Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1866-01-20
THE SOUTHERN STATES.

i
offered by Mr. Howe yesterday for tn
appointment OF Provisional Governors il
the Southern States.
Mr.. johnson, DEM OF Maryland
said he had no reluctance in addressing
the Senate ON this subject because of hi
connection with the special committe
Of fifteen, because the opinions he wa
about 10 state were opinions he had en-
tertained from the beginning. On Tia
subject In question he understood Mr.
Howe 10 contend that the effect of tn
hostilities we have been carrying on &
suppress an insurrectiOn in certain states
and which prevailed for some four years
is 10 eXtinguish altogether those States
as such, and to reduce the territory o
which those States were composed at tn
time the insurrection bFOkeOut 10 thecOn
dition ofTerritories, and dsubiect thepeopl'
of those States to be governed, under IN,
clause Of the constitution which gives &
Congress the power TO govern the Terri
tories, or, on the ground that they hav,
been conquered by the United States
that the power 10 govern is right We
have derived from the right Of conquest
when the conquest Is complete Mr.
johnson said he proposed 10 inquire
first, What was the effect Of the war :
/ II the successful result Of the war vas to
reduce the slave States 10 territories, he
would then inquire whether, il that was
not the effect Of the war, such effect was
! produced by the conduct of the citizens
{ residing within the limits of those States
/ He was sure no member Of the Senate
would doubt that there was no power
given 10 Congress, or 10 any other
/ department Of the Government 10
make war against any state. The
/ power 10 declare war expressly deyOlving
! lpon Congress is power looking to war
/ as between the United States and a
/ foreign nation. The authority 10 protect
[ the United States By means of force
against invasion, is power given to
| Congress for the purpose Of protection.
There could not be any doubt, looking to
the character of the Government, that
such is the limitation Of the war power
conferred upon Congress. The doubt
would be removed when we find that
there is in another part OF the same sec
ton a provision which looks 10 the car
rying on of such a war as the one in
hich we have been engaged. The
language Of that section is in the clause
succeeding the clause giving authority
10 declare war and raise an army and
navy. Ii is the provision for calling out
the militia 10 execute the laws of the
United States and dsuppress insurrectiOn. Ii
was not, therefore, by means of the war
power conferred upon Congress, and the
power to make that declaration effectual,
that Instructions among ourselves, do
nestle troubles among ourselves, We're TO
Ice suppressed. The constitutional Con-
vention looked TO two contingencies
first. that we might be involved in a war
with foreign nations, and, secondly, that
we might be involved in domestic tFOu-
bleS. For the one, they conferred upon
Congress the war power, strictly speak
ing for the other, to suppress insurrec-
ti0ns, not by means Of the war power,
but by means of police power, given 10
Congress as such-nOt a power under
which, by any possible vOlitiOn, could
be exercised any conquest in the proper
sense of that term not n power under
which there was to be eXtinguished any
existing institution in any of the States
above all, not a power which was in
tended to devOlve upon Congress the au-
thority to destroy the States. Every
member of the Senate WHO'S famiiiarwith
the proceedings sf the Constitutional
Convention, will remember that when il
was suggested that Congress should have
the authority to make war against the
States, it was repudiated as fatal to the
Government by Hamilton and Madison.
/ have no time to state their reasons, or
t1 refer to the debates in which they
are given. They both denied that, far
as the convention had proceeded at that
time, any such authority was given to
Congress, and protested against the pro-
privty of giving any such power. The
power actually given was u power TO
preserve, and not TO destroy; power 10
and not % extinguish; power
90 make the Government what professes I
10 have been its object in the preamble of
the COustitutiOn-One OF perpetuity, that
Is to say, a government for the security
Of the liberty of themselves and their
posterity forever. II would have been
an extraordinary anomaly, one which
would have justly deprived them Of the
estimation IN which they are now held
iu the civilized world, if they had
formed Government designed TO be per-
petUAl, yet clothed with the power to de-
Strov itself The section of the C0nstitu-
ton to which ! have referred was de-
signed TO preserve the government if as
sailed by foreign foe or domestic treason.
The proposition is so clear said Mr.
johnson, that / would not have deemed
II necessary TO cite authorities to prove
it, but that perhaps the observations of
Mr. Howe might induce the public 10
suppose that there is authority in the
constitution to carry on a war against
states. The question has been before the
Supreme Court in the cases where the
opinion has been very much relied upon
for the purpose of maintaining in part
the doctrine for which the Senator from
Wisconsin contends mean the prize
case. Mr.. Justice Graham, in deliyeTin.
the opinion of the Court, uses this Lam
usge;-" BY the constitution alone Com
Eress has the power 10 declare national
OF foreign war. II cannot declare waT
against a State or any number Of States
Iy virtue of any clause in the cOnstiu-
ton. The constitution confers on the
President the whole executive power.
lie is bound 10 take care that the laws are
faithfully executed. He is Commander
in-Chief Of the army and navy of the
nited States and of the militia of the
several States when called into actual
service. But he has no power TO initiate
or declare war against a foreign nation
or a domestic State.n Here il an express
denial Of the power or authority of Con-
gress or the President To carry on a war
against the States. The language is
Ulain 1t cannOt,n says the work
read from, "declare war against a State,
OF any number of States, by virtue of
any clause in the constitution" and the
same doctrine is held 10y the minority OF
The court i'm the opinion delivered by Mr..
Justice Nelson, 50 that We have theuna
imous opinion Of the Supreme Court Of
the United States that domestic
trouble and nsunection and refusal
10 obey the Constitution Of the Uni
ted States or to execute its laws,
or 10 lnterpose obstacles against
the execution OF the laws, is not a state
Of things which authorizes Congress to
declare war against the States in which
such insurrection exists. 1t is not q con-
dition Of things which the President has
any power 10 carry on war by virtue of
The war power, but, on the contrary, is
state of things 10 be guarded against
and remedied by virtue of the police
power, which Congress may authorize to
De used if it thinks proper, by calling out
The militia aud using the army and navy
10 suppress the insurrection. IL would
seem 10 follow that when the insUrrec-
ton was suppressed the contingency of
resort 10 the police power was at an end.
To consider the power conferred on Con
gress 10y force to suppress insuTrectiOn as "a
power to war against a State in which
there is no insuTrectiOn is an absurdity
The design Of the authority loaked ex-
clusively to the existence of an eXigency,
to meet which il was devOlved upon
Congress. The insurrection exists, and
il is the dutyof Congress To oprovide means
by which the authority Of the Govern
ment can he maintained. Il is their
province, therefore, 10 give 10 the Presi-
dent Of the United states the means by
which the Government Of the United
states can be maintained; tut there is no
more right 90 execute by force that
police force after the iusureotion Is sup
pressed than there is 20 carry il on before
the insuFrectiOn commences. Then, If ]
am right and there are no other grounds
upon which the argument Of the Senator
from Wisconsin can be cOplroverted, it
is isrepudiated by the positive provisions Of
the Constitution and the decisions of the
Supreme Court. But it Is said that
although there was no authority to carry
on those hOstilities for the purpose Of ex-
terminating the States in which the in-
surrectiOn existed, the conduct OF the
citizens Of those states has produced
that result, and the States as such are az
an end. At an end, howe At an end
because they decided to take their States
out Of the Union. Atan end because we
have right now by virtue Of Congress
which We had not before. The States
ceased 10 exist by the conduct of their
own citizens; what conduct? and when
they passed ordinances Of secession, had