Newspapers / Roanoke Republican (Halifax, N.C.) / Dec. 20, 1832, edition 1 / Page 2
Part of Roanoke Republican (Halifax, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
PROCLAMATION BY ANDREW ACKSON President of the United State!. t Whereas a Convention assembled in ad -Ordinance, by which they declare "That the several acts ana pans i acis of the Congress of the United St rtes, purportingto ba iaws lor the imposing of duties and impost oh. the impof tation ol foreign commodities, and now having actual perali6h and effect vitbin th J U nrfd States, add more cspec.ally,, two acts, for the same purposes, passed on j the 29th oflay, 1828, and on the .4lu of July, 1 C32, "are unauthorized b; the Constitution of the United States, an J vi olate the tnie meaning and extent there- . it i j 'j '.) of, and are nun ana voia, ana no ww, noY binding on the citizens of that Sftate or its officers: and by the said Ordinance it 13 further declared to be unlawful for any ' of the constituted authoritius of the State, or of the United States, toenbrce the payment of the duties imposed b; the said acts within the same State, aod that it re the duty of the Legislature to pass such laws as may be necessary to give ioll effect to the said Ordinance: And whereas, by the said 'Ordinance it is further ordained, that in no case ol tew or equity, decided in tho cour s of said State, wherein shall be dravm in question -the validity of the said Ordi nance, or of -the acts -of tho . Lcgisl iture that may be passed to give it effect, or of ihe said laws of the United State; y no appeal shall be allotted to the Supreme Court of the Urihed States, nor shal any copy of the record 1e permitted or allow ed for that purpose and tbat any p jrson attempting to take such appeal sha 1 be punished ars forest contempt of court, j . And, finally, the said Ordinance de dares that, the people of South Carolina hazard; and that they will conside r the passage of any act by Congress abolish ing or closing the ports of the said state, or otherwise obstructing the free ingress or egress of vessels to and from the said ports, or any other act of the Federal Government to coeTce the stale, sh it up her ports, destroy or harass her com merce, ot to enforce the said acts c iher Tise than through the civil tnbun. Is of tho country, as inconsistent" with thr! lon ger, continuance of "South Caroli m in he Uoioo, and that tho people of the .said state will thenceforth hold thorn .selves absolved from all further obliga tion to maintainor preserue their politi cal connexion with the people of the "other stales, and wiii forthwith proceed to organize a senarate Government i and 4o all other acts and things which feove eign and independent states may ol right Io: And Whereas the said i Ordinance -prescribes to the people of South C roli- na a course ot conduct, in direct vio oftbeirdutv as cilizens of tho U kilted Slates, contrary to the laws of their conn-i try, subversive of its -constitution i trii! havinz fur its object the deftrucid L-n ol Union that Union, which, coeval our political existence, ieu our .t without apy other tics to unite them those ol patriotism and a common c through a sanguinary struggle to a oos independence that sacred Union, hitherto inviolate, which, perfected by our happy Constitution, has brought us; .by the favor of Heaven, to a state of consil Jera- lion abroad, rarely, if ever, equalled in the history of nations: J o preserve this bond of our political existence from des- truction. to maintaio inviolate this state . uf national' honor mid prosperity, and to justify the confidence my fellow-citizens have reposed in no, I, Andrew Jack son, President of the United 'States Jhavc thought proper to issue this my PROC LAMATION, stating my views of the Constitution and laws applicable! to the measures adopted by the Convent on of south Carolina, and to the reasons they have put forth to sustain, them, dec aring the course which duty will require me to pursue, aud, appealing to thej undtrstan- dicg and patriotism ot the people, ibti?, ol the consequences that must itaoly result from an observance c dictates of the Convention." t; . warn 4 mev- the "The Ordinance is founded, not c n the indefeasible right of resisting acts rhicb are plainly unconstitutional, and to op. pressivc to be endured, but o i the strange position that any one state may pol only declare an act of Congress void, 1 1 ft rKlVklt ilO A V A 1 I t. t 4 1 may dolhisconsistently with the Consti tution that the true construction of 1.-4 ! 4 ... 4 v.vBmaa m- t L' 4? iuui lusKuuiuiH 'ciu4t.a cimo iu retain its piacu in the Union, and yet be bound by no other of its Jaws tbao those it may chooso to consider as constitutional: ft is Ipmo (tinv that In met ifw t hic!aKj. J 44 WW, kUVJ 4W0 4444 W J ---.J 4 44. UUI V gation of a law, it must be palpably con. trary to the Constifution; but it evi dent, that to give the right of rcsbting 4 " . the uncontrolled right to decide what law's deserve that' character, is to give the power of resisting all laws. t For, as by the theory there is no appeal, the reasons alledged by the state, good or 1411 3 ll . 