The Indianapolis daily herald., 1865-11-23

OF msurrcction in is tsrriiory, or 70 faint the
morals Of - eitizens. OF % bring among them
contagious diseases. o. the eyiis and burdens
Of = numerous plurer population. For II The
General Government can In any respect, or by
suy form ~ legislation. control or restrain
state In the exercise Of this power, or decide
whether u has iE-u exercised with proper
discretion and towards proper persons. and on
proper occasions. then the real and substantial
power would d IN Congress and not In the \
>tafes.
Ia the cases decided in this Court, and here
inbefore referred o., the power 81 determining i
who IL or is not dangerous % the Interest and \
we'll being q the people of the state has ben \
uniformly admitted 60 reside in the state i
d" think IL. therefore. O. be- very clear, both /
upon principle and the authority Of adJudged /
casts. that the several states have right 90 re-
move from among their people. and 20 prevent |
ffOm entering the State. any person, or class or !
description OF persons, whom IL may DEEM !
dangerous or injurious 10 the interests and wei
fare Of its citizens; and that the state has the |
exclusive right 20 determine. i'm it, sound dis |
erection, whether the danger does or does not |
exist, free from the control Of the General Gov
ernInent." The cases referred 10 by Judge |
fancy, were Holmes Vs. Jcnnison. IL Pet, 30, !
GRAVES ". Slaughter, Is Pet, ii9; and Prigg
". the Commonwealth Of Pennsylvania, 10
Pet. $50. This doctrine l. based ON the princi- |
pie Of self-defence and self-protectiOn, which is
the first and highest instinct Of human nature
This principle applies To a State well as 10
an individual, and the state has the same right
and Is a. much bound TO protect and defend
her citizens, as an individual has 10 defend Ms
person and protect his property.
MIR. Justice Grier. In the same ease, said;
1T must be borne in mind what has some
times been forgotten that the controversy III
this ease l. not with regard TO the right claimed
by the State of Massachusetts In the SECOND
section Of this Act, 10 repel from her shores
hInatics. idiots, criminals or paupers, which
any foreign country, or even one Of her sister
states. might endeayor 10 thrust upon her; nor
the right of any state. whose domestic security
might be endangered by the admission of free
negroes, to exclude them from her borders.
This right of the States has its foundation in
the sacred law of self-defence, which no power
granted 10 Congress can restrain or annul. ~
i admitted by all that those powers which re-
late TO merely municipal legislation, or what
may be more properly called Internal police,
are not surrendered or restrained; and that 1t
is as competent and necessary for State TO
provide precautionary measures against the
moral pestilence Of paupers, yagabonds and
convicts as il is TO guard against the physics
pestilence which may arise from unsound and
infectious articles imported"
| Chief Justice Story, in delivering the opin-
ion Of the supreme Court Of the United states.
i'm the case Of Prigg VS.. Commonwealth OF
Pennsylvania, 10 Peters, p. go, says;
"To guard, however, against amy possible
mlscOnstruction of our views, IL l. proper 10
state, that we are by no means TO be under
10 interfere with the police power belonging TO
the States in virtue OF their general sovereign
| ty. That police power extends over all sub
jects within the territorial limits Of the states.
and has never been conceded 10 the United
States. Ii is wholly distinguishabIe from the
right and duty secured by the provision now
under consideration; which Is exclusively de
rived from ana secured 10y the Constitution of
! the United States. and owes its whole efficacy
1 thereto. We entertain no doubt whatever,
/ that the states. in virtue of their general po-
| lice power. possess full jurisdiction TO arrest
and restrain rinawa y slaves. and remove them
! from their borders and otherwise to secure
| themselves against their depreciation and evil
example. rs they certainly may do in eases Of
! idlers yagabonds and paupers."
Mr.. Justice Mclean. in the case of Grimes
| ct. al ". Slaughter, II Pet, p. Dos, said:
! Each State has the right 10 protect itself
4 against the averice and intrusion of the slave
dealer; TO guard its citizens against the inc0n-
Venience and dangers of a slave population.
( The right TO exercise this power. 10y state, is
, higher and deeper than the Constitution.
