The weekly North-Carolina standard., 1866-06-13
Reconstruction belongs exclusively to Congress.
THE REBEL STATES NOT ENTITLED TO REP
RESERVATION IN CONGRESS.

ted in the Honse and Senate yester-
day:
The joint committee ofthe two houses
Of Congress, appointed under the con-
current resolution ofDecember l3, 1865,
with direction "to inquire into the con-
dition of the States which formed the
so-called Confederate States of America
and report whether they or any of them
are entitled to be represented in either
house of Congress, with leave to report
by bill or otherwise" ask leave to re-
port:
That they have attended to the duty
assigned them as assiduously as other
duties would permit, and now submit
to Congress as the result of their DELHI
erations resolution proposing amend
ments to the Constitution, and two bills,
Of which they recomend the adoption.
Before proceeding to set forth in de-
tail their reasons for the conclusion to
which, after great deliberation, your
committee have arrived, they beg leave
to advert, briefly, to the course of pro
ceedings they found it necessary to
adopt, and to explain the reasons there
for.
The resolutions under which your
committee was appointed directed them
to inquire into the condition ofthe Con-
tederate States, and report whether they
were entitled to representation in Con-
gress. 1t is obvious that such an inves-
tigation, covering SO large an extent of
territory, and involving so many i'm
portant considerations, must necessarily
require no trifing labor, and consume
a very considerable amount of time.
1t must embrace the condition in which
those States were left at the close ofthe
war; the measures which have been ta-
ken toward the organization of civil
government, and the disposition of the
people toward the United States; in
word, their fitness to take an active part
In the administration of national af-
fairs.
As to their condition at the close of
the rebellion, the evidence is open to
all, and admits of no dispute. They
were in state of utter exhaustion.
Having protracted their struggle against
Federal authority until all hope Of sue
eessful resistance had ceased, and laid
down their arms only because there was
no longer any power to use them, the
people of those States were left bank
rupt In their public finances, and shorn
OF the private wealth which had before
gwen them power and influence. They
were also necessarily in state of COM
plete anarchy, without governments.
and without the power to frame govern
ments, except by the permission of
those who had been successful in the
war. The President of the United
States, in the proclamations under
which ne appointed provisional govern
ors, and In his various communications
to them, has in exact terms, recognized
the fact that the people of those States
were, when the rebellion was crushed.
deprived of all civil government, and
must proceed to organize anew.'' Tn
his conversation with Mr.. Stearns. of
Massachusetts, certified by himself Presi-
dent johnson said: "The State insti-
tutlons are prostrated, laid out on the
ground, and they must be taken up and
adapted to the progress of events.''
Finding the Southern States in this
condition, and Congress having failed to
provide for the contingency, his duty
was obvious. AS President of the Uni
ted States he had no power, except to
execute the laws of the land as Chief
Magistrate. These laws gave him no
authority over the subject of reorgani-
zation, but by the Constitution he was
Commander-in-chief of the army and
navy Of the United States. These Con
federate States embraced portion of
the people of the Union who had been
In state of revolt, but had been re-
duced to obedience by force of arms
They were in an abnormal condition.
without civil government, without com.
mercial connections, without national
or international relations, and subject
only to martial law. By withdrawing
their representation in Congress. by
renouncing the privilege of representa-
tlon, by organizing separate govern
ment, and by levying war against the
United States, they DESTROYED their
State constitutions in respect to the vi
tai principle which connected their re-
spective States with the Union. and sew.
cred their federal relations and nothing
OF those constitutions was left of which
the United States were bound to take
notice. For four years they had a de
Jacto government, but it was usnrned
and illegal. They chosethe tribunal If
arms a wherein to decide whether or not
it should be- legalized, and thew were
defeated. AT the close of the rebellion
therefore, the people of the rebell;ous
States were found, as the President ey.
presses it, deprived of all civil govern.
ment.
Under this state of affairs it was plain.
ly the duty of the President to enforce
existing national laws, and to establish
as Tar as he could, such system ofgov.
ernment as might be provided for bv
existing national statutes. As Com.
mander-in-Chief of victorious amv
it was his duty under the law of na.
tlons and the army regulations to re-
store order, to preserve property. and
to protect the people against violence
from any quarter, until provision should
be made by law for their government
de might, as President, assemble Con
gress and submit the whole matter to
the law-making power, or he might
commune military supervision and CON
froi until Congress should assemble on
It's regular appointed day. Selecting