The Montana post. [volume] (Virginia City, Montana Territory [i.e. Mont.]) 1864-1869, 1867-03-02
CIVIL ANSWERS.

argument on Reconstruction, endeayors
democratic address," that Congress is
endeavoring to accomplish the purposes
of secessionists by their violation of the
Constitution. 1t charges Congress with
usurping the rights and prerogatives
of the President, the Supreme court and
the people " with tyranically resolving
itself into perpetual session " and "pre-
suming to impeach the President" 1t
opposes the Constitutional amendments,
because that astute organ saw in them a
clause comforting suffrage on the negro
in the rebellious States, and prohibiting
rebels from governing the United States.
1t objects to the Territorial bill, because
it sees the rebel States reduced to pro-
vinces, and then when the Military Gov
ernment bill passed, oh what accents of
despair comes up from the death rattle
in that crushing leader on " Radical
Despotism." supplicates Omnipotence
or impotence, or any other power to send
William Tell or a William Wallace or
some other William or Bill, in fact, any
thing but whiskey bill, to come to the
relief of the unterrifed and magnan-
imously throw himself into the breach,
while they stand aside and applaud. 1t
says that Congress has usurped the
rights and prerogatives of the President.
This is clearly misprint of the Gazette,
without a doubt. We give them credit
for better understanding the situation
than to suppose that they intended it
should be understood in any other way
than "by contraries." The usurpation
on the part of President johnson is a
matter of history. He has usurped the
Governments in the rebel States, in de-
fance of the cardinal principles of this
Government, and placed them in the
hands of traitors, and in this he has
usurped the appointing power, and it's
continuance exists in his persistent efforts
to enforce their recognition. This
usurpation he assumed without color
of law, and has absorbed to himself all
the powers of the National Government.
He has surrendered to rebels, property
belonging to the United States, amount
| ing in one State alone, to $50,000,000, in.
defiance of all law, and against the pro-
test of the military commanders. So far
did this extend, that, as an act of self
preservation against his encroachments,
Congress was necessitated to take action
upon it, or permit loyal and patriotic
citizens throughout the South, to be
butchered by the minions of rebellion,
revived into life, vigor and power,
through his usurpation and appoint
ments, and see the Government despoiled
and traitors pampered. You had better
abandon the cry of usurpation, Messrs
ask if the erection of West Virginia into
State, against the consent of the old
Dominion, was Constitutional, will find
that the Supreme court, of which they
prate so loudly, pronounced the act Con-
| stitutional, and their decision is on the
record. Is West Virginia a State Y
Yes. Are the ten Southern States, in
the opinion of the editor of the Posi-,
States, or Provinces p States. They
have, however, no legitimate Govern
ment existing in them. When the Fed
eral Government put down the rebellion,
it found no organized Government exist
| ing therein, or any officers qualified ac-
cording to the Constitution of the United
States Congress has the sole power to
define the status of those States and cause
to be organized Governments therein.
The President, under the war power, as
commander-in-chiefd during the existence
of martial law, inagurated provisional
governments in the South, which
have no validity, save in the continued
acquiescence of Congress. Can a State
commit political suicide9" The people
of State can. The Gazette is referred
to the recent examples in the South.
" If the Carolinas, Virginia and Georgia
were independent States during the
revolutionary war with England, can
they be legally reduced to provinces
now, by the declaration of one OF the CO.
ordinate branches of the government,
while the other two coordinate branches
object % That is a long question, but
there is very little in it. In the first
place, they were States only during
portion of the Revolution, and did not
exist under the present Constitution
/ during the Revolution. The war was
fought partly as colonies, and, afterward,
| under the articles of confederation. We
have answered the question in another
place. We deny that Congress has
usurped the powers of the Supreme
Court, the President, or the people, in
this question of the territorial bill or
that it has resolved itself into perpetual
session. Although we believe it would
be for the best interest of the country