The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1871-06-20
,, r:,..,.b is r:pht when Ii says that

Stotcs hold to the doctrine OF COERCION tncrc
can be no such thing as peaceaoie secession.
Hut does il follow that because there - ''''
peaccable. legal remedy Tor OUTRAGE aEa'i,s'
the constitutional rights OF the states thel.
EXISTS no such thing MS State rights Una,.
the Constitution, and which it is he rien'
and duty Of the people TO protect 2n,i w,
TEND? Does it, follow that tins %'N' 49,,
mcnt,' created by the states a..u w. ,.,
states, has passed the day Oh ~. ,,onn ~,
uucnce and independence; III 81, t"nntrnl
their own sovereignty: Has ~. '.r,i
government indeed. grown zoo t.""11, ,,';t
IN its physical force anu 49,. !. Tho row.
Of The existence of The States: j. 'Hc Wv
oluiinn an accomplished and accepted lac'
IA. the Union OF States given place 10
ccn,r.l;zcd dcSpotiSm: Does the tend
cncy +, Capitalization III the power "' INC
Rcnuhlic in the Federal GoNcrnment ScI'ie
The question - Savannah lGd) Ac"S'
The Dispatch teaches no new doctrine.
In the first article we wrote upon the sub
lee; after the close OF the late war. ana tong
before anv such thing rs Reconstruction
laws or nero suffrage had been Thought OF,
we distinctly maintained that the Govern
ment had been changed from federal 10 Il
national ouc-from Il Government OF hlht'-
cd powers TO one of unlimited powers
from a free Government TO consolidated,
central deSpotism. We did not hccd Inc
professions of northern men, but looked 10
the logic of events. :" 1t is Impossible that
"a good tree can bring forth evil irat, OF
"an evil tree good fruit Men may pro-
fcss what they Will; but the logic OF events
is incXorablc. 1t yields to nothing. ~ ne
"thinc that has been is the thing that shall
"bc: and there is no new thing under
"the sun" Whether the doctrine OF
"eyolution'' be true Us to all things
or not. it IS true rs to Governments. These
are evolved out Of existing facts. Written
constitutions modify the process of erolu-
ton. Just as other facts do, but never stop
il. The in>tru ment always gives way when
the strain comes. For instance, the States
had Il clear right TO secede from the Union.
and the Federal Government had no right
to cocrcc them back into it. This WAS IN
inaicnablc = right, 50 to speak. Yet II
availed us naucht. The Constitution was
tramplcd under foot. The . lite OF the
nation was at stake. And as one or the
other had to be surrendered. Of course the
Constitution went uuGer. The northern
people do not now know, we suppose, that
they have destroyed the Constitution. H.
deed, they are rather indifferent as to that.
They boast that they have preserved the
life Of The nation, and profess to hold that
the millions of money and hundreds OF
thousands of lives that were lost in the
process were well employed. 1t is nothin"
to them that their So.culcd free Govern
ment il Il corpse. They hug it to their
bosomS and claim il rs theirs, and sing
hosunuahs 10 the men who deprived it OF
life. They boot ut those who would make
them believe that they have gained Il bar
rem victory.
Knowing these facts. and having pre-
dicted them before they ,rcfc facts. we are
Of course ready TO answer the questions oil
the NclrS in the affirmative: for the simple
reason that Quoting again what WE sad
more than five wears a"o} Ill the states
have not The right OF sion they have
",o rights The Federal Government Is
all in all. Whatever it says is the law Is the
law; whatever il says the Constitution III
lows the Constitution docs allow. III
amaZcS us that any man can reflect
upon the gradual enc:oachment> made
10y Congress upon the rights of the
States since the close Of the war-cn-
croachmcnts made because the war had set
tied it that 40 State had Il right to scccdc-
and not see that the Union of States has
given way To 4 centralized despotiSm."
There can exist no subjective Fright .
worthy OF the name which Is ut the mercy
of an " objective reality" We mean just
thiS--that General GRAST has the power,
undcr a lar pass"d by Congress, and which
will be enforced whenever he secs fit to do
it, to suppress at any time the SavaIs-
nah .NearS and the Richmond Dispatch.
We mean to say that in violation o!
the Federal Constitution, and because The
States have no ri.ht to scccde, law has
been passed 10y Congress which gives Gen.
GRANT power to declare martial law when
he will, and to suppress every newspaper
III Virginia, or Georgia, or any other state.
and TO send troops to put down any rebel
lious crowds that might object to such
high-handcd proceedings. We mean TO
say that under the same law 10 man in
any State has any "riyht" except such a.
Gen. GRANT voluntarily comedies to him.
And, whilst we feel duly grateful to the
President for allowing Us at present to SAY
what we choose, we are not such fools rs
to suppose that we have any right " TO
say it. \ right without the means of en-
forcing it is 10 right at i'll. And there
fore we know that Gen. GRANT clu put an
end to our "iree speech" whenever il
shall please him so to do.
And now for the practical part Of our
reply. Believing. or rather knowing, the
premises to be true, we are anxious to get
out Of the intolcrabe predicamcnt in which
We find ourselves. We would like TO feel
once more As men feel who have rights"
1t Is impossible that any man can have any
right OF person or property so long rs the
Radicals are in power. The South needs
rest, repose, and confidence in her future,
Ill order to rccuperation. What, then,
ought TO be done with Mr.. DAVIS, or any,
body else who 50 uses his tongue as to eX-
tend the lease Of the power of the infamous
Radical rarty: What nonscnsc--no, what
crIlnc-lt Is TO pirate about not "acccpt-
ln9 the situaton.' We must accept il. We
cannot help ourselves. We have ratified
the amendments. Why shall we not declare
them to be valid. We know that there is
now no such thing as the right of scces-
sion. Why, then, not confess the fact i'll
writing! We wrong ourselves and cur chill
4