Burlington hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1845-185?, 1846-07-02
The COMstitntiOss.

The Constitution.
The Gazette editor is hammering away
from week to week. in endeavoring to
convince the people that il is their duty
10 vote for the Constitution. Tina, is right.
I. will have as much effect as the gralui
tous advice he gave to President Polk in
such large doses, on the Oregon question.
The Constitution is fully before the
people. We believe in their capacity to
make up their judgments in relation 10 its
merits, without any interference or dicta-
ton on the par, Of editors. They can
discover lis faults as well as its merits
They can see, by one of its provisions,
that if i. passes. il will deprive them of
powers and privileges which ofright be-
long 10 them. |, emphatically steals the
power from tie many and gives i. to the
few. Ali this they can see, and if there
were no other objection to i, ,han this,
they will be very slow TO endorse the &C
ton of body of men. whose sole object
seems to have been TO throw down the
grand republican principle, which glories
in the acknowledge of the potency OF
the maiori,y-and take from the people
the RICH, to legislate on all subjects for
themselves.
There are few demagogues and Office
seekers who greatly desire to see ma
iori,y for The Constitution. Blu, this class
is no, so numerous now as ii was when
the Constitution was defeated a few years
ago. A, that time they had all the offices
appropriated among themselves. They
were satisfied with The appointment. as
each had an Office assigned him. II was
heavy blow to them. when they ascer
tanned tina, the Constitution was defeated
and all their hopes were blasted. They
were so chagrined and disappointed that
quite a number of them left the Territory.
Some Of these very men returned when
.he question was again agitated. Most
of them are now provided for in such
way as to make it unessential to them
whether we now adop, The Constitution
or not. This class has in ore way or
another become so sified and Whitfield
down, as TO make it less potent than il
was few years since. Besides, the peo-
pie have become so fully convinced Of
the real object of these demagogues in
wishing to come into the Union. that thew,
the people. will neverconsen, TO vote for
State Constitution until they can see
that it will be advantageous to themselves
land promotive Of the prosperity Of the
State at large.
The small fry who now advocate the
claims of the Constitution are compare
lively neW men among us, who see no
other way Of becoming eminent, than by
the adoption Of this instrument. They
neither possess the power nor the innu
ence of their predecessors. to whom we
have alluded. In the meantime, in,eli
gence has been silently at work breaking
down the bnlwarks Of political biso,ry
and the people know more of the value
and prize more highly the RICH, they have
10 some agency in such.an imporlan, mat
ter as the rejection or adoption of an Or
ganc law that is TO bind them and their
childrens children. and they will rejec'
all attempts to dictate 10 them or control
their votes.
The Resolutions which have recently
emanated from one or two of the caucuses
or conventions will open the eyes Of the
people in regard 10 this matter. We shall a
some other tine review these resolutions.
They are coEcocled in spirit oftIictalion
and in no other spirit. They make the
Constitution party instrument, and
then declare tina, their party will support
II. They confess that i, is Just what i.
ought not to be-a pariizan Constitution
We put il 10 the people, not to any party
and ask is this right! Is it democratic?
Suppose that the views Of the democracy
should ever conflict, as they NAV and we
believe will, with the principles Of that
Constitution; whatever may be their ma.
Jorily they cannot govern---.lIey cannot
carry out their measures even by law; the
Constitution prohibits the majority in
such circumstances from so doing; and
that is why we declare it to be undemo.
cratic. Whatever prevents the majority
from ruling. whe.heri, be despo. or a
Constisu,ion. is most palpably anti. demo.
cratic, and as such should not receive the
counsenanee Of the people. The Cons,i.
tuition before us is Of that character. and
therefore we oppose it. ANY set of men
who canno. trust majority Of the people
to frame laws for The carrying on, of their
measures, and exhibit their dis,rust as the
sla;e Conyen.ion has done. by demanding
~ surrender Ct the precious democratic
doctrine Of permitting the majority to