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Mr. Long Censured

Mr. Long Censured image
Parent Issue
Day
22
Month
April
Year
1864
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

We had oui' say d our lust issue in regardto the resolution offered by Mr. Colfax expelling Mr. Lono for a speech made in the House, which was litened to throughoat by the Republican mnjority without elieiting a "cali to order," and for whioh the Republican members subecribed a liberal number of copies. - The expulsión resolution was-not pressed to a vote, bnt a resoluíion of censure was adopted by a vote of 80 to 70. On the outtqde of this sheet will be fuund an artiu'er from the New York World apon this subject, whi-jh we heartily endorse, but tis the World ia not good authority yvith the Republiean portion of our readers, wequotofor their benufit the following paragraphs from the Ntw York Evening Post, a fouree which certainly should commend them to all radicale: But there is more than a question of mere party expedienoy in this matter. Mr. Long's speech was a perfeclly legitímate expression of opinión. He thinks that the rebels must be allowed to go in peace or be exlirpated, and he staled his thought calmly and respectjully, in proper worda. Wo do not concur vvith uim ; we do not think it neoessary to concede the indopendence of the co,ifederacy (which is an impossibility in our vi&w), nor to extírpate tho people of the South. We are not, howover, nnwilling that those who have come to other conclusions should have the full liberty to express them, whother in the newspapem or ón the floors ot Congress. If" they oarry th:it liberty to tho extentol ovort acts oí treason they can be arrested and punished ; but if they remam icithm the limita of fair delate, if they controvert argument by argument, f they presen!, only logic, eoqueice, appeai, in favor of their views, they are but ezercising the righs which bclong to all fretmen. We[further quote, as good Republicnn authority, tha New York Times: We have protestad agaínst the attempt to oxpel Representativo Long on the ground oí uxpedieney. We uow wiah to say a few words in respect to the right of the matter. The Constitution takes care to secure the utmost l'reedom of debate in Congross by makin; special provisión that " for %mv speech or debate in either house, membera shall not bo questiouud in any other place." What could have been the object of this unlimited iminunity, but the reoog nizud nece8sity that everv representatTe should be in a position to do oompletest juHt.ice to his owu sentiments and those of his conetituentB ? That íb a principio which lies at the very fonndation of every representativo govern ment. But why i it nt as much a violatión of this principie for men in the Capitol to dt?ter a ropresentative fr. rn gpoakiog his sentinients, as for men outsido the Capitol ? It is the intimidatton that is the ovil, and it don't matter a partida wbenco the intunidation pro eeeds. For any power in Gongrcxa or oot of Congrega to exercise it, is to viólate one of the most sacrd principies of the Constitution. Mr. Long hits donied tho right of coerción, Why B-hould ho be expelled for that? No Congress ever sat in Washington in which tho samo deniul has not bfien made. The denial has been tüüt a thousand times by argument, by ridicule, and by denunciation ; but no man before every dreamed of moeting it by a resolution of expulsión. Mr. Long also affirmed that, ia bis belief, it was itnpoHsible to subdue the rebellioo. If he honestly believes that, ho has not only the right, but it is his dutv, to say it It is the duty of every honest legislator, wlien great public concerns are at stake, to declare his honest convictions. It is none the less but all the more, his duty to do this, if those convictions are opposed to tho dominant sentiment. It is the weakegt side thnt has tho strongust need of arguineot; for it is their only power. - Mr. Long's only responsibility for hin arguments is to his constituents. We have no business to usaume that in this speech he did not utter the sontiments of hÏH eonstituents. If he did, we ars oí ry for them. Their viewa of the injus'ice and the inexp'idieticy of this war are as wide as the poles feom ours.- : But tbatgives us in N"ew York noright to disf'ranchiae them in Ohio ; and not a whit better right has our ropsesentative in Congress to silonce, or ;iid in silenoing, theii representativa in Gungi-ess. The pretense tbat Mr. Long uttered treasonable langoage is prepo.sterous. It is not treasonable to advocate, or question, or gainsay any eonstruotion of the Constitution. It is not treasonable to look at thogigantio proportiong of the reb'ell.kiQ and diavv the oonclution that it cannot be put rlowu. Were it 80, there ure not thirty men in that Congres who have not at times in the couree of thia struggle been very slror.g y temptcd to turn tmitors. Never bas tlio iuiih of iliis jonrnal in tlis final triumph of tho govornment wavered for a single instant, as every daily reader ol it can testify ; bat ïleaven save us frorn tho arrogauco of denouncing and procribing as truitorous evevy press which has at linu bIiowq apprebension or clfepoiidency. ÜPreason ia nut a thing which lodges in tho nurves ; :.t hae its suat in the heart. And until we see the evidence of it there, we culi no man traitor. Freedom of debato in Congress, we 8ay, caiiDot be conetitutionally restrictsd. We sy dubate for that "is the constitutional word. In addition we have only to reptat, tbat without freodom of npeeoh and debate in the halls of Congrees, legislation is a faroe. ÏW Lient. Col. Grcimmond of the 14th Michigan Infantry ha appeared in print, in tho Tribune, and moiiths nuch words as "thieTes,'' "pimps," &c, &o. Novv we havo nothing to do with bis tirade about saloons and liquor, except lo presume tbüt if he had inoculated bis men with tho principies of temperance they would not have been caught in the saloon keepers' nets. But as to the charge that the citizen of Ann Arbor have refused to pay the local bountiea to the re-enlisted veterans of the 14th, we do flatly contradict it. The ohairman of the 3d, 4th, and 5th Wards enlisting commiitee informs us that he bas paid $90 bounty to each of the 14th men residing in that district and entitled to be oredited thereto, and tbis, too, ater the quota wasfull, and wben other men weru offerad him for 825. And the treasurer of the lst and 2d Wards committee informs us that not a single 14th veteran has callod upon him for a bounty, but that, Dotwithstanding their quota is overfull, they are paying a local bounty of $50 to all residents of the district who enlist. So rnuch for Xjieut. Col. Grummond's fling at the "loyal eitizeDg of Ann Arbor."

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Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus