The weekly loyal Georgian., 1867-08-10


tfould produce war, and ought not to
lsde attempted, and so 6eliering voted
.hpr or voluntarily aided secession, are
tfaitors against the government which
'nhey believed had rightful jurisdiction
ciiyer them; and all who so believing
ehsok on OATH 10 support the Constitution
OPT the United States, and afterward
1dided the rebellion, as it is called, are
Iabegared traitors.
eH There is but one mode of escape
hIrom the legal and moral guilt Of treason
Sind perjury left to Mr.. Hill, or any other
tenan, who took the oath to support the
dConstitution Of the United States and
tefterward aided in the war against the
United States. That escape is found
.4n the position occupied by the Seces-
sfionists and those who honestly believed
aAhat the State Of Georgia had, under
nshe compact, the right to secede and
rflm secede. What, then, follows ?
tAfter we seeded we were State
oaoreign 10 the United States.
i We had war with the United States
'$ls foreign power. After II gallant
tktruggle we were conquered by the
4 nited States, and became conquered
qbeople ont 81 the Union. We then
'yeeased to have any Constitutional rights
it'll re-admitted, except such as the
teonqueror chose to recognize. We had
jenly the rights which, by the laws of
lnatiOns and the laws of war, belong
to the conquered. What we term
Constitutional rights in this country
are not among the rights of the
conquered by the law of nations. The
amnesty oath administered to our
people at the dictation of the eonqueror,
in which each person is sworn to sup
mort the Constitution of the United
States, neither restores the seeded
States to the Union, nor imposes the
duty ON each individual in the con-
fquered Territory to resist " the laws
passed by the Congress of the con.
emeror, which no judicial tribu-
nal has declared unconsti tutional.-
-A simply means that we, as indt-
,ARlaats, will obey all laws passed by
!. Congress according to the forms of
fegiSlation prescribed by the Consttu-
Il Son, till they are repealed or declared
bid by the proper Constitutional tribu-
nal. In or out OF the Union, the oath
Ief the private citizen to support the
CONSTITUTION means no more than this ::
When law is passed by majority of
lCongress, with the approval of the
President, or by two thirds OF Congress-
lover the veto of the President, every
citizen and subject is bound to obey it
eill it is repealed or the proper Court
shas pronounced it unconstitutional and
void The Military Bills were so
passed, aud they have never been
declared void by the proper Constitu-
Htional tribunal. Till this is done, or
lthey are repealed, every citizen of the
United States, and every conquered
I subject Of foreign State, held by the
United States, is bound to submit to
ttheni.s lie supports the Constitution by
ssuf,mission 10 the laws passed according
tae iqFlFs le tbtp es essnAtsiftyR tiGsi 9de 9tdise
proper Constitutional tribunal.
Every man of common sense must
see that any other construction of the
oath would lead to endless confusion,
bloodshed, and anarchy. Our people
often differ about the constitutionaity
of acts passed by Congress. Courts of
high authority differ. If Mr.. Hills
position is right, each citizen is sworn
to act upon bis own construction, and
resist every law which he deems uncon-
stitutional, and defend all rights which
he believes he has under the ConStitu-
ton and in his own language, "Talk
for them, and if need be, before God
and the country, .fght and die for them"
Adopt this construction, that each citi'
zen is bound to resist all laws which he
deems unconstitutional, and We must
have constant .fghttng and constant
dyiJy. In other words, anarchy aud
confusion must supcrsede all law ana
all order, whenever we differ about
the constitutiouality Of acts OF Con
gress.
In his Atlanta speech, Mr.. Hill
cxclaims; so, how sorry Il creature Is
the man who cannot stand up .fot tic
truth when the country is in danger.
There never was such an opportunity
as now exists for man to show of what
stuff he is made" How unfortunate
for Mr.. Hills position that this did not
occur to him i'll 1861, when he voted
for secession, after having sworn to
support the Constitution of the United
States, and after having predicted hor-
rible bloody war in case Of secession,
and after having myed and begged
Georgia not to Sccede, What an op-
portunity he then had to show the stuff
OF which he was made. Why did he
not then "Stand by tic Constellation,
our only hope, and fght for it, and,
if need be, die for it, in his effort to
avoid perjury, and put down rampant,
bloody treason, which, if his present
position is right, the Convention
seemeddetermincd to commit! How
it was for the country, and
for the reputation of Mr.. Hill, if he be
now right, when he wrote his Dudley
letter, and when he made his Savannah
speech during the session Of the Con
yention, and threatened the invasion
of the North with fire and sword if
the people of the North attempted to
prevent our peaceable secession, and
when he voted for and signed the
Ordinance of Secession after having
sworn to support the Constitution that
the guardian angel of liberty did not
sound in his ears louder than seven
thunders, the elegant! chaste! language
of Mr.. Hill, marked in the quotations
below from No. 10 of his Notes.
o, Mr.. Hill, patriotic, political prophet,
toreSeeiHg great events after thy
occur, friend of liberty remember your
oath !!
81 ask you again and again, and |
beseech all men" ito ask" it is the
earnest anxious piercing appeal" of
the dying hope of liberty! Mr.. Hill
are you pilIiay 10 riolate Tie Constitu-
ton. Are you willing first to swear 10
support it, tcih the intent, at the same
time ofs,cearing to violate it2 Then |
proclaim, your hell-mortgaged con
science will never cease to proclaim
you are peJurcd, and perjury IS not haY
your crime; you commit PeyHry IN
order 10 become q traitor.
0, Mr.. Hill, think think discard
ambition and turn deaf ear to the
allurements of office! stand by the
Constitution rote against secession!
aud tbarabv avert the bloody war YOU
have predicted. Remember yoHr oath