American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1865-12-06
Re-Construction Again


we, have been endeavoring to come TO a
better understanding in reference to our
views of the Reconstruction policy of
President johnson. The Herald, in
common with most of the Democratic pa
pers of the State, has professed great at
tachment to this policy, and has taken
the erty of leeturing Republicans, be-
cause they were not heapiug their encon-
iums upon it. The Herald seemed to
think that his policy was we'll settled, and
that the radical portion of the Republi-
cans, at least, were streanuously opposed
to it. Republicans, on the other hand,
regarded his offers of terms of Recon
struction as merely experimental, as such
they we're quite willing to give them a
fair trial believing that if they failed,
or in other words, if the Southern peo-
pie acted in bad faith none would be
more willing to adopt ne,c rule for their
action than the President himself. 1t
seems quite needless, however, at this
time to go into any lengthy examination
Of the subject, as, before this reaches our
readers the President will have spoken
officially by his. s.messageto Congress. From
it, we trust we will be advised as to
his present views and intentions Should
they meet our views we will most gladly
sustain them in our humble way. But
should they, in our opinion, run counter
to public opinion, to justice and humaui
ty, we will say so, In the meantime, we
trust there will no harm result from our
examination of the subject. We know
that it is one capable of absorbing all the
learning end knowledge that can be
brought to bear upon it. In this view
Of the case we feel our weakness, still it
is sourse of consolation to know that our
want of knowledge on "thc first princi-
pies of our Government" is amply sup
piled by the surplus amount of all those
talents which are necessary for faithful
expounder of the Constitution, possessed
by the Editor of the Herald. We say to
Democrats that in this respect you are
lucky to have ga man controlling your
organ" which is so thoroughly conversent
with the fundamental principles Of our
Government As the Editor of that pa
per he was the constant friend of Mr.. Bu-
chanan's administration, and sustained its
views as to the unconstitutionality of CO.
ersing "sCv r ign State" AT later day
he, in common with his party cried out
against the unconstitutionality of the
conseription law by which the armies had
to be replenished. At another time he
was heard to declaim against the constitu-
tioDality Of the legal tender law, without
the passage of which the army could not
have been paid, nor the families of the
soldier sustained at home. At another
time he denounced the Emancipation
Proclamation as unconstitutionalE And
again the suspension of the writ of IIa-
bias Corpus And in short all measures
that were deemed necessary for the sup
preston Of the rebellion, and the restora-
tion Of the Union, were declared by the
same authority to be fragrant violations of
the fundamental law of the land These
measures have all been passed upon by
the various departments of the Govern
ment-including the Judiciary as well as
by the people at large, in such manner
as may we'll justify our neighbor to as
sumo superior skill in the examination of
great constitutional questions (D Having
such superior knowledge of "the first
principles of our Government" % we
think our neighbor might afford to treat
the subject fairly This he does not do.
in attempting to place us and the Repub-
lican party in false position he says.
'To say State is out (of the Union) i'm
plies its legal right to go out, and that
legal right is secession" Again he says,
"To give Congress the control OF Rebel
States, is to reduce them to a territorial
condition, and to so reduce them is to ac-
knowledge that they we're legally out of
the Union" We say that such aver
ments arc no arguments; and yet this
simple assertion is the sum and substance
of what has been produced on this sub
ject by our neighboi in all his articles on
this question. For the present we have no
more space to devote to this branch of the
case, contenting ourself with saying that
the charge that we, or the party to
which we belong, acknowle dge the right
of secession, or the fact of its accom-
plishment either. is groundless, and known
to De SO by every fairminded Democrat in
the Union-the Editor of the Herald to
the contrary notwithstanding. We are
not at all tenacious about the theory of
the present status of, the Rebel States
There is no precedent for our guidance
History furnishes no parallel to the wan
A IL 4