{ title: 'Herkimer Democrat. (Herkimer, N.Y.) 1877-1904, February 28, 1877, Page 1, Image 1', download_links: [ { link: 'http://www.loc.gov/rss/ndnp/ndnp.xml', label: 'application/rss+xml', meta: 'News about NYS Historic Newspapers - RSS Feed', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031098/1877-02-28/ed-1/seq-1/png/', label: 'image/png', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031098/1877-02-28/ed-1/seq-1.pdf', label: 'application/pdf', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031098/1877-02-28/ed-1/seq-1/ocr.xml', label: 'application/xml', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031098/1877-02-28/ed-1/seq-1/ocr.txt', label: 'text/plain', meta: '', }, ] }
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discontinued» cept a t the option of the pnbhshets. BATES OE ADVERXISINS: One square- on* week -------- - ---------- - One aquar Keeb..... ------ 4 uare»two Onesitoftre, three we( One square, onemont One square, two months.. One square, three nlonths. One square, six montiis.— One square, one year„.~.. (,TWMX,rM niHKS stin] inn a. sQtrxnx.) will be made to those fear, for any greater S ^ C L U d ^ T I £ l ^ . B B M O ^ S O F Y O U C T : , A G E N T L E M A N who eaffered for years from Neryous Debility, Premature De cay, and all the effects of youthful indiscretion will, fW the sake o f suffering hunuatUy. send free to all who need it. the redipe &«» direction fo r m a k in g t h e sim p le rem e d y by w h ieh h e w as cured. Sufferers wishing to profit by adTertiwr a experience can. do so by addressing in perfeat confideu|^ B. OGIDEK. 42 Cedar st.. New York. deo27m5 T O C O U S U M P T I T B S . T h e ad v e r t is e r , h a v i n g been pernaa-. teed, of that dreaAdkea8«, Ceatamptioii, pie remedy, is anxious to make known _ __ low sufferers the means o f core. To all desire it. he will send a copy oftha P^e- soription used, (freeof o h artO.^iththe direc- tions for preparing and using the same, wmeh they will find a subs C ub * for CoSsuicPTioif, A sthma ,. B eonchitis , A c . Parties wishing the prescription will please A. WILSON 194 Penn St., WaVVilliamshurgh, dec27m6 New York. j A . l i B O T X J F i B T O Y O U N G M E N , Just Published, in a Envelope. Prici six A LECTURE on the Nature, Treats -tJL ment, and Radical cure o f Seminal \Weak ness, or Spermatorrhoea, induced by Self-Abuse, Inroluntary Emissions. Impotenoy. Nervous I>ebil:Hy» and [arriata i:aBar* d-Bitsx MenM ---------------- incapacity, AC.\*Dy ROBERT J. Ctn,\VER\iyEriL, ai. D., author o f the •‘Green B0Ok,” &C. . ! The world Xtoctnre. w.,— that the awfiil consequences of Self-Abuse may be effectually removed without medicine, and without dangerous surgical operations, bougies, instalments, rings, or cordials; pointing out’« mode of cure at once certain and effectual, b which every sufferer, no matter what his condi tion may bo. may cure himself cheaply, private- ^^^~M is^^ture leillprove a boon to thousands and thousanas. Sent, under seal, in a plain envelope, to any address, on receipt of six cents, or two postage stamps. ! Address the Publishers. THE CULVEBWELL HEDIGM. C0.| d l Ann Street, N ew VorlE. Post Office Box. 45SR. octllyl i S U C M S S ^ ▼ B S m i r B . The great success of Tegetiae in curing such diseases as Scrofula, inherited In the blood, to-' gether with the increasing demand of the modi- fOLUMl IXIYl. S E R K I M E R , W E D N E S D A Y E E B B T J A B Y ^ 8 , 1 8 7 7 . m n t f B E E m . ms mowmo^ ms ooiri^m y . tio i r os* THE H H I w STATfiS* Lecture BeliY^ed Eefoxe the Clau in Civil Gova^smeat e f Semi* mtxy, Thxirsday^ Svcuiiiigt.Fehiiia- r7lS.1877,.1^j:.11. He&derion, ofjlerkimer. itcted a s * ,k ia i^ o f Sen&tisi;ox «J>P^r liouse; audi(h 0 t]k^^qaiMio& authorized the Ooverhor to ceUTen® .i^emhliea composed o f representatives elected by the people or freeholders. 'Ihfs Gov ern meut made Ideal lAwa, subject to the ratification or disaprovat of the crown. -The, Governor eatoblished pourte, and. had ppptral o f the general machinery of ideal governndent.' - Maryland, iPennsykAmii and Delil* ware, were proprietary governments asicttdal principalitiea in which th® several proprietors to whom these The subject which I have chosen this evening, is “ The Growth ol the Constitution o f the United Statei.” It is a theme which I can not hop® tpT satb&ceorily elncidate in the iimite of a single lecture, and i f I shall call its #«d y the attau^on of these Colonies had W o granted, appointed- finally prevailed'; but, Congress had tion, that they famished a govern ment too weak to last. For a long time the claims o f cer tain States to all the western territory, was an insuperahl® obstacle to Union, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, the -CaroUnas and Georgia, claimed everything lying west of them be tween th e ir North and South lines re spectively,' clear through to tho Pa cific Oeeso. The other Colonies thought that all those unexplored regions puaht to be the common ter ritory o f-the Republic; and this idea students so tharthey will taW it dp- Goyemorg established GdVeni: and pum®'i6 whi»® 1 leava^lt, I fbali have done ail that I hope to n®com- plisb, -StufimtSy you'*are Americans. You expect t® be educated Americans, and every Amerrcan who wishes to ex ercise intelligently the sacred priv ileges of citizenship, should study an^ . understand as well as' he has opporj- tunity, the fundamental law of hi^ country, its growth and history. * | Now i f you were to plant an acoroi then water and watch it ’ until *di sprang through the ‘ground, first a tender shoot, then a weak-sapling, an<^ finally became a great tree, whos^ branches spread over the land and shadow, you would say ** How great has the little acorn grown.” . Like the growth o f the acorn, has been the development of our Consti tution. I The seeds of civil liberty planted id our soil by the first English settlersj sprang up and gave us at first weak' colonies, then strons States; and fin-j ally a Union, and Constitution which covers the land from Gulf to Lakej from sea to monutaiu top, from mouh«| tain top to sea again. B u t perhaps some o f you w ill say,i W e can understand this comparison iU' ments. The laws ol these proprietary ' governments were subject to the ap proval of the Crown; except in LorjJ Baitimore’e province of Maryland, which seems to have been a peculiar ly favored focaiity from the time , when the ^om an Catholic settlers first proclafnied' the toleration of all i^eligions,' down to the day when James Gordon . Bennett and Fred. M ay fought on her soil that bloody duel in which neither was hurt. ' Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, had c a r ter governments. In Msiaoliusetta the Governor was ap pointed by the.crown, hut the .Council were annually chosen b^ f he generajl Assembly; and the Assembly by the -people.- The laws -passed, were not allowed to conflict with the laws of Ehgand. Tn Connecticut and Bhwie Island, the people chose their own GoVeriior must build jp.their owp ; and ;d8^ d j tbamrolves ^fwmither rsav the of . « oowritton _Coo«ito4 tiOD, lika that o f the Britiih Empiie.l : f \Aj' r-. mr%-sn n mmrn^ —.\W ' mm Z-i tried many of ijie Icaown remedies; And, After trying tlie V egetente , tlie common remark is, “ It acts differently, works differently, from any anedicirie Xxav©vrer I e tsken-** VEGjgyjLKE will cleanse Scrofula from the system. Try it. Unprecedented Merit. B oston , Jan. 1st, 18TS. H. R. S tevens , Esq.— ^Dear Sir: Eor many years I have teen afflicted vsitli almmor in tijo Wood tvhich linaUy developed into Scald Kead, and only those who are similarly Afilicted can realize the disagreeable suffering one is com pelled to endure with this complaint. Fora longtime my head was in a dreadful condition, T—sedvariotL. -^rious kinds of remedies and medi peciall « » . t h . Wo knowl not was an a li^ p ^ t p S ^ s ^ v e and deien- 1 u some of which wap espe< . . . I got no better,—indeed, constantly groi the surface of my head being entirely _ _____ with sores of the most aggravated nature. Thi* was my condition when Icoinmencedtakingtbo . V egetike , which I am pleased to inform you and the pu 0 lic(if you choose to makeit public), has made a complete and satisfactory cure of my disease; and 1 shall always deem it a great pleasure to menti< ' - - - - VEGEXINE. 1 1’l 338 Fourth street, SoutiTBoitrair lly prepared for instantly grow won^ perfect many re _____ , elusive proof, i£ id? \Why is 'ou are a sufferer, yon can b# his medicine performing such . works in the blood, m th» Seventy-on© Y e a r s o f Age- ^ E ast MAitSHFiEim, Aug. 22,187ft.' IVTSo S tevens ,—Bear Sir: X am aweuty-one years of age; have suffered many ywrt with Ridney Complaint, weaknesa in. my back, mid atGinacli* 1 was intoced by friend# to try Toor VsGBTiKSy and I tMnk it is the best laedibiMo for weakness of tbe kidneys 1 ever need. I have tried many remedies for this compliant, and never found so much relief as from the V egetinb . It strengthens and znTigorates tho \Whole system. Many of my acquaintances hare taken it, and I believe it to be good for all tha complaints tor which i t is recommended. Yours truly, dOSI.AH S . SHEBMAN. Reliable Evidence. Mit. Hr. R. S tevens ,— Dear Sir: -I will most cheerfully add my testimony to' the great num ber you have already received in favor of-your great and good medicine, \V egetine , for X do not think enough can he said in its praise, for I