Communications: For The Signal Of Liberty: The Constitution ...

Messrs. Editors: - I seldotn troubl your readers with my thoughts on . Sla very through the press, bui labor nigh and day uncensingly with the Livinj 'Voice to persuade men to ceaso to d evil, learnto do v.ell, relieve the oppress ed, &c, but if your columns nreJiot lo crowded, permit me to say a few things and thus inform ' your readers that thi West of Michigan are thinking as well a the East. W e seern of late to have beet much forgotten by our brethren in thi: holy campaign, but let them know tha our eiTortsfor the cause of truth and hu manity are as great here as in any spo in the Nation. We hear much said about the Stateí Rights - the righfs of the SouÜi, tht rights of Slave States to hold Skves - th compact - the Constitutional guaranty te the Slave States- and even our best An tislavery men have been disposed to con cede that the South have such Constitutionai rights. I have hitherto generally granted something oC the kind, but I have given the subject a thorough investigation, and will neveí concede it again until newlight break in upon my mind. 1 do not pledge the ibfcerty party. 1 do not ask other liberty men to accept my sentiments unless they choose. I speak for myself, and feel competent to defend that strange ultra fanatical doctrine that No State in this Union has the legal, ConstituLionul, or any other civil righl to mainlain slavery. accocding to the common acceptation of the terms. This I know is broad ground, basing the whole subject upon civil, not on natural rights, and if it be too broad ground let him who thinks so, meet me and contend for the truth. To the argument: All authoritative civil righls or latos derive that authority either from natural right, or from conventional agreement. - This latter authority is all we mean by sovereign right of States, Constitutional guarantees, &c. It will not be pretended by any intelligent man, that the right of slavery rests in the law of natural rights, we are only lo lookto conventional law for that right. And where did they obtain that conventional right? In the American lievolution all politica! connection with Great Britain ceased, and with it all conventional authority ceased, and new conventional rights were instituted. It must be admitted that neither the several States in their independent sovereignty, nor the nation, as a nation, can go back of that great event for any civil right, or conventional authority other than as based upon the principies of common law. If the States possess any rights as States of a conventional kind, those rights must be found in or after that event. VV hen was the convention held, by whom, and where, that conferred the right of slavery upon any State of ihis Union? We are often told that the Constitution of the United States guarantees to the Slave States this right. In what clause? I deny any such guaranty ever being givthem, either directly or indirectly. So much of the Constitution of the United States as attempís to define the powers of the United States' and of the several States may be included under four heads. 1. Such and such things the States shall not do: that confers no authority upon nny state to hold slaves. 2. Such & such powers are taken from the states & conferred upon the United States, in order to constitute a national government. That does not confer the right of holding Slaves. 3. It guarantees certain things to the States. What things? Republican forms of Government, protection from invasión and insurrection under those Republican forms of government. Does this article guaranty the rightto hold Slaves. either directly or indirectly? Common sense responds no. Yet this is the only thing guaranteed to the State, no other part guarantees any thing to the States directly, and nothing indirectly except what it guarantees to the individuals of a State against the State itself, and none of those look towards favoring Slavery. Turn then to the fourth item of the Constitution to iind the constitutional right for slavery. 4. It reserves certain rights to the States. Let it be observed, it does not guaran tee, it only reserves these rights. It does not disturb these rights. Now what are the rights thus reserved? Not rights created by the constitution but rights existing previous to the constitution. There is a wide difference between guaranteeing rights and reserving rights. The former creates and confers a pover, the latter leaves undisturbed a pre-existing right and power. What, then, were those rights which by the constitution are keserved to the several States? All those rights which are not taken from them by the Constitution. What. then, were those preexisting conventional rights that are reserved? Where and when did the States obtain them? I speak of civil, conventional, and not natural rights. These reserved civil State rights, if they exist must exist by some civil authority, somo conventional agreement,i . soms decree, charter, compact, or other J1 polilical document, conferring thatright. Dut we Iiavo already shown that we ;. cannot go back of the revolution for such civil authority. That authority e must have its civil birth between the 3. yirs 76, and the formalion of the Con)t stitution. What then was the instru,„ ment that confered those reserved State o rights upon the States? It was the Decs_ larotion oí independence, declared Juiy l0 4, 1770. a By that civil coiïipact our fathers fought e and gained tfr independence, not as a us State but ns a whole. Then n the matter stands thusr All the powers s and polilica.1 rights which%ihe Declaration Lt of'Indepondence conferred upon the in,. dividual StatCvS, and which were not tag ken frorn them by the constitution, are reserved tinto the several States - no 8 more, no less. If then, the riglit of any e State in this Union to hold Slaves is e gimranteed to them by any legal, civil, 0 constitutional authority, that Declaration h of Independence must be that authority 1 to that instrument. Let them look back ,. who believe there is any shadow of poi litical authority for such State rights.- 3 The "Constitution reserved to the several . States such rights as ihey did, not such ns they did not possess.