The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1869-12-18
The Drake-Trumbuil Monstrositv

Square.
The Drake Trumbull Monstrosity
A curious contest for pre-emnence in in
fanny Is now being waged in the United States
Senate between Senators Drake and Trumbull.
Both are in the situation of Macbeth after
he murdered Duncan. Having repeatedly
taken the most solemn Oaths to support the
constitution, both nevertheless, in devising
and supporting the infamous reconstruction
bills OF congress, trampled upon and strangled
that constitution. But still, every day, as
they SIT in the senate, or move about the CAPT
tai, the ghost of the stranged constitution
rises before their disturbed vision to reproach
and alarm them. The last reconstruction bill
OF the last session of congress, by tying the
Southern states hand and foot with the infa-
nous provision that only on their assent to
perfect negro equality in every conceivable
phase in the south, could they ever hope to
return to the Union, and subjecting them to
the most rigorous military rule until they gave
such assent, was supposed by the radicals to
have nailed down the cofiin-lid so securely
that even its ghost could not again rise to
trouble them. Yet by its decision in the
4erger case, the Supreme Court demonstrated
that, in spite of their locks and bolts, it had a
key by which the coffin-id could be raised,
and the spirit of the constitution could come
forth to terrify its murderers.
Drake and Trumbull have determined to
exercise the " damned spirit" by new in
cantation. They will do it by strdngling the
Supreme Court No other department of the
gOVcrnment-no other tribunal on earth but
the Supreme Court can question the consttu-
tionality of an act OF congress. Strangle the
Court and congress, like the parliament Of
England, is omnipotent. Drake like straight
forward, INSCRIPTIONS radical as he is GOES
directly about the business by proposing to
adopt declaratory statute that congress it.
self, and not the Supreme Court, is the only
tribunal that can decide once and forever,
which of its own acts are constitutional. Mr.
Trumbull, less bold and INSCRIPTIONS, in ex-
actly the proportion in which he is the great
er villain-ior all great villains are towards
attempts, in his bill, to veil the lnfamy un,ier
deceptive phrases Instead of forbidding the
Supreme Court to pass on the constitutional
ty Of any act of congress, as Drake does, he
limits the inhibition TO political acts. And
what is a political act? Whatever act. saws
Mr. Trumbull that congress shall pronounce
such. The difference between his bill and
MIR. brakes Is thus reduced exactly to the diff
ference between tweede.dum and tweedle-dee.
The Constitution OF the United States di-
vides the government into three seperate de-
partments-the Executive, legislative and iu-
dicial,-each to be Independent of and check
upon the other The radical party in con
gress has been guilty of the first attempt to
destroy these checks and balances, by first in
the case OF Andrew Johnson, attempting to
destroy the executive and bring it into sub
lection to the legislativc--an attempt in
johnson, they succeeded but lndincrenty aud
now by attempting to put Il paddock upon
the Supreme Court The success Of the Drake
Trumbull bill would be equivalent to repeal
OF tue constitutional change of our form of
government--n short, it would be revolution
high treason, for which It's authors deserve
to be hung They are traitors in worse
sense than Booth was, for though he struck
down the executive with the bullet. his sue.
cessor survived. But these traitors would
strike down the chief judicial officers of the
government and leave them without success
sors.
IMrosTER.-A Woman calling herself Mrs.