was troubled over SO years with that dreadful disease. Catarrh, and bad such had coughing tat it would seem aa .. •eath any more, and VB ' ■ do feel to thank ich had coughing s tboug^_neTOr cured me, and 1 do feel to thank God A ll __ time that there is so good a medicine aa V sgb - INB, and I also think it one of the host best medicine M rs , ii, GORE, Cor. msgazine and \Walnntats. Gamhiidge, Mine. Appreciatlon- C hablestowk , Mass., March 19,1869. H. R. S tevens ,—Dear Sir; ThisJatocertifv that I Lave used your “ Blood Freparattem*’ <V eoetine ) in my family for seventl years, and I think that for Scrofula and Cankerous Hu mors or Rheumatic Affections it cannot ho ex celled; and as a Blood Purifier and spring medi- icine it is the best thing I have aver used, a n d l have used almost everything. 3 can c h e t o ^ y recommend it to any one in need of such a medicine. Yours respectfully, Mas. A. A. 35INSMOKB, _____ IDEUfWUlfrWt. PHEPABEQ BY H. B. STEVENS, BOSTON, MASI. Vegefine is Sold by M reWw4 ECOfiOKIY LEADS TO WEALTH JOHN W. BROWN \W OULD respectfiilly inform the .» L a d ies a n d Q ehtlem o n : o f H a r k im e r a n d Tioinity.thatfiftyperoentoan be saved bypat- ronizinghig Steam D y e in g aad Cleaning 2SST-ALBI-S3BOkt3E{3Nr^r. Ladies gill Gloves, Fes oleanedi n e t bey< >.9 John St. r.. near tha Danot. McKown & Co. DEALERS I f t L O O K I N G G L A S S E S PORTRAIT'. PHOTOaRAPH AND PICTURE FRAMES, GX1.X AN3B ROSK\W0O3> M O tiL H I N S . b a o k s t h f ? , * * . » r o o & JSfreaf* x j r r x c f ^ , asr. EVERYDESCEIPTIONovlRijyEgSJtE-GlLT . W.J.MoKOWIf. JQSlfMmmjKAN. maarmti We can see hpw each an instrument^ is thb changeT whidti tba Saxoos ®ndl ib® Normftus nidde, W® bav®-resd how M agna Gharta was obtained, and! how the SarrODs contested for free-| Jom. with King. J ohn. But how can* a written Caoatitutioa grow? Its' , , .-..i,-,-.i , ,, terms are fixed, and must remain the' f same; except as it is from time to! time, changed by tbe Supreme lav? making power. However, written Constitutions do ! grow. They grow iu additions and) ameadments; and they grow in judic- i ial interpretations and executive pre-1 cedents ; andr \besides their original i shape is a growth as much as the I tree is & growth; and it is of this' growth principally^f which I pur pose to speak to-night. Time will permit me only to sketch tbe subject for an exhaustive article would re quire careful comment on every clause of the Constitution ItseU, its separate history, and the way it has been interpreted by our highest courts and executive authority. Now commencing with first princi ples, let us glance at Colonial H is tory ; for i t was during the Gulouial period that the acorn was planted; that the shoot sprang up; that the sap ling grew. The early settlers o f America were adventurous men; men who took their lives in their hands, and went out in search of treasure; of religious liberty; of homes fur themselves and their families; where they might en joy the privile|fes of freemen. Most of the French, German, and other emigrants from the Contineht of JBufope, fled either from religious per secution, or a condition o f poverty and misery, unknown in modern civi lization. The ancestors of the now wealthy Palatine families o f the Mo hawk Valley, were sold for their passage money; and .many of them died on the voyage after their arrival of sheer starvation. The Irish who came to Am erica,-sought relief from the oppression o f their Eoglish Iflihfilordi; «ad the J^oglish settleRi had all seen the battles ©f the people against kingly power, fought on English soil; and knew that the rights o f Eogliihmen ware tbe rights of Freemen. The Puritans of Naw B a g land, the. H o llanders o f N e w York, the ^ uakeri_of Pennijlvania, the Roman Catbolica of Maryland, the Fp^opalians of Virginia, the Huguenots and other adventurers of the Oaroliau And Georgli, produced a people o f varied habits, ideas and interests; and among the IB colonies, there were eidahlhshed three dittinci kinds of government.. New H a m ^ shire, New Y o A , New Jersey^ Vir ginia. The Chirolinmi and Georgia were Dtovincet, iovhm®d; hy Com- M'lMioai*. T h m Cowaiwloai w m u s u a l ^ in ow e fo m i , a p p o f u t t o g G o v e r n o r as the King’s Representa t i v e ; o r d e p u t y w h o wst» to^ J>» goyt- em edl>yth®^yal|»ttruetioni. The crown a lw appointed a Council, who levied war; appointed a commander- Id-chief; aderpted tho declaration o f in dependence ; and the contest was more than half over before the articles of OonfederationVere even agreed to, they were not prepared or adopted by Con gress until iffovvember^ 1 7 7 7 ; not sign ed or ratified by any of the States until July, 1778; and not by Maryland, which was the last, until 1781. This union grew out o f the exigencies of the times, and while the Statesmen who formed the first plan of Govern ment, no doubt, thought that they were building for future generations and all time to, come, the edifice which they actually erected, tumbled to pieces of its own weight before the rafters and roof boards had been pot Let us as briefly- as possible, ex amine tho proviBiomruf thu^Ttiolcs o f Confederation, for they were the foundation of our Constitution, and the form put of which that C®nstitu- tion grew into its present shape. 