Nashville daily patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1855-1857, 1856-09-01

sion from the fact that the States are sovereigns
To judge does not mesn alter, amend, OF destroy
The citizen in private life judges IS an in
dividusl what ought to be the action Of bis
he can only use the means to change,
amend, or influence their actions which are
pointed out By the laws. So with the State, soye-
reign it is In all other respects it caunct make it's
judgment binding on the Federal Government, ex>
cept in the forms pointed out In the constitution
SO far from retaining the right of secession amongst
the rights not delegated, ithas soemnly covenant.
ed to be governed by all such amendments Of the
constitution three fourhs of her eoufederates NAV
adopt, SO that in reality instead of possessing the
right TO resume her original powers as sovereign,
she has SO tar limited her sovereignty tbatshe can
not ever refuse TO enlarge the powers Of the FEEDER
al Government, should it be effected in she man.
ner prescribed by the constitution. Yet. Mr..
Chairman, plain and irrefutable these truths are
the resolutions OF the Southern Convention contra
dict them all.
old siats rights friends. IL the abotonists and
Tree soilers get possession Of the Government shall
they emancIpate our negroes, and shall We be
without nedyg Will you not then admit the
right Of secessionr Yes, certainy-it cans then
rcSoluIon--wnt just as We had il with Great Bril-.
ain Ia 1919. The sword then becomes the arbter.
aud society, thrown back upon its original right,
drtel mines upon its form OF Government II ever
this sad day should arrive no one can anticipate
the circumstances Of the society which will be
struggling for a Government, and 10 one can there's
fore pretend TO maine classihcationa which may
;hen he formed Of States or people, Whoever has
read Roman or Greek history or the more modern
revolutions IN Germany aud Italy, need not be told
that the objects Of war are generally lost by the
Efforts OF war | allude TO those intcstlne wars
which are the lot OF the people who have TO fight
each other IN order 30 settle the principles OF their
constitution and might add, Mr.. Chairman, tina,
whoever has visited Europe within the last three
years cannot but see that OF all the people OF the
earth, who should be slow TO encourage those pas.
sions which produce civil strife, those Of America
should be the lssL
But come back 10 the question OF secession,
presented by the Convention, aud say that IL has
been the effort o! this body to prepare the public
mind for the admission of the principle that scces
sion is unconstitutional remedy, to which State
may resort whenever 1t thinks proper, and that
this being the right of the State, any attempt on
the part of the Federal Government to execute
the laws is violation OF duty, and ough. to be
sisted by all the members of the confederscy.
That this is so, lie manifest from the resolutions al
ready quoted. Now, gentlemen 10 answer 70 them,
let me quote from Gen. Jackson. who says;
'The right of the people Of single State to alb
solve the mselves at viii, and without the consent
of the other States, from their most solemn Obga-
TONS and hazard the liberties and happiness Of the
millions Comprising this Union, cannot be acknoW
lodged. Such authority ia believed to be utterly
repugnsnt both to the principles upon which the
general government is constituted, and to the OBJ
ject which it vas expressly formed to attain.
Against all acts which may be alleged to tram
scend the constitutional power OF the government,
or which may be incOnVenient oppressive in
their operation, the Constitution itself has pre-
scribed the modes of redress 1t is the acknow-
lodged attribute of free institutions. that under
them, the empire Of reason and law is substituted
for the power of the sword. To no other source
can appeals for supposed wrongs b. made consis-
tenty with the obligations of South Carolina; to
no other can such appeals be made with safely at
any Time and to their decisions, when constitution
llygpronouneed, it becomes the duty no less Of
the public authorities than of the people, in every
case, TO yield patriotic submission.
That State or any other great portion OF the
people, suffering under long and intoerable OPP
preston, and having tried all constitutional RENE
dies without the hope of redress may have natu.
raj right, when their happiness Can be otherwise
secured, and when they can do so without greater
injury to others, 10 absolve themselves from their
obligations to the government and appeal to the
last resort need not, on the present occasion be de
MED. -.
"The existence Of this right, however, must de-
pend upon the causes which may justify its exer-
else. Il is the uItimo ratio which presupposes that
the proper appeals to all other means of redress
have been made in good faith, and which can never
be rightfuly resorted TO, unless it be unavoidable
Il is not the right OF the State bat of the indvdu.
al and Of all the individuals in the State Il is the
right Of mankind generally, to secure by all means
IN their power, the blessings OF liberty and happi.
ness; but when, for these purposes any body of
men have voluntarily associated themselves under
particular form of government no portion Of them
can dissolve the association without acknowledging
the cOrrelatve right in the remainder to decide
whether that dissolution can be permitted, consis
tenuy with tie general happiness In this view,
it isa right dependent upon the power to enforce
.lGplA tflF1 NAV T.
could multiply quotations from the Federalst,
and other exposition OF constitutional law, but
swiitnot consume your time Between the princi
pie as stated by Gen. Jackson, and by the Nashville
Convention, Tennesseans will not hesitate TO de
eide which is nearer TO the truth OF history, and TO
that love OF Union which framed the Constitution.
Mr. President the prt position to pay Texas ten
millions for the territory she relipquished in New
Mexico is denounced as q bride, degrading to her
if she accepts it, and insulting to the whole South
Iwas the Minister of che United States when Texas
accepted the terms Of annexation II was at my
instance that the convention which formed her con
sGtulon left the boundary question an open one
party in Texas, and powerful one, wished to
make the Rio Grande, as a boundary a iine qua
non. This party Was voted down. Ny argument
was that Texas would have a representative in the
U. States Government which could effect more for
her than she could for herself. That the United
States would obtain the Rio Grande by negotiation,
but ought to be lett unirsmmeled by the Texas
constitution. My wish was to avoid war with Mex
leo. had hope that discreet negOtistor would
aati inf her true neo Ia hao
promoted BY recognizing The claim of Texas 10 the
Rio Grsnde. fOresaw, gentlemen. that war would
end In the acquisition OF territory by the Uni
ted States and feared that our Northern brethren
would ressate upon US by excluding slavery from
the territory thus acquired.
advised Texas 10 hquidate her debt and 10 take
from the United States the sum that would meet
the debt after ceding the Indian lands within her
imits Many of these lands as within the bounds
OF New MEXICO There certainly no Intention
on my part to bride Texas. But We all know that
Mr. Tyler's treaty contained this proposition to
pay Texas ten millions. 1t was advocated By the
South. Was il q bride them Certainly not. The
truth is that all of felt that Texas ought not to
have her means Of paying the debt contracted by
her struggle for Independence diminished. Her
revenues pledged for this debt, and her cred
itors had right TO complain when those revenues
we've taken away, as they we're by annexation
But what was then spplauded as patriotic lie now de
nounced as degrading bribe; is dismemberment
OF & sovereign State-and we are called on TO pct
this act in the list Of grievance which is to justify
secession. NIt
Ii would be easy to show that the ether griev-
ances enumerated in the resolution Of the conven-
tion so lar they are grievances at all can never
be remedied in manner TO preserve the Union, IL
such bodies the Nashville Convection 10 erect
a platform for the South Nv friend, Mr.. Ewing
has given you statement oil the votes upon the Va
rious OF the Compromise. and you see very
clearly from them that what is complained Of as
Northern aggression, Is 10 no inconsiderabIe degree
the result OF Southern votes. But, Mr.. President,
will not consume the tine Of this meeting. Such
an enlightened audience this il need not review