Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1820-01-01

enjoyment or all rights, advantages, ana
immunities of citizens of the United
States and, in the mean time, they shall
be maintained and protected III the free
enjoyment of their liberty, property, and
the religion which they profess"
Although there is want OF precision
in the article, its scope, and meaning
cannot be misunderstood. It constitutes
stipulation, by which the United States
engage that the inhabitants of Louisiana
should be formed into state or states,
and, as soon as the provisions of the con-
stitution permit, that they shall be ad-
mitted as new states into the union, on
the footing of the other states and be-
fore such admission, and during their
territorial government, that they shall be
maintained and protected by congress in
the enjoyment of their liberty, property,
and religion. The first clause of this
stipulation will be executed by the adj
mission of Missouri as new state into
the union, as such admission will impart
to the inhabitants of Missouri I" all the
rights, advantages, and. immunlties,'
which citizens of the United States de-
rive from the constitution thereof these
rights my be dcnominated federal rights,
are uniform throughout the union, and
are common to all its citizens: But the
rights derived from the constitution and
laws of the states, which may be denomi-
mated state rights, in many particulars,
differ from each ether. Thus, while the
federal rights of the citizens of Massa-
-chusetts and Virginia, are the same,
their state rights are however dissimilar,
slavery being forbidden in one, and per-
mittcd in the other state. This differ
ence arises out of the constitutions ano
laws OF the two states, in the same man
ner as the difference in the rights of the
citizens of these states to vote for repre-
sentatlves in congress, arises out Of the
state laws and constitution. In Massa-
chusetts, every person OF lawful age,
and possessing prop erty, of any sort, Of
the value OF two hundred dollars, may
vote Tor representatives to congress. III
Virginia, no person can vote for repre-
sentatives to congress, unless he be
freeholder. AS the admission Of q new
state into the union confcrs upon its citi-
zens only the rights denominated federal,
and as these are common to the citizens
of all the states, as well of those in which
slavery is prohibited, as of those in which
it is allowed, it follows that the prohibi-
ton OF slavery in Missouri will not i'm
pair the federal rights of its citizens, and
mat such prohibition is not restrained by
the clause of the treaty which has been
cited.
The remaining clause of the article is
confined to the period of the
territorial government of Missouri, to
the time between the first occupation OF
of the country by the United States, and
its admission as new state into the union.
Whatever may be its import, it has no
reference nor application to the terms Of
the admission, or to the condition of
Missouri after it shalt have been admit
ted into the union. The clause is but
the common formula of treaties by which
inhabited territories are passed from one
sovereign to another; its object is to Sc
cure such inhabitants the permanent or
temporary enjoyment of their former
liberties, prosperity, and religion, leav-
ing to the new sovereign full power to
make such regulations respecting the
same, as may be thought expedient, pro-
vided these regulations be not incompati-
bic with the stipulated security.
What were the liberties under the
French government, the enjoyment of
which under ours called for protection,
we are unable to explain; as the United
States have no power to prevent the free
of the catholic religion, no
against their interference to
disturb it, could be necessary; and the
only part of the clause whose object can
be readily understood, is that relative 10
" property"
AS all nations do not permit slavery,
the term property, in its common and |
universal meaning, does not include or
describe slaves. In treaties therefore
between nations, and especially in those
Of the United States, whenever stipula- |
tons respecting slaves were to be made,
the word " negroes" or Is slaves" has
been employed, and the omission of
these words in this clause, increases the |
uncertainty whether, by the term proper
ty, siapes were intended to be included |
But admitting that such was the intention
Of the parties, the stipulation is not only
but extends no further than
to the property actually possessed by the
of Missouri when it was first
occupied by the United S,ates.-Prop-