Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1859-08-29
souArTER sovEREIaNTY.


Did any man read the Constitution of the
United States and find that phrase in it-Squat
ter Sovereignty Yet it is saId that it is a con.
stitutional doctrine put in there. Now do you
suppose that If the men who made the COnsu
tuition, when they enacted that clause: Soon
gress shall have power to make all needtul rules
and regulations for the government Of the Ter
rltories," " would not have just added that every
Territory should have had "Squatter Sover-
eiguty4" Don't you think that they would, my
brother DemocrIls, you that have adopted this
new doetrinel
This is a new doctrine. 1t is only eleven
years old. No man ever heard of it more than
eleven or twelve years agO-since lS47 ! was
there when it was done / was in the council of
the nation when it was first started.
There was a man, / will not mention his name,
that wanted to stop the Mexican war; and he
foretod that the moment you got that land ii
would be a firebrand of discOrd, that it would,
if anything could, sever the whole family. For
saying that, the man that allude TO- was burn
/ ed in efiigy often, very often, but he was not
| burned up. Laughter ] Well, it just so hap
pened that in 1850 the same question came
right up and then for the first lime-l shall not
say 10 l850-but when this euitory had been
ceded by the treaty Of Guadaloupe Hidalgo, we
endeavored to say thatit should be free territory
/ before We got IL. Ou lndt quesLlOus Que pl tue
! best lawyers endeayOred TO establish that the
Constitution carried Slavery there without the
need of law at all We all thought he failed in
that allude to Judge Bcrrian, 10 Georgia
That is the first time that idea ever entered into
the head of man. | think perhaps, it was ia
e4s. Why not think Of it beforel Why did
not the men who made the Constitution think
of il when they prohibited Louisiana to import
slaves from abroad, while yet the slave States
might do sol
You perceive, my fellow-citizens, that there
is history belonging to this question, just the
same as that there is a history belonging TO th,
Christian Church What does every propaga-
tor Of Christianity do when there is dispute
about a text If he can Gnd out that st. Paul
Matthew, or any Of the Apostles or Disciples o
Chrst had that subject under consideration, ant
gave an Interpretation TO it, by their conduct ol
words, he does not dispute about Ike philolog
cal criticism that could be made on the word
50 the men that made that Constitution, sale
that "Congress shall have power 10 make al
needful rules and regulations for the govern
ment ofthe Territories" There men were no
only wise men, they were learned men. Tn,
man who reduced that Constitution into words
was probably one Of the most learned men tha
ever lived under this goyernment-l refer h
Governeur Morris, then of New York, very
| dlatllBu Bulhntu man Ahuy gave ~ 70 d Sohl
mttee, Of which he was chairman, 70 put in tn
right English words. Gov Morris knew tina
Sir William Blackstone had written four vol
uTes of commentaries on law in England. ii
knew that all the lawyers that would expect +
use this instrument as law, would expect L
| see in il those words common 10 law, and h
would look TO see what Blackstone meant b.
"rule," when spoke of IN reIerehee 10 the Leg
islatlre Congress was the national legislature
Sir William Blackstone asks the question
What is llwl aud says it is a rule OF action
prescribed by the superior power Of the Stat,
commanding that which is good and p'ohibitin
that which is evil Law is only "rue" pre-
scribed by the legislative power. When the
. said then that Congress should have power {
make all neediul "rules," they added "reguli
tions," which is but a synonym for "rule"-lC
the Latin word reguia Is interpreted t1 be ru,
What did they mean by that word when the
came to act upon IL! That Is the question
would PROFOUND 20 my friends over the river
This is the question Of law about which on on
side they hold one opinion, and on this side el
tertain another l appeal from any interpr
tauon put upon il in the latter days of d
Church, and go back to the Apostles and s,
y what they mean. If ! can find that out \
. man shall come in the way Of my iollowir
them
THE POWER or CONGRESS.
They say now that Congress has no power
y make laws for the Territories That is N
' Douulas' idea / have been trying 20 find o
% fr, r,, fsllogy citizens Of the Democratic cree