The native Virginian. [volume] (Orange Court House, Va.) 1867-187?, 1867-12-06
[From NE Baltinore S,m.l
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
IFS CHARACTER AND suooEsrioNs.

trs CHARACTER AKIN sreovsrto>s
~.
At the very Threshold the Presi,len
enters upon that question reconstruc
{ tioh whicttis unnermost m mem minds
He declares that the duty at the clos
ofa civil war. To renoiI. ifs ininries An,
secure. as fully and M snendy ne nossi
BILE. the f,enefit of IFS losSons wa
promptly accented Mt the terninotio,
of hostilities. not only nv the evacntiy'
department.. but nv the insurrectionn,,
States themselves: but tbaexnectotio,.
of restoration. which If was hone
would follow. have been dieannoi,,to,
by legislation. from which thp Presi
| dent felt constrained, NV bis ohl;rotion.
to the constitution, 70 vitbhoId his nc
sent. UCandor,n SAVE tho President
s!compels me to declare that of iii.
time. there is no Union as orr father,
understood the term. and as they mean
| it to be understood nv us.n Whilst the
views of the President unon this hrapcl
of the subject are. in the main. the same
which he has expressed ON this suhiect
on former occasions. they are .xpressed
in tone of even greater emphasis and
earnesthess.
He shows that the States lately in re-
bellion are still members ofthe nation
al Union, and that if we admit now that
the ordinances of secession" were VAL
| id and effectual for the purpose intend
| ed by their authors, we sweep from mn
der our feet the whole ground upon
which the war was justified. Nor were
those States afterwards espelled from
the Union by the war. the direct con-
trary of which was averred by the goy-
eminent to be it's purpose, and it can
not be that q successful war. waoed for
the preservation of the Union. had the
legal effect of dissolving it. To dis
solve the Union is to repeal the consti-
tuition which holds it together, and that
this is il power which does not belong
to any department of this government
or all of them united. has been acknow-
lodged not only by the executive i'm it's
action upon the subject. but bv Con.
gress. in submitting an amendment Of
the constitution to be ratified nv the
Southern States. and aecentins tbn;r
acts of ratification: by tbn iudiciarv,
where Judges have included the SoutR-
ern States in their c;rouits AVA 90
constantly EXERCISING inri sdicti on.
which does not beloi1o to theIn nnJess
these States are in The Union. Thc
declaration of CONGRESS. Nv ,lroet
unanim3,is vote ON 22d Jnlv 1851 ne
also quoted. that the war. was SOLELY for
the preservaiion of the ITnion and ;s
pronounced bv the President n solemn
public official pled0e of tho nationaI
honor. and which WAS not made In roll
els only. but drew thousands of Ioval
men in the South. and hundreds of
thousands i'm the North, To o.ive their
lives in the belief that the nleIoe would
be carried out, and the violation of
which would make the war NOT only n
failure but n fraud. Tbe Presidapt
acts of Congress which place ten of the
of military masters, snd very courte-
ously, though pointedly, says to Con-
gress. "If calm reflection shall satisfy
a majority ofoour honorable bodies that
the acts referred to are not only vio-
lation of the national faith, but in direct |
conflict with the constitution, dare
not permit myself to doubt that you
will Immediately strike them from the |
statute book" et ;" '' |
The President then proceeds to DEM |
onstrate, from the general provisions of |
the acts referred to, that they are not |
only Objectionable for their assumption
Of ungranted power, but many of them
are in conflict with the direct prohibit
lions of the constitution. In addition
to their nconstitutionality, the Presi- |
dent regares them as the most unrea-
sonable mode of punishment that could
be invented, inasmuch as they confound
the innocent and the guilty in one com
non and indiscriminate doom. AL
;hough the military government is 70
De only provisional, Vet if the puaran-
ees of the constitution can be broken.
to serve temporary pur-
,ose, and in a part only of the country.
hey can be DESTROYED everywhere. and
or all time. '-0lIC
Tn REGARD to nocro CIV tr.ooo t,,op
dent expresses himseif aSni; IHe 1 81
,arnestIv Whilst hold;npp t thatt ' thu
Hacks III tbe South oro ont;fio H., ~ ono
he nrotection of met 1o,,,s so,. ~ ti i',tu
RIGHTS of nerson and nronart, az ~ .,' W.,
nav add. II is admitted theV b,yo V to th o
nIIest extent in War,,io,y5 n'' 1872. e,o
lew constitution and 1--we IVY oua
hat il is not nronosed mareiny tho+ t Fly
hall Govern than seI,os M ' ,'Io S ~
White race. make and od,,,i,;s+a,. Gu. o,o
avs. elect Presidents and menhar 80
CONGRESS-. and shane to araato, ~ ".
ess Extent tho fnt,r,o " S,eatei "
ybole country. Snch trnst n;d , ~ .me
~ contends. wonlI not he sa u, i r., H.
ands of n race in whose ~ ba Sale II, ;ne
ependenf form Of @overn n"s h no IN
r f,rrn snrces FIJI 1911 LII mas ~.
are icnorant Of .+ Tn0 no a. on.s
from the;r forY,,n a.'oio "a, ~
ION of seryitude1 The i,fnanoo e 90 tho
iectiye franchise for good is donoo " ont
n the intejlinenca aIS,i i - opei1uehO
! whose hands II is niacod !. vi" t. o th slose
{ those INTELLIGENT forei~noro %" ,v vl,o oase
rrate here we reon;re ras;d %rro Gu