The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1919-11-01
SATISFYING OLD SAM ADAMS"


The following from a leaflet issued
by the League to Enforce Peace, OF
which William Howard Taft is Presi-
dent, is interesting, indeed, both in it's
bearing on the troubles of our fore
fathers, and in it's parallel in the pres
ent day negotiations for a lasting
peace of nations:
(By William E. Barton)
I'm 1776 there was an alliance of
thirteen small states, who fought a
German king then reigning in Great
Britain in order to make one corner
of the world safe for democracy. That
war came to a successful termination,
and then the question became press
ing one whether democracy was safe
for the world. For several years there
was a situation closely akin to an
archy. After several years of uncer-
tainty and near-anarchy, it was de-
cided to try the experiment of Great
ing a league of thirteen small nations,
banded together to preserve peace
and promote the common welfare. In
order to secure these ends, the FEEDER
al Constitution was prepared and sub
mitted to the States; the same instru-
ment which constitutes the model for
the proposed League of Nations.
Secret Meetings.
The Constitutional Convention met
in Independece Hall, with George
Washington in the chair. The meet
Iings were secret and what was done
was not revealed for fifty years, when
the journals kept by James Madison
were published. 1t is we'll that the
people did not know from day to day
what was happening. 1t is well that
the three great states of Massachusetts,
New York and Virginia did not know
how their precious liberties were be-
ing tempered with, or they might
have called their delegates home. 1t
was felt by the convention that If the
discussions were secret, the delegates
could wrangle with perfect freedom,
and if they came finally to agreement
the thirteen states would have only
the agreement to consider and not any
of the material of the debate. That
was fortunate. II the thirteen states,
and especially the three or four largest
ones, had been able to fling into the
faces of their returning delegates
some of the things which they had
said on the floor, saying to them, Why
did you vote for an instrument OF
which you yourself said this? the
thirteen CLONES might have gone to
the bow-wows and the BolsheViki.
Constitution. Submitted.
Finally, the Constitution was adopt
ed by the convention, and submitted
to the thirteen states.
And they all saw what noble in
strument it was, and FASTENED to adopt
it?
mot quite in that fashion.
But the great states were first to
see how great an instrument 1t was?
mot exactly.
when George Washington went
back to Virginia and submitted the
fruit of his toll, Patrick Henry rose in
heat and shouted, Even from the man
who saved us by his valor, | will de-
mand reason for his conduct. Why
does this instrument say, We, the
people?,' why does it not say, We
the states'?' And Patrick Henry was
not alone in this demand.
How did the Constitution of the
United States get itself adopted? On
its merits? Well, hardly. It's adoption
was the result of a number of compro
misses and of sops thrown to Cerberus
Southern States Piacated.
First of all, the favor of the South.
ern states was secured by giving them
more than their share of delegates in
Congress. They were permitted repre-.
sentation not only on their free citizen
but representation, in reduced pro.
portion, on their slaves. That insured
the favor of the Carolinas and Gergia
and Virginia acted as a kind of stake
holder in that arrangement; for Wiz
ginia, while slave state, was repre-
scented in the convention by men who
earnestly desired the end of slavery
The three states south of Virginia
were determined never to accept the
Constitution unless they secured rep
resentation for their slaves, and with
out those three states the Constitu
ton could not have been adopted. Sc
they were first won over by this com
promise. Five slaves wer permitted tC
count as many as three white men
and Georgia and the Carolinas became
advocates of the Constitution.
New EngIand's Bargain.
a ho rnoin hn-
tween New England and the South by
which the new Federal Government
might make trade regulations for the
entire country in in exchange for the
permission to keep the slave trade go
ling till 1908. 1t went hard with some
of the states to give up the right tC
] impose import duties on shipments
from other states. New York was de
termined to make every Connecticut
farmer pay import duties on every
dozen eggs he brought to- 1.-the city tc
sell, and Connecticut retaliated by re
fusing to ship any fire wood to New
York. The privilege of having little
scraps like this was very precious tC
the thirteen free and mighty indie
pendent states, and this mean com
promise was adopted to make 1t pos
sible for the National Government tt
take over commerce regulations. tt
Eher everlasting honor Virginia voted
against the compromise, and did it or
the ground of the iniquity of the slave
trade. 1t is almose the only large
minded and righteous act of any OF the
greater states in the convention
George Mason said, Every master o.
slaves is a petty tyrant. They bring
the judgment of heaven on a country
AS nations cannot be rewarded OF
punished in the next world, they mus
be in this. BY an inevitable chain O
cause and effect, Providence punished
national sins with national calamities.
That was what Virginia said about
slavery in 1887. But New Englant
y