The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1865-08-30
state Rights.

The specious arguments now used to misti
fv the minds of men in regard co the
eighty of the states. are almost too shallow
to be entitled to notice yet, to unrefi Getting
minds they carry more weight than they are
entitled to, and for this reason alone we de-
lire to count BAT them. A contemporary. com
meuting on this subject. relative to a claim
pnt in representative for Connecticut, rs
Il sovereign state, says
ssIf il aft rd any pleasure gentleman to
call Connecticut a'sorereign state, LEI hun enjoy
himself after that foolish fashion, though neither
Connecticut nor any other me mber Of the Ameri-
can Union Il o be sovereign state ASsoy-
eregn state can coin money, and that Connect
cut cannot do legally. Formsrly her banks could
issue bls that were redeemable IN coin, and that
furnished most OF her currency; but even that 10
now virtually at an end, her banking system hav-
ing been superseded las ours has been ,by
al banking ssstem, under which the I'D cIrcula-
ton fast diss ppearing. Gr.enbacks are leg al
tender IN Connecticut, and action of that state
could change their character,a condition of things
which shows that Connecticut has as much of SOW
eTegnty as belongs to the beautiful city of Hart
ford, for there such thing az partial soyer-
eighty Sovereignty Is either absolute, or il is
nothing but a name. Ii Is perfect whole or it
has no existence. A sovereign state can send am
bassadors to other countries, ana Connecticut ca
n more send ambassadors to Engla I'D, or Russia,
or France, or any other nation, than she could
send them to the moon,-and the moon would be
the best place to which of our sovereign states
could send ambassadors, to be selected from its
Iunatc asylums. No foreign nation knows such
states Connecticut and CaliiOrnla, MARYLAND and
Massachusetts 1hey are TO the sovereIgns and
statesmen of ali other countries mere geogr
expressions, as Lancashire and the Puy de Dome
and VolbynIa to the sovereign people of the
United Safes and have just settled by the free
of the sword on southern heads that that sur
render made IN perpeiutity, and that the ar
rangemenL cannot be changed till doomsday."
Because sovereign states delegate certain
we'll defined powers in written constitution
of a general government, do they therefore
part with their sovereignty The very fact
that the general government is the creature
of the STATES and the people, is the best evil
depce of their sovereignty 1t can do. and
only do, what the sovereign states have in the
constitution granted and created it TO do
What ii the states cannot "coin money"
from what does the general government get
the power to coin II? From the states. The
states cannot build and equip state navies,
vet the navy OF the United States belongs to
the states, and the general government, as
their agent. is bound to use il for their pro-
tectlon. The states cannot impose tariff on
imports, yet they do prohibit the landing of
passengers in the states without their first
furnishing security that they will not become
a charge upon the state in which they land
they do send am bsssabors to represent them
abroad, for they give power in the constitu-
,ioo for the general government to send am
bassadors who represent all the states, and
therefore it is that MASSACHUSETTS, does not
send an ambassador to foreign courts, be-
cause she delegated this power in common
with her sister states TO the general govern
ment, and these ambassadors are her and
their ambassadors abroad. The states exer
else the sovereign powers in every thing ex-
cept those Things they voluntarily delegated
to the general government they elect their
own rulers. they make their own laws; they
appoint their own judiciary, who, under the
process of state laws, dispose Of the proper
ty. the liberty and the lives of citizens not
only Of their own state. but of citizens of
other states who become amenable to the |
law enacted by the state 'fended.
Can there be a hiqher act Of sorereia,.ty er |
ercised than the takiag of human titep And
especially when the citizen is citizen Of the |
United States as well of the state? And vet
it is argued that because a state cannot is /
sue greenback she 10 not sovereign in any
part. The power to regulate currency and |