PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE.
leitote Citizen* 0/ /he Senote cml House !
•./ Repren ib-tlves ;
The continued disorganization uf the
Union, to which the ITeeideut has so
often culled the attention of Congress, j
i yet a subject of profound and patriot
ic concern. We may, however, find
sime relief from that anxiety in the re
flection that the painful political situa
tion, although before untried by our
selves, is not new In the experience of
nations. Political science, perhaps, as
highly perfected in our own times and
country as in any other, has not yet dis
covered any means by which civil wars
can be absolutely prevented. An en
lightened nation, however, with a
wise and beneficent Constitution of
free government, may diminish their
frequency and mitigate their severity
by directing all its proeeedWigs in ac
cordance w-:h its fundamental law.
ltecoiutruction.
When a civil war has beeaa. brought
to a close, it is manifestly the first in
terest and duty of the State to repair
the injttrie which the war has inflicted
and Pi secure the benefit of the lessons
it teae'usßß- fully and as speediljj
-i'.ie. Tiii-'duty was upon the tertd
ination of tb* rebellion promptly <ic
pted, not o:i.j by the Executive iJe
srtmcnt, but by the insurrectionary
states themselves; and restoration in
the first moment of |>eaee was believed
. > be as easy and certain - It was in
spensabfe. The expectations, howev
er. shen so reasonably and confidently
entertained, were disappointed by leg
islation from which I felt cohstr.dne 1,
by my obligations to the Constitution,
to withhold my assent. It is therefore
source of profound regret that in com
niying with the obligation imposel up
.<n th President by the Constitution,
to give to Congress from time to time
iDforniation of the state of the Union,
! ;::ii unable to communicate any defin- i
itive adjustment satisfactory to the A
merican people, of the questions which
ice the close of the rebellion, have]
vita ted the public mind. On the eon- :
ry, candor compels me to declare
that at this time there is no Union as
ur fathers understood the term, and as
hev meant it to be understood by us.
file Union which they established can
\i.-t only where all the Mate* are rep
resented in both llous- sof Congn-s,
where one state is as free as another
: i regulate its internal concerns aceor
iing to its own will," and where the
uv- of the Central Government, strict
ly confined to matters of national juris
iiction, apply with equal fon-e to all
■* people of every section. That such
- not the present "'state of the Union"
- a melancholy fact; and we all must
knowledge that the restoration of the 1
-rates to tlo-ir proper legal relations
with the Federal Government, and
with one another, according to the
terms of the original compact, would
the greatf-ttemporalbhsssiiigwhich
T'Xl in his kindest Providence coukl
'-tow upon this nation. It beeorms?
ir imperative duty to consider wheth
er or not it is imp esible to effect this
most desirableconsumraation. TheU
:iion and the Constitution are Insepara
ble. As long as one is obeyed bv all
.rue--, the other will be preserved,*
. id if one is destroyed both must per
i together. The destruction of the
m-titution will he followed by other
>: d still greater calamities. It was or
dained not only to form a more perfect
Union between the States, but to "estab
lish justice, insuredomestic tranquility,
provide for the common defence, pro
mote the general welfare and secure
the blessings ofliberty to ourselves and
>ur jxsterity." Nothing but impli
cit obedience to its requirements in, all
uf the c-'intry will aocoiupii-h
these great ends. Without that obedi
.ince. u can Ick forward only to con
tinual outrages upon Individual rights,
Lm —ant breaches of the public {seace, ■
.uiouai weakness. financia' dishonor,
• tonil los of our prosperity, the gen
ial corruption of m >rals ani the final 1
Mtinetion of popular freedom. To
ve our country from evils so appal
ag as these we shoo id renew mr etforts
in and again. To me the pre
•f restoration ms perfectly plain
id simple. It consists merely in a
ithful application of the Constitution
aid laws. The execution of the laws
not now obstructed or opposed by
iv-i'-al force. There is no military
r other necessity, real or pretended,
hich tan prevent obedience to the
institution, either North or South.
All the rights ami ail the obligations
•f States and individuals can be pro
• ctedand enforced by means perfctly
•nsistent with the fundamental law.
The Courts may be everywhere open,
if open, their proces- would be un
:mpeded. Crimes against the United
- .'ie can he prevented or punished by
the proper judicial authorities in a maa
ner entirely practicable and legal.—
T. -re i-. therefore, no reason why the
' :;?titution should not be obeyed, un
- those who exercise its powers,
have determined that it -hall be disre
garded and violated. The mere naked
•■ill of this Government, or of soute
•ne or more of its branches, is the only
bstaele that can exist to a perfect u
aion of all the State- on this momen
tous question. On some of the meas
ures growing out of it. I have had the
ratefortune to differ from Congress, and
have expressed my convictions with
out reserve, though with bo oming de
ference to the opinion of the legislative
L>epartment. Those convictions are
not only unchanged, but strengthened
'. y -üb-i*quent events and further re
flection. The transcetelent iinportauee
of the subject will lie a -ufficient excus
for calling your attention to route of
the reasons which have -o strongly in
fluenced my own judgment.
The hope that we may all finally con
cur in a mode of settlement consistent
at once with our true interest and with
our -worn duties tc the Constitution, is
i < natural and too ju-t to be easily re
linquished. Itiseileartomy appreh- n
-icai >hat the Mates lately in rebellion
..re still members of theNatiou-d I nioa.
When did they cease to be no? The
- ordinances of secession," adopted by.-.
jh rtion. in most of them hy a very small
jortion of their citizens, were mere
nuilitie-. If *ue adroit now thai they
were valid and effectual for the pur
po-e intended by their authors, we
-weep from under our feet trie wh< lie
ground upon which we justifie<l the
war. Were those States afterwards ex -
i ,le*l from the Union by the war?
