The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-09-24


their masters, to come to Massachusetts they
should be transported hither at the public expense
wonder il Free soil Legislature would consider
itself poweress to prevent this State from being
overwhelmed by such irruptions
have been attempting to illustrate what really
requires no illustration. The principles clear.
| Every sovereign State has, and must have, the
right to judge what persons from abroad shall
i be admitted, and this and all other powers the
State ia bound TO for the safety and welfare
of its own citizens. Taking along with US these
principles, ask you to go back with me to that
convention which assembled in this cityon the 9th
day of January, l7SS, to consider whether this
State should adopt the proposed constitution. We
| are in the presence of ordinary assembly. In
| the chair if John Hancock. the who in IT'S
| threw his name and his fortune into the scale of
the colony at the beginning OF its contest with the
crown, and who, whatever else may be said OF him,
| Was always true to the revolution There is The
ophilus Parsons, who has sounded all the depths OF
| public and private law. There is Samuel Adams,
| not improperly called the Cato of America, his
| whole soul filled with the idea of human liberty
and popular rights, upon whose the sounds of
the guns at Lexington fell with sweeer tones than
the songs of birds In that morning of spring There
too, were Gerry and Varnum, and Gore, Anes,
and Bowdon, and Sedgwiclr OF Stockbridge the
soldier, the uris the ardent patriot, the true phi
lanthropst, who by his professional exertions had
just before struck the last blow at negro slavery in
Massach usetts, and crowd OF able just, and Wise
associates fresh from the deep and intensely inte-
resting discussions concerning political and civil
| liberty, which originated and accompanied aud
| followed the war of the revolution. The question
| ia, whether these were so Ignorant, or 80
blind to their duty as legislators, as citizens. and
| as men, as to make, in behalf OF this Common
wealth, a compact so grossly immoral that their
children may not fairly execute 1t, but must now
| overthrow and destroy the work OF their hands.
| Let us see:
| In the first place. it was known to them, and is
certain, that the Union could not be formed and
| the Constitution adopted without this article.
| In he thew believed. know.
that il was impossible to estimate the import
ance of this Union and this Constitution to the
| people whom they represented. The Coniederation
had proved powerless for good. The public debt
of the country, due chiefly to the officers and sol
ders of the revolution of whom this State furnished
| so large part, could not be paid.
| The commerce of the country was in the utmost
| disorder. Each State had its navigation laws
and mposts, and already using these power
| full and exciting instruments in q manner hostile
| to every other State. An insurreotion against the
laws an this State known as Shay's rebellion, which
seriously threatened, not only the existence of our
Government, but the general peace of the country,
and was connec ed with risings, both in New Hamp-
shire and Connecticut, had just been quelled with
| great difficulty. Great Britain, from whose grasp
we had escaped in open contest, was now waiting to
see prostrated by internal struggles, and from
| the great heart of Washington was exhorted the
exclamation, "What, gracious God, is man that
] there should be such inconsistency and perhdious-
| ness in his conduct. II il but the other day
shedding our blood to obtain the constitutions un-
der which we DEMONSTRATIONS of our own choice
| and making-and now unsheathing the
sword to overturn them. The thing ID so unac-
countable that hardly know how to reai1e H. or to
persuade myself that am not under the illusion
OF u dream"
This was the state of public affairs under which,
in January, l7SS, this convention assembled They
foresaw that this great instrument preaented for
their adoption would accomplish what il has
coInpiished- that it would form more perfect
union-that itwould establish iusticethat 1t would
ensure domestic tranquillity-that would provide
IL, fIar Iafap hat
the general welfare. and secure the blessings of
liberty to the people OF this Commonwealth, and
| their posterity.
On the one hand were the evils, on the other tho
bencfts-and they were called on to choose between
| them for the people of this Commonwealth during
| countless generations.
| Now let US suppose that some had been mad
enough to rise in that convention and say: 81 see
| these evils-they are great now, and threaten to
become intolerable. l see these benefits believe
this Constitution will perform for Massachusetts
all that il promises But / deny that MIassachu-
sets, a sovereign and civilized State, has the
rghful power TO make this compact. For here s
stipulation in il that persons held to service in
States foreign to u.s. escaping hithcr, shall be
given up to be carried back again"
l cannot pretend, fellow citizens, to give any
idea of the treatment which such objection
would have received from the great and powerful
| mindssof that convention. l believe they would
not have left vestige OF 1T ON earh-no, nor the
material to make ghost OF, to rise from regions
below and frighten some of their descendants. But
y
| see sufficient answers TO this objection.
In the first place, are not these persons foreign
ers as TO usand what right have they to come hore
at all, against the will of the Legislative power OF
| the State? And il their coming here, or remain
ing here, is not consistent with the safety of the
State and the welfare of the citizens in the name Of
all that is rational, may not prohibit their
| ing, or send them back if they Gomez
III we have a right to say TO those who have been
ground down by the oppression OF England you
must not land on our shores because your presence
ham -. rr,rt,r hnU uya nnfn rrrr to
avoid enormous evils and secure ncalculabe bene-
fits, not otherwise attainable, by compact, ono
article of which agrees that State shall not be
an asylum for fugitives from services
To deny this, is to deny the right of self preser-
vation to State. IL strikos at the heart of every
civilized community. 1t makes its preservation
impossible, and throws US back at once into a n
diton below the most degraded savages who have
a semblance of governments.
No sane man can reflect, and then make such
denial that there can be but one possible ques-
tion, and that ID simply question whether AaNs
emergency such called for the exercise ot
the power. Upon this question: also, unless
oyerturn principles necessary TO the existence Of
civil society, it is impossible to doubt that are
precluded and juslly bound by the action OF the
State in l7SS, Has not the State right 10 make
compacts and treaties-and, when they made,
they not to be kept?
May the State make promise to. day, and to- NOR
say "On the whole, interest did not re-
quire that promise, and il is not to be kepte' Ii
it be the test of just that, though he promise
W heiAib hc Ills piohilSt koour - IL not
also applicable to . State But in truth, there is
no occasioa to rely any such obligation for, il
it be once admitted that this Commonwealth in
l7SS had the rightfu power to assent to the Conss
tuition, there cannot be two opinions among those
who know the facts that the requisite emergency
existed.
am not about to repeat what have already said
respecting that emergency. You know what IL
You know that the great duty OF justice
could not otherwise be performed; that our peace
at home and safety from foreign aggression
could not otherwise be insured and that only by
this means could we obtain the blessings of liberty
to the people of Massachusetts and their poster tv
may add what now Is great and glorious motive,
which our fathers anticipated, and our eyes have
seen, in no other way could we beCSme an exam.
pie of, and security for, the capacity of man,
safely, and peacefully, and 'visely, to govern him
self under free and popular constitutions. But |
wish to ask your attention particularly to
thing, which is moro intimately connected with
this subject,
undertake TO say that men of forecast must there