The Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1859-1865, 1861-07-18
NUMBER 48.

Z
! powers, and certainly a power to destroy
the Government itself had never known as
governmental, merely administrative pow
er.
This relative matter of national power and
State rights as principle is no other than
| the principle of generality and locality.
Whatever concerns the whole, should be
confided to the whole. to the General Cow
ernment; while whatever concerns only tho
| State should be left exclusively TO the State.
This is all there is of original principle about
it. Whether the National Constitution in
defining boundaries between the tvs. has
applied the principle with exact accuracy is
not to be questioned. We are also bound
by that defining without question. What is
now combatted, is the position that seces-
sion is consistent with the Constitution, Is
lawful and peaceful. II is not contended that
there is any express law for it, and nothing
should ever be implied as law which leads
to unjust or absurd consequences.
The nation purchased with money the
countries out Of which several of these
States were formed. Is ii just that they
shall go of without leave and without re-
funding? The nation paid very large sums
in the aggregate, ] believe, Of a Hundred
millions-to relieve Florida cf the aborigin-
al tribes. Is it just that she shall now 90
off without consent without making
any return? The nation is now in debt for
money applied for the benefit of these So
called seeded States in common with the
rest. Is it just either that creditors shall
go unpaid, or the remaining States pay the
whole? Part of the present National debt
WAS contracted to pay the old debts ofTexas.
Is ii just that she shall leave and pay no
part of il herself?
Again. If one State may secede, so NAV an
other, and when all shall have seeded. none
is left TO pay the debts. Is this quite lust 10
creditors Did notify them Of this
sage view of ours when we borrowed
their money? five now recognize this doc
trine by allowing the Seceders TO go in peace
it is difficult to see what we can do if others
choose to go, or to extort terms upon which
they will promise to remain.
The Seceders insist that cur Constitution
admits of secession. They have assumed to
make a national constitution Of their own
which of necessity they have either discard
ed or retained the right Of secession as they
insist it exists in ours. If they have discard
ed it, they thereby admit that on principle il
ought not to be in ours. If they have re-
tanned by their own construction of ours, they
show that TO pc consistent they must secede
from one another whenever they shall find
it the easiest way of settling their debts or
effecting any other selfish unjust object.
The principle itself is one of disintegration,
and upon which no government can possibly
endure.
If all the States save one should assert the
IL.
is presumed the whole class of seceder poll
ticians would at deny the power, and
denounce the act the greatest outrage up
on State rights But suppose that precisely
the same act, instead of being called driving
the one out, should be called the seeding of
the others from that one, it would be exactly
what the seceders seem to do, unless in
deed they make the point that the one be-
cause ii is minority, may rightfully 10 what
the other because they majority may
not rig htfully do. These politicians are SUBJ
tie and profound on the rights of minorities:
they are not partial TO that power which
made the Constitution, and speaks from the
preamble, calling itself ''The People" 1t
may well be questioned whether there is TO
day majority of the legally qualified voters
of any State except, perhaps, South Carolina,
in favor of disunion. There is much reason
to believe that the Union men are the major
ity in many, if not in every other one, of the
so-caled seeded States. AS the contrary
has not been demonstrated in any one of them
it is ventured to affirm this, even of Virginia
and Tennessee, for the result OF an election
held in military camps, where the bayonets
were all on one side ofthe question voted upon,
can scarcely be considered as demonstration
of popular sentiment. At such an election
all that large class who are not at once for
the Union and against coercion would be CO.
creed to vote against the Union.
II may be affirmed, without extravarance
that the free institutions we enjoy have de-
veloped the power and the condition of
our whole people beyond any example in
the world. OF this we now have a
striking and impressive illustration So
large army as the Government has now
on foot was never known, without q soldier
in it but who had taken his place there of
his own free choice. But, more than this,
there are many single regiments whose mem
bers, one and another, possess full practical
knowledge of all the arts. sciences. profess
sions, and whatever else, whether useful or
elegant, is known in the world; and there ia
scarcely one from which there could not be
selected a President, Cabinet, a Congress,
and perhaps q court abundantly competent
to administer the Government itself Nor
do | say this is not true also in the army of
our late friends, now adyersaries in this con-
test But if it is, so much better the REASON
why the Government which has conferred
such benefits on both them aud us should
not be broken up. Whoever, in any section
proposes 10 abandon such Government,
would DO well to consider in Difference to
what principle il is that he does il. What
better he is likely TO get in its stead p
Whether the substitute viii give or be in
tended TO give, much of good to the peo-
pie? There are some foreshadowings on this
subject OuradversarieS have adopted some
declarations of Independence in which, unlike
the good old one. penned by Jefferson. they
omit the words, .'All men are equal. Why?
They have adopted temporary national
constitutions, the preamble of which, unlike
oar good old one, signed by Washington,
they omit .,We, the people, and substitute
'tWe, the deputies Of the sovereign aud indie