Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1860-1862, 1861-04-19
A National Convention.

We look forward confidently to the future
proud historic position which Kentucky viii
enjoy as having been the first State to pro
pose National Convention to amend the
Constitution of the United States under the
forms prescribed by that instrument. 1t il
the only way to ADJUST our national difficult
| ties, while secession" is but the agent fol
their greater ENHANCEMENT and complication
| Nothing is clearer than that those who were
most active in framing our government, OF
were contemporary with its forms ton, never
contemplated that State should have the
right to determine for itself the time or man
ner of dissolving its obligation to the Federal
Government. Mr.. Jefferson wrote:
with respect to our State and Federal
Governments, do not thihk that their rela
tions are correctly understood by foreigners
They generally suppose the former to be sub
ordinate to the latter. But this is not the
case They are coordinate departments Of
one simple and integral whole. But you may
ask il the two departments should claim each
the same subject of power, where is the com
mon umpire to decide between them? In ca.
ses of little importance and urgency, the pru
dence of both parties will keep them alool
from the Questionable ground; but if it car
neither be avoided nor compromised, a Conuen.
ton of States must be called 10 ascribe the doubtful
po,rer TO that department which they may thinh
best"
If, then, we have arrived at the point when
the difficulties cannot be compromised, a
convention of States is the only umpire to
adjust them. The National Iutelligencer, in
a long editorial on "The Evil and the Rene
dy,n says lift was entitled to asusme the of:
fee of the Presidents adviser. in view of all
the complications which surround his admin
istration of the Government, it would rep
resent the necessity of his seeking, at the
l. I~NI.
retical and practical, from the anomalous sit
uation in which be is now placed-resting as
be is under the obligation to perform imprac.
ticahle duties;" and to this end it would have
him make, by public proclamation, an Off
cial exposition of the facts which are now
known TO all the world" and as it must be
apparent that the evils resulting to the au.
| thority of the United States from this accom-
plished revolution in seven States OF the
Union have now passed beyond the cure oil
mere administrative expedients, it would
| bold all such expedients subsidiary and pre-
| liminary to some definite plan of adjustment
distinctly propounded and deliberately re-
| commended for the final and complete solu-
| ton of all the questions raised by the Use
cession movement" In search of such a
| plan, the National Intelligencer .'can con
ceive of none so simple and so effective az
| the speedy assemblage of national conven.
| ton OF all the States, or at least OF all the
| States still adhering to the Constitution, and
| if the President would, by public proclama.
| ton, impress upon his countrymen the ne
| cessity of taking into their own hands the
settlement of questions with which he has nc
power to DEAL" our contemporary feels sure
| there would be ready and almost universal
| acquiescence in the proposition, for if any.
| thing in the shape of practical remedies is
to be brought to the relief of our present
| embarrassments, it is obvious that they can
come only from such source" We are
| pleased to see that the most influential con.
| servative papers are advocating this plan oil
| adjustment, for it is selfevident, as our
Washington contemporary remarks, that, ''ii
the people in all parts of the country could
| have distinct assurance that the present
anomalous S tate of affairs would be submit.
| ted to the award of National Convention
they would patiently await the decisions Of
that body, aud the arrangements which the
Government might make in the iterim would
be regarded as simply provisional in their
nature"