Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-11-09
The Prophecled Dangers.

The Prophecied Dangers.
The wise and patriotic men who founded this
Government clearly foresaw the dangers to which
the people would be subject. and which. If not
resisted and overcome, would result in the sub
version Of the free institutions they had estab-
lished. The greatest danger apprshended by
them was the assumption of arbitrary power by
the Federal authorities. and an attempt to bring
all the States under a single government. IL
was hoped by them that the reserved powers Of
the States would be sufficient to defeat such
schemes, combined with the Jealous care with
which the people would ever guard the liberty
and rights Of the citizen. JoHs ADAMS seemed
TO have had prophetic view Of the very evils
which have fallen upon the country. He said:
NIP the shoots Of arbitrary power in the bud,
Is the only maxim which can ever preserve the
Liberties of any people When the people give
way, their deceivers, betrayers aud destroyers
press upon them so fast that there is no resisting
afterwards. The nature of the encroachment is
to grow every day more encroachng; like a can
Ger il eats faster and faster every hour"
The people failed to nip the shoots of arbi-
trary power in the bud" and what is the RESULT
Of the present Administration have daily been
more encroaching-like a cancer it has eaten
faster and faster every hour, until the country is
as much subject to the arbitrary will of one man
as is France subject to the will of its ruler.
LOUIS NAPOLEON never exercised more power, nor
has he ever had more at his control, than has
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. And the people have given
away to this exercise of arbitrary power. as
though their liberties were not worth preserving.
In 1922. JEFFERSON in letter to WILLIAM T.
Barry from Monticello, uttered the following
warning:
"If ever this country is brought under sin
gle government. il will he of the most ex-
tensive corruption, indifferent and inca pable of A
wholesome care over the whole This will not
be borne, and you will have to choose between
reformation and revolution"
And the very danger which JEFFERSON feared,
the attempt to bring the whole country under
single government, is upon US. The effort is
being made to obterate State lines, and through
the agency of the sword and purse make the
States mere provinces dependent upon the Fed
eral Government.
The object of the new national banking system
is to break down all Site banking institutions
and make the whole money power of the country
tributary to the central authorities and there
be more powerful engineto effect the purposes
of those who are conspiring to bring the nation
vnier single rule. We call attention to what
JEFFERSON predicted would follow the centraliza
ton of power In that event, be said, the Gov
eminent would be one of the most extensive cor
ruption Already we have an exhibition of this
evil. The corruptions of the party ia power are
without parallel in the history of the country
in comparison the populations of previous Ad-
ministrations sink into insigni6cance single
government, JEFFERSON said, would be 'indiffer-
ent and incapable of a wholesome care over the
whole" A country of such varied interests as
ours requires the wholesome care of State or
local governments to properly protect and de-
velop them. With few exceptions. the thirty
four States are each nations themselves, and how
can it be expected that 4 single government would
be capable of properly caring for them all? Our
system of State Governments united together
under one for purposes in which each have
common interest, leaving to the local sovereign
ties the sole Of their domestic concerns, is
the best which the wisdom of man ever devised
We believe with JEFFERsoS that reformation or
revolution viii follow the present condition of
affairs. Either we will go back to the old order
of things, or else a revolution vii take place,
the end and character of which no man can
foresee. The policy of the Administration
has forced these issues upon the country. The
longer the settlement Of them is deferred the
more fiery viii be the commissions through which
the country must pass. and il will be well if the
people will now heed the warnings and counses of
the two sages we have quoted. whose wisdom,
s4g4city and patriotism cannot be questioned.