1st. The style of the Confederacy was to be U. S. of America. 2d. Each State retained its sover eignty, freedom and independence, and every power and right which was not expressly delegated to the U. S. 3d. The o yect of the Confederation was for their mutual defence tbe se- curity of their liberties and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to aisisbeach other against all force offered to or attacks made upon them, or. any o f tbem, on ac count o f religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other pretence whatever. 4tb. In determining all questions in poured Jiis money into the empty S'®* ^o^ntries. Is it strao^ atfall Under these circd3^ n £ d s ^ fii£ the people e s t a ^ l ^ U f i p ; i^ v e p i ^ i ^ , and thfttr tbe infant Colonies f e u j ^ i f bH to ^ A oS -G u M w f t e k ftid W o f li.. .H im . '» exfefiit o f tertitbry. A t its 'dlosej th$\'HdM&--Goyeram^nt. embs^^^^ r m M m M m t thejpici^;|r^!)lbl« f^uit in the shaj^e Qf StftffiP.?d«tieSiand, ta;^^.^rt)yuk^ toft,Cq|onjiate,W ^.wUlfh^ to'lkht flig;M d U6 dispo- s a s s a s s s s a “« i s s ? , a s , ; s Ti^®. several Cofigres'ses . « | b wefe k m bffoffi the actual ,lfr ^ t j g ; 4 u t pf hbstUMte weakened ,#M id the , minde ofj;thpij^bplje>for'the Declara- tion of. Independisnbo, and the■ akist- .aa..whiph .England was engaged, furnished a for the Revolution. I f^ k ln k h a c k now, the pedple who jP Ckin^W assembled at Fhiladel- pkia, declared themselves free and in- jdependeni, aeem but a handful of men; the .bailies o f the Revolution ibut a serles o f skirmishes, but to our fi^T a ti^lisikw g inuinehfobdy war| jWa^ Whfclixhfned homes and desolat- jed hearthstones; vrarsuchas we have i^ver sten wace, and I pray God may never see again. A s m ^ ^ t hitvft b i ^ etpeeted, the fi»UGk»wrnDiiot o f the a®w XJuiim modeled perhaps Mter theConfeder- aejr X have before mentioned, was a weak aflBtir. , The ^ v e r a l Colonies |wi^e very je^looS of their rights as States i« the new Government.— terferenqi^in its internal concerns;and whild the articles of ^nfederatfbn we^^litehded a ; evprmsed therein, to «^»ou ” it hecauie apparent very soon after their adop< Congress, each State was to have one' 5th. Each State was to maintain its own delegates. 6th. The free inhabitants of each State—Paupers, Vagahondaand Fugi tives from justice excepted—were to be entitled to all tbe privileges and immunities o f free citizens in the sev eral States. 7th. All Fugitives from justice from one State into another, were to be delivered up on demand. 8th. F a ll faith and credit were to be given to the records o f each State in all the others. 9tb. Congress was to grant no title of nobility. 10th. N o person hulding any office was to receive a present from a foreign power. llth , No State was to form any agreement or make any alliance with a foreign power without the consent ofCoDgresB, , i2tfa. Ho two or more States were to form any alliance without the like consent, 13th. No State was to keep ships of war or an army in time of peace, without the like consent of Congress; but each State was to keep a well dis ciplined militia and munitions o f war. 14th. N o State was to lay any duty upon imports. 15tb. N o Statowas to issues letters o f maxque or engage in war, except to repel invasion. 16th, Each State was to raise and officer the quota of land forces re quired of it by Congress. 17th. Each State was to levy and raise the quota of tax required by Congress. 18tb. The faith of all tbe States was pledged to pay all th e bills o f credit emitted or money borrowed on their joint account by Congress. 10th. Canada was to be admitted if sha desired. 20th. Each State was to abide by the determination of all the States in Coo|j;re88, assembled on a ll questions which by the JConfederation were sub mitted to them. The articles o f Con- f^eration were to be inviolably ob served by every State, and the Union was to be perpetual, and no article of the Qonfederatiou yfu to, he altered without the consent o f every State. Among the powers delegated by each o f the States to the General Gov- ment were : _ 1st- The sole and exclusive power to declare war. 2d. T® send and receive ambassa’ 3d. To make ireaiiea. 