The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-07-22


office of Treasurer, and intrusted with
funds, 1t happens he is requiled by the
State laws to enter into bond with
security and fake an oath of Office; yet
from the beginning oil the bill to the
end there is no provision for any bond
or oath OF Office, or for any single quail
ificatiou required under the State law,
such as residence, citizenship or any
thing else. The only oath Is that pro-
vided for in the ninth section, by the
terms of which every one detailed or
appointed to any civil office In the State,
is required TO take The oath of office re-
quired by law for officers of the United
States. Thus an officer of the army of
the United States, detailed TO fill II civil
office in one of these States, gives no
bond and takes no official oath for the
performance of his new duties; but. as
II civil officer OF the State, only takes
the same oath which he had already
taken as Il military officer of the United
States. He is at last II military officer
performing civil duties, and the author
iIy under which he acts is Federal au-
thority only, and the inevitable result
is that the Federal Government, by the
agency of its own officers, In effect as
sumes the civil government OF the
State.
A singular contradiction Is apparent
here. Congress declares these local
State governments to be illegal govern
menIs, and then provides that these
illegal governments shall be carried on
bV Federal officers, who are 10 perform
the very duties imposed onits own oth-
GERS by this illegal State authority. II
certainly would be a novel spectacle if
Congress should attempt TO carry on a
legal State government by the agency
OF its own officers. 1t is yet more
strange that Congress attempts to sus-
tain and carry on an illegal State gov
ernmenI by the same Federal agency.
III this connection l must call atten-
tion to the tenth and eleventh sections
of the bill, which provide that none OF
the officers or appOlntees OF these mill
tary commanders shall be bound in his
action by any opinion OF civil officer
of the United States, and that all the
provisions of the act shall be construed
liberally 10 the end that all intents
thereof may be fully and perfectly car
ried ont. It seems that Congress sup
posed this bill might require construc-
IiOn, and they therefore applied this
rule. But where is the construction to
come from? Certainly no one can be
more in want of construction than a
soldier or an officer detailed for Il civil
service-perhaps the most important in
IA Stale-with the duties of which he is
altogether unfamiliar. 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 altogether civil, but when he asks
for advice he can only ask the opinion
of another military officer, who, per-
hnps, understands as little of his duty
as he does himself, and as to his action
he is auSwerable to the military author
ity and TO Ihe military authority alone.
Strictly, no opinion of any civil officer,
other than Judge, has binding
force, but these military appointees
Il t,,,f lNa hon nd "a fnHipiul amin
ion. They might very well say, even
when their action is in conflict with the
Supreme Court OF the United States,
''that Court is composed 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 II is
supplemental, are all founded upon the
assump ption that these ten communities
are not States, and their governments
are not legal. Throughout the legisla-
ton upon this subject they are called
rebel States, and in this particular they
are denominated sO-called States, and
the vice of illeguliTy is declared to per-
wade all OF them. The obligations of
consistency bind Il legislative body as
well as the individuals who compose it.
II is now too late to say that these ten
communities are not States. Declara-
tions to the contrary made in these three
acts are contradicled again and again
by repeated acts of legislation by Con-
gress, from the year 1861 to the year
1867. During that period, while The
States were in actual rebellion, and af-
ter that rebellion was brought to IA
close, they have again and again been
recognized as States of the Union.
representatives have been apporIiOned
to them. They have been divided into
I Judicial Districts Tor the holding OF
District and Circuit Courts ofthe United
States, as States of the Union only can
be districted. The last act on this sub
ject was passed July %, 1865. by which
every one of the ten States was arranged
into districts and circuits.
They have been called on by Congress
to act, through their Legislatures, upon
aL least two amendments to the COnsti-
tuition OF the United States, as States.
They haye ratified one amendment,
which required the vote oftwenty seven
States of the thirty-six composing the
Union, when the requisite twenty seven
votes were given in favor of that
amendment, seven of which were given
by seven OF these States, and it was pro-
claimed to be part OF the Constitution
OF the United States, and slavery was
declared no longer to exist within the
United States, or in any place subject
to their jurisdiction. II these seven
States were not legal States of the
Union, it follows, as an inevitable con-
sequence, that in some OF the States
slavery yet exists. 1t does not exist in
these seven States, for they have abol-
| ished 1t also In their State constitutions
but Kentucky not having, done so, ii
could still remain in that state.
But, in truth, ifthiS assumption that
these States have nolegal State govern
| ments be true, then the abolition OF
slavery by these Illegal governments
binds no one, for Congress now denies
10 these States the power TO abolish
slavery, by denying TO them the power
| to elect a legal Stale Legislature, or to
| frame IA State constitution for any pur-
pose, even for such purpose as the
abolition of slavery.
AS to the other constitutional amend
| ment, having reference to suffrage, 1t
happens that these States have not ac-
cepted 1t. The consequence is that it
| has never been proclaimed or under
stood 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 APP
| pointment of judges and district attor-
| neys for every one of these States; yet
| ifthey are not legal States, not one of
these judges is authorized to hold a
i court.
! So, too, both Houses of Congress have
passed appropriation bills to pay all
| these judges, attorneys aud officers OF
the United States for exercising their
| functions in these States.
| Again, in the machinery of the Inter-
| nal Revenue laws all these States are
described, not as Territories, but as
| States.
So much for the continuous legisla-
tive recognition. The instances cited
however, fall far short of all that might