, 1874-12-10
NATIONAL Or STATE SOVEREIGNTY,

NATIONAL Or STATE SOVEREIGNTY,
The st. Louis Times, one Of the organs OF
Democratic orthodoxy, is alarmed nt tho
hcresy preached by The Tn1nuSE, That tho
United States docs not owo its origin or its
Constitution to the States rs separate, i,,dc-
| pendent, and sovereign communities. TuE
| Tribune holds tint doctrine, as we'll as its
consequences, md that spite Of tlloarg,ments
of tho st. Louis shoot to tho contrary.
Democrats llavo wonderful genius for being
illogical, mud the Tines is no exception to
tho rule. It insists TINT our position on
this question is wrong, for tho reason
that "tho States wero sovereign nationalitics
before our present Government was formed. /"
The Times main grounds for this last mo :
|. Tint Great Britnin, by the treaty Of peace
in 17s3, recognized them "severnlly and
separately MS 'frec, sovereign, and indepeud-
ent :" 2. Because tho articles of oonfedera-
ton woro signed "by the statcy." 8. Be-
causo tho Northwestern territory was cctlcd
by Virginia to the Government in its capacity
us an independent State, and Congress, by
ordinance, recognized that territory rs n FREQ
gift from tho State Of Virginia in sovereign
capacity rs MI independent State. 4. 3d.
o"'co our present Constitution was formed
ny delegates from tho different States. and
that three Of. them refused to ratify tho
Constitution for nearly three years. Tn
answer to tho first point, it is
sufficient to observe that Great Brit
ain did not in the treaty Of 1888
recognize tho States as "scyerally and
separately" Independent, nor do tho words
" sovcrally md separately" occur III TINT in
strnment Mt all. His Britannia Majesty rec
ognizcd the States united, or "Unitod
statcs,' MS is tho phrase in tho trcnty, rs soy-
eroign md independent. With tho several
States, the statcs independent or tlsunitel,
Great Britain mover l,ad anything to do after
the Declarationof Independence tho instru-
ment containing which declaration recognizes
the people Of the Colonies arrayoa against
Great Britain rs ono people, inas,nucH as
1T says: s'When il tho course Of human
events it becomes necessary for ONE PEOPLE
to dissolve tho political bands which have
connected them with another" We would
like our Democratic friends to inform lis who
were the 'ono people" and tic other people
here referred to If not tho peoplo
Of oil the Colonies constituting nation and
the people Of Great Britnin. In roply to tho
second reason of tho Times, it is sufficient to
remind it thct not tho States, but rcprescnta-
tivea on tho part and behalf Of the f,ta.es,-
that is, Of tho people of tho States or Of tho
whole country, signed tho articles Of confcil-
Grafton. So long MS all tho people Of tho
country wero represented, 1t matters little |
whether they wero representa- by States, or |
by counties, or by districts. Tho third !
reason We dispose Of with the remark. that |
not rs MI independent State, but AZ a cor |
poration with tho power of owning and lis |
posing Of land, did yirgnia mako the cession
referred to by tho Times There is not Il
word about IN ''indorondcnt stato" in tho
decd, and oven granting that Congress did
nccopt tho land decided to tho Unitel
States by Virginia as free Gift
from TINT State in ter sovereign capacity"
'yo might inquire what right had Congress- to
lccept it then my moro Than 1t has now, md
whether it hna authority under my circ,,n.-
stances to acknowledge the " independent
1AI'Hlty 1A l4At3+A1H@ 1AV AollTka IttSQu 0I
he 1fmes wo dismiss with tllo observation
hat tho three States referred to tint refused
:or nearly thrco ycaru to ratify the Constitu-
ion wcro not, anl did not pretend to he, ill.,
dependent aud sovereign during those thrco
'ears,, and that although they, representing
heir people, might haye refused to ratify tho
Constitution MS produced ut first, had no
light in consequence 10 withdraw from tie
United Statos," but only to request that tho
Constitution be roconsiderel aud amended to
'ult what they considered bost for tlleir own
utereBs.
We thus rofato the Donooratio doctrine by
Democratic tactica; but there is more offac-
i've WHY Of donoliHhing their arguments. Tho
Times, liko all Democrats, proceeds on tho
tllat nations aro made. Now
1ationa, 10 moro than poets, nro 1nalo They
'ro born. They grow. They arc organic
'oings The question wllotlor given people
or do nok constitute n nation, il
question simply of historical faot, ,and cannot DO
showing TINT Tom, Dic] ,and Hurry
aid so and 80, aud wroto this thing mud that
hing about TINT pooplo fifty or eighty yours
so. Tom, Dick, or 11anyot eighty yoaru ago
yas as likely to bo mistaken as to whether the
)ooplo OF tho United Rtatoa aro d ueoplo M