, 1875-03-25

/ lTlllk u LHelE ACtlac4tul lHi1oIAt} LII Aot9g
wns during tho War one Of those intos,se
rartisans who wero known rs Copperheads,
md mover saw anything comnsendablo in tho
efforts to save the Union and put down the
Rebellion, aud wlioso argument OIL all qnes-
tiors begun mud ondcd in tho theory TINT the
| several States wcrn absolute soycroigns; that
| the United States is not milton tint tho
Government OF tho United States is but the
agent or instrument Of the !" sovereign
States and tint this is but confederacy Of
sovereign nations or States. 1fr. EAroS, oil
tho night Of tho Goth OF March, entivonod tho
| debate in the Senate by very earnest dis
c,lssion Of tho Louisiana question, into which
lie dragged lis inevitable ono it'ea Of Stntc
| sovereignty. In tho course of his remarks
ho laid down the following propositions rs
| indisputablo
THIS Government of ours this great confederation
Of statcs Is mt natlon.t IL confclesacy Of
| lions /; It Ia composed Of sovercigntfcs.
certafn number Of fSatcs-c!eycA-ahoptci and
fA!1cl tho Constitution Of the Uniaei 9tates Nov,
What became Of that little Commonwealth ably rep
| resented on this fioor by my frionl from Rhode
1sland7 sho waa out In Tho cold year nn1 n half.
Not member Of this unfon not member Of thIa
Of the sovereign powers Of tho earth, anal though
RAa was, aud f1oatcd hor glorious ls aG every
soa. Neither o! tho gentlemen from Rhode Island will
1eny that she independent sovereign power Of
the earth.
a.,aounco that cvcry sta.o In this confe1crsoy Is
soveEcIgn u independent sovereign and ndepena-
cpt 1t In 1885. except III tbs that 1t has
delegated by ths Constitution, and efy any OF
Senator to successfully coutEorUrt hero or anywhere
now or 1t any time.
Mr.. EATON elaborated these propositions,
claimiug substantially TINT tho United States
Of America wus never, and is not now, +,
nation; that it is nero confcderacy creatcd
BY tho sovereign States; that tho Gcnera'
| Government Is merely tho Federal organ Of
| sovcreigntics, to whom has been delegated
| certnin powers; but TINT the fountnin Of power
is not the American people. but that the State
| Governments is that foan.ain from which all
tho confederate authority flows.
Unfortunately, Mr.. EAross illustration OF
the case Of Rhode Island during the period
intervening between tho for1nntion Of tho
Constitution md the time OF her ratification
thereof is q little too sweeping; il it proves
anything, it proves too much. The American
Union is now composed Of thirty-seyen
States, nearly three times as many q tie
| original thirteen. II these tlirty-sevcn
States be sovereign powers, nations, and oil
| equal in sovereign power, and it DO per-
! tiuont to ask what was Rhode Island
! during the year ind half she was consider
ing whether to ratify tho Constitution or
not, it is equally pertinent to inquire what
were these tweuty-four other States, or 81 in
dependent sovereign nations" before their I'd
mission, Which havo since become members
Of tho Union. Each Of them Is tho equal Of
1ehodo Island in rights aud powers, aud must,
according to A1r. EAToy, hare been 70 origi-
nal!y. Was each OF these States boforo nd
mission IN sovereign power of the earth,"
M Independent nation? Either tho States
aro not equal, or tho new States are not,
mud never l.ave boon, "soyeroign powers ot
tho earth" or Rhode Island was never what
Mr.. EATON claims her to hnvo been. In
c1aiming that this is not nation Of people,
but confederacy of independent sovereign
States, oil of them equal in all things md
equally the crcntor of tho coufcdernto
ngent or organ, the General Government, bo
must concelo To each of those twcnty-four
States admitted Bince Rhode Island the char
acter OF haying been, up to the tmo they
united with tho others 'soycroign indopend-
cnt nations Of tho enrth."
Now, what are the facts? Each OF these
States has beon created directly or indirectly
by virtue Of some act Of Congress- out of the
territory Of tho United States. The Equat-
ters Or residents therein have been arlthor-
lied to form themselves into political corpora-
tons, chartered to exercise ccrtain functions
Of local government within certain territorial
limits prescribed by Congress, md have been
admitted into the Union npon conditions and
terms fixed by law. Some Of tho territory
out Of which Congress Inns carved those
states has becn purchased by tho United
States; other has boon acquirod by war
md conquest; one stato created by the aiviH-
ion Of another State, md ono by annexation.
Congress has just authorized tho Inhabitants
ct Colorado to form State Government
preparatory to admission; md, accord
ing to Mr.. EATON, Colorado IL now
tan independent sovereign power Of the
earth, owing no allegiance to tho United
states, and floating her glorious l!ag on every
sea" We do not knew how far Mr.. EATON
Ii willing to follow his own extravaganza !;
hut II Illinois Is now tho oqual Of nhqlo
Island, sho must, like her, layo been all
! independent sovereign milton befors sho
tofnea tho confedcracy Of nations, md ow.
ing no allegiance to the United Statcs. II
true of Rhodo Island, then 1t must bs true
Of all the States.
The great blunder which these sticLlers for
state nationality make is, that they nliscon-
ceiye tho claractar Of q State under our form
Of government. 4 Stato il political COR
poration. organized under general or special
law OF the United Statcs orgauizcd like my
other corporation, with y charter, to exercise
certain functions Of a local and political CHAR
acter, Nothing moro aud nothing less ;
aud to assuuls that this corporation IL
IAN independent sovereign uation Of
tho carth" is all absurlity and N,