The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1861-07-11

The Border states, so called, were no'
uniform 10 their action, some of them De
fsg almost for the Union, while in others
such as 10 Virginia, North Caroiln'' leo
uessee, and Arkansas, the Union sentl
ment las nearly repressed aud sIienced
Tue course taken in Virginia was the
most remarkable. perhaps the most In
portant.
A Convection elected by the people OF
that State to consider this very questiou
of disrupiing the Federal Union, was IN
session at the capital Of Virginia when
Fort Sumter fell. To this body the peo
pie had chosen large majority OF pro
fessed Union meu. Almost imm, diately
after the fall OF Sumter, many members
of that majority vent over to the orI@ maj
Disunion minority, and with them aGopt
ed an ordinance for EittdraWlng toe
State from the Union.
~ Whether this change wrought ty their
great approval OF the assault upon oum
ter, or their great resentment at the GOV
erDmeut's resistance 10 that assault, Is not
definitely known. Although they sub
mitted the ordinance for ratification to a
vote of the people to be taken ou day
then somewhat more than month dis
taDt. the Convention aud the Legislature
which was slsp in session at the same
time aud place, with leading men of the
State, not members Of either, i ia ue6ste-
~ commenced acting as if the State was
alTesdy out of the Union,
They pushed military preparations Wig
orously forward all over the State. They
seized the United States Arnory, Har
per's Ferry. aud the Navy Yard at Cos
port, near Norfolk. They received, per
baps ingited. into their State large bodie'
of troops 1ith their warlike appointment:
from the SO called Seeded States They
eutered into treaty of temporary ALI
anre with the so-csl|ed Confederate
States, and sent members to their Cou
gress, at Montgomery. and 6naily they
permitted the insurrectionary Govern
meut to he transferred to their Capitol 81
Rich nonj.
The people of Virginia have thus allow
ed this giant insurrestiou TO make It's nesi
within her borders. aud this GoycrumeDi
has DO choice left but to deal with il
gret as the loyal citizens have in du'
from clained its protection. Those 10y
81 citizens this Government is touDd &c
reco. Dize shd protect as heipg in Virgin
ia Ia the Border States, 20 called, IL
fact the Middle States. there are those
who favor a policy which they call al
armed neutrality. That IL, an arming o
those States to prevent the Union fOrees
passing one way or tire Disurion the 9th
er over their soil This would &c els
union completed.
Fi.uratively speaking, it would be the
building Of an iGpassatie wall along thu
line of separation, aud get not quite 81
iDpasssble one. for, uuder the gui>e @.
neutrality, it would tie the hands Of ths
UBiOn mcn, and freely pass supplies froa
saong them TO the iu,Urreeiiouis;s, y bicb
IL co1'i not DO - en- open etemy. At q
stroke. il Rouli take al tic tTou.io ca
the ha0ds OF Secession, except ouly what
proceeds from the exteTnsl blockade.
u would do for the DisUuionist that
which Of al thing, they W o,t de.irs, ieec
thea Veil and give them disuuion with
o,.t 3 struggle OF their OVID. 1t reeog-
uize- no fidelity 10 the Constitution, Do
Obligation to maiDtaia the Union, snd
while very many who have favored il are
doubtless loysl citizens, it is uegertheless
very iujprioGs 10 effect.
81 gaf.
Dent, it mag be stated that at 6rst call
was made fer $4,000 militia, and rapialy
following this proclamation vas Issued
for closing the ports of the insurrectiona
ry districts By proceedings in the nature
of blockade. So far all vas believed to
be strictly legal.
At-this point the insurrectionists an.
nouuced their purpose to enter upon the
prsetice of privateeriug.
Other calls we're u ade for yolspteers
TO serve three years, unless sooner dis
charged, and also for large additions to
the regular arGy and navy. These
measures, whether strictly legal or not,
were veptured upon under what appeared
TO be popular demand aud public ne-
cessity, trusting theB, as now, that Coz
gress would readily ratify them.
I'll. believed that nothing has teeD
done beyond the constitutional competen
cy of Congress. Soon after the frst call
for militia. it was considered a duty to
authorize the Commanding General. in
proper cases. according to bic discretion,
to suspend the privilege OF the writ of ba-
beas corpus, or, 10 other words, to arrest
and detain. without resort 10 the ordina-
~ processes and forms of Law, such indi-
yiduals as be might deem dangerous to
the public safety. This authority hss
purposely been exercised hut very spar.
ingly. Nevertheless, the legalt7 and
prOpriety OF what has been done under
1t are questioned, and the attention of the
country has been called to the PROPOSE
ton that one who has sworn to take care
that the laws be faithfully executed
should not himself violate then. OF
course some consideration was eigen to
the questions of power and propriety re-
fore this 10 after was acted unnn ~