, 1861-07-25
PRESIDENTS MESSAGE,

/
The following abstract of the Presidents Mes.
sage is copied from the synopsis published in the
AIta California -
! The President commences by setting forth the
causes which impelled him TO convene All extra
session Of Congress, and reviews at some length
the action Of the seeding States. On assuming
the duties of thc Executive Office, he found the
functions Of the Government generally suspended
! BY the action Of the rebriOUS States.
The public treasnry had been robbed b. dis.
honest men, vested with the power; the public
arms had been sent South TO strengthen rebellion;
the navy scattered so as to be Of little or no Ser
vice; the forts ard arSenalS Of the South 5, lied
and fortified SO as to be almost impregnable.
| The day after the President entered upon the
duties Of his office, a letter was received from
Maj Anderson, commanding at Fort Sumter, in
forming the War Del artment that it would be
impossible to reinforce that fort with less than
10000 men. That number Of men could not
then be spared, and although the necessity was
deplored, the War Department decided to rein.
force Pickens and other Southern forts, but TO
evac,Iatc Sumter for the time being. This pur.
pose was about TO be carried out, and fleet was
on the way to Pickens, when information was
received that the garrison Of Sumpter was &c.
tually in a starving condition. Government de-
terInined to make one more effort 10 provision
! Sumitr; but before this could be DONE the fIlt
was attacked aid bUmbarded to its fail, without
even awaiting the arrival Oi the provisioning ex'
petition.
BY this act they forced the destructive issue
/ Of immediate dissolution blood, and this ssue
embraces more than the fate Of the United States
1t presents to the whole family Of man the ques
ton whether constitutional republic or demo-
crazy, u government Of the people by the same
Nas.,
tegrity agalIIst its domestic foes. II forces
US to ask, is there in all this inherent and fatal
weakness--must q government Of necessity be
too strong for the liberties Of our people, or too
weak to maintain its eXiStenceg The President
is Of opinion that the govc nment is strong enough
to maintain it~ own existence and put down re-
bellion Of any kind: he invoices the power OF the
government TOR this purpose, and by the great
uprising u! the people in RESPONSE to his call, he
thiUks the people viii aid lin in crushing the
rebellion.
The President reviews the course Of Virginia
in seeding, and prOnuuuces il without show VI
justice regard Tor the voice Of the people. lie
says the government is bound to recognize as
Virginia only that portion which has remained
loyal The doctrine Of armed neutrality, as at
tempted to be practiccd in Kentucky and other
BOrdur States, he charactrriZes as only another
species Of Resistance To the Federal Government.
IN regard t. the suspension Of the writ Of hd.
bens corpus, the President believes he has acted
in accordance with the provisions Of the COnsti.
tuition, and shall 81 continue tu act
lie takes up the doctrine Of States Rights, and
cri;iclSeS it sharply. The doctrine is dangerous
as II overrides and supplantS the power OF the
Federal Government The States are not sOver'
eisn, us they only become States On being ad
miItcd into the Union. They were hot sover, igI
aS Territories; consequently they have no Sov
erelgnty TO resume. ThOs: States that have Sc
cede,I, or suine Of them, were purchased by tn
Federal Government, and the debt is not yet al
All they are or possess, they owe to the Fedora
Government They cannot absolve their allie
g,ance without committing ihS dishonesty Of iesv
my their debts unpaid.
The President calls for four hundred thousand
men To aid in putting down rebellion, and ioui
hundred millions Of dollars. lie has no dOub
that the people will sustain him. and as far as il
him lies the power there shall be no cessation O
wariare-no compromise until rebellion is eGtec
tually killed. This, he THINKS, can be done a
no verv distant day.
In conclusion, he says il was with the icepes
regret that the Executive found the duty Of em
pIoying the war power IN defence Of the Govern
ment forced upon him he could but perform
, this duty or surrender the cxiSt"nce Of the Gov
ernmenL To compromise the public servic'
would, In this case, be crime; not that com
, promises are not proper, but that no popula
government can long survive when those VIII,
carry an election can only save the government
from immediate destruction by giving up tn,
min point upon which the people 6allOted IN I'll,
election.