The weekly Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1860-1863, 1861-07-11

" VIM" ASAeo H@u oeeu JOlDeu ABOUT the
time Of the Inauguration, gave no troops
10 the cause o. the Union. TIE Border
States. 80 called, were not uniform in
their action, some Of them being almost
Tor the Union. while in others. as Virgin.
ia. North Carolina, Tennessee and Ar
kansas, was nearly repressed and sileuced
The course taken in Virginia was lb,
most remarkable--perhsps the most i'm
portant. A convention, elected by tb,
people Of that State, to consider this yer,
QUESTION OF diSrupting :he Federal Unior
was in session at the capital of Virginis
when Fort Sumter fell. Tothis body the
Peopl1 had chosen large majority of pro
iessed Union men. Almost immediately
after the fall Of Sumter, many members
Of that majority went over to the original
disunion minority. and with them adopt,
ed an ordinance for Withdrawing the State
from the Union.
Whether this change was wrought by
their great approval Of the assault upon
Sumter, or the great resentment at the
Governments resistance to that assault
is not definitely known. Although they
submitted the ordinance for ratification, ia
vote Of the people, TO be taken on day
then somewhat more than month distant.
the Convention and the Legislature which
were also in session at the same time and
place. with leading men Of the s ale, mol
members ofeither, Immediately commenc.
ed acting as if the State we're already oul
of the Union. They pushed military prep.
arationS vigorously forward all over the
State.
They seized the United States Armory
at HarPer's Ferry and the Navy Yard al
Gosport near Norfolk. They received
perhaps invited into their State, large
bodies of troops with their warlike ap.
pointments, from the so.called seeded
State. They formally entered into urea.
ty Of temporary allegiance and co.opera
tion with the so called Confederate States
aud sent members to their Congress a
Montgomery, and finally, they petmiusd
that insurreotionary Government to b.
transferred to their Capital at Richmond
The people of Virginia have thus al
lowed this great instruction to make its
nest within her borders, and this Cove rn.
ment has no choice left but 10 deal with
it where l. finds it, and it has the less re.
gret as the loyal citizens have in due form
claimed it's protection. Those loyal cili.
zens this Government is bound to recog-
nize and protect as being in Virginia.
In the border States ESQ called, in fact
the middle States) there are those who
favor policy which they call armed neu
trality, that is, au arming of States Il
prevent the Union forces passing on,
way, or the disuDion the other, over thei
soil.
This would be disuniau completed -
Figuratvely speaking it would be tht
building of an impossible wall along the
line Of separation; and yet not quite an i'm.
passable one, for under the guise of neu.
trality. it would tie the hands of Union
men, and freely pass supplies from among
them to the i1surrectionists, which il
could not do as an open enemy. At q
stroke il would take all the trouble of the
hands of secession. except only what pro.
ceeds from the external blockade.
1t would do for the disunionists, that
which of all things they most desire-feed
them we'll, and give them disunion with
out struggle Of their own. Itrecognizst
10 fidelity to the. Constitution, no cbliga
ton to maintain Union, and while very
many who favored it are loyal. it is new
ertheless very injurious in effect.
Recurring to the acton of the Govern
ment it may be stated, that at first, cal
was made for 5000 militia. and rapidly
following this proclamation was issued fol
closing the ports of the insurrectionary
districts by proceedings in the nature o
blockade. So far all was believed to BE-
strictly legal.
1t was believed however, that to so a
bandon that position under the circum.
stances, would be utterly ruinous; thai
necessity under which it was done would
not be fully understood; that by many i
would be construed as a part of volunta
ry policy; that at home it would discour
age the friends Of the Union, embolder
it's adve!saries, and 60 far to ensure to lhc
latter recognition abroad; that in fact i
would be our national destruction consum
mated.
At this point insurrect.onists announc.
ed their purpose to erter upon the prac
t,ce Of privsteering. Other calls were
made for volunteers to serve three years,
unless sooner discharged, and also fol
large additions TO the regular army and
navy. These measures, whether strictly
legal or not, were ventured upon uudel
what appeared 10 be a popular demand
and public necessity, trusting then at
now, that Congress would readily rsti
fy them. 1t is believed that nothing hat
been done beyond the Constitutional com
potency of Congress.
Soon after the first call for militia. il
was considered duty to authorize the
Commanding General, in proper cases ,ac
cording to his discrst tion, to suspend tht
privilege of the writ Of habeas corpus, Of
In other words, to arrest and detain with
out resort to the ordinary process ant
forms of law, such individuals as he nigh
deem dangerous to the public safety
This authority las purposely been oxer
cised but very sparingty.
Nevertheless tho legality aud prophet,
of what has been done under it are ques
toned, aud the attention Of the counr
has Been called to the proposition tha
one who is sworn to take care that th
laws be faithfully executed, should nc
himself violate them. OF course som