IBTCPOTME Novel - Chapter 148
**Capítulo 148**
**Chapter 148**
**North and South (2)**
“The United States shall emancipate all slaves within the United States by the end of 1846.”
December was approaching quickly, and the conflict between the North and South was escalating.
Communication between them was almost completely severed, and they were busy denouncing each other through the media.
The time for war was over, and the time for division had arrived.
“We must amend the Constitution, at least among ourselves. They have no intention of talking!”
“But, we can’t amend it. We need a two-thirds majority in either the Senate or the House to propose a constitutional amendment. Otherwise, two-thirds of the state legislatures must request the federal government to call a national convention for constitutional amendment. You know this.”
This was stated in Article V of the US Constitution. One of these two conditions had to be met to propose a constitutional amendment.
Even ratifying an amendment required stricter conditions. A proposed constitutional amendment must be ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states or approved by conventions held in three-fourths of the states.
In short, it meant that the Constitution could never be amended without the approval of Southern members of Congress or Southern states.
“This is a situation forced upon us by the Pittsburgh Treaty. This is an emergency, and we need extraordinary measures. Wasn’t the Louisiana Purchase, which had unconstitutional elements, eventually recognized?”
“If we amend it that way, will they follow? It could even lead to splitting the nation in two.”
“But if we let 1847 come, we’ll be violating the Pittsburgh Treaty. Can we handle the repercussions?”
No one was unaware of the meaning of breaking a peace treaty that had been signed just over a month ago. What would the Mexican Empire think? They would have no grounds to complain if they started another war on the grounds of breach of treaty.
“That’s not possible.”
The Northern members of Congress didn’t have the confidence to handle it. They were afraid of how the South would react if they pushed harder, but they had no choice.
“Then, we’ll hold a vote on the ‘Amendment to the Constitution’.”
Many steps were skipped. They lacked the number of members needed for constitutional amendment, and the agreement of the state legislatures. The US Congress was breaking the Constitution with their own hands.
Bang-bang-bang-
“Passed.”
The amended Constitution that was passed was as follows:
———————
Amendment XIII to the Constitution of the United States
Section 1: Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Section 2: Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
———————
This wasn’t the end. The Mexican Empire had also demanded in the Pittsburgh Treaty that “those who are emancipated shall enjoy all civil rights, including freedom of movement,” and they had to guarantee those rights.
Amendment XIV to the Constitution of the United States, added to guarantee the civil rights of former slaves and their descendants, and Amendment XV to the Constitution of the United States, to guarantee their right to vote, were passed one after another.
“My God, I don’t know what we’ve done.”
They had done it.
Although it was forced upon them, they had unconstitutionally amended the US Constitution. The South would never accept it.
“We’ve done what we had to do.”
“Yeah. History will judge us.”
The news of the federal constitutional amendment in New York spread quickly throughout the nation. Even the citizens of the North considered these constitutions too radical.
Naturally.
The South did not accept it.
***
The citizens of the South were furious.
The North’s unilateral and unconstitutional amendment was a complete disregard for their will.
From the North’s perspective, they had no choice but to be forced to make this choice, but ultimately, this action sparked immense backlash even from states that had remained relatively neutral in the midst of the extreme conflict between the North and South.
“It’s unconstitutional! They amended the federal Constitution without the consent of Southern members of Congress or Southern states!”
Jefferson Davis, a Southern heavyweight, argued.
“Right!”
“From the war with Mexico to the constitutional amendment, everything is decided by the North. What reason do we in the South have to stay in the Union!”
“Right! Right!”
It wasn’t just his followers. The support of the citizens who had returned to New Orleans, a major city in the South, was unwavering.
Jefferson Davis was the one who organized the Southern army and recaptured New Orleans.
They were waiting.
For Jefferson to utter the words they wanted.
“The South shall secede from the Union that does not respect the rights of the South! We must establish a new nation where we can protect our rights!”
Jefferson Davis did not disappoint their expectations.
“Woooooo!”
“Yes!”
They were sick and tired of those Yankee bastards.
December 23, 1846.
With the overwhelming support of the Southern citizens, Jefferson Davis became the President of the Confederate States of America.
As soon as he declared independence and the establishment of a new nation in Louisiana, his political home, the federal government immediately declared them a “hostile organization,” but it had little effect.
“The session will now proceed to vote on the resolution regarding the accession to the Confederate States of America.”
The vote took less than three minutes.
“The South Carolina State Legislature has officially resolved, through a vote, to secede from the Union and join the Confederate States of America.”
Bang-bang-bang-
The South Carolina State Legislature passed the bill regarding accession to the Confederate States of America unanimously.
It wasn’t just South Carolina. The members of the state legislatures in slave states were often wealthy, and in the South, being wealthy meant being a slave plantation owner.
As in any country in the world, these wealthy individuals in the South were also actively involved in politics. In Southern society, slave ownership was not just an indicator of economic wealth but also a symbol of social status and power.
With the cotton boom, the price of slaves skyrocketed. Even the wealthy couldn’t easily buy them. So, emancipate all those slaves? Without any compensation? What about the farms? It was no different from being threatened to give up all their assets for the sake of the nation.
