The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1866-03-23
The Tennessee Question.

I hC ChhNooNN EAN1AAohs
The Washington correspondent of
the Cincinnati Gazette, in his letter of
the 18th, says
Il is now nearly two weeks since the
report in the case of Tennessee was
made, and as yet only one thing seems
settled, and that is that in some form
she viii be recognized by Congress.
Several plans are now talked of for
accomplishing what nearly all desire.
II viii be remembered that the report
of the committee after reeiting that
! the people of Tennessee had ratified q
Constitution which was republican in
/ form and not inconsistent with the Con-
stitution of the United States, and had
organized q State Government under
the provisions thereof, and, in consid-
Grafton of the fact, that the action of
| the law making power was necessary to
! enable her to exercise the functions of
State in the Union, therefore, the
| State of Tennessee was declared to be
State in the Union. To this, three
conditions were attachd, which were TO
be in the form of a covenant with the
State Of Tennessee, that she should
disfranchise rebels for the term
named in her Constitution, that she
! should agree never to pay any part of
the rebel debt, or ever to claim or
make any compensation for her late
/ slaves, tkis covenant to be submitted to
Tennessee and ratified by her before
the act of Congress admitting her shall
| take effect
! A large number seem inclined to ac-
cept the above report with one import
ant modification. Instead of declaring
| the State of Tennessee to be one oe the
! United States of America, thus &C
| knowledging that she has been out of
! the Union, it is proposed to affirm that
she is restored TO her former relations
to the Union. 1t is supposed that none
can object to this, as it only involves
the idea that the relations of the rebel
/ States to the General Government were
interrupted by the war. This is sup
posed to be putting that point in form
/ mild enough for those who deny the
doctrine of dead States. With such an
amendment to the report, many favor
| its adoption.
The opinion Of members seems about
equally divided upon this and the fol-
lowing proposition: To recite all that
the committee do, and then, instead of
adding conditions and asking for their
ratification, to add these conditions to
! the previous recital, and declare further,
that because the State has disfranchi-
sed rebels for a certain time, repudia-
! ted her debt, and given up her claims
for compensation for her late slaves,
therefore she is restored TO her former
relations to the Union. This avoids
any reference Of the matter to the peo-
pie or Legislature of the State. Some
/ also desire 10 make q further change
in this form of the proposition, and
leave out the assertion that it is neces-
eary for the law making power to act,
/ because they think that this will re-
move the objections of the President.
! Congress certainly has no desire to
break with the President, and yet it
will not abandon its clear right to Judge
in this matter If the opinion of the
great majority of the loyal people is
worth anything, the President has
made q mistake. Congress thinks the
opinion correct, and will certainly pay
attention TO it, and yet will insist upon
its rights with the same calmness and
dignity which has characterized it
through all this trouble. The difficulty
consists in this: that the President de
nieg the power of Congress to act eZ-
cept IN the individual cases of the
members elect, and not IN regard TO
the State; and to meet his views the
House and Senate separately could
only pass a resolution admitting the
| Tennessee members to their seats in
each body.
/ Whether done by the usual form of
resolution, enactment or joint resolu-
ton, it admits the power of Congpess
in the matter, and the President must
either refuse to sign, or abandon what
he now calls my policy" and declares
that he will not abandon. Even in the
form of a concurrent resolution, which
is not legislative in its form, and does
not need the signature of the President,
it is still an assertion on the part OF
Congress of its power to control the
matter; and if the Tennessee members
should take their seats Ia response 10
such a resolution, they would commit
the State to the position assumed by
Congress.
1t will be readily seen that the ques.
tion, as between the President and
Congress, does not turn upon whether
such action be radical or not but
whether Congress has the right ~ Y ke
any action, except in the case OF lndi
yidual representatives All things con
| sidered the indications nov are thatthe
admission of Tennessee will be so care
fully guarded by proper conditions as
TO prevent her case from being urged as
precedent in dealing with the others
before they reach a point where they
deserve such attention from Congress