Weekly New Oregon plain dealer. (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1866-1867, 1867-05-10
state Snicide and Congress-
iOral strangIs.afl0n.

Nv NSNASh "a = ~--N'-''N - NN"-'-N'''
ia recognizing the Southern States
vas evidently based upon The theory
that States might commi: political
suicide. In this view Congress con
ours Mr.. Johnson assuming that
they have not absolutely done tA;s,
but that the measures Of Congress
are adopted with view to State
strangulation,
This difference in views, nstura lly
produced some disscnsicn as to which
Congress or the President, had the
power to restore the South. The
President, believing the authority
vested in himself, and Congress de-
terring action, he appointed agents,
and assumed for them the name Of
governors, pretending to give them
a sort of authority to fix matters up.
Congress claiming that 50 great a
usurpation could not be practiccd
and it's influence ignored.
The error Of the President was in
admitting SO great fallacy, as that
q State could by rebellion or other
means destroy itself; that by any
such means a valid State Govern
ment could be destroyed. The posi-
tion granted, that a few zealots may
by their indiscretion destroy a State.
and Government by the people
Iangs upon thread as brittle as
life. The treaty between Sherman
and Johnston took the right ground,
1t left nothing for reconstruction,
assuming that the States as they
were, were valid Governments.
No part of the Federal Constitu.
lion provides that the Governor,
Judges or members oftbc State Leg
stature, forfeit their Offices by re-
sisting the real or supposed authori
ty of the Federal Governments
Neither had Congress ever made, or
supposed it had authority toe enact
laws that should invade States. de-
Irivc Governors and others IN au-
'lority of their commission, and
strip the ermine from the judiciary.
- In the time Of JaCksols acGului,-
tration South Carolina proposed to
resist the tariff laws Of the United
States, as unjust and oppressive to
her interests; but nobody ever sup
pvscd at that time that States could
be punished by forfeiture Of their
offices or that the incumbents could
be even temporarily displaced by
Federal authority.
a number Of Northern States pass
ed enactments to nullfy a United
States law, commencing back in
such action anterior to 1851; vet
nobody ever supposed that they had
forfeited their rights as States, or
that any Of the State officers could
be removed, except BY tho States
themselves.
Tho true doctrine is that States
as such can do no wrong; that indi-
viduals may, but that the indivdu-
ais and not the State must be held
to punishment, by the proper author
ity, and under laws existing prior to
the commission Of the wrong.
The assumption of both the prcs-
ident and Congress was unconstitu
tional and revolutionary; and the
one was only the more tolerable to
us than the other, in that it pro-
posed less degree Of violence and
usurpatlon.
We are aware there are among
the opposition those who would in
flict heavier penalties because as
thcy allegc this was an attempt TO
break up the Union. Such men
forgot that the present leaders Of
the ,'onssel, or Republican party
organized thirty years ago for the
overthrow ofthe Union; that in 1856
they carried banners, flags and de-
vices representing only the 16 States
of the North, which they hoped to
carry out Of the Union. Such men
not unfrequontly accuse the Demo
cratic party Of breaking up the
Union.
They would do we'll to recall the
fact that for three-fourths of centu-
ry the country prosper
ed under Democratic rule:
and that only when their own party
assumed power was the Union bro
ken up. Then let them remember
the purpose for which their leaders