All plantation owners had that thought, and Virginia, Mississippi, Florida, and other states joined the Confederacy one after another.
***
As 1847 arrived, more Southern states began to show their willingness to join the Confederate States of America. The federal government reacted sensitively to this, and the confrontation was escalating.
Many citizens were captivated by this massive confrontation, but there were also those who weren’t.
‘James Polk, you son of a bitch.’
“You did all that and retired to live comfortably?”
After former President James Polk retired, he was subjected to constant attacks from public opinion, having lost all political power.
He was accused of sending troops to the South under the pretext of protecting the property of Americans, as well as instigating border disputes by pitting commanders against each other.
James Polk’s apology implied that the accusations were true, and he remained silent without making any official statement.
“Henry… James… This father will avenge your deaths.”
When the news of the deaths of his two sons in the Battle of Philadelphia spread, his wife collapsed in shock. Even after she regained consciousness, she continued to languish and passed away just a month later. The once-happy family was completely shattered.
His grown-up sons had fiancées and were about to get married soon. He and his wife were looking forward to seeing their grandchildren’s antics.
“He, he, he, he”
After settling his assets, he headed to Nashville, Tennessee, where former President James Polk lived.
A revolver he had luckily obtained was tucked inside his coat.
‘It’s supposed to shoot six shots. I need to check the number of guards.’
Even he himself thought he was out of his mind from the moment he picked up a gun and came this far, but he didn’t rush into the house where the former president lived.
The important thing was to kill James Polk, who had started a war that could have been avoided, killing hundreds of thousands of Americans.
“There are a lot of guards. I heard he was a castaway even in the Democratic Party, but he’s rich, I guess.”
James Polk owned a large farm. It was safe to say that all the employees there were practically guards.
There were guards even at dawn to prevent slaves from escaping, and James Polk rarely went outside.
The man had to be patient.
To kill his hateful enemy, James Polk, for good.
Four days had passed since he had been waiting around the house for James Polk to go out.
Finally, James Polk prepared to go out. James Polk, accompanied by a coachman and two guards, boarded the carriage and soon left.
“Hey?”
A man was standing by the roadside.
“Move! You’ll get hit!”
The carriage was approaching, but the man didn’t move.
Just as the coachman was about to warn him again, the man quickly drew his gun from his coat and pointed it.
“Damn!”
Bang!
A bullet hole appeared on the coachman’s forehead.
“What the hell!”
The carriage door opened, and two guards jumped out. They were using a box-shaped carriage instead of a carriage with an open top, because it was winter.
Bang!
The man shot the guard on the left. The guard on the right was horrified.
“Re, revolver!”
Seeing that there was only one, he unconsciously relaxed. It wasn’t a military-grade revolver, so he would have to reload it.
The guard hurriedly aimed his gun, but the price of his carelessness was death.
Bang!
“Cough!”
The coachman and the guard were both dead.
“Hey!”
The man shouted.
“I know you’re in there, James Polk.”
There was no response.
Thump.
Thump.
Creak-
The man boarded the carriage nervously, but he couldn’t help but laugh out loud when he opened the closed carriage door.
“Ha, hahaha! You stupid son of a bitch, you went out without even bringing a gun?”
James Polk had trusted his guards and hadn’t brought a gun.
“You were even president, why are you so quiet? You, who used your smooth tongue to start a war.”
To the man’s provocation, James Polk said.
“Wa, wait! Yeah, I knew this day would come.”
James Polk pretended to be calm in front of the gun pointed at him, but his voice trembled.
“Ha, but, wasn’t the war what everyone wanted? If the people hadn’t elected me, how could I have become president? I didn’t hide the fact that I was an expansionist.”
“Ha.”
There were many things to retort.
He had falsely incited the people, instigated border disputes without properly preparing for war, and hastily started a war, killing hundreds of thousands of Americans. But James Polk seemed to genuinely believe that he had simply followed the demands of the people.
In front of that disgusting expression, the man was momentarily speechless.
When the man couldn’t continue for a moment, James Polk, mistaking it for persuasion, opened his mouth again.
“Put down the gun for a moment and let’s talk…”
It was then.
“You stupid bastard. Just die!”
Bang! Bang!
“Cough, huff!”
“He, hahahahaha!”
Bang!
***
News of the assassination of former President James Polk hit America hard.
The assassin had killed the coachman and two guards, fired two bullets into James Polk’s chest, and then committed suicide on the spot.
“This is terrible news. I should be more careful.”
Lieutenant Lucas read the article containing the grim news and walked down the street, but there was no reply from behind.
Instead, he heard an unfamiliar voice.
“You’re too full of yourself. No one cares about a pyramid like you.”
“Huh?”
When Lieutenant Lucas turned around, he saw guards lying down and an unfamiliar man getting up.
“Thanks to you, I had to do it myself.”
Shiver-
Hearing those words, he realized who the stranger was.
“Yo, you wouldn’t be Mex…”
“Shh.”
Whack-
Lieutenant Lucas felt a sharp impact on his head and lost consciousness.
Lucas’s parents, a large landowner and a local authority figure, learned of their youngest son’s disappearance belatedly and raised various suspicions through the media, but not many were interested in the missing person case.
America was already too chaotic for such a trivial matter to become a hot topic.