Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1867-09-12
The Truth Confessed.

Thaddeus Stevens, being on his
death-bed, has just confessed truth
which should alarm the fears and
arouse the attention of the people
everywhere. In letter to his friend,
Samuel Shock, dated Lancaster, Pa.
August 26, 1867, he distinctly declares
that the whole legislation of Congress,
in the matter of Reconstruction, y
was contrary to, and outside of the
Constitution of the United States,
and that the Radical majority in both
Houses Of Congress knew that they
were acting totally without constitu-
tional authority. Speaking of the
refusal of the Senate TO concur with
the House in bill introduced by
himself prohibiting the removal Of
the District Commanders without the
consent Of the Senate, Mr.. Stevens
said: "Some of the members of the
Senate seemed to doubt their power
under the Constitution, Dhich Mey
had Just repudidted, and wholly outside
of ,chich all agreed that zoe were acting,
else our ichoIe lOork Of reconstruction
toas uSurpation I" This is a bold and
bald avowal that the Radical party of
the country, acting through their
representatives in Congress, has know
ingly and by consent, overthrow the
fundamental law of the nation, usurped
unlimited power, and, ever since the
war ceased, been pursuing course
entirely despotic and revolutionary.
The Democratic press have asserted
and re-asserted this fact during the
last five years, but without awaking
the people to conviction of its truth.
But will they not open their eyes
and behold how fearfully their liber-
ties have been and are yet being vio-
lated, now that the leader of the
Radical party in Congress, speaking
as dying man, and in the presence
of the terrible judgment to which be
is hurrying, plainly and explicitly
confesses his atrocious treason ?
Not content with acknowledging,
simply, that he and his confederates
in crime, have deliberately treated
Educational Constitution, which they
were all sworn to defend and preserve,
as if it were dead thing, he declares
finally, in the very last lines of his
letter, that QegiSldtion without author
ity and reconstruction by uSurpdtiOn, is
very alarming-is worse than Copper
headism" This confession, Mr.. Ste
vens, may be good for your soul. The
country may thank you for having
made a clean breast of it even at this
late hour. You and your party have
been and are worse rebels against the
Government, than even the Southern
insurgents, who only sought to with
draw from the Government, not to
destroy it, You and your party have
destroyed the Union by destroying
ten Of its integral members-ten
States, which you have converted
into military districts and subjected
to military tyranny-and in doing
that, you have, by your own avowal,
done more than Davis and his armies
ever attempted or designed-you have
abolished the Federal Constitution
and left the entire country, North
and South, without supreme, organic
law, except in name. 1t remNins,
nevertheless, though practically sus.
pended, but it will never recover its
authority in any part of this land, so
long as the party which has wilfully |
set it aside and "repudiated" it in
Congress, are continued in power by |
the suffrages of the people. The
restoration of the Constitution, and
with it the Union, can never take
place as long as Radical Republican
ism is dominant in the Government.
Mercury.