Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1830-05-21

nhertance Of freedom received from our father. leo
acy oil war, slavery, and contention.
But, Ia asked, Win you deny 10 the States every
portion OF their former sovereignyl Will Won call this
with the Senator from Massachusetts, strictly po,uI,,
government Will you deny them all right of inter
Venuon, and reduce them TO the condition of mere cor.
poratons? Do You renounce the doctrines for which
you conended in 1885, and consider the Supreme
Court a' the umpire provided in all to
on the extent of State rights' God forbid that should
hoit such doctrines II my friends had stopped al the
declaration that they adopted the resolutions of the
virginia Legislature, l should not. perhaps hay.
thought the difference between W. of sufficient
gmeoce to have troubled the Senate with my opinions
+ or The most rart, coincide in the sentiments Of
those resolutinns but my friends carried them on, in
their practical consequences further than think they
warrant; further, certainly, than willing to follow
them
As understand them they assert the rvbt Of State
m the case OF law palpably and s,ituonal and
dangerous, TO demonstrate against H. to call on the O.
,her States TO Cooperate in procuring its REPEAL and in
noing 'hi' thoy must of necessity call it u,con .ti,u.
uonli and, II so, in their opinion null and void Thus
Tar agree entirely with the language aud substance
OF the resolution. This, suppose is meant bv The
preston tnfeTP0Se for dTreSttng The progress of The
ec see in those resolutions assertion of the right
cc"'ehueu ior, as constitutional and peaceable exer-
cSe OF ve'o followed out by the doctrine that il is to
continue until on the application Of Congres, for an a.
mendment, the States to decide II these are the
true deductions from the Virginia resolu,ions canno.
agree 10 them, much az revere the authority of the
great Statesman whose produco they are. 1 cannot
assent to them; and il is because revere him. and adj
mre his talents that believe he intended TO On
nus length cannot believe il, also TOR another rea
Soh lie thought and I've conclu.ively proved the A.
lien and sedilon laws to be deliberate
and dangerous acts he declared them so in hi. re so
ions Yet sir he never proposed that their execution
should be resisted; he never uttered or wrote wor,,
that looked like this doctrine, contended tor of
constitutional right to the execution OF the law
until amendments could be proposed The right he as
serted when he aludes to resistance was one that al
IN inn ahl
constitutional oppres ion. Mr.. Je.rson in the Ken.
tncSy resolutions, has us ID word of eqivocal auIhori
~ as well as Identification; he tho right of
Siae to "nWiJy an unconstitutional act II he mean,
by this any thing than is contained in the Virginia
resolutions, he must apply it to the extreme case Of re-
sl3anc", on IN" right of which, there be no con-
trariey OF opni m: Tor Mr. Jefferson does not IL read
MN Alright, avow, any more than Mr. Nj ion does, tn =
right now contended for OF State veto with its copse
q"ences rms, II appears TO me, ia modern in
We uon'& as think have proved, utterly incompatible
with the nature OF our Government, Was ever con-
cfived, before the present d,y, form par, of l., II
II was, why ' not alluded to in any of the debates o.
tre Federal Convention which framed or the Stat.
Conven ions which adopted ia Surely it i. Of sufIicien
Importance to have attracted attention. ether as an l.
vantage or an obi sction; yet not wer is sail about it,
Nay more IL we refer that luminous exposi;ion or
the whole character Of the General Government and of
lts expected operation, "The Feierali.i" not word
can be found that vo,s this idea of pefO now for the
nrst ,imr' set up "a prt of our Constitution. The
Constitution, its advocates, it's opnosers the great con.
temporary exposition OF lis character the practice I'M
der for forty years, all silent on so impo an so fun
'"men'ai doctrine Is not this fnir, might sly
conclusive argument that does not exi.t-ihat il is
what have indcA i, To re- mo lorn inve ron, Bu,
this ia no, all: the case of conflict ,horty between
me neral ana State authorities, under the Gov
eminent was one that could escape the foresight of
the authors of "The +, deralis" series of chap,ers
on Ills, and subjects connected with it, are found in
That collection, written by NJ. Madison Here would
have been the place. certainly, To have deveoped the
character and op ration Of this legal uetO, it, in his
opinion, il hal existed He could not have been s,en,
on the subject Ii il impossible that he could then
have held tho doctrines which are erroneousv in mo
opinion, said to be those Of his Virginia resolutions
In the Al number, in arguing III. necessity Of the
article which makes the laws Of the Un'e States
made in pursuance OF the Constitutions paramount to
the State Constitutions he says il the State sovereign
~ h7d been left coI,pete in this particular among
oher ABSURD ana dangerous cops qnences "The world
would have seen Tor he fret Time, eye of govern
meni founded on inveTsinn OF TIE Fundamental prin
cfles OF all governments; i woul havo seen the an.
thority OF the whole society every where subori,ta
10 The authority OF the parts; il would have seen
monster, in which the head under the dire c,ion of
the members. And, as more Immediately applicable
TO the present subject, in the 46h number he gives
expressly wha he snrpo'es the only ne for an sun
'oGrrdntdbie, by which he an
a measure. "On the o'her hand (he says) should an
unwarrant 'be measure OF the Fe leral Government he
unpopular in particular States, which would seldom
tdii 10 he the case warrantabe IN -ure h,
So which may sometimes be the case. the me ans Of on
position to il are powerful and al hand" Now sir if
the new doctrine were the true one if the veo were
What more po,oerfid! VIVA, more al hnndy VIA,
more eh-ciual! Why lock for any other? Yc; this
constitutional right, clearly deducibe from the very
terms of our national compact, yer occurred to the
very man who e doctrines in 1898, are said erroneous
~ again rep at, 10 embrace it, What are the rene
dies which he there points on? "Th d.quetude of the
people, Their repngnanc- and, perhaps, refusal 10 co.
operate with the officers Of the Union the Towns Of
the executive magsracy Of the State The e,nbarrass
merits created by legislative devices which would Of
ten he added on such occasions would oppose IN anv
state, difficulties not 10 he de .pised; would form in
large State very serious inpediments and whore the
sentiments Of several adjoining Safes happened TO be
IN unison, would present obstrucions which the FEEDER
al Government would be hardly willing encounter ~
These were the sentiments oil Mr.. Madison in 1857
And such, 'hink, il the true construction of his I'm
gnage in IDS For h: on, in the same paper TO
loi'ow M the consequences Of perseverance, of the
Federal Government, in unconstitutional in
10 The only result that all must in erfreme cases
happena resistance by force and that he may not he
misunderstood makes analogous 10 the case OF The Co
ouial resistance 10 Great B.itain.
(I0 be cO'ici,td,d in Olv nert)
IlmITIAys9Y n O. ca