4UU4 UUaUH'IIUUi W-llfcU i 4-44 t hat public opinion is a .sufficient check i i' . r. . against! the abuse of this power, it- E&a? be asked why it is not deemed a suffi cient gtiardf against the passage of an UD' constitutional act by Congress. There is, however, a restraint in this last case, which Jmakes the assumed power ot a state more iodefeosible, and which does not exit mi the other. There are two appealjj from n eoconstitutioual act pas sed by JCoogress one to the Judiciary the other to thd -people and the states. There Its -no appeal from the state decis ion iot&eory; and the practical illustra tion shows that tne courts are closed a gainst an application to review it, both judges and Jurors being sworn to decide in its tavor,' Hut reasoning on mis sud ject is superfluous when our social com pact in express terois declares, that the laws of 'the United states, its Constitution, and treaties made under it, are the su preme law ef the land; and, for greater caution!, adds, "that the judges in every state shall ; be bound thereby, any thing iu the Constitution or laws of any state to the Contrary notwithstanding." r- And it may be asserted, without fear of refu tation, that no Federal Government could exist without a aimilar provision. Look for a; moment to the consequence. lfsoull Carolina considers the revenue laws unconstitutional, and has a ribt to prevent their execution in the port of Charleston there would be a clear con stitutional bbjection to their j collection in every d'-her port, and no revenue could be collected any where; for all imposts mnst be! equal. It is no abswer lo repeal that an unconstitutional law is no; law, so long nsthq question of its legality is to be decided by the state itsii; lor every law operating injuriously upon aoy local interestwill be perhaps thought, and cer tainly lepresctited, as unconstitutional, and, ha I ben shown, there is no appeal. If this; doctrine had been established at an eifrher day, the Union would have hfpn dissolved in it3 intancv. 1 he ex cise law in Pennsylvania. tiiO embargo and nod-inlcrcouse luw in the L'astern states, the carnage tax iu Virginia, were all deemed unconstitutional, and were nilire unequal in their .operation than any ol ttio laws now complained of; hut, fortunately, none' of those states dis covered! that they had the right now claimed Ibv south Carolina. The war iu- fn iiLir. li we unri; fofred. to SUPUCrt the 11 -. dignity f the nation and the rights of our 1 citizensmignt have ended in deleft, and disgrace! instead ol victory and honor, if the st&tes who supposed tl a ruinous and unconstitutional measure, had thought they possessed the lignt o( nullifying the act by wjiiich it was declared, and deny ing supplies for its prosecution. Hardly aud unequally as these measures hereup on several members ot (he Union, to the Legislatures of none did this efficient, and peaceable remedy, us it is- caiicd, suggest itself 'gL'be discovery of this iiutortant featereibour constitution was: reserved to the present day, To the sUtesineVoi south Carolina belongs the inve.-ition. and upon thf citizens of that state nil! uuior 1 1 p. j'.olvl fall the evils of rcduhnTiir it ic - j . - - 0 Prnct.ce V ' It thcl-hictrinc ol a sttc veto upon the uect. cvufiiatcd with indignation, nad it bucci proposed to form a feature in our Government. ' In out colonial state, although depen dant on'smothor power, we .very early considered ourselves as connected by common interest with each, other. Leagues were formed for common de fence, and. before the declaration on In dependence, we were known in our ag-! gregate pharacter as the united colo nies of America. That decisive ana im portant llep was taken jointly. We de clared odrselves a nation by a joint, net by several Jets: and when the terms of our confederation were reduced to form, it was in tliat of a solemn league of several states, bj which they agreed that they would, rallectively, form one nation for the purpose of conducting some certain domestic concerns, and all foreign rela tions. In the instrument forming that Union, is found an article which declares that "every state shall abide by the de terminations of Congress on all questions which bj that confederation should be submitted to them." ; Under the confederation, vthen, no State could legally annul a decission of the Cjongress, or refuse to submit to its execution; but no provision was made to enforce these decisions. Congress made requisition,' but they were not! complied with.; The Gov ernment; could not operate on iodivid uals. A hey had no judiciary, no meatrs of collecting revenue. ; But tie defects of the confederation need uojt be detailed. Ujider its ope ration, we could scarcely be called a nation, i We had neither prosperity at home nor consideration abroad. This state of things could not be endured, and our present happy constitution was forcrjed; but formed in vain, if this fatal docUnue prevails. It wiis form ed for important objects that are an nounced -in the preamble made in the j paws' of Jk4 Umva carriea with it inter er' j rial c('iiue oi lib irjiTrracticablc absurdi ''lan j ty our Jbriilitutioual history "will . also at au.