The Van Buren press., 1867-02-08
REPORT OF THE C0MMIs sIONRRs
APPOINTED TO VISIT THE CITY
OF WASHINGTON. @

ne ulucrslgneu, tnc cOmUl!ttce ap
pointed by joint resolution of the Cen
eral Assembly to visit Washington, for
the purpose of comforting with the Gov
ernment on the various subjects involv-
ing the interests ofthe State of Arkansas,
beg leave to present the following report
The committee reached the National
Capitol on the evening of the lst of Jan
uary. AS soon as possible, they called
on the President OF the United States,
who received them in most cordial
manner, and in o most unreseryed con-
yersation, the great questions involving
the interest of Arkansas, and her sisters
of the South, were freely discussed. AT
the close of the interview his Excellency
invited the committee to visit him the
next day, for the purpose Of meeting and
having an interview with the members OF
his Cabinet, which was accepted. At the
appointed time your committee were in
troduced to these gentlemen, and also to
General Grant, who was present on the
occasion. All expressed qualification at
meeting commission from the State of
Arkansas. One member Of the Cabinet
remarked that they regarded Arkansas as
'already reconstructed" Another said,
'this is a move in the right direction,
which it is hoped other Southern States
will initiate" Your committee also had
interviews with Senators and members of
the House Of Representatives gentlemen
representing the different shades of opin-
ion on the questions now so prominently
before the country.
From all they saw and heard, your
committee are not disposed to close their
eyes to the fact that there is an a,ltagon-
ism between the Legislative and the Ex-
ecutive Departments Of Government
This is true especially as to the status of
the Southern States-Congress claiming
on the one hand that these States are CON
quered provinces, and the Executive
maintaining with unabated earnestness
that they are States in the Union, entitled
to all their constitutional rights The
Supreme Court, the head Of another de
partment of the Government, is looked to
now as the umpire in this controversy,
and your committee are unanimously of
the opinion that the view taken of this
question by the Executive will be sus-
tanned by this high judicial tribunal The
committee could give reasons for coming
to this conclusion. but they do not deem
it proper to say more in this report than
to give the conclusions at which they ar
rived, from having frequent interviews
with distinguished gentlemen connected
with the different departments Of the
Government. "F
Having reached the above conclusion,
we feel justified in expressing the opinion
that the present State government Of Ar
kansas--so generally acquiesced in by
the people-will be sustained and pre-
served, despite all the efforts made to de-
stroy it by disappointed office. seekers in
our midst. "Congress cannot unmake
States" Common sense, law, the Con-
stitution, all sustain the truthfulness of
the proposition. Congress may pass bills
territorializing the Southern States, but
the Supreme Court, We confidently be-
lieve, will decide that Congress has no
such power, and consequently the en-
ablng act will be dead letter on the
statute book, for the reason that claws
cannot execute themselves - and should
Congress attempt to do so, contrary to
the decision Of the Supreme Court, Con-
gress would be placed before the country
and the world in the unenviable attitude
of rebelling against the constituted au-
thority Of the Government. Your com
mittee are Of the opinion that the "sober
second thought of the country, with the
memories of the struggle through which
the nation passed in the years lS6l--5,
will be slow to take such q STEP Your
committee, therefore, feel that their fel-
low citizens should "bravely hope and
wisely wait coming events. Standing
as we do on the broad principles Of the
Constitution, we have no concessions to
make, no compromise to offer and if in
the sweep Of coming events the last YES.
tise Of constitutional liberty shall give
way, we shall have the proud conscious
ness Of knowing that we have preserved
our honor, and, having preserved this un-
tarished, we can submit Your commit
tee, however, think it proper to say in
this connection that they believe firmly,
confidently believe, that there is no
ground for dependency, but ON the con
trary, good and substantial reasons to
hope for the best We would not mock
our fellow citizens by holding out prom
ises that we believe never can be realized.
What we have said we think fully justi.
fed by the view we have Of the political
situation" A
But apart from politics, there is an in.
fuence which, though silent in its opera
tons, is no less powerful in its effects -
The interests Of trade, Of commercial in.
tercourse between the States, are doing
their work, and they are the most pow,
crful and effective agents with which
politicians of the extreme class have to
contend. While these men are giving
forth their utterances in the halls OF Con.
gress, the demands Of commerce, the ma.
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