Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1862-01-08

me me- s IN M.r, hos praoteed by the LDco,
measure equally s,b .ney should bring fa Govern
Carblins: SR, ifsucb to freedom inward IN
quiesced in, it is Of I;,tis Measure prevails al sor
issue Of the present great conIa what may be ~.
we shall in the end be in any ey. IN the batte.6eS
sent the sad spectacle Of State Il; slaves, and u
iioer'les IN q struggle to preserve ,GIns away Il,
imitation Of the contagious examn,a in anpv
VINO .nteT away theirs to give vipor =, y enels
'ol our saeugaton. protest apainst :. ~e'r fla
aouse, smount'ngTin effect to usurns, H. Us S
AS dangerous device by which . ss". OF
any TING Pefyert the government .,d . . ma
INTO ollgarchy. protest against !, ~ .rahsmute
religious freedom and domestic emo, ;" the name Il
OF that civil liberty which is our m 'hs naHl
oee9 the inheritance of our ancestors fns and ha
ared years protest against it as WI mo e,shs hun
tIe weapon OF defence calculated on,v y. and f
tt'e enemy, weaken ourselves, and to encourage
.a.lon 'nto l'dlcuie and disrespect At bur ur legs
abroad, and degrade our citizens in ,ha io'ne and
teem-ss an oiheIous intermeddlino with ~. T"h
vince OF Inc congress of the Confederate sne pig
anoei upon the people We represent vbose .,
patience, perseverance, self dena, and "OOt
~ 1hs contest deserve all praise Wbera, U'a W
ths 49,. ~ sucn measure and its appearance :"
VIZ o'a'u,e oook' IN the present times. and nv
n'ose ID Inc future, in all historical nternrs,a,;e
mus. oe construed to imply an imputa,ion Of ~;ds
;p:su u'Salec,oh. protest against it. finally ss =.
modef-no other State Of the South has IT'S
such il--.t'ousu m several Of them
"ot only rIfe, but treason stalks ahroas Aee'on
're committee plants itself on nrscod ~ .nS
an ae' oi the GENERAL Assembly Of III eS IN
az .'e material parts Of this ordinance sra -.
non tnat ACT. Precedents in the peadnas oSp'ea
"a" are sa'a 10 6e dangerous things if one doos se
N"o" no" 10 Dill up the blanks and st,tut oUss ho
.eeees are equally faliible and deceptiye 40 p,e
otpoiucai action, if we shut our ewes to ~ a'IeS
eu.ls ences ana surroundings of histor;o,I c' vi
which distinguish former times from onu 'acs
me inquire OF the Committee, whose cb.;r wv Lei
nigh judicial station, whether this ordna "olas
not contrayene the Bill of Rights and aoes
III the particulars have enumerated ami r :. Ta
"hetaer Similar act passed in l777. bv tb, cos
era' assembly did not equally contraycne i, v al
~nen all aet OF the General Assembly does com" Nv
CONNECT with the Constitution which is to ovo ..'
iie - ooIsea 10 answer. the act of Assembly of
o ~. Dut II was not so understood in ~
.ne op,.''o' sns to have prevailed then, and G,r
years aterwards, that the General AsssnhI, anu Tut
oml' ponent as the British Parliament and rt. a
ifo6, the courts of justice decided an .c, ~, H.,
Legislature to be Unconstitutional !. VI Tue
great shock in the minds of high, integen, man
ih's ast.of l777, which undertook to l,anisb fre.
men "hs were inhabitants of the State at the ada,
uon OF ne Constitution, OF to deprive them Of H..
right Oh sunage II they refused to take an oath ot
aeglaMe, was clearly unconstitutional, not only nj
the pol MS already specified but in assuming to talk
away lht right Of suffrage in the face of the nrov
sion OF We Constitution declaring that all frecnep1
Il years OF age, who have been inhabitants a Cor
tam LINE, and paid public taxes, shall exercise il
But, waving the Constitutional question. the st.
uation OF our ancestors in l776-7 differed essen.
tally from ours at this time, in MANY particulars IA
their Disadvantage and in the poverty of their "a.
sources and rewards of their experiment it shona
not sFprize us that they laid hold of test oath ~.
weapon with which bigotry and arbitrary power
had sought to fortfy themselves in Europe houinr
they c,uld render it useful in the defence of ire,'
dom here. They may possibly have thought that
as allegiance under monarchy is considered due to
the person Of the sovereign it might still linger in
the breasts of sume and that this violent remedy
snouiu pc resorted to for its expulsion but h.
fore We are called on to follow this as aprcceden
should be shown from subsequent history that it
was of some avail in the contest. 1t was provided
in the act that the name of every person taking
should he subscribed In a book, to be deposited
the office of the Clerk of the County Court, YIN
has ever seen sucha book The honorable gent ems
from Alecklenburg, Mr.. Osborne, who he's just Ike
his sea-, has made considerable researches H. THE
pubcpapers of his county, which ID one of fstori.
cal reuown has he ever found such d book . fave
you, Sir or any other gentleman here Ore Of I've
conclusions is certain Either that there vas NJ
general attempt to exact such an osth which i the
more probable; or, that if exacted It Rae not the
least effect For when the British inyadedthe State
in l780-Sl, the Tories rose in those sedtioa Hncre
they were known to be in thefoutsetlof the var,
and in no ather The act was, tberefor&..s j a.
terized byt the gentleman from IN, ncI monS
Leake, o,Ttum ytalmSa prodncihe no eaieae;ous T 4
suit W ~ the men of l776 ~; there was to,
change oiigovernmsnl and, of tbs Standardization
government With them "old things ihad base
away and all thags had become new.'' There va
no geIeral cover i aent on which to ,fely for ger
era aele"eS anu .r,;css The States ere unite,
North Carolina State ,,s,n, os,at' ~, and
with no laws or officers to ,drn.tsr u.s.; u.s. 'ormeu
what they enacted and IN no ,,.oss,.sa &c
the emergency, was Aleif ;oie re,ishre IN ronor.i
and domestic concerns. t.av baAf to rroES;dn Co.
trcssoss .scdition and every sr;me q; ,bs o,and,~
sHdAt is in q statute concfninr ,r.ason th., ,ha
BIS ~ taolsi of ;his ordnance
Now, Sir, it 50 much weight is due to precedent
why not enact the hols statute, that part which
relates to rssoh as well ~ tnisprison of treason
and test oaths? That is the only part of the statute
that we have heard of being put into execution
The Tory Colonel Bryan, was tried for treason and
l presume, under this statute But
ne had trial by due course of law. He was not
called on to furnish evidence against himself by
t. st oath, and he was defended by Davie, who had
slaughtered large part of his regiment in battle,
but who, after tde example Of John Adams, in de-
tending the British soldiers who fred on the multi
tude-in the streets of Boston, equally firm IN
asserting all his rights Of defence, as criminal.
"a isprision Of trca-
rcement of test
rs? The Revo-
IS under wholly
E.tb did ir,