The Montana post., 1868-03-14
HOW 1T CAME ABOUT AND
WHAT THERE Is OF 1T.

WHAT THERE Is OF 1T.
The impeachment trial is about to
commence. The Legislative and Exec
utive heads of the Government have
been pursuing diverging paths, until
their differences must be reconciled one
declared right, the other wrong or, an
other civil outbreak become imminent
if not inevitable The method of pro
cedure in such cases has been provided
for in the Constitution, and in that
manner it is being brought oissue. We
presume that fewwiIl be found to deny
that by adopting the ordinances of Sc
cession the Southernl States destroyed
the civil State governments existing
therein, holding allegiance to the Fed
eral Union. The ability of a State to
do this was asserted by disloyal men in
the recognition of, and allegiance to, the
civil governments erected therein, hos
tile to the United States That it would
be impossible to have two civil govern
ments, hostile to each other. the func-
tions of which were exercised by the
same Legislature, existing at the same
time, is incontrovertible, and there Ger
tainly was but one Legislature in each
State. Senators are elected by the Leg
islatures of the several States, but the
members of the Legislatures of each
State are required by the Constitution
to take an oath to support and defend
the Constitution of the United States
before they become duly qualified and
competent to vote for Senator. The
members of the Legislatures OF the Sc
ceding States, on the contrary, took an
oath hostile to the Constitution of the
United States, thereby disqualifying the
Legislatures to elect Senators to the
United States Senate. So firm was the
belief of the Democracy in the power of
the Southern States to create hostile
governments, that in 1861 many ofthem
went still farther, and Mr.. Pendleton
" begged" !" in public speech at Cincin-
natl, Jan. 1S, 1861, that the " seeding
sisters might depart in peace, establish
their government and empire, and work
out their destiny according to the wis
dom which God had given them" 1t is
plainly established that by secession the
Southern States voluntarily deprived
themselves of equal suffrage in the Sem
ate" as contemplated in the fifth article
of the Constitution. With the destruc-
ton of part fell the entire structure OF
their civil State governments, and the
revivifcation of those governments is
reconstruction. Mr.. johnson, at the
close of the war, took upon himself the
authority to revivify and breathe into
them the spirit of life without even the
cooperation, consent or official knowl-
edge of Congress. he issued, in 1865, a
proclamation to the several States con-
tanning the following in the preamble
Whereas the fourth section of the fourtt
article of the Constitution of the UniteC
States declares that the United States shall
guarantee to every State In the Union re
publican form of government, and shall pro
tect each of them against invasion and do
nestle violence. ~
And whereas the rebellion, which has beer
Uaged by portion OF the people OF tne eni
ted States against the properly constituted
authorities of the Government thereof In th'
most violent and revolving form, but Whose
organized and armed forces have now been al
most entirely overcome, has in its revolution
ary progress deprived the people of the stat
OF North Carolina land Othersl OF all crvi
government.
He herein admitted the proposition
we have advanced, but although stick
Ter for the Constitution and Supreme
Court decisions, he, in presuming TO de
eide what were and were not republican
forms of government, usurped the func,
tions and powers declared by Chief JUS
tice Taney, and other authorities, to b'
by the Constitution vested solely and
only in Congress. Moreover, being I
triend of the South, he deprived Of snf-