The national Republican., 1861-01-04
They are all the allies, conscious or uncon.
s,;o,a of tho royol,,t,oo.st. ~ To-. ..

where IN tne hepuDnc Will be aggravated by q
call Of the Maryland Legislature. 1t will look
like sympathy with the revolutionary States.
1t will dishesrten the friends Of the Govern
naet in those States. 1t will inspire the revo.
lutionists in the central States, now in hope
less minority, with new hopes. 1t will tend to
destroy the moderate feelings Of the free States
In dealing with the existing discontents. 1t will
greatly embarrass the President, who must
maintain the authority of the laws, and is enti
tied to the undivided support Of the people Of
Maryland for that purpose.
The halls of legislation will immediately be-
come the fruit OF revolutionary conspiracy. I'm.
der specious pretexts, the. people will be impli.
Gated, by consultation with other States, by
concerted plans, by inadmissible demands, by
extreme and offensive pretensions, in deeply
laid scheme Of simultaneous revolt in the event
of the inevitable failure to impose on the free
States the ultmatum of the slave States. Ma.
ryland will find herself severed from more than
halt the States, plunged in anarchy and wrapt
in the flames of civil war; waged by her against
the Government in which we now glory.
In the face ofsuch consequences, what justi.
fcation, what excuse, is there for convening
the Legislature
Within its constitutional power it can do
nothing, and there is nothing for it to do.
The only danger to Maryland in the present
crisis is, that rebellious States may destroy the
United States aud that to her is absolute ruin;
but against that her only and her sufficient Sc
curity is the power of the United States Gov.
ernment, supported by the loyal devotion of the
people outside of the disaffected States. Mary
land cannot suppress revolution in South Car
olina and neither South Carolina nor any other
State threatens Maryland with invasion or any
other danger. Congress and the President are
vested exclusively with the power to enforce the
laws Of the Union and every person in Mary
land, as well as in all the other central slave
States, is bound to obey the orders Of the Pres
ident for that purpose, anything in their laws
to the contrary notwithstanding. The Legis
latures can therefore do nothing in the matter
But many persons clamor for the Legisla-
ture, in order that it may agree with Virginia,
or with other slave States, on a course Of con.
duct.
The Constitution forbids any agreement be.
tween Maryland and any other States for any
purpose.
Not only does the 10th section Of the first
article Of the Constitution declare that "no
State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or
confederation, but it also says "No State
shall, without the consent Of Congress- enter in.
to any agreement or compact with another State
or with foreign Poper." And art. 6 declares
this Constitution to be the supreme law Of the
LAND of Virginia, as well as Of Maryland
and that the members Of the several State Legis
latures, and ALL erecutire aud judicial officers
Of the several States shall be bound by oath or
affirmation to support this Constitution.
Are the members of the Legislature to violate
their oath? If not, there can be no consulta.
ton. If they are, then it is not to preserre the
Constitution, but to promote its destruction by
revolution, that the Legislature is to be con.
vened.
The Legislature can, within its constitutional
power, do nothing. 1t is as unconstitutional
to make any agreement with Virginia as it
would be with England or France. An agree.
ment to consult, to have any common purpose,
any concerted action, is expressly forbidden ;
for, if allowed, the United States might be
defed by coalition too powerful to be sup.
pressed without arms, and the laws of the
Union be enforced only at the hazard of civil
war. The prevailing discontents, the infamed
state of public feeling, which now prompt men
and States to consult, are the very dangers the
constitutional prohibition was intended to
guard against. Southern States only now think
of coalition but what should we say of a
free-State coalition to repeal the constitutional
guaranty of the slavery interest?
A Convention Of the central slave States is
equally unconstitutional, dangerous, and need.
less Whatever it can do, which is not uncon.
stitutional and mischievous, can be better done
without it.
Is it to propose amendments to the Con.
stitution2
No body authorized to amend could even
consider the proposals.
But Congress, on the application of the Legs.
latures of two-thirds of the States, can call a
Convention of ALL the States, and that can
remedy every grievance.
Is it to secure agreement on the same amend
| ments?
Their representatives in Congress are the
constitutional representatives Of the States, in
the only body where the States are permitted
to consult; and they can there move any
amendments they may concur in thinking ne
cessary and those amendments will, under
the Constitution, be formally sent for approval
to all the States.
Is it to agree upon demands to be made on
the free States, on refusal of which nothing is
to follow?
Then, why assemble it?
But is the purpose of it to combine the cen
| trail alave States in demands on the free States
accompanied with the menace Of revolution il
the event of their refusal to submit to the die
tation?
Then the Convention is reasonable as
sembly to levy war for the overthrow of thu
Government.
Such consultation among the central slav'
States, where no voice from the free States viii
be heard, and their feelings and wishes will bt
wholly disregarded, and where the more ex
treme opinions of the slave States will predom
mate, is likely to result in demand Of conces
sions wholly impossible to be obtained, accom-
panied by the implied pledge not to be satisfied
| with anythinp less and ON the refusal of tn
free States to submit to terms thus dctate
without any consultation with them, the revo
lutionists will precipitate the whole Of the con
suting States into revolution. This believ
to be the most natural result of the proposes
consultation. ! nresuma the rexnlutianists haY