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ale Cube.
HUNTINGDON, PA.
Wednesday morning, July 24, 1867,
WM. LE IVTS,
TIUGIL LINDSAY, } EnlT°llB
Congress adjourned on Saturday last
to meet again on the 21st 'November. No
movement was made toward the impeach
ment of the Presidant.
So we GO.—We find tho following in
tho Washington news of last Friday :
"Tho Homo closed tho day's procee
dings by passing a bill prohibiting any
distinction on account of color in hold
ing oflico or in sitting on the jury in
this city. Nothing els° of importance
was dono."
Trouble Ahead.
We publish to-day the Supplementary Re
construction Bill, and the President's veto
of the same. The bill was immediately
passed, by a party vote, over the veto, and
is now a law, bolierod to be unconstitutional
by the President and Cabinet and a large por
tion of the people. The passages in the veto
most objected to by the Republican prose are
the following
"Whilst I hold the Chief Executive authority of the
United ntates; whilst the obligation roots upon me to see
that nil the laws are faithfully oxecutod, I can never w il
lingly surrender that trust, or the powers given for its
execution ,• I can never gi re my assent to be mado tespon
tale for the faithful execution of laws, and, at the canto
time, surrender that trot and the powers which accom
pany It, to any other efecntive officer, high or low, or to
any monitor of executive officer..
* * Y * J * s it *
'The remedy mast come from the people thentsalres.—
They know what it is, and how it is to be applied. At
the present time they cannot, according to the forms of
the Constitution, repeal these laws. They cannot remove
or control this military despotism. The remedy is never
thelegg In their hands. It to to be found in the ballot,
and is a sure end it not controlled by fined, overawed by
arbitinry power, or from apathy on their part tea long
delayed.
• With abiding confidence in their patriotism, wisdom
sand integrity, I am still hopeful of the future, and that
iu the end the rod of despotism will be broken, the armed
heel of power lifted from the necks of the people, and tho
principles skf a risloted Csnstitutien preserved."
Read the bill and tho veto and think and
not for yourselves. Tho opinions and actions
of the mere partisan leaders have too long
controlled the people. The storm is coming,
and the innocent must suffer most.
Wendell Phillips on Negro Office
Holders,
Mr. Wendell Phillips, in the Anti
Slavery Standard for last week, is
"very glad to obtain an increasing in
clination among the colored men of
the South to claim share in the future
management of public affairs," and ho
notes with satisfaction that the mayor
alty of _Richmond is claimed for a col
ored shoomaLor, with three places out
of &TO for blacks in tho City Council,
and Bays, "this is as it should be; we
trust they Nv till be elected." lie also
hopes wherever the blacks will be in
a majority "to see ere lotrg the offices
in their keeping." "This," says Phil
lips, "is the logical sequence of their
emancipation and enfranchisement."
He then flogs the editor of the Tri—
bune and other lagging Radicals into
the ranks in the following paragraph :
Whether voluntarily or not, the Re
publican party, or a more worthy suc
cessor, must, at an early period, throw
wido open the doors of official station
to the blacks upon equal terms with
the whites in both State and national
governments despite the protestations
of the Tribune and "the weak kneed
and blindly selfish politicians. Two
colored mon have served Massachu
setts in the capacity of legislators with
credit to the State and honor to them
selves. We shall not object to an
"arm-in-arm" spectacle, when it shall
consist of a Massachusetts President
and a South Carolina Vico President,
white and colored respectively, to be
duly inaugurated in official position in
the national Capitol. To this goal we
aro tending. Wo shall have no stone
unturned to hasten the day.
~An amusing aeconnt is given,
by tho correspondent of the Truss, of
a registration scene which ho witness
od in Georgia, the Board of Officers
consisting of two white and ono color
ed man: - Soren nogrocs were called
and listened attentively to the reading
of the oath. Wo can best give it in
his own words:
"The reader threw in for their bene
fit a running exegesis of the oath, caus
ing Qum to guffaw by a droll look
when be recited that part of it which
makes them swear that they had never
held any (executive or judicial office in
any State;' while, when he came to
read the prohibition against register.
ing by those who had been disfr,an
chised for felony, and explained 'felo
ny' by the gloss 'such Its cow-stealing,'
they were so struck by the drollery of
the interpretation that their bodies
bent and swayed in uncontrollable
merriment. Throughout all the reci
tal their countenances showed a des
perate mental effort to koop their 'holt'
of the moaning, and during the rend
ing of the mairibody of the oath the
effort was measurably successful ; but
when the registering officer came to
whore the formula speaks of 'an act
supplementary to nu act,' the poor fol
lows became perfectly flabbergasted.;
like Tomlow,they found their intellects
giving way under the severe strain,
and they lapsed into more outer dark
ness and collapse."