Ihe direct contrary waii averred by
tiiis Government to belts purpose. ami
v. a- -o understood by all those who
gave their blood and treasure* to aid in
- pr -ecution. It cannot be that a
• -ful war, waged for the preserva
f the Uniou. had the legal effect
- >iving it. Tic victory of the na
•*s arms was not the disgrace of her
I y. The defeat of secession on tiie
aitie-fiekl was not the triumph of its
v. principle: norroofai Congre-s,
h or without the consent of the E.\-
do anything which wonld
h iv.- the effect, directly or indirectly,
- ; t rating States from each other,
o —olve the Union is to repeal the
•u-titutioo which hold- it togette-r,
.d that is a power which di>es not
>ug to any uepartment of this Gov
et men t, or to all of thtrn united.—
is plain that it has been ■■- j
DrBBOEEOW 4 L!"TZ Editors and Troprletors.
| knowledge* 1 by all btanches of the Fed
. oral Government. The Executive,
my prede - -or es v. If as Myself, 1 and
the heads of all the departments, have
uniformly acted ujK'n the principle
that the Union is not only uudi solved,
butbidis-olubSe. Coagrrs- -übmittedan
amendment of the Con-tltution to be
ratified liy the South rr State-, aud ac
j eepted their a -ts of re? ideation as a nec
| esssary and lawful exereisg of their brgh
j est function. If they were not States,
i or were States, rait of th<> Union, their
j consent toa change in th-* fundameutal
] law of the Union would have Uen nn
| gatory and Congre--In editing it cn:.-
j mitteda politiciti nb- ardft.v. The Ju
' dietary Itss also given t ':e solemn mne
| tl<m off its authority to the mine view
of the ittte. The * Judges of the Su
premc Court have incltcicd the South
ern Stah-s in their cirr-jits, and they
are constantly, in and elsewhere,
exercising juft-*lietiqn wUich dc.-es not
belong to them, unless those Staa-s are
(States of the Union. If the Southern
Stetesari-com]>etent parts of the Union,
the CViistitution is the supreme Uw for
theni, lis it is for ail the other States.
They are bound to obey it, and .-o are
ne. The right of the Federal Govern
ment, which is clear and nnqnestiona
b!e. to enforce the Constitution upon
them, impliestiteorrelariveobligation
■ on our part to observe its limitations
j and execute its guarantees. Without '<
j the Constitution weare nothing. By,
j through and uwler the Consiiunion we
' are what it makes us. We may doubt
the wisdom of the law ; we may not ap
| prove of its provision#, but we can: it
| violate it merely because i; -eetns to j
coutineour powers within limits rar
j rower than wec< u!d wish. It is not a i
; question of individual or class or sec- !
| tional interest, much les- of ] trty pre
dominance, hut of duty, of high ani,
sacred duty, which we are all sworn to
j perform.
If weeannot -upj-.rt the Constitution
! with the cheerful alacrity of the-,- who i
; love and believe in i;, we must give to
I it at lea.-? the fid THy of public servants
' who act under solemn obligations and
j command-- which they dare* rot di-re- ;
I gard. The constitutional duty Is n ! ,
the only one which requires the SU::-*
to be restore*!. There i.-aufrflu rcun-id
eration, which, though of rain rim-
portance, is yet of great weight. <a
| the day of July. 1-61, Congress <le-
J clare*l , by an almost unaniit. o- vote
! of both Hou- -, that tfje war.-" ; ->u!d be
! conducted soldy f-.r the purpose of
preserving the Union and maintaining
the supremacy of the Federal Consti
; tutiu and laws, without iuipairing
j the dignity, equality and right- of the
'States, or of individuals, and t! . ?
' when this was done, the war -hould
| cease. Ido no? say that thi- declara
tion i- personally ( imlingon th -ewho
join t—l lii making i? any morctiian in
dividual member- of Congr- -- are p r
sonaily bound to pay a public debt (-re
lated under a law for vrhteh they vote l.
But it wa- a - >letnn puiclc ftfi.a.d
' pledg>s ofthe national honor, and I can- J
.not imagine uj qti what gr*;utS< the!
repudiation oftt is to be j..-tit', u, jf
be remembered that tit--' pr nnLs- was i
r. it made to Rebels only. Tb -unds
1 of true men in the rsoulli werfe drawn
: to our standard by it. and hunure U of
i thousands in the North gave their'
■ lives in the belief that it would io ear
fried out. It was ma o day af-!
ter the first great battie of the war io. i ;
been tought arei 10-r. All patriotic j
. and intellic'-nt men then -aw th** ne-'
' •'—sty of giving such an assurance, and 1
believed that vnthout it the war a iid
, end in di-aster to our cause. Having
given that a—urae s. i: : the extremity
! of our pt-ril, the violation of it IVJ\V in ,
the day of our power, would be a rude
rending of the: good faith which holds !
• the moral world togeth -r; our ; -usury j
would cease to have anv claim Bp D .
' the confidence of in-.-;:. It would make i
the war not oniya Mere but a fraud. ;
i Being sincerely convinced that these
view- are eorre-e?, I would b'- unfaith
ful to my duty if I did not recommend
the refieal ofthe acts of Congress which
place ten of the Southern Stales under
the domination of military rna-t-r-.
