The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1861-07-12
7ithout consent or without any return F.?

| AHe natlOn Is now In deDC Tor money ap-
piled for the benefit of these so called seced-
ing States, in common with the rest. Is it
just that creditors shall go unpaid or the re-
naming States pay the whole? A part of
the present national debt was contracted to
pay the old debt of Texas. Is it just that
she shall leave and pay no part of this her.
self? Again, if one State may secede SO NAV
another, and when all shall have seeded,
none is left to pay the debts. Is this quite
just to creditors? Did we notify them of this
sage view of ours when we borrowed their
money? Ii we now recognize this doctrine
by allowing the seceders to go in peace, it is
difficult to see what we can do if others chose
to go, or to extort terms upon which they
will promise to remain.
The seceders insist that our Constitution
admits of secession. They have assumed to
make national constitution of their own in
which, OF necessity, they have either dis.
carded or retained the right Of secession as
they insist it exists in ours. If they have
discarded it they thereby admit that on
principle it ought not to exist in ours. If
they have retained it by their construction
OF ours it shows that to be consistent they
must secede from one another when they
shall find 1t the easiest way of settling their
debts or ettecting another selfish or unjust
object.
The principle itself is one of disintegra-
ton and on which no government can en-.
dure. If all the States save one should
Affect the power to drive that one out of the
Union, is it presumed the whole class of the
seeded politicians. would at once deny the
power and denounce the act as the greatest
outrage upon State rights But suppose
that precisely the same act, instead of being
| called drivin one out, should be called the
seeding OF the others from the one, it
would be exactly what the seceders claim
to do, unless indeed they make the point
| that the one, because it is minority, may
| rlghtfully do that which the others, because
they are the majority, may not righttully
| do.
THE UNION ELEMENT IN THE SOUTH.
| These politicians are profound in the
| rights of minorities. They are not partial
to that power which made the Constitution
and speaks from the preamble calling itself
| 1--WE the people" 1t may well be questioned
| whether there is to-day majority OF the le-
gally qualified voters of any State, except,
| perhaps, South Carolina, in favor of disuniOn.
| There is much reason to believe that the
Union men are in q majority in many if not
| all of the seeded States. The contrary has
not been demonstrated in any one Of them.
1t is ventured to affirm even those of Vir-
| ginla and Tennessee-fOr the result Of cleo
lions held In military camps, where the bay
Onets were all on one side Of the question
voted upon-can scarcely be considered as
demonstrating the pOpulor sentiment at such
an election. And that large class who are
at once for the Union and against coercion
would be coerced to vote against the Union.
1t even may be affirmed without extrava-
| gance that the free institutions which we en-
JOY have developed the powers and improved
the condition OF our whole people beyond
any example in the world. Or this we now
have striking and impressive illustration
So large an army as the Government has
now on foot was never before known, with
out a soldier in who has not taken his place
there of his own free choice.
But more than this, there are many single
regiments whose members, one and another,
possess full practical knowledge of the arts
and sciences and professions, and whatever
else, whether useful or elegant, is known to
the whole world; and there is scarcely one
from which there could not be selected a
haps Court, abundantly competent to ad
minister the Government. Nor do 1 say
this is not true Of our late friends-now ene-
mics in this contest-but is it so much the
better reason why the Government which
has conferred such benefits on both them
and on us should not be broken up.
DEFENCE OF OUR SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT.
Whoever in any section proposes to aban
don such Government would do we'll to
consider in Difference to what principle it is
that he does it; whether the substitute will
give or be intended to give so much good to
the people. There is some foreshadowing on
this subject. Our adversaries have adopted
some declarations of independence, in which
unlike the good old one penned by jefferson,
they omit the words 6 are created free and
equal" Why? They have adopted tenn
porary national cons titution, in the preamble
of which, unlike our good old one signed by
Washington, they omit, "We, the people,
and substitute, "We, the deputies OF the
Sovereign and Independent States.'
Why this deliberate pressing out of view
the rights of men and the authority 0! the
people? This is essentially people, con.
test on the side OF the Union. Iii strug
gle for maintaining in the wor' snat form
and substance OF Government, whose lead
ing object is to elevate the condition O
man, to lift artificial weights from all
shoulders, tG clear the paths OIL
all laudable pursuits, and to afford
all an uDfettered start and fair chance
in the race of life, yielding to partial and
temporary departures from necessity. This
is the leading object of that form OF govern.
ment for whose existence we contend an
most happy to believe that the plain people
understand and appreciate this.
1t is worthy of note that while in this, tn,
Governments hour of trial, large numbers o
those in the army and navy who have beer
favored with the offices have resigned ant
proved false to the hand that pampered them
not one common soldier or common sailor il
known to have deserted his flag. Great hon
or is due to those officers who remained tru'
despite the example of their treacherous as
sOciates. But the greatest honor and mos
emphatic fact of all is the unanimous firm
ness OF the common soldiers and common
sailors. To the last man, so far as known
they successfully resisted the traitorous eff
fects of those whose command within an hou
before they obeyed as absolute law.
This is A natriOtic instinct of Main men