The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1864-01-16

the least guilty, should be pardoned. An
inspection Of the exceptions from pardon,
made BY the President, will show be has
made this distinction.
But, in extending pardon to the mass,
it is inst and proper that reasonable terms
and conditions should be made.
The terms and conditions proposed by
the President are, that the guilty party
shall swear LIST, "That he will faithfully
support, protect and defend the Censti-
tuition Of the United States, and the
union of the States hereunder" cd,
That he will "abide by and faithfully sup
port all acts Of Congress passed during
the existing rebellion, with reference to
slaves, so long and so far as not repealed,
modified or held void by Congress or By
decision of the Supreme Court" And
Sd, That he will abide by and faithfully
support all proclamations of the Presi-
dent, made during the existing rebellion,
having reference to slaves, 50 long and SO
far as not modified or declared void by
decision of the Supreme Court.
Are these terms and conditions reason
able No possible objection can be ia.
ken to the first requirement-that these
men shall support the Constitution and
the Union. The second and third re-
quirements are. that these men shall abide
by the laws of Congress and the Proc
lamations OF the President concerning
slaves, until these laws shall be changed
| by Congress, or those laws or the Presi-
dents proclamations, be decided void by
the Supreme Court. This is just what it
is the duty Of every loyal citizen to do
to abide BY and support the law until
changed by the lawmaking power, or de-
ciared void by the Courts.
| 1t may be said that the proclamations
of the President are not laws that be
had not the constitutional power to issue
such proclamations But the President
believes he had the constitutional power
TO do so, and has so done, and he only
proposes that these acts shall stand In law
'iso long and SO far az not modified or
declared void by decision of the Supreme
Court" In imposing these terms and
conditions on those in rebellion against
our Government, who may desire to lay
down their arms, the President is but re-
curing ofthem the performance Of du-
| ty required Of all men who have remain
ed loyal.
/ Upon accepting these terms and condi-
tons, the men now guilty of treason and
liable 10 punishment as criminals, are at
once pardoned- are restored to all their
rights as citizens and again permitted to
lake part In administering our Govern
lnent, and, at the same time, are restored
to all their rights OF property, except as
to slaves and where the rights Of third
parties have interviewed. These excep-
tons are inevitable. If the acts of Con-
gress and the proclamations OF the Presi-
dent concerning slaves are constitutional,
then, SO far as these acts and proclama-
tions reach, the slaves have become free,
and cannot be restored to their former
masters. Where property has been dis
posed OF to third parties. under the Con-
fsca.ion act it cannot be restored. What.
ever has been lost to these men has been
lost by reason OF their own crimes; what.
ever yet remains will be restored il they
viii GgdcE 10 DG
Aside from The consideration. that II
the laws OF Of Congress and the proclama.
tons of the President concerning slaves
are valid as Law, those who have been
freed thereby cannot again be enslaved-
aside from the consideration that, even
If this could be lawfully done, the doing
of it would involve such breach of hon.
or and good faith, as would justly render
US, as nation, infamous throughout
christendom-aside from all eonsidera.
tons connected with it's political effects
upon the particular communities in which
it exists. and looking upon it only in its
bearing upon the present condition oi
our country, it seems to me that no man
who does not set the institution of slave
| ~ above the Union Of the States, can now
fail to do all that he lawfully may to aid
in removing this curse from our nation.
It is directly or implicitly admitted by
all, that slavery is the cause of the civil
war now desolating the land, although
different parties endeavor 10 throw the
immediate blame upon their adversaries.
A-uc dHti-siascIg mtu Oh the country say
that slavery is the cause of the war be-
cause, being founded on force, it is neees-
sarily aggressive in its character that it
necessarily makes shareholders, as class,
naughty, overbearing, impatient of con-
troi and unwilling to submit their opin-
ions to those of the majority, whom they
consider their interiors. Some Of the
rebels admit frankly, that the desire to
perpetuate slavery and to make it the
corner stone" of the new confederacv.
caused the rebellion, while others, and
their apologists generally insist that the
cause Of our troubles is not slavery itself.
but the 'fanaticism'' of anti-slavery men
on the subject Of slavery; and there is
still another class Of our people who de-
clare, that in their judgment, the cause
of the war is to be found in the "fanati-
cism" upon the subject of slavery among
extremists, North and South. These are
blu. various statements of the same thing,
showing that, however prejudice or par
lzanship may seek to evade or disguise
the fact, our people generally recognize
slavery as the cause of the war.
1t is also true that slavery has been
very mucn weakened since the war began.