If caim reflection sitali satefy a inaj->ri
tv of your honorable b* lies that the
acts referred to are not only a violation
of the national faith, iiu* in direct con
flict with the Constitution. I dare not
permit my-elf to dot; t that you will
• immediately strike themfroni th stat
ute book. To demonstrate the unootl
stitutionai eharui-ter of thc.-se nets I
need do no more tlcm refer to their
general provisions. It ants', be se:*u at
once that they are not authorized to
dictate what alteratkais -hali in- made
in the Constitutions of the -cverai
rotates, to antral trie elections of State
Legislator- andstat - oil: ■ r-, menkwrs
>f Gongre-ss. arid elector- of Prt stdi ot
and Vice ITesident, by jridtrariiy d -
j claring who shall vot- and who shall
be excluded from that privilege, to
dissolve .State Legislatures < r pr-v it
them from amembiiug; to dismL—
judge-and other civil fan<'ti -naries of
'i the s(atp.. and appoin others, without
regard to suite laws: ?*> organi>
and operate all the j- diticai rna -iiin
ery of the tales; to re-gulate the who!
j administration of their domestic and
i local aflitirs according ■. she mere will
. of Strang* and irr* -; - ; g*.rm
sent among them for that purpose
; these are powers not granted to tise
: Federal Government or to any one of
its branches. Not being granted, we
■ violate them In tin fare- of a positive
interdict, for the Constitution forbids
i u- to do whatever it doe- not affirma
tively authorize either by express
words or by clear ImpHnfios. If the
i authority we desire to ttse d>jta not
. come to us through the CvosU'.ir.eir. -.*•
'■ can exercise it f r;y by u.-arpat! n : and
i usurpation Is the most dangerous >f
j p Litieal crimes. By t'o.t crime, the
■ enemies of free goverr.ment in ail sgt-s
j liave worked out their design- ag.c.nsi
public liliertv and private right, it
i leads directly and immediately to the
I establishment of absolute rub.*; for
j power yiiuiitsiitlHl
land unrestrained. T.. . -of Conr
i greas in quo-stiou are not ou'.y ob.
j tioaable tor their assumption of uto
• granted power, but i . n.. >f :leir i >-
j vi-i ,'.r" in re;nflic w.th the dire-ct
{prohibition- of the < e.. ci. ii
j Coostitstion (xwuaajvb that a repohli
| cnij fcrm of gqvi-ro: • guar
anterel to aii the -. muton txr
i -<>!: shall be deprivv-l <*t life, liberty or
property withtmi due process of law,
i arrested withtait a judicial warrant, or
1 puhhd wittioui a fair trial before
i aii impartial jary*. that the privileg-:
|of kabcx* oorpttt shall not be dested in
| time of peace, and tlv.it no bill of u*-
j tainder shall be passed even against a
A LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWSPAPER, DEVOTED TO POLITICS, EDUCATION, LITERATURE AND MORALS
single individual. Yet the syetetn of
measures established by acta of
Congress floes totally snbvert and de
i stroy tie* form as well as the substance
of republican government ia the ten
•State.- to which they apply. It hi ads
th'*; hand and foot in absolute slavery ;
; and -tibjfvts them to a strange and
j hostile power, more unlimited and
' more likely to be than any oth
• er now known among dviliaed "men. I
; It tramples down all those rights in ;
; whieh the e-svnee of liberty consists !
W'hl ha free government is al-]
ways most .ureful kj protect. It de-
I ohw the heb m corpus aud the trial by i
jury. Per-mal fn-edom, projs rty and '
tif*. if as-ailtsi by the pa-sien. the pre
judice or the rapacity of the ruler, have
no security whatever. It has the ef
| feet of a bill of attainder or bill of pains
. and jienalties not upon a few individu
| als, but upon whole masses, including
1 the mi lions who inhabit the sub
ject States, and even their unborn chil
dren.
These wrongs being expressly for
i bidden, cannot be constitutionally In- '
dieted upon any jortion of our people, ■
i no matter now" they may have come j
' within our jurisdiction, and no matter !
: whether they live in .States, Territor
ies or districts. I have no desire to I
-ave from the proper and just conse- j
j quences of their greaf crime those who J
'engaged in rebellion against the Gov
ernment. But as a mode of punish
ment, the m j- ures under consujera-
I tion are the niost unreasonable that
i could Ive invented. Many of th<>se
| ieople are perfectly innocent; many
; keep their fidelity to the Union uti- j
; tainted to the h*.-t; many were inc-a
, pable of any legal offence; a large pro
!>ortion even of the persons able to j
i bear arms were forced into rebellion i
i iigaiusi their will, and of those who I
•re guilty with their own consent, the :
degrees of guilt are as variou- as the j
: -hades of their character and temper. !
lint tiic-se aei- of Gongre-s confound
themall together, in one common doom. \
Indi-eriminate vengeance upou das- i
sea, sects and parti: - or upon whole i
< ommuni:;*--. for offences rearamitted .
iy ti ;eai:;-t the ' governments to -
which they ov 1 oltedience, was corn-'
aiou .u i i:ur: ar '.:-age- >f the world. I
But * "hri-1 -iity and civilization have *
made such progt -s that recourse to a
nuntskniuat cruel and unjust would \
iu-.vt with the condemnation of all uu- j
prejutlicv-.i . i right-minded men.— j
The puuiti l •* justice of this age, and j
especially of this ->un:ry, does not eon- i
-i-t in -tri: ; iug whole states of their j
I liberties and reducing all their people, j
without dis'.ia ion,to thp condition j
of slavery. It deals separately with t
each individual, confine- itself "to the j
forms of fiw, and vindicates its own
parity by an impartial examination of
every case M-fore a eomjietent judicial j
'.ributial. If thi- does not satisfy -all !
