The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-06-25
The Minority Report nom ths COMMITTEES Of

S0O Wl0Cr1VY &oROre kAoAA t-1S SS-->~-~
Fifteen.
We have already laid before our readers the
report drawn up by Senator Fessenden' caair-
man Of the Committee OF Fifteen, ana aoop'eo
by all the Republican members. a mmor.tyre-
port, drawn up by Senator johnson OF Mary
land. has since been submitted tO Congress.
We COPY the following synopsis of the dccu-
mant from the New York World:
The m inority vigorously combat the skulk-
inr as + ion OF the majority that the question
whether the Southern states are constitutions
al,y in or out II tie Union is ''proftless abb
straction." This is the pivot OF the whole
controversy Why is New York entitled to
representation, and Colorado not? For no
other reason than because Colorado is not a
S ate in the Union, and New York is. That
each State is entitled to two Senators, and to
as many Represe .tatives as correspond to it
population, expressly declared in the Con-
stltut.on itsel. When the m orty call the
question ~ statehood .'pron5ess abstrac
tion," they practi-e subteriu3e to eyaue az
argument they are unable to meet. Inc ar
guneat Dy " dien Tenncsje. ana tne resi- are
proved to be States is unansWeraple; anu tnl-
point established, the rest is merely queStion
whether the Constitution small DC oDeyed.
Mr. Ses3enden shirked this poluS because
there Was no POSSIBILITY OF successfully nleeD-
ing it.
a .araat handle Is made in the majority o.
the ilea that the rebels were beliige1ent enc
mics. "Saal we admit pubic enemies into
Congress to legislator il the burden OF theii
appeal. This ciap-trap Keeps Itself In coun-
tenance by the judicial decision, made in the
pr.ze cases, that the Conteierate5 were belll-
rerenGs. Mr.. Johnson shows, very clearly.
taat The bearing of that decision has been
msconceiveI 1t hinged on the rights O.
third plrtie,; its purpo-e was, to show thai
we possessed such rights OF war as justifieo
Us in CAPTURING the ships and property Oh the
subjecs Of foreign governments. As between
US and lorei N StaLej it was war; a; between
our government and its own citizens, it wa
an instruction. Mr.. Lincoln's proclamation
were maie a1d troup; clned. out under the
laws for suppiesSing Instructions. But even
gianting taaI, as between Us and the rebel,
the SouGn stood in the position Of alien enc
mics, be1igefent rights could not cut-iast the
war. Wnel one nation conquerS another,
it acquirej ove. it the rights Of. SOW
erai sn6J. 1t tnenceforwarl governs the sub
ia gaseI people, not as beIigerent, but as d
soyeeelgl. Bot nation wlicn Fl yhts for the
recovery of portion OF its own territory,
merely recoVsr, sucl rights OF sovereignty a.
Il Dreuioasgy possessed, and no otnef. IL only
re gains IN IacI, the sams juri. dicton it Away
possessed in right. But the measure OF thu
jurisdiction under our government, is the Con
stlsuaon; its extent is preci ely what the
Constitution defined it to be previous to the
war; precisely waat was legally exercised ovei
the otner States during the war.
With regard to the present. disposition OF
the Southern people, and Their fitness to ez-
e.cise their constitutional ri ghts, the minority
quote at len sIh the affirmative and unim-
peaclabie testimony O. Gel. Grant
The minority triumph nifty prove the alb
sence OF danger from the plan OF the Com
mit5ee ityel.-an argument which is very
neatly put Tne danger against which We
fou ,nt in the late war was secession; and the
majority of the committee, IN their report,
fan iato much heated deciama ion on the con
tinueI prevalence OF the secession theory at
the South. Well in view of this danger,
wlat have the Committee doLe? The iii
thing to do, the remedy which would exactly
meet the case, would be an G,nendEa mt of the
Con5;i;u.ion denying the righs Of secession
Tnis would setGle that point; 1t would drive
the nail and c:inch it. But among the multi
tudinous amendments to the Constitu ion
proposed by Republicans during the winter,
al amendment denying the ri sht of secession
has not beel thought needul. This is a con-
elusive proof that the Republicans, like every
body Else, see that al. danger from this source
has ceased. But If there is no further danger
from secession, why dishonesty presend that
there Is? And Ii secession Is an exploded
chimsra, pray what is the peril against which
Con yress thinks it necessary to provide?
Ills pretended there i; danger that the fed
eral debt will not be paid, AMI that the rebel
war debt aoiI be paid; anl the plan of the
Committee embraces a constitutional amend
ment to secure the one and to prevent the
other, But If this amend ment is offered in
good faith, why, in the name OF reason, is it SO
lun pad and mixed with other amendments
not reaie1 to it, that the States canot rariTy
it, without, at the same time, ratifying things
wlica they di5ap2rove and de5e5J2 Hereto
fore, amendments to the Constitution have al
ways been presented in such a manner thai
thsy could be acted upon separately, approx
ing the ones they liked and reiu,ing to ratify
such as Ghey condemned. The amendment
relating to the two war debts would, ii pre-
senred alone, be unanimously ratified by the
whole thirty-six States, without discussion or
delay. Why was not an opportunity given
them to do SO, without renouncing part OF
their right to representation? 1t looks as Il
Congress had determined, by offering the pro
posed amendments in the lump, that the
South should reject them all, intending there
after to raise dishonest cry that the South
erl States refused to repudiate the Conteder-
ate debt.
Ds.4ues the danger that the rebel debt will,
5e paid, and the federal debt repudlated, Con-
gress fnds another great danger which they
think it necessary to gued against by an
amendment to the constitution. That danger
is--well, what is it?-why it is the dreadful
danger that the States will have the same
number of Representatives to which the Con
stituLion, as it stands, declares them entitled !!
In other words, the Constitution is too dan
gerous an Instrument to be permitted to be in
operation, till certain leading provisions are
amended out of it.