The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1860-12-05
under the authoritY Of the rnited stste,. shall

under tha uthority OF the United States, shalt
os the supreme Law OF the lacd: and the
Judges In evory State shall be bound thereby.
anything in the Consultation or laws of any
STATE 10 tho contrary botwiths tandiuS."
The solenn sanction of rsigioa has been su-
peradded to the obligations OF official duty aud
hti senator's and represen tatives Of the United
SLatss all bers of State legislatures and
Al exeeut tive and judicial officers, DO tn of the
Usitsd States and the several States shall BE-
bound by oath or affirmation 10 support this
| CJusiitption."
In order To carry into effect these powers,
! tie Consultation has established a perfrc
Government in all lis forms Legislative Ex-
ecutive, and Judicial; and this Government
10 ths extent OF Its powers, acts directly upon
the individual citizens of every 5 ate, and ex
ecutes i's own DEGREES by the agency Of its
own officers. In his res pect it differs en-
| tireiy IRON the u 'vernInent under the old
Confederation, vuich was conf ned to making
req uisitions on the S ates in their sovereign
character. THE lett 1t in the discretion Of
each Uhsther to obey or 10 refuse, aud they
often declined 10 comply with such req uIsI.
uous. 1t thus brcarae necessary. for the pur.
| pose OF rem Dvlug This Burner, and in order
| - form more perfect u niou," to es biish fl
Government which could act direc iy upon
tue people and execute its own laws without
the intermediate agency OF the States. THE
hhs heen cc"mplished by the Constitution OF
tn United Siates
Iu short, the Government created by The
CODsti tu tiOD, ana d~rlyingit rs authority from
the sovereign people of each Of the several
States, has precisely the sane right TO -1er-
else It's power over The people of all the Sc
Iaiee, III the enumerated cases, that each one
Of th-n possesses over subjects uot Geeg ateG to
the I Iuited States, but preserved to tue States
respectively. or 10 the pc pie"
| To the exteGt Ct the delegated powers the
Constitution of the United States il es much
part OF The cons Iitution Il each State, aud j.
rs binding upon its people, though II had
been iextnalIy inserted therein.
This dovernmen, therefore, is great and
poWeffi Government, invested win all the
attributes OF sovereignty over the special sub
| jects To which its authority extends. Its
| frasers never intended TO impiaEt III It's
| bJsom the SET d. OF Its own destruction, nur
were they At lis creation gully of tue ebsur-
| dity of providing for its own dissolution. 1t
| was not intended hy its trainers 10 be the base
| less fabric OF vision winch, az the tough OF
| the eucnanter, would vanish Into thin air, but
n SUI bs 'antial and mighty fabric, capable OF re-
sistng the slow decay of lime ana Of Ely ing the
| sturms OF ages. Indeed, Well may the Jealous
| patriots OF that day have INDUCED fears that
| government of such high powers might vlo-
ia'e the reserved rights of the States, and Wise
| iy did they adopt the rule of Z strict construc-
| tion ofthese powers TO prevent the danger! But
| they did not fear, nor had they any reason to
| imagine, that the Consl ution would ever be
80 Interpreted as to enable any State, by her
| own act. and without the consent Of her sister
| States, to discharge her people from all or any
| OF their Federal obligations.
| 1t may he asked, then, are the people of the
| States without redress against the tyranny
| and oppression of the Federal Government
| by no means. The right OF resistance on the
| part Of the governed against the oppression OF
! their governments cannot be denied. 1t eX-
| lists inieI evidently OF all Constitutions. and
| mas beeu exercised II all periods Of the world
| history. Under il old governments have been
| destroyed, and new ones have taken their
| place. 1t is embodied in strong aud express
| language in our own Declaration Of Icdepen-
| dence. But the distinction must ever be OBJ
| served, that this is revolution againstan estab-
i a
| cession from it by virtue Of an inherent con-
| etituticnal right In short, let us look the
| danger fairly III the face: Secession is neither
| more nor less than reyolu tion. 1t may or it
may not be a jnstifiable revoiuti0n but still it
| Is revolution.
| What, in thu meantime, is the responsibility
and true position of the Executive! ! lie Is
! bound by solemn oath before Gcd and the
country, 8 10 take care that the Ia ws be faith
| fully executed" aud from this obligation he
! cannot be absoiyed by any human power
But what il the performance Of this duty, in
| whole or in Dc IT, has been rendered impructi-
| cable bv events over which he could have ex
| srcisad no control Such, at the present mo.
| meni, is the case throughout the State Of
| SJUth Carolina, 80 far as The laws OF the Uni
I'D states tC secure The EttilDllisir Ji1a OF Ius
! tlce hy meaus Of ths Federal judiciary are
/ concerned. An the Federal officers within its
! limits, through whose agency alone these laws
! can be carried into execution, have already
| resigned. We longer have L district nudge
| q district attorney, or Il marshal, III Sou h
| Carolina. Ia fac;, the whole mal inery Of the
| Federal Government, necessary for the dixtri.
| button OF remedial Justice among the people,
| has been demolished aud II would be dItficu !
| Ii not Impossible, 10 replace il.