r desir - with regard to Southern
i-tebeis. iet us coti-oie ourselves by re*- j
i' ting that a free Constitution* tri- i
umphant in war, and unbroken in •
peace. Is Worth far mure, to us and our ]
'.-:iii'ti**-i t!u-... il* grattncalion or any
pre-*, nt ling. lam aware it is a.-- I
-um-'l t: at this system of government j
.-th 8 itiu ra >'- is not to be per- j
pettuti. iti- true this Milimry Gov
ernment is to be only provisional, but j
through this temporary evil that a j
greater evil is to be made pertteiuaL— j
if theguarntee- of the Constitution can
broken, pre visionally, to -erveatetn
i very j urp .—:*, and in a part only of
the country, we can destroy them ev- j
.ryvvhere and f r all tim . Arbitrary
• rally change far tte* It Is the i
i*urs; of desp eisin that it has n halt- :
ing place. The intermitted exercise of J
: *;- power '.rings no s-cmeof security to
| it- -tihJect-, fur they can never know
| wl'at more they will be called to endure
when its red right hand is armed to
! plague them again. Nor is it possible
:u <- mjecture how or where power, un-'
rcstrainetl by law, may seek it- next
victim. The .Suites tliat are still free, :
may b-enslaved at any moiueut, for,;
, if iiieConstitution does not protect all,
i: protects none. It is manifestly and
avowedly toe object of the- laws to
<* >nfer s'pa negroes the privilege of
voting and to disfranchise such a nam*
oertjwbi-.e dtlzeas as will give the
' former a el ear majority at ail elections
in the s >utherii ritatcs. This to the
minds of aotne per-ons, is so importaiit
that a violation <>f the Constitution is
•justified as a means of bringing it a- !
j bout.
Xe'jro Suffrage.
Th * morality is always false whieh
' excu.-e- a wrong b- cause it proposes to
accomplish a desirable end. We are
i not permitted to do evil that go<xi may
'come. But in this case tiie **nd itself
i- . vila- well as the means. The sub
jogatioa of .State- to negro domination '
would be worse* tb;:n the military d<—
| *;-:;! Bttder which tliey are now stiff- \
ering. It was believed beforehand
; that the people would endure any a- j
mount of military oppression for any i
i'-ngth of time, rather than degrade
ti:emselves by subjection to the negro i
race. Therefore, they have U-en leT
without a choice. N'-gro suffrage wa ,!
<~? :t -h>l by act of l ingre-'-, atsd in * j
1 miHiary'ofli'.ser* were commanded t \
; superintend the process of clothing tt j
gro rut-" ith • ■ lit; .-.1 privileges
torn from white m a.
The idac-k-in the South are entitled
t > bo well and humanely govenied,and j
to l ave the protection ofjust laws for
1 all ticir rights of person and property.,
If ii v. -re j ra. ie.-bk: at this time to!
give then) a government exclusively j
Their own, under which they might
manag* :he;r owe affairs in their own
way, it would become a grave ques- j
; <n whether we ought to do so, or
whether eommon humanity would not;
r i-lire u- to .-.we them from thein
- iv lit,i and t the dreumstanees.
this is only a syecuitttve puis*. It i*
not p; p<-vd merely that they .shall'
guvrsi tbefiirt ivoa. out that they shall
ru!** ti-** white rsue, make and adrnin
i-:< r <*•.;?•'* ;aws. elect Fre*sidcnts and
'.r: . - r-<f *v• gr ard -hape to a
gr ter . r it-- extent the future-destiny
of th >untry. Would such a ;
trust and js.wer be safe in such hands?
The peculiar qualities which should
chw'-rsze any peqlt* who are fit to
f ' : **i ?n<* 'management of pub
;i .. r - a great s* * ate have sciuotti
U *•.) e>ntbin:-d. It is the glory of
white men to know that they have had i
qualities in sufficient liu e-urt* to
bmid uyin this continent a great j-> j
iiti al foi rie and to preserve its stabili-'
t " for more than ninety y.-ars. while in '
ry other jrt of the world ail simil- )
ar experiments have failed. But if i
BEDFORD. Pa.. FRIDAY. DECEMBER 13. 1867.
! anything can be proved by known
facts, if all reasoning upon evidence is
not abandoned, it most be acknowledg
ed that in the progress of nations ne
. rroes have shown less capacity for gov
ernment than any other race of people,
i No independent government of any
, form has ever been successful in their
: hands. On the contrary, wherever
they have been left to their own devi
' eas they have shown a constant tenden
cy to relapse into barbarism. In the
Southern States, however, Congrses
has undertaken to confer upon them
-he privilege of the ballot. Just re
leased from slavery, it may be doubted
| whether, as a elas-, they know more
than their ancestors, hov to organize
; and regulate civil society. Indeed, it
is admitted that the biaete of the South
ire not only regardless of the rights of
i property, but so utterly ignorant of
; public affairs, that their voting can con
sist of nothing more thtn carrying a
: 'ollnt to the"place Where they are di
rected to deposit it. I need not re
mind you that the exercise of the elec
•' tive franchise is the highest attribute
: of an American citizen, and that, when
guided bv virtue, intelligence, patriot
ism, and a proper appreciation of our
free institutions, it constitutes the true
basis of a democratic form of govern
ment, in which the sovereign power is
lodged in the body of the people ; a
trust artificially created, not for its own
-ake, but solely as a means of promot
ing the general welfare. Its influence
for good must necessarily depend upon
the elevated character and true alle
giance of the elector. It ought, there
fore, to be reposed in none except those
who are fitted morally and mentally
to administer it well; for. if conferred
upon persons who do not justly esti
mate its value, and are indifferent as
to its results, it will only serve as a
iSaans of placing power in the hands of
the unprincipled and ambitious, and
must eventuate in the complete de
struction of that liberty of which it
shoaid he the most powerful conserva
tor. i have, therefore, heretofore urged
upon your attention the great danger
to be apprehended from an untimely
extension of the elective franchise to
any new class in our country. espec
ially when the large majority of that
(-la--, in wielding the power thus plac
ed in their hands, cannot be expected
correctly to comprehend the duties and
responsibilities which pertain to suf
frage. Yi-terday, as it were, four mil
lions of persons were held in a condi
tion of slavery. that had exi-ted for
generations. * To-day they are freemen,
and are assumed by law to be citizens.
