The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-02-24
sucIng states.
PHILADELPHIA, February 10, 1850

II throughout all Yankeedom you were
70 AK any. even Of their educated cinsse~,
their LAWYERS, their clergy. their cdl,or,,
their colege-bred businessmen. p,@ :,
was the firstDullfying State OK the T. mon
ninety-nine Of them out OF every huhuleu
would, without moments hesitation, re-
ply. South Carolina ~; whereas >ou.i,
| Carolina never yet did commit an act OF
notification. If you were to ask theli'
"Who was the first, most conspicuon,..
and influential nullifyer OF America
they would promptly reply. "Jonn
G. Calhoun 81; whereas Mi. Calnoun,
although avowing the rightfulness %
notification when put into practice Dy !
sovereign State for cause. never aided ana
abetted any consummated act OF nuiihca'
ton. He never advanced beyond the theory.
These ninety-nine gentlemen wouiu DC
very ant TO doubt your sanity IL, in answer
TO your own first question, you were 10 say
10 them. Massachusetts, was the frst
state to commit actual nullifcatfon :" ana
In answer TO your second question you
should say q George Washington was the
first nullifier; and, unlike Calhoun, not
nnllifjer in mere doctrine only, buta prdc-
f;onI nullificr. George Washington's acts
taught Calhoun the theory OF nulllhcatlon."
And yet your above two answers would ne
nothing but sober. unvarnished truth.
And now for my little story:
After having entered the Union by her
ratification OF the Constitution, ana Of
course OF clause Isl Of section 20 OF Article
III. (Which clause, among other things
SAYS l.the judicial power shall extend TO
ali cases between State and citizens OF
another Stdte,") Massachusetts, proceeded,
within the short space OF four years only
after the institution OF the Federal Govern
ment. TO commit her first act Of nullitica-
ton.
When, in 1893, John Hancock, her Gov
ernor. and james Sullivan, her Attorney
General, were, in pursuance Of the letter
and spirit Of the Constitution. summoned
by the United States marshal to appear in
court, and, as the representatives OF the
Statehood Of Massachusetts,, TO answer 10
the suit Of citizen OF another State, the
Governor promptly refused to obey the
summons.
He forthwith summoned meeting OF the
State Legislature, and in his opening speech
to them he said II cannot conceive that
the people OF this Commonwealth, who. by
their representatives. adopted the Federal
compact, expected State would be held
liable to answer q compulsory civil process
to an individual OF another State or foreign
kingdom."*
lie also said that " consolidation of the
States into one government would endan-
ger the nation as q republic, and eventually
diUide the States now united, or eradicate
the principles for which we have con-
tended" meaning the principles fought for
in the then recent Revolutionary war. The
Legislature backed up the Governor by
passing on the 9th OF September, 1893, the
following resolution-yiz.
Resolved, That a power claimed OF
compelling the State to become II defendant
at the suit OF IN individual or individuals
is unnecessary and ineXpedient, and in ITS
exercise dangerous TO the power, safety, and
independence OF the SeUerdi States and re-
pusnant to the first principles of con-
TederGte Government"
Accordingly, TO prevent the change OF
any other attempt TO insult in this way her
dignity as q sovereign state, Massachusetts
proposed, a. an additional guard and guar
antee OF state sovereignty. what was
adopted and is now known as the eleventh
amendment TO the Constitution. She
thereby procured the annulment Of IN
original provision Of the Constitution 4. G..
n part OF clause | OF section OF Article
Iil.); and there to this day does that proyi-
sion stand in the Constitution dead letter.
void, and OF no effect, and utterly eXtin-
guished by the procurement OF Mas5achu-
sets.
For fear Of wearying your readers |
will adduce only one other instance OF
actual notification by Massachusetts. On
the 18TH of June 1912, the United States
declared war against Great Britain, almost
solely in the interest Of Massachusetts and
other New England States. Soon after the
war began the General Government, IL
pursuance Of its constitutional powers,
made requisition on Governor Strong, OF
Massachusetts,, for forty-one companies OF
infantry and artillery to he mustered into
the service OF the United States.
The Governor, taking the position that
rs the chief ana representative OF a SOW
ereign State, he possessed the right of
judging OF the policy or rightfulness Of
the rcqlusition, positively refused to fur
nisl the troops called for. He officially
this refusal to the Lcgisla- !
ture OF his state, and that body, rs well as
the people Of the State, approved his course. |
[Soe Mass. Reports, Vol. viii, page 54S.l |
And now n to the first and great multi |
fer George Washington. Ii il simply an /
established fact OF history, yOuched for by |
his own written words now on record, that |
when Washington took up arms in 17Ij |
against Great Britain he deprecated the idea /
OF separation from her. His and his cORfre- /
res sole @, Jet III the war then undertaken |
was to resist IN the union [the union OF the |
colonies with Great Britain] laws which
they deemed TO te unconstitutional. and TO /
armed opposition, and to fight
until their constitutional rights should be
by the British Government.
They fought through nearly the entire
first year OF the war with this sole object
in view, and they at first entertained very
hopes Of achieving their object,
by war, aud yet without separation
from the British Empire. This, then, was
qualification put into actual practice.
And whereas Washington, (Nhen thus
fighting, not for Independence, but to
nullfy III the Union certain laws OF the
empire deemed ly him TO be unconstitr-
tional,) knew well TINT he was rebellious
subject OF his sovereign King George LII
10 whom and moi to Virginia he owed prI-
mary allegiance.i and therefore and there
by UNNECESSARILY ouf-CalhOuned Calhoun
himself. Calhoun advocated the right of
notification by South Carolina or any
other State OF the Union on the ground
only that an independent, sovereign
state, which has entered by CON-
pact into confederacy with other
sovereign States. and which h.s
never in the smallest degree alcnated a
particle OF her own sovereignty to the con-
Iederacy, but only "delegated" to il the
right to exercise certain OF her "powers
If sovereignty [vide The tenth amendment,
has The preserved" right to nullifv the
Execution on her own soil OF any laws Of
he coniederacy which she NAV regard as
,alpable violations OF the compact This