/ The evil involves the prosperity. and may en-
] danger the existence OF "A state. Its power 10
| guard against or remedy the evils, rests upon
! the law of self-preseryati0n, law vital 10 any
community, and especially TO sovereign
State"
\ Finally, we are grayely told that this article
Of the Constitution should be stricken out, be-
cause ii Is imperative and the law made In AID
bad and falacious argument, but a very dan
| gerous one. There is no way to preserve civil
/ liberty and maintain our Government, except
/ by sustaining and upholding the Constitution
and laws Of the country. L am well aware
/ that this article, and the law passed TO enforce
! il, have been openly disregarded and violated.
I The presence Of twenty five or thirty thousand
negroes in our State affords conclusive evil
dence that many of our citizens have forgotten
/ their constitutional obligations aud their high
lnkk
of the land. If the same effort had been made
| to obey the law anu respect the Constitution
that has been made TO create prejudice against
them and induce disregard thereof, we would
have had no trouble on the subject. studied
/ effort has been made. in the last three or four
years, to prejudice the public mind against
| this provision Of the Constitution III one class
Of our citizens are 10 be justified and sustained
in violating a law, another class should not be
punished for violating some other law. This
Is setting very dangerous precedent. We
have had in different parts Of the state several
negro riots. The citizens have felt compelled
/ TO take the law in their own hands and execute
summary punishment upon negroes for their
brutal assaults upon females, and their depre-
dations upon the property Of our citizens. III
! there l. successful resistance made TO the en-
forcement Of this law. and the negroes increase
/ the people may undertake To- enforce IL in n
mode not provided for or sanctioned by law.
Our Southern border Is feeling the effects of
injuriousl. than any other part of the State.
| | greatly fear that the day is not distant when
we will have upon our own soil a war Of races.
1 If il should ever come To this, there will be
but one determination of II, and that will be
the utter and complete determination Of the
negro race in our state. God, forbid, that this
| should ever occur and that the bloody and
brutal massa cres of men, women and children
which have taken place in San Domingo and Ja-
maica should ever occur on the soil of our
State. But it is our duty TO prevent them by
keeping them out of the State.
! There is much said about the cruelty and in
humanity Of this principle Of exclusion.
can not appreciate the force Of this argument
! The shareholders Of the South have held
these negroes in bondage until slavery was
abolished. They were compelled to support
! and take care Of their old, intirm and worm
out negroes. They have almost worked the
life out Of them. They are now released from
| their legal obligations to take care Of them.
They nolonger own them, and therefore their
interests do not prompt them to provide for
them. They are now hiring the able-dodied
negroes TO work for them, and they propose
that we Of the North shall provide for their
! worthless negroes. For one, am not willing
10 do IL.
Have we not objects Of charity and beneyo-
lence all around us, We have women
and childred of our own race who absolutely
need the necessaries of life. Look at our Grip
pied and manned soldiers all over state.
Look at the thousands Of widows i'm our State
made SO by the war. Look at the many thou
sands of orphans in our state, whose fathers
! offered up their lives To put down this wicked
rebellion, inaugurated by the men who re-
Gently owned these negroes who you are now
inviting into our State. Are not onr people
/ already heavily burdened with taxation. We
have an immense National debt hanging
over Us. Our State il in debt about ten mil
lions Of dollars. Our counties are largely in
debted. Our towns and cities are grooming
under their debts and heavy taxation. We
increased our school tax last winter, 50 that
we should have funds enough to keep our
schools open half the year, and now il is Sc
riOusly and gravely proposed TO divide that sa-
/ cred fund, and set apart portion Of il TO edu-
cate the children Of negroes. And all this il
called humanity.
believe in the old doctrine that charity be-
gins at home. Let us educate our own children.
/ Let Us literally provide for our white soldiers.
( Let Us comfort and provide for the wants Of
our widows and orphans. Let US preserve the
morals IF our own people, and prevent them
( from being contaminated by association with
I the ignorant and degraded negroes. Let Us
protect and encourage our mechanics who
have built up our towns and cities. Let Us