The national Republican., 1866-11-05
ar THE AMENDMENT FAILS"
In our last issue we showed

/. That each State as It came into the
Union under the Constitution stipulated
with the Others and with the Government Of
the United States, that the Constitution of
the United States should be the supreme la,c
of the land, and the judges in every
State should be bound thereby, anything in
the Constitution or laws of any State to the
contrary notwithstanding" Therefore an
act or ordinance of secession must be null
and void, because it is in conflict with the
supreme law.
2. That all executive power is given to
the President and that it was his imperative
duty Immediately to employ all the means
at his command necessary to put down the
rebellion against the Constitution and laws
Of the United States which followed the pas
sage OF such acts or.prdnances by several Of
the Southern States; and to call on Congress
for more means if those already at his dis
posal were inadequate. That he was the
sole judge, under the Constitution, as Presi-
dent and Commander-in-C Chief, of the exist.
ence of rebellion in point Of fact, and
also when it had been put down, so that civil
authority could be executed in the usual
manner.
g. That it was the duty of Congress to put
such means at his disposal from time to time
as in its judgment were necessary and
proper to enable The President to do this.
A. That when The PRESIDENT proclaimed
that armed rebellion had ceased, the author
ity of the Constitution and laws Of the
United States, which had been for a time
suspended by the military power of the
rebels, was thereby Immediately restored,
and it became the duty Of the courts to pro-
coed at once to the trial of all offenders
throughout the Union.
5. That Congress has power to admit
new States into the Union, but cannot expel
State which has once been admitted, nor
deprive it Of its right Of representation
in the House or Of its equal suffrage in the
Senate.
G. That all legislative powers are vested
in Congress Of the United States, which
shall consist Of Senate and House of Rep
resentatives. That the House Of Represent
atives shall be composed Of members chosen
every second year by the people Of the sew.
eral States, but each State shall have at least
one Representative, and the Senate of the
United States shall be composed Of two Sen.
ators from each State, and each Senator shall
have one vote.
Z. Therefore when armed resistance to the
authority Of the United States had been pu
down and Senators and Representatives from
those States presented themselves who's
"electton, returns, and qualifications wer
satisfactory, they were entitled to their seats
and the refusel of par. of the Senators AM
Representatives to recognize the right Of
State to send Senators and Representative
is not warranted by the Constitution, and i
to all intents and purposes as plainly vic
lation Of the Constitution by them as is tn
passage Of IN act or ordinance of secession
by "a State.
8. That while the neglect or refusal of
State or States to send Senators and Repre-
sentatives cannot destroy the power ant
authority ola Congress of the United States
so long as a quorum remains, yet it becomes
matter of the utmost gravity when par
of the States, by their Senators and Repre-
sentatives, refuse to permit the others to b.
represented in a Congress of the United
States.
We now propose to show that each Of tn,
three great departments Of the Government
but especially the legislative and executive
recognized the right of the States to thei
constitutional representation in the Congress
Of the United States during the entire periot
of the rebellion, and that good faith ant
sound policy alike demand that the Govern
ment should adhere to the plain Language
of the Constitution in this, as in all othe
questions of organic law. Let us review thu
action of Congress first:
l. In July, 1861, Congress declared tn
war was not prosecuted for conquest or sub
jugation, but to maintain the supremacy o
of the Constitution and laws of the UniteC
States, and as soon as this was acknowledged
by those in rebellion the war ought to cease
z. Again, during the same month, Con
gress passed an act fixing the whole number
OF Representatives under the census of 1866
at 24l, and apportioning to each OF the
States, including those that were in arm.
against the Union, their proportion accord
ing to ratio agreed on for all.
3. This was after each of the States hat
passed an ordinance Of secession and af1e,
the "socalled" Congress of the Confederate
States had passed, on the 18th of May, 1861
an act declaring that it recognized state
of war between the Confederate States anC
the United States"
A. The resolution in regard to the objects
of the war has never been repealed. Tn,
actapportioning Representatives to the State
in rebellion still stands untouched on thu
statute-book Of the Union, and the Repre-
sentatves from the State of Tennessee were
elected and permitted to take their seat:
under it.
The action of the Executive Department