Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1875-08-11
NEW SERIES--VOL. 16, NO. 81

powers snOulu DC received by the del
l. egations from the three last name,
n Colonies. The instructions and pow
;. ers came within the time according I,
r expectation and the question upoi
= the Declaration came up for final dis
o position on the ith day of July wher
) il was voted ON by Colonies and re
d ceived the sanction not only of every
n one Of the thirteen Colonies, but O
I every one of the Representatives il
+ the respective delegations present.
I You know and understand who tn,
s owe" was who declared the United
Colonies to be Free and Independent
Q States. You see from the facts that
4 1t was in reality the Colonies them,
. selves, We thus see also how 'the
: United Colonies of America became
r "the United States of America" or,
at least, how the Declaration came to
be so made.
BRIEF HISTORICAL SKETCH oPTnE STATES
FROM &c TO '88.
A further brief sketch of historical
contcmporaneous events will be neccs,
sary to see how this great fact, so de.
clared, was afterwards acknowledged
and established. Bear with me, there
fore, in these minute details. They
are important points in our history
which should be deeply impressed up.
on the mind of every one devoted to
the Institutions of his country. This
is the day and this is the occasion for
reviying them in the memories of the
old and fixing them in the minds of
the young. All who are lovers of
liberty should recollect that three
things are essentially necessary for
the preservation of free popular insti-
tntions. LIST. The people must under
stand the nature and history Of their
Government; I'd, they must be devo-
ted to the principles of its organic
structure; and, 3d, they must jealous.
ly use every effort to make the Ad.
ministration conform to these princi-
pies. In other words, the permanency
of all Free, Representative Govern
ments Gas our complex systems are) de.
pend chiefly upon the degree of intel
ligence, virtue and patriotism posses
sed by the people. Without these es.
sential requisites no free Government
can last long Knowlodge-educatio
lis the first--and especially education
in or knowledge of the great facts of
their own history.
Now, then, in connection with the
subject Of my theme, be it remember
ed, further and deeply fixed in your
minds, that the committee appointed
under the second branch of Richard
Henry Lees resolution made their re-
port Of Articles Of Union and Confed.
Grafton between the States so declared
to be free and independent, on the 18th
day of July, just eight days after the
Declaration of Independence had gone
forth with such joyous acclaim. These
Articles Of Union formed the first
Constitution Of the United States Of
America. The first of these Articles
set forth the names of the States, aud
the style OF the Confederation as be-
fore adopted, and declared that the
Union under the Articles was to be
perpetual. The second of these Arti.
cles is in these words: 4ii la fHa sd
"ARr. II. Each State retains its Sovereignty,
Freedom and Independence, and every Power,
Jurisdiction and Right, which Is not, by this
Confederation, expressly delegated to the United
States, in Congress assembled"
All the Others, thirteen in number,
were in conformity to the principles
announced in the second. BY them,
eighteen great Sovereign powers were
delegated by each State severally, to
all the States, in Congress assembled,
including the war power, the treaty
power, the money-coining power, the
power to borrow money, the power TO |
build and equip a navy, the power to
establish postofllces, the power to ap-
point Courts for the trial of certain |
crimes against the laws of nations, the
power to fix the number of land forces
which each State was TO furnish, and
the quota or amount of taxes each was
to raise, and the power to appropriate
the money so raised, for the public ex-
penses, the common defense and gen.
eral welfare.
These thirteen States so united un.
der these Articles of Union, and Fed
eral compact, battlcd for their right of
Independence for seven long years.
The conflicts at Concord, Lexington,
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, Bunker
Hill and Fort Moultrie, were but the
prelude of those at Fort Washington,
Trenton, Princeton, bennington, Sara.
toga, Brandywine, Germantown, Mon
mouth, Kettle Creek, Brier Creek,
Augusta, Savannah, Camden, Kings
Mountain, Cowpens, Eutaw Springs,
and the browning victory at Yorktown.
Suffice il, on this occasion to say that
the whole ultimately resulted in the
abandonment by Great Britain of her
attempt to subjugatc the Colonies and
final acknowledgement, on the 3d of
September, 1883, of the great fact of
their Independence, as States. Her
recognition of their Independence was
not that of a consolidated nation, but
that of each State, severally by name.
The words of the recognition are these
an, R,,,.nni, M.l..,s .o,,ow,.a,.. n,
United States, viI.i New Hampshire, Msssaohu.
setts Bay. Rhode Island and Providence Planta-
Ip rOnnSSsa. s'x n0Is sev Jersey sean
Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia to Be Free,
Sovereign and Independent States that hc treats
WIZ ,,, them 4. sSea and Tor a' heirs aud success
prietary, and territorial rights 10 the same, and
every part thereof"
This grand, final result is properly 4
in the range of subjects for our com
mcmoration to-day. From what has
been said we may have an outline view