The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1866-01-24

decided ground on the same side with JEFF.
Davis and the southern secessionists general
~. 1t will be seen that Mr.. Harding holds
that the states lately in rebellion, BY their
own action, took themselves out of tho Union
He thus admits that those states had the
power to dissolve their connection with the
Union, and that their ordinances of secession
contaminated the act. He says:
'.By such acts of the state government, its pOlit-
seal life is destroyed, political institution AN
der our Federal CONSTITUTIONS
That 10 TO say, a state, by passing an ordi.
nance of secession, thereby annulled the con.
stitution Of the United States, so far as that
constitution operated upon the state SO seced
ing. The people of such state, according to
Mr.. Harding. thereby dissolved their connec
ton With the United States, and by virtue of
such dissolution they exonerated themselves
from all allegiance to the federal authority
and, by the exercise of their own act, trans.
ferred that allegiance to such other govern.
ment as they might choose to set up. This is
the precise doctrine for which the southern
secessionists commended. 1t is the doctrine
against which, professedly at least, the war
was waged. The man who holds that doc
| trins is a seoessionist in principle, no matter
moment any man admits the position taken
by Mr.. Harding, he admits away the whole
question, and thereby necessarily admits
that the late war for the Union was one of the
| most wanton and Infamous acts of despotic
power ever perpetrated in history. For,
mark, if the southern states took themselves
| out of the Union, they went out by the exer-
else of their own power, the power thus exer-
eised being their own property or possession.
1t is peculiar to political power, that its pos
session implies the right to it's possession ; so
| that, in political sense, the possession of a
power implies a right to that power in other
| words. an ownership in it. Such is of neces-
| sity, the nature of political compacts. Now
| if the southern states did, by their ordinances
| of secession, take themselves out of the Union,
as Mr.. Harding holds, it follows that they
had the power to 30 it, and the possession of
the power implies the right to the power;
and he or they who have a right, have, as
coupled with it. the indefsasible right to its
| exercise. Who, then, in this view, shall
| blame those states for the exercise of a right,
which as Mr.. Harding comedies, they pos
| sess?
Thus, we'have demonstrated that Mr.. Har-
ding is a sscessionist If secessionist de-
serves punishment, what punishment shall
be melted to A. c. Harding2 He has certain
| ly made a strong argument in behalf of the
| confederates and their cause: He has shown
that the war, according to his view, was
| waged without just or honorable cause; that
it was a wanton invasion of clear political
| rights. But he is, besides being secession
list, disunionist also. He holds that the
| Union has been broken or sundered, because,
| by actual secession, the unity of the states
was. for the time being, destroyed and the
| inference from the tone of his letter is, that
| he stands opposed to restoring the states, SO
/ out of the Union. to their former relations in
| the Union. Having taken the position that
| the southern states are out of the Union he
expresses no desire to bring them back, or 20
re-solder the Union so broken He would
| punish them by keeping them out. And now.
right here, we ask. if it is not right. be
| longing to US of the north, to have those
states restored? If the Union was worth
| fighting for, is it not worth having? If il
was not worth fighting for why did we e. to
war at all? Are We not as much interested
| IN having whole Union as the south can be?
And thus it is made clear that Mr., HARDING.
| in opposing the restoration of the Union, op-
| poses the rights We acquired by victory in
the war.
But we will not, on this occasion, pursue
| the argument further. We have thus made
it appear that the Union people of this con.
gressional district are represented by disun-
ionist. And we conclude by repeating, what
! we have often said before, that the only safe
ground TO occupy is that held by the demo-
cratic party, namely: that the ordinances of
secession adopted by the southern states were
null and void in the beginning, and that,
consequently, those states were never out of
| the Union. This is the ground occupied by
President johnson. He is therefore Union
man ; but those who oppose his reconstruc-
ton policy are disunionists.
From the Quincy Wing & Republican.
LETTER FROM HON: A. c. HARDING.
The following letter from Hon. A. c. Har.
ding, our representative in congress- to a gen.
| tleman of this city, will be found of interest
to his constituents and the public generally:
WASHINGTON, D. c., Jan. 10, 1866
DEAR SIR: Your favor is acknowledged. The
states and individuals OF the states lately in rebel
hon are overthrown! The sspolItical status'' is
that of PEG pie Invested OF political rights The
political authorities of the late rebel states took
up arms against the life of our nation and the cit
lZens of such states by such state action pre
sumptvely in rebellion and politically responsible
therefor. BY such acts of the state government
its political life is destroyed as a political insti
tuition, under our federal constitution. This
leaves the people and the state dives.ed of all
political rights, and until pardoned of all polit
zeal capacity, and IT requires the authority of the
people expressed by congress to invest them with
Political rights and powers, making them again
members OF the national family. In the language
OF our best authority on this point, 'The pres-
dent, as commander-in-chiet, can withdraw the
army from the rebellous territory and leave the
people there to act at their pleasure. But he
cannot reinvest them with any forfeited rights or
powers. He cannot confer upou them any civil
privilege" Nor do l think he has designed to
attempt any thing OF the kind, His action in with
drawing provisional governors is a military act,
| and conters no civil right by expression or impl.
cation! He surrenders them to the authority of
congress, and now IN the exercise of our jurisdc-
ton over those lands and the people thereof am
confident that we should be guide ed by the polite
al compass of our fathers, that all men are by ma.