Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-07-22
3IgI3a9Mi
90 00 0JIAG
Vol. KXXIV. .AHA14o

eral authority only, and the inevitable re-
suit issthat the Federal Government. blythe
agency Of its own officers, in effect assumes
the civil government of the State.
, A singular Jeentradietion is spparent
here. Congress declares these local State
governments to be illegal governments,
and then provides that these illegal govern
ments shall be e'carried on by Federal off,
GERS, who are to perform tile very duties
imposed on its,own officers by this Illegal
State authority. 1t certainly would be a
novel spectacle If Congress should attempt
to carry on legal-State government by
the agency of its own officers. 1t is yet
more strange that Congress attempts to
sustain and carry on an illegal State gov
ernInent by the same Federal agency.
In this connection must call attention
to the tenth and eleventh sections of the
bill, which provide that none of the officers
or appointees of these military command-
ers shall be bound in his action by any
opinion of a civil officer of the United
States, and that 1.-THE provisions of the
act shall be construed literally to the end
that alt intents thereof may be fully and
perfectly carried out. 1t seems that Con-
gress supposed this bill might require con-
structiOn, and they, therefore applied this
rule But where is the construction to
come from Certainly no one can be more
In want of construction than q soldier or an
officer detailed for civil service-perhaps
the most Important in State-with the
duties of which he is altogether unfamiliar.
This bill says he shall not be bound in his
action by the opinion of any civil officer OF
the Unibed States. The duties of the Office
are altogether civil, but when he asks for
advice he can only ask the opinion of an
other military officer, who, perhaps, un-
derstands as little of his duties as he does
himself, and as to his action he is answer
able to the military authority alone. Strict
ly, no opinion of any civil officer, other
than Judge, has a binding force, but
these military appointees could not be
bound by judicial opinion. They might
very well say, even when their action is
in conflict with the Supreme Court of the
United States, "that Court is composed.of
civil officers of the United States, and we
are not bound to conform our action TO any
opinion of2any such authority."9q
This bill, and the acts to which it is sup
Elemental, are all founded upon the as
sumption that these ten communities are
not States, and their governments are not
legal, Throughout the legislation upon
this subject they are called rebel States,
and in this particular they are denomin-
ated so-called States, and the vice of ille-
gaiity is declared to pervade all of them.
Thelobli cations of consistency bind a leg
islative body as'welf as the individuals who
compose it. ssis leucm1h lt arlf- .5 ia1 eis
It is now too lateto say that these ten
communities are not States Declarations
to the contrary made in these three acts are
contradicted again and again by repeated
acts of legislation by Congress, from the
year 1861 to the year 1857 During that
period, while the States were in actual re-
b. llion, and alter that rebellion was brought
to close, they have again and again been
recognized as States of the Union. Rep
resentatives have been apporrioned to them.
They have been divided into Judicial Dis
tricts for the holding of District and Cir
rtrtC ~, ,-fa .zfe 81 Nol o.
OF the Union only can be districted. The
hst act on this subject was passed July %,
1856, by which every one of the ten States
was arranged into districts and circuits
They have been called ooH by Congress
to act, through their Legislatures, upon
at'least two amendments to the Constitu-
tion Of the United States as States, They
have ratified one amendment, which re-
quired the vote of ftwenty-seven States Of
the thirty-six composing the Union, when
the requisite twenty-sevenr votes were
given in. favor of that amendment, seven
of which were given by seven of these
States, and it was proclaimed to be part of
the Constitution of the United States, and
slavery was declared no longer to exist
within the United States, or, in any place
subject to their Jurisdiction. II these
seven States were not legal States to the
Union, it follows, as an inevitable sconse-
quence, that in some of the States slavery
yet exists. 1t does not exist in these seven
States, for -they= have abolished it also in
uifefr state Constitutions; hnt Kentucky
not having done SO, iG could still remain in
that State. = sore s-. i. p, ~ 7i., On
r.But, in truth, if. this assumption that
these States have no legal State govern
ments be true, then the abolition of sla-
very by these llegalgovernments binds 10
one, for Congress now denies these States
the power to abolish slavery, by denying
to them the power to elect a legal State
Legislature, or to frame a State Constiu-
ton for any purpose, even for such pur-
pose as the abolition of slavery.
AS to the other constitutional amend
ment, having reference TO suffrage, it hap
pens that these States have not accepted
it. The consequences is it has never been
proclaimed or understood even by Congress
to be a part of the Constitution of the
United States. a'' - 9i' 81 1'i-'e '''s
The Senate of the United States has re-
peatedly given its sanction to the appoint
ment of judges and district attorney s for
every one of the States; yet,e II they are
not legal States, not one of these judges is
authorized to hold court. 9 :. 8
SO, too, both Houses of Congress have
passed appropriation bills to pay all these
judges, attorneys and officers of the United
States for exercising their functionsint these
States. -s'4 1927 '' s2s1 I--e 'el'l2' d .-sf-
Again, in the machinery of the Internal
Revenue laws all these States are described,
not as Territories, but as States.
So much for the continuous legislative,
The instances cited, however,
fall far short of all that might be enumer-
ated. Executive recognition, as is we'll
known, has been frequent and unwayering.
The same may be said as to judicial recog-
milton through the Supreme Court of the.
United States. That august tribunal, from
first to last, in the administration of its
duties in bank and upon the circuit, has
never failed to recognize these ten commu-3
mites as legal States of the Union. The
cases in that court upon appeal and writ Of
error, from these States where the rebellion
began, have not beendismissed on any idea
of cessation of jurisdi erfon. They were
continued from term TO term until
the rebellion was entirely subdued and
peace established. when they were called
for argument and consideration as if no
had intervened. New cases.
occurring since the rebellion, by writ t'of
error and appeal, and even by original suit.
These cases are entertained by that tribu-s
nal in the exercise of acknowledged juris-
1iction, which could not attach 70 them if
they had come from any political body
pther than State of the Union. -
Finally. in the allotment of their circuits,
made by the Judges at the December term,
1865, every one of the States is put on the
same footing of legality with, all other
States. Virginia and North Carolina being
q part of the Fourth Circuit, are allotted
to the Chief Justice. South Carolina,
Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi
constitute the Fifth Judicial Circuit. and
are allotted to the late Mr.. Justice Wayne
Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas are allotted
to the Sixth Judicial Circuit. IN which is a
on the bench. The Chief Justice,
In the exercises of his duty, has recently
held Circuit Court in North Carolina If
North Carolina is not State of this Union,
the Chief Justice had no authority to hold
! court there, and every Judgment and de-