Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1828-1831, 1830-01-14

rU,lOS
tunch"" n;s-'o wiu,n ia the narur. of' tnin.s, d..
tIey SUPPOSE the ratification would be- Submitted
oluestionably to the,nseves-Io that fountain irou
winch all our authority Is derived. Let me illustrut,
IT. majority Of freeholders-he did not believe
~oro Oh u himself, but take tho thing it's face
majority Of tho ireei,olders had consented Ie
.ph'ene Convention to propose amendments u
,he old, or adopt new Constitution. Now Sir tI,
reeholders have yet decidcd--with a stupidit 9
worse than that Of Esau, TO give up their brthrpbt
ms Constitution proposes an extension Of suffrage
whom suffrage is newly extended Unauestiunablv
mo. They had no moro right than Ono or Penn
IEyWn"'a- not the shadow of righ'. But the Con.
'ent II pr poses TO extend Suffrage, and who
Is 70 decide whether II shall DO extcnd.dp-
Snail they from whom the Convention derives nil
'ts autnorty-fron whom The l.. gsa,urc de riycd or
nSurped thcrs-sha they decide if suffrage s!,a1 he
Nchd a, or hey to whom the BON il extended!
WIS not IN" INDUSTRIOUS injustice and absurdty seen
That they ir.In whom all authority incip,enl and
maj lie drrv d, shall not dccidc, bur they 10 whom,
':'o o"o" Is extended He beSecched O. ntlen.u to
rcHecf--to lay these things To tIti- hcnrtsit y,.
man c>' that n o hers thai, uJm,ttr
ie inah right TO vote upon the ratification Was us
good MS ano, hers So lar w.. wcr,. uct,nr ind th,
SANCTION ofthe Qualified voters but we have no 20 vce
tic Lc.isLtur. never had-tu betray and d sayow
Their cons,iiucuisl: the tx ension wa. r.f ID bv
'hc trecholder*, there was end of-bt ITO o. her
power under hf av"n lIad the right to dccid, In
Il &c e. G 10 me anehe"cn proposed by MIR Powell
e. MI Randolph SAID Ire Legislature culi not ac,
trsu'urpers. He ed upon the !ndctin ex
cnsson Of suffrage. an the difficulty Of asc.,tainp
wh' lad ri1t f. so:e ieI tho new cunsttnt on
u oilers than frechoidrs admitted to y,ip upon
the ratification the election day would be chaos
under the new syscni-tI. was afraid thai inIispo
ton had prevented him r m doing Just, 10 the ccar
'dea he MAJ ~ he SUBJ e. when lac i.n &, n
'eition BIt he r'prai"d---ye were tie Tru.t.rs
OF the ifce'iodcrs and hal right to bc:rav them
Wcart by their authority, ard by !hcir gu -hority
alone II submitted 20 ";hcfs, it would be like 9TH
or reso utionS. Violence would prevail I, would bc
a Mi. hip
pare At'i'O G.rghly Khan.
Mr. Powell sad fins amend neat VAS irama.ure
SO was that "fhis coleagu (Mr. Cooke II the
constitution was not adopted. thu, PROVISION would
fail with il. He referred to the law oroap;yi. =,
C"nv niion To show that the privilege of voting
"h me rat'iicnii"n w,s x,ended expressly IT, ha
qunl ned voters Il was said tina, the of the Lee
siSiat'lre was usurpa'iun. G-aut nave on
how did the case snn'i now? These very freehold
ers had sanctioned It by majority Of 5000 If his
aI, n'imont was pr mature, he had no objection to
WI hdraw n-but 1T oovatcd he only OBJ .ction OF
h- colleague 10 the law.
MIR Siunard thought it could be made n,a nj est TO
MIR. Cook, that his proposition ought not now to be
pressed AS Tar "a his memury served him. the ex
ainp!es from which the article was drawn, had 10,
occurred until af' er a Constitution was alopcd-
VIII n they were annexed i sc,el Ilc-u ms an
ccd the ca-c IF Ponisylv mil. Ual,r ary vow
whcther The provision was right or It 1t ia be
ter be orcb"rnc until the Constitution was pa ss.d
proceeding upon the concession, that all adm trd 10
suffrage, wore To VOC the ratification of he N
'tuuiIon Mr.. 5. said legislative Go ion was indis
penSnh,r-aS some C II ri nIu I be- fixed by law TO
ascertain tie voters, rulers mu be p-csi!ed ,o Tie
others conduct ing tic election, aud sanctions d O.
vidcd. Thus was ind spcns!ble n :, without it. we
were exposed 10 the hazard OF inl,scrmina,c
vote upon tle 'tcation. There wa. another con
siderat'on which he submit ed To the candor of the
gcnti"m"" from, Frederick He could anticpate no .
thing m 'r' fearful, than Convnnion'< assembling
without tie ssnci ION of law To % event this r, 3,
poet ought To be cherished for the srrsen, aw-and
was this respect preserved, by Adapting a nroyi
sion winch superseded the law under witch we were
assembled! He proposed ~ the sense OF the
Convention, on the pr0prictl of waiting I'LL the Con-
vcniion was adopted, BY moving TO lay the article
and his proposed amendment it, on the table
MIR. Randolph would add but n dozen words IN RE-
1t pl I'm that 10 subject was OF greater imp,r.
tnnce, and he feared les understood. | ask said
Dir. X. If W" are empowered to do any thing final
and conclusive? We are called in "a couns, las
state physicians To prescribe remedies for dis
SEES hope II Will be conceded that do 10 act
binding xpon thu Legsl Itnr. ar the pcopl. Mr. r. ar
Sued Tor some tim Jour limits will not allow us 10 llow
h'm.) 10 show, that her he Conventions nor the
Legislature" had power to conclude any thi gus
| II would be concluding, TO submit the question OF
ratification tn any but the ircehulIcrs. To refer Ia
any other classes would be 10 change the Convention
from an advisory into controlling counsel
| Mr. Cooke said the question TO whom thu COnsiitu-
ton should D.; referred, was not raised by the article
he proposed. As to that question: must be settled
by the uc' or the silence Of the Convention. Tie
law To organize the CoBv ,nton gave that BODY n
Il Cdtle oVcr INC euDJcCt-prONldIg that the
qualified voters shonld vote on its ratification
or such o h'rs as ihc Convention deemed cxpedi
cnt. Ii then the Convention was silent the law
provided for submitting The Constitution to he raii-
fed or rejected by all. adm I'D by l. TO sulffagc--
tn" Convention chose tn ex' end II to SUCH hey were
sustained By the authority of the law under which
they sat The Legislature has IN terms, transferred
10 the Convention the power OF designating who
should vo:o. Had the Legislature the right to do so
Whether they had or had not was ulinacral rs the
people i'll their sovereign capacity, had ratified .hc
act
Mr.. &. now varied the proposition by moving, ir
The fret place, to strike out the 3s article (prUv
ding against inerrcgnum in The Executive and Judi
cin Depar,mcrts) With view insert tn. article
he had offered which provid also against an inter
regnnm III the l. gislative Department.
MIR. Leigh Of Chesterfield, said if the 3lst article
was stricken out, and Mr.. Cookies substitute for il
rejected, that IL would be necessary TO rensiatc IT,
lie presumed that all who intended to vote agoius
Tn" substitute, would vote against striking Uui.
The motion to strike out further opposed by
Mr.. johnson, aud ncgatived, without n count
Mr. Cooke thcn withdrew his article for the pre-.
sent.