Year: 1862

Have we a Government?..-How was it


formed?-.-U what does its authority


rest?


In these times when designing Williams, sup
ported by the voices of babbling ignorance,
are endeavoring to destroy the liberties of
the people of all the States, north and south
by the destruction of the Government as es.
tabIished by the Constitution, though the
usurpations Of the present Republican Adj
ministration; it is we'll to revert as often as
possible to original aud elementary principles
out of which the Government sprang and
has its life. With this view we make the
following extracts from the columns Of an
exchange, which we commend to the a:ten-
ton of our readers The writer starts out
with the query-"does the right OF self Gov
ernment belong to the people of a Slate?"
and says


1t is distinct proposition with itself, and
the negative of it, which at this time seems
to be maintained outside of the slavehold-
ing States, is sufficient, in my humble opinion.
to awaken the worst fears of every Amer
lean citizen, for the longer continuance Of
our republican system of Government. If
this right is not INALINENABLE, INHERENT in
the people of State, then do we live under
an irresponsible Government, with all polit.
ical powers centralized within itself, and the
people of the several States are hopelessly
committed TO the unrestricted will of this
government. If the government acts with
wisdom and justice, it is all we'll with the
people-they have nothing to apprehend.
But this depends upon the important consid-
Grafton, will the men who compose the gov
ernment and administer its laws, always act
with wisdom and justice! The history Of
man, from the earliest knowledge we have
of him, teaches that he is supremely selfish
and loves himself better than his neighbor,
and will enrich himself at his expense if he
can. This known imperfection in human
nature, created the necessity for CoNsTI-
TUTIoNs. They were designed to protect the
minority and limit the action and restrict
the will of the majority of the government.
All Constitutional Governments are power
less outside of their Constitutions, and they
have no more right to the exercise OF author
| ltV not sduCCIOucu ny CuOeo luStl uu0uto Cuoh
single individual would have. This leads
US to the inquiry, where does sovereignty re-
side in our system of government 1t can
not reside in our Federal Government, be-
cause sovereignty means supreme power; the
highest power" and the Federal Government
being one of the limited powers-derivng
its existence from other powers, (be States)
it consequently cannot be possessed Of
sovereignty, because this would be reversing
the order of nature and making the thing
CREATED greater than the cREAToRs-it
would be divesting the parents of supreme
authority over their progeny and themselves
becoming subject to the rule of their chill
dren. Neither can sovereignty reside in the
people of the States as mass, as whole,
because this would not materially differ from
the government in consolidated form-the
majority, interpreting the 'Constittuion to
suit their own selfish interests, would com
bine and oppress the minority who, being
denied the right of selfgovernment would
have to sui NIT TO the oppression. If it had
been the intention of our fathers to frame
Federal Government, imbued with supreme
power, the facts would appear in the history
Of its formation. But no such evidences are
to be found. On the contrary, the reverse
of this appears on every page OF our early
history. The Declaration of Independence
declares that "These Colonies are and OF
right ought to be free and Independent
States" and Great Britain, in the act Of her
| J,:-:.L~r. as onthoy;tv over them rel