The Washington critic., 1888-02-25

he used the phrase Limitations on the
faith Of which the States acceded TO that
instrument and to the same on August
20, 1902, he counsels mutual forbearance,
Cancellation, accommodation, etc, land
such healing measures as may restore
harmony TO the discordant members Of
he Union and the governing powers of
it." without these" continued he, ~
do not see how the union Of the States
can be much longer preserved"
THE FAREWELL ADDRESS
is in full harmoy with the above, and IL
adjuros our people to preserve the Union
by preserving 'the sacred ties that bind
together the various parts" viz, kindness
mutually, justice, &c.
And his correspondence shows special
approval of the FedCrdlist, In the first
number of which Hamilton said, 'sooie-
ties of men" from [theirl reflection and
choice" were establishing good govern
ment and in the last number Of which
mo. S51 he said, thirteen independent
States" are "the parties to the compact" =
all the intermediate numbers being en-
tiroly consonant.
And finally Washington must have
considered (fOr he could but know that
the commonwealth of people were the
governing power contemplated by the
Constitution; because the first article
named them, and provided that they
should choose their Senators, Representa-.
tives and Presidential electors, and give
to them their only official status and the
titles to their offices, and, moreover
should select them from their own mem
beTs, citizens and subjects; because the
seventh article proved absolutely that
they the said societies were, by ratifying
to establish the said Constitution; because
the fifth article proved that they alone
had the sovereign power of amending III
and, finally, because the fourth article
proved that their congress q. G., the con-
gress of themselves,) had the option of
doing the absolutely sovereign act of "ad-
Initting into this Union" sovereign equals,
as they, the said United States, have al
ready done twenty-five times, and as they
will probably continue to do till the re-
public of republics is only bounded by
oceans, and the Federal compact Is a
reciprocity treaty covering the Western
world.
have little doubt that this was, in
some degree, Washington's statesmanlilSe
forecast, for he is on record as having APP
proved Madison's No. IA of the Federdlist,
containing the following. "The immedi-
ate object of the Federal Constitution is
to secure The Union Of The thirteen print
tiUe States, and to add to them such other
States as may arise"
| am forced to conclude then, that
Washington considered that "the States
began TO act under the new FORM to use
his own phrase, that they continued "to
act under the new form;" and that they
intended to do all the government
of the country throughout the future.
judge that Washington and his COM
patriots of the convention never thought
Of constitutional right of secession.
Such remedy is revolutionary, for GER
tainly, as to the seeding people, it reyo-
lutionizes their Federal Government,
while it gives the adhering States, under
the jus gentitnn, caStts bell, If they so de-
terlnine, as they recently did. Coercion
war and inconsistent with the plan;
while that of persons, by law and
through courts, was chosen. COnsolidd-
ton was charged by enemies and refuted
by friends, and was odions to ALL Hamil-
ton called 1t political suieide.p and said
"While the Constitution continues to be
read, and its principles known, the States
must, by every rational man, be con-
sidered as essential component parts of
the Union" II. Ell. Deb. BOAT OF
course, these were the views of Wash
ington.
/ judge, too, that if Washington, near
the close of his life, had been asked to
sanction the modern dogma-that these
United States is q nationn-his answer
would have been much like the cherry
tree one.
/ trust THE CRrrrc and critics generally
Will remember that Washington, and not
the undersigned compiler, is responsible
for the quoted statements.
b Respectfully,
t b. ]. SAGE.