4th. To jiiablilh ru!eifor®aptarei. 0th. To grant letters o f Marque and ^epriiah fitb. To appoint courts for trial of FiracleS and other crimes. 7 th., To decide questions o f disputes between tbe States. 8th« To coin money and regulate its value. 0th. To fix the standards o f weights and m ^ u r e e . lOtb. To regulate trade with the Indiana. llth . To establish Post Offices and Routes. 12th. To appoint a l l officers, except Regimentals of the land-forces. 13th. To appoint all Naval officers. I4th. To make rules for the Gov ernment o f laud and Naval torcKi. l5th. To appropriate and. apply public money for the public expense, the common defence, and the general welfare. 16th, To borrow money and emit bills o f credit. 17th. To build and equip a Navy. 18th. To agteC upon the number o f land forces, and fix the quotas o f the several States in proportion to the number o f white inhabitants o f each State. It will be seen by a glance at these numerons provisions that they cover nearly a ll tbe ground o f the Constitu tion, and were most admirable in the ory, but in execution they were a com plete failure. But Cfohgress had no power to compel obedience to its re quisitions. It could declare every thing, enforce irotIilug^;\it'eQuia^'c^T for soldiers, bat coaid not bring them; it could levy taxes, bat could not col lect them ; it could, like many per sons now-a-days, make notes and emit bills of credit, but could not pay them; it could call upon the several States, but could not reach tbe indi vidual cUizens. - Statea grew negli gent, and soon fell behind in their quotas o f men and money. The con< tinentel money issued by Congress be came worthless, almost as soon as it was printed ; and had it not been for the private fortune of Robert Morris, the government would have been stranded. Xiet.us stop here for a mo ment to pay tribute to the memory o f the great financier nf the Eevolntion. Whilefithers fooght upon tbe field, be EteaStfry of the -Republic.' H e bor rowed large sums for the government on his personal credit. H e issued his own notes to the amonnt of $1,400,000. to supply the army that defeated Cornwallis and ended the war; and finally, after freedom bad been won, he died a pauper in prison for debt. One o f the greatest and best men this country ever prodneeu. The absolute feebleness o f tbe Goy* ermnent o f the confederacy is demon strated by tbe fact that the entire ar my under tbe control of Congress, af ter the War, was reduced at one time to 80 men. The States did not even maintain their delegates in Congress, and i t was often difficult to get a quo rum. in vain Congress urged upon the States the neoeisity of giving it power te pass some general tariff and revenne laws. In yain -it r^ o lved h a t Its worthleto paper money “ o u g h t to be received i n paym ent o f all debts.” Commencing with au is sue o f three millfoua o f d o llars, i t had gone on printing money until the whole issue amonnted to the enormous sum of upwards of^tbree hundred millions. In 1780 an attempt was made to redeem the\ continental mon ey at tbe rate of ■ $1.00 in silver to $40 in paper, but shortly eveu this scheme was almndoned, and the paper money quietly died in the bands of its holders. Mr. Story regards the provision in our preeeui Coustituiiou that no State. “ shall emit bills of credit, coin mon ey, or make anything but .gold and silver a legal tender in payment of debts,” as one o f the beet features of the law I and the authors o f The Fed^f eraiist said of it, This prohibition must give pleasure to every citizen in proportion to his love o f justice, and his knowledge of the true springs of prosperity.” It is well now when m®® talk So flippantly of more money and of ex panding tbe curremy ta m U tbe needs cf trade, for ns to consider that exper iment in making money out o f pictur? ed paper which was tried |tnder the Continental CoogreBs, and Which proved such a signal and disgraceful failure. XJoable to create a revennei unable tofolfill the provisions of the treaty of Peace with R n g land, unable to awaken from selfish indifference, the L^itlatures of the several states, with a hankropt treasury and powerless offi cials, the helpltes Gokernihfht ilrog- gled on toite end. In FebfUii’y, lt87, Congress paos^ a resolatioti; calling n>r K. cmaxeutieis of 2>elegttt€Br,-to as- aemhle a t Philadelphia the firilt Mon- diy in May, fof the purpoiw of revis* ing_theartioIes of Oonfederatmn, such revision tube snbmitted to CongreM and tha l^giriatures of the several States. Several conventions had pre viously been held, at which delegates from & few of the Stat^ had been present to take into consideration measures