Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1851-07-24
EDGEF1ELD, S. G., JULY "A, 1851.

without a Senate, and / only use this to
shew how completely the Government is ir
the power of the States. Intact it is Gov
ernmcnt of STATES, and Of oisimple majority
of people. Wherever reposes the power ir
my community to make oranend the organic
law by which the community is kept together
there resides sovereignty. II If the written
constitution be the supremeslaw of the land
the power that can make it or alter it is the
supreme and sovereign power Of the land.
have shewn that the States:salone made the
constitution and that they alone can alter OF
amend it, even so as to alterthe whole Gov.
ernmcnt itself, and if that be not sovereign
power, then am at loss to conceive what
can be- The truth is, the Federal Govern.
ment has no sovereignty.
IT is an agent limited by the specific grants
of power made by the States. The only
thing that even appears to contradict this idea
is The power given to punislltreason. Trca-
son is an offence against Sovereignty. But
this power itself is limited blythe States who
granted it; for they refused to give the power
to define treason, and have themselves de-
fined it in the very grant to punish it, and
declared in what only it shall consist, and
have even laid down how it Shall be proved.
It shows they intended to grant no sovereign
ty, for they limit and define exactly the power
Of the Government--even in treason. And
the treason they define, is treason against the
conjoined sovereignty of the States, not
against the Government. For 1t is "levying
war" against the "UDited States" that consti-
tutes treason and nothing else does. AS
long as the States are united, there can be
no treason, but when they are no longer uni
ted and sovereign power hasabsolved them,
there can be no treason, for it cannot exist
against the Government. All this shews
that the government has no substantive
powers: And that the compact is compact
with co-Statcs, and on question involving
the original powers of the compact itself, if u
State make m issue, it is not with the
Federal Government but with the co-States.
And there is no power granted in the CON-
pact to the Government toFenforce obcdi-
ence, but the States themselves must sit in
judgment on the issdes ihgde, and three
fourths of the States can affirm the power
denied; for they alone can -aed to or amend
the constitution or affirm what it is, to bind
4 sovereign member of the confedefacy.
ANY power short of this ishsurpation and
changes the whole genius and theory of our
system. The whole system rests upon friend
ly discussion, upon comppmise- ar
gument and truth, and fual hearing and
final decision by independcnfand sovereign
States with all their motsaa and political
weight. In this point Of view, She States are
the Peers of each other. And if thrcc-foiirths
decide against n sovereign State, then MAY
arise the question of final scccssion-and if
thrce-fouths, not only affirm the power, but
grant force to the use of the government to
carry out that affirmation, secession can then
be adopted finally at the risk of the State.
But if compulsion or force be used before
this, it is lawless and the Government as
sumes power not granted and must end In
despotisn.
The States of the confederacy in many
points of view are the estates Of The Realm.
And on all vital questions involving the Or
ganic law by which they are united, their
power must be recognized or there can be
no real independence. There can be no
political liberty unless these estates are fully
and fairly consulted. Without this we have
made no advance over Europe in civil liberty
itself, TO suit the issues of modern society.
If oppression be ntolerable, the lowest serf
of Russia can appeal to arms and to revo-
luton, and so can the Turk-but this is no
system Of liberty. The European draws the
sword and appeals TO revolution to vindica.e
his liberties, bit TIE appeal to sovereign
States with organized governments who shall
give such authoritative declarations of the
fundamental law rs shall guard and protect
our liberties, without an appeal to arms in
the first instance.
They made the constitution and can alter
it. and they alone, in great emergency, can
reform and regeneratc the action of The FEEDER
al Government. This makes us n confedera-
cy, as tuntra-distinguishcd from n simple de-
mocracy, where the sense of States has to be
taken on sectional questions affecting the
liberty of the parts. Without this, we have
a central unchecked Government under the
control of a majority antagonist to us,lnstead
of conrcderatcd republic where the power
of the head is not inconsistent with the liber-
ty of the parts. This is the original conccp-
tion of our system, and part of Its very cx.
istonce.
But many oppose that the constitution
itself has created Il common arbitcr in the
Supreme Court of the United Statcs-ir-
stead Of the tribunal of the States. This
is great misconccption. In the clause con-
fcring jurisdiction upon the Court, the wol,-
dcrful wisdom of the instrument is Illus
trated as well as in every other clause. The
words arc, ''thc judicial power shall extend
10 all cases IN Lam and Equity, arising under
this the constitution. the laws Of the land
and treaties &C." An amendment to the
constitution, made at the instance of Georgia,
also prohibits u State being sued. Those
who drew this clause were lawyers and well
understood the legal language they used.
aCascs in Law and Equity" arc suei as can
be made mp by plcadings where the rights of
meum and trum are involved, where indi-
viduals can appcar-whera lnere rights of
property can be decided. But where Il State
makes an issue in her sovereign capacity on
the compact ilselEiti is high political Dues.
ton, beyond the plcadings to be made iip by
individuals. When State scccdes or chooses
to release her citizens from the obligations
of the federal constitution, her citizens can
no longer be reached by federal power in any
form.
The State cannot-be sued for it Is express.
ly prohibited, and when shcmakes an issue.
it is political and not Sin Law or Equity"
The very nature of the issue is the reverse
of any thing in "Law and Equity" There is
no forced construction that can give iu+isdic.