-e. - . i . x- .i... :.! -i i i. - . lurti aouiniani preoi uiai u tvuuiu nave name and by the authority of tbe peo pie of the United btates,. wnose ccier gates framed, and whose conventions approved it. The most important a raong these objects, tliai which is pla ced first in rank, on which M the oth ers rest, is, "to form, a more perfect Union" Now is it possible that e. ven if there were no express provision civintr supremacy to the constitution and laws of - the United.! States over those of the States it can be conceived, that an instrument made for the jnir pose oiforming a more perfect Union' than that of the confederation, could be so constructed by the assembled wisdom of our country as to substitute for that confederation a form of goyer ment dependent for its existence on the focal interest, the party spirit of a State or, of a prevailing action in a State? Every man of plain unsophis ticated understanding, who hears ihe question, will give such an answer as will preserve the Union. Metapbysi- 1 cal subtlety, in purstiit of an impracti- cable theory, could alone have . devis ed one that is calculaied to destroy it- I cousidr then, the power to annul a law of the United States assumed j by one State, incompatible tcith the ex istence of the Union, contradicted ex pressly by the letter of the Consitu lion, unauthorized by its spirit , incon sistent with etcry principle on which it teas' founded, and destructive oftkc great object for which it was founded. This right to secede is deduced from the nature of the Constitution, ivhich, they say is a compact between sovereign States, who have preserved their whole sovereiguty, and. therefore, are subject to no superior; that because they made jthe compact, they can break it when, in their opinion, it has been departed from by ine oiuer ciutcs. raiLiiuus as mis conrse of reasoning it ehli3t State pride, and finds advocates in the lionst prejudices of those who have not studied the nature of our government sufficient ly to see the radical error.on which ut rests. '. ' j : The people of the United States formed the Constitution acting through. the State Legislatures! in making the compact, to meet and discuss its provi ions, and acting in separate conventions when they ret ified those4ro visions;) but the terms used in its construction, show it to be a government in which the peo pie of all the states collectively are rep resented. We are one people in Jthe choice ofthc President and Vice Presi dent. Here the states have no other a gency than to direct the mode iu which the votes shall be given. The condid ates having a majority of all the votes arts choseu. The electors of a majority of states may have given their votes t for one candidate.) and yet another bo cho sen. Ihe people, then, anil not Jthe states, are represented in the. nxecutivc branch. In the House of Represcr:lativ.as there is this diilerence, thai the pooplo of one stale do not, n to tho case of .President; and Vice President, at. vote ior the siting officers. 'The eopis of thcl'slr.'tds do net vote lor a!! the Oicmbdrs, -each si ale electing only ' its own, representatives; But this creates no material distinction.: When 'choSen they are all representatjves of the j United, states, not representatives of the particular state from which 'they come. I They are paid by the United states, not by the state; hor are they countable to it for any act done in ac the performance of their legislative func- tioas; aud, however may in practice, as it is their duty to do. consult aiul prefer 'the interests of their particular constituents when they come in conflict with any oth er partial or local interest, yet jt is their iirst and highest duty, as representatives of the United states, to promote the gen eral good. . I! -I J The Constitution of the United states, then forms a, government , not a league; and whether it be formed by compact be tween states, or in any other manner; its character is the same, it is a govern ment in which all the people are repre sented, which operates directly on the people individually, not upon the states; they retained ail the power they did 'not grant. But each state! having expressly parted with so many powers