New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-04-29


their boundaries as elsewhere.
Our contemporary, in naming grievances
inflicted in the South by Northern States,
alludes to the enactment of peraonal liberty
laws by several of them. We need only
say in reply that if these acts were in fact
constitutional they did not violate any
body's constitutional rights, and if they
were not constitutional they were void, and
could not have damaged any one. 1t also
speech delivered by Mr.. Everett, December
s, 1859, in furtherance of his aspirations for
the presidency, enumerating causes of die
satisfaction on the part OF the Southern
people including the supposed popular ap
prOval Of John Browns raid at Harper's
Ferry. But, as we have before stated, not
withstandiDg this strong sentiment in the
North in opposition to slavery, the rever
ence OF the people Of these States for the
constitutional rights Of their Southern
brethren was 80 great that they acquiesced
in the return from their midst of runaway
slaves to their masters, in obedience to the
decisions OF the courts, although under
their own State laws the act of uepriving
an innocent man of his liberty was felony.
Surely the VirginiGn will not maintain
that the existence of this sentiment in favor
of universal freedom was either unconstitu-
ti0nal or Just cause of war. or will it adopt
that the absurdity of surprising that the
Southern people had the constitutions right
to control the beliefs and sentiments of the
Northern people! 1t has generally been
supposed in this country that citizen Of
the United States has the constitutional
right even to assert his disbelief in the
existence of God Almighty if he wants to,
and to worship sticks aud stones should it
accord with his IDEAS Of piety.
That the Chronicle was justifable in
stating that the leaders Of the Democratic
party still defended the right Of any State
to secede from the Union, is not only can
didly admitted by the ,isyiniois, but it also
proceeds to defend this right by the citation
of long list of authorities. 1t asserts that
out and out secessiOnist; that Mr.. Seward
was in favor of the "higher law" doctrine;
that Wendell Phillips thought the nomina
ton OF Mr.. Lincoln pledged the Republican
party against the South" that "even
Judge Story and Daniel Webster admitted
that if it was clear that the Union was
formed by the States as such, it was
a compact from which any one of
them could Withdraw" but they laid
great stress on I'VE, the people" meaning
that in their opinion the constitution was
formed by the people of the whole country,
and not by the several States as such, and,
therefore, that the States had not the right
to secede: that Judge Tucker, professor Of
law at William and Mary College, took
strong ground on the subject that "Mr
Rawle. an able Pennsylvania jurist, district
attorney under Washington, and who was
offered by that illustri"us man the place of
Attorney General Of the United States, has
written an elaborate work on the constitu-
tiOn, which says:
The secession of State from the Union
depends upon the will of the people of such
State. 1t was also known, though it was
not avowed, that a State might withdraw
itself"
The Vi,yinion continues its citation OF
authorities as follows:
y, tierson had said that-'States may
wholly withdraw their delegated powers
while Mr.. Madison re,uarks, the parties Ii.
e. tho States) themselves must be the
judges in the last resort, whether the bar
gain made has been preserved or broken
J ohn Quincy Adams said, 1T would be
netter tor the people of these disunited
States to part in friendship from each other
than to be held by constraint.' Even the
late Chief Justice Chase remarked, in 1850,
that in the case OF State resuming her
powers he knew OF no remedy to prevent
it, and Mr.. Edward Everett said, in Fabru-
ary, 1861, III our sister States must leave
us, IN the name Of heaven let them 20 in
peace He had said in his letter OF accept
ance in 1860, If the vital principle of all
governments ia the consent of
the governed, much moro does a Union of
cOequal, sovereign States require. as its
basis, the harmony Of its members, and
their voluntary cooperation in its organic
functions
"But enough. We have, at greater length
than we intended, shown that the Southern
States had grievances, and that they did no
more in adopting the peaceably remedy Tor
what ought to have been peaceable) of with
drawing from the confederation into which
they had entered with their CO.'S ates of the
North than it was conceded they could do.
1t was their right under the constitution Us
i Vos, whatever that instrument may re-
luire and eni"in now"
And the Iiryinian might have added
hat President James Buchanan, in his last
annual message to Congress, avOwed the
same doctrine; that his Attorney General,
jeremiah s. Black, sustained the right of
secession in q long and laborrd official argu-
nent to accompany the Presidents mes
'age; that Vallandigham, nominated by the
Democracy as their candidate for Governor
II Ohio during the war, ran the race on this
listinct issue; that Horace Greeley, the last
Democratic candidate for the presidency,
avOwed this doctrine at the com |
nencement of the war, and We regret to |
70 compelled by truth to add that we are !
lnable TO name an old ''died in-the wool" |
Democratic leader who denies it's sOundness. |
Governor Allen, of Ohio. does not deny it; |
Governor Tilden, of New York, does not |
eny it; Governor Hendricks, of Indiana,
Oes not deny it; Senators Thurman, OF
)hio; Eaton, of Connecticut; Bayard, of
Delaware, or any other Democrat who
tands the ghost of a chance for the Demo.
ratio nomination in 1876, does not deny it,
nd no Democratic convention, State or
atiOnal, has ever dsavowed it.
Hence we conclude that the Virqinian
nd the Chronicle are agreed on this one
rOposition That the right Of State to
scede from the Union is still funda-
ental doctrine of the Democratic party.
This being conceded, we again ask the
merican people to note the fact, and
len decide whether it w"uld be prudent
intrust the leaders of that party with
le control of all the departments of the
ational government. COnscientiOusly be-
ewing that the States have the right
secede, how could any Democratic
resident be more eminent in preventing it
Nv than James Buchanan proved himself
be in l860-6ll Would it not be much
lser to select a statesman who honestly
'lieves that the President has the cOnstitu.
,nal right to use the whole power of the
ltion to preserve the Union, to defend the
Institution, and to enforce the laws
roughout the repuolicl - Washington
,rOnjcle.