Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1841-05-27

tulions of that sor ieiy
There Is no phrase in our language
more frequently used, aud with less def
n'te neaning, than mature" "a state {
= nature" As applied to man, and in di,
Iinclinn 10 the state Of society, we kno'
not what is meant by such phrases. =
Every man necessarily has his first eXis
lence in society. lie aas there his pa
p rents, at least, and his kindred an
; thrIe he becomes the parents Of other.
: The most limited society is that Of
family: and this has its pairiarchal 90
verDnent. However small the Humbe
! OF men living together, may be, and al
! though they may have entered into n
: express compact; nor adopted any regu
lallons whatever for their governmen ut
/, they unavoidably act upon aud inHuenc
; each other. Their individual rights ar
: relative, and their actions are regulate
accordingly. What is this state OF so
ciciy: Ilermi,s and soliaries ihemselve
(ii iherc arc such) were bred ana bro
up m some society or other from whIcl
they have unnalurally separated them
selves. The truth is, that, as 10 man
\ "a social being a stale Of society is 4
Ss,ate Of nature: and the only state o
4 nature.
I or what importance is il whether We
/ consider the elective franchise as natu.
raj right; or as a grant from society; as
the term itself imports; when, in eithe,
case, II must remain subject TO every
restriction ard regulation which the para
mount rig hts aud interests of the commu.
nifty require ? The right to acquire, t,
ENJOY, and to dispose OF property, is one
of our absolute rights; But We can only
I acquire or transfer II by conforming to
The requisites prescribed by law: Nor, il
|, dlspossesscd of IL, can we recover il, but
by the remedies also prescribed by law.
And, whatever may be the amount of a
mans property; il he becomes Incompe-
tent to the management of il, il NAV
rightly be taken from his control, and put
into the hands of guardian. Ii is IA
common expression that man has Il
right 10 do 'chat he pieases wiih his own !;
yet there are many uses to which he is
not allowed TO pot his property, because
It would be noXions 10 the rest Of the
community. Every man has right,
honestly, to acquire property, but his
right to possess and enjoy property ac-
crues and commences only with The re-
Qurement. So every man is at liberty
to acquire TO himself the qualifications
which will enlitIe him to the privilege
Bu, until then, he has no more rish To
claim the exercise of it, than he has To
claim right TO propeIty which he has
not acquired and docs not own. There
is nothing too preposterous or unprinci-
pied, Ia find advocates; if it can be con.
tended that man possesses an inherent,
unqualified, uncomfortable right; without
the consent of the society to which he
belongs, to do an act iwhcther it he !
voting or any other act,) by which the
of the whole community may be |
; his own perhaps (if at all) in a
less degree than those Of any other man (?
Those TO whom the exercise OF the cleo
tive franchise canno, safely be entrusted, |
have 40 more right TO complain that it is !
withheld from them, than have minors or
other incompetent persons: whose pub
lc interests great or small, arc taken
care OF by the qualified part OF the com
inunny: the most trustworthy of oil
since it is for their interest to
be so.
The restrictions by which the welfare
of society, requires the elective franchise
10 be controlled, do not at all, clash with
he greatest truths which we all embraces:
That Me peopie atone are Sorersign and
he source 9t all pomer that, governments
ire instituted solely for their good and
hat The majority II The people ought to
'orern In this State, the number of
he people is nineiy-seven thousand. Is
meant that majority Of these in either
Instance, IS 10 exercise the sovereign
'ower; or 10 elect those who shall govern
II their stead Z No man, however Wis.
onary cWertains such an idea. Every
me in the outset, excludes all but free
'hi'e males Of lawful age. But the whole
If these, Of every descri ption, are but
evenieen thousand in this State; and but
lille over toriy-six thousand in South 4
Jatolina and majority of them, iD
hat State, is less than twentv-frst part
II the whole number Of the people; and
n this State, but fraction over a tenth
'nrt of our population. And when we
oIne Iurther to paupers, persons incom-
eien', and many others, whom all ra-
ona men agree in excluding, the dis )
roporlion Is sIll much greater. We
ave included the slaves in the popula-
on Of South Carolina, because, what
yer their condition, they are still a part
the people, as much as those of other .
escilptlons, who, on account of other G
Isqualificatlons, are excluded from the t
xeicIse Of the right Of suffrage. Thus, a
le answer which every man must be 4
'ought to make to the question we pro- II
'sed, is, that when speaking of ma. :
lity OF the people, he means only .
alority of those who are qualified to II
tho sovereign power, and to i,
ect their representatives aud officers of C
Dyernmcn,. Who are the qualified SOW Il
'eign people, can, from the nature of !
e case, only be decided by themselves; "
r there are none else to decide il or ~
whom TO appeal, from the decision. ~ -
they should exclude any possessing q,
= same qualifications MS themselves.
u I