Mariposa Democrat., 1858-01-28
Popular Sovereignty.

Walkers letter to the Secretary Of State, at
Washington:
Under our confederate system, sovereignty
is that highest political power which, at its
pleasure, creates Governments and delegates
authority to them. Sovereignty grants powers,
but not sovereign powers; otherwise it might
extingush itself by making the creature of its
will the equal or superior of its creator. Sow
ereignty makes Constitutions, and through
them establishes Governments. 1t delegates
certain powers to these Governments, distrib-
uting the exercise of the granted power among
the legislative, executive, and judicial depart
ments. The Constitution is not sovereign, be-
cause it is created by sovereignty; the Gov
ernment is no; sovereign for the same reason,
much less any department of that Govern
ment. Having defined sovereignty, we must
not confound the power with its source or ex-
ercise. That is, sovereignty is one thing !;
where it resides or how it is to be exercised, is
another Under the system Of European des-
potism, sovereignty was claimed to reside in
Kings and Emperors, under the sacrilegious
idea of the "divine right Of Kings; !" and the
blasphemons doctrine was, that Sovereigns, in
legitimate uccession-although stained with
crimes and blackened with infamy-wcre
clothed by Deity with absolute power to rule
their subjects, who held nothing but privileges
granted by the Crown. Such were the absurd
and impious dogmas to which the people Of
Europe, with few exceptions, have been COM
pclled to submit by the bayonet-sustaincd by
the more potent authority of ignorance and
superstition. Under this theory, the people
were mere ciphers, and crowned heads sub
deities-the sole representatives on earth Of
the governing power Of the Almighty. Our
doctrine is just the reverse, making the people
the only source Of sovereign power. But what
people? With us sovereignty rests exclu-
sively with the people Of each State" By TIE
Revolution, each colony, acting for itself alone,
separated from Great Britain, and sanctioned
the Declaration of Independence. Each colo
ny having thus become State, and each adopt
ing for itself its separate State Government,
acted for itself alone under the old Continental
Congress. Each State acted for itself alone in
acceding to the Articles Of Confederation in
1878, and each State acted for itself alone in
framing and ratifying each for itself the Con.
stituton of the United States. Sovereignty,
then, with US, rests exclusively with the people
OF each State. The Constitution Of the United
States is not sovereign, for 1t was created by
the States, each exercising for itself that high
est political power called sovereignty. For the
same reason the Government of the United
States is not sovereign, nor does It exercise any
sovereign powers 1t exercises only "delegat-
ed powers" as declared by the Constitution,
and those powers only which are granted by
that instrument Delegated powers are not
sovereign powers, but powers granted by SOW
ereignty Sovereignty being this highest polit-
ical power, can not be delegated 1t is indiyis-
ible. 1t is unit, incapable of partition.
Hence, the great error of supposing that SOW
ereignty is divided between the States and the
United States The Constitution ofthe United
States is the supreme law" ard obligatory as
SUCH But law is not sovereignty, but an
act Of ofsovereignty. All laws imply lawmakers,
and in this case those who framed and ratified
this supreme law" were those sovereignties
called the States, each acting exclusively for
itself, uncontrolled by any sister States, except
by the moral force of It's influence and exam
pie. The Government Of the United States,
possessing, as we have shown, no sovereignty,
but only delegated powers, to them alone ii
must look for the exercise OF all constitutional
authority in Territories, as well as States; for
there is not single power granted by the Con-
stitution to this Government in Territory,
which is not granted in a State, except the
power to admit new States into the Union,
which, as shown by the Madison Papers, the
trainers of the Constitution, as first demon
strated in my first Texas letter, refused to
limit to our then existing Territories.
ain the Territories, then as well as the
States, Congress possesses no sovereignty and
can exercise only the powers delegated by the
Constitution, and all the powers not thus
granted are dormant or reserved powers, be.
longing in common territory to the States as
co-equal, joint tenants there of that highest
political power called sovereignty"
DIVISION OF TExAs.-The subdivision o.
Texas into two or more States is revived r
the public journals of that State. The New
Orleans Picayune, referring to the matter
says No State in the Union has increased in
population and wealth, during the last few
years. more than Texas. Her estimated popu
lation at this time amounts to more than hal
million, and when the next census is taker
it will be found sufficient to entitle the STATE
to six or seven representatives in Congress-
Several reasons are given for division. Tn,
great size of the State; the great dssimilarity
of its parts and the difficulty of constant com