to all future time to all her white inhabitants over the age of twenty-one years; a case embracing all time to come, and not limited as in the constitution of Michigan. He had understood that, since the adoption of her constitution, Ohio had repealed this provision by law. He did not know whether this was so or not; but here it was, as plain as the English language could make it, that all the white male inhabitants of Ohio, above the age of twenty-one years, were entitled to vote at her elections. Well, what had Illinois done in this matter? He would read an extract from her constitution, by which it would appear that only six months' previous residence was required to acquire the right of suffrage. The constitution of Illinois was therefore still broader and more liberal than that of Ohio. There, in all elections, all white male inhabitants above the age of twenty-one years, having resided in the State six months previous to the election, shall enjoy the rights of an elector. Now, sir, it had been made a matter of preference by settlers to go to Illinois, instead of the other new States, where they must become citizens before they could vote; and he appealed to the senators from Illinois whether this was not now the case, and whether any man could not now vote in that State after a six months' residence.

"[Mr. Robinson said that such was the fact.]

"Now, here were two constitutions of States, the senator from one of which was most strenuously opposed to the admission of Michigan, who had not extended the right of suffrage as far as was done by either of them. Did Michigan do right in thus fixing the elective franchise? He contended that she did act right; and if she had not acted so, she would not have acted in obedience to the spirit, if not the very letter, of the ordinance of 1787. Michigan took the right ground, while the States of Ohio and Illinois went back in making perpetual in their constitution what was contained in the ordinance. When Congress admitted them and Indiana on this principle, he thought it very ungracious in any of their senators or representatives to declare that Michigan should not be admitted, because she has extended the right of suffrage to the few persons within her limits at the adoption of her constitution. He felt inclined to go a good deal further into this subject; but as he was exceedingly anxious that the decision should be made soon, he would not extend his remarks any further. It appeared to him that an amendment might very well be made to this bill, requiring that the assent of the people of Michigan shall be given to the change of boundary. He did hope that by this bill all objections would be removed; and that this State, so ready to rush into our arms, would not be repulsed, because of the absence of some formalities, which, perhaps, were very proper, but certainly not indispensable."

On the other point, that of a revolutionary movement, Mr. Buchanan answered:

"I think their course is clearly justifiable; but if there to any thing wrong or unusual in it, it is to be attributed to the neglect of Congress. For three years, they have been rapping at your door, and asking for the consent of Congress to form a constitution, and for admission into the Union; but their petitions have not been heeded, and have been treated with neglect. Not being able to be admitted in the way they sought, they have been forced to take their own course, and stand upon their rights—rights secured to them by the constitution and a solemn irrepealable ordinance. They have taken the census of the territory; they have formed a constitution, elected their officers, and the whole machinery of a State government is ready to be put in operation: they are only awaiting your action. Having assumed this attitude, they now demand admission as a matter of right: they demand it as an act of justice at your hands. Are they now to be repelled, or to be told that they must retrace their steps, and come into the Union in the way they at first sought to do, but could not obtain the sanction of Congress? Sir, I fear the consequences of such a decision; I tremble at an act of such injustice."

The bill passed the Senate by rather a close vote—twenty-four to eighteen; the latter being all senators in the opposition. It then went to the House of Representatives for concurrence. From the time of the admission of new States, it had been the practice to admit a free and slave State together, or alternately, so as to keep up a numerical equilibrium between them—a practice resulting from some slight jealousy existing, from the beginning, between the two classes of States. In 1820, when the Missouri controversy inflamed that jealousy, the State of Massachusetts divided herself to furnish territory for the formation of a new free State (Maine) to balance Missouri; and the acts of Congress for the admission of both, were passed contemporaneously, March, 1820. Now, in 1836, when the slave question again was much inflamed, and a State of each kind to be admitted, the proceedings for that purpose were kept as nearly together as possible, not to include them in the same bill. The moment, then, that the Michigan bill had passed the Senate, that of Arkansas was taken up, under the lead of Mr. Buchanan, to whom the Arkansas application had been confided, as that of Michigan had been to Mr. Benton. This latter senator alluded to this circumstance to show that the people of these young States had no fear of trusting their rights and interests to the care of senators differing from themselves on the slavery question. He said: