Delaware State journal and statesman. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1855-1870, 1861-07-05

ready to supply omissions, or to communicate
new facts, considered important for you to
know
1t is now recommended that you give the le-
gal means for making this contest a short and
a decisive one; that you place at the control OF
the Government, for the work, a. least 400 900
men, and S4O0, 900, 900. That number of men
is about one-tenth of those of proper age with
in the regions where, apparently, all are will
ing to engage, and the sum is less than n
twenty-third part of the money value owned
by the men who seem ready to devote the
whole.
A debt of 100000 900 now is less sum per
head than was the debt of our own revolution
when we came out of that struggle, and the
money value in the country now bears even
greater proportion to what it was then, than
does the population. Surely each man has as
strong motive now to preserve our liberties
as each had then TO establish them.
A right result at this time will be worth
more to the world than ten times the men and
ten times the money. The evidence reaching
us from the country leaves no doubt that the
material for the work is abundant, and that it
needs only the hand OF legislation to give it
legal sanction, and the hand of the Executive
to give it practical shape and efficiency.
One of the greatest perplexities of the Gov
eminent is to avoid receiving troops faster
than it can provide for them.
In word, the people will save their Gov
eminent, if the Government itself will do its
part only indiferently well. 1t might seem,
at first thought, to be of little difference weth
err the present movement at the South be cal
led secession or rebellion. The movers how
ever, well understand the difference. At the
beginning they knew they could never raise
their treason to any respectable magnitude by
any name which implies violation of the law.
They know their people posses as much of mo-
raj sense, MS much pride in, and reverence for
the history and Government of their common
country as any other civilized and patriotic
people.
They know they could make no advance
ment directly in the teeth of these strong and
noble sentiments. Accordingly they com
by an insidious debauching of the
public mind. They invented an ingenious So
phism which, ii conceded, was followed by
perfectly logical steps through all the incl
dents to the complete destruction of the Union
The sophism itself is that any State of the
Union may, consistently with the National
Constitution, and therefore lawfully and peace
fully, withdraw from the Union, without the
consent of the Union or any other State. The
little Disguise that the supposed right is to be
eAcIclscu only lOr u just cause DeChuse lney
are to be the sole judges of its JUS
tice, is too thin to merit any notice.
With rebellion thus sugar coated, they have
been drugging the public mind of their Sec
ton for more than thirty years, and until at
length they have brought many good men to
n willingness to take up arms against the Gov
the day after some assemblage of men
have enacted tho farcical pretence of taking
their State out of the Union, who could have
been brought to no such thing the day before
This sophism derives much, perhaps the
whole of its currency from the assumption
that there is some omnipotent and sacred SUI
premacy pertaining to state, to each State
Of our Federal Union. Our States have neither
more nor less power than that reserved to
them in the Union. The original ones passed
into the Union even before they cast off their
British Colonial dependence and the new ones
each came into the Union directly from con-
dition of dependence excepting Texas and
even Texas, in its temporary independence,
was never designated State. The new ones
only took the designation of States on coming
into the Union; while that name was first
adopted for the old ones in and by the Deea-
ration of independence. Therein the United
Colonies were declared to be free and indie
pendent States
But even then the object plainly was not to
declare their independence of one another, or
Of the Union, but directly the contrary, as
their mutual pledge and their mutual action,
before, at the time and afterwards, abundant
ly show. The express plighting of faith, by
each and all Of the original thirteen, in the
articles of confederation, two years later, that
I" the Union shall be perpetual" is most con-
elusive. Having never been States, either in
substance or in name outside of the Union,
whence this magical omnipotence of State
Rights asserting claim of power to lawfully
destroy the Union itsef2 Much is said about
the Sovereignty of the States, but the word
even is not in the National Constitution, nor
as is believed in any of the State Constitn-
tions. What is a Sovereignty, in the political
sense Of the term Would il be far wrong to
define it "a political community without po-
litical superior ?" Tested by this, no one of
our States, except Texas, was ever q sover-
eighty, and even Texas gave up the character
On coming into the Union, by which act she
acknowledged the Constitution of the United
States, made in pursuance of the Constitution,
to be for her the supreme law of the land
The States have their status in the Union, and
they have no other legal status. lfthey break
from this, they can only do so against law and
by revolution. The Union, and not them
selves separated, procured their independence
md their liberty. By conquest or purchase,
the Union gave each Of them whatever of in
dependence and liberty it has. The Union is
older than any of the States, and in fact it
created them as States. Originally some de-
turn, the Union threw off their old dependence
for them and made them States, such as they
are not one of them ever had State Consti-
tuition Independent of the Union.
Of course it is not forgotten that all the
new States framed their Constitutions before
they entered the Union; nevertheless depend
ent upon, and preparatory to coming into the
Union.
Unquestionably the States have the powers
and rights reserved to them in and by the Ma
tional Constitution; but among these, surely,
are not included all conceivable powers, how
ever mischievous or destructive, but at most
such only as are known in the world at the
time, as Governmental powers, and certainly
4 power to destroy the Government itself had
never known as governmental a merely adj
ministrative power.
This relative matter of National power and
State Rights as q principle, is no other than
the principle of generality and loyalty.
Whatever concerns the whole should be
conided to the whole, to the General Gov
eminent while whatever concerns only the
State shouldbe left exclusively to the State.
This is all there is OF original principle about
it. Whatever the National Constitution, in
defining boundaries between the two, has APP
piled 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 Secession is
consistent with the Constitution, is, lawful
and peaceful. 1t 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 coun-
tries out of which several of these States
were formed. Is it just that they shall go Off
without leave and without refunding2 The
nation paid very large sums-in the aggregate
believe n hundred milions-to relieve Flori-
da OF the Aboriginal tribes. Is it just that
she shall go off without consent or making
any return? The nation is now in debt for
money annlied 10 the hena6i of these sn-callad