The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1867-08-06

or the appointment of some other person.
This military officer, whether an officer or
soldier, is to perform the duties of such
officer, or person SO superseded, or remov.
ed. In other words, an officer or soldier
of the army is transformed into civil
officer. He may be made governor, a
or a. Judge. However unfit he
may deem himself for such civil duties, he
must obey the order. The officer, if de.
tailed, must 60 on the supreme bench Of
the State,with the same prompt obedience
as if detailed to act In court martial
The soldier, if detailed to act as justice
Of the peace, must obey as quickly as II
detailed for picket duty.
What is the character of such military
and civil officers? The bill declares that
he shall perform the duties of the civil
Office to which he is detailed. tits clear,
however, that he does not lose his posi-
tion in the military service. He is still
an officer or soldier. He is still subject
to the rules and regulations which gov
ern the army, and must yield due respect
and obedience toward his superiors. The
clear intent of this section is that .he Of
or soldier, detailed to fill civil Office
must execute its duties according to the
laws of the State. If he is appointed a
Governor of State, he is to execute the
duties as provided by the laws Of that
State, and for the tinie being his military
character is to be suspended in his new
civil capacity. If heis appointed State
Treasurer, he must at once assume the
custody and disbursement of the funds of
the State, for he is intrusted with no 9TH
er official duty or other official power
Holding the Office of Treasurer, and in
trusted with funds, it happens he is re.
quired by State law to enter into bond
with security, and take an oath of Office;
yet from the beginning of the bill to the
end there is no provision of any bond or
oath of Office, or for any single quali6ca-
tion required under the State law, such as
residence, citizenship, or anything else.-
The only oath is that provided for in the
ninth section, by the terms of which ey-
cry one detailed or appointed to any civil
Office in the State, is required to take the
oath of Office prescribed by law for officers
of the United States. Thus an officer OF
the army of the United States, detailed
to fill an Office in one of these States, gives
no bond and takes no official cath for the
performance Of his new duties; but, as .
civil officer of the State, only takes the
same oath which he had already taken Of
military officer of the United States
He is at last military officer performing
civil duties, and the autho ority under whict
he acts is Federal authority only, and the
inevitable result is that the Federal Gov
ernment, by the agency of its own officers
In effect assumes the civil government O
the State.
A singular contradiction is apparen
here. Congress declares these local Stat'
Governments to be illegal Governments
and then provides that these Illegal gov
/ ernments shall be carried on by Fedora
officers, who are to perform the very du
ties imposed on its own officers by this il
Illegal State authority. 1t certainly woult
j be novel spectacle if Congress shoult
attempt to carry on legal State Govern
ment by the agency of its own officers. /
lis yet more strange that Congress at
tempts to sustain and carry on an illega
State Government by the same Fedora
Iagency.
i In this connection / must call atten
tien to the tenth and eleventh sections o
1.-THE bill, which provide that none Of tn
officers or appointees of these militar.
commanders shall be bound in his actiol
Ilby any opinion of a civil officer Of th
| United States, and that all the provision
of the act shall be construed literally t
i the end that all intents thereof may b
fully and perfectly carried out. 1t seem
. that Congress supposed this bill Nigh
require construction, and they therefor
lappliei this rule. But where is the con
F struction to come from? Certainly no on
lean be more in want Of construction tina
! d soldier or an officer detailed for civi
service-perhaps the most important in
{ lState--with the duties of which he is al
|, together unfamiliar. This bill says h
shall not be bound in his action by th
opinion of any civil officer in the Unite
Estates. The duties of the Office are alto
gether civil, but when he asks for advic
he can only ask the opinion of anotbe
military officer, who, perhaps, understand
as little Of his duties as he does himsel
: land as to his action he is answerable
s the military authority alone. Strictly
opinion of any civil officer, other than
S Judge, has binding force,but these mi
. litary appointees could not be bound by
Judicial opinion. They might very we
Q say, even when their action is in confii
E with the Supreme Court of the Units
States, "that Court is composed of civ
J. officers Of the United States, and we a
5 mot bound to conform our action to an
= opinion of any such authority"
e This bill, and the acts to which it
E supplemental, are all founded upon Il
i assumption that these ten communities a
r not States, and in thislparticular they a
r denominated so o-called States and the VII
Y of illegality is declared to pervade all
d them. The obligations Of consistent
y bind Legislative body as we'll as the i
{, dividuals who compose it.
! 1t is now too late to say that these t.
communities are not States. Declaratio
: to the contrary made in these three &C
g are contradicted again and again by +
d peated acts Of legislation by Cengres
i from the year 1861 to the year 1867
r. During that period while the States we
/ in actual rebellion, and after that rebelli,
L -. - alnrn than hama nnn