A FATHER DIES FOIL MS SON. —Th oro
has been a terrible fire in Evausville,in
which some of the best merchants'
houses were burned down. The Evans•
villa "Courier" says, and it is nobler
and braver than Casablanca :
We regret to chronicle the loss of a
useful man, a loving and kind husband,
a brave father—for in the act of sav
ing his son's life the father was buried
beneath the burning ruins. Mr. Mag,on
ohs was employed in the factory as a
maker of safes, and has, wo believe, ns
an assistant, his son, a lad some sixteen
years old. These two were working in
the upper story when tho alarm was
given, and, seeking to make an exit,
found their retreat cut off. The fath
er helped las noll to PraCh a window,
and, pludling hint friltl. it, cank Mole
r-h•tngao , l into the raging ntennan be
neath. The body was badly burned,
and when the fire was somewhat sub
dued, there was gathered. front near
where the door had been, a. heap of
shriveled, blackened remains—all that
was left of a noble man who had died
while striving to a:wo a life that was
dearer than his own.
usual quantity of local mat
ter has been crowded out by the veto
aud other douumetits.
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Suppiernented Reconstruction Act,
Szortoti I. That itis hereby declared
to have been the true intent and mean
ing of the act of the second day of
March, 1867, entitled "an act •to pro
vide for the more efficient government
of the rebel States," and the act supple
mentary thereto,,passed the twenty
third of March, 1867, that the govern
ments then existing in the rebel States
of Virginia, North Carolina, South
Carolina, tGaorgia, Alabama, Mississip
pi, Lenisiana, Florida, Texas, and Ar
lcansaß, were not legal governments,
and that thereafter said governments,
if continued, were to be continued sub•
ject in all respects to tho military
commanders of the respective districts,
and to the paramount authority of
Congress.
Sac. 2. That the commander of any
district named in said act shall have
power, subject to the disapproval of
the General of the army- of the United
States, and to have effect till disap
proved, whenever, in the opinion of
such commander, the proper adminis
tration of said net shall require it, to
suspend or remove from office, or from
the performance of official duties, and
the exercise of official powers, any of
ficer or person holding or exercising,
or professing to hold or exercise, any
civil or militarroffico or duty in such
district, under any power, election,
appointment, or authority derived
from, or granted by, or claimed under,
any so called State, or the government
thereof, or any ,municipal or other di
, vision thereof; and upon such snspen•
sion or removal such commander, sub
ject to the disapproval of the General,
as aforesaid, shall have power to pro•
vide from time to time for the per
formance of the said duties of such of
deer or person so suspended or remov
ed by the detail of some competent of
ficer or soldier of the army, or by ap
point of some other person to perform
the same, and to fill vacancies occa
sioned by death, resignation, or other
wise.
Sac. 3. That the General of the ar—
my of the United States shall bo inves
ted with all the powcr 2 s of suspension,
removal, appointment, and detail gran
ted in the preceding section to district
commanders.
SEC, 4. That the nets of the officers
of the army already done, in remov
ing in said districts persons exercising
the functions of civil officers, and ap
pointing others in their stead, aro
hereby confirmed; provided that any
person heretofore or hereafter nppoin
ted by any district commander to ex
ercise the functions of any civil office,
may be removed either by the military
°Ricer in command of the district, or
by the General of the army ; and it
shall be the duty of such commander
to remove from office as aforesaid all
persons who are disloyal to the Gov
ernment of the United States,_or who
use their official influence in any man
ner to hinder, delay, prevent, or ob
struct the duo and proper administra
tion of this not and the acts to which it
is supplementary.
Sac. 5. That the boards of registra
tion provided for in tho aet entitled "an
act supplementary to an act entitled
an act to provide for the more efficient
government of the rebel States," pass
ed Moh. 2,1867 ; "and to facilitate " o res•
toration," passed March 23, 1867, shall
have power, and it shall be their duty,
before allowing the registration of any
person, to ascertain, upon such fact or
information as they can obtain,wheth
er such person is entitled to be 'reg
istered under said act, and the oath
required by said act shall not be eon
elusive on such question; and no per.
son shall be registered unless such
board shall decide that he is entitled
thereto; and such board shall also have
power to examine under' oath, to be
administered by any member of such
board, any ono touching the qualifica
tion of any person claiming registra
tion ; but in every case of refusal by
the board to register an applicant, and
in every ease of striking his name
from the list as hereinafter provided,
the board shall make a note or memo
randum, which shall be returned with
the registration list to the command
ing general of the district, setting forth
the ground of such refusal or such stri•
king from the list: Provided that no
person be disqualified as a member of
any board of registration by reason of
race or color.
