The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-01-12
SATURDAY, JANUARY IL, 1867.
The Inconsistent Attitude of the Pest
dent and his Supporters.


banquet on Tuesday night, in Washington,
read the following toast:-
''No state, Of its own will has "a right, under
the Constitution, TO renounce its place in or to
withdraw from the Union. Nor has the Con.
gress of the United States constitutional
power to degrade the people OF any state by
reducing them to the condition of mere terri
tOriat dependency upon the Federal head. The
one is q dsruption-a dissolution of the Gov
ernment; the other is a consolidation, ana an
extreme of despotic power. The advocates OF
the latter are also the enemies OF the Union
and of our constitutional form OF government"
This is a subterfuge. The only reduction
of States to a condition of dependency upon
the Federal head" that has been made by any
body was made by President Johnson
himself, when he overthrew the Southern
State Governments at the close of the war,
kicked their Governors, judges, and Legisla-
lures out of office, and placed their people
under. the absolute rule of the military
power.
The simple question that now remains is,
whether the pretended State Governments
which Mr.. johnson has gotten up to ill the
places of the old ones that he overthrew, are
valid and constitutional?
Why do not the President and his friends
meet this question fairly and boldly? Why
do they pettifog it and try to lug in false
issuesP II the theory that they are now pre-
tending to act upon be correct, then the
TtgbtttL State Governments at the South are
the ones which Mr.. johnson overthrow at the
close of the war, and the present contrIvances
called State Governments, gotten up by the
President and bis agents, are mere usurpa-
tions.
The truth is that Mr.. Johnson started out
on this business of reconstruction upon the
radical theory that the rightful State Gov
ernments of the Rebel States had been dis
solved by the Rebellion, and that those CON-
munities were Without any lawful civil gov
eminent whatever. In accordance with this
theory, he overthreT the State Governments
that were then in existence in the South
State Governments that had come down by
regular unbroken succession from the old
Governments under which they had severally
been admitted to the Union; State Govern
ments that had remained intact and in full
and undisputed operation throughout the
whole war; State Governments that were the
undoubted choice Of the people; State Gov
ernments that had ceased all rebelhous
action, and were ready and anxious to re-
sumo their old relations with the Union;
State Governments, in short, that, according
to the conservative theory, were valid and
constitutional, and entitled to Federal pro-
lection.
Having thus abolished the Southern State
Governments and reduced the Southern COM
munities to a condition far beLo,g that of Ter
ritories, condition of total anarchy, except
for the rule Of the Provost Marshal and the
military commandant, Mr.. Johnson paused
And here let us pause, and press home upon
Mr.. johnson and his apologists the utter,
rreconcilable Inconsistency of their present
position with his action at that time. II
their present theory be correct, then the
overthrow of these State organizations was
the most sweeping and comprehensive mea-
sure of usurpation ever attempted in this
Government, and Mr.. Johnson should be in
stantly impeached for it. In his own Ian
guage, it was "an extreme Of despoic power"
How monstrously inconsistent for the Presi-
dent non to hold up his hands in simulated
horror over the destruction Of State Govern
mentsl IT his own theory be correct, the
Governments he has cooked up at the South
should be instantly overthrown, and the old,
righttul governments be restored. There is
not a valid Cove nment in any Southern
State. They are all the fruit of revolution.
Governor Worth aud his Legislature, in
North Carolina, should retire to private le
and Governor Vance and his Legislature
should be restored to their old positions
Governor Orr should vacate in South Caro-.
lima and give place to Pickens; and 50 in
every Southern State. The States should be
restored to the status they had when Mr.. John
sons unconstitutional and revolutionary inter
ference began, Was there ever an example
of an engineer more thoroughly hoisted by
his own petard?
But it may be thought that if, acco riding tC
the conservative theory, Mr.. Johnson's SLat
Governments are illegal and revolutionary
then, according to the radical theory, the.
are valid and righttul. Not at all. Tn
radical theory is that Mr.. johnson did righ
n overtime wing the old State Govern
ments OF the South, because the
were no longer Governments in the Unior
but were RebeI Governments hostile t
the Union. This was Executive wor
as head of the army engaged in putin
down the Rebellion. But here Mr.. Johnson
rightful functions ceased. The formation {
State Governments to succeed these owe
thrown Rebel Governments was no part {
his business. 1t W s necessarily Legislative