The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1861-03-09

PRESIDENT LINCOLN.

YOU to address you briefly, and to take III
your presence the oath prescribed by the
Constitution of the United States, to be
taken by the President before he enters
on the execution of the duties of his
Office.
do not consider it necessary, at pre-.
sent, for me TO discuss those matters of
administration about which there is no
special anxiety or excitement Apprehen-
sion seems to exist among the people OF the
Southern States, that by the accession of q
Republican administration their property
and their pc. ce and personal security are
to be endangered. There has neTer been
any reasonable cause for such apprehen-
sion. Indeed the most ample evidence to
the contrary has all toe while existed, and
been open to their inspection. 1t is found
III nearly all the published speeches Of
him who HOW addresses you. l do but
quote from one OF those speeches when
declare that | have no purpose, directly or
indirectly, TO interfere with the Institution
of slavery III the States where il exists
believe have no lawful right to do so, and
should have no inclination to do So
Those who nominated and elected me did
so with the fall knowledge thst ! bad
made this and many similar declarations,
and had never recalled them; and, more
than this, they placed in TIE platform, for
my acceptance law to themselves and
to me the clear and emphatic resolution
which now read:
Rcsolccd, That the maintenance invio-
late OF the rights OF the States and espe-
ciaily the rights OF each State to order and
control It's own domestic institutions &C.
cording to its own judgment exclusively is
essential to that balance OF power on which
the perfection and endurance Of cur poll
teal fabric depend, and we deDouuce the
lawless invasion by an armed force Of the
sol! OF any State or territory, no matter on
what prcteXt, As among the cravcst crimes.
| now reitcrdte these sentiments, and do
Ing 30, only press upon the public atten-
ton the most conducive evidence OF which
the case Is susceptible, that the property,
peace and security of no section are to be
in any wise endangered By the now in
coming administration.
| add, too, that all the protection which
consistently, with the Constitution and the
laws can bc gwen, viii be cheer!ully given
10 all the States when lawfully demanded,
for whatever cause, as cheeriEliy to one
section as TO another. There j. much con-
troverzy about the delivering of :u.i;ives
from service or labor The clause | now
read IS Is plainly written in the C0nstitu-
ton a. any other OF Is provisions. no
person held TO sery lee or labor in one State
under the Laws thereof, escaping into auo-
Their, shall, in Consequence Of any law or
regulation therein, be DISCHARGED from
such service on labor, but shall be deliver
ed Up on claim Of the party to whom such
service or labor mas be due
II was intended by those who made it
for the retaining Of what We call fugitive
slaves, and the intention of the ia1gg.ycr is
the law. All members of Congress swear
their support 10 the whole Constitution,
to this provision a. much - To any other.
To the proposition then that slaves whose
cases come within the terms of this clause
shall be delivered up, their oaths are
unanimous. Now, il they would make the
effort III good temper, could ghey not, with
nearly equal uuauTrnity. frame and pass a
l.w by means Of which TO keep good that
unanimous oath? There j. some difference
OF opinion whether iuis clause should lie
enforced by natiora. or Stat. authority
bat surely that diiiyr, nee Il not very ma
,er,ai one. Ii the slave Is - be -ulrenIer-
ed, it can be OF little Consequence to him
or 10 others by which authority ii j. done
And should any one, IN any case. be con
tent that his cath shall be Uakept. or a
merely unssbs;anti2l controversy a. to how
it -ha. De kept. A-aiu, IL law upon his
subject ought not All the safeguards OF
l!Je,:y known IN civilized and human iu-
ri,Drlidcnce to bs Introduced, 50 thai a
freeman may not ne in any case surIen dcr-
el - Slave. and nj lat II not he we'll AZ
the same ...He 10 pros!o~ BY la" Tor the
enforcement o. that clause - tns constr
tuition which guarantees that the citiie rs
Of each STATE shall BE- entitled 10 d.! the
pro?is.oHs and iinl..n:i:es Of citizens =!
the several States?
| take the oath today with no menta.
reservations AID with 10 purpose to cor.
sirue the Constitution or laws by any hy-
poJIii.cal rules, a.i while do not choose
now 10 specify particular acts Of Congress
~ proper 10 be enforced, ! do suggest that
it viii be much - Ter fJg all both in Official
and private stations to conform to aud
abide by all those scls which stand unre
pealcd, than - violate any of them, trust
ing 10 fad IMMUNITY in having them held
70 be unconstitutional.
It Is - year. since the first Inauguration
OF President under our national Cousti,u-
ton. During that Period, fifteen different
and greatly o'lst!uEu .shed citizens have in
succession administered the executive
branch o. the Government: they have con
iIetei j.; through many pcrils. AID gene
rally wi!G great success. Yet with all this
scope .Og precedent, ! now enter upon the
same task for tn bret coHsIi utiouJl term
oi four !eGTs, under ETea- and peculiar diff
fieGity- Disruption OF the Federal Union,
heretofore only meCaceu, Is now form.da-
biy attempted. / hold that. in con;empla-
ton Of universal law and 0! the Constitu-
ton, the Union Of these States is perpetual
the Fundamental law OF all national GOV
ernments it is safe to assert that govern
meut proper never had provisions in its
organic Law for It's own termination. Con
tinue to execute ali the express provisions
of our national Constitution, and the Union
viii endure forever it being impossible To
destroy It, except by some action not pro-
vided for in the instrument itself Again,
ii the United States DO not a government
proper, but an association OF States. in the
nature Of contract merely, can it, AS a con-
tract, be peaceabiy unmade by less than
all the parties who made it? One party 10
a contract may break It, so to speak, but
does it not require all to lawfully rescind
it? Descending from these general prin-
ciples, we find the PROF osition, that in
legal contemplation the Union is perpetual,
confirmed by the history of the Union
itself The Union is much older than the
Constitutions; il was formed in fact bv the
articles OF association in l11t 1t was ma
tUred and continued by the Declaration
Of Independence in 1916 1t was farther
matured, and the faith Of all the then thir-
teen States expressly plighted and engaged,
that II should be perpetual 10y the articles
OF confederation in IT'S: and finally, in
1881, one Of the declared objects for or
daining and establishing the Constitution
was to lorna more perfect Union If Sc
cession by one or by part only Of tie
States be lawfully possible, the Union is
less than before the Constitution, having
lost the vital element OF perpetuity Ii
follows from these views that no State up
on its own mere motion can lawfully Get