The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1845-02-25

say Congress cannot admit new State unless u was
/" lawfully constituted within the limits OF the Jailed
States secondly, nor procure an admission o. texas
into the Union until obtain fsoo'thud poh oI
the States ia the Senate TO sanction IL by treaty
All will agree that, had the section remained as TO
ported above by the Committee Of Detail, there could
have been no question that Texas could not have
been admitted IN the manner we now propo'e bu'
this article not permitted in this shape TO become
A part of the Constitution. Was IL accident or
thoog htlessness7 Were the Convention iorge,ful OF
what had been ignorant and unconscious OF what the
article so presented meant, blind and careless OF
the fu ure that this article was changed and mod-
fed till il assumed the simple unrestricted iorin 10
which We now find il in tho Constitution and yet
that these wise men intent on restraining Con
gress from admitting new State, arising OUT o. INC
Union?
Mr. President, the members of that Convention
we've no such bungers in coneeiying purpose, or Of
finding suitable language in which to express II when
conceived.
But here our directors commence with eIplans-
lions. The article 30 reported was soon siterwafds
asssled successfully by Governor Morris, one Of
the shrewd and talented members Of that pecu-
liary talented assembly. And the honorable Senator
from Virginia (Mr. Ryes) reports Mr.. Morns's OBJ
jeci 10 have been 10 modify Mr. Randolphs original
resolution, which proposed the admission OF new
States "a laiqfuly arising ioiia The Limits Of The Unsd
States +" without any saving clause In those cases
where the State should sriSe from within the terrific
~ Of another State, requiring In such the con-
sent Of the State which claimed the territory. The
honorable Senator oonceiyes Mr.. Morris had disco
yered mischief aed in these terms lnejy arr
sing unless restrained by further qualification, aud
desired the mendment, that the then querrulous
pretensions Of Vermont for separate State govern
menl against the consent Of New York (who claimed
jurisdiction OF her territory might not be considered
as sanctioned and provided for But nothing can be
more at fault than this explanation. Mr.. RandoPhs
proposition had been already superseded by the dis
tinct article be fore shown, reported by the Com
miilee OF Detail. This article, on which Mr.. Morris
commenced war, contained the provision that
II new State shall arise within the limits ofany
Of the present States the consent Of the Legislatures
Of such States shall be also necessary to its admis-
SION
The honorable Senator from Massachusetts, (Mr
Choate, in repellng the conclusion which we who
support the measure before derive from this fact
the journals, wiz. that, II was distinctly propoid
in the Convention To limit the power Of Congress TO
admission Of new States into the Union to such
States should be "iacfily constituted within The
limits Of The Uaiisd States and this restriction
jeetsd, II was meant the power should be broad and
unrestricted as II is expressed) was as confident as
he was eloquent that our conclusion was wrong, be-
cause, as he says Of the known hostile sentiments Of
MIR Morris TO the rising States Of the West, he
would have been the last man that would have pro-
posed amendments 10 facilitate the admission of new
States into the Union. He therefore concludes that
MIR. Morris could not have intended in his several
amendments by which the power was expressed and
given in the form II is now found in the Constitution,
to aid the evil he much deprecated. The honora-
BILE Senator Is undoubtedly right in thus deducing
what Mr.. Morris's motives we're not; but, more eau.
tious than the honorable Senator from Virginia. (Mr
Riyes,) he has not attempted TO show us what Mr..
Mofnss motives IN fact This, Mr.. President,
bel eve may be shown from the journals. Let il be
Observed, then, that several weeks before, Mr.. Nor
ris bad exhausted his efforts tie down with cords
and restrictions Of colonial disquafcatlons the new
States which were to arise in the w est He had sig
nslly failed. Now If his further motives were only
to conserve the power OF the old States against the
too easy admission OF new Western States, or States
arising in the Southwest tothOia the Union by which
the balance Of power with the Northern Atlantic
States (his great fear) would be overthrowD he had
in the article before him two pledges lst that new
State from outside the Union could be admitted at
ALI and, 2dy, that those arising ,oiihin the Union
could not be admitted but by ipo. thirds vote of each
house. | admit, Mr.. President, his first proposed
amendment TO the article, reported by the Commit
tee OF Detail seems TO correspond well enough with
his hostile motives Of restraint upon the West 1t
was to strike out the two last sentences This was
done. And had Mr. Morris stopped there, The arti-
Gle, as to him, would have renamed thus:
New States, .aichiiy constituted or established
pithin the limits Of The Unied States may be admitted
by the Legislature this Government but TO such
admission the consent Of vo-ihirds of the members
present, IN each House, shall be necessary. If a new
State shall arise within the limits of any OF the pre-
sent States, the consent of the Legislatures of such
States shall be also necessary to admission
Now, according to the views Of gentlemen the ar.
tce IN this shape was precisely what Mr.. Morris de-
signed 1t should be. But Mr.. Morris was not salts
he'd. He neat moved with l.. Martin, of Maryland)
to further strike out the iollownss
" But to such admission the consent of two-thrds
OF members present shall be necessary"
Before the question taken be moved an entire
substitute for the whole article, as follows:
"New States may be admitted by the Legislature
into the Union, but no new States shall be erected
within the limits of any of the present States without
the consent OF The Legislature Of such State as well as
OF the General Legislature.
The first part of this substitute, to wit: .Ns,o
States may be admitted by The Legislature into the Union
was first agreed to unanimously. This clause, then
which had rejected the restriction lawfully con-
sttuled or established within the limits of the Uoited
States" and had rejected the requirement of ia oo
thirds role, was agreed to SO amended and excluding
these restrictions, unanimously. The remainder of
the substitute, after some debate was also agreed to
by a vote OF six States to five. Now what was Mr.
Morris's motive on this first clause, and what the
views anu mouFes OIL tne COnVentlont Was their
act without motiye' Did they make these amend.
ments without purpose or design Who is bold
enough 10 challenge congregation of so much intel.
lectual acuteness, with the ignorance which the &C
qurement OF our objectors impue to them-that they
believed all this modification of the article wrought
no change in effect, and in truth meant nothngi
The journals on this anne ndment are wholly sen,
as to the motives OF any member of the Convention
further than their acts denote But the previous
course OF Mr. Morris, think fairly discloses ha,
were most probably his Having failed in his res,ric
lions upon the Southwestern states, he naturally
looked for further counlerbaIance to the Atlantic
States by acquisition of new States from the North
east. But there was no territory in that quarter
tcihin The limits of the United States and hence he
struck out that restriction. The Northern States
then had majority vote, may be seen by the first
apporiionment in the Constitution but they had not
tioo-thirds vote He might reasonably suppose, there
FORE that their majority would continue to control the
West and South, and would avail them 10 the admis-
nj