Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1863-08-12
GOVERNMENT BY CONSPIRACY.


Conspiracy implies secresy on the part OF
the conspirators, and noninformation on
the part Of the people conspired against.
lniraction of the laws on one side, and
blindness and suffering on the other
No man needs proof of this. lie has but
to cast his eyes backw ards over the legis>
lative and executive history of the last
year, to see il all. There i: stands, as aw-
fully visible as the skulls in the temple Of
death. Now and then member of Cons
gress has been awakened to vague half
sense of the dangers that threaten us,
and has ventured to introduce resolu /,
tion calling upon the President for infor.
nation, but his vigilance only brought
down misses upon his own head, without
opening the sealed chambers OF executive
doings, One man, for introducing a reso.
luton asking for information from the
President on a point of vital importance
to the very life of our nation, was de.
nounced as Z" q traitor" "a secessioDists," /"
"a sympathizer with jeff Davis" and he
narrowly escaped being expelled from
congress. Against the only two or three
members who had the virtue and the
courage TO attempt to discuss the doings
Of the administration, schemes and
threats OF expulsion were instantly set on
foot. In one instance, over $40 600 OF the
public funds were expended in carrying
on a gigantic conspiracy to eXpel a repre-.
sentative for daring to review the acts of
the administration on the floor of Cons
gress. A wretch who it was afterwards
proved, had served out term in the Sing
Sing State Prison, was found to invent a
tal m al, nd
then men and papers and documents we're
sent all over the country, for the purpose
of making out q case > but in the mean
time, the conspiracy became so transpa,
rent TO the public, that the conspirators
were forced to abandon their designs. -
The party accused, after he had been held
10 to to the world as "a trnitorn and
after they had caused it to be published
in hundred newspapers that they had
positive proofs Of his guilt" demanded,
in vain, q report on his case. At almost
any time Of the session of the last Com
gress, Macheth's address 70 the witches
would have been appropriate:
How now, yc secret, black, and midnight hags
What is't ye do z"
And the congressional conspirators
might have truly answered, with the
witches:
"A deed without name -
For, never before were such scenes enact
ed in an American Congress. Every
member who did not permit himself to be
crushed down into an accomplishing, si>
lent tool Of the abolition conspiracy, was
denounced as traitor and a rebel."-
An abolition colonel threatened to "cut
the heart OUT Of a congressman, while he
was standing on the steps of the capitol,
because he overheard him, in private con.
versation, dissent from the unconstitutiona
deeds OF the conspirators. And almost
every Republican newspaper in The land
applauded these threats of assassination
Of one of the peoples representatives
Not only were men denounced as "trsi
tors" for Offering plea for the Corsttu>
tiOn, but they were to have their hearts /
Gu. out" if they dared to call in question |
the high-han6ed proceedings of the Cat.
alines. When, at last, resolution was
engineered through the House of Repre-
sentatives to ask the President for certain !
information touching affairs, he refused |,
10 give it, and the Republicans press every
where came down upon the "impudence"
Of such an inquiry. Not only was debate
struck down in Congress, but democratic
ne wspapers were thrown out OF the mails,
or destroyed by the order of L. S. Mar
shals, and men and women were every.
where dragged off to military bastiles for
daring to call in question the uncoustitu.
tional deeds of Congress and the Execu.
tive. The silerce that sat in the Valley
Of Graves, was forced upon the lips OF
men. The administration must not be
spoken Of save in unreasoning praise
hardly looked at, without u threat of
dungeons being hurled at the head of the
offender
To q man of sense there is needed no
other proof than this malignant secrcsy
which the administration determined
should cover up its acts, that a deep laid
conspiracy was going on against our Con-
stitution and laws against liberty
against all kinds of liberty, but negro lb>
eriy. That is the great conspiracy. The
voices oe white men must Je dumb that
the mouth.peces OF the negroes may
be heard. All who are not for lIberating
the negroes must be restrained of their
liberty. That is the cons piracy. Since
Mr.. Lincoln's advent, the country has
been goverened by conspiracy. 1t has
been pronounced treason for a Judge to is
sue the writ of haJcas corpus. as by solemn
oath be is bound 10 do. in one of the
Marcus Ward campaign songs, lately sung
in New Jersey, are these lines:
=" No sympathetic rebel crew must man our ship of
State
Nor accursod treason mOngers, who of habeas
corpus prate"
This is the song of the conspirators. All
who demand that constitutional and stat
ute laws shall be respected, are "aceursed
treason mongers" All who claim liberty
for the white man, are sympathetic
rebel crew." Wherever they hear a man
speaking for the Constitution as il u.s. and the
Union as il ioas, they cry out at him, "reb-
el W "traitor !" sympatbizer with jeff
Davis !" They pay an undeserved compli.
ment 10 JEFF Davis, whose acts have shown
that he is almost as bad an enemy to the
Constitution as they are themselves A
worse enemy be cannot be. Indeed, jeff
Davis was friend to the Constitution
long after they had oonspired to overthrow
Raa1 he n,.aaahar -, ,I r.