Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-02-16
From the New York Journal Of Commerce.
The Grant Question Now Before TIA

From the New York Journal Of Commerce.
The Great Question Now Before the
Country.
Whether secession be right under the Constr
tution or an act of destruction of it, is not now
practical question The fact Is before US that SIX
States have seeded. By precisely the same forms
in each as those by which they expressed tnelr
content with the Government OF the United olstes'
the people of six States, each for ITSELF nave ex
pressed now their discomfort, by conventions OF tne
people chosen specially to consider thls question
| the mode which we all acknowledge as the most
authentic form of the people expressing their WIZ
and which we all acknowledge as the proper ana
conclusive mode of people exercising Its mghest
| mowers The assent given aforetime by the people
| of these States to the United States Government
| has been as effectualy withdrawn as II was ever
| given. If they to live under the Goyernmeht
| now they live under government with winch they
| do not consent
Nor is il a practical question whether the present
| movement in the South be wise or unwise-is JUS
titled in our eyes not justified Nor, again, Is II
a practical question what might have Oeen done IN
the early part of the movement Inc only Pracucal
question is what with facts as they are, 1t is wise
and right and possible for the adhering States
| who are the Government now to do.
| We must bear in mind how prone we all are to
| see only our own side of a case how apt 10 con-
denim the same acts done by others, II ineOnNeneh' u
to MS which we ourselves have done, or would do,
The Constitution was drafted by a Convention OF
DELEGATES from all the States and by that ConVen-
ton it was recommended they had no authorlty %
mt il in force. 1t was made law IN every State
only by its own separate Convention OF It's people
The Constitution itself provided that 1t should be
binding when ratified by nine States but binding
onv on the nine asserting States-not on the others
The people of the State of New York, when they
ratified it, inserted in their instrument OF raunea
| tiou among other things, this declaration Ina
| tho no1vers of Government may be re-assumed bJ
| the people whensoever it shall be necessary fol
| their happiness"
This maxim and others inserted in the same IN
strument are almost identical with the selfeYlden
ftruthsD and inalienabe rights of the Declaration
of Tndependence where they are stated ID Justlnca
tion of eur secession from the British Empire Al
of them pointing TO the one simple principie' ina
Government is legitimate when 1t has not the con
sentOf the governed. Granted, that the Declaration
? of Independence is not formal instrument lnstl
! tnting a government but simply statement OF ou
! reasons for abandoning a former Government, an
that therefore its language is not to be taKsn 70
precisely or positively, and is not binding YET IN
= documeut by which the people OF New York rallne
the Constitution of the United States IS law wlthi
. the State of New York. 1t may be SAID there
aenuiescence to proveIhat I'VE are not content W.T.
| possession as proof OF a mans title 10 land' II
| know that documentary evidence exists we nus
Il find ont the nature of his possession, whether
9 | owner or as a mere trustee or tenant
5 ..Tbe peopleD whoys asserted by this declaration
n "nav re-assume the power of the Governments
/ IarQ the DeODle ef New 1OFk diOhC aii0
= The Convention represented, spoke for, anc aete
IN for the people of the State Of New York only the
ve,e not charged with caring for the rights OF an
but the people of New York; they were not aeti
in this manner with the people Of other States; n'
the neople of other States with them. Each ota
wos left to ratfy the Constitution or not, as
thought fit This declaration being made part OF .
ratification of the Constitution, when ltspoke Oh
apowers of Government" which may be re-assui
ed referred especially to those powers "hN
- ont fhp no COVernuie
of the Uaited States otherwise it was out OF plac
The people of the State Of New York, aeung I
81 themselves only and not for others-aeting as
III separate people, and not jointly with others-We
then of themselves and by themselves ~ cSnls
ring certain powers the new government ai
these powers thus and then conferred, they reserF
the right to assume to themselves tne PeoPIIe
the State of New York, by the act OF the peopsiea !
the State of New York, whenever the people Vi
state of New York should find that so TO DO W
Dece.sarv To their happiness; whether this was
V be done under the Constitution or IN spIe oi II,
no matter The declaration made on such an OCT
g sion meant this, or meant nothing.
II Is not true that the Constitution OF tne Ohlt
States declares itself to be perpetual form
Government: nor if it did, does the common ser
ment of mankind recognize any form OF goFerhl1t
as entitled to be perpetual ana unenangeAole. y
| cer1ain that the people of New oFk dld not acc'
n" Il as perpetual but. on the contrary, openly p
rested. from the start against Its being consider
for norretuaI You cannot turn up the evidence q
the Constitution of the United States is now law
the State of New York, without turning up, on
same record proof that the people OF New IL
claim the right of Withdrawing, by their own Sc
her rate acts as they conferred them, the powers g
bv them by that Constitution to the General
erpment, and, thereby, of abrogatng the Const
ton so far as this State is concerned. That rec
for must stand 40 until we ratfy the Constitut
anew in another form of words, in another sen
~. Now. this right. (whether under or over the
stitutiop) which New York, by her record, ctGl
the seeded States have exercised; they have
nothing more.
It were idle to inquire by what form of We
hOOl other States ratified the Constitution; New !
ngs. has enough to do to look to her own duty in
A' grave state Of affairs. Can she, with any sho'
fair dealing, use force to deny this right to any
. sister States?
= We have been applauding, recently. the spect
IN. in Italy, where the people of one Angdom an
mu- several smaller States have, each acting separa
by their vote thrown off their old government
we doubt that, since such vote in Naples, the
, ernment of the Bourbon king is illegitimatef
the former princes of Tuscany and Modena, IN
.RDs Judgment the moral right even if they had the
er, now, since that vote, to use force IN or ag
those States in order ito maintain the Consttl
ard and to enforce the laws"
and Applying these principles, the Governments ol
III United States can hardly now be called legi1l
. Government within the limits Of Georgia. IL ma
the consent Of the governed. Tho goVernnIe"rr =
extended over Georgia, the Constitution .hs ne
law in Georgia, only by the consent o. a0nsept ose
y of Georgia, given separately as the eonS' ba
recognized established political sOs.;S ; or I,
! then by general acknowledgment, 70 I yvitblr,
tain. The consent is unquestio,paaOwyt aw there is 7
The only authority which made y II rest: it mus
it has no authority upon when ho-Is - Tecsgnize
Perry to the ground The American People
Sntv Of enforcing the laws but they asU rsIo
blind. uu'y y .:I 49, the same power WITCH hAAe'
r. nv can abrogate it UnIes; cur GOsern%e ,tat y
nty, entitled to be perpetual (;oi, !. a -,
Paraf. Iass "s . e r. come prOper mode OF bringing
pur Inere NUS -, - sefd the power OF amendln
- ,s an is lodged the Legislatures OF
90 IONS - The States: amending does not mean
o,;ng This last each State must of necetsit
fc itself; Just as each Stats consented to it for
No more decent and peaceable method Of gettin
iSoi; of government could be adopted than that us
utnas the seeded States; they voted it down. We
England no conclusive evidence Of our desl
separate from her, before resisted her.
nee Of general government be no longer legitimate
ernuent in all the seeded States. from lack o
tn. consent of the governed, what moral r1gnt nS
/ - ntoi, forfz and QarFls0nd