John Harrison Wilson, The life of Charles Henry Dana

It must be admitted by all who read it that this noble confession of faith is worthy of a more perfect realization than it has ever attained. It was never recalled or modified by the man who penned it. It is creditable alike to his heart, his discernment, and his practical sense, and while it ended his illusions in that direction, it marked an important step forward in his evolution. He entertained a brief hope that the experiment which Victor Considerant, who had been a member of the French Assembly when he was in Paris, was now making in Texas might prove to be successful, but that, too, was in due time recorded as a failure with the rest.

The dreams of a better organization of society at large had already given way to the more practical duty of purifying and uplifting the social arrangements of our own country. The great duty which henceforth claimed Dana's constant attention was that of limiting slavery to its present bounds, and saving Kansas, Nebraska, and all other territory the nation might acquire in the future from the blight of slavery. This practical work took precedence over every consideration of a theoretical nature. It became the chief aim of Dana's life, the central subject of his thoughts and actions, and he threw himself into it with all his energy and determination.

On July 31st President Pierce removed Governor Reeder, of Kansas, from office because he failed in some way properly to protect the antislavery immigrants who were coming into the territory. Under the teachings and appeals of the Tribune, a movement of population had been begun from the Northern States to Kansas, with the view of making it a free State; and under the principles of popular sovereignty, as propounded by Douglas and those who concurred with him, the free State men had just as much right to express their opinions and work for their adoption as the pro-slavery men. Bloodshed had already taken