Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-07-20

4 perform the very OutieS imposed on Its
own officers by this illegal State authority.
1t certainly would be novel spectacle if
Congress should attempt to carry on le-
| gal State government by the agency Of its
own officers. 1t is yet more strange that
| Congress attempts to sustain and to carry
on illegal State governments by some Fed
eral agency. In this connection, must
| call attention to the tenth and eleventh
sections of the bills which provide that
none of the officers or appointees of these
military commanders shall be bound,by his
action by an opinion of civil officer of
| the United States, that all the provisions
of the act shall be construed literally, to
the end that all intents thereof may be
| fully and perfectly carried out. 1t seems
that Congress supposed this bill might re-
quire construction, and they therefore ap-
piled this rule. But where is the construc-
ton to come from? Certainly no one can
be in want of construction more than
| soldier or an officer detailed for civil SER
| vice, perhaps the most important in the
| State, with the duties Of which he is alto.
| gether unfamiliar; and this bill says he
shall not be bound in his action by the
| opinion of any civil officer of the United
| States. The duties of the Office are alto
| gether civil, but when he asks for informal
ton, he can only ask the opinion OF an
| other military officer, who, perhaps. I'M
derstands as little of his duties as he
| does himself, and as to his action
| he is answerable to the military authority,
and the military authority alone. Strictly
| speaking, no opinion of any civil officer
other than Judge has a binding force
They might very well say, even when their
action is in conflict with the Supreme Court
| of the United States, that court is COM
| posed of civil officers of the United States
and we are not bound to conform our action
| to any opinion of any such authority"
| This bill, and the acts to which it is suppl
mental, are all founded upon the assump-
ton that thesete communities are not States
and their governments are not legal
| Throughout the legislation on this subject
they are called Rebel States, and in this
particular they are denominated so-called
States and the vice of illegally is declared
to pervade all of them, The obligations
of consistency bind a legislative body as
well as the individuals who compose it. 1t
is now too late to say these ten communities
are not States. Declarations to the con.
trary made in these three acts are contra
| dicted again and again by the repeated
acts of legislation by Congress from the
year 1861 to the year 1867. During that
period while the States were in actual re-
rebellion, and after that rebellion
was brought to a close, they were
again and again recognized as
States of the Union. Representatives
have been appointed to them they have
been divided into judicial districts for the
hnl 1f cfcsa -
the United States, as States of the Union
only can be districted The last act on
this subject was passed July I'D, 1866, by
which every one of the fifteen States was
arranged into districts, and they have been
called by Congress only to actthrough their
Legislatures upon the last two amendments
to the constitution of the United States as
States. They have ratified one amend
ment which required the votes of twenty
seven of the States composing the
Union. When the requisite twenty-seyeu
votes were given in favor of that amend
ment, seven of which votes were given by
seven of these States, 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 any
place subject to their jurisdiction. If these
seven States we're not legal States of the
Union, it follows as an inevitable conse-
quence that in some States slavery vet
exists. 1t does not exist in these seven
States, for they have abolished it, and that,
too, in their own State constitutions; Ken
lucky not having done so, it could still
remain in that State. But, in truth, if this
assumption that these States have no legal
State governments be true, then the aboli-
ton of slavery by these illegal govern
ments binds no one, for Congress denies
to these States the power to abolish slavery
by denying to them the power to elect a
legal State Legislature or frame consti-
tuition for any purpose, even for such a
purpose as the abolition of slavery. As
to the other constitutional amendments
having reference to suffrage, it happens
that these States have not accepted it.
The consequence is it has never been pro-
claimed or understood, even by Congress,
to be part of the constitution of the
United States. The Senate of the United
States has repeatedly given its sanction to
the appointment of Judges and district at
torneys for every one of these States; yet,
if they are not legal States, not one
of these Judges is authorized to
hold court. So too have both Houses of |
Congress passed appropriation bills, to
pay all these Judges, attorneys and officers
OF the United States, for exercising their
functions in these States.
Again, in the machinery of the internal
revenue laws, all these States are described
not as territories but as States The same
may be said as to judicial recognition.
The Supreme Court of the United States
has never failed to recognize these ten COM
munities as legal States of the Union.
The cases in that court upon appeal and |
will of error have not been dismissed on
any idea Of cessation of jurisdiction They
were carefully continued from term to
term, until the rebellion was entirely sub
dued, and peace established. They we're
called for argument and consideration, as
if no insurrection had interviewed New
cases, occurring since the rebellion, have
come from these States before that court.
by writ of error and appeal, and even by
original suit These cases are entertained
by that tribunal, in the exercise of acknowl-
edged jurisdiction, which could not attach
to them if they had come from any politi-
cal body other than State of the Union.
Finally, in the allotment of their circuits
made by the Judges at the December term.
AoOy, Sfct1 oue VI tu6oe STATES Is put on
the same footing of legality with all other |
States. Virginia and North Carolina be- |
ing part Of the fourth circuit are allotted |
to the Chief Justice; South Carolina.
Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi |
constitute the fifth circuit, and are allotted |
to the late Justice Wayne; Louisiana,
Arkansas aud Texas are allotted to the /
sixth circuit, in which is a vacancy on the /
bench. The Chief Justice in the exercise
of his duty has recently held a Circuit /
Court in North Carolina. If North Caro-
lima is not State Of the Union, the Chief
Justice had no authority to hold a court
there, and every judgement and decree
delivered by him in that court was coram
non JUDGE, and void.
Another ground on which the reconstruc-
ton acts are attempted to be sustained is
this, that these ten States are conquered
territories; that the constitutional relation
in which they stood as States towards the
Federal government, prior to the rebellion.
has given place to a new relation, that is.
their territory is conquered territory and
their citizens conquered people, and in
this new relation Congress can govern
them by military power. Il is new title
l.. L