for the relief o f trade, and other subjects o f interest; bat at this convffiltion all of the StatoEi except Rhode Island were represented, Neither Mr. Madison, whqeeems to have been the originator o f the move ment, and who, on that account, is called tbe Father of the Oohstiturion, nor any of the other then statesmen contemplated a radical revolution in the Government, and Jefferson was undoubtedly the first to suggest the idea of the present-form. In a letter written from Paris to Me. Madison, Decem ber 16th, 1786, he says: “ I find by the public papers that your Commer cial Gonrention failed in point of rep resentation. I f it should produce a full meeting and a broader reforma tion, it will still be w e ll; to make ns onenation asto Foreign concerns, and keep distinct in domestic ones, gives the outline o f the proper division of powers between the general and par ticular governments. But to enable the Federal head to exercise the pow ers given it to best advantage, it should be organized as the particular ones are, into Legislative, [Executive, and Judiciary. The first and last are already separated; the second should be. When last with Congress I often ~ptirpoaeU'~To~mem bars' to do this, by making of the Government o f States an executive committee, during the recess of Congr^s, and, during its session, to appoint a committee to re ceive and dispatch all Executive busi ness, so that Congress itself should meddle only with what should be Leg islative. But I question i f any Con gress, much less, all successively, can baveself-deolal enough to go through with this distribntion ; the distriba- tion then sbonld be imposed on tbein.^’ As this plan was afterwads worked out, Jeffemon'g idea seems crude; but of all the Statesmen in this country, none have excelled him.in grasp of political thought, and a thorough un- deretsudiug pftb® prinmples of bwt man government. A n d w h ile owing to his absence in Europe, their^m ers n f the constltutioa iwcrer-depri^)^ of his assistaoce, they, no doubt, profited largely by his advice. However, its adoption did not at first meet his full approval. H e wrote “ that he did not know whether the good or bad predom inated in the instrument, and some por tions staggered himbut afterward# he formed .a more favorable opinion. The work of the Convention was long and arduous, abd inatekd Of a re vision of the arttcles of confederation, the Government was entirely revolu tionized. Had Mr. Hamilton's ideas prevailed, the Revolution would have gone farther. The central Government would have been made stronger, and State lines would have been practically obliterated. The people immediately,divided in to parties, those favorable to tbe newdonstitution beiUg called Federal ists, and those opposed afterwards took the name of Republicans Hemqorats. A. very able pam p h let W5as issued called 'The Federalist, e x plaining and defining the provisions of the Constitution, which pamphlet was edited jointly by Madison, Jay and Hamilton, The proposed change of Govern ment met with great opposition. Of the delegates in the convention, on|y two from each of the States of New. Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecti cut, Virginia and Georgia signed the instrument, while Hamilton alone signed from New York. The struggle in come of the State Conventions was bitter indeed. In Virginia, Patrick Henry opposed the Constitution with all tha force of his wonderful elo quence. In New York, Hamilton carried the measure through ou a final vote, by a majority o f only three, and in several States a bill of rights was passed, witb tb® ac( of mtiScation, which bills were considered by the first Congress, and furnished the foun dation for the first ten ameudmeute to the Constitution, The new Govern ment went into operation when adop ted by eleven States. But North Car olina remained out of the U®l®n until November 21,1789, while little I^hod© island plodded on alone until May 20,; 1790, aftef the other twelfe had left her, the sole remnaqtof that confedera cy which was to remain perpetual, and when it did come in i t was with a dec laration o f rights, under eighteen tepa- i^to beads, qnough to terrify th® or-; dihary maker of Constitutions, and Which no doubt shook up the twelve wayward, seceding States, to the eutiie satisfaction o f Little Rhody. H WAS: w e ll thAi th e first trial o f tho new ayatem was In the hands o f III friends. Alexander Haisirion was given a pise® in Washlogtoii’B wfei- net, and much of the great aaccesa o f thatfinst Administration is attributa ble to him. No man knew better what every provision o f tbe Gonatitn- tion really meant; althoagh moob of it was not as he wanted it, be had contended for it in every word and