as to consti tute jointly with the other statas a single Nation, cannot from that period possess any right to secede because; ruch seces sion does not break a league, but des troys the unity of a nation;' and any injury to that unity is not only a breach which would result Xrom the contravention of a compact, but it is an offence against jthe Wttnl right, but would paoso before they made a revolution, or incur the penalties conse quent on a failure. r j Because the Union was formed by com pact, it is said the parties to that compact mav. when they feel lhemseives a ag grieved, depart from jl: hut it is precisely becanse it is a compact they cannot. I A j compact is an agrement or binding obli- Titmn it mav, hv its terms, nave a sanction or penalty for its breach, or it may hot. If it contaips no sanction, it may be broken with no other conse quence than moral uilt: if it have a saisc tion. then the breach incurs the designa ted or implied penalty. A league be tween independent nations, generalry, has no sanction other than a moral one; or it should contain a penalty, there! is no common superior, it caunoi be enfor ced. A -Government on the coulrary, always has a sanction, express or implied, and in our case, it is both necessarily im plied and expressly given. Au attempt by force of arms to desrroy a Uovern ment, is an olleuce, by whatever means the, constitutional compact may &ya been formed; and such Government- hue ;h tig lit by the law of self defence io pass .iCts for punishing the offender unlss that right is moditied, restrained, or resunfeu, by the censtilutional act In onr system, although it is modified in the case of treason, yet authority is expressly given to pass all laws necessary to carry its pow ers into effect; under this great provision has been made for punishing acts which obstruct the due administration of the laws, j ;- !- - It seem superfluous to add. any thing to show the nature of that Union which connects us; but as erroneous opinions i u this subject are the foundation of doc trines the most destructive to our peace,! 1 must give some further develcpemeui to my views on this subject. 40 one fel low citzens, has a higher reverence ibr the reserved rights of the states than tbw Magistrate who now addresses you; So one would make greater personal sacri lices, or official exertions to defend them from violatiou; but equal care must I be taken to prevent on their part an improp er inference with or resumption of ii rights they have vested in the nation. The line, has not been so distinctly drawn as to aviod doubts in some ca ses of the exercise power. iVIen j of the best intentions aud soundest views may differ in their construction of some parts of the Constitution: but there are others cn which 'dispassion ate reflection can -leave no doubt; Of this nature appears to be the assum ed right of secession. It rests, as We have seen, on the alleged undivided sovreignty of the States, arid on their having formed in this sovereign cajia; city a compact which "is called the Constitution, from which, because they I made it. thev have tlie rirht tr, - . " . "O ---""--V.'-4 iioth of these positions are, erroneous, and some of . the arguments to prdvo j tlieni so, nave oeea anticipated. ! The States severally have no? re taiiied their entire so voreigrYiV:- it has been shown that in becoming Tigris I of a nation, not members of a leag ue, they surrendered many of their essential parts of sovereignty. The right 'to make treaties -declare war levy tax es exercise exclusive judicial and le gislative powers were ail of them func tions of sovereign power. The, States, then, for all these inportant purposes, were no longer sovereign. The alle giance of their citizens was transferred, in the first instance, to the Government of the United States thev became American citizens, and owed obedience to the Constitution of the United States, and to laws made in conformity with the powers it vested in Congress This last position has not been, and cannot be denied. How then can that State be said to be sovereign and in dependent, whose citizens owe obedi ence to laws not made by it, and whose magistrates are sworn to disregard those laws ? when they come in conflict with those passed by another? What shows conclusively that the StatQacaTi uot be said to have reserved an .undi vided sovereignty, is, that they express ly ceded the right to punish treason not treason against their seperate powerbut treason against the Uni ted States, j Treason is an offence a gainst sovereignty, and sovereignty most resfde with the power lo punish it. But the reserved rights of the States are not less sacred, because they have for their 1 common interest made the Gennral Government the depository of these powers The unity of our political character as has been shown for another purpose commenced with