Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1833-02-14
Virginia EegisIat ure.
FEDERAL RELATIONs-(Contin,e,

| bDhOe, Sfdfe The Relations
6eltceen The United States and South Carolina on
/ Friday, the 1lh January.
Mr.. Chsirman-I presume we all here agree in one
oosct al least that is to preserve the Unionwe all de-
sire possble s. Carolina mad and danger
Gus career-we only differ TO the means of efecting
these purposes.
object TO the report and re solutions of the select COM
mtee oil Il, in the general, and in detail l object to
them in the general because their whole tendency is TO
take sides with South Carolina, and against the President
IN this important and deeply agitang question 10 put
south Carolina almost in the right and put the Presi
dent decidedly in the wrong. On this question think
IN all essential points, the President is in the right and
South Carolina is in the wrong, and satisfied that this
will be the verdict OF the People OF Virginia
The report and resolutions are deficient i'm perspcuv
simplicity and orce-and well calculated mslead
the people OF South Carolina, and the people Of Virginia
also.
object TO the 4th resolution because consider il TO
be circuitous and indirect mode of declaring the tariff
laws unconstitutional.
Is this House prepared to declare broad terms that
the tarii laws are unconstitutional? presume The
powers TO regulate and lay mpost duties
arc given TO Congress by the Constitution the U. S.
without Limitation or restrctoH, except that the duties shall
be uniform throughout the United States These powers
may be abused, aud if gentlemen think that they have
been abused II is well 10 say But this circumocution
tends 10 produce the effect upon the people, as the
general declaration that the tariff laws are unconstution
al What the legi innate consequence if the tariff laws
be unconstitutional! The consequence is that those laws
are absolutely void, and citizens viii be
they are not bound by those laws.
Can those who supported the embargo law Of Mr. JEFF
lerson-a law which suspended all commerce. say with
any consistency that the present tariff laws which only
are unconstitutional The abuse of clearly given power
does not make the exercise of the power Unconstitutional
Congress might abuse the powers of declaring war; of
raising staining army or navy, but that would not
make the exercise of those powers unconstitutional If
Congress should exercise power them by
the CONSTITUTIONS the act would then be unconstitutional
and the Judiciary Department would pronounce the ACT
void 1t is needless, however, for argue this oues-
ton, has been abundany discussed by the abest men
III te United States and ought TO be considered as
settled.
The 9TH resolution afTrns that we can never acouiesce
nj htfin e, III.
we resist the aws Shall resist them by Nulli6caton
Secession, Revolution? The resolution declares further
mat IL Is essentially necessary 10 the preservation OF the
Union that the present tariff shall be speedily reduced to
the revenue standard. Will we dissolve the Union if il
De not thus educed' viii we justify any other State in
doing SO! presume the people of Virginia have idea
oil adopting any such measures these.
The 9th resolution authorizes the inference, that If s.
Carolina had deferred her until later period We
should then have justified them | conceive that the
people OF Virginia will to nuly, secede or
dissolve this Union any way at any time on account of
ho Droseut t,rin H., Ill, -, - "" VI
other State in doing so.
he 7h OulOn in effect charges (and it has been re-
pea'edly charged in the ba.e) that the
President has affirmed i'll his p oclamaton at the people
oil the United States acting aggre gate community
adopted the Federal Consulu ion This appears
be most strained end unfair construction OF tho LANGUAGE
IN the Proclamaon-lhe people OF the URited STATES
formed The Constitution acting through the State Lesis
atues IN making The compact, meet and discuss its
provisions, and acting in separate COnremtions when
hey ratified those provisions" from this MASSAGE
tba the inference has been drawn that ho prs.j ~, H.
affirmed tue Constitution OF the United States to have been
adopted by the people oil the United Staes acting as one
people his IS surely an I'm ound ion OF th.
passage but his mean ngis explained it needed cXpla
hatoh 10y other passages in the document In one
passage, saysn have the people OF the Serer0I
States solemny sanctioned the provisions" In another
Pa'sage- or dd The states, when they SeUeTalVrati
the onstution, &c. IL uuly singular that the gen
ieman from Petersburg should confidently affirm that the
terms In the Constitution, we the people of the United
States in order to lorm perfect Union' &C. did
not mean that they acted people and vet tI,e
terms used by the President ''The people of the Unite
4 ,b,,
ed as one people The sentence in the Proclamation be-
ing qualified too, by the expressions, acting in se1arate
Conventions when they ratified these prOvisionsj W.
an Know or ought to know, enough of our political
history be that the question of the ADOPTION of
the federal Constitution was submitted TO the States epa
Fdiey--ha each Stale had one vote on the questionable
State OF Delaware well the State OF New York
How that vote was to be given, whether for or against
the Constitution, determined by the majority of the
votes OF the representatives, of the people OF each State
acting separate community This is a matter of his
tory, about which the author of the Proclamation could
not have made gross bunder has charged
him.
Mr.. Chairman doctrine me, and as | conceive
OF the most dangerous character the harmony and STA
bity OF the Union, has been proclaimed in the progress
OF this debate and is cquivocaly in the Report of
the Committee OF 81 1t is called the right Of pedceabe
Secessionand feel great apprehension that this doctrine
will be productive OF as much mischefn Virginia as the
doctrine of PeGcedbie Modification has been in South Ca
rOliDa. consider the principle involved i'm both fine
same. The principle involved in EACH this: that sim
gle State has the right pcaceably, in opposition to-
in violation OF the Constitution of the United STATE
and acts OF Congress- whenever in her opinion the Con-
sution has been violated by act of Congress Thus
will bare majority Of the people of the smallest State i'm
this Union, have right TO override the decision of ma.
ory Of the people Of the United States majority of the
States themselves and Of the Supreme Court of the u
States The question OF cOnstudonalily must have been
passed upon by all these tribunals before any one State
could have any preteHce for acting on The subject The
absudity Of this theory is very striking that the mere
statement OF woud seem 10 be sufficient Tor its refuaon
Some gentlemen seem TO think that State has right 10
secede whenever she pieGsestat act secession bv
State is little than gentleman retiring from draw
ing without taking leave. Other gentlemen contend
that State has the right TO secede for cause L, wit
breach OF the compact by Congress but claim the right
erclsiCe judgment OF tie for such State The gen
teman from Petersburg claims for single State, the right
to secede because OF uractOn Of the compact BY Con-
gess and the right Of Judging Of suchnlraclon but con
cedes 10 the other States parties tie compact an equal
right TO Judge whether such iniracon has been com
mltted and they differ the question only deter
mined by the sword.
The gentleman from Petersburg treats the Constitution
OF the United states merely compact league tred
~ among twenty sovereign States II true that
n Is compact, butt is compact forming government.
The Government Of the United States con make laws
and execute them allegiance is due TO it as a Co
yernment All our Governments are compacts but eve
~ cOmpactis not government The Government OF the
United States he dissolved in bn two ways by the
consent Of the parties TO the compact or by revolution
The President in his proclamation mas placed right of
secession on ITS true grounds hi The right Of revolution and
none other II can be sustained only by the universal law Of
nature the law OF sedetence, Of sclpreservaton which
is paramount 10 all the laws that man can make The ght
TO resort this law unalenable and ndcleasbe THIS
remedy has received plausible, but delusiye nane-a
name we'll calculated TO msead the people: call the re.
medy revolution and uiey will All understand &c. have
Il no fear that the people will revolution without