Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1866-09-24
A FALSE CHARGE.

that II seems narQly possloIe INV
was the work OF one man. We have
already noticed some of its features; still
not less noteworthy remains.
Speaking Of the right and power OF Con-
gress to determine whether the rebel States
have returned to their loyalty, the address
THE right asserted and exercised is abb
solute, without qualification or restrlct'on,
no. confined to States IN rebellion, MOI to
States that have rebelled; it is the rignt
Of any Congress in formal possession
Of legislative authority to excluoe any
State or States, and any portion OF the
thereof, at any time, from represen,
in Congress, and in the Electoia,
College. at its own discretion ana unII
they shall perform such acts and comply
with such conditions as it may dictate.
This is q marvellonsly false and impudent
assertion. Not a single member OF Con
gress, not a single one Of its supporters
not a solitary human being has ever as
serted that Congress has the Absolute
right to exclude any State or states rom
representation. The statement is neither
more mol less than a lie, not the less
shameful because Endorsed by persons OF
high position.
It is claimed that when States have been
engaged in rebellion. the Congress OF the
United States has the right to determine
upon what terms they may be restored to
political privileges and powers. 1t Is
claimed that it is the duty Of Congress to
ascertain whether they are loyal, whether
their loyal governments are properly and
safely reorganized, and whether any for
NAL conditions of restoration are necessary
tor the safety and honor Of the nation.
Mr.. Raymond, the author Of this address,
knows perfectly well that this is the claim
Of the Republican party as well as Of the
two-thirds majority in Congress. he
knows that nobody ever proposed to ex-
ercise such a power in regard to Illinois,
Ohio. or any other State that had not re-
belled. He knows, as an editor, that no
paper and no writer in all the land has
ever pretended that Congress could law
fully exclude at will the representatives
from New York or Pennsylvania. Such
an assertion, from such a man as MIR.
Raymond, more than ~justifes the ,obriquet
of "Little Villain" which was long ago
applied to him. Mr.. Raymond cannot
plead ignorance. He knows what the
congressional claim in this matter is, for
he once urged it himself with much appa-
rent zeal.
Every member Of the bread and butter
corps insists that the President had the
right and power to require of the South
ern States compliance with the conditions
named by him. Mr.. Raymond, week
after week, reiterated those conditions,
and urged the admission Of the rebel
States, because, he asserted, they all fully
| complied with the Presidents demands.
It needs no Raymond or other teacher to
tell US that somewhere In this Govern
ment there must be a power to fix the
terms upon which rebels may resume their
political privileges. Common sense
teaches so much, at any rate. Every in
telligent citizen knows that such a power
must belong to our Government, or else it
is not fit to exist an hour. If any set Of
rebels at any time or on any pretext can
make open war upon the Government,
with the certainty that whenever they stop
fighting they can instantly resume all their
political privileges, then the United States
system Of government is the stupidest alb
surdity ever concocted on earth. The
truth is, that all political rights and privi-
leges are forfeited by the act of rebellion.
They cannot be Presumed again at
pleasure. They must be conferred, by a
direct act Of the Government, before any
| rebel can claim to exercise any Of them.
And the question is. by what authority
can such forfeited rights and privileges be
| restored; what branch Of the Government
can prescribe the terms OF restoration J
Raymond and the bread-and- butter disci-
pies used to say that the President had
that power, but mi Of them could ever
show warrant for it In the Constitution,
nor could one Of them ever tell how the
President could possess such a power
while Congress did not possess it.
1t is very manifest that the trainers OF
the Constitution would never have en-
trusted q power so vast, so important, and
so absolutely irresponsible, to any iudi-
vidual. They did not. 1t Is a law.mak.
ing power, and it is entrusted to the d.
rect representatives Of the people. 1t does
not belong to the President at all. Every
exercise of such power by President John
son has been a plain usurpation Of power,
which the people tolerated, however, SO
long as he claimed to be acting only sub
ject to the final decision of Congress. Had
he not cheated the nation with the pre-
tense that all his action was meant to be
Of a provisional character merely, he
would have been long ago called to &C.
count for exercising powers that never
belonged to him. 1t is the right and duty
Of Congress to make laws; Of the Presi-
dent only to execute them. Congress has
the sole right to prescribe the law Of res
toration Of rebels to political powers, to
name such conditions as the people deem
necessary, and to restore altogether,
or partially, or not at all, as the
safety Of the people may dictate.
Until the nation, through Congress, have
conferred upon rebels those privileges
which by their treason they have forfeited,
not a rebel Of them all has any more rights
| than have the inhabitants Of territory
conquered from a foreign enemy in war.
They have no political rights whatever.
They are subjects |; they owe allegiance,
and are entitled to protection under the
laws. But forfeited political privileges
they can never regain until the nation
chooses to restore them.
Does not Mr.. Raymond, does not An
drew Johnson and every citizen of this
country know that, at the time of the sur
render, every one understood this matter
just as we have stated it? The rebels
themselves made no claim to exercise po.
litical powers; they expected to be requir-
ed to submit to terms Of restoration and
the whole North demanded it. President
Johnson himself acted on that universal
understanding. He required what seemed
to him proper; he publicly announced
that it would finally rest with Congress
to prescribe such terms as 1t might think
necessary. It is only within the past year
that this enormous claim has been set up,
not by rebels at first, but by their North
ern allies, and then by Andrew johnson,
that traitors could resume at will the
rights and powers which they had forfeit
ed by rebellion. And, because that claim