New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-12-14
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among to 8 stampede our slaves, which refuses
to execute fugitive slave laws, which form secret
societies for mischief, with the motto, alarm to
their sleep, fire to their dwellings and poison to
their food and water and which establishes under
ground railroads and depots and rendezvous ior
invasion, is more dangerous than the INVASION by
John Brown. Yet the latter exeites us, ana IN the
former we have been sleepliy acq9esc,ng' " n NJ
| solace to me- then, that our border slaves are so
liberated already by this exterior asylum anu ny
this STILL silent, stealing system that they nave no
| need to take up arms for their own liberation.
Confederate States as well as individuals have de-
| nonnced our laws and set them at defiance; they
have BY their laws encouraged and facilitated the
escape of our slaves, and have made abolition a
| cancer eating into our very yitas.
We must, then, acknowledge and act on the fact
that present relations between the States cannot
be permitted longer to exist without abolishing
slavery throughout the United States, or compell-
ing us to defend it by force of arms.
On the 25th ultimo | addressed a letter to the
President of the United States, of which the en-
closed is copy. On the 10th received from him
the accompanying answer, to which have not re-
Piled, but upon which / must here comment.
He seems to think that the constitution and laws
of the United States do not provide authority for
the President to interpose to "repel INVASION
Or keep the peace between the States, in cases
where the citizens of one State invade another
State, unless the executive or legislature of the
State invaded applies for protection. differ from
this opinion. Neither the trainers of the Constitu
ton nor the Congress of 1895 were guilty of SO
gross omission in their provisions for the national
safety. -z.=
BY clause Sd of section 8 of article LIST of the
Constitution the States are deprived of the power,
without the consent of Congress- to keep troops
or ships of in time of peace, or to engage in
war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent
danger as will not admit of delay
To compensate them for this privation of the
power of preparation for defence it is provided in
section 4th of article 18th, that "the United States
shall guarantee to every State in the Union re-
publican form of government, and shall protect
each of them against invasion; and on application
of the legislature, or of the executive, (when the
Legislature cannot be conyened,) against domestic
Violence
Now, it is readily conceded, =" United States
here is to be taken as Synonymous with the words
''the Congress- The clause is in iuNtaposition
with clauses defining the powers OF the Con
gress.,' And if they were not, by the 18th clause
of section Sth of article LIST, to " the Congress is
given the power to make all laws which shall be
necessary and proper for carrying INTO execution
its own powers .. and all other powers vested in
the Government of the United states, or III any de-
partment or officer thereof"
This duty and power, then, of guaranteeing pro-
lection to every State against invasion, belongs
unquestionably to Congress. Has it exercised the
power? 1t has. Thus:
To the Congress also is given the power "to
raise and support arInies.'' and g to provide and
maintain q navy and these are called, specially,
ssthe land and naval forces" Of the United States
/ presume that no one will gainsay the propo
sition that the chief object of these land and naval
forces is, ito suppress instructions and to repel
invasions.''
But in addition to these powers, another is
specially added TO provide for calling forth the
militia to execute the laws of the Union suppress
Instructions and invasions." And presume that
no one will insist that the regular army and navy
of the United States may not be ordered to execute
the laws of the Union. and to suppress instruction
and repel nvasions without calling forth the
militia, or through the militia may be called forth
to execute the same purposes.
This granted, the Congress did pass the law: lst,
to raise armies, and to provide and maintain q
navy, as well laws for calling forth the militia
And then, by article I'd, the President is vested
with the executive power. He is sworn faithfully
to execute the office of President, and to the best
of his ability, to preserve, protect and defend the
Constitution of the United States; and he is made
commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the
| United States and OF the militia oil the several
States, when called into the actual service Of the
United States; and he shall take care that the laws
be faithfully executed. g.....
Now, to revert to the 4th section of the 4th ar
ticle:
In this section, there are two things against
which the United States guarantees protection to
lst, against einvasion'' Not one kind of nva-
sion or another, but simply invasion of all kinds
| from every quarter; and no application for pro-
lection is required against INVASION Whenever 1t
| comes, however it comes, it is to be protected
| against The word itself imports force from with
| out-any force from without the State invaded,
whether from country, OF alell
Indian tribes; it is confined to no particular nva-
sion And against this the President has the means,
provided by Congress in the laws raising and pro-
viding standing army and navy-the land and
naval forces of the United States, which need not
be 'called FORTH but are armies already raised
| and standing, and navy already provided and
| maintained The President is commander-in-ehief
of these and may order them to repei actual inva-
sion as they are aaeady in actual service without
being "called forth" And he is surely as much
bound to execute the Constitution the the stat
utes of Congress. tThe laws" to be executed,
embrace both, and he has the means to execute
both provided in the statutes for raising armies and
providing navy, as well as in the laws calling
| forth the militia.
But to proceed:
I'd. The second thing that every State is to be
| protected against is, domestic Violence" These
words import force from within-a domestic force,
acting in rebellion instruction obstruction OF
the laws against the State. To interpose against
| this, there must be an application of the Legisla
| ture, or of the Executive of the State when the
| Legislature cannot be convened
And under this clause of this section, special acts
/ of February 2sth 1876, and of March 3, 1907 have
been passed. They are wholly distinct from the
| laws of Congress raising armies providing a navy
The first clause of the first section of the act Of
1905 relates to invasons of the United States ron
any foreign nation or Indian tribe.h The I'd clause
of that section relates to nsurrecton in any State
against the government thereof, ETC., to domestic
Violence in other words, and not expressly or i'm
Il
section of the act relates to obstruction of the laws
| of the United States, and not of any State. Ant
the whole act, so far it relates to the States il
an act provide for calling forth the militia
| suppress domestic violence and not for command
ing the land and naval forces already in actual ser
| vice against invasion.o Invasion of any State il
| in fact invasion of the United States And tht
act of 1907 applies expressly to cases only of in
surrection obstruction to the laws either of thu
| United States, or of any individual State or Terri
| tory" And, if the Presidents construction OF hi
power be correct, this act, which was intended I'M
/ doubtedly to extend the act of 1875, and enlarg
! its provisions, would operate to restrict and con
tract its provisions. He could not use such part O
| the land and naval force of the United States a
shall be judged necessary by him, without havin!
first observed all the prerequisites of the law 70
calling forth the militia. These acts, in word d
not in word meaning apply to cases OF 'invasiol
/ of a State,n but far State is concerned, t
/ cases only of domestic violence; and where TIL
militia are called forth on application to the Legis
lature of the the executive of the State rebelle
against.
/ Here there was no % Instruction !" no case O
| force from within. Invasion was threatened fror
/ without, by citizens of one State against anothe
State. 1t is monstrous to say that there is nothin
in the Constitution or laws guaranteeing protectio
/ to State in such cases. The Constitution is eS
/ press 1t needs in fact the laws only which hav
/ been passed-the laws of the army and navy
the United States, and the laws for calling forth til
4 militia, to execute both of the clauses of protet
ton guaranteed by the Constitution to g ever
| State in this Union" The men of l795 made II
such gross omission. They understood their wor
o,well for that. And what spectacle the. Unite