Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1850-09-26

condition, Of the people, must be ~
: nous to the best interests Of th
community, especially to the Who'll
debtor class, who will be crushe'
by a policy SO fatal and destructive
! Resoired, That it is high time 70
, the people to take their affairs int
their own hands, and that so long a
they entrust them to reckless dema
lgogues, or TO violent ultra politician
Of any party, all the Industrious bu
siness classes Of the community mus
be the sufferers.
The same "faction" is now a
work in the Convention, not to en-
graft their ultra and ruinous doc
trines upon a law merely, but upor
the Constitution itself. From the
the fact, thatin many parts of thu
State party lines were not drawn
in the election of members to the
| Convention, this "laction" has hap.
pened TO get the power into their
hands, and they seem determined
TO use it, without regard TO conse.
quences. "Rule or ruin" seems to
be their motto. Give them ascen-
dency in their party, and let the
State interests take care of them
selves. Party is better, say they,
than the State, party ascendency
better than State ascendency. "You
would not let u.s." they say, '.embody
our hard money doctrines in laws,
where we know and admit they
should be embodied, if at all, and
now, having the power-no matter
if il is accidental-we will put them
into the Constitution, where we
know they ought not to go. You
can't help yourself. You are oblig-
ged TO submit. If you don't you
will be called "WHIGs," AND "FED-
ERALIsTs." Act for your COUNTRY,
If you DARE, and that moment your
ascendency in the party is lost, and
we take your placer Well this is
a hard position. But Swan, Ken
non, Holt, Archbold, and other con-
servative members of the party
thanks to them-h ad patriotism
enough TO sustain themselves in il,
and told their opponents in effect
that they would stand by their coun-
try, if they had TO let party go. The
question now is, shall they be sus-
tanned by the people, as Gen. Hamer
was sustained, or shall they become
martyrs in this good cause, and SUBJ
nit to the bitter reflection, that no
man in Ohio can stand for his coun-
try against party.
But suppose majority of the peo-
pie were in favor ol hard money
which believe almost all concede is |
not the cascades it therefore fol-
low that provision TO that effect
should be put in the Constitution?
BY no means. A Constitution should |
consist Of a few fundamental princi-
pies, upon which all, or nearly all
agree. Party questions are those
which divide the people into nearly
equal parties. Party questions are
those upon which the people vascil-
ate and are liable to change their
opinions, and are therefore subjects
or legislation. Constitutional prin-
;iples are those which are consider
ID settled and established, and upon
which further legislation can never
be needed. They are the axioms
and postulales of the science of legis-
ation-the foundation merely of
he great superstructure of law
which is to be thereafter erected up
IN them. Take any one ofthe pro-
visions in our old Constitution, and
you will see that they all, so far as
principle is concerned, are those up
IN which there is almost a univer-
ial agreement of opinion. But here it
S proposed to insert in our new con-
not merely matter purely
'f legislation, but a partisan matter
If legislation-ves an ultra partisan
natter, and that in opposition to the
will ofa large portion of the party,
nd against the wishes Of a decided
majority Of the people Of the State.
This is amending the Constitution
With vengeance This is rever-
ing and unsettling, not only the
fundamental principles of our old
Constitution, but the principle and
heory of all Constitutions. 1t is ta-
ing away the chief corner stone of ,
he Constitution, 1t is substituting {
he Constitution for the laws, and
he Convention for the Legislature.
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