Portland gazette and Maine advertiser., 1816-07-30

and solemn compact with each other, and
constitution of civil government for ourselves
and posterity." We cannot find in this in
strument, that the Legislature has been vested
with power to impair the body polite, or dis
member the state, nor is it competent for any
one part or section of the state to act alone
upon question of such immense importance
to the whole. The constitution does indeed
provide that whenever the power of enjoying
in safety aud tranquility their natural rights,
and the blessings OF life are not obtained, the
people have right to alter the government
but in no part of the constitution is there the
most distant intimaton that the Legislature or
any portion of the people of the state can dis
solve the social compact, by which the whole
people covenant with each citizen and each
citizen with the whole people, and form one
government TO secure the existence of the boz
dy polite. lfthere be any authority or pow
er by which this compact can be dissolved,
it must rest with the whole people of the
Commonwealth in their primary assemblies.
And il the Legislature should at any time,
entertain an opinion that it should be within
the power, and for the interest OF the people
to divide the state, we hope and trust that the
question will be referred to all the qualified
voters OF the Commonwealth, and not TO those
OF any particular section. We. conceive that
the several resolves, for taking the opinion OF
the people of Maine upon the question of sep
aration. are formed in an erroneous principle
and are calculated to produce no possible
good. Without discussing the question wheth-
er such power exist in the whole, or enter
ing into the consideration of the application,
which the oath OF Office, taken by members
ofthe Legislature, may have to the subject
the undersigned conceive it sufficient, for their
present purpose, utterly.to deny and protest
against the right Of any portion of the people
to adopt measures, calculated to sever any
other part OF Maine from tire state, without
their consent. If the opposite doctrine be
admitted, the people of any section of the
state may be permitted to vote themselves, and
all within their limits, into new state and
ii such doctrine be sanctioned by the Legis-
lature, the time may soon arrive when Mas
sachusetts, instead of being great and res
pectable Commonwealth, may be cut up into
several petty states, as ambition, caprice or
accident may dictate. We are well aware
that the constitution of the United States, Ar
ticle Alb, Section 3, provides that new states
may be admitted by the Congress into this u
Mon, but it Immediately add. s. but no new
state shall be formed or created within the
jurisdiction of any other state nor any state
be formed by the junction Of two or more
states or parts OF states, without the consent
of the Legislatures Of the States concerned.
We submit TO the Legislature whether the
people Of The United States ever intended to
confer upon Congress the power to dismember
states, even with the Consent of the Legisla-
ture of the state to be dismembered. There
are t7vo distinct cases suited in Uis clause Of the
constitution. One prohibits in the most ex-
plicit language" The formation ofa nev state
1csttan 0te jurisdiction Of any other state. THIS
part Of the clause as distinct from the other, and
istollosced by diyuactive. Ii then provides
that no state shaHbe formed By The jsa,ction Of
too or more states, syiatom the consent ofhe
Legislatures concerned as sueH as efhe Con-
gress." The words legislatures and states
cannot apply to the case OF a state being form
ed within the jurisdiction of another state be
causethere can be Only one statewhch canex-
press its consent to the measure; &certainly the
consent OF Congress cannot authorize the Leg
islaiure ola state to do what the constitution
Of such state does not permit, where the con
sent OF both is required. The people Of the
United States, in forming and adopting the
constitution of U. States, have provided that
the powers not delegated to the United States,
by the constitution, nor prohibited by it TO
the states, are reserved to the States respec-
lively or to the people. Ifthereiore the pow
er to dismember states has not been express
y given to the state Legislatures and to Con-
gress, it will not be adopted by wise and
cautious Legislature, although another section
OF the lion may have taken another course,
under different state constiut,on and where
there was no opposition. The Legislature of
Massachusetts has never yet decided this
question. nor has it been submitted to any
judicial tribunal. The construction, which
we have given TO the constitution, is conform
able TO the spirit Of STATE sovereignty and state
Integrity, which exist at tie time when the
constitution was adopted. II is for the intel
iigent Legislature OF Massachusetts to decide
whether il be correct. The circumstance
that a small strip of the state of New Hamp-
shire intervenes between the two parts of the