SEC. G. That the true intent and
meaning of the oath presented in said
supplementary act is (among other
things) that no person who has been a
member of the Legislature of any
State, or who has held any executive
or judicial office in any State, whether
he has taken an oath to support tho
Constitution of the United States or
'not, and whether he was holding such
office at the commencement of the ro•
hellion, or had held it before, and who
has afterwards engaged in insurrec
tion or rebellion against the United
States, or given aid or comfort to the
enemies thereof, is entitled . to be reg
istered or to vote; and the words "ex
ecutive or judicial" office in any State,
in said oath mentioned, shall be con
strued to include all civil offices crea
ted by law for the administration of
any general law of a State, or for the
administration of justice.
Sac. 7. And be it further enacted , That
the time for completing the original
registration, provided for in any net
may, in the discretion of the 'comman
der of any district, bo extended to tho
first day of October, 1807; and the
board of registration shall have pow
er, and it shall be their duty, eon/-
mooing fourteen days prior to any
election under said act, and upon rea
sonable public) notieo•of the time and
place thereof, to revise for a period of
five days the registration lists, and
upon being satisfied that any person
not entitled thereto has boon register
ed, to strike the name of such person
from the list, and such person shall not
I be allowed to vote. And such board
shall also, during the same period, add
I to finch registry the names of all per
sons who at that time possess the
qualifications required by said act,
who have not boon already registered,
and no person shall at any time b e
e l l titled to be registered or to vote by
reason of any executivo pardon or am
nesty, for any act or thing whieboritti
out such pardon or amnesty, would
disqualify him from registration or vo
ting.
Sac. S. That nil members of said
boards of registration, and all persons
hereafter elected or appointed to of
fice in said military districts under
any so-called State or municipal au
thority, or by detail 9r appointment
of the district commenter, shall be re
quired to take and subscribe to the oath
of office prescribed by law for the of
ficers of the United States.
Sol 9. That no district commander,
or mernbor of the hoard of registration,
or any officer or appointee acting un
der them, shall be hound in his action
by nuy opinion of-any civil officer of
the United States.
5z0.,10. That section 4of said last
named act shall be construed to au
thorize the cotnmanding general nam
ed therein, whenever ho shall deem it
needful, to remove any member of a
board of registration, and appoint an
other in his stead, and fill any vacancy
in such board.
Sec. 11. That all the previsions of
this set, and of the acts to - which this
is supplementary - , shall be constrned
liberally to tho end, that all the in
tents thereof may ho fully and per
fectly carried out.
Veto of the Reconstruction Bill.
WASHINGTON, July 19.—The follow
ing is the message of the President ve
toing the amendatory reconstruction
bill :
WasniNoToN, July 19, 1567.
To the Rouse of Representatives of the
United States
I return herewith the bill entitled
u.An act supplementary to an act enti
tled an act to provide for the more effi
cient government of the rebel States,"
passed on the 2d day of March, 1867,
and the act supplementary thereto,
passed on the 23d day of March, 1867,
and will state, as briefly as possible,
some of the reasons whieh prevent me
from giving it my approval.
This is one of a series of measures
passed by Congress during the last four
months on the subject of reconstruc
tion. The message returning the act
of the 2d of March last states at length
my objections to the passage of that
measure; they apply equally well to
the bill now before me, and I am con
tont merely to refer to them, and to
reiterate ply conviction that they are
sound and unanswerable. There aro
some points peculiar to this bill which
I will proceed at once to consider.'
The first section purports to declare
the true intent and meaning, in some
particulars, of the prior acts upon this
subject. It is declared that the intent
of those acts was, first, "That the exis
ting governments in the ton rebel
States" were not legal State govern
ments ; and second, "That thereafter
said governments, if continued, were
to be continued subject in all respects
to the military commanders of the re
spective dialriots and to the paramount
authority of Congress." Congress may,
by a declaratory act, fix upon a prior
act a construction altogether at vari
ance With its apparent meaning, and
from the time at least when such con
struction is fixed the original act will
be construed to mean exactly what it is
stated to mean by the declaratory stat
ute. There will be, then, from the time
this bill may booome a law, no doubt,
no question as to the relation in which
the existing governments in those
States, celled in, the original act the
"provisional governments," stand to
wards the military authority. As their
relations stood befbre the declaratory
act, three "govern thente," it is true,
wore made subject to absolute military
authority in many important respects,
but not in all, the language of the act
being "subject to the military authori
ty of the United States as hereinafter
prescribed."
By the sixth section of the original
act these governments wore made "in
all respects subject to the paramount
authority of the United States." Now,
by this, declaratory act it appears . that
Congress did not, by the original act,
intend to limit the military authority
to any particulars or subjects therein
"prescribed," but meant to make it
universal. Thus, over all these ten
States, this military government is now
declared to have unlimited authority.
