The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1861-01-17
Contention documents.

Declaration of the Causes which
Justify the Secession of South
Carolina from the Federal Union.
The following report of the Committee
of which Mr.. Memminger was Chairman
was adopted by the Convention;
:. The State of South Carolina having de-
termined to resume her seperate and equal
places among nations, deems it due to her
self, to the remaining United States oi
America, and to the nation Of the world
that, she should declare the causes which
have led to this act.
In the year 1765, that portion of the
British Empire embracing Great Britain,
uAdertool to make laws for the govern
ment of that portion composed Of the tbir-
teen American Colonies. A struggle for
the right of selEgovernment ensucd, which
resulted, on the 4th July, 1776, in Dec
laration by the Colonies, chat they are,
Ind of right ought to be FREE AND IN
DEPENDENT STATES and that, as
free and independent States they have
full power to levy war; conclude peace,
contract alliances, establish commerce and
to do all other acts and things which in
dependent States may of right do"
They further solcmnly declared that
whenever any "form Of government be-
comes destructive of the ends for which it
was established, it is the right of the peo-
to alter or abolish it, and to institute a
new government" Deeming the Govern
mont of Great Britain to have become de-
structivc of these ends, they declared that
the Colonies care absolved from all allcgi-
ance to the British Crown, and that all
political connection between them and the
State of Great Britain is and ought to be,
totally dissolved
Inpursuancc of this Declaration of Indc-
pendence, each Of the thirteen States pro
ceedcd to exercise its sepcrato sovereign
tys; adopt for itself a Constitution, and
appointed officers for the administration
of government in all its departments
Legislative, Executive and Judicial. For
purposes of defence, they united their
arms and their counscls; and, in 177S, they
entered into League known as the Ar
tieles of Confederation, whereby they
agreed to entrust the administration of
their external relations to a common
agent, known as thcSCongrcss of the Uni
ted States, expressly declaring. in the first
article, "that each State retains is soycr-
ignty, freedom and independence, and cv
cry power, jurisdiction and right which is
not, by this Confederation, expressly del
egatcd to the United States in Congress
assembled"
Under this Confederation the War OF
the Revolution was carried on the; Sd of
September, 1888, the contest ended, and 4
defnitive treaty was signed by Great
Britafn,in which she acknowledged the in
dependence of the Colonies in the following
terms:
aAkr1cLE 1. His Britanic Majesty ac-
knowledges the said United States, viz
New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations,
connecticut, New York, New Jersey Penn
sylyania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia,
North Carolina, and Georgia, to be FREE,
SOVEREIGN AND INDEPENDENT
STATES; That he treats with them as
such; and for himself, his heirs and sue
.eessors, rclinqnishes all claims to the gov
ernment, property and territorial rights
of the same, and every part thereof"
Thus were established the two great
principles asserted by the Colonies. name
ly. the right of State to govern itself;
and the right of people to abolish Gov
ernment when it becomes destructive OF
the ends for which it was instituted. And
concurrent with the establishment of these
principles, was the fact, that each Colony
became and was recognized by the mother
country as a. FREE, SOVEREIGN AND
INDEPENDENT STATE.
>s. In 1887, deputies were appointed by the
States to revise the Articles of Confeder
alton. and the 18th September, l7S7, these
deputies recommended, for the adoption
of the States, the Articles of Union
known as the Constitution of the United
States. = - .
The parties to whom this Constitution
was submitted were the several sovereign