Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1860-12-15

powers committed to it; was intended 30 bo per-
petual, and not to be annulled at the pleasure Of
any one oi the contracting parties Of the Confed-
atom perpetual union between tho States
and by the l3,h article it is expressly declared
that the articles Of this Confederation shall be n-
evtObly observed by every State, aud the UniOn
shall bo perpeuated.
THE UNION iNFERRENrIALLY PERPETUAL.
The preamble to the Constitution Of the United
States having exposed reference to the articles Of
Confederation stles it was established in order to
form a more perfect Union, does not Include the
essential attribute of porpeuity, but that the Un-
ion designed to be perpetual, appears conclu-
sively from the nature aud extent Of the powers
conferred by the constitution on the federal gov
eminent. These powers embrace the very highest
attributes of national sovereignty. They place
both the sword and the purse under its CONTROL
Congress has power to make war and to make
peace, to raise and support armies aud navies, and
10 cOuciude treaties with foreign governments.
It is Invested with the power to coin money and
to regulate the value thereof, and to regulate com
merce with loreigH nations and among the several
States. II is not necessary to enumerate the 9th
er high powers which have been conferred upon
the Federal Government. In order to carry the
enumerated powers into effect, Congress possesses
the exclusive right to lay and collect all other tax
es. But the Constitution has not only conferred
these high powers upon Congress, but ii has ndoP-
ted elIecual means to restrain the States from in
terfering with their exercise for that purpose II
has in strong prohibitory language expressly de-
olared that State shall enter into any treaty of
alliance or confederation, grant letters of margue
and reprsal, coin money, emit bills of credit,
make anything but gold and silver coin a tender
in payment Of debts, pass any bill Of attaiuder
&C post Jacto law or laws imparing the obligations
Of contracts. Moreover without the consent oil
Congress, no State shall lay any imposts OF duties
on any imports or exports cxcep. what may be alb
solutely necessary for executing its inspection
laws, and if they exceed this amount the exeesses
shall belong to the United States and no State
shall without the consent Of Congress lay duty on
tonnage, keep troops ships of war in time OF
pSacc, enter into any agreement of compact with
another State or with o foreign power, or engage
in war unless actually invaded or in such immi.
mont danger as will not admit of further delay.
In order still further to secure the unnterru pied
exercise Of theso high powers against State ntsrpo
siton, 1t is provided that the Constitution, aud the
laws of the United States, which shall be made in
pursuance thereof, and all treaties made or which
shall be made under the authority of the United
States, shall he the supreme law of the land, and
the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby,
anything in the Constitution or laws Of any State
20 the contrary Notwithstanding The solemn
sanction of religion has been superadLed to the
obligations Of official duty, and all Senators and
Representatives Of the United States; all member
Of State Legislatures, and all Executive and Judi
cial oEcers both of the United States and tie sew
eral States, shall be bound by oath or affirmation
to support the Constitution.
In order to carry into effect these laws, the Con-
stiiulion has established perfect government in
all its forms, Legislative, Executive and Judcial,
and the Government to tho extent Of its powers.
acts upon the individual citizens of every State,
and executes its own DEGREES BY the agency of its
own officers. In this respect it differs entirely
/ from tue GUTernment under the OLD Confederation,
which was confined to making acquisitions on the
States 10 their sovereign character. This left it in
the discretion Of each whether to obey or to re-
fuse, and they often declined to comply with such
lrequisitons 1t thus became necessary, for the
purpose Of removing the barrier, aud in order tc
| form q moro perfect union, to establish Govern
ment which could act directly upon the people,
and execute its own laws without the intermediate
agency of the States. This has been accomplish
ed by the Constitution Of the United States.
| In short the Government created by the Consti-
tu,ion, and drawing its authority from the sOver-
egn people Of each Of the several States, has pre-
cisey the same right to exercise its power over the
people Of all the States in the enumerated cases,
that each one of them possesses over subjects not
delegated to the United States, but reserved to the
States respectively, or to the people. To the ex-
tent Of the delegated powers, the Constitution o
the United States is as much part of the Cousti
tuition Of each State, and is as binding upon the
people as though it had been textually inserted
therein This Government, th erefore is gres
and powerful government, invested with all the
attributes on sovereignty of the special subjects &c
which its authority extends. Its trainers never
intended to implant in its bosom the seeds Of it:
own destruction; nor were they, at its creation
guilty of the absurdity o! providing for its own
dissolution.
Is was not intended by its trainers to be the
baseess fabric of aVision, which, at the touch Oi
the enchanter, would vanish into thin air but a
substantial and mighty faLric, capable Of resist
ing the slow decay of time, and Of defying the
storms of ages, Indeed, well may jealous patriots
of that day have INDUCED fears, that government
of such high powers might violate the reserved
rights Of the States, and wisely did they adopt
the rule of a suiet construction Of those powers,
to prevent the danger; but they did not fear, nor
had they any reason to imagine, that the Consli-
tuition would ever be so interpreted as to enable
auy State, by her own act and without the consent
of her sister States, to discharge her people from
all or any of their Federal obligations.
REVOLUTIONARY REsIsTANcE A CLEAR RIGHT.
1t may be asked, then, are the people Of the
States without redress against the tyranny aud op-
preston Of the Federal GoSernmentf BY no
means. The right Of resistance on the part OF
the governed against the oppression OF their gov
,.nr,apts canuot he denied il exists indeDendent