It is no longer confined to the preser
vation of the public peace, the admin•
istration of criminal law, tho registra
tion of voters, and the superintendence
of elections, but in all respects is asser
ted to be paramount to the existing
civil governments. It is impossible to
conceive any state of society more in
tolerable than this, and yet it is to this
condition that twelve millions of Amer.
ican citizens aro redeced by the Con•
greys of the United States. Over every
-
foot of the immense territory occupied
by these American citizens the Consti
tution of the United States theoreti
cally is in full operation. It binds all
the people there, and should protect
them; yet they are denied every ono
of its sacred guarantees. Of what avail
will it be to any ono of these Southern
people, when seized by a file of soldiers,
to ask for the cause of arrest or for the
production of the warrant? Of what
avail to ask for the privilege of bail
when in military custody, which knows
no such thing as bail ? Of what avail
to demand a trial by jury, procsks for
witnesses, a copy of the indictment,
the privilege of counsel, or that vssater
privilege, the writ of habeas corpus !
The veto of the original bill of the
2d of March was based on two distinct
ground*, "theihterfOiMice of Congress
in matters strictly appertaining, to the
reserved powers of the States, nod the
establishment of military tribunals for
the trial of-citizens in time of peace."
The impartial reader of that message
will understand that all that it con
tains with - respect to military despot
ism and martial law fa's reference espe
cially to the fearful power conferred on
the district commanders to displace the
criminaleourts and assume jurisdiction
to try and to punish by military hoards;
that potentially the suspension of the
habeas corpus was martial law and
military despotism. The act now be
fore me not only declares that the in
tent was to confer such military au
thority, but also to confer unlimited
military authority over all the other
courts of the State, and over all the
officers of the State, legislative, execu
tive, and judicial. Not content with
the general grant of petwer, Congress
in the second section of this bill epoch
fieallytives to each military Command
er the power to "suspend or remove
from office, or from the performance of
official duties and the exerciee of otli
?itsl powers, any officer or person hold
ing or exercising, or professing to hold
or exercise, any civil or military office
or duty in such district under any
power, election, appointment, or au
thority derived from or granted by or
claimed under any so•called State, or
the government thereof, or any muni
cipal or other division thereof," a pow
er that hitherto all the departments of
the Federal Government, acting in
concert or separately, have not dared
to exercise, is here attempted to be
conferred on a subordinate military
officer. To him, as a military officer
of the Federal Government, is given
the power, supported by "a sufficient
military force," to remove every civil
officer of the State. What next? The
district commander, who has thus dis
placed the civil officer, is authorized to
fill the vacancy by the detail of an offi
cer or soldier of the army, or by the
appointment of some other person.
This military appointee, whether an
officer, a soldier, or some other person,
is to perform the duties of such officer
or person so suspended or removed. In
other words, an officer or soldier of the
army is thus transformed into a civil
officer. He may be made a Governor,
a legislator, or a judge. Rowdier un
fit hO'reay deem himself for snob civil
dutioe, ho must obey the order. The
officer ofthe army must, if detailed, go
upon the Supreme bench of the Stato
I with the same prompt obedience as if
he were - detailed to go upon a court
martial. The soldier, if detailed to act
.as a justice of the peace, must obey as
quickly as if he were detailed for pick
et duty. What is the character of such
a military-civil officer? This bill, de
clares that ho shall porfOrm the duties
of the civil office to which ho is detail
ed. It is,clear, however, that ho does
not lose his position in the military sec.
vice. Re is still an officer or soldier of
'the army. 11e is still subject to the
rules and regulations which govern it,
and must yield due deference, respect,
and obediotice towards , his superiors.
The clear intent of this section is, that
the officer or soldier detailed to fill a
civil office intist execute its duties ac
cording to the laws of the State. If ho
is appointed a Governor of a State he
is'to execute the duties as provided by
the laws of that State, and for the time
being his military character is to be
suspended in his now civil capacity. If
ho is appointed a State Treasurer he
must at once assume the custody and
disbursement of the funds of the State,
and must perform these duties precise•
ly according to the laws of the State,
for ho is entrusted with no other offi
cial power. Holding the office of treas
urer, and entrusted with 'funds, it hap
pens that he is required by the State.
laws to enter into bond with security,
and to take an oath of office; yet from
the beginning of the bill to the oad
there is no provision for any bond or
oath of office, or for any single qualifi
cation required under the State law,
such as residence, citizenship, or any
thing else. The only oath is that pro
vided for in the ninth section, by the
terms of which every ono detailed or
appointed to nay civil office in the
State is required "to take and to sub.
scribe the oath of office prescribed by
law for the officers orate 'United States."
Thus an officer of the army of the
United States, detailed to fill a civil
office in one of these States, gives no
official bond and takes no official oath
for the performance of . Ida new duties,
but as a eivihofficer of the State only
takes the samo oath-which tie had al.
ready taken as a military officer of the
United States. lie is at last a military
officer performing civil duties, and the
authority under which ho acts is Fed
eral authority only, and the'inevitable
result is that the Federal Government,
by the agency of its own sworn offi•
core, in effect assumes the civil govern
ment of the State.