It cannot be presumed, from their pre
vious condition of servitude, that, as a
class, they are as well informed as to
the nature of our Government as the
intelligent foreigner who makes our
land the home of his choice. In the
case of the latter, neither aiesidenceof
rive years, and the knowledge of our in
stitutions which it gives, nor attach
ment to the principles of the Constitu
tion, are the only conditions upon
which he can I*? admitted to eitizen
£2d nmralThanwreT;
reasonable ground for the belief that
he will be faithful to the obligations
which he assumes as a citizen of the
Republic. Where a people, the source
of all political power, speak, by their
suffrages, through the ballot-box, it
mu-t l>e carefully guarded against the
control of those who are corrupt in
principle and enemies of free institu
tion-. for it can only become to our po
liti L! and social sy-ttm a safe conduc
tor of healthy popular sentiment when
kept ft. • from demoralizing influences.
Controlled through fraud and usurpa
tion, by the designing. anarchy and
despotism must inevitably follow. In
the hand* of the patriotic and worthy
our Government will tie preserved up
on the principles of the Constitution
inherited from our fathers. It follows,
therefore, that in admitting to the bal
lot-box n new Ha—of voters not quali
fied for the exercise of the elective fran
<hi->, we weaken our system of govern
ment instead of aiding to its strength
and durability. I yield to no one in
alt t -htricnt to that "rule of general suf
frage which distinguishes oar policy as
a nation. But there is a-limit, wisely
ob- rved hitherto, which makes the
ballot a privilege aud a trust, and
which requires of some classes a time
-uitabie for probation and preparation.
To give it indiscriminately to a new
clas-, wholly unprepared by previous
habits and opportunities to perform
tlie tru-t which it demands, "1- to de
gra ie it and fin ally to destroy its pow
er, for it may be -afely assumed that
no i*>liticai truth is better established
than that such indiscriminate and all
. mbra -ing exten-ion of popular suf
frage must end at last in its overthrow
and destruction.
I rej>eat the expression of my will
ingnes- to join in any plan within the
scope of our constitutional authority,
which promises to better the condition
fth negroes in the South by encour
aging them in industry, enlightening
their minds, improving their morals,
and giving protection to a'! their just
right- as btit the transfer of
our political inheritance to them would,
in my opinion, bean abandonmeot of a
duty*which we owe alike to the memo
ry of our father-aud the rights of our
children. The plan of putting the
Southern States wholly, and the Gen
eral Government partially, into the
hand-of negroes, i- proposed at a time
peculiarly unpropitious. The founda
tions of society have been broken up by
civil wan industry must beres-ognized;
ju-tice re-established; public credit
maintained, and order brought out of
confusion. To accomplish these ends
would require all the wisdom and vir
tue of the great men who formed our
institutions originally. I confidently
believe that their descendants will be
equal to the arduous ta-k before them,
but it i- worse than madness to expect
that the negroes will perform it for us.
C rtainly we ought not to ask their a—
; s: stance until despair of our own
competency. The great difference be
tvvi-cu the "two races in physical, men
tal and moral characteristics will pre
vent an amalgamation or fusion of them
together in one homogeneous mas-.
I f the inferior obtains the ascendancy
over the other it will govern with ref
erence only to its own interests, for it
will recognise no common interest, and
ate such a tyranny as this continent
i - never yet witnessed. Already the
r;"greets are influenced by promise of
•ouf-ration and plunder: they are
taught to regard as an enemy every
white man who has any respect for the
right- of his own race. If this contin
ues it must become worse ami worse,
until all order will be subverted. all in
dustry cease, and the fertile fields of
the South grow up into a wildernes*.
<f all the dangers which our uatiou
hasyetencoßntond, uoneare equal to
those which must result from the suc
cess of the effort now making to Afri
canize the half of our country. I would
not put considerations of money in
competition with justice and right, but
the exjienses incident to reeon-truc
tion under the system adopted by Con
( gress, aggravate what I regard as the
intrinsic wrong of the ineaaure itself.
; It has cost uncounted millions already,
, aad if persisted in, will add largely to
the weight of taxation already too op
j prmsive to be borne without just com
■ plaint, and may finally reduce the
1 rea-ury of the nation to a condition
jof bankruptcy. We must not delude
r ourselves. It will require a strong
• standing armv and probably more
i than TWO huwfrwt LUTMUNS of uoi.As:
per annum to maintain the supremacy
of negro governments after they are
established. The sum thus thrown
j away would, if properly used, form a
sinking fund large enough to pay the
whole national debt in less than fifteen
| years. It is vain to hope that negroes
will maintain their ascendancy them
; selvee. Without military power they
i .ure wholly incapable of holding in sub
j jeetion the white i*ople of the Sooth.
I submit to the judgment of Congress
, whether the public <Tcdit may not be
injuriously affected by a system of
measures like this. With our debt and
the vast private interests which are
complicated with it, we cannot be too
cautious of a policy which might by
possibility impair the confidence of
the world in our Government. That
confidence can only be retained by care
fully inculcating the principles of jus
tice and hoDor on the jiopular mind
and by the most serupulon- fidelity to
all our engagements of every -sort.
