The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1872-03-19

which, and he was the "last of the
mohicans," the only original, simon
pure, unadulterated, stamped-on-the
bottle friend West Virginia now has OIL
ever had. He murdered the language
most barbarously and decapitated
verbs, i'll fitting and dijointed pro
nouns, adjectives and adverbs might
have been swept up by the half bushel
after he had flushed speaking and dis
consulate and wIetchei nouns went
wandering about in dire confusion
seeking Tor the place in which they
were intended to fit.
Mr.. Woods, of Barbour, replied 10
Mr.. Farnsworth's speech and also
combated the arguments offered by Mr..
Ward He desired the report o. the
committee 10 stand without alteration.
Mr.. Ward made a very humorous
speech in reply to Farnsworth, and
kept the Convention laughing at DIR.
F.'s expense. Finally a vote was
reached and Wards amendment was
rejected, thus leaving the report as 1t
came from the committee in that re-
spect.
In the afternoon we had another i'll
teresting discussion. The following
amendment which had been proposed by
Mr.. Faulkner yesterday to be added at
the end OF the 10th section, came up
for consideration
"The people of this State, in recog-
nizing the supremacy Of the Federal
Government within its prescribed sphere
OF acuon, hold that it is government
OF enumerated powers, and that all
powers not delegated to it. nor Inhibited
to the States, are reserved to the States
or to the people thereof. Among the
powers so reserved by the States is the
exclusive regulation Of their own inter-
nal government and police; and it is
the high and solemn duty Of the sew
eral departments OF government, Gre
ated by this Constitution, to guard and
protect the people of this State from all
encroachments upon those rights so re-
served
Mr.. Wiley. for purpose that can be
easily guessed, offered the following
stump speech as constitutional
amendment to follow that proposed by
Mr.. Faulkner:
The Government O. the United STATES,
the offspring OF the peoples own choice,
uninfluenced and unawed, adopted upon
a full investigation aud mature delibera-
ton, completely free in its principles;
in the distribution of its powers, uniting
security with energy, and containing
within itself a provision for its own
amendment, has a just claim to the
confidence and support Of the people OF
this State; respect for its authority,
appliance with its laws, acquiescence
in its measures, are duties enjoined by
the fundamental maxims of true liberty.
The basis OF our political system is the
right OF the people to make and alter
their constitutions Of government. But
the constitution which at any time ex-
lists, till changed by an explicit and
authentic act of the whole people, is
sacredly obligatory upon all. The very
idea of the power and the right OF the
people to establish government, presup.
poses the duty of every individual to
obey the established government
Therefore this State has no right or
auth ority to withdraw from the Gov
eminent of the United States; and all
such pretended right or authority of
secession is hereby expressly and for
ever dsclaimed by the people of West
Virginia.
Of course this provoked debate and
consumed time. Mr.. Faulkner, in one
OF the most effective speeches he has
delivered during the session, completely
overwhelmed the ex-senator. The fol-
lowing is a mere SYNOPSIS OF his re-
marks:
Mr.. Faulkner expressed his surprise
at the amendment offered by Mr.. Wiley,
He could not expect his amendment to
be adopted by the committee, however
Just and unexceptional its nciples
were. 1t was not treating the sub
ject with proper respect, and indicated
a factious spirit upon the part of that
distinguished gentleman which he had
not so far before exhibited in this holy
Why was he so vehemently opposed to
the amendment which he (Mr. F. had
offered? Was there a constitutional
LAWYER in that body who would contro
vert the soundness oil its positions
Would the gentleman from Monongalia
himself controvert them ? Had not
the Supreme Court Of the United States
in repeated decisions affirmed the doc
trine2 1t could not be said that he
had introduced Federal relations before
the Convention. The present Consti-
tuition, OF which that gentleman was
one OF the trainers, had for the first
time in any State Constitution embraced
the provision that the Constitution Of
the United States was the supreme law
Of the land The same provision was
in the report now before us. He Mr.
F) recognized the supremacy Of the
Federal Government within its pre-
scribed sphere Of action, but in con-
ceding its supremacy in such
case, was it not proper that the rights
reserved by the States over their
own internal government and police
should be alike set forth and declared
He denied that his amendment had any
squirting toward secession. He had
himself that morning voted that West
Virginia was, and should remain, a
member of the Union. He knew tina,
to West Virginia the Union was a
political necessity; but for its protect.
ing arm we could not, as against our
powerful neighbors, maintain an indie
pendence six months We had no out.
let to our trade, no seaport, no arteries
Of commerce; and hemmed in as we
are on all sides, but for the rights
secured by the Union, we should he de-
pendent upon other States for the sale
of every article Of our surplus produc-
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