Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1861-07-13
Soon after the first call for militia, it was |

drrsst bDu oetalu, WInout resort 10 tue orui'
nary processes and forms Of law, such
individuals as be might deem dangerous to
the public safety. This authority has pur- !
posely been exercises but very sparipgiy, |
Nevertheless, the legality and proprety Of
what has been done under it are questioned J
and the attention Of the country has been |
called to the proposition that one who is
sworn to take care that the laws be faithfully
executed should not himself violate them.
OF course some consideration was given to
the questions Of power and proprety, before
ths matter was octed on.
The whole of the laws which we're required
to be faithfully executed we're being resisted.
aud failing Of execution in nearly one.third of
the States. Must they be allowed to finally
tnil Of execution, even had it been perfectly
clear that, by the use OF the means necessary
to their execution, some single law, made in
such extreme tenderness Of the citizens liber.
ty that, practically, it relieves more Of the
guilty than of the innocent, should, to o very
limited extent, be violated.
To state the question more directly, are all
the laws bat one to go uuexecuted, and the
Govern ment itself 60 to pieces lest that one
be violated? Even in such case, would not
the official oath be broken if the Government
should be ovefthrowD, when it was believed
disregarding the single Law would tend to
preserve it But it was not believed that
this question was presented. 1t was not
believed that any law was violated. The
provision of the Constitution that the privi.
lege of the writ OF habeas corpus shall not be
! uspended unless when, in case of rebellion
or invasion, the public safety may require it,
is equivalent to o provision that such priv.
lege may be suspended when, in cases OF
! rebellion or invasion, the public safety does
require it. 1t was decided that we have
case Of rebellion, and that the public safety
does require the qualified suspension of the
privilege of the writ which was authorized TO
be made.
Now it is insisted that Congress and not
the Executive is vested with this power
But the Constitution itself is silent as 10
which or TO who is to exercise the power, end
as the provision was plainly made for q dan.
gerous emergency, it cannot be believed that
the trainers Of the instrument intended that
10 every case the danger should run its
course.
Congress could be called together, the
very assembling of which nj ght be prevented,
as was intended 10 this case by the rebellion.
No more extended argument is now offered,
as CD opinion at some length will probably
be presented by the Attorney General.
Whether there shall be any legislation upon
the subject, and it any, what it is. submitted
entirely to the better judgment of Congress.
The forbearance Of this Government had
been so extraordinary and so long continued
as to lead some foreign nations to shape
their action as if they supposed the early
destruction of our National Union was prob
able. While this, on discovery, gave the
Executive some concern, he is now happy tC
say that the sovereignty aud rights Of the
United States are nov everywhere principally
7 respected by foreign Powers and a genera
f sympathy with the country is manifested
, through ghout the world.
? The reports of the Secretaries Of th,
, Treasury, War, and Navy, will give the infor
nation in detail deemed necessary and con
venient for your deliberation and action
, while the Executive and all the department.
. will stand ready to supply omissions, or Il
, communicate new facts considered importan
a for you to know.
. 1t is now recommended that you give tn
I legal means for making this contest o shor
: and decisive one that you place at tb
y control Of the Government for the work, q
a least 100000 men and S400,000000. Tha
n number of men is about one tenth of those c
@ proper sges within the regions where appal
n emily oil are willing to engage, and the sur
|. is less than twenty third part o! the none
q devote the whole.
y A debt of S6CO, ,000,O 900 now is less sui
Y per head than was the debt of our own Re,
. olution, when we came ont of that struggle
d and the money value in the country no,
= bears even a greater proportion to what
Il was then than does the population. Surel
r. each man has as strong motive now
a preserve our liberties as each had then t
v establish them.
h a right result nt this time will be wor,
II more to the world than ten times the me
? and ten times the money. The evidenC
!. reaching us from the country leaves no don't
\. that the material for the work is abundan
and that it needs only the hand OF legislatio
d TO give it legal sanction, and the hand of Il
b. Executive to give it practical shape al
70 efficiency. One of the greatest perplexiti,
"a OF the Government is to avoid receivin
i. troops faster than providing for them. ln
n word. the people will save the Government
ID the Government itself will do its part on
indfierenty we'll.
,e IL might seem, at irst thought, to be
AZ little differences whether the present NOV
n. ment at the South be called secession
r. rebellion. The movers, however, we'll unde
1e stand the difference. AT the beginning tb'
n. knew they could never raise their treason
IT any respectable magnitue by any name whiC
III IMPLIES violation Of law. They knew the
te people possessed 0s much Of moral sense,
II much OF devotion to law and order, and
IN much pride in, aud reverence for, the histo
m ard GoverIment OF their common country
40 any other civilized and patriotic peopl
IA They knew they could make no sdvauceDe
N directly in the teeth of these strong al
al noble sentiments. Accordingly they col
~ menced by an insidious debauchiug Of 4