Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1833-09-17

the only sovereign powers known 10 N poliic., svs,en,
~ a murder should be committed in Georgia, for exam
PEE no one would dream oil calling in question the cxclu.
sive right OF the State authorities, to ipfiict capital punish.
ment on The offender, though he should he the citizen Of
another State; nor would the Government of the U. States.
or OF any other State, have any more right 10 in,erpose
their authority, than the GOVERNMENT oil Turkey. AIiihis,
every body will admit; and yet, should be glad 10 know
~ whst name we shall call an underived and uncontrola-
ore Hgh' To- inlet the higheAt punishment upon The hiehs
e' CRIME 'ha' can be committed against the safety Of tho
STATE, u II be not Sovereignty. To what government Is il
that a citizen OF Georgia looks up to protect him in the en-.
Joyment OF life, property and character, against all those
crimes and frauds which it Is the end of civil povernment
TO repress and punish ? Is there a single one OF all those
rights which constitute civil liberty, which The Federal
Hoverhniehtha any sembiance OF power 10 protect against
me Assaults 10 which liz exposed! A murder, or robbery.
committed Oh the citizens OF any ono State. is not even an
oHence against the Government OF the u. s.; and yetwe
hear men gravely maintaining that that Government is
Sovereign, and that our paramount allegiance is due 10
~; as IL protection and allegiance were not co-exten-
7, Nv, V anu reciprocal, There Is, indeed, scarcely a crime
wa! can assaii the peace and good order Of society,
mat may not be perpetrated in any part Of the United
States, with periectimpunity. so for as the Federal Govern.
hehI u coneefned; nor would a crime committed In any
one State, be any offence at all against the other S,ateo
OF The Uaion. Where, then. does the Sovereignty of the
U. States reside! Not, surely, in the Gov, rnneni. either
OF the Union or of The States. Sovereignty can onIv reside
in the peopit; and what can he more a6so u,ely prepos.
terons 'h'" to affirm that the people OF The United States
pageant must that Sovereign lie, within every foot of
whose doninions except a small district ard a few forts,
all manner OF crimes may be perperafed, and yet he cen.
not RAISE hnger to prevent or punish themr There is in
Tact no crime thai, could be committed within the limits of
Ve " safes, mat would be an offence against the people
OF the United States in the aggregate. On the contrary,
what outra &c can be perpeirated wi hin the limits OF Geor.
ga which she has Tot the righrful power to punish, at her
discretion, without responsible v TO auy DOW r on earth !
The Sovereignty Of the States, therefore, is not so much 4
matter Of speculative theory, as of histo, ical fact. Thes
possess all those attributes, aud exercise all tho powers, by
an original ana Inherent right, which constitutes sovereign
~. !" hen, therefore, The sovereign viii oil Georgia is de.
elared' mhat human being within er lmi's, con Iigh,ful4
~ ,Sse "s arm TO reslsIh ~ The very highest tunclionary
OIL me Federal Governments, W ouid be jus, as subject 10
punishment, Tor resisting the sovereign will OF Georgia,
within her territorial ju' isdiction, as the humblest citizen.
L VIII state a case, suggested by the history Of her re-
laiions with the Federal Government, calculated 10 exhi.
bit, in a strong practical point of view, the a~bsurdity Of
denying the Sovereignty of the States. AMI of cIaimina
attribute for the Federal Government. twill be re-.
that some few years ago, President Adams,
to act under an obligation higher than human,
that ii the State Of Georgia should pertinacious.
W continue 10 exercise legislative authority over her own
territory he would put down so dangerous a preien.ion,
by The military arm OF the Federal Government. Now,
suppose an army OF Federal mercenaries had been march
ed into Georgia, 10 settle the delicate question of iu-
by The very discriminating arbitrament Of
me sword, and that, TO give dignity TO the proceeding,
the President had marched at the head OF the army
as Commander.in-Ch with his Cabinet Ministers
and The Federal Judges as his StaG, and the members
oil Congress as his body guard. Suppose, moreover. that
TrouP lad had the treasonous sulacity not ia
quail before the storm, and that the Hancock froop" had
presented themselves in military array, i'm the au.
presence oil these potent judges OF constitutional and
law. Let Us further suppose, that the Pre-.
