North Branch democrat. [volume] (Tunkhannock, Pa.) 1854-1867, 1863-02-25
A TRAITOR CONGRESS AND A TRAI-
TOR PRESIDENT.

tration party in Congress, in a recent speech
before that body, on the establishment of
new State within the territory of Virginia,
used the following language:
l say, then, that we may admit West
Virginia as new State, not by rirtue Of any
provision Of the Constitution, but under abso-
lutte power which the laws Of war give US in
the circumstances in which we are placed.
shall vote for this bill upon that theory, and
upon that alone for loHl not Stultity myself
by supposing that aUe hare any ararr ant IN
the Constitution for this proceeding.
This talk Of restoring the Union as it qvas
under the Constitution as IL is, is one of the
a6surdities aoItich hare repeated, until
hare become about sick of 1T. This Union
can never be restored as it was. There are
many things which render such an event i'm.
possible. This Union shall neuer quih ma
consent be restored ata,der The Constitution as
At is, a1ith slurerg to be protected by it,"
No one doubts that this is the sentiment
and the programme of the administration.
We are told, 'this Union shall nerer be re-
stored under the Constitution as it is" We
have not for long time doubted that such is
the determination Of Mr.. Lincoln and the
whole party in power. But had they announ-
ced their real designs in the beginning, they
could have never raised a respectable army
for such purpose.-Mr. Lincoln has no right
to call soldiers into the field for such an OBJ
jcct. And unless he backs squarely down
from this unconstitutional use Of the army,
where will heiget another soldiers Will the
States of New Jersey and New York permit
any men to be drafted from the militia for
an object which is confessed violation of the
Constitution and the laws? The objects for
which the State militia may be called into the
service of the Federal Government, are ex-
pressly named and carefully limited by the
! Constitution. If the President attempts to
use the mill tia for unconstitutional purposes
it is clearly the duty Of the States to recall
their troops from the field, and to refuse to
allow any further drafting, until the admins
tration returns to the Constitution and the
laws. 1t is within the power of State
| Executives and Legislatures to force usurp-
ing President to abandon such career Of
crime, by Withholding and Withdrawing the
State troops. 4 Governor who should allow
the citizens of his State to be dragged into
the army for the avowed purpose of Destroy
,ng the Union as IL uras, and The Constitu-
ton as it rs, would be snre in the end, to re
ceive the exccration and curses of the people,
and would finally fall into the same hated
| page Of history with the obscene joker, who
thus abuses the confidence and the patriotism
Of loyal people. The Guty Of the Governor
is plain. They are to promptly respect all
constitutional requirements of the Fedora
administration But they are not to obey
an unlawful demand. Suppose the President
should issue an order for drafting the troops
of New Jersey, for the avowed purpose of
aboliShing the marriage laws in the State OF
Pennsylvania. Would such an order be obey
ed by the State of New Jersey? No, it
would be resisted even to the point of the
bayo net, if it came to that. But we are told
there is rebellion against the laws of the Un
ion but it is not lawful to call them out to
destroy the Union. But we have satisfied
ourselves that we can not enforce the laws OF
the Union. And SO you have made up your
| minds to destroy the Union! Because you
find you are not strong enough to administer
all the laws of the onstitution, you have de-
termined to destroy that sacred instrument
altogether Because some deluded men say
we wish no longer to live within theatem-
pie of the Union, you have set yourselves to
work to pull the whole temple down SO that ,
nobody shall ever live in it any moro That
is your position, o ye Catalnes of Congress
Shall we send our sons to fight to destroy
| the Union and the Constitution, because some
have proclaimed that they are tired of living
under their protection No, we will not.
There must be another kind of legislation in
Congress-another kind of proclamation from
the hand of our w-defying and grammar
despising President before States which are
truly loyal to the Government of our fathers
will send more troops into the field. We
have been told by the apologists for Mr.. Lin
coln that the radical, traitor Governors have
coerced the President to do wrong. Then let
the conservative, loyal Governors coerce him
back again to do right. If the radical tra-
tors would not suffer State troops to move
forward until the President came out with a
series of unconstitutional proclanatons, let
the cons ervative patriots withhold their for
ces until those unconstitutional. schemes are
abandoned. If, as we have been told, this
wretched man, the President has been forced
to proclaim against the Constitution, let him,
by all means, be forced to re-procaim in its
favor IF rascals have compelled him to do
wrong let honest men compel him to do
right. If the President is an honest man, he
will rejoice to be forced out of the clutches of