Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1865-05-04
8radford &eporttr.
Towanda, Thursday, May a, 1866.
STATE SOVEREIGNTY.

State Sovereignty, was never promulgated
and advocated under our government. Be-
fore the adoption of the Constitution, and
even under the conferation, the jealous
guarding of the rights and powers OF the
State, was material and necessary con-
sequence of the Independent sovereignty
they enjoyed and exercised previously !;
but after they had by solemn enactment,
declared the Constitution to be the supreme
law of the land, or in other words, ac-
knowledged the sovereignty left. But,
from the time of the formation of the Con-
federation in l777, up to the present, this
| doctrine has not been lost sight of and in
the convention which formed the Constitu-
| ton, ten years later, there was a strong
States Right party coming mostly from the
smaller States. On the question of regu-
lating the representation to the Congress
of the United States, a protracted, able,
and vehement debate arose on the PROPOSE
tion to give the smaller States an equal
representation with the larger, and this was
upheld on the ground that the former had
as many inherent rights as the latter
Through the cunning and foresight how
ever, of Franklin and a few others, this alb
surd claim was defeated by giving all the
states an equal representation in the Sen
ate and ever since in various forms, in
different localities, and under varying cir
cumstances this doctrine has been Erotru-
ded upon public attention. In 1882, South
Carolina openly undertook to nullify the
tariff acts of the general government, on
the ground that the rattle-snake State had
reserved the sovereign right to do this
thing. The respective legislatures Of Vir-
ginia and Georgia sanctioned this high
handed step of South Carolina and Geor-
gia had previously denied the authority of
| the Supreme Court of the Un.,ad States to
decide questions involving the validity of
treaties, and the laws of Congress. Her
Governor too, approved this construction !;
and had it not been for the great wisdom,
and energetic measures of President Jack
son, the general Government would have
then had collision with State Rights ad-
vocates Many too, have thought that it
was great pity it did not take place at
that time, for the abominable theory has
been nursed where it originated, until it
broke out afresh in the present rebellion
and our readers can not have forgotten the
rehashes the rebels gave us of the nullifica-
tion speeches of McDuffie, Hayne and
Hamilton, when they started off in the mad
enterprise to make war upon the Govern
ment The wise, and the true men Of the
Union, Federalists and Republicans, Demo
Gratis and Wings, have ever resisted this
destructive doctrine, from the beginning
of the Government to the present time, on
the ground that it was at variance with
the proper logic of the Constitution, and
every consideration of public safety. If
the States had reserved to themselves the
right to annul, or to resist the laws, or to
recede at pleasure, the government would
have been a nulity, and folly. Such, we
held to be the truth by those who under
stood the subject best; and thankful we
are too, that the sages who framed the or
ganic law of our government, had the far
reaching sagacity to make it the strong,
selfsustaining organization it is. Its pow
er rests in its inherent cohesiveness. Per-
| nf +hn ha, tra+ of+
fallacy of State Sovereignty, is now fur
nished by the rebels themselves, they who
were so loud in its praise and who .iusti
fed their Infamous war upon the Govern
ment, on that ground alone. We commend
to the attention of the reader, the following
extract from the Richmond Inquirer of {
recent date A convention of the Rebe
States is proposed to harmonize conflicting
opinions and interests, and this article was
, written on the subject:
For what is the sovereignty of the
state needed in convention? Has not stat
sovereignty been the aceakness of the cause
If during the life and death struggle, will
the compress of a common danger to binC
and hold together these states, this princi
pie of state sovereignty was continual,
obtruding itself, delaying and preventing
the Legislation necessary to the common
defence" impairing that authority intrus
D ted with the general welfare, and impeding
the execution of laws necessary and prop
er to the success of the cause, is it to b
supposed that when peace returns this prin
ciple of state sovereignty will permit tn,
confederacy to exist one year How Ions
+ would Governor Brown permit the people
of Georgia to be taxed to pay the debt o
3. the country? Even during the struggl,
he, very ordinary governor. presumes Il
! criticise General Lees military movements
and undertakes to say that General Early
should have been sent to Georgia instead
of to Washington. State sovereignty, thus
presuming to Judge of matters intrusted tc
the confederate executive, undertakes tx
; destroy the efficiency of that executive anC
to subvert all measures undertaken fo
the common" defense and general" wei