Iowa territorial gazette and advertiser., 1845-05-17
The CoQstitulien.

mount In importance and interest -
other that can ever claim the atiec,;.
the people Of this Territcsy. h.s hSa y
defeated by anextraneous cause--,h. yea
its of the constitution have not ba.r net.
upon. That it is an instrument ce n,,: :ea
principles Of civil government wh;cS
transcendantly popular with the n..', 20
and which, with proper boundsr;e, ~.
be adopted by large majority ofih. "vua
pie Of Iowa, cannot be questioned .;,p -.
has received so respectable vote ,sH
elled with the conditions Of Congress. ~. .a'
dreds who before were lis most d.r.aa, aa',
friends voted against it. Convinc.a
every candid individual must be. ,hs, !,
constitution has not had fair tria,-.a...a.s .as
has been tramelled in manner wh;oh
precluded the people from giving an :. ~
preston upon its merits nothing can :. -
pear more just and proper than tha, ,lI
should have another opportunity of AZ
ing upon its merits. In order 10 a. u- ,a
it is proposed that the Legislature whsa:, ,
now in session shall interpose and .r,s. mi"
ize it to be again voted upon al Ii. Az. ~
election. But here the friends Of ,be s~ ea.
stitulion are met by those who onno.s . !,
upon principle-because they thinI /, -"
democratic 10 suit the splendor Of their =, ~
istocratic aspirations-because Il procla;..
the moral, political and legal eoual;,v =
mankind. Those who are indoc,r;rs.sa
with such views of man and his canac;,s
tor self government, contend that the leo;..
latnre has no such right--lhat it would /.
an uni ist and unprecedented act--one which
they would have no right to do. Th,v :
contend that it would he equivalent "a n.
legislatures forming aconstitution cJ ;p;E,
without possessing any such specific az
ga:ed power tom the people. To MI.
this argument hold good, they must ~
I prove that the people have no right to form
/ cons itu:ion Or Institute y stem of oo,-
, ernment in any other way than by cor.
venlien elected for that express purpose:
and as convention, 80 /. as The mode i
forming or revising ccn si,utions Is cop.
cerned, has settled down into a sort of pre.
cedcnt in this country, and Teen followed
by the different States as they have came
into the Uhion, they must necessarily con
tend that the right or legitimate mode Of
forming constitution or system Of govern.
ment exists in precedents established bv
generations that have preceded US, and moi
In the mode which the majority Of the peo-
PIE might prefer; thus stul,ifying themselves
and blindly following the superior wisdom
Of their ancestors. Such are the absurd.
ties into which men run when they attempt
to avail themselves of precedent in reason,
ing upon the abstract rights of the people.
Precedents are binding no further than
they are founded upon justice and good
policy. The circumstances and peculiar.
tiles Of different communities are so diverse
that the course pursued by one in The for.
nation Of a system Of civil government, al.
: though wise and well adapted to its own
character and circumstances, if pursued BY
another would frequently prove foolish and
abortive, and would wholly fail Of produc.
ing its contemplated results. A wise and
rejecting people. whom oallsd upon to IN.
s'itute system of government for them
selves and posteri,y, will follow prece
dents no further than they are sound and
we'll adapted to their circumstances, ever
holding themselves free to pursue any
course which the light Of reason NAV de.
termine to be the best. Where did our
ancestors find precedent for the conven.
ton which drew up the old articles Of con-
federation, or heconstitution Of The United
States? There was no precedent to be
found for any thing Of the like from the
first history Of civilization. Up to that
epoch systems had been imposed upon man.
! kind by the sword Of conquering legions,
and lawless rufians styling themselves
kings, ruling over their subjects with an
iron rod. IL our ancestors found no pre-
cedent for these things, were they guilty Of
treason or usurpation? No! They derived
the power to do these things from the in
herent sovereignty Of the people. lfthsy
had blindly'followed precedent, they would
have proclaimed Gen. Washington smper-
or, and thus entailed upon themselves and
posterity the most intolcrable Of all scourges
--an hereditary government. Thus much
for the virtue Of precedents. The next Oh
jection is that it would be equivalent to The
legislatures forming constitution ob iniio,
without any delegated powers for that spe-
cihc purpose. As we have inquired into
the power Of precedents over the people
in the formation Of a government, and find
thatthey are not binding any further Than
the people choose 10 make them, il follows
as necessary consequence that the people
have the right, by virtue Of their inherent
sovereignty, to form a constitution in any
manner that they may see proper 70 adopt,
regardless Of firm or precedent. They
may do it by meeting in mass, or BY elect
ing delegates to convention; or the leg.
islature may do it, provided that the seuae
Of the people was taken and the members
chosen in reference to thst subject But
in this instance the act Of the legislature %
submitting it to the people again would nae
| be equivalent to their making new one,
because the mere act of submitting again 70
the people amounts to nothing unless thsy
approve oft. The legislature of . Tern
tory, under the existing laws Of Congress-
may submit to the people the constr
, tuition of any state in the Union, and y .
majority Of the people approve Of il, i b.
!. comes the fundamental law Of the land.
No power is exercised that is not concur
rent with the people. Ii the Legislature
submit it, it still remains, inchoaie until 4 =
mada nerfect hv the voice of the neonle u