The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-10-09
THE cossmnaaos iilYs As5 ispEDIEsCY
OF TIE con GgESSI0NhL PIN OF RECO n
YSTRUCTfoS. a5abs shf fa st1uaS

SrsGCT1os. sa5s 5hT 10 si0oas
an Addscss deiiFaStl 6efors ~ Htiaa lfspfo-
lican Club Of Charlotte, ~ c. BY VIM.
COLEMAN. = r9AA
GrNTIRnrs OF, ritz ktbaIoN RAiAG BL1cAN
CLuB:--In response TO your Invitation am
here to address YOU this evening. | am here
to speak another word IN benaif of the carr
dinal principles of human rights. These
principles have been little understood and
grossly misreprsented by those who AFRO
gate to themselves the distinction of being
the Intelligent men and the representative
men of the Southern people, The Congress
of the nation. which has organized some pf
these principles into law, has been denounced
far and wide as q lawiess assembly, which
has trampled under foot every mandate of
the Constitution, in prosecuting . malignant
and relentless war of oppression upon "a
crushed and helpless foe Those amongst
us who have advocated these principles have
been held up to public indignation, as actua-
ted by the vile passions of personal revenge
and malice -aii - SeY
We would remove these prejudices as far
as lies in our power We would reason with
those, who are at all disposed to listen to
reason. With this object in viewsI tried to
hit upon some subject, the idiscussion'rof
which would bring out, in their fullest force
and effect, the underlying principles of the
Republican party. have accordingly Sc
lected The AND ExPE--
DIENoY OF THE REcoNsTRqcTIoN PLAN OF
CoNeREss' as the theme best calculated to
serve this purpose. $50
I announce the first proposition as follows:
When North Carolina, IL her organic capacity
asa State, lecied car against the qocern'snt Of
the United States, she forfeited all her rightsds
a State under tie Consultations " 2 7ffe
The contrary opinion is maintained by the
vast majority of those, who have heretofore
been the leading politicians of the South, to-
gether with the Northern Democracy, and
Andrew johnson at the head of the column.
This anti-natonal party argues that to be
once State is to be always . States, that
there can be no State suicide; that it's inn
possible for State, as such, by any act,
which she can commit, to forfeit and lose
any of her rights under the Constitution
She may attempt to seeede by the most for
NAL act and may actually wage war against
the government with all her resources, hut
the attempted secession being imperative
and void, she still remains State precisely
as before. with her local constitution and
laws unchanged, and that by simply placing
the administration in the hands OF loyal
men, the offence is purgeli, the State is quick
ened into new life and the status as it exis-
ted before rebellion is at once revived.
Such is the doctrine. 1t We accept it as
true, what are we bound to accept along with
it as logical consequeucesis ~. 49,
In the first place, the whole argument
lies within very narrow compass, If the
general government possessed the constitu-
tional right to coerce State, it possessed, as
natural result. the right to legislate for
such State as conquered territory. Turning
the proposition the other way, if the recent
legislation of Congress be Unconstitutional,
then Congress must stultify itself by saying
that the war of coercion was tyrannicai and
unjust ;l we a
But if the rebel States have forfeited none
of their constitutional rights, they are Justly
entitled TO the exclusive, control of all their
internal affairs. They may pass what laws
they please, and so long as these do not come
in immediate conflict with the constitution,
there would be no power ON earth to inter-
fere to prevent their execution To illus
trate. Although the colored race has been
declared emancipated, laws may still be pass
ed which refuse to recognize the marriage re-
. lation among them it may still be madea
crime to teach them to read and write: they
may be reduced to serfdou or finally be re-
enslaved. The rebel war debt may be as.
sumed. Those fire-tried Union men who
were true to the government in its hour of
l., I II.
In one word, it would be in the power of
these alleged States to adopt system of leg
islation which would turn into ashes all the
fruits of the war, costing SO much blood
and treasure. sd \ a iE s.
Again, if these States had lost none sAof
their Constitutional rights, it would have
been in their power to have defeated any
proposed constitutional amendment. Being
more than one-fiurth of the entire number
Of States, they might have vetoed BY SOL
id rebel vote any such amendment, although
the same might have been unanimously ap-
proved by Congress- and the voice of every
loyal man in the nation 80 e t;sa= ta;tlo
Further, what is to become of. West Vir-
ginia if the Democratic hypothesis be the
true one2 The constitution provides that
no State shall be dislnembered without its.
own consent Must Vne act OF 1907 ThIch
1aua Wss |,is n.a,e pe aec,a1ea v0 ana gal
Lon .an. ess GINA ma DC Stricken from among
'nI AZ ssd' !. az, tlfg1A,, T,.s.ig :. n III,
oont u ~ .n,s 'ne en.ess a.lllculIles ana
usou when lhust arse u tpe acts OF
Soas ,g9uirlns tWo-sliifei ma]orltles pc
cs;o eo nun .h aus. uou W reason ~ q tne ex
t;onai s. =, INC ,e.ese.as.ses o.
tion 1nh;"b ~ Mois5 IMAM 'ns' 1ne revo
sh,,,d mus. '''he placc y Tue resident
thot ud p,oeeeu 70 ~ tne assumption
Ciat congress ltseiL is an unc0nStltAt