Any serious breach of the organic law,
persisted iu for a considerable time,
cannot but create fears for the stability
of our institutions. Habitual violation
of prescribed rules, which we bind our
selves to observe, must demoralize the
people; our only standard of civil duty
oeing set at naught, the sheet-anchor
of our political morality is lost, and
the public conscience swings from iu
moorings and yields to every impulse
of passion and interest. If we repodi
ate the Constitution, we will notlieex
pected to care much for mere pecuni
ary obligations. The violation of such
a pledge as we made on the 22d day of
July, IS6I, will assuredly diminish the
market value of our other proml-es.
Besides, if we now acknowledge that
the national debt was created not to
hold the States in the Union, a? the
taxpayers were led to suppose, but to
expel them from it, and hand thereov
er to be governed by negroes, the mor
al duty to pay it may seem much le—
clear. I say it may seem so, for 1 do
not admit that this or any other argu
ment in favor of repudiation can be en
tertained as sound. But its influence
a great commercial nation, largely in
debted, and with a republican form of
government, administered by agenf
of the popular choice, is a thing of such
delicate texture, and the destruction of
it would be followed by such unspeaka
ble calamity, that every true patriot
must desire to avoid whatever might
expose it to the slightest danger. The
great interests of the country require
imm ed iate relief from these enact mc nt -.
Business in the South Ls paralyzed by
a senre of general insecurity, bv a ter
ror of confiscation, and the dread of
negro supremacy. The Southern trade,
from which the* North would have de
rived so great a profit under a govern
ment of law. still languishes, and tan
never lie revived until it ceases to be
fettered by the arbitar.v power which
makes all its operations unsafe. That
rich country —the richest in natural
resources the world ever saw, is worse
than lost if it be not -soon placed under
the protection of a free Constitution.
Instead of being as it ought to be, a
source of wealth aud power, it will tie
come an intolerable tairden upon the
rest of the nation. Another reason for
retracing our steps will doubtless be
seen by Congress in the late manifesta
tions of public opinion upon thi? sub
ject. We live in a country where the
jopular will always enforces obedience
to it-elf sooner or "later. It is in vain
to think of opposing it with anything
-hort of legal authority backed by ov
erwhelming force. It cannot have e—
eaped your attention that from theday
on which Congress fairly and formally
presented the proposition to govern
the Southern States by military force,
with a view to the ultimate establish
ment of negro supremacy, every ex
pression of the general sentiment has
been more or less adverse to it. The
affections of this generation cannot be
detacher! from the institutions of their
ancestors: their determination to pre
serve the inheritance of free Govern
ment in their own bands. and trans
mit it undivided and unimpaired to
their own posterity, is too strong to l>e
stKVes-fullv oppusrd. Bvcry weaker
pit--.ion will disappear before that love
of liberty and law for which the Ameri
can people are distinguished above ail
others in the world.
Duty of" tit* l^rtsidatl.
How far the duty of the President to
preserve, protect aud defend the Con
stitution requires him to go in oppos
ing an unconstitutional act of Congress,
is a very serious and important ques
tion on "which I have deliberated much
and felt extremely anxious to reach a
proper conclusion. Where an act has
been pa"?<J according to the forms of
the Constitution by the supreme legis
lative authority, and is regularly en- j
rolled among the public statutes of the !
country. Executive resistance to it, es-'
peciaily in times of high party excite- j
meat, would be likely 10 produce via- |
I lent collision between the respective !
adherents of the two branches of the
Government. This would IK.- simply >
civil war, and civil war must be resor- •
ted to only as the last remedy for the
worst of evils. Whatevef might tend to j
provoke it should lie most carefully j
avoided. A faithful atd conscientious
magistrate will concede very much to
honest error, and something even to
personal malice, before he will endang
er the public peace; and he will not
adopt forcible measures, or such as ■
might lead to force, as long as those
which are p-aceable remain open to
hiin or to his constituents. It Is true
that cases may occur in which the Exe
i eutive would be compelled to stand on
YOLCUS <0: SO. 49.
fits own rights ami maintain them re
j gam teas of all eonaeqnenoes, if Congress
i uhould pass an act which is not only in
palpable conflict with the Constitution
but will certainly, if carried out, pro
| dues immediate and irreparable in/urv
I to the organic structure of the Gov
ernment; and if there be neither judi
i eial remedy for the wrongs it inflicts,
■norpower in the people to protect
i themselves without the ofticial aid of
1 their elected defender; if, for instance,
the legislative department should pass
an act, even through all the forms of
law, to abolish a co-ordinate depart
ment of the Government in such a
cas the President must take the high
responsibility of bis office and save the
life ot the nation at all hazards. The
so-called iteeonstruetion act, though as
plainly unconstitutional as aov that
can lie imagined, were not believed to
be within the class last mentioned.—
The people were not wholly disarmed
-**f >*•* 1 •-- ' *t _U -A- -
Northern States they still held in their
hands the sacred right of the ballot,
and it was safe to believe that in due
time they would come to the rescue of
their own constitution. It gives me
pleasure to add that the appeal to our
common constituencies wa- not taken
in vain, and that myconfidenceintheir
wisdom and virtue seems not to have
been misplaced.
lievatuti Fraud* — Tuatrt of OfjU Bill
It is well and publicly known that enor
mous frauds have been perpetrated on the
Treasury and that colossal fortunes have
been made at the public expense. This spe
cies of corruption has increased, is increas-
and if not diminished, will soon brinr
u into total run and disgrace. The public
creditors and tax-payers are aike interested
in an honest administrat ion of the finances,
and neither cb-v will long endure the large
handed robberies of the recent past. For
this discreditable state of things there are
several causes. Some of the taxes are so
laid as to present an irresistible temtUation
to evade payment: the great sums which
officers may win by connivance at fraud, cre
ate a pressure which it more than the vir
tue of many can withstand, and there can
be no doubt tli3t the open di regard of con
stitutional obligations, assumed by some of
the hie best and most influential men in the
country, has greatly weakened the moral
sense of those who serve iu subordinate pla
ces Tbe expenses of the 1 nited States,
including interest on the public debt, are
more than six time- as much as they were
seven years ago. To collect and disburse
this va-t amount requires careful supervis
ion as well as systematic vigilance. The
system, net or perfected, wa- mv'h disor
ganii vf by the Tenure of Office bill, whieh
ha- almost destroyed official accountability.
