The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1869-09-17

which was done by them in its name and
by its authority. The Declaration pro-
nounced the colonies to be "free and
Independent States" The Articles of Con-
federation declared that each RETAINED its
sovereignty, freedom and Independence. y
The recognition of Great Britain was Civ
en- not to the Union or Confederacy, but to
the States; and King George Ill acknowl-
edge the "United States-namely, New
Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay,
North Carolina, South Carolina, and Geor-
gia-to be free, sovereign and indepen-
dent States" And Congress declared that
every inhabitant of any of the colonies
owed allegiance thereto. To assert, then,
that the States were not sovereign under the
Confederacy is to contradict not only the
plain facts of history, but the Articles of
Confederation themselves.
The second argument, then, is the more
plausible-to wit, that by the closer Union
of 1887, the States surrendered their sover-
eign character. The fact which has given
FEASIBILITY to this theory is that there was
party in the Convention, of which Hamil-
ton was the leader, which desired to substi-
tute National Sovereignty for a Federal
Union of Sovereign States and that, the
Constitution being the result ola comprom-
Use between the two parties, some of the
tavorite phrases of the Nationalist were
retained. But Mr. Stephens is surely right
In saying that sovereignty cannot be re-
signed by implication. And further, while
some phrases that might bear such mean
ing were retained, Others, which distinctly
expressed it, were carefully struck out
Thus resolution in favor of national gov
ernment," passed before the purpose of
Hamilton and his friends was understood,
was afterwards rescinded and throughout
the Constitution the word "National" was
| Systematically struck out wherever it occur
red in the first draft, and Omitted States
substituted. The Preamble is the great
! reliance of the Federalists of to-day.
On the strength of the words I'VE, the
people of the United States" they assert
that the Constitution was established, not
by the States severally, but by the people of
the Union over the States. But the histo-
ry of the phrase breaks down this argu-
ment. 1t stood at first, eve, the people
of New Hampshire, Massachusetts
and Georgia" But it was expected that
some of these States might Gas for while
they did refuse to ratify the Constitution,
and it was accordingly provided by Arti-
ticle VII. shat, on being ratified by nine
States, it should come into force as between
the States so ratifying."
1t would be absurd to say, "We, the peo-
pie or New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New
York, ..
and Georgia do establish" if Rhode Island
and New York should happen to reject the
Constitution, and stand out of the Union.
And for this reason only "the United
States" was substituted for an enumeration
of the States, which would have expressly
excluded the present Federalist theory.
But in fact how was the Constitution enact
ed ? AS it came from the Convention, it
was nothing more than a proposal, or draft
of Bill. What gave it force or made it
law The ratification "by the States''
which Mr.. Motley declares it never re-
ceived, but which the Constitution itself
in Article VII. declares that it must re-
ceive. How was it ratified9 BY the SOW
ereign power and authority of each State,
exercised by the Sovereign people of the
State, in the manner by State law provided,
as the only mode in which such supreme
act of sovereignty could be done-namely,
through Convention called ad hoe under
the direction of the State Government. In
what character was it ratified? 1t speaks
for itself. AS a compact "6etueen the
States" not as superior law Ooer- them.
And Virginia and New York, in ratifyng
expressly reserved the right of Withdrawing
in case of need, the powers they had dele
gated to the Federal Government and Leg
islature; in short, the right of secession.
In all the State Conventions the FEEDER
alists were careful to repudiate the con-
struction which is now put upon the Con-
stitution. Hamilton himself was anxious
to explain that the phrase which termed
the Constitution the supreme law of the
land" meant nothing whatever save that it
was to be obeyed, and in no way conferred
any power or authority on the Federal
Government beyond the express limits of
the constitution.
Mr.. Stephens interlocutors here quote a
speech of Webster's, in which that great
party leader, for the purposes of a particu-
lar occasion, rcpudiated and denounced
the term compact" employed by Calhoun
to designate the Constitution. This dis
pute was not merely verbal, the matter
really in controversy being nothing less
than the great issue between Federal and
State sovereignty. Mr.. Stephens retorts by
reading Calhoun's reply, in which his OPP
ponent is overwhelmed by quotations from
every great authority, judicial and politi-
cal, in which the word compact is used
as Calhoun had used it, and with the same
idea involved in its use, finishing with sever
al such citations from Webster himself AT
ter this-the only attempt at rhetorical ad-
vantage or mere controversial victory in the
volume-Mr. Stephens proceeds to cite a
variety of authorities asserting the sover-
eign character of the States under the Con-
stitution of 1887. Thus Judge Washing
ton of the Supreme Court, says: "They
are, in their separate political capacities,
sovereign and independent, except SO far
as they have united for their common de-
fence and for national purposes. They
have each Constitution and form of gov
eminent, 10Th all the attributes Of sooereign-
to-" Webster, writing to the Earrings, and
speaking as q lawyer in answer to a legal
question, says the same thing in words as
strong or stronger. The Senate, in 1887
and in 1860, formally resolved "that in
adopting the Constitution the States acted
severally as free, sovereign, and indepen-
dent States" Livingstone exposes and
ridicules the false inference drawn from
ave the people," and asserts the proper
existence and independence of the States,
antecedent to and capable of surviving the
"Federal Compact" And General jack
con in oyploipinu the fomOua Proclamation