The southern press., 1851-08-13
From The Charleston Mercury.
The state Convention.

From the Charleston Mercury.
The state Convention.
1. The style of this confederacy shall be tn
United States of America"
2. Each State retains its " Sovereignty, free
dom, and independence" and every po,oer, .ju
ris7iction and right which is not by this con
federation expressly delegated to the Unite
States in Congress ssembled."-Articles 9
Confederation, Clause Isl and 3D.
Messrs. EDIToRs: We have thought it bes
to head our essay with the above quotations, no
to prove to those who think with us on the sub
ject of secession, that the State never relin
quished, nor intended to relinquish, her sover
eighty, but to demonstrate to the most doubtin.
and timid, that in joining the league with he
sister States she left nothing for the most subtle
casuist to misapprehend or misrepreseht as {,
her intention to retain her sovereignty and indie
pendence undiminshed.
1t Is admitted, we believe, on all hands, tina
the articles of confederation" stand to this day
unrepealed, and all the provisions not modified
or altered by the Constitution Of the United
States" are still of force The above clause,
not only remain unaltered, but are, in genera
terms, entirely re-affirmed, without the leas
qualification in that instrument. This, then, we
trust, will forever put to rest the question o.
State sovereignty, and together with it, that Of
the retained" right of secession, for it does ap
pear to us too plain for argument.
But being in full possession of these powers
and under circumstances demanding her utmost
discretion, the State has seen fit to call con.
yention of her people, with what powers and
for what purposes will best be seen BY the terms
of the fifth clause of the " act Of legislature" al
its last session. II runs thus:
"That convention of the people of the State
of South Carolina is hereby ordained to be as
sernbled in the town of Columbia Us hereinafter
provided, for the purpose, in the first place, OF
taking into consideration the proceedings and
recommendation of Congress of the slave
holding States, if the same shall meet and be
held. And for the further purpose of taking
into consideration the general welfare of this
State, in view of her relations to the laws and
government of the United States And there
upon to take care that the Commonwealth of
South Carolina shall suffer no detriment. "A.
A. p. 56.
It will be kept in mind that the legislature OF
itself has no power over a conventional only
enacts the shape and form, and declares the pur-
poses for which the convention shall assemble
1t is the people, and the people alone, who vote
the delegates, and thus create the convention,
and who give it its power, and they are under
stood to convey only such power, and invest
them with it only in such manner, as are neces-
sary to accomplish the ends proposed by the act
which calls it. The legislature gives the con-
vention no power-neither can it by any qualifi-
cation take away any from il which the people
have conferred But we do affirm that the
powers with which the people have clothed this
convention, "to take into consideration the gene
raj welfare of the State," aaAd thereupon to take
xIck 10 70
suffer no detriment," areyeneral and complete in
themselves. That the fight to assemble and
organize for the purpose Of using those powers
effectively for the good Of t,e people, for carry
ing out the objects intended ~ them, is inherent
in the very creation of such a lody, and without
which no power is given at all. That the peo-
pie had the right, if they had been called ON to
fix the time ofits meeting as well a. its duration.
But not having fixed any time, it mua necessari-
y be invested in them as the only means of ex.
ercising the powers conferred for the purposes
intended, and that the legislature, in On after
clause of the act, had no right to reserve to it.
self, II the legislators so intended, the power to
dictate aby bare majority of votes" whea it
shall assemble or by withholding them, whether
1t shall assemble at all.
The proviso, in the tenth clause, runs thus
@that in case the governor shall not assemble the
convention, lin contemplation of the expected
action Of the Southern Congress, anterior TO
the next session of this Legislature, this general
assembly shall, by majority of votes, fix the
time of the meeting Of the said convention.
Now, we do affirm, without fear of refutation,
that if the Legislature only meant to fix "a
time," the clause is harmless but il they in
tended by this clause to retain in their hands the
power to dictate to the convention, by bare
majority Of their votes, whether it shall meet or
MOTTO hold in the hands Of bare majority, or
any majority, the power Of utterly abolishing it
by not calling into action, this sovereign power,
invested in them directly by the people for the
highest and most vital purposes of the State,
and to fix the time" without which the con-
vention could not act at all, the Legislature has
transcribed its powers, and the clause thus
claiming to retain this authority 10 itself, is sim
ply a null and void"
The convention, invested rs has already been
by the people in their primary capacity, with
these general and paramount powers, without
any time designated by them when il shall as
semble, has necessarily right inherent in itself
TO assemble and organize, as the only means Of
executing the other powers conferred, and il IL
has not this power, it has no power at all. Had
the people designated time for its meeting, il
would have been bound 10 obey them: this
they have not done; and If the Legislature can
by law assume the authority of preventing its
action until they shall please the Legislature. for
all practical purposes, has become the trustee of
these powers, and not the convention, The
Legislature, and not the convention, holds in its
hand all these superconstitu.iona rights. And
the people in sovereign convention assembled.
can only act or not ACT, as the Legislature shall
please. This, we presume, they will not pre-
tend 10 claim, and the convention, therefore. of
necessity has the power, should the legislature
fail in its duty, TO assemble Of itself and or.
ganize, and carry out the high duties com.
mended to them by the State PYM.
MYSTERIES or AsTI-SEcEssToN-N we are
told the secessionists wish to burn up Charles
ton; then that all the secessionists live in aone