The American. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1857, 1857-11-21

The DIsARAIsa LAw--We present few rea-
sons why the last law of the Corporation, prohibit
ing the carrying Of deadly weapons is invalid, and
cannot be enforced.
lst No power is given by the charter for any
such purpose, either implicitly or expressly and
no power has hitherto been claimed or exercised
Of Furnishing that or similar offences. Neither
such law be effsctually enforced, for no power
is given the Corporation to search suspected per-
sons, even under oath. 4
I'd. 1t creates dangerous and unlawful dis.
examination between one class of citizens, and
another, by permitting the police to be armed,
and forbiding il by heavy penalties in all other
persons. Such discrimination finds no precedent
in the annals Of our Jurisdiction, and is contrary
to the spirit of our institutions. In the ewes of
the law all are equals. We have no privileged
classes.
3D.. 1t contravenes Art. VIII of amendments to
the Constitution, which provides, that " excessive
fines shall not be imposed" because it prohibits an
action by heavy penalties, which has bean hither-
to Indifferent and in some cases, meritorious.
4th. It does not specify with sufficient precision
and cearness what may constitute an infraction of
its provisions.
Laws to bind the citizen must be clear and well
defined; for the rule is that penal statutes must
be strictly construed. Law is defined to be rule
OF action, but here our rule of action fails US
for who shall say what constitutes dirk There
is no rule by which we can certainly know the
distinction between dirk and any other kind of
knife-when knife commences to be or when it
ceases to be dirk-therefore this act is no rule
Of action-is no law. E,
9th. 1t violates Art. II Of amendments to the
Constitution, which provides, A." that the right Of
the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be in
fringed !" the supreme law of the land.
The right of keeping and bearing arms has al
ways justly been considered second only to that
Of selfdefence.
The English were sensibly alive to this fact to
certain degree as early as 1888, when it was made
a feature in the bill of rights, enacted William
and Mary, C. l, by which it was enacted that the
right of tho subject to keep and bear arms, &C.
cording to their condition, was sacred. But,
owing to the ambiguity of the words according
to their condition" this right has been reduced to
one more nominal than real, under various pre-.
texts But, happily, our Constitution leaves open
no door for misconstruction Of the right of the
citizen in this respect.
The great objection to the adoption OF the
original constitution, and which nearly proved
fatal to its adoption was the omission of bill OF
rights. Accordingly, at the first Congress which
met Under its sanction, this, among other amend
ments, was proposed and subsequently adopted.
1t may be, and indeed has been urged by some,
that this does not allude to the carrying of con-
cealed weapons.
Here again we have occasion to call in our rule
Of construction, and must construe the prohibi-
ton to infringe upon the right of wearing and
keeping arms, strictly in favor of the citizen
The constitution makes no exception, because
it did not intend to sanction any, and if any such
exception had been intended, it cannot but be
fairly supposed that it would have been expressed
1t is manifest" says Judge Story, 81 that the
Constitution proceeds upon a theory Of its own,
and gives and withholds powers &C cording to the
judgment of the American people"
We can only construe its powers and cannot
enquire into the policy or principles which induced
the grant Of them.
The commentators upon the constitution are
entirely silent upon this point, for it never en-
tered into their calculation that such exception
would ever be seriously urged, and hence their
silence. Nor do we find any such distinction as
to weapons concealed or not, in the act before u.s.
The policy of our Republic is eminently in favor
of well regulated militia, as the article just
quoted declares, and any act which restraints the
power to keep and bear arms violates that policy
is unconstitutional, is of no i'd.
Board OF ALDERMEN.-A message was received
from the Mayor enclosinn o. communication frar,,