Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1861-08-03
The President's Message.
Concluded,


ion gave each of them whatever inde-
pendencc and liberty it had. The I'm
ion is older than any Of the States. and
in fact it created them as States origin
ally. Some dependent colonies made
the Union. and in turn the Onion
threw off their old dependence for them
and made them States as they are. None
them ever had State Constitution. in
dependent of the Union. Of course it
is not forgotten that all the new States
framed their Constitutions before they
entered the Union. Nevertheless, de-
pendent upon and preparatory to com
ing into the Union, unquestionably the
States have the powers and rights re-
served to them in and by the National
Constitution but among them surely
arc not included all conceivable powers,
however mischievous and destructive,
were known in the world at the time
as governmental powers, and certainly
power to destroy the Government it.
selfhad never been known as govern
mental merely administrative power.
This relative matter Of national power
and State rights, asa principle, is no
other than the principle of generality
and locality. Whatever concerns the
whole should be contided to the whole,
to the General Government; while what
concerns only the State should be left
exclusively to the State. That is all
there is of original principle about it.
Whether the National Constitution, in
defining boundaries between the two,
has applied the principle with exact ac-
curacy, is not to he questioned. We
are also bound by that definition with
out question. What is now combattcd
is the position that secession is consis-
tent with the Constitution, is lawful
and peaceful. 1t is not contendcd that
there is any express law for it, and
nothing should ever be implied as law
which leads to unjust or absurd corse-
quenccs. The nation purchased with
money the countries out ofwhich these
States were formed. Is it just that
they should 60 off without leave, and
without rcfnnding? The nation paid
very large sums-in the aggregate, l
believe, hundred millions-to re-
lease Florida Of the aboriginal tribes.
Is it Just that she now go off without
consent or without making any re-
turn? The nation is now in debt for
morey applied to the benefit of these
so-called seeded States, in common
with the rest. Is it just either that
creditors shall 60 unpaid, or the re-
naming States lay, while part of the
national debt was contracted to pay,
the old debts ofTexas? Is it just that
she shall leave and pay no part of this
herself? Again, if one State may Sc
cede, so muy another, and when all
shall have seeded none are left to pay
the debts. Is this quite just to credit
ors? Did we notify them of this sage
view of ours when be borrowed their
money?
# we now recognize the doctrine of
allowing the seceders to 60 in peace, it
is difficult to see what We can do if 9TH
ers choose to go on to cXtort terms up
on which they will promise to remain.
The Secoders insist that our Constitu-
ton admits secession. They have as
sumed to make national Constitution
of their own, in which of necessity they
have either discarded or retained the
right of secession, as they insist it cx-
its in ours. If they have discarded it
in theirs they thereby admit that on
principle it ought not to be in ours: !:
If they have retained it, hy their own
construction Of ours they show that to
be consistent they must seccdc from
one another whenever they shall find
it the rcadicst way Of settling their
debts or effecting any other selfish or
unjust object. Tho principle itself is
one of disintcgration, and npom which
no government can possibly endure. II
all the States save one should assert the
POWER to drive that one out of the Un-
ion, it is presumed the whole class Of
secession politicians would at once den'
tho power and denouncc this act as the
greatest outrage upon State rights. But
suppose precisely the sanie act instead
of being called driving them out, should
Ike called the seeding of the others
fium that one, it would be exactly what
the seceders claim to do. unless indeed,
they make the point that the Que he
cause it il Y minority, may rightfully
do what the others, because they are
minority, may not rightfaIly do. These
politicians are subtitle aud profound ON
the rights Of minorities. They arc not
partial to that power which Is in the
Constitution, and speaks from the pre-
amble calling itself We the people"
II may well be questioned whether
IN ere is 10. dav majority of the legally