A singular contradiction is apparent
hero. Congress declares those local
State governments to be illegal gov
ernments, and then provides that the
illegal governments shall be carried on
by Federal officers, who are to perform
the very duties imposed on its own
officers by this,illogal State authority.
it eortaidly would be a novel spectacle
if Congress should attempt to carry on
a legal State government by the agen
cy of its officers. it is yet, more strange
that Congress attempts to sustain and
carry on an illegal State government
by the same Federal agency,
In this connection, I must call at
tention to the tenth and eleventh sec
tions of the bill, which provides that
none of the officers or appointees of
these military commanders "shall be
bound in their action by any opinion
of any civil ()filter of the United States,
and that all the provisions of the act
84011 bo construed liberally, to the end
that all theintonts thereof may be ful
ly and perfectly carried out." It seems
Congress supposed that this bill might
require construction, and they fix,
therefore, the rule to be applied. DIA
where is the construction to comefrom?
Certainly no ono can be more in want
of instruction than a soldier or an offi
cer of the army detailed for a civil ser.
vice, perhaps tho most important in a
State, with the ditties of whirl) he is al
together unfamiliar. This bill says be
shall not be bound in his action by the
opinion of any civil officer of the United
States.
The duties of theOffico are altogether
civil, but when ho asks for an opinion
be can only ask the opinion of another
military officer, who perhaps under
stands as little of his duties as he (loos
himself; and as to his "action," ho is
answerable to thn military authority,
and the militit`ry authority alone.
Strictly, no opinion of any civil officer,
other than a judge, has a binding force;
but these military appointees would
not be bound oven by a judicial opin
ion. They might very well say, even
when their• action is in conflict with
the Supreme Court of tho United States,
"that court is composed of civil officers
of the United States, and we aro not
bound to confoilm our action to any
opinion of any such authority." This
bill; and the acts to which it is supple,
mentary, are all founded upon tho as.
sumption that those ten communities
are not States, and that their oxisting
governments are not legal. Through
out the legislation upon this subject,
'they are called rubel States. And in
this particular bill they aro denomina
ted "so-called States," and the vice of
illegality is declared to pervade all of
them. The obligations of consistency
bind a legislative body as well as the
individuals who Compose it. It is now
too late to say that thcso ten political
communities are not States of this
Union. Declarations to the contrary
in these Ws are contradicted again and
again by repeated acts of legislation
enacted by iCongress front the year
1861. to the year During that po•
rod, whilst those States wpro in actual
rebellion, and after that rebellion was
brought to a close, thoy have boon ngain
and again recognized as states of the
Union. Representation has been up
portioned to them as States. They have
been divided into judicial districts for
the holding. of distriot courts of the
United States, as States of the Union
only eat) be districted. The last act
on this subject was passed July 23, '66,
by which every one of these ten States
was are anered into districts and circuits;
they have been called by Congress to
act through their Legislatures upon at
least two amendments to tho Constitu-,
tien of the United States; as States'
they have ratified ono amendment,
which required the vote of twenty
seven States of the thirty-six then com
posing the Union when the requisite
twenty-seven votes wore given in fa
vor of that amendmenl,seven of which
votes were given by seven of these ton
States, it was proclaimed to be a part
of the Constitution of the United Status,
and slavery was declared no longer to
exist within the United States or any
place subject to their jurisdiction. If
these seven States were not legal States
of the Union, it follows, as an inevita
ble consequence, in some of the States
slavery yet exists. It does not exist
in those seven States, for they have
abolished it also in their own State
Constitutions; but Kentucky, not hay- '
ing done so, would still. remain in that
state. But, in truth, if this assumption
that these States have no legal State
governments be true, then the aboli
tion of slavery by these illegal govern
ments binds no ono; for Congress now
denies to these States the power to
abolish slavery by denying to them
the power to elect a legal State Legis
lature, or to frame a Constitution for
any purpb e le, even for Such a purpose
as the abolition of slavery.
As to the other constitutional amend
ment, having reference to suffrage, it
happens that these States have not ac
cepted it. The consequence is that it
has never beet' proclaimed or under
stood even by Congress to be a part
of the Constitution of the United
States. The Senate of the United
States has repeatedly given its sanc
tion to the appointment of judges, dis
trict attorneys, and marshals, for every
one of these States, and yet if they aro
not legal States not one of those judges
is authorized to hold a court. So, too,
both houses of Congress have passed
appropriation bills to pay theie judges,
attorneys, and officers of the United
States for exercising their fnectious in
these States. Again, in the machinery
of the internal revenue laws all these
States are districted, not as Territor
ies, but as States. So much for continu
ous legislative recognition. The in
stances cited, however, fall far short
of all that might be enumerated. 'Exe
cutive recognition as is wall known
has been frequent and unwavering.
