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VOICE ONE:

This is Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Ray Freeman with the VOA Special English historyprogram, THE MAKING OF A NATION. Today, we continue the story ofevents during the presidency of Franklin Pierce. And we tell aboutthe presidential election of eighteen-fifty-six.

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VOICE ONE:

The situation in Kansas was themost difficult national problem of the Pierce Administration. Theterritory struggled with the issue of slavery. Pro-slavery settlerselected a representative to Congress. Then they won a majority ofseats in the territorial legislature. An investigation found thatpeople from the nearby state of Missouri had voted in the electionsillegally. Yet the results were accepted.

The new Kansas lawmakers did not like the territorial governor.They demanded that President Pierce dismiss him. Pierce agreed.

VOICE TWO:

Anti-slavery settlers in Kansas felt they could not get fairtreatment from either the president or the new governor. So theytook an extreme step. They formed their own government in oppositionto the elected government of the territory.

Their political group was known as the "Free State" Party. Partymembers wrote their own constitution and chose their own governor.

VOICE ONE:

President Pierce said the actions of the Free State Party seemedrevolutionary. He warned against violence. He said if party membersattacked any officials or property of the territory or the federalgovernment, party leaders should be charged with treason.

The president gave the pro-slavery governor of Kansas control oftroops at two army bases in the territory. Many people feared thatthe governor would use the troops to arrest the leaders of the freestate government.

VOICE TWO:

Fighting between the two sides almost began when a free state manwas killed by a pro-slavery man. Free State settlers gathered in thetown of Lawrence and organized a defense force. At the same time,hundreds of pro-slavery men crossed the border from Missouri. Theyplanned to go to Lawrence and burn it to the ground.

The pro-slavery governor and the Free State governor agreed tohold an emergency meeting. They negotiated a settlement, and the menon both sides went home. The truce did not last long.

VOICE ONE:

In the weeks that followed, a number of attempts were made tostop or arrest the leaders of the Free State government. Pro-slaveryofficials urged private citizens to help. Once again, hundreds ofmen -- including many from Missouri -- gathered in Kansas. Onceagain, their target was the town of Lawrence. This time, however,there was no truce.

The pro-slavery mob attacked and burned several buildings. Anumber of people were killed. The violence might have ended quickly.But one of the men defending the town believed that the battleagainst the forces of slavery must continue. And he believed thatGod had chosen him to lead it. The man was John Brown.

VOICE TWO:

John Brown heard that five free state men had died in the attackon Lawrence. So he said five pro-slavery men must die in return. Heled a group that seized and killed five people.

The civil disorder in Kansas continued. Settlers were forced offtheir land. Houses were burned. More people were killed. Theterritory became known as "bleeding Kansas."

VOICE ONE:

It was clear that there were deep differences between thenorthern and southern American states. The differences involvedtheir economies, their systems of labor, and their way of life.

The civil disorder caused by these differences was the chiefissue in the presidential election of eighteen-fifty-six. Threepolitical parties offered candidates: the Democrats, theRepublicans, and the Know-Nothings.

The Whig Party did not offer a candidate. The party had gone outof existence by then. Its members had split over the question ofslavery in the western territories. The split could not be healed.Most southern Whigs joined the Democratic Party. Most northern Whigsjoined the Know-Nothing Party.

VOICE TWO:

The Know-Nothing Party began as a secret anti-immigrantorganization. It feared that too many people from other countrieswere coming to live in the United States. Members did not want toadmit that they belonged to the group. When asked, they said, "Iknow nothing." And that is how the organization got its name.

VOICE ONE:

The Democratic Party was led by President Franklin Pierce. Piercewanted to run for re-election. Many northern Democrats, however,objected to his support of the pro-slavery legislature in Kansas.Other Democrats did not think he was the strongest candidate. As aresult, Pierce faced competition for the party's nomination.

One opponent was Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois. Douglas hadgreat political ability. He also had many political enemies. He wasthe man most responsible for gaining congressional approval of thebill that opened Kansas to slavery.

VOICE TWO:

Pierce's other opponent for theDemocratic nomination was James Buchanan of Pennsylvania. Buchananwas a northerner who would probably leave the south alone. "I am notfriendly to the idea of slavery," he said. "but the rights of thesouth -- under our constitution -- should have as much protection asthe rights of any other part of our Union. "

VOICE ONE:

The Democratic Party met in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio. It wasthe first time a national political convention was held that farwest.

Candidates needed two-thirds of the votes to win the nomination.After several days of voting, no candidate had received enough. So,in an effort to unite the party, Stephen Douglas offered towithdraw. James Buchanan got his votes and the nomination.

VOICE TWO:

The Republican Party was a new political party. Its membersopposed slavery for either moral or economic reasons.

Many Republicans were Abolitionists. They wanted to ban slaveryeverywhere in the United States. The majority of Republicans,however, were not Abolitionists. They had no interest in endingslave labor in the south. They simply did not want slavery to spreadto other areas.

The Republican Party held its presidential nominating conventionin Philadelphia. For months, party members had spoken of just oneman. He was John Fremont. Fremont had explored the American west. Hehad been a senator from California. He was young and exciting.Republicans thought he was the right man to lead their young andexciting party.

VOICE ONE:

The Know-Nothing Party had a divided nominating convention.Northern and southern members agreed on policies that denouncedimmigrants. But they split on the issue of slavery. Northern membersopposed it. Southern members supported it.

Delegates to the convention chose a candidate who seemed tosupport the party's policies. Yet he was not even a member of theparty. He was a Whig, former President Millard Fillmore.

Northern members refused to support Fillmore. They broke awayfrom the Know-Nothing Party and supported the Republican candidate,John Fremont.

VOICE TWO:

Fremont could not expect to win any votes in the slave states ofthe south. He would have to get all of his support in the north. Hewould have to win the votes of the big states, includingPennsylvania. And Pennsylvania was the home of the Democraticcandidate, James Buchanan.

Buchanan had said that the constitutional rights of the southernstates should be protected. So he could expect to win some votesthere. When all the votes were counted, Buchanan was elected. Now hewould have to deal with the problems that presidents before him hadnot been able to solve.

VOICE ONE:

James Buchanan was sixty-five years old. He had served in theHouse of Representatives and in the Senate. He had served asSecretary of State and as ambassador. He was a good diplomat. But hewas not considered a strong political leader.

Buchanan usually supported the southern position in the disputeabout slavery. He said the north should stop interfering with thesouth. He even said the south had good reason to leave the Union, ifnorthern Abolitionists continued their anti-slavery campaign. Aspresident, Buchanan believed he could solve the slavery question bykeeping the Abolitionists quiet. He wanted a cabinet that shared andsupported this idea.

We will tell about James Buchanan's administration in our nextprogram.

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VOICE TWO:

Today's program of THE MAKING OF A NATION was written byChristine Johnson. This is Ray Freeman.

VOICE ONE:

And this is Steve Ember. Join us again next time for another VOASpecial English report about the history of the United States.