Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1865-12-23

rally refuse to be embarrassed by questions
that lie beyond it. Were it otherwise, the
Executive would sink beneath the burden, the
channels Of justice would be choked; lcgisla-.
tion would be obstracted by excess; 50 that
there is greater temptation to exercise some.
of the functions Of the general government
through the States than to trespass ON their!
rightful sphere. "The absolute acquicsceuce
in the decisions of the majority " was, at the
beginning of the Century, enforced by Jefer-.
son Gas tho vital principle of republics and
the events Of the last four years have estab.,
lished, we will htpe forever, that there lies no
appeal to force. @
The maintenance of the Union brings with
it the support of the State governments I'M
all their rights" but It's not one Of the rights,
of any State government to renounceits ownS
place in the Union, or to nullify the laws of.
the Union. The largest libeNy.is to be man~s
tanned in the discussion of the acts of the.
Federal Government; but there is no appeal
from its laws, except to the various branches
of that government itself, or to the people,
who grant to the members of the Legislative
and Of the executive departments no tenure
But limited one, and in that manner always
retain the power of redress.
"The sovereignty of the States, is tho
language Of the Confcderacy, and not the Ian.
guage of the Constitution. The latter con-
tains the emphatic words: s'The' Constitution,
aud the laws of tho United States which shall
be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties
made or which shall be made under the au-$
thority of the United States shalt be the su-
preme law Of the land and the. Judges in;
every State shall be bound thereby, anything
in the Constitution or laws of any State to the
contrary Notwithstanding ,,4.. .1s55 81
E Certainly the government of the u. States
is limited government and so is every State
government limited government. With us,
this idea Of Limitation spreads through every
form Of administration, general, State, and
municipal, and rests on the great, distinguish
ing principle of the recognition Of the rights
Of man. The ancient republics absorbed tho
individual in the State, prescribed his religion,
and controlled his activity, The American
system rests on the assertion of the equal right
of every man to life, liberty, aud the pursuit
of happiness; to- freedom of conscience, to the
culture and exercise of all his faculties ) AS
a consequence, tie State government is limi-
teds as to the general government in the in;
tercst Of the Union, asto the individual citi-
zen in the interest offrcedom. M
States, with proper limitations of power,
arc essential to the existence of the Constitu-
ton of the United States. At the very COM
mcnccment, when we assumed a place among
the powers of the earth, the Declaration of In
dependence was adopted by States; so also
we're the Articles of Confederation; and when
"the peobie of the United States" ordained
and established the Constitution, it was the
assent Of the States, o,e BY enc, which gayeit
vitality. In the event, too, of any amend
ment to the Constitution, the proposition Of
Congress needs the confirmation of the States
Without States. one great branch of-the lcgis.
lative government, would be wanting. And,
if we look beyond the letter of the Constitu-
tion to the character of our country, its oapa-
city for compreHending within it's jurisdiction
a vast continental empire, is due ia the system
of States. The best security for the perpet-
hal existence of the States is the supreme
authority"of the Constitution Of the United
States. The perpetuity of the Constitution
brings with it tho .perpetutity of the States
their mutual relation makes us what we are,
md in our political system their connexion is
The whole sanpot exist without
the parts, nor parts without the whole So
lonG as the Constitution ofsthe United States
ondures, the States will Endure; tho dcstruc.
ton Of the one is the destruction of the other;
the preservation Of the one is the preservation
If the other .t
7 have thus explained MY views Of the mul.
;ua relationaOf the Constitution and the States.