The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1866-03-15
The Danger OF Our Present Posi-
finm-

Congress is uncertain Of its position,
its duties, its powers. 1t is full of a. fac
tious, restless, revolutionary spirit Ii
seems TO have thrown away the old
gOYeTnment-tO have cut loose from
the constitution. Great wars necessa-
rily suspend the operation of law to a
certain extent and justify the use Of
extreme or doubtful powers; but wise
legislature would lose no opportunity to
relinquish a doubtful position that it
had assumed, for the public good, and
! take once more its natural place in the
| circle of government Congress, on the
] contrary, is determined not TO relin-
\ quish the position that the war gave it.
its whole struggle is to hold that posi-
ton, and to prevent by every means,
return to the harmonious, quiet, nRtu-
raj operation of the old system. It's
revolutionary disposition and purpose
is most clearly seen in its propositions
to change the constitution of the coun-
try. Some thirty or forty amendments
are before it, which, if adopted, would
completely do away with the system
under which the United States have
been so prosperous, and would change
our government in nearly every fea-
ture. Congress assumes that the con-
stitution is a nullity. 1t ignores the
constitutional distribution of powers.
1t has taken the position of the Su-
preme Court, to interpret the constitu-
ton by party vote. 1t has made its
Central Directory-its infamous Com
mittee of Fifteen-an executive, TO su-
persede the President. 1t has threat
ened to impeach him also. In all WAYS
1t assumes superiority to the law, and
is not a Congress under the constitu-
ton, but a faction governing in defiance
of that instrument.
1t is from this very point in their |
history that free governments tumble |
into despotism. At some weak hour |
when, for one cause or another, faction |
prevails and law is superseded, and fac |
ton daily grows worse till political |
chaos seems imminent, then some /
strong hand seizes all, and an unscru-
pulous leader gains the confidence of |
the people by putting the factions un-
der his foot, and little later, in virtue |
of that very confidence, puts liberty in
the same place. This is the history Of
a thousand republics taken from that
very point in their career at which we
now stand in ours. The fall begins
when faction supersedes the govern
ment and partisan passion takes the
place of law. This was the history of
liberty in Rome, in France, and in Eng
land. Faction made Rome ready for
Caesar, faction in the long parliament
the way for Cromwell, and
faction in France made Napoleon in>
eYitable 1t is the same series OF facts
in every case. 1t is a law of national
life, and we will not be exempt from it
unless there is something in us differ,
ent from all other nations. The people
are the only hope. They are certainly
more intelligent and more free, and
their influence is more direct than in
other countries. Their intelligence,
their patriotism and their freedom is
what we must count upon for the hope
that the factions will be put down by
a power not inimical TO freedom, by the
voice of the whole people and not by
an ambitious lleader ready to become
a despot.-N T. Herald