The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-05-13
Lot us hear what MIR. Van Buren, cav. on ,hi,

Lot Us hear who, MIR Van Buren, say. ON ,hi.
head;
let. believe tia, If had been ioreseep, al the
lime OF the adoption Of the Constitution that Tho
'eat OF the FedsIai Government would be f1ed in
slave holding r'gion and hat the subject OF slavery
would be there sgitated 10 the prejudice OF tho,e
holding tins species OF property, the right to do So
would with the assent Of the eholdug States
have been made exception 10 the unyesirieitd ls
gsiasiss po~er siUen 10 Congress the Distr Ct ~
| be ceded."
| The round and bold and unfounded assertions con-
tanned in this paragraph are astounding All Amer.
lea knows HAT when the Constitution was framed
and adopted, that "siapsry vas part of the Institution,
q every Slate IN m' Union, and recognised as the lac
Of nations Black, negro, African slavery is here
meant. II would puzzle this Northern man with
Southern principles to show what were the 'non slave
holding States" at the time they ratified the Consl
tuition. All was then ga siapehoidiag region, y al
were then negro breeders, and the Northern Stat,
more particularly negro traders "ths species Of "p,o
perry they found not very profitable, and made reg
ular "msrehandise" of this their then property with
their Southern neiglbors.
| Again why shift the terms on so grave and I'M.
portant subject Mr.. Van Buren, asserts that the
Constitution has granted to Congress over the Dis
trict unrestricted Legislative power But is there
nothing in other parts of the Constitution nothing in
the nature of the instrument nothing in the intention
of the parties which restricts this unrestricted Ie
glslaiive power" even if these had been the terms
used
Let US for a moment turn TO Mr. Van Buren,,
"text book Of political orthodoxy" and see the rules
OF Interpretation to guide in this case, (b)p. 40. .
'in the first place, il is TO be borne in mind tina, i,
being characteristic feature Of the Federal Consti
tuition, as II was originally ratified, and an amend
ment thereto having expressly declared that power,
not delegated to the United States by the Consttu.
ton nor prohibited by it TO the States, are reserved
the States respectively, or to the People"
incumbent in this every ether sr.,eiss ofpor
er by the + derai Government 10 prove from, the Con,A
mion that il grants the pa fieuiar po,osr elaimed
Page 7j.-"Wheneyer, therefore, a question arise,
concerning the conslitutionay of a pa ticlar pow.
err, the first question is, whether the power be ex.
pressed in the Constitution. IL it be, the question
decided. IL il be not expressed, the next oQuiry
must be, whether II is properly incident TO an ex-
press power and Necessary TO its execution. lin
be not, Congress cannot exercise it,"
No power to interfere with slavery within or Wi H.
out the District is expressed in the Constitution oil
the United States except by Art J. Sec IL, TO pro-
hibt the importation Of negroes before the year
1908, and to impose tax Of ten dollars on each ne
gro imported. And by article ", section II:
"No person. held to service or labor ia one State
under the laws thereof, escaping into another shall
IN consequence Of any law regulation therein be
scharged from such service or labor, but shall be
delivered up on claim Of the parry 10 whom such
service or labor may be DUE"
Is it rational 10 suppose that if the Constitution had
intended TO confer any grants touching slavery other
than these enumerated, that the same caution would
have been used to enumerate them in case of such
singular deiicacy and Importance The silence, ia
all ether cases, ustifes the construction that no other
powers on this momentous subject we're intended TO
be conveyed by the Constitution An attentive peru
sa! Of the contemporaries discussions, a. seen
in the letters Of the FederaIist and in the debates 10
the several State Conventions, will show conclusive
y that no such powers, in relation 10 negroes. ,,
those claimed by the State Of New York and MI
Van Buren,, we're intended 10 be granted to q State
or to the Federal Government. The journal of the
Federal Convention, printed in 1919, and the Nisdi-
son papers, more recently forbid any such construc-
tons.
Again; Mr.. Van Buren, says, secondly, al can
not but regard the agitation Of this subject in the
District of Columbia es s,upr Sc upon the peopL, of
Maryland and Virginia, being very confident that #
The slate OF things which now exists had been at all
apprehended by those States the cesson OF the Dis
irict would not have been made, except upon the
express condition that Congress should exercise no
such power"
Here is plain admission that i. was not the in.
'enton of the people Of Maryland and Virginia ,bs,
Congress should have power to interfere with N,
question OF slavery in The Dis riot TO them ,hi,
would be a surp i.e.
Now what will his political textbook say to I'm.
lati,udnous construction
Page 81. The compa q. G. the Constitute,
Of the Uated States ought to have the ioteroret,
ton plainly INTENDED by the parties TO IL. Il. IN.
States raiiyIns I'D and that Il ought foh re the ss.
euiion aud fleet inierdd them. 1.-THE power. granted
be Val d, IT Is solely because they are granted and
Il the granted powers valid because granted all
other powers not granted must not be valid
Tried by these rule, Of constr elton, as extracted
from Mad'son's report the powers 10 confer on ne.
sroes the privileges and mmunities OF the People Of
the United States and to abolish slavery in the Dis,
trict Of lur ba not found in the CONSTITUTED
Of the United States, and not necessary and pro.
perto carry ny express powers into effect and were
not intended to be granted by the ar, este the CON.
pact
Again No principle is better established in rea-
son and authority than that
Where rights are nfringed, where fundamestal
principles are oycrthro~n where the general ,ystem
Of laws II departed from, the constitutional intent
must be expressed with irresistible clearpe.. to
suppose a design TO effect such object. ~. Mar.
shall, United States IS. Fisher, 2 Crunch $50.
And yet, 10 case wher there is no express pow
cr authorizing Congress 10 interfere with SLAYER, ir