The same may be said us toindieial re
cognition through the Supremo Court
of the United States: That august
tribunal, from first to last, in the ad
ministration of its duties, in bane and
upon the circuit, has never failed to
recognize those ton communities as le
gal States of the Union. - The cases
depending in that court upon any ap.
peal and writ or error from these
States when the rebellion began, have
not boon dismissed upon any idea of
tho. cessation of jurisdiction. They
were carefully continued from term to
term until the rebellion was entirely
'subdued and peace re-established, and
then they wore called for argument
and consideration, as if no insurrection
had intervened. Now cases occurring
since the rebellion have come from
these States before that court by wri t
or error and appeal, and oven by ori
ginal suit, where only a State can bring
such a suit. These cases aro enter
tained by that tribunal in the exorcise
of its acknowledged jurisdiction, which
could not attach to them if they had
come-from any political body other
than a state of the Union.
Finally, in their allotment, of their
circuits made by the judges at the
December term, 1565, every ono of
these States is put on the same foot
ing of legality with the other States
of the Union. Virginia and North
Carolina, being a part of the fourth
circuit, are allotted to the Chief Jus
tice. South Carolina, Georgia, Ala
bama, Mississippi. an'd Florida, con
stituting tho fifth oircuit, aro allotted
to tho late Mr. Justice Wayne. Louis
iana, Arkansas, and Texas, are allot
ted to the sixth judicial oircuit, as to
which there is a vacancy on the bench.
The Chief Justice, in the exercise of
hie circuit duties, has recently held a
circuit court in the State of North
Carolina. If North Carolina is not
State of this Union, the Chief Justice
had no authority to hold a court there,
and every order, judgment and decree
rendered by him in that court were
cOk'ant nonjudice and verdi.
Another ground op which these r -
construction acts aro attempted to be
sustained is this that these ten States
aro conquered territory ; that the con
stitutional relation in which they stood
as States towards the Federal Govern
ment prior to the rebellion has given
place to new' relations ; that their ter
ritory is a conquered country, and
their citizens a conquered people, and
that in this new 'relation Congress can
govern them by military power, A ti
tle by conquest stands on clear ground;
it is it now- tiths-aequired by•-war: It
applies only to territory ; for goods or
movable things regularly captured in
war are called "booty," or if taken by
individual soldiers, "plunder." There
is not a foot of the land in any ono of
these ton States which the United
States holds by conquest, save only
such land as did not belong to either
of those States or to any individual
owner. I mewl such lands as did be
long
to the pretended government call
ed the Confederate Statos.- . These lands
we may elaim to hold by conqtiest; as
to all other lands or territory, wheth- !
or belonging to the States or to indi
viduals, the Federal Government has'
now no more title or right to it than
it had before the rebellion. Our own
forts, arsenals, navy yards, custom
houses, and other Federal property
situate in those States we now hold,
not by the title of conquest, but by
our old title—acquired by purchase or
condemnation to public use, with com
pensation to former owners. We have
not conquered these places, but have
simply "repossessed" them. If we re
quire more sites for forts, custom hous
es, or other public use, we must ac
quire the title to them by purchase or
appropriation in the regular mode. At
this moment the United States, in the
acquisition of silos for national ceme
teries hi those States, acquires title in
the saute way, The Federal courts
Flit in Court houses owned or leased by
the United States, not in the court hou
ses of the States. The United States
pays each of these States for the use of
its jails. Finally,tho United States
ios direct taxes and itjintornal revenue
upon the property in these States, in
cluding the productions of the lands
within-their territorial limits, not by
way of levy and contribution in the
character al: conqueror, but in the
regular way of taxation,- under the
same Jaws whibh apply to all the oth
er States of the Uniien.: from first to
last, during thd rebellion and since,the
title ofAach of these States to the lands
and public buildings owned by them has
never,boon disturbed, and not a foot
of it has ever been acquired by tho
United States, even under a title by
confiscation, and not a foot of it has
ever been' taxed under federal law.
