The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1868-09-16

! cannot change the law of its existence, an
4 stop in its career. 1t must go on, and O,
and on, until the flames which, itself ha
lighted have been themselves extinguishet
This Republican party cannot, ifi. woult
stop where it now is, 1t cannot stop upo
8 the. acts which have described, to yoa.-
!. It must go onward, and still onward i
the revolutionary course. As II said be
fore, if it attainsy power to-day by thi
means, Tomorrow it must have more pow
er by other and worse means. If i. &C
I. quires power by these steps, improper a
4 theyt are; tinconstitntiona as they are, unfi
for; goyerpment ashley are. twill to .s..,y.
lFoY seek other and worse steps, or els
|rep psi this IL different and worse form,
frlIhese hell hounds thatswitb ceaseless or,
Surround me as thou sawest, hourly con
ceived
And hourly born, with sorrow, Infinite t.
jafgaa me. IL Fiis5-2a TO a3BsI 20
For when they list, unto tho womb thai
bred them Is.
They return and howl, and gnaw my vital.
! Their repast then bursting forth affesh
With conscious terrors yes me round Z e
I'LL rest and intermission none find" OF
& They cannot afford to give, mp, power
It's fear ofaa outraged people,. It is feai
lofi broken Constitution. It is fear o.
liberty destroyed It is that fear which
always brings murder out. IT is that fear
which sees the damned spot upon every
head. Il is that fear, which drove Mac.
beth to visit the weird sisters, when he
exclaims: a-T7,.3y,t 1850 ..sr. 9a
| Is ~ "For mine own sake aa ~. !'t'
All courses must be tried: for | in blood
Am Am stepped in SO far, that should wade
-" no more 9. 49,
Returning wnslas tedious as go on. Z
/ know full well, my fellow-citizens that
these gentlemen will say that exaggera-
ted. They will take up these acts one by
one. and viii defend them, and find for
each an appropriate excuse. The ablest
Senator they had in Congress has made
the attempt. He says that atthe close Of
the war the States were without Govern.
ment, and it was the duty of Congress- to
establish them. 8, I deny both propositions
I say that the State Governmsnts were in
fill vitality and operation Iinay be that
soma ofice-holders had been killed. 1t
NOV ha fbot SOMA ,f tLovc boJ Al II
may be that Others Of them were subject
to indictment and punishment. But there
were their constitutions aud their forms OF
government, and it. only needed that the
offices should be filled to give them full
vigor and operation. It is too late to cay
that these governments were destroyed
m 1862, eighteen months after tie war
had commenced, and after Virginia had
seeded, the State government OF Virginia
was called upohf to assent to the CREATION
Of West Virginia. IN 1868 tho State Of
Louisiana was admitted to II representa-
ton in Congress. In 1865 the thirteenth
constitutional amendment was submitted
to all these State governments for their
ratification. These State governments
were abolished until the attempt was made
by the reconstruction act Of Congress, but
Eifffor any reason they had disappeared, it
was then the duty of the people Of the
States. and not of Congress to reconstruct
them. i hive read the Constitution from
beginning to end, and find no authority
given to Congress to reconstruct State
Governments, but I do find written all over
its pages SO that the wayfaring man,
though q fool, need not err therein, that
all powers not given by the Consultation
to the United States, nor prohibited to tile
States, are reserved to the States and the
people thereof. But this Senator, ASSUME.
ing these two propositions, to- be true.
which are obviously falss, goes only to say,
iuasmucil as there were 20 State Govern
.ments, and that State goyernmentsl were
to. be adopted, it was necessary for Con-
sress to look about for a loyal basis upon
which to form them and inasmucll as the
Southern people had been engaged in hos
tilities to the Government, that they were
then hostile to it. also, aud unfit to
be incorporated in The political power
Of these communities. / deny that
the people of the, South were at
that time hostile TO the Government. /