Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1860-11-01

!, self-distinction which induces me to resume my
; pen.
! Sir, it is a sad sight to see the organ of a
Democratic Administration attempting to es-
tablish the doctrine that it would in any event
be crime in the President to defend the Con-
sttution and enforce the laws Of the United
States constitutonaIly enacted Disguise it as
you viii. your doctrine amounts to this and
nothing less. Already the peculiar organ Of
notification in the South is recommending Sc
cession while Mr. Buchanan is still in Office
upon the assumption that he may not enforce
the laws and defend the Constitution, which by
his official oath he is bound to do. Doubtless
the assumption is unwarranted, though justified
by the tone of bis acknowledged organ
i Let it be remembered that the question is not
now what the South ought to do in case of an
actual and irrcmed;able outrage upon her rights
and institutions The threat is to secede i III.
Lincoln shell be elected. Will his mere election
absove the people Of the South from their allie
glance to the Constitution and laws OF the United
States, or relieve the President from the duty of
defending the one and executing the other p
This is the real question under discussion.
You talk about coe,cihg States. States are
not the subjects upon which the Constitution
and laws of the United States operate. They
cannot commit treason nor be hanged as traitors
But neither can they, by any act of theirs, alb
solve their citizens from their allegiance to the
United States
The Constitution contains the following pro-
vision. viz; :'rhis Constitution and the laws Of
the United States which shall be made in pur-
suance thereof. - :: !, shall be
! the supreme lar Of lie land, and the judges in
ievery State shall be bound thereby, anything in
the Constitution or zacs Of any State to the con-
hd,y notwithstanding"
n That
against the United States shall consist only in
evying war against them or in adhering to their
enemies, giving them aid and comfort.
1t also declares that the President ''shall take
care that the laws be faithfully executed, and
prescribes to him the following oath, viz:
81 do sozemnzy sseear that I aciU faittfulzy
execute the office Of President, and arW, to tie
best Of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend
the Constitution tile United States"
Now, suppose Mr.. Lincoln were elected, and
citizen of Charleston, acting with or without
the sanction of the State authorities, having
j cargo of sugar entering the port, should refuse
4 to pay the legal duties, and with an armed party
should resist the officers attempting to collect
them, thus levying war against the United States,
do you think the President would be faithful to
his duty and true to his oath if he did not, if
necessary, use the militia, the army and navy, In
stahing care that the lacs be Faithfully executed"
and in '.prese3Uing, protecting and defending the
! Constitution Of the United States ?" Could he,
without official perjury, and becoming traitor
himself, fold his arms and say this aroo1d be
coerciag State, and under such plea suffer
the Constitution and laws to be subverted? If
bloodshed ensued, who would be responsible
1.-THE President, who would be, ''to the best OF has
ability" attempting to perform his sworn duty,
or the traitor who were attempting to subvert
the Government?
Your doctrine, I suppose, is that the State
authorities or State Convention may declare a
State out of the Union, and thus absolve all its
! citizens from allegiance to the United States.
i Now, each State, by a convention elected by
the people, agreed with every other State, by
the adoption of the Constitution, that all its
provisions and the laws passed in pursuance
thereof, should be 1.-THE supreme laac OF the land.
They all agreed to take portion of the pow
er Heretofore possessed by their respective State
governments and vest them in common govern
ment based on precisely the same authority as
their State goyernmentsl. whose Constitution,
ifand the laws passed IN pursuance thereof, Should
lfe above the reach of all State authority. How
from obedience to this "supreme zaw ofhe laasz,"
declared by its highest authority, a convention
elected by the people, to be binding, "anythimg
In the Constitution and lG,cs of any State to the
contrary notwithstanding"
To me it is a wonder that any man can en-
terrain an idea to my mind so absurd. The
Theory of our Government obviously is that the
citizen owes allegiance to his State Government
Ito the extent Of its reserved poace7s, and to the
General Government TO the ertent Of its granted
poace1.s and that no act Of the General Govern
ment can relieve him from allegiance to his State,
Rand no act of his State can relieve him from his
allegiance to the United States.
} Let me not be misunderstood. do not deny
1.-THE right of rebellion in the people of any State
4 when unconstitutional outrages shall be COM
.mitted on their rights and institutions, and all
j hope for redress by peaceful means has vanish
i demagogues, or the election of one Of them to
the Presidency, would constitute such an out
4 rage, though just cause for alarm.
i I also deny that in such an event the South
would be without hope of redress. 1t is not to
be found, however, in personal denunciations of
eminent Democrats, in attempting to force on
4 the Democratic party new and useless issues, or
! in threats of (lisunion. Let all this cease, now
and forever Be just to the Northern Democra-
Z cy; in devotion to the Union emulate Wash
ington and Jackson, and you will rally an ire
sistible force, who, by the aid of the ballot-box
only, will rescue your institutions from danger
and firmly maintain every constitutional right
4 You say that Southern men are demanding
only their constitutional rights. Do you think
they have constitutional right to destroy the
Constitution? Such, indeed, is the claim of a
right to secede from the Union, if based on any
other ground than right Of rebellion for gross
and irremedial wrongs.
You say that the South Carolinians "wll even
suspect that he meaning me) is governed by
Idisap appointment and the revenge consequent
thereon" and that, E'under other circumstances,
/ he entertained another sort of sentiments"
i Iplead guilty to the charge of disappointment,
though it has filled me with sorrow rather than
revenge. My disappointment was in the ap-
parent fact that the present Administration had
not the sagacity toperceve that their policy
would inevitably destroy the Democratic party,
and minister to the desi gns of those whose ulti-
mate object is the destruction of the Union.
AS evidence of ny inconsistency, you quote
, certain sayings of Senator Douglas | might,