The Van Buren press., 1868-02-14
40 aas sorcrransy A.

towardS a strong Ngovefnment said Of the
constitutional ''it Is the original bargain
the eombaet--let it siand.' And ia his
speech at Cspon Springs, Virginia, in 1851.
he said !: al do not hesitate to say that Il
the Northern States refuseto, carry into e.
feet. that part OF Constitution winch Id
spects the restoration Of fugitive slaves. the
South would no longer Dc bound to keep
the conpact A bargain broken on one
side is broken oa,all sides" No stronger
language was ever used BY any disciple OF
) ale sovereIgnty. -.. t..a .i E3irgF
let US quote further from Mr., Webster :
"rhA IUJnsti,aiohf was made ty the
States, and not by the people united 1t
should, therefore. read I'VE, the pcople
OF the States uni,ed'n ltwas voted Tor by
States in the Convention, n,-Submitted to
the peorlc Of each State severally, and be-
came the Constitution only OF the States
adopting ii. 1t is a Federal Constitution,
and not u National Government
MIR. Edward Livingston said: ".The
Seessexisted Rmetls Constit ution they
parted on y with such powers as are speci-
ted "a tkat tn.tegasnt, they ycsutinue still
to exist, with al The borers hey hare not
ecdsd; andthe piiascni government would
never, itself, have gone into operation hal
not tho States. in their political capacity,
consented. = Aud he aids: "MaLy OF
the States adop,cd the Constitution on con.
ditiors which were afterwards complied
with by amendments - ,,aiat' l'-- ...r
. Henry Clay, in his great speech in the
Senate, Feb, lth, 1888. speaks Of the "ac-
klowledgvl, and incontestible powers OF the
Slides lie declares that - the Cdhstiti-
tion of the United States creates limited
government, comprising comparatively few
powers and speaks oftle Fedora uov-
ment as "a cOnttderacy Of sopereiga and
Independent States" thus adding his lcs-
timopy y that Of Others, that under the
Constitution 4 We hare the same kina of gov
ernment as under the old confederation.
The people Of Boston, on January 25th,
lS09sPssssated mcm orial tothe LcgiAla-
tuN IN wkrhorcurs The following !" Our
hope and consolation rests with the Lcgis
lature Of our State, to whom it is coupe
tent to devise meaps of relief against the
unconsiitulonal mcas Of the General
Govea,afcAt that your power islalequate
to this object is evident from the organiza-
,ion Of the Confetcracy.' Mr.. Hillhouse,
Of Copnealicut, in debate in Congress,
Jahdafy, 1909, declares the embargo to be
"an act containing unconstitutional pro-
Visions. TO WHICH the people are not bound
to submit, and to which, in my opinion,
they will not submit" The Boston Cent?
mel. Of Snpt. leth, 1908, says. The
government, Of Massachusetts has also a
duty to perform. The State is still sover
eiyn and Independent" If Massachusetts
was sovereign in 1908, and the general gov
eminent confederacy, as declared 10y the
people Of Boston in 1909. when did Massa-
chusstts cease to be- Sovereignty +? and
when was tho federal government, changed
into a consolidated national government? !?
We repeat, then, that the Federal gov
eminent is NO: ,sef-existent, but was ere
atel by the States. The States being the
creators, ere necessarily sovereign, as com
pared with tho creature; this is sclf-evi-
dent proposition which no one viii deny.
What. then. are the legitimate powers of
ths, FeleTal Government? just what its
creators, the sovereign States, have dele
gated to it, and no more Those powers
R.s enumerated in The INSTRUMENT by which
they were delegated, viz The Constitu-
tion and any power not found in the Con
stitulion, the Federal Government has no
right to exercise. The Federal Govern
,uent is government Of law, and the Con.
stitution is the law Of every department Of
that government. and when it overstcp the
limits of that law, il becomes itself an out
law. That its powers are few anrlst,ietly
defined, was the opinion oflthe mem bcls OF
the Convention which formed the Constitu-
ton, as well as Of all prominent statesmen
down to the present day. Tbs position
has been partially proved in our remarks.
But let us refer moment to the opinion of
t.ssAsthsrv~ In aslestcr to dov. zliunung-
eJns~aatcd New London, Sept, 26th. f7sI,
Mr.. Ellsworth, and Mr.. Sherman, Of Con
neclirut. both members Of the Constitutions
a EpIyeution ppste IN saying - Some
adttiohal poNoisl alplvested in Congress,
Which was the Principal object tl,e States
had in view in appointing the Convention
those, powers extend only to matters re
specting the common interests Of the Union.
aud aro specially de6nei-17so that the par
teular States retain thth Sovereignty in
other mattets." Mr.. Madison, who was a
lionliucnt Smomber ofths Constitutions!
Convention. says: "The powers dele
gsnd 10 the JGenerals Government are few
and defined y and in the celebrated reSolu.
,ions oi l70s, passed by the Legislature of
Virginia, and drawn by Mr. Madison, it is
dsslsrsd ahat the powers Of the Federal
Government are the result Of =" the COM
pact, aud /" limited by the plain sense and
iu.en,ion Of the instrument constituting
iarasooNpaetg ant noxtarther yatil than
they are authorized by the grants cnume.
rated INF las eoulpaet.p,l Qurpqsition, tha,
the Federal Government was not sclf-ex-
istent, 10 thus corroborated by Mr. Madison,
who declares it to be the "result of the Con.
stitutiunal compact" The Kentuekv reso.