The Davenport daily gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1869, 1857-03-24

Tar crunty sA~ess.r
SIS A. r. GOULD.
ma Law Hss Constituted How Aepasse.
One point in the opinion q Chief Justice
sTaney, which appear 10 us y contain IN
i,.elt complete rcfuta,ioRot h.s o~n argu-
men, and publication u the views held BY
the d,sssasinx Jassices. We have not - yet
seen noticed IN The various reviews OF hs
opinion which have thus lar appeared,
In speaking of the relation OF the gen
eraI goyernment TO the territories, he says;
a. to ters,,sry .eqafsa wshra' the h"'''s
cfthe United Stsies, Il remains ierriofy
ua,,l 1mdiuea iasa she Usioh Nepo~er
n pisen in the Constitution 10 acquire ter
r;,Sry tote aela and geseraed N that char
.c,er; and. cosseea sasly there canno, be
found in the conssi,usicn any definition 81
/ power which Congress nay lawfully eKer-
case before il becomes STATE The power
% acquire territory until ], Il in condition
10 become state on an equal tooting With
/ the other stases, mast nessarfsy rest on
scs~l discretion and il becomes the dsiy %
~ Gessvsmemt 10 sdmiaistsr tas isSs q Tie
Usiss1 Ssaiss ior the protection 81 personal
rights and property therein" In palmer
language the opinions Of the Chief Justice
ara ,hese.--the power to SECURE snd there
fore To govern territory 10 entirely srtra-
ccns.iigiicasl. wholly anProvited for IN that
instruneut. and thss, consequently u be-
come. the dsty Of the government 10 %.
niaisser the iaws Of the United s'ases
tkerein. We accept this aisinm OF nj.
Taney in stl its length and breadth. Lei
u examine H. First. shst are The laws Of
the United S,atesa Manifesily ell the
! statutes enacted BY Congress anless they
have been properly set aside BY the Su-
prsms cosr,. What s,a,u,es can they.prop.
esly cot aside. Hnly those that are uncon-
s.isutienal. Now statutes are unconstltu.
tional only when they conhic, with the
risAe ssssrved to the states or granted 70
the government in the Constitution; not
simply because the Constitution does not
s,sei6calB provide fer them. Such case
= the latter is sha, Of all legislation for the
territories which is extra constitutional ou'
not thersfore unconstitutional. even aeeor
aiagto NJ. TaneI sha, expressly declares
the dsfy Of extending q. 8. laws over the
territories We are glad to have Mr.. Tan
eye opinion 20 this effect. though i was
scarcely needed. as the truth is zasifes; q
snce and to All, from the fac, that If one
law ior territorial government ~as nncon-
stitutionsl because exra-coustitutionai
then Oh hwr for territorial government
would be necessarily equally uneonsii-
tuton,i: and ee should have possessions
siihou, the right Of governing, protecting
or preserving them Comnon sense a.
vol 81 lew proncunces such state OF
things absurd ans 'mpossible
Second, ali territorial laws being from
their very nature extra unconstitutional, N.
der what restrictions 10 Congress, or the
law-making po@er, placed ia exaeiing
themi IL The language Of fancy, simply
under The TesiIietioh d "a ssaEd discre-
ton Wla.--sna here - mpsl impsrs
Ast question. 1ae Ae 70 ,"age Of this
"sound discretion. Nsniiesily Congress
itself, alone. and rot the suprtne Court;
and that because il 10 the Law making pow
or which 10 10 exercise this discretion il
making their enscimenis, and because the
Judiciary Is confined in oil its operations
to the powers expressly Delegated in the
Constitution which created i. among which
powers Is act The rasst Z jcsee Of the
discretion u CoEfs-r-
tHhas nsht ,h-n have tte Supreme
Csurt tospronoance jpo4a4eat Upon law
OF Congress-, sxira-eonfti,u'ioB6l and only
limited By ihe -soo0d discretion" Of Con-
qress! Msniiestly none. itit IN exercise
OF power wholly without lbeir province,
which The constitution never eeniem plated,
never nsiheyized and which IN Itself Is a
gross yiolatoB Of then CONSTITUTIONAL duty.
AL laws for The government Of the tern
tories which Congress have 20 their sound
discretion passed. must sceoriiag to the die
tum OF the Chief Justice, l.. laws Of the
u s., and as such it ID, according TO the
same authority, the duty Of the government
to administer them. vi the &C 5vernment"
in the sense used, the SupresA4 Court con-
stitu,es no part and have therefore no right
10 interfere in any manner ~iih either the
snac,ing or the executing Of these laws.
Jus, such law as THE y the so-calied
MisseukI CtxTfoxLsn. IL Is, or was, a
sw Of the U d. passed in legitimate forn
By congress ia the exercise u iheir "souno
discretion FOR tie goyefhment Of tbs ter.
rltorie. BY the opinion Of NJ. fancy i,
vas the duty VI the gosefnmsn NJ to "sdmn.
lister it, aud in no legal Nsy could thu,
law BIZ set aside but BY being repealed b.
the ssme su,hority which ense;ed H. And
yet, tbs SANS opinion from stieh we have
quoted the premises Of ou- argument, BY
the power VI a nes system Of iagie intro
ducel south vi Mason and Dixob's line, ar.
riyss ., the eonelu.ion thai the Missouri
Compromise was un-eoDstitpll1nsi and that
il 10 duty Of the Supreme Court 20 sn 90,
even when the question Las not been
broagbt before Them BY iae ordinary legal
proeess.
Ths Rising and the ssttins Sun.