its very evistence. . Under the Royal Government we had no separate char acter our oppositson to its oppres-j were the United States under the con- ederatton, and the name was perpetu- j ated, and the Union rendered more perfect, Jy the Federal Constitqucn-j In uonc of these stages did we consiir er ourselves in any other light than forming cue, nation. Treaties, and alliances were made in the name of atr Troops were raised Ibr the joint dc fence. How, then, with- all tHt proofs, that under all changes of onr position we had, for designated pUr. poses and with defined powers, create National Uovernmehts how is it that the most perfect of these several modes of union should now. be considered a a mere league, that may be dissolved at pleasure It is from ah abuse if terms. Compact is used as' synonv mdus with league, although the trua term is not employed, because it would at once show the fallacy of reasoning. It would not do to that our Constitution was only a league; but it is labored to prove it d compact, which inoue sense it isl and then to argue that a league is a com pact, every compact between nations must of course be a league, and ! thai from such an argument every sovev reign power has a right to secede But it has-been shown, that in thi$ sense the States are not sovereign, and that even if they were, and the" Nation al Constitution had been formed by compact, there would be no right in H- ny one State to exonerate itself from its obligations. So obvious are the reasons winch forbid this secession, that it isneeesb ry only to allude to them. The UniorK was formed for the benefit of a!' 1 was produced by mutual sacrifices of interests and opinions. Can those sacrifices be recalled? Can the States who magnanimously surrendered their title to' the Territories of the West, re call the grant? Will th inhabitants of the inland States agree to pay the duties that may be imposed without their assent by those on the Atlantic or theGulf, for their ovn benefit? Should there" be a free port in one State, atld enormous do ties in another No one believes that any right exists in a single State to involve all the others in these and roi:;tless ether evils, contrary to the eneapmctu solemiilv made. Every one mast see thai the other States, io self-defence, mast on- pose at an li-a rds." Leg-tslaturs of N. -.CdroUntf: -': , ;: :t. ! ! -: . .Vojidcv, Dec. 1 (J, 1 322. ' In Senate Xf)S eDgressei! kiU to . corporate ' 'the'- toil:- nX Neck Guards was read the third" time ad ordered tc bo carolled. Go motion -ef: IMt,. Mar tin, U;v.Bcnaie wenl into committee of -the whole, Mr. Wibon in the Chair, on the iiilfto establish the Bank oi North Carc'i 12 and after some lime spent therein, tho Speaker resumed the Chair, and Mr. w ilson reported the Jiill with amend ments, and recommended Its passage". On motion of Mr. Wilson the further consideration of the Bill was postponed until Wednesday. V House of CoM5fojrs: Mr. O'Brica presented the petition of the President d-c of the Portsmouth and Koanoke Rail Road, company, asking the passage of an act authorizing the extension of their contemplated road within the !io?;' of tnis State. Mr. Shepard presenfei1 a Bill concerning charities. .Provides that w here a bequest is made for charita ble purposes, the persons to whom it is confided shall render a full account of the property so bequeathed to the Clerks .ot" the County-Court. Provides a remedy, also where such property may be mis managed. .. Mr. Gary presented a IWi, supplemoutary to an Act to enact vvith sundry alterations and additions, n Act to incorporate the Petersburg Rail Road Company. , Mr, Guthrie present ed a Bill to authorize County Courts to licecse slaves to preach, pray and eXort in ruc lie, in certain cases. Tuesday Dec. II. Ik Sekaxe- Mr. .Mr. L,athao urescn ted a Bill to incorporate tho . Wiihasisoa and Windsor Turnpike Corapanyi Mr-.-Wilson, from the committee of 1'inancei made a detailed and satisfactory report" on the State and, condition of the finances and the accounts of the Treasurer aD! Comptroller House of Commons The Bill to rfV peal an Act passed in 1830, to prohibit" the circulation in this State of notes ol other States, under the denomination of rive dollars, having been read a seccni time, considerable debate eosued-o3 motion of Mr. Shepard, the bill vvas ia definitely pottponed, by a vote of 70 to 54. ' 1 ' , Wednesday, Die. Is Senate Daniel N. Bateman, ator from Tyrrell, appeared and look nI; seat. Severed petitions were .rec,veu and referred to appropriate Coniaiitte Suodry private s bills were presecteu read the first time and passed. , House or Commons Thrj engross bilj; to cxemnt Qqakcrs &x. from t-e
Roanoke Republican (Halifax, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Dec. 20, 1832, edition 1
2
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75