Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1861-07-12

lhlt number ui mon is about ouC-tcnth Of those Of
proper age within the regions where apparently all
are willing Co engage, and the sum of money is
less than twcnty-thirl part Of the money value
owned 10y The men who Seem ready tp elevate the
whole. A debt of sGOOOO. 600 now is a less sum
per head than the debt of our Revolution
when we came out OF that struggle and the money
value n the country bears even a greater portion
TO what it theii than does the population-
Surely each man has as strong a motive 10 pre-
serve our liberties as each had to establish 70 them
right result at this time viii bc worth more
Goo tlc world than ten times the men and ten Times
thc money. The evidence reaching u, from the
country leaves mo- doubt that the material for che
work is abundant that it needs only the hand Of
legislation 60 give It legal sanction. and the hand
Of the Executive TO give it practical shape and ef-
fcioncy
One of the greatest pcrplexties Of the Govern
mcnt Is 90 avoid receiving troops faster than 10 can
provide for them. In a wori the people will save
their Government If the Government itself will do
its part only mdihcwntly we'll.
10 might seem NJ first 90 bc of little difference
whether the present movement IN the South be
called Secession or Rebellion. The movers hewn
ever we'll understood the difference At tie be-,
ginning they knew they could never raise their
treason to very respectable magnitude By any
name that implies violence 20 law. They kHew
their people possessed as much moral sense andue
much of devotion to law and order, and asnIuch'
pride iu its reverence for the mstor, and govern
f
ized and patriotic people They knew thcy could
make no advancement directly iu the teeth of
these strong and noble sentiments, accordingly
they commenced an assiduous dcbauthiug oi the
public mind. They invented an ingenious soPh-
ism. which, if conceded, was followed hy perfect
ly logical steps through all the incidents OF the
complete destruction OF the Union. The sophism
itself Is, chat any State Of the Union may, con-
sstcntly with the nations constitution and there
fore lawfully and peacefully, withdraw from the
Union without the consent OF the Union, or OF any
other State. The little disguise that the suppos-
ed right !, TO ho exercised only for just cause,
themselves To- be the sole Judges Of its Justice, is
too thin tO merit any notice. With Rebellion
thus sugar-coatcd they have been drgging the
public mind of their section for more than thirty
YEARS, aud at length they have brought many
good mcu TO a willingness TO take up arms against
Che government, the day after some a,scmbages
of mcn have enacted iarccal prctcuce 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
Ommpotcucc and second supremacy pertaining 20
each State Of our Federal Union. Our States
have neither more nor less power than that re
served TO them In the Union by the Constitution
mo- one of them ever having been a State out Of
tho Union. The original ones passed into the
Union before they east off their British colonial
dependence, and the new ones came into the u
Mon directly from condition Of dependence,
excepting Texas. And even Texas, in its tempo
rary independence, was never designated State.
The new ones only took the designation of STATE
ON coming into the Union while the name was
first adopted by the old ones in aud by tue Decla
ration ui independence. Therein the united col
onies were declared 10 be free and Independent
States, but even the object plainly was not 10
declare their independence TO one another of the
Union but strictly the contrary As their mutual
pledge and mutual action before, at the time and
Ii. tsltf
ing of faiths of the original thirteen States in the
articles of Confederation two wears later, that the
Union should be perpetual, is not cOnclusive hav-
ing never been states either in substance or IN
name, outside Of the Union, whence the magical
onnipOteucc of State Rights asserting a claim
of power to lawfully destroy the Union itself
Much is said about the sovereignty of the States,
but the word, even, is not IN the national Consti-
tuition nor. a. it is believed, in any Of the State
Constitutions. What is 4 sovereignty in the po-
/ litcal sense OF the termY Would il be far wrong
20 define il q political superior Tested by this,
none of our States, except Texas was a sovereign
Is, and even Texas gave mp the character ON com
ing into the Union, 10y which act she acknowledge
ed the Constitution OF the United States, made in
pursuance of States which have their status in the
Union, and thus have no other legal status. Ii
they break from this they only do so against
law and hv revolution. The Union aud not the
States separately procured their independence
and liberty 10y conquest or purchase The Union
gave each one of them whatever independence and
liberty it has The Union is older than any of
the States aud in fact has called them as States
originally. Some dependent colonies made the
Union, and in time the Union threw of their old
dependence for them and made them states such
a. they are Not one of them ever had State
Constitution independent of the Union. or
course it is not forgotten that all the States
forucd their Constitutions before they entered
the Union, nevertheless dependent upon and pre-
pairing TO como into the Union. Unquestionahy
the States have the powers and rights reserved TO
them in and by the national Constitution. But
among these surely are not included all c0nceiva-
BILE powers, however mischicvous or destructive
but Al most only such a. were known in the world
at the time. aud certainly power 10 destroy the
government itself had never been known IN gov
cnmcnta or as a merely administrative power.
This relative matter OF National Power and state
Rights rs a principle is mo- otherthan the principle
of generality and locality whatever concerns the
whole should be confined TO the whole govern
ment; while whatever only concerns the State
should be left exclusively 10 the State. This is
all there is OF original principle about IT, Whether
the National Constitution IN defining boundaries
between the two has applied the principle with
exact accuracy is not to bc questioned. We arc
all bound by that defining without question:.
What Is now combattrd is the position that -cccs-
sion is consistent with the Constitution Is lawful
aud peaceful.
Ills not coutcndcd that there is any express law
which lead. to unjust or absurd consequence
The nations purchased with money the countries
ont Of which several OF these state, were formed
Is it Just that they shall go of without leave or re-
fundingY The nation paid very large sums, be-
lieve, nearly SlOOOOO.uO0, 10 relieve Florida ot
the aboriginal tribes T. IL just that .he shall now
Doe of without consent without au, retliuf The
nation Is now in debt for the money applied for
the benefit of these so-callcd seeding States, in
common with the rest. Is il just either HAT crod-
itors shall go unpaid, or the remaining States pay
ior the whole? A part OF the present national
debt was contracted 90 pay old dchts for IcNas.
/, IL inst thnt Sine shall leave and pay mo- part of
this hrreclfY Again, ID one State may srccdc so
may another; aud when all have scccdcd. none is
ch 10 pay che debts Is this quite just Ia credit
orsg Did wa notify thru of this sage Wow of ours
when we borrowed their moncyg Ii wo now rcc-
ognize this doctrine Of allowing the secelcrs to go
ia peace. 1t Is difficult to see what wc can do ii
others choose TO 90, or 10 rNtor terms upon when
they will promise TO remain? The seeeders M
sist that our Constitution admits of accession
They have assumed to make national cohsutn-
ton Of their own in which, of necessity, they have
either discarded or retained, as they insist that it
exists I'm ours. II they have discarded IT they
thereby admit one principle that 10 ought not lo
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