Page:American Historical Review, Volume 12.djvu/510

 500 Providence Aleeling of the and captured but made his escape and very shortly thereafter came to the United States. It was his intention to settle in Missouri but his dislike of slavery determined him in favor of Illinois. After a short law course at Transylvania University he was admitted to the bar at Vandalia and soon became one of the leading lawyers in southern Illinois. In politics he allied himself with the Democratic party, believing the Whigs to be tainted with Native-Americanism. In 1842 he was elected to the legislature and from 1845 to 1848 was on the supreme bench, resigning because of the insufficient salary. He was much interested in the European revolution of 1848 and prepared an address from the Belleville Germans which was sent to Germany urging the establishment of a republican government. He opposed the radical movement among the Germans which followed the influx of refugees about 1850 and which had for its purpose the demanding of special recognition of the Germans in America. In 1852 he was elected lieutenant-governor and came into close rela- tions with Douglas, with whom he travelled making campaign speeches. When it became evident that the Democratic party would divide over slavery, Koerner transferred his allegiance from Douglas to Trumbull and contributed largely to the latter's election. In 1856, when the Republican party repudiated Native-Americanism, he joined its ranks and was a member of the convention of i860. During the war he helped to raise troops, was military adviser to the governor of Illinois, was appointed to Fremont's staff, and was later made minister to Spain. During Grant's administration he went into the liberal wing of the Republican party and was a can- didate for governor of Illinois. In the Hayes-Tilden campaign, however, he became a Democrat once more and was not again -n public life. The fourth paper, by Professor F. H. Hodder of the University of Kansas, dealt with " Some Aspects of the English Bill ", the measure upon which the House and Senate compromised respecting the Lecompton constitution and the statehood of Kansas. The English bill provided that the Lecompton constitution should be resubmitted to the people of Kansas with the land-ordinance which had accompanied the constitution considerably amended. In case of the failure of Kansas to accept the constitution with the new ordinance, it was provided that the admission of the territory should be postponed until its population should be equal to the unit of Congressional representation. The bill was vigorously denounced at the time as a swindle and an attempt at bribing the people of Kansas with a grant of land. This view has been upheld by such