The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1861-05-13

On the contrary they have every assurance and aIr
reason to believe that the anized military of Ba
more under the direction of the constituted
and in implicit obedience orders did all that could
nave been expected from brave men and good citizens
preserve the public tranquility But whether the hasty
ol tls executive be well or ilfounded in that
particular, the determination State of MARYLAND
uPT tle question OF furnishing her quota of militia
make war upon the Southern States, ought not in the
opinion of your Committee rest moment longer unon
any such collateral and accidental issue 1t becomes the
se respect OF the State that she should speak
and decidedly upon the point and the question should no
longer De lett dependent what may be hereafter re-
garded as "prudent' by the Executive For this nur
pose, your Committee prepared and reported
luton which appended this report and the adopton
| of which they respectfully recommend
1t is but justice to the Executive of the State o ob
serYe IN this connection that his Exceency appears to
nav nave been msed in his action upon the requison of
he United States Government two letters of the
Secretary of War; dated pril IL in which that gentle
man informs him that the troops be raised in Mary
land VIII be needed for the defence Capital and of
the pubic property in that State and neghborhood
lhere is no Intention, the Secretary adds ''of remov-
ing them beyond these points, In conformity with this
n'9malon the Reclamation of the Governor-of which
ne has not furnished copy the General Assembly hut
when Is matter OF public noorietyinforms his fellow
czens to the same effect and holds the idea that
troops om this STATE may he furnished for the purposs
| lnd'cated Your Committee would be happy to per
suaue themselves that in suggesting the possibility
OF Its being "prudent,n at any time, for the Ma.
rylard quota to he furnished to the Government his
E%cei!ency could only have contemplated their employ.
ment IN any contingency for the limited purposes in
question But does become the House of Delegates
to allow themselves deceived bv anv sucb ;nfim.
ons from the Government these which imposed upon
the Governor The Proclamation of Mr. Lincoln under
wcn the troops OF Maryland have been called into the
heaS directed las has already been observed against the
secededStates and none other. The Militia were summon
ed to execute the laws and suppress
IN south Carolina, Georgia orda Alabama Missssippi
louisiana and Texas and Maryland or the District
G Columbia The requsition of the Secretary Of
war upon he Governor, is in direct and absolute contra
dicton To the contained in his letter The one
asks for troops to be used in the South and not at The
Feueral capital the other declares their employ
ment at the Federal Capital and in the South is the
| only purpose contemplated.
One of two things, therefore, is perfectly clear Either
the Government had called troops under the
o needing them for purpose while intending to use
them Tor another, or it contemplated EMPLOYING nor
| uon OF them at Washington. as guard and reserve
| but in aid, at the same time of its offensive move
mentS to the south Of the Potomac In the one case il
can have claim upon our confidence: in the otber We
should be false to ourselves free institutions If
were to hesitate about refusing it our CO operation
whatever destiny the people of Maryland may be ahe
or willing to shape for themselves now or hereafter m
committee would be panied believe possible that
single citizen of this State could be or persuaded
TO take part, directly indirectly in the slaughter and
suugaon of our Southern brethren and the overthrow
OF constitutional Government by usurpaton and brute
force If the Government desires to put an end to all
doubts as to the safety of the Capital can do so at
word by putting end to own purposes of coercn
the South
What the Committee have already suggested in REGARD
10 the character and purposes of the conflict which Mr.
Lincoln has inauguraed, under the pretence of on
the laws, is so nanfesty and ndisputaby
ny ms course since the Legislature convoked tina
the committee cannot discharge their duty without al
Iudng to that course in this connection Reference s
'speCIdiiy 10 proclamation of of
ing out over forty two thousand additional volunteers
serve in the militia for period of three wears and in
Gtdg 'he regular force of the United States by an ad
don of nearly twenty thousand men to the
| and eighteen thousand the navy The most
INSCRIPTIONS advocate of the Administration and il :
poncy, would be compelled to shrink from the task Of
pointing out any al constitutional authority of anv
| sort, Tor this Unprecedented measure
The right of increasing the army and navy is one which
belongs exclusively to Congress- and which the Pres
ident has constitutional control than tho hum
nles citizen His right to call out the militia is
! ne prRst rtinpt tI,.4 ,Iar
tnue necessary, until after the expiration of thirty
days after the OF the then session Of
congress" Act of 1885, p The proclamation is
therefore without color whatever right and is
PLAIN and bald suhverson of the letter and spirit of the
Constitution and the laws attempted bv the
military power in any government ostensbly free The
pretence of "eXiStng eXgencesn is but the shane in
whichsmtary revolutions have always begun since the
prestige OF free institutions has rendered it necessary
even Tor usurpers to make show of apology for over
| throwing them. o. " wv
If triumphant illustration could be given of the
VISION OF our iatherS in providing by the Constitution
that the government should operate upon its
citizens through the laws, and upon the States bv
military coercion it be in the fact that the
first administration daring depart from this fpnda
mental and consecraed pr ncipIe has rushed in the t
space of sixty days into the assertion of absolute
over the whole military resources of the countrv in
open ana reckless defiance Of every legal and copsttu
tonal restraint The Committee hazard nothing in saw
ing that there is not citizen Mary land whatever he
ms political opinions, who shudder at the nal
Pape and ominous presence Of this usurpation and who
% io IecoSilHe' Tor the hrst tme in his own expe-
rence or the history Of MARYLAND that he is living and
political a Ia,
pleasure of unrestricted military power and snbec
to the arbitrary and anti Republican caprices of what
entitled military necessity"
For any to be able persuade himself under srcl
circumstances that the policy Administration ev
meant peace and not war-the enforcement of the laws,
the defence Of the captal''-and not subupatonre
quires popularity of meatal construction with which
reason is at loss how to deal To suppose that hock
ade of the whole coast from the capes Of the
TO the extreme borders ofTeXas with land armv extra
ordinary OF one hundred and fifty thousand men and
naya Screas9 of eighteen thousand be intended on
o. F,.,l
or the powers vested in the Warshals and is
within the scope the Presidents civil functions and
not OF the rmaking power, which only Congress car
exercise. implies facility conviction to which moth
ing can be regarded as impossible.
