The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1860-12-07


troll. Congress has power 70 make war. and
to make peace to raise and support armies
and navies, aud to conclude treaties with for.
eign governments. 1t 10 invested with the
power to coin money. and TO regulate the
value thereof, and TO regulate commerce with
foreign nations, and among the several States.
1t is not necessary to enumerate the other
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 col.
lect duties on imports, and In common with
the States to lay and collect the other taxes.
But the Constitution has not only confer
red these high powers upon Congress, but It
has adopted efiectual means to restrain the
States from interfering with their exercise
For that purpose it has, in strong prohibitory
language, expressly declared that mo State
shall enter into any treaty, alliance. or con.
federation grant letters Of maIque and 10.
prisal coin money emit bills Of credit make
anything but gold aud silver coin tender In
payment OF debts Pass any bill Of attainder,
or post faeto law, or law impairing the obliga.
ton OF contracts" Moreover, "without the
consent Of Congress, no State shall lay any
imposts or duties on any imports or exports,
except what may be absolutely necessary for
executing its inspection laws" and, If they
exceed this amount, the excess shall belong
to the United States.
And, ono State shall, without the consent
Of Congress, lay any duty of tonnage; keep
troops, or ships. of.war, In time OF peace en-.
ter into any agreement or compact with an
! other State, or with foreign power; or en-
gage in war, unless actually invaded, or In
such imminent danger as will not admit OF
delay"
!. In order still further to secure the uninter-
rnpted exercise Of these high powers against
State interpositon, 1t Is provided "that this
constitution and the laws Of the United States
which shall be made in pursuance thereof;
and all treaties made or which shall be made,
Y under the authority Of the United States,
>shall be the supreme law of the land and
the judges in every State shall be bound
thereby, anything In the constitution or laws
Of one State to the contrary notwithstand.
ing"
The solemn sanction Of religion has been
superadded TO the obligations of official duty,
and all Senators and Representatives Of the
United States, all members of State Legisls-
lures, and all executive or judicial officers,
"both OF the United States aud of the several
States, shall be bound by oath or affirmation.
to support this constitution"
In order to carry into effect these powers,
the constitution has established u perfect
government in all its forms, legislative, exc.
cutive aud judicial; and this government, to
the extent Of its powers, acts directly upon
the individual citizens of every State, and ex-
ercises its own DEGREES by the agency OF its
own officers. In this respect it differs en-
tirely IRON the government under the old
confederation, which was confined to making
, acquisitions on the States in their sovereign
, character. This left II In the discretion OF
each whether to obey or refuse, and they Of
ten declined to comply with such acquisitions.
Ii thus became necessary, for the purpose OF
removing this bsrrer, aud sin order to form
more perfect Union,' to establish O gov
eminent which could act directly upon the
people and execute its own laws without the
intermediate agency of the States. This has
been accomplished by the Constitution Of
the United States.
In short, the government created by the
Constitution. anu deriving its authority from
the sovereign people Of each of the several
States, has precisely the same right to exer-
else its power over the people Of all these
States, in the enumerated cases, that each
one oil them possesses over subjects not dele.
gated to the United States, but preserved to
the States, respectively, or to the people,"
To the extent OF the delegated powers the
Constitution OF the United States Is as much
part OF the constitution Of each State, and
is as binding upon Its people, as though it
I had been textually inserted therein.
This government, therefore, 10 Q great and
!. powerful government, invested with oil the
attributes OF sovereignty over the special SUBJ
jects to which its authority extends. Its
( trainers never intended to implsnt in Its boz
som the seeds OF its own destruction, nor
were they at its creation guilty Of the absurd
ity of providing TOR its own dissolution. 1t
was not intended by its trainers to be the
baseless fabric of vision which, at the touch
of the enchanter, would vanish into thin air,
but a substantial and mighty fabric. capable
of resisting the slow decay Of time, and Of
defying the storms Of ages. Indeed, well
may the jealous patriots OF that day have in
dulged fears that government Of such high
powers might violate the reserved rights Of
the States, and wisely did they adopt the
rule of a strict construction OF these powers
to prevent the danger. But they did not
fear, nor had they any reason to imagine,
that the Constitution would ever be so inter-
preted as to enable any 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.
II may be asked, then, are the people Of
the States without redress against the tyran-
ny and oppression of the federal government !:
By no means. The right of resistance on the
part of the governed against the oppression
OF their governments cannot be denied. 1t
exists independently Of oil constitutions, and
has been exercised at all periods of the
worlds history. Under it old governments
have been destroyed, and new ones have Ia.
ken their place. II is embodied in strong
and express language In our own Declaration
Of Indep endence. But the distinction must
ever be observed, that this 10 revolution q.
| gainst an established government, and not q
voluntary secession from it by virtue Of an
inherent constitutional right. In short, let
us look the danger fairly in the face; sece,-
sion is neither more nor less than revolution.
1t may or il may not be justiiable revolu-
ton. but still il 10 revolution.
What. in the mean time. is the response.
bili,y and true position Of the Executive p
lie Is bound by solemn oath before God and
the country "to take care that the laws be
faithfully executed" and from this obligation
he cannot be absoved by any human power.
Dut what u the performance OF TINS duty, IN
whole or in part, has been rendered impract-
icable by events over which he could have
exercised no control' Such, at the present
moment, is the case throughout the State Of
South Carolina, so far as the laws Of the
United States to secure the administration Of
justice by means of the Federal Judiciary are
concerned. All the federal officers within
its limits. through whose agency alone these
laws can be carried into execution, have al.
ready resigned. We no longer have a Dis
triet Judge. q. District Attorney. or Mar
shall, in South Carolina. III tact, the whole
machinery Of the federal government, neces.a-
~ for the distribution Of remedial justice
among the people. has been demolished and
it would DO difficult, il not impossible, TO re-
place it.
The only acts Of Congress on the statute
book bearing upon this subject, are those Of