The Prc-ideot maybe thoroughlyconvinced
that an off, - r is incapable, dishonest or un
faitfcfn'to the Con-titution. but under the
law which I have named, tbe utmost he c-an
do is to complain to the Senate and ask the
privilege of supplying his place with a belter
man. If the Senate ce regarded as person
ify or politically hostile to the President, it
is natural, and not altogether unreasonable,
for tbe offie w to expect that it will take his
place, and give him a triumph over Ins Kx
•rotive superior. The officer has other
r-hances of impunity, arising from accidental
defc cts of evidence: the mode of investi
gating it and the secrecy of the hearing.—
It is not wonderful that official malfeasance
th -uld become bold in proportion as the
delinquents learn to think tbeniselves safe.
1 am entirelv per-uaded that under such a
rule the I'resident cannot perform tbe great
duty assigned to him of seeing thelavrs faith
fully executed. and that it disabic him most
especially from en forcing that rigid accounta
bility which is Deoessary to the due execu
tion of the r- venue laws. The Con-titution
invests tbe President with authority to de
tide whether a removal should be made in
any given ea-e : the act of Congress declares
n substance that he - hall only accuse such as
fie supposes to be unworthy of their trust,
rhc Co--ritatwnmakes him sole judge io
the premises, but tbe statute takes away
ilia jurisdiction, transfers it to the Senate
ind leaves him nothing but the odious and
)metimes impracticable duty of becoming
* prosecutor. The prosecution is to be con
luv L-ol before a tribunal whose members are
not like him—rt -ponsible to the whole peo
ple. but to separate constituent bodies, and
who may hear his accusation with great dis-
Fav-w. The Senate is absolutely without
my known standard of decision applicable to
,-h a ease. Its judgment cannot he an
icipated, for it is not governed by any role,
rhc law docs not define what shall be
leemed good cause for removal, and it is
mpossible even to conjecture what may or
n>y not be • considered by the Senate. —
Fhe nature of the subject forbids clear proof,
[ftbe -barge be incapacity, what will sup
port it ? Fidelity to the Constitution may
few understood or misunderstood in a thous
ind different ways, and by violent party
men in violent party times, unfaithfulness
to tbe Constitution may even come to be
ron-idered meritorious. If tbe officer be
incused of dishonesty, how shall it be made
out? Will it be inferred from acts uncon
nected with pulic duty, frotu private history.
>r f:-,ai general reputation? or must the
President aws.it the ammis-ioc of an actu
i] misdemeanor in office? Shall he in the
mean time risk the character and interest of
the nation in the hand' of men to whom he
-ttOTi"-. ci't- I,U Must 1m COT
bear Lis complaint until the mischief is done
and cannot l>e prevented ? If his zeal in
the pur lie service should impel him to an
ticipate the overt act, must he move at the
■ ril >,f 1-ring tried himself for tbe offence
of slandering his subot dinates ? In the
present circumstances of the country some
one mast be held responsible for official dc
iinoueney of every kind. It is extremely
dtffi--.lt to -ay where that responsibility
•ho'jld be- thrown, if it be not left where it
ha- been placed by the Constitution. _ But
alt just men wilt admit that the President
ought to be entirely relieved from such re
sponsibility. if he cannot meet it. by reason
of restrictions placed by law upon his actioo.
Tbe unrestricted power of removal from of
fice i* a very great one to be trusted, even
to a mag'-'tratc chosen by the general suf
fruge of the whole people, and accountable
directly to them for his acts: it is undoubt
edly liable to abuse, and at some periods of
our history perhaps has been abased. If it
be thought desirable and Constitutional that
it should be so limited as to ruake the Pres
ident merely a common informer against
other public agents, he should at least be
permitted to act in that capacity before
some open tribunal, independent of party
polities, ready to investigate the merits of
every ease, furnished with the means of
taking evidence, and bound to decide accord
ing to established rules. This would guar
antee the safety of the accuser when he acts
in gocd faith, and the same time secure the
rights of the other party. I speak, of
oour.se. with all proper respect for the pres
ent Senate, tat it does not seem to me that
anv legislative My can be so constituted as
to in-ore its fitness for these functions. It
J is not the theory of this Government thst
public offices are the property of those who
bold them. They are given merely as a
trust for the public benefit, sometimes for a
i fixed period, sometimes during good beha
vior, out generally they are liab.e to be ter
minated at the pleasure of the appointing
power which represents the collective majes
ty and speaks the will of the people. The
loroed retention in office of a single dishon
est person msy work great injury to the
public interests. The danger to the public
service comes not from the power to remove
but from the power to appoint; therefore,
it was that the framers of the constitution left
the power of removal unrestricted, while
they gave the Senate a. right to reject all
appointments which, in its opinion, were
not fit to be made. A little reflection on
this subject will probably satisfy all who
have the good of the country at heart, that
our best course is to take the Constitution
for our guide, walk in the path marked out
bv the founders of the Republic, and
obey the rules made sacred by tbc obser
vance of our great predecessors.
The Financex and the Currency.
