The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1866-12-29
The Presidents Message.

From our city exchanges we get the
Presidents's Message in full, from
which we make few extracts bearing
most upon the political interests of the
South. We would cheerfully lay the
whole document before our readers,
but its exceeding length compells the
necessity of making such extracts as
bear most vitality upon our own inter-
ests. The document throughout, is
able and thoughtful. In regard to
affairs of State, the President says:
IMPORTANCE OF ADMISSION OF SOUTH
ERN REPRESENTATIVES
| deem it a subject of profound re-
gret that Congress has thus far failed
TO admit to seats loyal Senators and
Representatives from the other States,
whose inhabitants, with those of Ten
nessee, had engaged in the rebellion.
Ten States-more than one-fourth of
the whole number-remain without
representation the seats of fifty mem
bers in the House of Representatives
and of twenty members in the Senate
are yet vacant-not by their own con-
sent, not by failure of election, but
by the refusal of Congress to accept
their credentials. Their admission,
it is believed. would have accomplished
much towards the and strength
ening of our relations as one people,
and removed serious cause for discon-
tent on the part of the inhabitants of
those States. 1t would have accorded
with the great principle enunciated in
the Declaration of American indie
pendence, that no people ought to bear
the burden of taxation, and yet be
denied the right of representation. 1t
would have been in consonance with
the express provisions Of the Constitu-
ton, that 'eachState shall have at least
one Representative" and "that no
State, without its consent, shall be de-
prived of its equal suffrage in the Sen
ate." These provisions were intended
to secure to every State. and to the
people of every State, the right of rep
resentation in each House of Congress:
and so important was it deemed by the
trainers of the Constitution that the
equality of the States in the Senate
should be preserved, that not even by
an amendment of the Constitution can
any State, without its consent, be de.
MED q voice in that branch of the Ma.
tional Legislature.
soUTHERNsTA STILL IN THE UNION
tits true, it has been assumed tina
the existence of the States was termi.
mated by the rebellious acts of their
Inhabitants, and that the insurrectior
having been suppressed, they were
thenceforward to be considered merely
as conquered territories. The Legis.
iative, Executive, and Judicial De
partments of the Government, how
ever, with great distinctness and uni
fora consistency, refused to sanction
an assumption so incompatible will
the nature of our republican system
and with the professed objects of the
war. Throughout the recent legisla
ton of Congress the undeniable fac
makes itself apparent, that these tel
political communities are nothing les
than States of this Union. At tn
very commencement of the rebellion
ench House declared, with unanimit,
as remarkable as it was significant
that the war was not "waged, ON GU
part, in any spirit of oppression, no
for any purpose of conquest or subiu
CATION, nor purpose of overthrowine
or interfering with the rights or es
tablished institutions of those States
but to defend and maintain the suprem
acy of the Constitution and ali law
made in pursuance thereof, and to pre-
serve the Union with all the dignity
equality. and rights of the severa
States unimpaired; and that as 500
as these objects" were "accomplishe
the war ought to cease" In some in
stances, Senators were permitted t
continue their legislative function.
while in other instances Representa-
tives were elected and admitted t
seats after their States had formal
declared their right to withdraw froi
the Union, and were endeavoring t
maintain that right by force. All {
the States whose people were in msul
rection as States, were included in III
apportionment of the direct tax {
twenty millions of dollars annually lai
upon the United States by the act az
proved 5th August, 1861. Congress.
by the act of March A, 1862, and b
the apportionment of representation
Hereunder, also recognized their pres
ence as States in the Union; and the
have, for judicial purposes, been divid
ed into districts, as States alone ca
be divided. The same recognition ar
pears in the recent Legislation in refer
ence to Tennessee, which evidentl
rests upon the fact that the function
of the State were not destroyed by til
rebellion, but merely suspended an
that principle is of course applicabl
to those States which, like Tennessee,