proclamation of freedom and the laws of
Congress; and to secure that an oath is exacted. There is no guaranty
of law to watch over the organization of that government. It may be
recognized by the military power, and not recognized by the civil
power, so that it would have a doubtful existence, half civil and half
military, neither a temporary government by law of Congress nor a
State government, something as unknown to the Constitution as the rebel
government that refuses to recognize it. The only prescription is that
it shall not contravene the provisions of the proclamation. Sir, if that
proclamation be valid, then we are relieved from all trouble on that
score. But if that proclamation be not valid, then the oath to support
it is without legal sanction, for the President can ask no man to
bind himself by an oath to support an unfounded proclamation or an
unconstitutional law even for a moment, still less after it shall have
been declared void by the Supreme Court of the United States. * * *

By the bill we propose to preclude the judicial question by the solution
of a political question. How so? By the paramount power of Congress to
reorganize governments in those States, to impose such conditions as it
thinks necessary to secure the permanence of republican government, to
refuse to recognize any governments there which do not prohibit slavery
forever. Ay, gentlemen, take the responsibility to say in the face of
those who clamor for the speedy recognition of governments tolerating
slavery, that the safety of the people of the United States is the
supreme law; that their will is the supreme rule of law, and that we
are authorized to pronounce their will on this subject. Take the
responsibility to say that we will revise the judgments of our
ancestors; that we have experience written in blood which they had
not; that we find now what they darkly doubted, that slavery is really,
radically inconsistent with the permanence of republican governments;
and that being charged by the supreme law of the land on our conscience
and judgment to guarantee, that is to continue, maintain and enforce,
if it exist, to institute and restore, when overthrown, republican
government throughout the broad limits of the republic, we will weed
out every element of their policy which we think incompatible with its
permanence and endurance. The purpose of the bill is to preclude
the judicial question of the validity and effect of the President's