The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1868-02-06

~
Onited States shall guarantees to ever,
SIate IN this Union a republicans forS
OF government" BV the nhsas,
United States" here is meant the Gov
eeTnment eFl1i of the United States. Til,
S Snl.eu states can only act through thu
onsEnulent' S,,o',e. ' and the clause woulC
lhenu precisely the same thing If i
read "the Government of the tJnitet
SI1AIeS sI. snail guarantee to every State il
Ihls Union republican form of gov
ernment."
WHAT CONSTITUTES THE GOVERNMENT
Then, AS the Government of the Uni
teu States is to execute this guarantee
the question arises, what constitutes
the Government of the United States
The President does not constitute the
government; the Congress does mi
constitute the Governments: the inGi'
clary does not constitute the Goyarn.
ment; but all three together const;tnIe
the Governments: and as this cuarNptsS
Is to be executed by the Government NJ
the United States, it follows necesspriIu n
InAt II must be legislative act. The
,l,S l'Iusl sIueul could not assume to execute
tue guarantee without assuming that
ne was the United States within ths
LneAnlhg OF that provision, without as.
sunlIg that he was the Government 81
me United States. Congress could MOI
OF Itself assume to execute the pnarap-
zee without assuming that 1t was the
government of the. United States. No.
could the judiciary without a like nc. sS.
sumption. The act must be the act Oi
Ihe government, and therefore 1t mnst
Oe u legislative act, a law passed hv
congress, submitted to the President
Ior MS approval, and, perhaps. in a
proper case, subject to be reviewed nv
the judiciary. ~
THE PRESIDENT IS NOT THE GOVERN
Mr. PRESIDENT, that this is necessa. J..
Eliy the case from the simple reaClino,
OF the Constitution seems to ma canndi
oe Ior moment denied. The Presi.
ueht, in assuming to execnte this
guarantee himself, is assumin~ tO ho
lne government of the United States
Whlch he clearly is not, but only one ri
Its Co'ofulnate branches; and, therefore.
as TINS guarantee must be u lepislative
act, II follows that the attem Of ON the
part OF the President to execute the
guarantee was without authority. and
that the guarantee can only be eye
cuted IN the form of u law, first to be
passed by Congress, and then to be
| submitted 10 the President for his ap-
ProNal' ana II he does not approve it,
then 10 be passed over his head by a
majority of two-thirds IN each House.
1hat law, then, becomes the execution
OF the guarantee and is the act of the
government of the United States.
THE DECISION IN THE RHODE ISLAND
CASE.
Mr.. President, this is not an omen
question. send to the Secretary and
ask MIN to read part of the decision
OF the supreme Court of the United
States in the case of Luther Us. Borden.
as reported in Z Howard.
The Secretary read as follows:
Moreover, the Constitution of the United
states, as Iar as 1t has provided for an emer-
gency OF this kind, and authorized the den
elal Government 10 interfere in the domes-
tic concerns of a State, has treated the subject
as n t6a an IN us pat91e and placed the pow
"The fourth section OF the fourth article of
t4e constitution OF the United States pro-
NldeS that the U Untted States shall guarantees
70 every state in the Union a republican form
OF government, and shall protect eacu OF
mem mem aSainst invasions; and upon the appli-
cation OF tne Legislature or of the Executive
| lwhen the Legislature cannot be conVenedS
against domestic violence.
CONGRESS TO DECIDE WHAT IS A STATE Gov
ERSMEST.
| "Under this article of the Constitution II
rests with Con greSj to decide what gOyern-
nent is the established one in a State. For,
as the nited states guarantees ss to each State
republican form OF government COnpreSS
must necessarily decide what government il
established in the State before n can Saier
mine whether 1t is republican or not. And
when the Senators and Representatives of n
state are admitted into the councils or the
n
der which they are appointed, as well as its
republican character, is recOQuized hv the
proper constitutional authority. And its de-
clslon Is binding upon every other depart
ment of tue Government, aud could not be-
questioned in a judicial tribunal. 1t is true
tuat the contest in this case did not last long
enough to bring the matter to this issue, and
as no senators or Representatives were elect
ed under the authority of the government OF
which Mr.. Dorr was the head, Congress WAS
not called upon to decide the controversy
Yet the right 70 decide is placed there, and
not in the courts"
Mr. MoRToN-In this opinion of the
Supreme Court of the United States,
delivered many years ago, the right to
execute the guarantee provided for in
this clause of the Constitution is placed
in Congress and nowhere else, and
therefore the necessary reading OF the
Constitution is confirmed by the high
eat judicial authority which we have.
MIR. OHEsoN-Do you read from the
opinion delivered by the Chief Justice?
Mr.. MORToN-Yess sir; the opinion de-
! livered by Chief Justice Taney. He
decides that this power is not judicial;
that it is one of the high powers con-
ferred upon Congress-; that it is not
subject to be reviewed by the Supreme
Court, because it is political in its ma
ture. 1t is a distinct enunciation of
| the doctrine that this guarantee is not
to be executed by the President or by
the Supreme Court, but by the Con-
HIeSS OF the OnlLeu states, In the form
/ of a law to be passed by that body and
to be submitted to the President for his
APPROVAL; and should he disapprOve it,
1t may become law by being passed
| by two-thirds majority over his head.
DoOLITTLE as. DOOLITTLE.
Now, will call the attention of my
friend from Wisconsin to some other
authority. AS he has been pleased to
refer to a former speech of mine to
show that am not quite consistent,
will refer to a vote given by him in 1864
on very important provision. On the
under consideration, as in Committee
of the Whole, "a bill to guarantee to
certain States whose Governments have
been uSurped or OverthrOwn u repub-
| lican form of OfGOvernment," Mr.. Brown,
of Missouri, offered an amendment to
strike out all of the bill after the enact
! ing clause, and to insert II substitute,
which 1 will ask the Secretary to read.
| The Secretary read as follows:
"That when the inhabitants or any state
have Deen declared In a state of insurrec-
| tIon against the Unite1 States by prOclama-
! tion OF tile President, by force and virtue OF
| the act entitled AN net further to provide
! for the collection of duties on imports and
! for other purposes approved July 49, 1861,
they shall be, and are hereby declared to be,
| incapable of casting any vote IOr electors OF
President or Vice President OF the United
States, or of electlng Senators or RrepreSen-
| tatIves in Congress until said inSurrectiOn in
said State is suppressed or abandoned, and
said InhabitanIs have returned 70 their ODe-
! dience to the Government OF the United
snail be declared by proclamation of the
| President, issued by virtue OF an act OF Con-
| kTess hereafter TO be passed, authorizing the
same"