Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1866-05-01

. Tons.
, ton. have only 70 remark that the Law
fixes definitely the salaries and commits
siops Of most officers, and that the pay 0
, subordinate officers is altogether made
ouate TO tempt northern men to assumi
the risk and incur the odium of collect
, ing taxes in the southern States, except
r perhaps, in the commercial cities of the
. seab0ard.h l
! In speaking of a clean record for 10y
, altv the honorable secretary does no
mean to speak sneeringlY of those wht
have really a clean record, as the maiou
ty report would seem 10 imply, but ht
has reference 10 those who were not LA
ble TO draft, and who were never place.
in a situation to test their loyalty TO tn,
. United States or sO-called Confederate
government.
The honorable postmaster general says
"As remedy for the future l WOulC
venture to suggest a modification, th'
oath by inserting the words 'volunta
rily' Immediately preceding the WORD
sought. 50 that the clause would read
That / have never voluntarily sought
nor accepted, nor attempted 10 exercise
the functions of any Office whatever
under any authority, or pretended au
thority, in hostility to the United
States This would enlarge the class
Of persons who could qualify as
p0stmasters and mail contractors
and be in harmony, as it seems te
me. with the general provisions and
purposes Of the oath, and thus facilitate
the speedy re-establishment Of the postal
service TO the common benefit Of all Sec
tions Of the country; for it must be borne
in mind that while the people of the
4 southern States are more directly inter
ested in the restoration of this service,
the citizens of all the other States, are
also largely interested.
1t NAV not be uninteresting to you To
know that of the 225S mail routes in
operation in the disioyal States at the
breaking out of the rebellion, the service
Of 757 only has been restored and that
of 1902 postoffices in those States, only
2O42 appointments of postmasters have
been made, of whom ll77 only have
been qualified for Office, 757 OF them
being males, and 40 females. or the S65
who have not qualified it is believed that
quite all of them have not done so be-
cause Of the oath"
I called upon the honorable secretary
Of the treasuaTy to be informed by him
what modification Of the test oath would
be satisfactory to him, and was informed
by him that the amending of the third
/ clause in the oath, by striking out the
words neither sought nor accepted, nor
attempted to exercise the functions of
/ and inserting the words mot voluntarily
/ sought so that it would read, " that
not voluntarily sought any Office what
/ ever under any authority or pretended
authority in hostility to the United
/ States,n would answer the purpose for
which the modification was recon-
/ mended. l do not deem it material that
all the dOings OF the President in time
of war should be vindicated, in Or
/ der to sustain his views in time Of
peace. We must deal with things as
I they now are, and not pursue the same
/ course to fallen foes that we would pur-
sue toward them were they in arms
against the government. This test oath
must at some time, and that is not far
/ distant. be repealed. 1t cannot remain
always unless it is the determination Of
! the people to deprive the present genera
| ton in the South from a voice in the
affairs of the nation. That oaunot be
and this country remain republic, The
! people Of the South are ready and anX-
{ iOus to participate in the affairs of the
/ government and defend and support the
constitution of their country. The worst
/ despotisms of the old world have been
| established through the forms of test
oaths and to exclude 1000 Of peopie
I from participating in federal affairs, by
/ making the taking Of an oath unknown
[ to the constitution condition precedent,
and one which they cannot take without
false swearing, is despotism, pure ana
simple. The constitution of the United
States provides, in article six, that exec
utipe and judicial officers of the United
States shall be bound by oath to support
| it. That is the only oath that can be le-
gally required Of the persons who are to
execute the offices of the treasury and
postotlice departments; for they are
clearly executive officers of the United
/ States within the meaning Of the consti-
| tuition. Justice Story, in his commenta-
ries on the constitution, speaking of the
house Of representatives section 624,
saysj
at would seem but fair reasoning upon
/ the plainest principles of Interpretation,
that when the constitution established
certain qualifications as necessary to
Office, il meant to exclude all Others,
From the very nature Of SUCH Q paOvision
the Affirmation Of these qualifications
would seem TO imply negative Of all
Others"
Mr. Madison, in the Federalist, COM
menting upon the same subject, says:
The qualifications Of the elected be-
ing less carefully and properly defined by
the Stale constitutions, and being at the
same time more susceptible of uniformity,
have been very properly considered and
regulated by the convention. A repre-
sentative Of the United States must be of
the age Of 25 years must have been
seven years a citizen ofthe United States
must, at the time Of his election, be an
inhabiIant OF the state he is to represent,
and during the time of his service must
he in no Office under the United States.
Under these reasonable mutations the
door Of this part of the federal governs
ment is open TO merit Of every descrip-
ton, whether native or adaptive, whether
young or old, and without regard to pow
! erty or wealth or to any particular pro,
fession or religious faith, ,p-keoierdfIst,
No. ~.
The FIRST act of fthe first Congress was
to prescribe the oath Of office, and which
was as follows;
"That the oath oraffirmation required
by the sixth article Of the constitution of
the United States shall be administered
in the following form, to wit: ], A. B.,
do solemnly swear or affirm, (as the case
may be-, that I will suppoFt the consti-
tuition or the United States"
If congress has power TO add to the
oath in the constitution, Il has power to
diminish il or set IL aside, If 1t can add
the conditions il now does, it can add any
number more. The constitutional oath
to be administered has relation to the
future only, and not to the past, and if
] nG 70,
constitution that was all that could be
required OF him.
Our constitution was made soon after
! the close Of the war, and our fathers did
not deem it wise 10 provide test oaths, in
/ order 10 prohibit those who gave aid and
comfort to Great Britain from holding
| office under the federal government. All
the time of the formation of the cOnsti-
tuition many of rle followers of King
| George resided here, and continued here
until their deaths, any OF whom could
have held any Office in the gift Of the
| people, even that of president, by simply
taking the oath provided for In the con-
stituuon. Ought We not 10 be as charit-
able to our southern brethren as were
our fathers to those in this country who
| adhered TO the government Of Great
Britain all through the revolutionary
war2
Every just consideration demands that
we 50 shape our legislation as 10 restore
| kindly and friendly relations between
( the two sections Of the country. The
masses Of the people in the South had no
hand in originating the rebellion, and it
/ was simply the result of the action of
certain leading secessionists of the South
| and certain radicals and fanatics in the
/ North. Its therefore uncharitable, anti
| christian and unfair to visit punishment
| upon whole people because of the sins
/ Of a few. Leading men and leading
journals Of the radical school in the north
| invited the south to secede. win only
quote from one leading journal Of the
/ north. The New York Tribune, OF Feb.
., 1851, says:
Whenever it shall be clear that the
great body Of the southern people have
become Oonclusively alienated from the
/ Union, and anxious to escape it. we shall
| do our best to forward their vieWs.0
Again, in the same paper, OF date
March ?, 1861, We have this clear state
ment on the same point:
We have repeatedly said, and we
| once more insist, that the great principle
! embodied by jefferson in the declaration
Of Independence, that governments de-
! rive their just powers from the consent
Of the governed, is sound and lust: and
that, if the slave States, the cotton
States, or the gulf States only, choose to
| form an independent nation, they have
]