In conclusion, I must respectfully
ask the attention of Congress to the
consideration of ono more question
arising under this hill : It vests in the
military commander, subject only to
the approval of the general of the ar
my of the United States, an unlimited
power to remove from office any civil
or Military officer in each of these ton
States, and the further rower, subject
to the same approval, to detail or ap
point any military officer or soldier of
the United States to perform the du
ties of the officers so removed, and to
fill all vacancies occurring in these
States by death, resignation, or other
wise. The military appointee thus re•
quired to perform the duties of a civil
office, according to the laws of the
State, and as snub required to take an
oath, is for the time being, a civil of
ficer. What is his character ? Is he a
civil officer - 6T the United States ? If
he is a civil officer of the State, where
is the federal power under our Consti
tution which authorizes his appoint
men t; by any federal officer ? 1.1, how
ever, he is to be considered a civil of
ficer of the United States, as his ap
pointment and oath would seem to in
dicate, where is the authority for his
appointment vested by the Constitu
tion ? The power of appointment of
all officers of the United States, civil
or military, where not provided for in
the Constitution, is vested in the
President, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, with this ex-
I caption : that Congress may, by law,
vest the appointment of such inferior
officers as they think proper, in the
President alone, in the courts of law.
or in the heads of departments." But
this bill, if therm are be considered in
ferior officers within the moaning of
the Constitution, does not provide for
their appointment by the President
alone, or by the courts of law, on' by
Lho heads of departments, but vests
the appointment in ono
to
executive officer, subject to the appro
val of another subordinate executive
officer ; so that if we put this qtestion
and fix the character to this 'military
appointee, either way this provision of
the bill is equally opposed to the Con
stitution.
Tithe the case of a soldier or officer
appointed to perform the office of
judge in one of these States, and as
such to administer the proper laws of
the Stato,'whero is the authority to be
found in the Constitution for vesting
in a military or an executive officer
strict judicial functions to be exercis
ed under State law - 7
It has been again
and again decided, by the Supreme
Court of the United States, that acts
of Congress which have attempted to
vest executive power in the judicial
courts or judges of -the United States
aro not warranted by the Constitution.
If Congress cannot clothe a judge
with merely executive duties, how can
they clothe an officer or soldier of tho
army with judicial duties, over citizens
of the United States, who aro not in
the military or naval service.
So, too, it has been repeatedly de.
tided that Congress cannot require a
State officer, executive or judicial, to
perform any duty enjoined upon him
by a law of the United States. How,
thee, can Congress confer power upon
an executive officer the United States
to perform such duties in a State ? If
Congress could not vest in a judge of
ono of these States any judicial author
ity under the United States by direct
enactment, how can it accomplish the
same thing indirectly by removing the
State judge and putting an officer of
the United States in his place?
To me those considerations are con.
elusive of the unconstitutionality of
the part of the bill now before Me, and
I earnestly commend their considera
tion to the deliberate judgment of
Congress.
Within a period less than a year the
legislation of Congress has attempted
to strip the executive department of
the Government of some of its men-
tial powers.
The Constitution, and oath provi
ded in it, devolves upon the President
the power and duty to see that the
laws aro faithfully executed. The
Constitution, in order to carry out
this power, gives him the choice of the
agents, and makes them subject to his
control and supervision; but in the
execution of these laws the Constitu
tional obligation upon the President re
mains, but the power to exercise that
constitutional duty is effectually taken
away. The military commander is,
as St) the pon'iSirtif appointment, made
to take the place of the President, and
the general of the army the place of
the Senate, and any attempt on the
part of the President to assert hisown
constitutional power may, under pre
toriee of law, be met by official insub
ordination.
It is to be feared that these military
officers, looking-to the authority giv-
en by these laws, rather than to the
letter of the Constitution, will recog
nize no authority but the commander
of the district and the general of the
army. If thorn were no other objec
tion than this to this proposed legisla
tion, it would be sufficient. Whilst
hold'the chief executive authority of
the United States; whilst the Wigs:
gation rests upon me, to sue that all
the laws are faithfully executed, I can
never willingly surrender that trnst,or
the powers given for the execution ;
can never giveyer assent to ho made
responsible for the faithful execution
of laws, and at the same time surren
der that trust and the powers which
accompany it, to any other executive
officer, high or low, or to any number
of executive officers,
if this exeeutive trust, vested by the
Constitution of the Provident, is to be
taken from him and vested in a gubnr
dinate officer, the responsibility will
be with Congress, in clothing the sub.
ordinate with unconstitutional power,
and with the officer who EtSSMILSS its
exercise. This interference with the
constitutional authority of the execu
tive department is an evil that will in
evitably sap the foundations o! our
federal system, but it is dot the worst
evil of this legislation. It is a great
public wrong to take froM the Presi
dent powers conferred . on hint - alone
by the Constitution. But the wrong
is more flagrant and more dangerous
when the powers so takeri from the
President are conferred upon subordin
ate executive officers. Over nearly
one-third of the States of the Union
military power, regulated by no fixed
law, rules supreme. Each one of 'the
five district comma»dere, thin gli ,not
chosen by the people or responsible to
them, exercises at this hour more exe
cutive power, military and civil, than
the people have ever been ° willing to
confer upon the head of the executive
department, though chosen by and re
sponsible to thoinsolves, • The remedy
must come from the people themselves.
They know what it is, and how it is
to be applied. At the present time
they cannot; according to the forms of
the Constitution, repeal those laws.
