The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1830-10-14
MIR. MADISON's LETTER.

OF the right oi state 10 nuiliiy an Act OF Son'
gress. The celebrated Virginia Resolutions
having been appealed to NJ an authority in
support Of tho South Carolioa doctrine, the
public will naturally feel a strong curiosity to
learn what are the present sentiments Of Mr..
Madison, the author Of those resolutions, on
the subject, and his exposition Of the princi.
pies maintained in the resolutions, which he
says have been misconceived by those who
have appealed 10 them. The letter 10 AZ fol.
lows.
MosrpELIER, August, 1880.
Dear Sir--Ihave duly received your letter,
in which you refer to the .'nullifyirg doctrine"
advocated, ss a constitutional righl, by some l
Of our distinguished fellow c.irsHs = and 70 the |
proceedings of the Virginia Le risistpre In % |
and 90, as appealed to in behsH al that doc.
trins; and you express wish for my ideas OH
those subjects.
Il am aware of tho delicacy Of the task in
some respects, and the difficulty in every 70.
spsct, OF doing full justice to il. But, having,
in more than one instance, complied with a |
like request from other friendly qusrters, do |
not decline sketch Of the views which ]
have been led to take Of the doctrine in ques- |
ton, as we'll as some others connected with |
them; and OF the grounds from which il ap. |
pears, that the proceedings Of Virginia have
been misconceived by those who have appeal.
ed to them In order to understand the true
character Of the Constitution OF the United
States, the error, not uncommon, must be a.
voided, Of viewing it through tho medium, eli.
ther of consolidated Government, or of u
confederatcd Government, whilst il 10 neither
one nor the other; but mixture orboth. And
having, in no model the similitude and analo.
gies applicable to othar systems OF govern
ment, IL must, more than any other, be its own
interpre or according to its text and the facts
Of the case.
From these il will bo seen that tho chsrac. !
terestic peculiarities of the Constitution are,
I, the mode ofits formation; 2, the division of
the supreme powers of government between
the States in their united capacity, and the
States in their individual capacities.
-. II was formed, not by the Governments
Of tho component States, as tho Federal Gov.
ernmcnt for which il was substituted was
formod Nor was il formed by majority of
the people Of the United States, ss a single
community, in the manner Of n consolidated
Government
IL was formed by the States, that 10, by the
people in each Of the States. acting in their
highest sovereign capacity; and formed conse
queD.y by the same authority which formed
tho Stale Constitutions
as the Constitutions Of the States, il has,
within each State, the Same authority M the
Constitution Of the State; and is ss much a
Constitution, in the strict scnss Of the term,
within its prescribed sphsre, a. fbs consttu-
t:ons OF tho States are, within their re srectivc
spheres but with this obvious and essential
difference, that being a compact among the
States in thoir highest sovereign capacity,
and constituting the people thereof one peo-
pie for certsin purposes, il cannot DO altered
or annued at tke will Of the States indvdu.
ally, as the constitution ofa Slate may DO at
it's individual will.
'2. And that il divides the supreme powers
Of Government, between tho Government of
the United States, and the Governments of
the individual States, is stamped on the face
OF the instrument; the powers OF war and Of
taxaton, Of commerce and of treaties, and 9TH
er enumerated powers vested in the Govern.
ment OF the United States, being Of as high
and sovereign a character, as any Of the pow
ers reserved IN the State Governments.
Nor is the Government Of the u. States,
created by the constitution, less a Govern.
men, in tho strict sense Of the term, within
the sphere of its powers, than the Govern.
ments created by tho constitutions Of the
States arc, within their sevstal spheres. II is
like them organized into Legislative, Execu.
tive, aud Judiciary departments. IL topcratos.
like them, directly on persons and things
And, like them, il has at command physical
force for executing the powers committed to
it The concurrent operation in certain cases,
is one Of the features marking the peculiarly
Of tho system.
Between these different constitutional Go.
vernments, the one operating in allthc States
the others operating separately in each, with
tho aggregate powers Of Government divided
between them, il could not escape attention
, that controversies would arise coucerning the
boundaries of Jurisdiction; and that some pro
vision ought 10 be made for such occurrences
, A political system that does not provide for
pcaceable and authoritative termination ofoc
curing controversies, would not be more thar
the shadow of a Government; the object ant
end ofa real Government being, tho substitu
ton oflaw and order, for uncertainty, confu
/, sion and violence.
cases, to each ofthe States, than thirteen, ane
already twenty four, could not bill To make
the constitution and the laws ofthe y. States
' different in different States, was obvious ant
4 not less obvious, that this diversity ofindepen
!, , dent decisions, must altogether dist!act th'
q Government Of the Union, and speedily pu
an end to the Union itself A uniform au
thority Of the laws, 10 in itsslfs vital principle
a Some Of the most important laws could not b'
v partially executed. They must be executed
. in oil the States, or they could be duly esecu
ted in mono. An imposi, or an excise, for ex
ample, if not in force in some States, would b
defeated in others. II 10 well known that thi
q was among the lessons Of experience. which
= had a primary influence in bringing about th'
}. existing constitution A loss Of its genera
authority would moreover revive the sxasps
e rating questions between the States holdini
!, !, ports for foreign commerce, and the sdjoininl
q States without them; to which age now addod
n oil the inland States, necessarily carrying nj
J, their foreign commerce through othsr States
To have made the dec cissons under the au
thority Of the individual States, coordinate
in all cases, with decisions unter the authorit
8 Of the United States, would unavoijab'y pro