Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1845-03-18

STATES" Bu, what would be thought Of this ar
g,llncnt when il was found that the very Coh'1n
lion which framed The clause as we now ionha "
in the Constitution had had before them the express
question whether il should be thus limited .! no.'
and had had these very words, or WORDS % -
rnilar impon. under consideration for weeks TO-
ge,her. and had deliberately rejected them 4
The records of the Convention estaollshen ,'ia,
fact beyond dispute or question MT. ~ iiau
made some references 10 the journal OF Iheir pro-
ceedncs, and had noted Gown Ie" eA""'
which he would now read.
On the 29lh May, 1851, Mr.. Edmund Randolph
offered his famous resolutions TO The ConVeht'on'
The tenth of these resolutions was IN Tue io!io"-
ing words oh, = ho male
for the admission Of States tlirfu!ty ARISING Ttath
/ lac EmiS ofMc United States, whether from
voluntary junction of government and terFl'oFyor
i otherwise, with the consent OF number ol VOICES
Of The National Legislature less than inc "nol:.
/ twill be perceived that the point was thus DIS
lincily presented 10 the Convention, whether Inc
| power of Congress TO admit new States should DC
restricted 10 those 'arising within the limits oihe
I United Staes" What was theirdecision!
1 On the 10Th June, 1877, the Committee OF inc
/ Whole reported this resolution 10 the Convention
! in The words ofMr Randolph containing The re-
strclon.
The committee on detail afterwards reported
the resolution as il originally stood.
/ On the 9Th August, 1857, the committee whicn
reported the drauglt of Constitution, retained
the restriction limiting the power Of Congress To
new States 'arising within the limits oi The T.
! States" The following is copy OF their re-
port: ~,
ssNew States, lawfully constituted or establish
cd within the limits of the United States, may be
admitted BY the Legislature into his Government;
but TO such admission the consent OF lwothlIdS
of The members present in each House shaIi oe
necessary. II a new Stale shall arise within Inc
limits of any OF The present States, The consent oil
the Legislatures OF such States shall be also ne
| cessary 10 its admission. IL the admission oe
consented TO. the new States shall be admitted on
the same terms with the original States. batt
Legislature NAV make conditions with The new
States concerning the public debt which shall be
then subsisling."
On The 29h August 1857, it was moved and
seconded 10 agree 10 the following proposition as
a substitute for the article 10 which have just
! referred
New States may be admitted BY The Legisla
/ ture 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 Lcgisla-
turc.'
The restriction was thus abandoned, and the
power left unlimited 10 admit new States, whether
\ within The limits of the United States or COM
posed Of foreign territory; and the article in HE
! Constitution was finally adopted as ii now ap-
pears in the instrument
Thus il appeared, that, from the 29lh OF May,
until the 29,h OF August, 1871, the Convention
had adhered 10 The proposition Of putting lmi-
ta,ion on The admission OF clause, but had final
IL rejected this illberal proposition, and stricken
| ii oui OF their draughl. And they had acted
wisely: for no human foresight could then, or
| now tell what was 10 be the destiny OF The new
born Republic, whose Constitution they were en-
trusted to prepare; and TO have limited il in the
manner supposed BY gentlemen on the other side,
I would have accorded neither with The wisdom
nor HE profound craftsmanship of those eminent
men.
But. 10 90 further What was the contempo-
raneous construction OF the instrument! Mr.. Is.
was sorry his friend from Kentucky had not got
SO Tar in mis- quotations from the Fet!erails as To
the 49, number; where ns subject was express
I Is treated on. Ii The gentleman had Int proceed
! cd rs FAR rs that, he would have found the a"ln-
nisbnu fact, that The old Confederation had no
power to adopt any other than foreign State
! Their power Of admission was confined within
this limit The oniv clause IN the articles OF
confederation referring 10 The admission OF new
States was This:
"Canada, according 10 the confederation, and
Joining in the measures OF the IT, States shall be
admitted into, and entitled to all the advantages
ofthc Union; bn, no other colony shall be ad-
| United into the same, unless such admission be
agreed 10 BY nine States
Mr.. Madison said, that b. colony" in This
article was meant British colony; and that il
was for this very reason that the clause was left
in as broad and unrestricted terms as We now
found il. How would that statesman be asto-
niShed could lie hear his own language now in
voked 10 prevcnt the L. States Government from
ever admitting Canada as Il Stale into the Union
"To admit new States into the Union; but no
new State shall be formed or erected within the
jurisdiction Of any other Stale nor any State be
formed By the junction oftwo or more States, or
parts Of States, without the consent OF the Lesi>-
laures of the States concerned, as well as Of The
Con..css"
In the articles Of Confederation, no prorison
is found on this important subject. Canada was
10 be admitted right, on her Joining in the mea
sures Of the IT, States; and the other colonies
bv which were evidently meant the other British
colonies, at the discretion OF nine States. The
eventual establishment Of new States seems 10
nave been overlooked By The compilers Of thai in
slrumenl We have seen the inconvenience Of!
this omission, and the assumption Of power into
WHICH IpUSItSS Itbt UCcH ilu ~ IL W III
great propricty, has the new system supplied The
defect"
Now, Mr. Buchanan asked, could language be
palmer? Heretofore the Confederation could
ADM, but only foreign States, and these British
colonies; but exprcssvely 10 obviate this very
difficulty, the trainers of The Constitution struck
ont all Limitation Of every kind, and lett the pro-
vision in such unrestricted terms as enabled
Congress 10 admit any State whatever that had
adopted republican form Of Government. Their
ewes were fixed on Canada; and this was Mr.
Madison's alusion when he spoke OF Sites that
might arise Tin our neighboThood." They had
desired, above all things, that Canada might unite
with them in The war, and, in orlerlhat she might
now come in the provisions Of the Constitution
were enlarged Who would contend that, in
stead of being enlarged, the powers formerly en-
loved by the Confederation were abridged and
narrowed down in the new Constitution, 30 re-
slricted that Canada never could he received 10
The end OF time as State of the Union
Nearly conlemporaneous with these exposi
tons u The Constitution lived the venerable Ma
thanel Macon, a celebrated patriot of the strict
construction School-a statesman in whom was
no guc-a man who, for practical wisdom and
sound sense, never had superior among us
He was link that connected the past age with
the present: ard sure Mr. y. was, there was no
gentleman here who would not accord to him all
that he hadsaid and more.
The first time The Interpretation ofth clause
had come up before Congress, was on the ad-
mission OF Louisiana into lie Union as a State.
Mr. Macon made speech on the subject in the
House .; Representatives on the Ith January,
1911, and was found reported in he National
Inlelisencer of the llth Of that month And
what was his language q
"If the article Of the Constitution, however, did
moi mean that Congress might make States on,
Of new territories, what did il mean7 There
was no occasion for i. in relation 10 the old Ter
ritories, for the ordinance of the old Congress
had secured 10 them the right; and those ordi-
nances we're as binding as the treaties which
Congress had entered into. The change Of the
form Of Government did not affect national obi
cations. The right 10 be, ONE States was one
which Congress could not take from the old
territories. The right Of creating States ont O.