Mineral Point weekly tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1859-1868, 1866-06-06

e are entitled to representation III Congress
/ equally with all other States, and inst a
. well as If there had been ~ rebellion
. The Representatives of the national Cni0l
: party in Congress do not yet agree wit
: the President, but | think they differ onI
| IN regard to non-essentIaIs. Some are IN
derstoad to insist that tia people Of n,
, State ought to reserve the right of seces-
= sion or disunion The President saws ex-
aetly the same thing a State that should
: claim to reserve n right Of secession could
rot be loyal Others contend that after
rebellion n State ought not to be accepte5
which insists upon or re-admits the valid
ity Of the debts Of the rebellion. The
President saws exactly the same thing
i State that should insist upon the valid
ity OF such debts could not he loyal. 9th
ers argue that as a consequence Of the
adoption Of slavery chan&e af the basis
of representation has become desirable
aud necessary.
This can be done only by amending the
Constitution Of the United States. While
/ Congress are yet unable to agree among
. themselves upon the form Of such an
/ amendment, the President SAYS: Let rs
amend the constitution Sc rs 70 proportion
/ representation accordi1r to outrage w.
J These seem to me to be the only essentials
7 Of recon2iliation Two Of them are al
/ ready secured by the unrcnresentai States
in their Constitutions. The third is the
work Of time. requiring the action Of three
I .ourths Of the States by amendments TO
/ the Constitutions
WIZ, then, the delay of reconciliation
1 by Congress, when they agree upon es-
scntials? With some ii may be n matter
OF temper They ask WHY should Congress
! be expected 70 agree with the President
upon his plan rather than ho te szpeciel
to agree with Congress upon plan to be
originated hv them? | answer, because
/ he has plan and Congress has, as vet,
proposed noTe--at least none that IS i'm
mediatelv practicable But, in truth, it
is not a question which Of the two, the
President or Congress, has devised or shall
devise a plan Of reconciliation. Neither
the President nor Congress could arbitra-
rily devise and perfect one II thia ease.
We speak habitnally and even tiippant-
/ " Of the policy which the President sup
ovts. as If it were = plan that has been
conceived and framed I'm his own brain
It il no such lhinc 1t Is a plan which
Erew mp as Topey grew, out of the un-
uvoidable prsicstined change from war
70 peace What was required was q form
Of reconciliation that should ho reason
ah.v acceptable to both parties while il
should harmouize with returning Loyalty
and renewed allegiance IN the States that
were involved in The rebellion, and should
at the same time secure to all parties their
exact constitutional rights
The present plan ike oar republican
system Of government, was desired hv no
body in particular. bat it presented Itself
aC once to the anxious thouolt@ oS all par
ties concerned The Constitution pre-
s-rihes its chief details The other pOr-
sions revealed themselves as interior mech
anism to the engineer to bring the device
into successful movement
Congress is to be expected, therefore, to
concur with the President, not il adopt
inc a plan which he has projected. nat IL
accepting with him all existing ovogtoras
of reconciliation in the form in which thev
have occurred. ] jhink thas the p Ccead-
ings Of Congress hitherto Indicate not az
ultimate Disagreement and failure, hut
only q pyOcrastinatjon, which 70 the i'm
patient is incohyenient, and to the timid
alarming
We are to remember, however the con-
stitational checks Of legislation Indeed
CONGRESS Is desi1nedlv constituted 50 that
II shall not too hastily decide upon any
measure. Hence, time is always found to
lie a necessary condition Of sale legIsIa-
ton The Senate. cauntin- oHiy its sc
tnal members, consists of G.Uv persons
They come from twenty different States,
and indiviiualiv they are cXponcnts OF
least two very divergent parties and oi
multiplied difference Of peculiar opinion
prevailing in each OF these parties.
The House Of Representatives, while 1t
is more numerous, is constituted upon the
same principle. No measure can he final
" adopted hv Congress until 1t has OBJ
taiucd a majority of voices in each house,
settling and discussing il in different cham
heTs The sentiments, feelings. Iaaiouslo@,
rreiudice5 and ambitions Of their coDstit-
uants necessarily and Justly influence re-
Drd and modify their deliberations and
5hair votes
70 one who should be a stranger to our
system. ii would seem more wonderful that
Congress ever agree upon any deeply cH-
citing measure. than 1t would seem II tsev
should fail To agree uron n plan oi recon
ciliatica between constituencies lately 50
widely divided in civil war Delay IN any
enterprise Invariably hecets new dlhcuI~
ties and emharrass sments There are some
parrizans among Us. misguided. | think,
although honest. who depTecate an easy
these partizaDs think that some cor editions
or forms Of reconciliation other than taose
unon which the public attention Is fixed
arc possible. essential and desirahla-
They advise Congress to demand q con-
c-ssioa BIZ the late disioval States Of a
nratracted disfrauchiSemento al persons
who have been involved in the rebellion.
On the contrary there carr be no raecHcil-
iation At all without amnesty in large
measure.
Even the Divine government does not
ask sinners - repent without promising
them forgiveness and restoration. The
Constitution. which is the supreme law d
the land does not authorize - sweeping
disfranchisemcne. The class | speak o.
reply u these arguments that the redoi
cast of the Constitution AMI became in
Solent bei!iZercnts. that, therefore. the
are not now citizens. but conqGere,
enemies The advocates Of reconciliation
rcioiu that although the Constitution was
in many Of Its provisions. displaced O
suspended IN the disloval States by tn
war vet that 1t necessarily rcEains It's al
solu,e authority on the return ol peace
Ii takes time 10 settle this new dispute
Another class Of rartizans object that th
President ought not To have recognize
the plan of reconciliation. but on tn
other hand that be ought 20 have left
exclusively to the legislative department
= 1t belongs. however 70 the Executive
conduct war with the means furnished 1
( - IL