The national Republican., 1866-10-15
PRESIDENT LINCOLN's CABINET.
Letter from Judge Bates-The Views
Of the Cabinet ON the Admission
OF West Virgi inia.

OF West Virginia.
(From the St. Louis Republican, Oct 81
TThe following letter was written by Ex-
Attorney General Bates, some two months
ago, but for some reason has never before
been published.-ED. REP.
To COL James o. Broadhead, 81. Louis:
DEAR SIR: You were rightly informed that
President Lincoln did require of the heads
of the different Departments their opinions
in writing as to both the constitutionality
and expedency of the bill "for the admis-
sion Of the State Of West Virginia into the
Union" And such opinions were given by
all of them, except only Mr.. Caleb B. Smith,
(who had then vacated, or was about to va
cate, his Office Of Secretary Of the Interior.)
That transaction took place in the few last
days of the year 1862. My own official opin-
ion bears date on the 9th of December,
1862, and the President approved and signed
the bill on the last day of that year.
have occasion to remember those trans
actions very distinctly, for l took very
lively interest in the question; and, indeed
it was upon my own suggestion that Presi-
dent Lincoln demanded our written opinions
urged upon him the advantage ofwritten over
| oral communications on a subject SO import
ant, and chiefly upon these two grounds:
| l. They constitute valuable muniments Of
the passing history Of the Government; and
2. They operate as a reasonable and whole
some check upon us. the advisers Of the
| President.
The questions put by the President were
in the most brief and compendious form,
thus: 81. Is the said act constitutional? 2.
| Is the said act expedient?" To these two
questions we all gUge to the President our
written answers; and can only express my
surprise that they should have been SO long
withheld from publication seeing that they
touch upon q principle of the greatest mag
nitude, and bear directly upon question
which has produced great excitement in Con-
gress and in the nation.
have the only copy Of those documents
that know of in private hands; but no doubt
they may be found in the proper repositories
at Washington. And IN regard to your sug-
gestion as to what those opinions may con-
tain concerning the legal and political status
OF States in rebellion, las Ihave no time now
either to analyze the opinions or to copy
them) can only say that not one of them
contains q single paragraph tending to the
conclusion that State ordinance Of seces.
sion, or the fact Of open rebellion within a
State, did or could take State out Of the
Union. The very contrary was assumed as
undisputed doctrine, and argued upon as a
postulate. In fact, did not know Repub,
lican of that day, in Congress or in the Ex-
ecutive Department, who pretended to believe
that State could withdraw itself from the
Union by secession or rebellion, or both to-
gether. We all considered IN ordinance OF
secession q mere nullity in law and politics,
and rebellion o personal crime, punishable
by law. 1t never was the doctrine Of
the Republican party in Mr. Lincoln's
lifetime, and believe, is not now, that q
State can get out of the Union by secession
and rebellion. That is q late invention of a
few enterprising, extreme Radicals, who have
lsbored in vain to fasten it upon the Repub.
cans as one Of their tenets. President Lin
coin and both Houses of Congress, by their
repeated solemn acts are pledged to the con
trary. They passed the West Virginia bill
which, according to the plain provisions Of
the Constitution, could not have been passed
unless Virginia were State in the Union
with Legislature capable OF consenting to
the dlsmemberment The President, with
the advice and consent Of the Senate did all he
could to extend the judiciary system of the
United States into States which had passed
ordinances Of secession, and whose people
stood in open rebellion. by appointing dis
trict judges in Virginia, Tennessee, Alabama
| Florida and Louisiana. And both Houses
of Congress admitted members from Vir
gia, Tennessee and Louisiana.
l remain, dear sir, with cordial regards,
your friend EDWARD BATES.