The Dream of a Northwestern Confederacy Was Eff Ectually Dispelled and Soon the Southern Confederacy Ceased T O Be
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The Dream o f a Northwestern C onfederacy W By illiam C . Cochran 1 6 1 On the fourth day of February , 8 , Deputies of the Sovereign and Independent States of South Carolina Georgia , Florida , Alabama , Mississippi , and Louisiana , as they styled themselves , met in the state capitol at Montgomery , Alabama , and proceeded to organize a “ Provisional Government of the Confederate States of ” ~ . rk America The wo wa s all cut and dried , and in four u days a complete Constit tion was adopted , and on the fifth day Jeff erson Davis of Mississippi was elected ’ president , and Alexander H . Stephens of Georgia , vice r p esident, of the Co nf ederate States of America . There le iti was little travail about the birth of this nation . Its g macy was questioned by none present , and it was more than two months before the doubts of the northern por tion of the United States found expression in official action . The leaders rej oiced in the fact that there was little debate and no serious Opposition to any measure proposed . It is true that th e work of co nstitution making was much facilitated by their having before them the th e Constitution of United States , which needed amend ment in only a few particulars fully to satisfy the assem “ ” . bled Deputies . It is not necessary to describe these amendments par ticularl 1 1 1 6 1 n titu y , for , on March , 8 a permanent C o s tion for the Confederate States of America was adopted [ 21 3 ] Wiscon sin His to rica l Socie ty a t h Montgomery , whic superseded the provisional con i n st tutio . This followed the Constitution of the United States so closely that the amendments , like colored patches on a plain garment , were very prominent and disclosed to all the world the real causes for the attempted separation of the slave-holding states from their sister states in the Union . The preamble recites that “ h n ra h We , t e people of the Co fede te States , ea c Sta te a cting in its s overeign a n d in dep en dent cha ra cter do ordain and establish this Constitution Article I , Section 8 , provides no bounties s ha ll be gra nted from the Treas ury; nor sha ll a ny duties or taxes on imp orta tions from foreign nations be la id to promote or fos ter a ny bra n ch of in dustry t t 9 Article I , Section , provides that “ n r o h A r a n ra e rom The importation of eg oes f t e f ic c , f any foreign coun try other than the s la veholding States or Terr itor ies o he Un i ta t s o A mer ica i h r or f t ted S e f , s e eby f bidden “ Congress sha ll a ls o h a ve p ower to p rohibit the in troduc tion o s la s r m n t n m m r r T rr i or f ve f o a y Sta e ot a e be of , o e t y not on in h n r c . bel g g to, t is Co fede a y N0 x s a to or a w n in or bill of attainder , e p o t f c law , l de y g imp a ir ing the r ight of prop erty in negro s la ves sha ll be p a ss ed . 1 Article I , Section 0, provides “ No State shall , without the consent of Congress , lay a n on exce t on s ea- oin vess els or the y duty tonnage , p g g f imp rovement of its r ivers an d harbors n a v ig a ted by the s a id vess els B ut when a ny r iver div ides or flows through two or more tates the m a enter into com a cts with ea ch S , y y p ” h r r h r ot e to imp ove the n a v ig ation t e eof. Dre a m of a Northwes te rn Con fede ra cy 2 Article IV , Section , provides “ The citizens of each State sha ll ha ve the r ight of ran n s o ourn n a n a n ra w th t s it a d j i y St te of th is Co fede cy, i their s laves and other p rop erty; and the r ight of prop erty in ” h no h r r s a id s la ves s a ll t be t e eby imp a i ed . 3 Article IV , Section , provides “ The Confederate States m ay a cq uire new terr itory I a l s uch err itor th n n n ro l r s t n l t y, e i stitutio of eg s a ve y, a i x ts n h n r h r n an now e is i t e Co fede ate States , s a ll be ecog ized d ro ected b on ress a n d h rr r ernm ent an p t y C g , by t e te ito ia l gov ; d the inha bitants of the s evera l Confederate States an d Terr i tor ies sha ll ha ve the r ight to take to s uch Terr itory a ny s la ves la wfully held by them in any of the States or Terr itor ies of ” the Confederate States . ff In brief, the new Constitution di ered from the old , chiefly , in two particulars 1 . No manufacturing industry was to be promoted , ff or sustained , by subsidies or a protective tari . 2 . The institution of negro slavery was to be main t ine a d , unimpaired , throughout all the states and terri tories of the Confederacy , and extended to any new terri tory which Congress might acquire$l “ Before their deputies were appointed , the several states named had passed ordinances of secession , by which , h so far as they had power to do so , they had severed t eir r ’ elations with the United States of America . The govern 1 Statut s at L o th o . e arge f e C nf ederate States of Am erica (Richm ond , Va , T he Constitution of the United States a nd the Constit ution of the Conf ederate St ates of America are rinted in rallel colum ns in f erson av is Rise a nd p p a Je f D , — a ll o the Con ederate Government New Yor a . K 648 73 and F f f ( k, I , pp , , the words found in one and not in the other are italicized so that they can b e l ’ i . readi y distinguished . T he talics in the pass ages quoted ab ov e are D av is 1 h r D 0 M i l n . 0 S u lin . 2 1 8 1 rid J a o t Ca o a ec 1 860 is si i an . 9 6 o a , , ; s s pp , J , ; F , , 1 . 1 m . 8 1 Al ab 1 1 1 r n . 2 1 6 6 a J an 861 . 1 1 61 J a 6 8 ; a , , ; G eo gi a , J an 9 , 8 ; Louisi an a , , l not e as ado ted an ordinance of sec io F b . 1 1 86 1 b ut its de e ates di d T x p ess n, e , , g arriv e in Montgomery in time to t ake part in the form ation of the p rov isional [ 21 5 ] Wiscon sin His torica l Socie ty ment which they now proceeded to establish and to which they transferred their allegiance was foreign to that of the United States and its claim of sovereignty over the territory occupied by such states necessarily contradicted that of the United States . Two of these states , South Carolina and Georgia , might plausibly claim to have been sovereign and independent ” sta tes before the Cons titution of the United States was adopted and they gave in their adhesion to the Union . When they came into the Union they brought with them their territory and , if allowed to secede , they would sub tract from the territory of the United States only such portion as had been theirs before the Union was formed . n The others had no such sta ding . They were not organ t “ ized sta es at all , much less sovereign and independent states , and they made no contribution to the territory of ° the United States when they were admitted . They were the organized as states of Union , under and by virtue of h e the Constitution and laws of t United States , and on territory which had been acquired , b y purchase or con quest , by the United States long before their existence as states began . The United States eff ected the purchase of the Louisi a ana Territory , at n expense totaling, with interest and other charges , over in order to secure for m w form l dmi m gov ern ent . It as al y a tted as a m e b er of the Conf ederate St ates of America Mar .