Year: 1861

EVERY man of common sense, must know
that this Government cannot be held togeth-
er by force. 1t is a Republican Government,
relying solely upon the consent of the govern,
ed.-ErprosS.


| 1t is very true that this GoYernm ont 10 "
republican ono, and that it rests upon the
consent of the governed. But, how? Why,
the governed, according to the Constitution
of the country, choose their own rulers, and
these rulers are responsible to the people, in
the manner provided for by law, for their
conduct. 1t is q Government of the people,
but then it is Government established, and
the people must control it through the medi-
UNI OF the system which they have put into
operation. They cannot go outside of that,
in order to enforce their will They must do
whatever they have to do within the limits of
the law and the Constitution. 1t is idle to
establish Government which may be set
at defiance by mob. The erccution Of the
law does not depend upon the consent of the
governed, it is the origination of the Govern
ment in the first place that depends upon the





meant by the fundamental principle which is
laid down in the Declaration of lndepend-
ence,-that grand justification of the act of
our Fathers in establishing this Government.
After enumerating certain rights, that docu-
ment proceeds to say, "that, to secure these
rights, governments are instituted among men
deriving their just powers from the consent of
the goUerned.' That is to say, that the orig
inal organization of the government is of the
people, and the powers which are incorpora-
ted into the government are placed there by
the people. The Government depends by
no means upon the consent of the governed
for the enforcement of those powers with
which it has been endowed. No government
ever existed that did not provide itself with
the power to enforce its authority. That
power is in our Government as well as anv
other, and any man with one eye in his head
can find it. "The Congress shall have pow
er," says the Constitution "to provide for
calling forth the militia TO erecute the Iaaos of
the Union, suppress instructions and repel
inyasions."


1t especially contemplates rebellion, also, in
the following clause


"The privilege of the writ of Habeas Corpus
shall not be suspended, ls,,less when in cases
of reJcli0n, or invasion, the public safety de-
mands it,"


Furthermore the Constitution, in defining
the power and duties of the President of tbe
United States, declares that che shall take
care that the laws be faithfully executed" and
at the same time, in order to give him the
ability so to do, makes him Commander-in-
Chief of the Army and Navy and of the Mill.
tia of the States, when called into the service
of the Union and also makes him commission
all the officers of the United States so that
whenever an officer declines to do his duty,
or resigns his position through sympathy
with rebels, his place may be at once filled
by the President, and the authority of the
Government be maintained.


The case is too plain for argument The
fact is, there is no power of getting out of
this Union but BY revolution; and peaceable
secession is impossible, if the letter, let alone
the spirit, of the Constitution be carried ont
by whoever may occupy the seat of the Chief
Magistrate Of the Union.


We are in favor of Compromise and of set
ting the differences between the North and
South peaceably, if it can be done, but we
shall never ignore the plain letter of the
Constitution, let alone the spirit of that in-