The evening Argus., 1869-06-19
Dailp argus.
How the United States Taught Traitors
Treason

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Andrew johnson, Salmon Chase, Jetier.
son Davis, aud Robert Lee were young men
acquiring their political knowledge about
the same time. They we're taught that the
states we're 10 use Hamilton phrase "the
essent.a. compouen: parts oi the Federal
system; or, u.other words, that there was
no nation, but states; that they, US their
pGTvuts had been, were cIazeus OF states,
and owed alleglaucs thereto; aud that they
we're entirely subjectto the will and Coerciye
authority Of their respective states. More.
over, they knew from history that tho Fed.
! era Convention, at the iustauce OF Madison
and Hamilton, excluded the power to coerce
states from the Federal compact AS an utter
absurdity And furthermore, the Federal
system had been ia operation for about forty
years, and yet state sovereignty and the ln'
ciuded and essential right Of secession were
taken for granted. The only books in which
they could study law, etc, laid down these
doctrines as unquestionable. Said 81.
George Tucker, IN his commentaries, pub
lished in lsO2: Zach is stilsperiect state,
still sovereign, still independent, aud still
capable, should the occasion require, to
resume the exercise otits functions as such,
in the most unlimited extent Said VII.
liam Rawle in his commentaries (see edI.
tion Of ls2GG "lhe states, then, may Who'll.
ly withdraw IRON the Union; but while they
continue they must retain the character Of
representative republics The secession Of
a state from the Union depends on the will
OF the peOOle Of such state. The people
alone rs We have already seen, hold the
power TO alter their constitution The
above authors one from the north and the
other form the south-were among he ubl.
est Of tue early American juris's, and their
statement WAS taken Hs truth. It was an
essential aud ludisputable truth, aud not a
mere opinion. Aud it will BE- shown fully
hereafter that this right of secession was
considered by the fathers uquestionable-
too much so, indeed, for discussion. The
above works we're text books at West Point
when Davis and Lee were cadets there
Was Il not rather wicked for Uncle Samuel
to think Of hanging his pupils for prac
ticing the precepts he especially taught
them?
Thus il was that these four now distin.
gui he'd personsges we're educated aud i'm
pressed, ana It IS probable that the views
Of all Of them remained unchanged during
thirty years of their manhood till lsGU-the
great epoch OF change. Before that they
would have deemed it monstrous idea that
the Fedaral Government could lawfully hang
them because the state irresistibly car.
ried them out Of the mon, and compelled
them TO defend her, while, at the same
time, the state could have hung
them if they had opposed her and
they could bu! believe that when the
State repeaee It's ordinance of"ratiGcatiou,'
it was no longer lawful for the citizens to
obey Federal authorities, that the ratification
being lAa only cause Of Federal jurisdiction,
and the power OF repeal being by all law and
common sense aXactly Commensurate with
that Of enactment, Would it not have been
q horrible romance for two Of these men,
after passing to the evening Of life in ardent
devotion to those principles 10 have had the
power, and TO have exercised It, of hanging
the other twO-als0 become old, and among
the most distinguished men in the world
for honorable consistency to these same
principles, and for obeying and defending
their States, Whete were concentrated ali the
objects Of true hearts devotion-those oh
jeCts which noble aud brave souls are wont
to prefer to all the rest Of earth, and ITO de.
fend even to the last drop of bood-neigh.
bors, friends, kiudred, birthplace, hearth.
stones, ond alters, and the green graves OF
their sires ?