They cannot remove or control this
military despotism. The remedy is
nevertheless in their hands. It is to be
found in the ballot, and is a surd one,
if not controlled by fraud, overawed
by arbitrary power, or from apathy on
their part too long delayed.- ,
With abiding oonfidence in their pa
triotism, wisdom, end integrity, I am
still hopeful of the future; and that in
the end the rod of despotism will be
broken, the armed heel of power lifted
from the necks of the people, and the
principles Of a violated Constitution
preserved. e " ° ' .
ANDREIV JOIINSON
The President's Message,
WASFIINCITON, July 15.—The follow
in.- is the message transmitted to-day,
addressed to the Senate of 'the United
States.
I transmit herewith reports from the
Secretary of War and the Attorney
General, containing the information
called for by the resolution of the Sen
ate of the 24 inst., requestisg the Pre
sident to communicate to the. Senate
copies of all orders, instructions,.cirbu.
lam letters, or letters of. advice issued
to the respective military officiers
assigned to the command of the several
military districts under the act passed
March 2,1867, entitled "An act to pro
vide for the more efficient government
of the rebel states, and the act supple ,
mentary thereto," passed -March 23,
1867; also copies of all,opinions given
to him by the Attorney General of the
United States, touching the construc
tion and intoipretation of said acts,
and of all correspondence relating to
the operation, construction, or ()sedi
tion of said acts that may have taken
place between himself and any of said
commanders, or between hull and the
General of the army, or between the
latter and any of the said commanders
touching the same subjects; also copies
of all orders issued by any of said eoin
muders in carrying out the provisions
of said-acts, or either of them; also
that he inform the Senate what pro
gress has been made in the matter or
registration under said acts, and wheth
er the sum of money heretofore appro
priated for carrying thorn out is prob
ably sufficient.
In answer to that portion of the res
olution which' inquires whether the
sum of mono .heretofore appropriated
for carrying :tfcene sets into effect is
probably sufficient, reference is made
to the accompanying report of the See
-1 rotary of War. It will be soon from
that report that the appropriation of
$500,000 made in the act approved
March 30, MT, for the purpose of car
rying-into effect the act to-provide for
the more eftlident government of the
rebel States, passed March 2, 1807, and
the act supplementary, passed March
23, 1867, has already been expended
by the commanders of the general mil
itary districts, and that in addition the
sum of $1,645,277 is required for pres
ents purposes.
It is exceedingly difficult at the pros
ent time to estimate the probable ex
pense of carrying into full effect the
two nets of Alareit last and the bill
which passed the two Houses of Con
gress on the 13th inst. If the existing
governments of the ton States of the.
Union aro to be deposed, and their en
tire machinery placed under the exclu
sive control and authority of the re
spectivo district commanders, all the
expenditures incident to the adminis
tration of such governments must nec
essarily be incurred by the Federal
government. It is believed that, in
addition to the two million one hun
dred thousand dollars already expend
ed or estimated for, tlfesum which will
be required far the purpose would - not
be loss than fourteen millions of dol..
lire—the aggregate amount expended
prior to the rebellion in the administra
tion of these respective 'governments
by the tela States embraced in the pro=
vision of these acts. The stun would
no doubt be considerably augmented
if the machinery of these States is to,
be operated by the Federal govern-
Mont, and would be largely increased
it the United States,, by abolishing the
existing State governments, should-be
come resi:s64lWe IbrliabilitieriTneurred
by theta befOr'O'We rebellion in lauds-,
ble efferts to develop hor resources,
and in nowise created for insurrection,
ary or revolutionary purposes.
The debt of these States thus legiti,
mutely incurred, when acturately‘ as,
certained, will, it is believed approxi
mate a hundred millions of dollars; and
they are held not only by our own.ofk,
izens, among whom are residents of ,
portions of the country which have.
over remained loyal to the Union, but
by persons who are the subjects of for
eign governments. ft is worthy tbp
consideration of Congressand the coon
try whether, if the Federal 'goyern
rnent, by action, were to assume such
obligations, so large an addition to our
public expenditures would not Seriously
impair the credit of the nation or, on
the other hand, whether the refusal,of
Congress to guarantee the payment of
the debts of Wes° States, after having
displaced or abolished their Slate giiv
ernments, would not bo viewed as a
violation ofgood faith and a repudiation
by the national Imeislature of liabili
ties which these States had justly and
legally incurred.
(Signed) gn ed) ANDREW JOHNSON.
Washington, D. C., July 15, 1367. .
RECENT English papers were ipucl)
excited at, the intended appegi•appe of
tho wife of a duke and the wile of ri
bishop as public porformel•a. The la,
dies are the Duchess Of :Newcastle an 4
Mrs. Ellicott, and they were to sing in
Exeter Hall pn the 2d of Silly, in hg,
half of a charity for children.