The Spurious Kansas Memorial Classic Reprint PDF Download

Excerpt from The Spurious Kansas Memorial Debate in the Senate, April 14, 1856, on the memorial of James H.Lane, 2 ((Iing that the Senate receive and grant the prayer of the memorial presented by General Cass, and afterwards withdratwn, embracing the speeches of Senators Douglas, Pugh, Butler, Toucey, Rusk, &c. The debate was opened by Mr. Harlan, who presented the memorial of Colonel Lane, and proceeded to pass a high eulogium upon him for his services as a politician and a soldier. After detailing Colonel Lane's services, Mr. Harlan proceeded: But, Mr. President, I desire to remind the democracy of the country, so ably represented on this floor, who had conferred on him so many distinguished honors, that when he came to his own his own knew him not. They seemed to have entirely forgotten his distinguished services in days of yore. It was not remembered with sufficient vividness to be a voucher for his personal honesty. The honorable senator from Louisiana (Mr. Benjamin) said of the paper which he presented to the Senate of the United States, in the name of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives: "I believe, upon the face of this petition and upon scrutinizing its statements and the signatures which are attached to it, that it is an impudent forgery, attempted to be palmed off upon the Senate of the United States through the hands of the venerable senator from Michigan. I do not believe this to be the petition of the men from whom it purports to emanate. I want to know how this petition got here under such circumstances as to call for such observations as it has elicited from all sides of the house." But no one answers. No one knows. No one seems to remember who James H.Lane is. The honorable senator from Connecticut, (Mr. Toucey, ) who, I believe, was a member of the cabinet organized by Mr. Polk, whose election was aided very materially by the stump speeches of Mr. Lane, does not seem to know who he is. The honorable senator from Ohio, (Mr. Pugh, ) his companion in arms, too, seems to have forgotten him. Mr. Pugh. Mr. President, I desire that the Senator from Iowa shall not misrepresent me. I made no remark whatever, not a syllable, in reference to the gentleman who brought this petition here. I abstained carefully from anything of the sort, and the senator will so find in the report of my remarks. Mr. Harlan. If the remark which I made does misrepresent the honorable senator from Ohio, no one will more gladly stand corrected than myself. Mr. Toucey. I beg leave to correct the senator. Mr. Harlan. I think, if honorable senators will suffer me to proceed, they will find that I do not differ with them as to what they did state. Mr. Toucey. I did not say one word in regard to Colonel Lane. I did not allude to him. Mr. Harlan. It is this death-like silence (laughter) that, I suppose, caused the honorable senator from South Carolina to inquire of the Senate who was the bearer of the petition. All his friends had forgotten him. The honorable senator from South Carolina asked, Who Is this James H. Lane? He told us he did not know him. The honorable senator from Ohio made no response. Mr. Pugh. I heard no such question. If the Senator himself, or any one else, had asked me who was Colonel Lane, I should have given all the information in my power; and if the senator desires me to give it, I will do so now. Mr. Harlan. Fortunately now, by reference to the records and the history of the country, I am tolerably well posted up. If the information had been given on Thursday last it would have been very acceptable. Mr. Pugh. Then the senator does not wish to hear from me. Mr. Butler. I never mentioned Lane's name. Mr. Harlan. By reference to the printed speech of the honorable senator from South Carolina, he will find that he propounded the question, How did this petition get here?