Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1861-03-28

VIII. now 6t~hS fGIeTatihp r
the Constitution which has been ado1,ss N'
the Confederate States, South. Irega,d ,.."?
considerable improvement upon the p,,s,'
Federal Constitution but placed As III, c.M'
mittee now is, there would be an i1coucrns.
by voting for that as a whole, which ,kn;nt,1!!
is possible for US to avoid. | would be-
glad to have an opportunity to vote for ,b.a!!!
interpretations in the present Federal cons
ton, by the Confederate States. if thew WV
proposed to the Northern States As sr.s
ments. But | am so circumstance no.
the action Of my friend from Wetzel w
| HALL that | am called upon TO vote io,M%
preamble presented by the Committee On ~ "s
eeral Relations, which-they will pardoo
for saying sol think contains herss;ts ~; .s
can never command my Vote, and tia, e.; c~a
pled with a Constitution that is entue,v -.
| fined to seven States, so declared on l.; t,"'
IL could not, therefore, be presented by y.
Convention Of Virginia, as al amendu.sm@.
amendments, to be adopted by tie NORTH.
| States. | could not, | beg 20 say, endorse +;
first resolution of the Committee on Prl,,
Relations, which is in these words, and VIII.
NV friend has tackled on to this Coas,,u,,.
of the Confedcrated States. The frs; r.,,.r
ton is
but the States which composed the Cr,.i
; States Of America, when the Federal CONSTR.
ton was formed, were independent s~ovc-r;.,.
ties: and in adopting that instrument, the rr.
| pie of each State agreed to associate with II.
people of the other States, upon a ioo,i1, ~
exact equality"
The CuAlRuAX.-The Chair wou,u STATE :,
tn. gentleman that the motion is 10 s,...e or,
all except.,he preamble, and substitute Il:
| Constitution il its ulace. The COMMITTEE VI
still have to pass upon the preamble.
Mr.. FIsuER.-I ain very much obliged - lie
! Chair. for | shall war against the s~en,'laea..
expressed in that as a heresy, if my friends CT
the Committee on Federal Relations will take
no offence at the expression. | would De ve,v
glad if the Committee will allow the gen:...
mar FROM Wetzel, (Mr. HALL until ~to'aor;Qs
morning to select out from the document lhe.
provisions which are not to be found IN lie
present Federal Constitution, SO that he u.ay
offer them in the morning as q substitute 10:
the report OF the committee OF twenty ore.
think this is just to that gentleman, and Ger.
tainly lust to those who appreciate as 10 the
amendments which have been made by the
Confederate States to the present Constitution
If the United States. take 1t that this lnay
he allowed, because | believe, and bc.!rre sin.
cerely, that if Virginia is to 10 anything which
is to bring about a reconstruction OF the dis.
rup,ed UHion, it can only be by asking such
amendments to the present Federal Coas;ilu.
ton as experience has taughtth gentlemen Of
the South are absolutely cSSentia. for
their own government And, sir, Wills, |
an, regarded ~ extreme and perhaps ultra
# | nm to vote for any proposition IL
this body, it is with the sincere dvsi':
on INV part-and this is the great object Of Tie
commission that bear-that 1t VIII bring
about q reconstruction OF the old tetcEs..
Union. should regard myselfas false to my con.
st!tueuts, false to those purposes which or:A:
10 animate and control our conduct on Tie Pc.
sent occu.ion, If I were not to wish ior those
amendments 10 the Constitution which s!la.,
hiring back those Confedcratcd States into
union with ourselves, ut leas,-iI ! cannot &c.
them into union with the Northern STATES.
Our purpose and object being to restore the
Union as it was-that is the purpose | have no
doubt ola majority Of gentlemen who are eni.
tied to the honor Of seats upon this tocc-i:
becomes my duty to vote for a demand Of those
guarantees which shall accomplish the object,
not in part, but in the whole; not tina. We cn
get guarantees which may fyEirginia alone,
but such rs will satisfy Kentucky, or Missouri,
CT Maryland, or North Carolina, Or Tennessee,
that State upon which so high an cuIosy ha:
been pronounced upon this floor.
|, sir, want, il VIC are TO demand GUARANTEES.
tina, they shall bring back in connection with
Virginia the Cotton States Of the South and,
sir, fpr one, I will never be satisfied with any
guarantees that will not bring US ii union 10.
gethcr.
We cannot afford, Mr.. Chairman, to have :
Southern Confederacy in the South, and a
Northern Confederacy in the North. We
cannot affol d to be separated from the COME
dcrated States OF the South. We cannot, il
We would, consent to connect ourselves per
nlanently, or to adhere permanently TO nine
teen ~freesoil States when there will be seven.
teen slaveholding States. The cost would Dc
too great for Virginia TO bear; it is more tia.
her people could bear. ! hope, animated b!
the principles ard sentiments enunciatcd to.
day by the distinguished gentleman from
Montgomery, (Mr. PRESToS,) VI shall coin.
mand such guarantees rs ought to be suiA.
cient TO bring into the Union again the Con.
federated States Of the South. Do not let US
be guilty Of the mockery Of asking what will
not restore the Union. The object Of ths,
gentleman, and most Of the gentlemen who
have spoken upon this floor, has been to re.
store the Union-to restore the Southern
States. 1t may DO that there are some on thi:
floor like Horace Greeley, Wendell Phillips,
who rejoice that thee otton States are ~sloughei
off from the other sl1veholding States OF the
South; but | know no such gentleman upon
this floor, and believing and hoping that there
are none such here, | ask that every gentle.
man in this body will vote for making such
demands as will restore these States to us, as
brothers and sisters, Homogeneous in feeling,
in interest, and whose honor, like our own, is
to be protected and defended against the en.
~croachments of Northern power.
owe no allegiance to the Federal Govern.
ment. hear my friends talk about allegiance
TO the Federal Government. Who ever heard
before that II sovereign owes allegiance to 8
SUBJECT l owe no allegiance to the Federal
Government. owe obedience to the Federal
Authority, which is con>onant with the Con.
stItution Of the United States, because my owl
mother, Virginia, has taught me to yield ODE.
d'ence to the constitutional authority 10 tue
land. ] never have yielded to the idea, aril
hope gentlemen don't mean what they say
when they talk about our owing allegiance 10
any government We owe no allegiance to
any government, especially the Federal Coz.
eminent, which is but the common agen. Ct
tho States, and is not the master Of the sove.
reign States Of this Confedcracy. Nv idea il
that, in the language Of this report which | in.
tend to present, the States, under the article:
OF confederation, were sovereign and indepea.
dent, and | maintain the doctrine that, Wills;
they delegated the exercise of certain powers
to The Federal Government as the COMMON
agent of all the States, they never SURRENDERED
one "ta OF sovereignty in doing so; that to.
day, as on the first day of September, Iii,
each State is sovereign ard independent, but
that every one Of It's citizens owes obedience
to the Constitution Of the United States, 81
the Jaws, and to the treaties made in pursuance
OF 1t, because his own sovereignty rrqai:.s
'irh to render and yield that obedience.
But my object is to ashland As I am not
nj I'll IN m 'li.r ,x-;th