The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1901-02-09

February '"
establish the contention that John MarshaPs conception
of the constitution utterly anagonis-
tic TO any such Interpretation of it as
LODGE ON might be held by even the mlldest OF the
| o.u., school of states rights statesmen.
"" Among all the dissertations upon the
life of the great Chief Justice, INDUCED in
nv southern daes week, confess TO our surprise
at having seen only criticism of Senator Lodges ar
.;clo This is contained in the Vlcksburg Herald, and
anv suggests the faacy of Lodges intensely partisan
arguments The criticism, however, might have gone
c further and noted the Inconsistencies into which the
,eiona bias OF the Massachusetts senator has betrayed
him In imputing to Marshall theory of governmental
purpose entirely and intensely NATIONAL and at the same
time attemptipg to establish thorough identity OF con-
.e,son he,ween Washington, Hamilton and the Chief
Justice MIR Lodge most sgnally overreaches himself
II is we believe of hermeneutics that the
+rue hct of The Interpretation of instrument is the
asceralpent as nearly may be- OF the thoughts the
nnrpose and the intent governing and guiding those
who framed it. purpose foreign to that OF the trainers
of The American constitution not be truly inter-
nreted from that instrument by any court or justice 1t
was the theory of that school IN such strenuous oppose
tion 10 Which Mr. Lodge would place John Marshall
that for Sufficient cause the individual states might
resume ,those restricted powers which they had dele
gated TO the general government as trustee They held
that The convention which framed the constitution and
the states which ratified it, acted with this understanding
The question was not one of expediency, in its last
alyss what best calculated to make for future
strength or wealth OF power 1t simply and solely
question of abstract right The constitution either orig
ipaly contemplated the right of withdrawal from the
federal compact right inherent In each state becom
inc party to it, or did not contemplate such right
IF it did not all the dcta of all the judges who have
oaced the most august of human tribunals could alter
the simple fact
In the light of the theories now imputed by him to
John Marshall is interesting to note other expressions
of Mr. Lodge touching the constitutional view OF what
ha calls .sthat vital question whether the United
States should be nation, confederacy In discuss
ing this question: in his life of Webster Mr. Lodge thus
expressed himself 'sWhen the Constitution adopted
by the votes of States at Philadelphia and accepted by
votes Of States in popular conventions it safe
say that there not man In the country from ash
noon and Hamilton on the sde to George Clinton and
George Mason the other, who regarded the new sys
tenn as anything but experiment entered upon by the
States and from which each and every state had the
right ia peaceably withdraw right which very
likely TO be exercised Mr. Lodge holds up Marshall to
ne as the great antagonist of the idea of the of
such right, contemplated by the makers OF the con-
stitution He also dllates the unanmlty OF opinion
between Washington, Hamilton and Marshall We have
hut to look elsewhere to him beled from hisown lips
In the framing of the great instrument of which John
Marshall was great expounder there was no con-
temptation of the national life which is today That
the seed we're there, from which such growth
might possibly be forced testified to by the results of
civil war But that they could terminate only when be-
dewed with blood no knows better than Mr. Lodge
himself