The Committee course not unacouaip tod with .b
familiar doctrine laid down by the supreme Court of b
United States, in the of Martin rs Mott 2
~ and so often cited by those who maintained the alb
solue authority of the President the whole
ofcalling out the militia. The Committee might readily
dispose of tiff they willing to stand upon the samt
GROUNDS Wlth the Administration, by applying to it thu
doctrine of the inaugural of Mr. Lincoln and might nss
upon connng the ruling of the Court the particular
case and the individual parties concerned regulating it
controlling authority upon the or the other on
question of administrative government. Believing how
ever, that the true and only oyalty, of free neon
consists in their for the laws and
ana their obedience to the tribunals by which these
eXpounded, the Committee assume that peopie Of War
land VIII cheeruly bow to whatever the Supreme Cour
has determined upon the question under discussion o an
other The case Of Martin Mott was controversy he
tween private of militia and the United State
Marshas, who had seized his goods in enforcement of
hne imposed oy courtmaral for failure to enter the ser
| the
OF 1872 The jurisdiction of the court martial and IN
authority of the President to issue Proclamation un
der which the militia called out to repeI invasion
were both considered in the the question in CHIEF
however of course being the right of the individual
zen to judge for himself whether the legal ex
lted upon winch the President might rightfully sum
mon the citizens to arms. This latter the real AM
only point in controversy, and the Court decided
that under the Act of 1885, it for President ex
clusively, to determine whether the exigenc
contemplated by the law had arisen and tha
no soldier officer had any choice but to OBEY
| SubOrdination Whi
this adjudication is distinctly placed by the Court is to
obvious to he conouuded with the recognition Of arh
trary and irresponsible power which the decision
sought to be perveed,b by the supporters the exstin
exclusive Judge of whether eXigency has arisen in
to which his discretion is lawfully applicable is on
thing To give to him the exclusive and irreversible au
gency but the existence of the which it NAV law
inlly arise, is quite another thing. The first
what the Supreme Court has done the second
what no respectable Court, it is confidently as
sumed, can be persuaded forced to do ex
cept under the pressure of military necesstyn The
one gives to the President the exercise of discretion
certain named and ascertained cases The other p ye
hlm absolute power in all cases. The endows hin
with necessary executive function. The other make
him supreme over all law, by granting him the eXcusiv
control of its application If the President cannot on
invoke the military power his discretion in cases
invasion, insurrecton and resistance the laws bu ca
create invasion, insurrecon and resistance by mere
procamns that they exist whether in fact they do Sc
or not; there is not moment of his term a
which he cannot constitutionally compass the al
solute suiJGgation of the people, through tn
for moment for the sake of the argument tina
the attitude of the United States not in fact or law
case authorizing the President call out the militia
under the act of 1885, is it to be pretended that he make
it such simply by calling it such in a proclaim;
tionT Is it to he gravely argued, under constitutions
government, that the nation is bound to acaues,e in
as fact against the public knowledge to the contrary
and must accept the indorse bloodshed pour
the treasure ard submit the usurpaton with no othe
remedy than articles of Impeachment or the chances
the next Presidential election?
The commonest intelligence-the superficial ac
scheme insti
tutions-reyo is at conclusions monstrous And We
. precisely such must be the conclusions to whicl
any man must yield who supposes the Supreme Court Il
have decided, has been pretended That high tribuua
meant to decide, and did decide priucipl
SO wholly irratonally and despotc 1t dsrespect to
Us o"a 10 i'ut such question even IN dispute The
way IN which the States and the people NAV and ou Oh
70 deai WIN such usurpaon is matter apart but tina
does not cease to be ausupatiCn because of the
ton of form of words in Proclamation is matte
which the Committee will not disparage the manlines
and sense of the House by discussing further Indeed
in his letter of May 4th 1861 the T. S Minister
Paris which has appeared during the preparation of thi
the Secretary does not hesitate to thro
aside all the masks and preences the Proclamation
and to admit that it is longer simulated question
enforcing the laws and Defending the CaniiaI bnt
downright case of civi warof ''open fragrant deaG
ly war; which the United States have accepted Sue
aconfession-nay, such bold and defiant ann unciato
that the President has assumed upon himself the powe
OF peace and in garing and indisputable subverso
OF even the Constitution leaves the people Marylan
nothng iurther to consider, IN this connection but tn
Fact that they face to face with military despotisu
whose only law is its will
Ifthe Committee justified, by what has been sale
IN their view of the constitutional position the FEEDER;
government and especially if the admissions now. mad
bylt without disguise show but the consummation of
orGna ana persistent illegal scheme the part of tn
ADMINISTRATOR IL follows, as matter of necessty tn;
the troops called out by the President were and are an III
anthozed body OF men, passing territory
esa ana unconstitutional purposes, and carrying wit
them none OF the constitutional safeguards which woul
undoubtedly accompany force the United States
ercIsiug the rght OF transit for lawful and ustfab
ehds Ihey were in fact not United States soldiers br
Northern troops as they properly designate