s,dent with the advice OF his staff, Mad wantonly directed
oouy gu'rh 10 hire upon the patriotic militia Of Ham
cock, and that, in obedieuce to this order, o nun,ber Of the
cilizens oil Georgia had been killed. What, then, would
oeen Tue Iegal Predicameut OF these functioDaries OF
government claiming 10 be sovereign, even within the
limits OF Georeia' put it to every judst in this State,
in the United States 10 say. " neither every NJ ,bem
would not have been guilty OF murder by The laws of Geor.
gia, and whether The authorities OF that State. would not
had an unloub;ed constitutional and l.w ful right, TO
arrest, arraign, try, condemn, and IN form of !aw-rhere
Gentlemen exclaimed, &" hang the President % and
Mr. Med. coninued,1 hang The whole Federal Govern
ment, Executive, Judicial and Legislative, without the
possibility Of any lawful interposiiion 10 save them, thus
exhibiting the singular spectacle ol an overwhelming and
,mbiect provinces!
But the standing answer TO all hose arguments L., that
NE VII, oil tue majority aust prevail, even il it be in yio>
aiion OF the Constitution, and lhat il i. he duty of the States
10 submit to The usurpa'ion, precisely in the same manner
ash l. were a constitutional exerc sc of power.
Nov, fellow citizens, let us inquire for q moment, what
The rue character OF that majority, TO Hhieh is sscribed
his high preIogative OF violating toe Constitution by vii.
ue OF a ''divine right" heretofore claimed only by sb.
'olnts tyranls' and 10 which the Sovereign States, which
orined that Constitution, are thus bound IN vi, Id hat "pas-
'ive obedience" appropriate only TO slaves. In all tba,
great class OF measures, o, of which has grown The ex-
sting conflict between the manufacturing and The nI,nt.
ng States OF the Union, this sacred majority, whose So
veieign will, he Southern States are called upon to bow
down aud worship, have an inte rest Numerically opposed
that oil The Southern people. Every import duty
which is imposed upon those articles which the manufac.
turing States produce, and the planting States import in
exchange tor their agricultural staples, is a bounty TO the
industry oil The iormer, and a burthen on the industry Of
the latter. This IL strictly true, even when the duties
are imposed exclusively with a view TO revenue; and as
two. thirds Of the federal revenue is raised by duties on
very class OF articles, it is obviously the interest of the
dominant majority, to Cypress tho planting minority, nos
by imposing excessive duties, but by inventing eves
~ possible expedient for squanderiug the public revenue,
i, then, this very majority, principally composed OF a
people remarkable Tor their devotion to gain, and who
have a direct pecuniary interest in the oppression of tho
planting States, that we are told by Sou bern statesmen,
tile supreme and uncomfortable right, under the
Federal Constitution, OF doing whatever ihey may deem
to be constitutional, though intact it be unjust, unconstitu.
lioDal, and oppressive! Yes, gentlemen, I have heard a
representative in Congress, from the Southern States, de-
clare, that he believed the Tariff Of 1882, 10 be unjust,
unconstitutional, and oppressive, TO the people Of The
South, and get, that he would vote for an act 10 enforce 10
upon South Carolina, at the point of the bayonet; thus,
though sworn "to support the Constitution Of the United
and committing the citizens Of a sister State to the tender
merces OF a military invasion, for no other offence, than
yielding obedience 10 the sovereign power TO which they
allegiance, when that power was inlerposed by
his own admission, TO rescue those citizens from the
oppressive operation 81 an unjust and uBconstitutioDal
OF Congress! To such monstroUs and revolving
disguise IL as we may, are we necessarily
led by the doctrine which denies the right OF State inter
position, and s6irms that the will OF the majority is SUI
deTusiVe %Inockery, cannot be conceived, than a written
Constitution, " the functioOaiies OF the govern
ment created by that Constitution. have the exclusive
right OF fixing tho limits Of their own POWER. All will
agree, in terms that The Federal Government a govern
ment Of specified powers, and limited authority aud yet,
| defy any man TO draw a practical discrimination between
ga government without Limitation Of powers" and a go
vernnent which is the exclusive and final Judge Of tho
extent OF its own authority. Its admitted by almost every
mere creature Of the Sovereign States Of tho coDfedor2sy,
and yet many Of tbsm reason about IL, as II IT weres
consolidated government, and draw all their analogies from
governments OF that kind. Even in such governments,