The only acis OF Congress on the statute
book. bearing upon this subject, ara thJso OF
| lne 25tb February. l.93 ano Sd March, iess.
| Irese authorize the president, after he shall
have ascertalued that the marshal Wfth his
posse cgrIitdiKS is unab!- 70 execute civil or
criminal process Ill any particular case, TO cali
| forth lne militia and employ III army aud
navy 10 aId t.a in performing this service,
| having first by Proclamation commanded the
| insuTg-nts d" To di>perse aud retire psaceably
| to their resp,C i've ab, DIS, within a limited
| une" This duty cannot by pass ibIitIy De
| performed III q State where no judicial aut thor-
| ity exists to issue process, and where there ls
| 40 marshal TO execute II; and where, even il
| there were such fiicer, the en- liIe pupuia-
| tion would constitute one SOLID cUmDlndtlOu
| 10 resist him.
| Tue bare enumeration OF these provisions
| proves how Inadequate they are without fur
| ther legislation TO overcome u united opposI-
| tlon in = single ate. not 10 speak of other
| 5 ates who may place themselves III a similar
| Iituda. Congress alone has power 10 decide
whether the present laws can or cannot b.
amended So as To carry ont more eIiec tually
The Objects OF The C,nsrituti1n.
The same Insuperahle obstacles do not lie in
the way OF executing Inc Ian tor the ccllec-
tlun of the customs. The revenue etIil con-
tluues To be Collected, AS heretofore at the Gus
iector untor uua ely resign, successor may
| De appointed 10 perform this duty.
Then in regard To the proper ty Of the United
States III South Carolina. This has been puT-
| chased for a tair equivalent, by The Consent
of the legislature ot the SAFE" "tor the erec-
! ton of torts, magazines, arsenals." &c, and
over these the authority "to exercise exclusive
| legisla lion" mas beea expressly granted bs the
| Constitution TO Congress. 1t is not b-lIev.d
| that any attempt will be made to expel the
! United Stttes from this prop rty by tore, but
| il in THIS l should prove TO be mistaken, The
| officer in mmtnd Of the forts has rec-i.-u
orders to act strictly on the defensive. In such
| a Contingency, Ihe Tesponsltliuy for c0use-
Quences wou q Tlghllully rest upon the head
| of the asSaiiauts.
Apart from the execution of the laws, so IA r
as tins may be practicable. lhs ExecutiYs has
no authority 10 dpcid1 what shs ii De the rela
lions between thu Federal Govern ment and
Sonth Carolina. He has beeu Ted with
no such discr- li3n. lie possesses no 10 yer To
change tue relations heretofore existing be-
tween them, much less 10 ackHo Wedge the IN .
dependence of that STATE. This would be 10
invest mere Executive officer with the po Ter
| OF recognizing the dissolution of the CHnfede-
raoy among our thirty-three sovereign States.
Il bears no resemb biabce to the recognition of
foreign Dc fdcto government, In soiFing no
such responsibility. Any attempt TO do this
would, on his part be 4 naked act OF usurpa-
| ton. 1t is, therefore, my duty 10 submit 10
Congress tho whole question in all It's bear
| ings. The course of events is SO rapidly hast
| ening forward, that the emergency may soon
| arise when you may be called upon 10 decide
the monentous question whether you possess
| the power, by force Of arms, 10 compel State
| 10 remain in the Union. ] should feel myself
recreant to my duty were not to express an
opinion on this important subject.
The question fairly stated is Has the Con-
stitution delegated to Congress the power 10
coerce & State into submission which IS at
tempting 10 Withdraw or has actually with
drawn from the Confederacy If answered
in the Affirmative il must be on the principle
that the power has been conferred upon Con-
gress to declare and to make war against a
State. After much serious reflection l have
arrived at the conclusion that no such power
has been delegated TO Congress or to any other
department of the Federal Government. 1t is