line, and in its practical application, no man was better fitted to assist in bringing harmony out o f that chaos in when the rebellion closed, not only was the forever decided,, butWei^OlItb Aip®®dment, - ’PrbbibiUng slavery, was added to tbe Constitntiott. The reconstruction of tbe Sonthern States speedily followed. Th® States which it was declared conhl not g u out* o f the \Union were aaU to have gone out, and It was made a condition of their getting in again, that they should adopt tbe K iV th and X V th amendments. That the entire Reconstruction pro ceedings were in flagrant violation of the Whole body of the Constitution, it seefflqs to me can not be Aenied ; but it la ^ matter o£>toqrrccenk history, per haps,\ to be candidly criticised by one who believed the whole policy wrong, and I win leave it as it is, only re marking that the signal failure o f the Governments established in the Sonthern. States under the Recon struction acts, furnishes to my mind the beat evidence that the leaders of which the downfall o f the old confed eration left the Goyernment. Among Statesmen who took part in bringing abouttb. .aoption » f tH. Con.atDtion, “ “ .t.r.S. n.,..™ ;. “ '“ PoHoj' were, t o w , t h . loMt. a . . - Alexander Hamiltom Stands pre-emi* neut, and bis speeches and writiugs throw a flood of light upon the early history of the Government. Any star dent who will read Carefnlly what Mr. Hamilton said and wrote, will not dnly be amply repaid for his labor, but will greatly add to his political educa- It would be tedious were I to enter upon a minute discussion of the pro visions o f each section of the Constitu tion, and I shall only attempt to sketch tbe history of the several amendments, and point out to you the growth of the document itself The first ten amendments were and are a bill o f rights. They were adop ted by the first Congress, which as sembled nnder the.new Constitoripn, and grew out o f tbe objections and op position to the main instrument. And in fact t o ^ s u c h amendments should bO~Rdqpted, was the conditioo upon which some of the States consented to the change of Government, and joined the new Union. I will rCad these amendments, and you will see for yourselves in what strong and plain language our fore-latbers guarded tlm taken, if not criminally foolish.- Lpoking back over this record of »lghty years, we can see in the Con stitution itself a complete history of the mutations of par ties, and the vi cissitudes in that.never ending battle between the advocates of State Rights, and those who would nationalize and centralize the Government. The fail ure of the Confederation was the op portunity of the Federalist; and the weakness o f that government furnish ed an unanswerable argument in favor of giving the central anthority more power. The Constitution, as adopted, was a triumph of the moderate Na tionalists, while the first eleven amend ments was as great a triumph of the State Rights Democrats. The difficulties over the National Bank and the Tariff were important parts in tbe great contest, and served TO'keep^up the energies and discipline of both armies, and when the Slavery question finally took precedence of all others, the Nationalists, in the adop tion o f the XIIIth,’XIV th and X V th Amendments, gained a great advan tage, But the tide of battle hag again o f o i t t a . . .ad .ough: to 1W T the General Government within its proper sphere. (T h e speaker here read and com mented on the first ten amendments.^ The X lth amendment, which was abopted by the 111 Congress was of the same nature as tbe other ten, and grew oat o f the same sentiment, that is, jealousy of the Central Govern ment. CSHth Amendment read and com mented on.) The adoption o f this amendment some of the most radical Nationalists the staunchest defenders of the rights of Stales, Parties are once more nearly evenly divided. Public senti ment, which at one time, like a pen- fiulum seemed swinging to the very extreme point of centralization, and alffiost ready to justify the blotting out of State lines, is swinging bacx again.» R ^ c a l Senators, who have advocated the remanding of a State to a territorial gpudisioo', aro relegated to private life, t^uestions o f tariff and finance are looming np, and it is evi- s^ e m e d t o .t o h t h e w „ t < ,t f e p ^ ^ ^ parties before the warofthe rebellion are to be fought over again. In the future, as in the past, the strength and weakness o f our Govern ment will be tested. Emergencies will arise when what is really meant by certain provisions olf the. Funda- ixieiital law will be a matter o f great importance. Even in spite of the ef fort orpatriots o f every political faith, the troubles o f the present may lead on to