Newbern weekly progress., 1862-08-30

Secret Sessions Ia Congress.

The Fundamental principle of all free repub-
lican government s--tha the people rule them
selves. They rule themselves through their
repreSen atIves. The acts OF the representa-
tive their acts, because he is amenable to
their control, and {: rries out their voHuons.
! Now, cut off the responsibility Of the repre-
sentative to the people; let them know moth
! ing Of his actlngs and dongS, as their repre-
! sentative, and of what avail is the representa-
| tive to the people? They can neither control
! him, nor rule themselves The representative
! becomes an irresponsible ruler of the people !;
or, what is more probable, the tool of the Exc
cutive, from whom all patronage flows, to
! carry out his despotic behests. For the peo-
| pie to rule themselves through their repre-
sentatives, it is clear they must know all his
transactions, and be able to support or to re-
| pudiate them, and TO continue on to change
| their agcnt--the representative
To bring t!:is matter nearer home to our
appreG enslon, let US turn 10 the election
which will shortly take place for representa-
tvcs to the Congress of the Confederate States.
What do the pc ,ple know of the actings and
dOIngs Of their representatives IN Congress-,
since the establishment of the Confederate
States government? Can they be called to
account for their stewardship, and be under
standingly approved of, or rejected? They
have covered themselves with the mantle of
secresy. They established rule amongst
themselves, lnaI II amy Oh tnelF members
should presume to communicate anything Of
his transactions to his constituents he should
be expelled from Congress-thus at single
blow, thruSting aside the people and annhlla-
ting all responsibility to them. The conScA
gucnce is, the people, at the approaching cleo
tlons, utterly IN the dark as to the transac-
tions Of their representatives, in a ST. uggle tor
their liberty, involving all that is dear to man.
Take iol instance, two cases, by way of illus
traton The Constitution of the Provisional
government prescribcs as follows: The
President shall, at stated times, receive for his
services, during the period of the Provisional
Government, a compensation at the rate Of
twenty-five thousand dollars per annum;
and he shall not recetre during that period
uny other. caoInaHent from this U0ntederdcy,
any of the States thereof" 1t Is
impossible to mistake these words of the
Constitution. Human language could not de-
wise a more distinct declaration that the PreSi-
dent should "recciye twenty-five thousand
dollars per annum" as his emolument, and
no hIrg more. Yet we turn to the acts of this
Congress, soon after the President was installed
in office. and we find the following resolution
- The Congress of the Confederate States of
America do resolve. that the committed to
range the government buildings be authorized
to lease q FURNISHED naasi0p for the residence
?f tie President q tie Comtederate tStateS,
Here is resolution to add to the "emolu-
menIS OF tne IleSluent q lurnlSneU mansion,
equal to sace5s W0usGmd d0iiGFs making his
einUluments thrty-two thousand dollars in
stead of twenty five thousand dollars. Do the
people know how their representatives voted
on this plain and palpable violation of the Con-
stitutlon for the benefit of the PRESIDENT ?
The other matter would notice is the Pres
idential vetos. It is understood that President
Davis vetoed more bills of the Provisional Con-
gress than all the Presidents of the United States,
from George Washington to Andrew Jackson in
Guided. Do the people know anyw here how their
representatives voted-ffst on these bills and,
SccORd the yetGs upon them Which of them
supported this outrageous abuse of the veto pow
" hat the measures which thus brought
the Executive and Legislative Departments of
the government into such repeated and angry
coils on, in the mi LIST Of struggle for b-
critics and Independence, when Cancellation and
fcrbearance are so much required Do the peo.
pie know DO they know what part their repre-
scItatives played in these grave transactions
Did they vote for tie biIS, and then stutfy
themselves, by uphoding the vetos of the Excc>
utive upon them! Or did they oppose the biHsi
aud consistently uphold the vetos of the Execu-
tive Who knows! The people called upon,
III the approaching elections, to vote for their
representatives,, in profound ignorance of their
course in all these matters-dn ignorance forced
"pon them by tctr repres. mtatieCs themselves. Can
any other empHcation be necessary to prove
the utter ncompatibility of secret sessions in
Congress, with the right of the people to rule
themselves !-Char!est0n Mercnry.