1 he present condition of our finances and
circulating mcuium is one of which your
j early consideration is invited. The propor
tion which the currency of any country
should bear to the whole value of the annu
al produce circulated by its means is a Ques
tion upon which political economists have
not agreed, nor can it be controlled by leg
islation. but must be left to the irrevocable
iaws, which everywhere regulate commerce
and trade. The.circulating medium will
ever irresistibly flow tothose points where it
j 10 f r y test demand. The law of supply and
la'es i he tides o?the ocea tea d omd ec d c u rrency
like the tides, has its ebbs and flows through
out the commercial world. At the begin
ning of the rebellion the lank note cirula
tion of the country amounted to not much
more than two hundred millions of dollars;
now. the circulation of national bank notes
and those known as legal tenders, is nearly
-even hundred millions. While it is urged
by some that this amount should be in
creased, others contend that a decided re
duction is absolutely essential to the best
nterests of the country. In view of these
diverse opinions, it may be well to ascertain
the real value of our paper issues. When
compared with a metalic or convertible cur
rency for this purpose, let us inquire how
much gold and silver could be purchased by
the seven hundred millions of paper money
now in circulation. Probably not more than
half of the amount of the latter, showing
that when our paper currency is compared
with gold and silver, its commercial value is
compressed into three hundred and fifty
millions. This striking feet makes it the
obvious duty of the Government, as early as
it may be consistent with the principles of
sound political economy, to take such meas
ures as will enable the holders of its notes,
and those of the national backs, to convert
them without loss on specie or its equiva
lent. A reduction of our paper circulating
medium n- ed not neoessanly follow. This,
however, would depend upon the law of
demand and supply, though it should be
borne in mind that by making legal tender
and lank notes convertible into coin or its
equivalent, their present specie value in the
hands of their holders would be enhanced
one hundred per cent Legislation for the
accomplishment of a result so desirable is
demanded by the highest rubfic considera
tions. The Constitution contemplates that
the circulating medium of the country shall
be uniform in quality and Talue at the
time of the foimation of that instrument.
The country had just emerged from the
war ofthe Revolution, and was suffering from -
the effects of a redundant and worthless pa
per currency. The sages of that period were
anxiou- to protect their posterity from the
evils which they themselves had experienced.
Hence in providing a circulating medium,
they conferred upon Congress the power to
fang) tko rnLio a
at Tilt! SSHie uuic tbc r.tofes from
making anything but gold and silver a tender
ID payment of debts. The anomalous con
dition of oar currency is in striking contrast
with that which was originally designed.
Our circulation now embraces first, notes of
the national banks, which are made receiv
able for all dues to the Government, exclud
ing imports, and by all its creditors, except
ing in payment of interest upon its bomb
and the securities themselves : second, lega
tender notes issued by the United States,
and which the law requires shall be received
a- well in payment of ali debts between citi
zen-, as of ail Government dues, excepting
imports ; and third, gold and silver coin.—
By the operation of our present system of
finance, however the metalic currency when
collected is reserved only for one class of
Government creditors, who, holding its
bonds, semi-annually receive tbeir interest
in coin for the National Treasury. They
are thus made to occupy au invidious po
sition, which may be used to strengthen the
arguments of those who would bring into
disrepute the obligations of the nation. In
the payment of ali its debts the plighted
faith of the Government should be inviola
bly maintained: but, while it acts with
fidelity towards the bondholder who
loanded his money, that the integrity of the
Union might be preserved, it would at the
same time, observe good faith with the
great mass cf the people who. having rescu
ed the Union from the perils of rebellion,
nnv bear the burdens of taxation that the
Government may be able to fulfil its engage
ments. There is no reason which will be
accepted as satisfactory by the people, why
those who defend us on the land and pro
tect us on the sea, the pensioners upon
the gratitude of the nation, braving the
scars and wounds received while in itsservioe,
the public servants in the various depart
ments of the Government, the farmer who
supplies the soldiers of the army and the
sailors of the navy, the artisan who toils in
the nation s workshops, or the machanics
an! laborers who build its edifices and con
struct its forts and vessels of war, sbouid in
payment of their just and hard earned dues
receive depreciated paper, while another
class of their countrymen.no more deserving
are paid in coin of gold and silver. Equal
nd exact justice requires that all the cred
itors of the Government should be paid in a
currenry possessing n uniform value. This
can only be accomplished bv the restoration
of the currency to the standard established
by the Constitution, and by this means we
would remove a discrimination which may,
it it has not already done so, create preju
dice that may become deep rooted and wide
spread. and imperil the national credit. The
feasibility of making our currencv correspond
with the Constitutional standard may be
seen by reference to a few facts derived from
our commercial statistics. The production
of precious metals in the United S tales from
1-49 to l s *<7, inclusive, amounted to $579-
900,000; from 1856 to 1860. inclusive to
£137,500.'<W, and from 1861 to 1867, inclu
sive, to $4.57,500,000, making the grand
aeeregateof products since 1849 $1,174,000,-
0.l The amount of specie coined from
1849 to 1857, inclusive, was $139,000,000 ;
from 1858 to 1800, inclusive. $152,000,000;
and from 1-' 1 to i- ' 7. inclusive, $310,009,-
■ ■ >. making total coinage since 1849, sf>74,-
' 000,0' O. From 1849 to 1857, inclusive, the
exports of specie amounted to $271,000,-
000; from 1-5-to iB6O, inclusive. $148,-
W.'JOOand from I*ol to 1867, inclusive, it
was, 8422.000,000, making the aggregate of
net exports since 1849, $741,000,000. There
arcin the Treasury $1 11,000,000 in coin,
something more than $40,000,000 in circu
lation on the Pacific Coast, and a few mil
-1 lion' in the national and other banks, in ali
abcroi *160,600,00). This, however, taking
, into account the specie in tbe country prior
to I|4>, leave: more than three hundred
I million? of dollars which have not been ac-
I (Continued on Fovrih Page.)