The New Orleans Democrat. (New Orleans, La.) 1875-1876, 1876-01-02
SPEECH or n. N. OGDEN,
ON THE MAYORS MESSAGE.
AT III. pATRfoK's HALL, DEC. ".

stand upon principle, anu unhappy
for u it fa nm occurrence 50 UNUSUAL IN
our day among public finctitusafies
thAt IL has awakened u feeling 81 s,r-
prise along with the sentiment OF grave
fu1 admiration.
Mar more that, n decade has our C0uil-
try witnessed q rapid declensiQn from all
tho great aud bonored principles OF con
atltt1flonal freedom, until at last the
varv Citadel Of our liberties IL attacked
"a Tint great doctrine which II the key.
etpne 10 the Arch. I mean the. great
FIGHT Of local selfAgovernnent Nov,
propose, in tho few remarks ] si,a,,
make this evening, without attempting
\ speech In the ordinary soflse ~ tliat
word, just 10 trent you ms great Jury
aAsetn blcd % try an important ISSUE ny
critical moment in our history.
have said that tho principle .pf local
splf.royernmcnt. which lies at the !o.in-
Slntipn OF this contest, is OF vital I'M.
t,ortAncc to your liberties. and ! shall
bestrc i take NY scat. Why, fellow
citizens, IL Ia a perfect impossibility to
have n complete system Of representa-
tion. without u full and thorough re.
CoHnition of this great doctrine, TINS
truth was understood early IN tho MS
tory ri our race, aud " you will only
fakr The trouble 10 examine that great
lirst charter of English liberty, exhctcd
~ tho Bafons from King John Magma
Chartn-you will find that In the text OF
that great instrument VI human Tree
dom. right alongside the doctrine Of
11ontilnr representation. stands this
6rcst doctrine OF local sclf.governinent.
VIA. NJ the very dawn of our ciyilizil-
tion. tho Importance OF this doctrine was
10 we'll understood, that II was demand
"a and surrendered IN The Same instl,'-
ment, and In the clause immediately
Following that In which the great right
-0f popular representation u hccurcu
Tho Language 81 Magma Cbaria upon
this Important subject Ia sigular!y cloat
And cmphHtIc. mo scutaEe or aid shall
Ia imposed In our kingdom, unless by
Che general council OF our Kingdom, OK
cent for rilnsuining our person, making
our eldest son u knight, and once Tor
marrying our eldest daughter, and Tor
these there shall be paid q rnasoi'abie
aid. In like manner u shall pc con
Cernipg The aids Of tho city OF London;
And tho city u London shall have oil
In ancient liberties and free customs,
a. we'll by land ~ by water. further
more. we will and grant that oil other
oIttes. and boroughs, and towns. anu
ports. shall have all their liberties and
frco customs" And again, In the 23d
Dnragraph, we find this remarkable pro-
fieloii "Nuither n town nor any ton
ant shall be distfhinod 10 make bridges
~ hanks, unless that anclently and oil
FIGHT they IRE bound to do Il" SO you
perceive that right alongside the subloc..
81 Individual freedom, arc tho rights anu
privileges OF every community on indi..
tiduais. In that great country, secured
nnnlnst the power OF the State. In Tho
ilrst great charter Of our liberties. Now.
fellow citizens. the justice and reason
ar this are most manifest upon principle
for communities ~ well rs individuals
y have rights, which they never derived
rom tho State. which are peculiar 10
themselves, aud with which the State
consequently cannot claim to Interfere
IN YOU will consider carefully tho forina.
tion IL human society you will iinu that
there IL not single social organization.
{ndlvidunls Immediately, that IL TO sny
Witch owes Tia origin directly to the
combination Of individuals ~ such.
Tho family, when formed, has by Its
combinations, formed political coinntl
nifies smaller than tho State, and those
communities by their combinations
have formed the larger political 20.
! rlotiov or States. but ,ss tho individual!
by his birth has certain natural and
absolute rights which no social combi-
nation ever takes from him.. ~ Tor IN
stance the absolute or primordial rights
Of life, liberty and property, rights with
which no society can Interfere without
tyranny. simply because they are in
harent rights, not derived from the
State 70 tho family, as such. has rights,
which springing alone from the Tact OF
ia organization under tho social i'm
pulse. may not be interfcred With, ex-
cef,t by tho tyrant and In precisely the
saine way, the larger political commu-
mites from which the state has been
formed In every age aud division OF tho
globe, have In virtue Of their formation
As political societies, certain Inherent
and absolute rights and interests which
ARC peculiar 10 themsclves Ms separate
nociafics, and with which tho State has
no necessary connection III tho dis
charge of its proper functions. Now
when they consolidate to form States,
these communities preserve these great
original rights Just ils did tho family be-
fore them, aud tho individual before IT,.
No body OF mon can combine and form
4 community without having u class oil
rights, n class Of privileges and inter
csts with which the higher organization
or state has no possible concornnon!,
and with which, II II intcricres at ell, u
0ClS 2H ucSlob SIMPLY uuu 0'NuN',
The great error which has produccd
10 much confusion upon this delicate
aud Important subject, is TO be found IN
the fact that these local rights are false
" supposed 20 have been derived from
tho State. which IL manifestly absurd,
Aimee they almost universally antedate
Che creation or the State, and are, as we
have seen, the natural outgrowth OF the
social principle found IN humanity;
The error Is, however, easily accounted
Tor since the State, upon its formation.
a usuNlly SO grand and imposing an
object, and surrounded by 80 much
msUniAcence, that IL appears to be the
source of all political life and power
within its bounds. Such is not the
case. however. and the mistake may be
Ietai to liberty.
Al definition Of local self-government,
a We understand the term, may Mt this
tolnt In our discussion be a matter Of
interest. BY the right OF local sclf-gov-
eminent, then, we mean, that absolute,
natural or primordial right which in
heres In every political community or
society OF men, evolved alone from the
fact OF its formation under the social
impulse, to manage and control, with
out interference by the State, all Of
those interests, whether they relate to
property or TO anything else which are
peculiarly Its own, and with which the
6tate has no necessary connection in
the discharge OF its functions.
IL you will take this definition now,
holloWc- SsftfZrNS Of that urpat doctrine