New Orleans Republican., 1873-05-06
TIE INTERPRETATION OF TIE FATHERS

/ J
ton, having been definitely settled by th'
late war inaugurated to maintain tia
| heresy, vet We deem it not amiss occa
sionally to advert to the subject, and OIL
this occasion we will reproduce few o.
the opinions of some of the founders o.
republic touching State sovereigntyo MT
Monroe, in his Aessase to Congress on
the fouiah of May, 1922, said5
| The confederation was comracs pt'
| tween separate and independent states the
| execution of whose articles in the power
| which operated internally depended on the
| STATE Governments. But the great office OF
| the constitution, BY incorporating the Peo'
| r,Ie of the several States to the eetent OF lis
| nowers into one community, and enabling
| it to act directly on toe people, was 70 an
! .Il tue powers of tue State governments TO
| that extent, except IN Cages Whefe thty
| were concurrent and to preclude their
| agency in giving effect to those OF the gen
erai government. The government OF the
United States relies on its own means Tor
the execution of its powers, as the State
Governments do for the execution OF theirs.
both governments having a common orig in
or sovereign, the peop!e-the State govern
ments the people OF each State, the nation al
government the people of every State, and
being amenable to the power which created
it..
tits by executing its func ions as a govo
ernment, thus originating and thus acting,
that the constitution of the United Sta 3
holds the States ttgetEer and performs
the purpose of league. 1t is owing to the
nature of it's powers and the high source
from whence. they are derived-the peO-
ple-that it performs that Office better than
the confederation or any league that ever
existed, being a compact which the State
governments did not form, to which they
are not parties, and which executes ots owb
powers independently OF theTo
The South, Carolina doctrine Sse of
rather 1cas, that the constitution Of fne
United States is a compact between tae
people of the diferen. States with each
other as separate and Independent souereSJ'e
ties. Now, admit this doctrine to be true
for the arguments sake, let US see what
AIr. Madison says of the compact thus
formed, what this compact did, and the
legitimate deduction that he draws from
it. Mr.. Madison in 1880, in his letter in
answer to inquiries made of him touching
this matter, says:
Being thus derived from the same source
as the constitutions of the States, it has
within each State the same authority as the
of the State, and is as much
within the strict sense of the
term, within its prescribed sphere, as the
cons titutions of the States are within their
respective spheres; but with this obvious
and essential difference, that being com
pact among the States in their CHEST Gov
ereign capacity, and constituting tic peODtS
thereof one people for certain purposes, it
can not be altered or aunul!ed at the will
of the States individually, as the consi!tu-
tion of a State may de at its individual will.
Chief Justice Marshall, in the great case
of McCulloch vs.. the State Of Maryland,
says:
The government proceeds directly from
the people The assent of the States in
their sovereign capacity is implied in their
calling convention and then submitting
that instrument TO the people. But the
people were at perfect liberty TO accept OF
reject it, ard their act was fnalo 1t REQ
qnired nat the ahirmance an,o could not be
negatived by the State governmentse
When, in order to form q moro perfect
union, il was deemed necessary to change
This alliance (ohe old contederatiOn) into an
effective government. possessing great and
sovereign powers and acting directly On the
people the necessity of referring it to the
people and of deriving its powers directly
from them, was feo5 SnS aSkbe'soedged
by alo
The Supreme Court again announceS
this doctrine in the case of Martin v's
Hunter, Wheaton S reports, sayinge
The constitution of the United States was
ordained and established, not By the States
i'll their sovereign capacities, but emphatic
ally as the preamble OF the constitution de-
clares, by the people of the United States.
Patrick Henry, in the Virginia debates
on tie constitution, said:
That this is consolidated government is
demnnstratahly clear The language is.
we the peo}i5, instead of weA the States.
States are tle characteristics and soul OF a
tontrd. itnn. If the States be not the agents
of this compact it must be one great con
sol!dated government Of the people of all
the States.
Alexander Hamilton, in the twenty-sec-
ond number of the FedeU)tst, speaking Of
the defects OF the old confederation. points
out the weakness arising from its not hav-
ing been ratified by the people, and that
owing its ratification to the law of State,
some held that tie same authority could
repeal the ac. of ratification. Repudi-
ating that doctrine as applied even to the
infant confederacye Mr. Hamilton uses
this language.
However gross a HeresS e 9lae % fs
maintain that partP Sea eompace has the
right to resoke toa2 SO oelraceo the elossrine
itself has had respectable advocatess T&O
possibility cf a uuestSon Of t2ae 4afuge
proves the necessity % laying the tounds'
tons o. Or national government deeper
than in the sanction of delegated authority
The fabric Of American empire ough5 70 rest
on Tie solid basis Is 6le oonso&Ye IS she
people.
We might go on and extend tbs arrase
Of authorities indefnitelye Eat it Is elot
necessary. The constitution or supreme
law or government Of tie United States
was established by the people Gt tie
United States, and not by the Ssateo IS
Stateso Che constitution in the gaattt% oS
lis ado3sjo5s waes ratified bye3e kaQP" Siv.
nseheis agG'Soses % s:a"eae $50 ~: -
tie Safes 10 ehtga 81 is $Le assosaajoGs
thing, the riGicu,oro nonSesc1ipt sLae Sc.
cessionists said it o.. 1t is not claiso of
strong links connecteS voth pack threa&
but of links, welded into each othe9 and
forming CHAIN oG strength ana solidity.
l. is not to be seq as:fe or set at naught at
the will of single State If it could be
it is cheat and hu,ibug something the
character and uses Of which its fram ers