Liberty advocate. [volume] (Liberty, Miss.) 1835-1866, 1840-05-28

ought TO act in this.
This, Mr.. President, is emphatically ques-
ton Of jurisdiction, and the rejection Of such
a petition as now presented does not assail or
invade the right ofpeliton The whole scope
and extent of the political RIGHT of petition
is the right TO ask redress from the Govern
ment or tribunal having the power to grant re-
lief
Common sense, as we'll as legal and consti
tutional rules, prescribes this as an essential
principle and necessary Limitation to the right
of petition. If citizen Of the United States
was DESTROYS 10 obtain patent right Of prolec-
ton to a mechanic invention, to be used in the
Kingdom Of Great Britain, would he, as q mat
ter of common sense and propriety, petition
that Government or this for the protection?--
II citizen Of the United States or Of Catholic
faith, desired some spiritual indulgence from
the church, would he petition the papal power
OF Rome, or this Federal Government? If
we're desired by the citizens Of New York to
have some new regulation in respect to their
public markets--or on the subject of lamp
| lighting the streets Of that city--is there any
among them who, through ignorance, or pre-
tending to assert the right of petition, would
come here for redress Of such grievances2--
Do any citizens of our country, seeking 10 re-
cover debts owing to them by other citizens,
ever assert their right Of petition so unadvised-
y as TO ask the judgment of Congress 10 award
them redress? All must accord negative re-
Spouse to these propositions, and the reason
must obviously occur 10 all, namely: in seek
ing either favor or redress, the petitioner per-
lceves and acts upon the necessity to present his
solicitations where the power is vested to grant
what is asked for
| readily admit that in a complex system Of
Government, there may be evils for the redress
of which intelligent citizens might mistake the
tribunal or authority to which they should ap.
ply.
Nay, further that the departments of trbu-
nails themselves might honestly mistake their
own power, and wrongfuIIy grant or withhold
relief, but the difficulty of distinguishing the
appropriate tribunal, having power to grant
relief, 1t does not change the principles Of the
question. And this rule is particularly true of
The Government ofthe United States, which is t
Of limited jurisdiction. 1t is not for the Gov S
srnment 10 pater with pretenSionS to jurisdic- "
ion, when it is aScertancd not to be within its @
granted powers. There should be no affected IL
courtesy 10 those who would besiege this Sen. b
ate into the assertion of unauthorized power d
i the expense Of prostraling the soveregnties il
Who send US here-and particularly on ques v
ion, the right 10 legslate on which has so Of i
en- been disclaimed on all sides, and which opin
on all here concur.
But further, TO illustrate this question of iu- t
in contradiction to the right of petit
ion, it may be observed that all our citizens
practically understand the duplicate form Of
heir Government, and readily distinguish the
general and exclusive powers that apertain to
their State Government from those which be-
ong to the United States Government Eve.
ry citizen knows that the great body Of laws I
hat prescribe his rights and duties as mem
Der of society and the resolution that control
his right and title to property, emanate from
lis own State Legislature; and it seldom &C. t
'urs (and perhaps never occurred) that petit
ion is presented here which so mistakes its t
proper direction as to ask relief of this Gov
in matters respecting which the petit 4
TONER'S State Government alone possessed the
power to grant relief And it is perhaps still {
more remarkable that neither ignorance nor
lmpertinence has ever perpetrated petition
by citizens Of a State to their own State Legs.
lature, asking the abolition Of any law or insti-
tuition in another State. Every citizen of the
savehoding States, Inquired Of why slavery
does not exist in Massachusetts, will answer
because it is abolished or prescribed by the
Government and laws ofthat State. And every
citizen OF the non slaveholdlng States, if inqui-
red OF why slavery does exist in Mississippi,
will as readily answer, the institution is estab-
lished and permitted by the Government Of
Mississippi. Up TO this point and to this cx-
tent, all must understand the matter alike
Now, suppose the citizens Of the South should
commence, by petition, to importune Congress
10 establish slavery throughout the States of
New England. Has New England Senator
here whose constituents could be induced to be-
lieve Congress had the power to grant such pc
titions? And has New England Senator here,
or citizen at home, who would not feel him
sell insuIted, and the rights and sovereignty of
his State wantonly outraged, by incossant i'm
portunities here of this character? Would |
they defend the monstrous presumption of such
opportunities, and demand your respectful de-
fence to their claims, on the ground that such
was the right Of petition? Ifsuch be the right,
let us note its bearings in a cause which aptly
arise on the same article of the Constitution
from which, it is said, this ertem orhe right of
petition is deduced.
Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion" &c. A petition is
presented by the Baptist association of North
Carolina, praying Congress TO establish their
creed and faith as the national religion and
abolish all others. Senator having such pc
tition in charge. states its import. and proposes