The Massachusetts spy, and Worcester County advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1825-1831, 1826-04-05

or now long? What are the checks OF these
branches on each other? There is not word
OF all this in the Constitution of the United
States; aud yet, will the gentleman say, that
the whole Institution of Republican Govern
/ ment is of less Importance that the particular
modification Of the electoral Suffrage for Presi
dent, or that being, Gas it assuredly ISL inii-
nitely more important, we have 10 Constitu
| tiOnal provision for il think he will not say
so.
J. ] repeat, sir, that il is the life and soul of
This Government, TO exercise no more power
than is absolutely Necessary, and TO leave as
much as possible TO The discretion of the
States. 1t is for want of some such adjust
menl as this, that all the Governments that
! have ever been established over widely ex-
| tended regions, have {allen TO pieces. Sir, |
am willing TO retract what said. ] am ready
to think that, in this respect, this Constitution
Us perfect. When | consider this partition of
powers, when | see how the separate States
are relieved from all the perplexity of foreign
| relations, and how the General Government is
relieved from all the odium Of local admins
tration, l am ready TO pronounce it: in this
part, perfect system. | apprehend there
are no limits 10 the possible extension Of this
Government, in this respect. | believe it
might 90 into harmonious operation, from La
brador to Cape Horn, as easily as it does from
Maine to Florida mean as far as this part
of the system is concerned. think this is a
part OF the Constitution, which, Of all others,
ought to be treated sacredly.
But, at least, the gentleman contends, we
have no Constitutional provision, which results
in uniformity. Even this, as have already
had the honor of stating 10 the committee, is
at war with his admission-that the Constitu-
ton, such as it is, will practically result in
uniformity. That uniformity is not, know.
The uniformity which the gentleman prefers !;
but it is the uniformity of system, if not
| of another. But ] will waive this point !;
and will follow the gentleman for moment in
this argument on this subject Of uniformity,
and must ask leave to say, considering that
this idea Of uniformity is the basis of his sys-
TEN, that could wish he had applied little
more of tina: sagacity, in which few men
equal him, in analyz;ng the lea Of uniformity.
There are many incidents to the electoral
choice. In some of these, uniformity is pro-
vided for by the Constitution, as we have it.
IN others, where it does not exist, the gentle
man wishes to provide for it, while in others,
and those, in my judgment, not of less impor-
lance, he leaves it still wholly unprovided
| for. We have an uniform Constitutional pro
snail
appoint the electors; the State shall appoint
them. We have an uniform Constitutional
provision, which ascertaus the tribunal that
shall decide how this appointing power is to
be exercised; the legislature of he STATES.
We have an uniform provision that ascerains
the number of electors, to which each State
shall be entitled. Here is great deal Of uni
| formity, as much, as have already said, as
exists in other most important parts of this
government. But the gentleman maintains
that it is not enough. There is one discre-
tonaiy element in this system, and the States
have exercised that discretion by no fixed
rule. This must be remedied and he pro-
poses, as remedy, 10 prohibit the State from
exercising this discretion, and TO lay out the
United States into an uniform system of Dis
tricis. beg that the order fthe words NAV
be marked-an uniform system of Districts
Sir, that is one thing but is it 10 be system
of uniform Districts for. that is another thing !?
though The vital difference between them has
been overlooked by the gentleman from South
lCaroi;na. | will suppose that the State, Of
which have the honor TO be representative,
shall be entitled, now, to fifteen electors,
aud that il shall be required to be laid out in
to a system Of Districts, and that the Districts
are to be uniform. suppose this operation TO
be begun by running line through the States,
a parallel OF latitude or meridian, and di-
vidng it into two portions nearly equal as
may be, so that we shall have eight electors
on one side Of the line, and seven on the other.
Suppose that, on one side of the line, those
qualifications Of voters shall prevail, which
obtain in Virginia, which my friend from that
State, (Mr. Archery thinks the very rerfec-
ton Of the electoral franchise, which shut
out from the polls more than one half of the
arms-bearng and tax-paying free citizens
while on the other side of the line universal
suffrage shall prevail. Now, sir, when we
come to throw out these two divisions into
Districts, though we may call the system uni
form, are the Districts uniform. Does each
of the Districts, on one side, reflect the same
quantum of popular voice and popular will
as on the other side? No, sir, we have the
cord uniformity, and it is the only thing we
have, and that is in the wrong place. The
very object at which the gentleman aims, I'M
der cover of this word uniformity, eudes his
| grasp. The system is uniform so far as this ;
that all the States will be divided into Dis
tricts; but the Districts are as uniform as pos
sible.
Is this doubted, sir? Look for moment,
to the qualifications OF voters in the different
States. | have, for this especial purpose,
looked through the Constitutions Of the Uni
ted States, as contained in the collection
printed in eighteen hundred and twenty,
and comprehendng all of them but the very
last and think may say that ] have not
found two States in the Union where the quail
Gcatious for voters are precisely the same.
It seems as If the ingenuity Of the trainers of
them had been tasked to find out some quail
ication for voters in each State, that should
differ little at least from the qualifications
in every other State. In some of them it is
required that the voter should be citizen of
the United States; in others, it is not. Now
from one Presidential term to another, we
have forty thousand emigrants arriving in this