The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1908-10-01
A COUNCIL OF
GOVERNORS--NO. 2
Continued from last week.

Continued from last week.
All, there is the rub in their political ma
chine. They were over in Hartford
holding another and very different con-
vention. This time they were advocat.
ing moral treason and displaying "blue
lights" along the New England coast,
inviting the British to come and help
them re. establish absolutism. But this
is the way the political crooks play the
game. They are like the heather god
Janus, whom the Romans worshiped
for thousand years. Facing both
ways they could deceive and delude
their followers in both directions in or
der to win victory over the people and
obtain office and power.
President Madison was the reputed
father of the constitution, except as to
the life tenure of the judiciary, the
election of senators by the Legislature
OF the states, and few other features
injected into it by the absolutists to
work its collapse and final overthrow.
The reasonable acts at Hartford to
embarrass the federal authorities was
an assault upon the sovereignty of the
states and was left to be corrected by
public opinion at the next election.
But for the good of the people of all
the states a council of governors was
needed to properly brand the infamy
of internal traitors in their madness to
carry an election.
The assault upon constitutional gov
ernment to eliminate the elective prin-
ciple was next made eight years later in
1920 by the refusal to admit Missouri
to the union of states. When Jefferson
read the proceedings of congress on the
subject he wrote to q friend: cit fell
upon my ears like fire bell at night. "
Why was he 30 much alarmed by it?
Simply because it denied to the people
of Missouri the right of lf-govern-
ment and stretched out its greedy hand
to grasp and appropriate all the terri
tory owned and held by all the states
in common as joint and equal partners
of the federal firm of states. Every
one of the states owned an undivided
interest in the territories and other
property of their common agent-the
federal government. The states were
not only joint owners, but they were
tenants in common, and when one
group of states rose up to thrust ouI
and despoil another group of states
without their consent and without
compensation they were robbers al
bold and defiant as Barabbas himself.
Here was the time and occasion for 9
council of governors to assemble back
ed by the sovereignty Of all the states
and settle the whole question at once
and forever on a basis of justice be-
tween the sections. But it seems thai
justice had fled from the earth and tax
en- up her abode among the brutes
Agitation, strife, elimination, recrimi
nation went on for forty years from
1920 to 1850, and the voice of justice
was never once heard pleading for fail
adjustment OF dangerous question
And yet, all this forty years of strife
was waged over one question of differ
ence between the sections-th fugitive
slave law. But in 1860 the bosses o.
the republican party cut the Gordiar
knot with the sword by nominating
candidates distinctly hostile to th,
white people of the south. AS this wal
virtual declaration OF war between
the hostile sections no one was surpris
ed to see the effect follow the cause
But the succeeding four years of war
and the slaughter of more than mill
ion of white men failed to bring peace
to the country. Hence the necessity
for the victors to make OF the negro
political asset in their business of gov
erniDg the country. And now, afte
forty years more of political agitation
and strife over the unhappy negro w
find the country further away from
just and peaceful settlement Of the rae
problem than we were eighty year
ago. But we do find the country il
the clutches of anarchy, requiring
standing army necessary to keep th,
peace between whites and blacks. Ant
this suggests the question, how long
republic can last with a standing arm.
large enough to overthrow the peopl
and keep the peace among them? Their
can be but one answer TO this question
A council of the forty-six governor
must take control OF the subject, tax