greater difficulties. The Constitution, which seems a growth of such complete proportions, lay fail. To-day it stands like a tree which has resisted many storms, with out losing a branch, or having a lim b ers, and all went well until the open ing year o f the present century. We have, now in the year 1800 passed the period when the shoot has, become a sapling and the sapling a tree. Th© fourth Presidential election comes and proves that our tree il not well proportioned. I t does not cast a perfeefshadow. Some o f the branch-! es have not grown as strong a s was ex pected, and the new Government comes very near splitting upon tho question of how a President is to be chosen. The agitation which we have wit nessed since our last election is hut a repetition on a grander gcale o f the troubles of 1800; grander because the country is greater, the people more lopped off ; but storms may come, such numerous, and the interests Jarj^er; • „„ ______________ j tb e interests large r but even i f this contest is grander and greater, party spirit raps no higher now than in the memorable winter of 1801, when by reason of tho tie in the Electoral Ooilege between JTefierson and Burr, the election by the people was a failure, and the Representatives in Congress of the sixteen States, bah oted again and again, without a result; When Jefferson was finally chosen, and the agitation over, then was tbq it has never seen, and if §uch do come,^ remember this, that the\'men who made the Ck>n8titution were Rev- oluilonirls. A few years before they had been Rebels, but they were States men and Fatripts, and i f in some pla- ees,it seems as though that document ought to be plainer and better suited to cast light upon the questions which arise in our times, we must remember that every clause was framed with auu me aguauon over, men was th® great deliberation, and made to meet, X l l lh amendment devised, providing .opposed, ever, enisen- how the electors are to vote, an.^ the ballots be counted, and it was suppos ed that its provisions were so plain that all questions upon this subject were settled forever. Mowever, we have seen, in oqr time, how the wisest men m a y he mistaken, and what seems • the plainest provisions of law be the subject o f tbe gravtat differeu- ces of opinion. To-day it is claimed It was t0en supposed, every exigen cy that might arise. But suppose it bad failed in their time, suppose some problem had arisen which could not be solved in any eonstitutional way; sup pose a Gordian knot had been met in the working o f tfle Government, think you that the Rebels o f ’76, and the Revolutionists of ’87, would have hes itated about cutting it? No. The debates in the National, and every Men differ as to how the vote ia to 1^ counted; the powers o f the Prosident of the S^uale, and the different kduoes o f Congress ; and were i t hot fMf tkpt surfeit o f civil war which w®. h a v e ; bad BO recently, the grayest perils might be apprehended. After that election of 1801^ find jthe adoption of the X llth Amendipent, we floated along quietly for sixty years, T p e , there were troubles over the Taro ii^ the N a tional B a n k , th e F u g itive .Slaye-law and other matters, but ‘hd circumatai^bes occurred to prove an^ further amendments peceSsaiy. ■ j i TfaesecesSion »f tbeBonth Was tft* tempted. The' power o f the Federa1| Government to coerce a soVerbfgn State came in queiitipn. Tbje war qf the Rebellion broke out, WudCpuxi'afa almost unanimously A i evils; but, should Such Statesmen qf that day all recognized the divine rigl^t of the people to gov ern tbemselves,^ and in the exercise o f that divloe right to see thatlheir Gov ernment wan never usurped by their chosen servants under the forms b£ IaWi. ,Io no country on the Globe is the right of rebellion more fully rec ognized, but in no country is it fenced round with greater difficulties, or ren dered less necessary.- A way is pro vided for the righting o f ever wrong; the voice of tbe people may be heard on every question. The Goastlfcotioii Iself may be amended, and changed to meet the needs of the times, and it would seem as ■ i f no circumstances cbnldnEke, when the people would bo jUStifly in takiug other than Consti- lational means te escape from existing mous joint resolOtlon dfoliringf t b i t when resiatence to Fed^aT'adtbi^j^ stopp^, tor f necessity^ |he ^ s t i i o t i o n m p t & ediy violated by iteprofe^ d defeni^ ers, Tbe State o f Yirginia was dis’- membered, and an unwritten law so fail, should the whole machinery of the Governmont, in the bands o f bad men. b e perVertefi from its p e r u s e . X. tld Atcorioan people to ettabliih upon tbe raiuff o f the old even & betterXem- pie o f Liberty than the one in wbielr
