The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-10-10
DAILY PRESS.
ND.
Wednesday Morning, October 10, 1866.

PORTLAND


faithfully presented by Republican speakers
and writers. How easy it would be for Con-
gressmen, after purchasing half million of
these bonds apiece, in a legitimate way, at the
market price Of less than five cents on the dol
lar, to bring them up to par by sinsle vote!
How clearly under such imaginable circum-
stances, would honorable gentlemen see that
our family quarrel has been regarded too ex-
clusively from sectional standpoint, and that
justice requires the assumption of the South
ern as well as the Northern burden! Win
what arguments and appeals would a suoSi-
died press overflow! How forcibly and per-
suasively would Mr.. Stephens, OF Georgia, ad-
yocate upon the floor of the Senate this new
acknowledgment of Southern rights! tmay
be, that Congress would stediastly resist the
temptation: but are we willing to incur the
risk of such an agitation2 The Republican
party is not Willing 6. We propose to make it
part of the national compact, that the Con-
federate debt shall remain forever worthless,
and that the. validity Of the National debt
shall be unquestioned And we do not pro-
pose to allow Mr.. Stephens to advocate the
recognition of the Confederate debt, or any
thing else, on the floor of the Senate, just
yetsss av Xxx +ssri
After opposing the constitutional amend
ment at every step, the Copperl eads see at
last that it must succeed. Tennessee has rat
flied it. New Jersey has ratified it. A pow
erul party is organized and actively seeking
its ratification in North Carolina. This dan
gerous questionwill undoubtedly be Withdrawn
from American politics. Will it? The Cop
perhead agitators say no. The party whose
representatives in the Thirty-ninth Congress,
with only six exceptions, voted to increase
their own salaries, is not willing to see so much
possible plumber stricken out of existence re-
solved into mere waste paper. 1t is as an in
te1national question that they now assert the
validity of the Rebel debt. The argument
was sketched in the World some days ago; it
has since appeared in the Argus, fortified by
identically the same authorities and illustra-
tons. 1t begins with the declaration respect
ing the Southe'n States, in the report of the
Reconstruction Committee, that 'for four
years they had de facto government PA
better statement for the purpose is found in
an expression used by Thaddeus Stevens in a
recent speech at Bedford, Penn. Mr.. Stevens
called the States lately in rebellion, smere ter
ritories conauered nv our arms from the Con-
federate States of America. . From this noint
the argument rests upon citations from Gard
ner's Institutes of international Law" as fol-
lows: aa ~
Page A. Nations de facto are Of necessity.
nations dc J're An associations OF men claim
in f,ot IN ornan;eed ;nSaneyds Is not 1
sovereign State, as one, of the family of nations
it acquires an lnternationai rights and is sub
Page 81. By the law Of nations, conquest
passes all rights belonging to the conquered
na;ther case is '1 r;nnt nrorart "s ea.a mn
rights of sovereignty and of public property on
pre passed oy cesslon or conquest;
national property and iarisdiction are coded
10 announcer nation, the latter is justly liable for
- $50 s.,o.,..,..,,,.
mere are some coilateIai c'tations' out we
nave enie'Vofeu 10 Slaue the argument clear
~ anu iu''y' is appiication TO Its case In
h''iio is Impossible, as we peheve, for several
io1'on0 al 'iie ilrSt piace' the learned WITH
CT speaking OF natlohs, and II does not fol-
AZ" oeo"use al association Of men mas gov
efnnien'' 'nat IL ~ therefore nation. AStats,
VI city' may nave government, but It is not
na'''n uuiu % roopefs' ora tresh water
'one, ni'y nave d government put VIII
naruiy pe caiieu hatoh we may properly
speah' as Inc heconstfuctlVe committee does,
" u7 iac'o Oh de Jufe government out de
ia''o h3'lon Is Always de Jure. Ihe Confed-
crazy was never hation. NO power ever
recognized lis nationality Its independence
was never obtained, and whatever is true on
~ Oh NATIONS is ior that very reason not true
OF the appafitlon known as the Confederate
states OF America ns4 10 eMcs
In the second place, our author says that
where I'm ordinary cases" Jurisdiction passes
rom one haeioh 10 another, the latter is justly
liable for the debts of the former But this is |
mot an orI;nar, .o..,o. NJ Al. -. 4
s-'s' ne ueo' was ihcuf-
req In an attempt to break down the previ- 1
So. Tl-. !on :, uie ohi'eu
p.~','' n"' psoon''''y h''ih No inc case as
lG7,,to-c Paw 'ne ' 'ofeish
hoiuefs vi this ueot, we shouiu DC magnani- I
mously restoring to Them with handsome in 4
,erast tho. n,so,,s oo,, .,.;,,,.,, q. = 4
tereso' Ihe hleans contributed 10 break down
the authority of our government the money
which prolonged the war and cost us much
treasure and many lives. No rational being
can defend principle involving such conse-
quences as these. No. publicist ever did or
will defend it, Be- Ha3-.it ~ ~
Thirdly, the Argus produces an examine.
drawn from current history 1t is the cession
of Venetia to Italy. "Italy," says the Argus.
''has just been obliged to assume that portion
of the Austrian debt which it belonged TO