Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1861-05-11

States shall be sufficient for>t the establishment
Of this Constitution bet,cccmv the States go
ratifying the same" u m ,.
have italicised certain words in the quo
/ tations just made, for the purpose of attract
ing attention to- the singular and marked eau
ton with which tho States cndcavored, in
every possible form, to exclude the idea that
the separate and independent sovereignty of
each State was merged into one common Gov.
ernment and nation; and the earnest desire
they, evnccd to impress on the Constitution
its; true charactcr-that of compact Jetaceca-
Eindcpepdent States. The Constitution of
1887 having however, omitted the clause al
ready. recited from the Articles of Confedera.
tion, which provided in explicit ternfs that
each State retained its sovereignty and ipde-
pcndence, some alarm was seen in the States
when invited to ratify the Constitution, lest
this omission should be construed into an
abandonment Of their cherished principles,
and they refused to be satisfied until amend
ments %ero added. to the Constitution, .pla-
! cling beyond, any pretence or. doubt, the re-
serSation, by tho States, of all their sovereign
rights and powers not expressly delegated to
the United States by the Constitution.
Strange indeed must it appear to the i'm
partial observer, but it is none the less true,
all these carefully wordcd clauses proved un:
ayailing to prevent the rise and growth in the
| Northern States of political school which
| has pcrsistenty claimed that the Government
| thus formed was not compact bst,ccem States
but was in effcct'n National Government, set
up above and over the States. An organiza.
ton, created by the States to secure the bless.
ings OF liberty and independence against for
cign aggrcssions, has been gradually per.
ycrtcd into II machine for their control in their
domestic affairs thcS creature hns been ex-
alted above its creators, tho principals have
been made subordinate to the agent appoint
ed by themselves.
The people of the Southern States, whose
almost exclusive occupation was agricutnrc
early perceived tendency in tho Northern
States to render the common Government
subservicnt to their own purposes, by imposing
burthcns on commerce rs a protection to their
manufacturing and shipping interests. Long
an angry controversy grew out of these at-
tempts, often successful, to benefit ono section
of the country ut the expense of the .othcr-
!khd the danger of disruption arising from
this cause was enhanced by the fact that
Northern population was increasipg.by imn-
grafton aud other causes ina greater ratio
than the population Of the South. by de-.
grccs, MS the Northern States gained prcpon-
dcrancc in tho National Congress, self interest
taught their pcoplet to yield ready assent to
amy plausible advocacy of their rights ASA
majority to govern the minority without con-
troll they learned to listen with impaticncc
to the suggestion ofany Constitutional impcd-
imcnt to the exercise of their will; and so
utterly have the principle of tho Constitution
the inaugural address delivered by President
Lincoln in March last, lo asserts MS an axiom,
which he plainly deems to be undeniablc, that
the theory of the Constitution requires that n
all cases the majority shall govern and in
another memorable instance, the same Chief
Magistrate did not hesitate to likcn the rcla.
tiQns between State and the Unitod States
to those which, exist between county aud a
State in which is situated, and by which it
was created. This is the lamcntablc and fun
damcntal error on which rests the policy that
has culminated in lis declaration of war agaipst
these Confederate States.
In addition to the long. continued and deep
seated resentment felt by the Southern States
at the persistent abuse Of the powers they had
do'!esyatad to the Congress, for the purpose, OF
enrlcaing Che manufacturing and shipping
Glasses ut the North nt the expense of the
South there has existed for nearly half cen.
| tary-anothcr subject of discord, involving in.
terests' Of such transcendcnt magnitude, as at
all times to create the apprehension III tile
uinds of many devoted lovers of The Uuion
that its permanencc was impossible. ,
When the several States delegated certain
powers to the United States Congress, large
portion Of the labofing population consisted
Of African slaves imported into the colonies
Thy tlicsnother, country. 3 III twelve ont Of the
\ thirteen States, negro slavery existed and the
right Of property in slaves was protected by
law. This property was recognized IN the
Constitution, and provision was made against
its loss by the escape Of tho slave The in
crease; IN the number, Of slaves by further I'M
portation from Africa WINS also secured By 4
clause forbidding Congress to prohibit the
slave trade anterior to a certain date and in
no clause can there be found -ahy delegation
| ofpowcrsto, the Congress authorizing ID any
manucrt to. legislate to tho prejudice, lctriment
or discouragement- Of the owners, Of TINT spe
cies Of property, or excluding it from The pro-;
lection of the Government. J,
| The climate aud soil Of; the Northern States
| soon proved pnproptious to the contipuance
| of slave labor, whilst the converse was tue
case at the South. Under tho unrestricted
| frcc Intercourse botwect the two sections, tho
| Northern States consulted their own interest
by selling their slaves to tho South, and pro.
Ehipilhg slayery within ttelas s|in,its, The
South were. willing purchascrs.of property
suitable to their wants, ndspaid the price Of
the acquisition without hprhoring o. suspicion.