The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1841-02-17

l. been heard. the living, sentent beings. VIII
think and feel as We feel. and are being, liz
l. ourselves, 10 meet and form a consiitution II
e. the State in Conveniicn1
't IL they mean the legal people by the charter
"a II Is absurd 10 say that the Assembly must 20
'i the people. whom they make and unrnake a
= pleasure, for instructions, and that we have u
u power under the charter 10 say no MANY ,,p
reseniaiives shall be sent.
! Mr.. Simmons wished the Conr.nr,or ealle,
m the usual manner by the House. He askct
why the gentlemen by his resolution called o,
q the people he secuted for insiruetonsl
tie thought our constitution was that ih,
Assembly should point out the mode. aud the
people would act on the proposition. w,
onght to call Convention Of members choser
oy The corporations and organized like this
House We are bound as by a constitutional
provision TO act in the usual mode hitherto
praeilsed, and which the people have hitherto
acted on, and not ask the freemen whether they
VIII have Convention.
u u IS proposed TO instruct the House by the
reemen nj large. he protested against being in
sfucfed by any but the people Of his own
town. In times like these. il behooves US,
when all kinds Of questions are asked about the
powers Of tue Government, to 70 on in the
beaten tract which the freemen have sanctioned
Mr.. Robbins asked If the Governor and Com
pany. spoken Of in the charter. were The SOW.
cfeIehs Ihe king WAS then the sovereign,
out The declaration of Independence made the
people the sovereign power The relation be-
tween US and the sovereign power is that be-
tween principal and agent as in a power of at
orney' ani we must apply 10 our principal 10
nave our power enlarged # we wished to do
any thing not expressly authorized
Mr. AfWpII oad tbat koC, Il.
cut the knot between king and people, the
power was not in the Governor and COMPANY. /.
but when tins State made the first declaration
oi independence, which he believed was long
before The American declaration Of indepen-
dence, the physical people Of Rhode Island be-
came the sovereign power. Bot tho physical
people are thtee times the number Of the legal
people. lie scented no, the people, but he
sad thai by tie charter the people are crea.
lures OF our own creation. by act Of law and
not by their own inalienablc rights. Hence
we ho'd our own power by yIrtue Of the rights
conieired by that charter aud not from the le-
gal people, for we make and unmake them at
Will The physical people. Who, according to {
the gentleman's argument. became the severe I
IGN power. have never sanctioned our power, {
aud VIC are not sent here by them. /
MI =. Greene said the argument went TO (
snow that tins was despotism. The consrltu- I
ton guarantees us republican form Of govern v
meut, and we have sworn 10 support the consti- {
tuition. The power by the Constitution of the S
United STATES which we have adopted, resides +
IN the people. 4
Mr.. Robbins said The people could not act a
~ hold convention bat by act Of the Legisla. il
ure. There was nothing revolutionary IN this "
lcllon by the people a
Mr.. Robinson Of Cumberland said, however o
much lOIup Tho 4. ~
whether We will ask the advice Of the people $;
whom we create. ii we do no, stick to the a
question before US, we can debate I'LL June h
We are TO say whether there shall be Con n
enilon 10 form n constitution. ic
MI Summons said the only object of taking the p
otc OF the ireemen AT large was to instruct the 81
louse; and he objected to the lrcemen Of one d
own instructlng the representatives OF another b,
Own.
lie thought we should pass a law requesting h;
Io ircemen 10 choose delegates to form con h,
tuition at the August meetings and he moved LIE
ldt as an amendment. lin
Mr Atwell Withdrew his amendment thar ql
he ireemen throughout the state vote on the CO
peslion OF convention by general ticket, and pc
'r. Simmons amendment prevailed Of
Mr.. ]. u. Hazard had heard none of the ba
'emen call for this convention. and he was ca
t'''' wv u dHu suONlu NOIc against the hole ''''
embers had been here month. and now I'm
'nted to tell their constituents they had done OF
meihing. He moved call Of the House. bu
The House was called, as follows, on the wa
sSage Of the resolution: pea
Ayes es-Messrs. Aldrich. Atwell A. ,od. Sn'
kcr +. Barber, J. II. Barber + r.....,k. w
wen, Brown, Burgess. Burton. :, 60 cE. -,
Church. Cole, Craudall. Gardiner, =. 4. ,''
eene. b. Hall. b. Il. Hoxie. Han. htr. "s
ckey. Low, Mowry, Newton. Prarce, @ COS Coz
tier, Randall, Rhodes, W. A. Robru.or, C. hu
bInson. Sesbury. Slocum, Srrarue. r
hlppIe, jeremiah Whpplc, and Wilkinson. ,r. n"'
Nocs.-Messrs. Chacc. 8. Clarkc. Cocccs -, ~.
J, |. Greene, Hall. Hazard. jackson. he. g..
IN. Manchester, Mrlhkcn. 4 +. Potter. 80,
bhins, Rose, Spencer, Stead, auJ Wood
6.
80 the resolutions were adopted. 81 to 10. ,y
a convention was called on the frst Mon. o,s
Of November
n -