On general principles of law and reason, the oaths which these pretended
agents of the people take "to support the Constitution," are of no
validity or obligation. And why? For this, if for no other reason, viz.,
_that they are given to nobody_. There is no privity (as the lawyers
say)--that is, no mutual recognition, consent, and agreement--between
those who take these oaths, and any other persons.
If I go upon Boston Common, and in the presence of a hundred thousand
people, men, women and children, with whom I have no contract on the
subject, take an oath that I will enforce upon them the laws of Moses,
of Lycurgus, of Solon, of Justinian, or of Alfred, that oath is, on
general principles of law and reason, of no obligation. It is of no
obligation, not merely because it is intrinsically a criminal one, _but
also because it is given to nobody_, and consequently pledges my faith
to nobody. It is merely given to the winds.
It would not alter the case at all to say that, among these hundred
thousand persons, in whose presence the oath was taken, there were two,
three, or five thousand male adults, who had _secretly_--by secret
ballot, and in a way to avoid making themselves _individually_ known to
me, or to the remainder of the hundred thousand--designated me as their
agent to rule, control, plunder, and, if need be, murder, these hundred
thousand people. The fact that they had designated me secretly, and in a
manner to prevent my knowing them individually, prevents all privity
between them and me; and consequently makes it impossible that there can
be any contract, or pledge of faith, on my part towards them; for it is
impossible that I can pledge my faith, in any legal sense, to a man whom
I neither know, nor have any means of knowing, individually.
So far as I am concerned, then, these two, three, or five thousand
persons are a secret band of robbers and murderers, who have secretly,
and in a way to save themselves from all responsibility for my acts,
designated me as their agent; and have, through some other agent, or
pretended agent, made their wishes known to me. But being, nevertheless,
individually unknown to me, and having no open, authentic contract with
me, my oath is, on general principles of law and reason, of no validity
as a pledge of faith to them. And being no pledge of faith to them, it
is no pledge of faith to anybody. It is mere idle wind. At most, it is
only a pledge of faith to an unknown band of robbers and murderers,
whose instrument for plundering and murdering other people, I thus
publicly confess myself to be. And it has no other obligation than a
similar oath given to any other unknown body of pirates, robbers, and
murderers.
For these reasons the oaths taken by members of Congress, "to support
the Constitution," are, on general principles of law and reason, of no
validity. They are not only criminal in themselves, and therefore void;
but they are also void for the further reason _that they are given to
nobody_.
It cannot be said that, in any legitimate or legal sense, they are
given to "the people of the United States"; because neither the whole,
nor any large proportion of the whole, people of the United States ever,
either openly or secretly, appointed or designated these men as their
agents to carry the Constitution into effect. The great body of the
people--that is, men, women and children--were never asked, or even
permitted, to signify, in any _formal_ manner, either openly or
secretly, their choice or wish on the subject. The most that these
members of Congress can say, in favor of their appointment, is simply
this: Each one can say for himself:
I have evidence satisfactory to myself, that there exists, scattered
throughout the country, a band of men, having a tacit understanding with
each other, and calling themselves "the people of the United States,"
whose general purposes are to control and plunder each other, and all
other persons in the country, and, so far as they can, even in
neighboring countries; and to kill every man who shall attempt to defend
his person and property against their schemes of plunder and dominion.
Who these men are, _individually_, I have no certain means of knowing,
for they sign no papers, and give no open, authentic evidence of their
individual membership. They are not known individually even to each
other. They are apparently as much afraid of being individually known to
each other, as of being known to other persons. Hence they ordinarily
have no mode either of exercising, or of making known, their individual
membership, otherwise than by giving their votes secretly for certain
agents to do their will. But although these men are individually
unknown, both to each other and to other persons, it is generally
understood in the country that none but male persons, of the age of
twenty-one years and upwards, can be members. It is also generally
understood that _all_ male persons, born in the country, having certain
complexions, and (in some localities) certain amounts of property, and
(in certain cases) even persons of foreign birth, are _permitted_ to be
members. But it appears that usually not more than one half, two-thirds,
or, in some cases, three-fourths, of all who are thus permitted to
become members of the band, ever exercise, or consequently prove, their
actual membership, in the only mode in which they ordinarily can
exercise or prove it, viz., by giving their votes secretly for the
officers or agents of the band. The number of these secret votes, so far
as we have any account of them, varies greatly from year to year, thus
tending to prove that the band, instead of being a permanent
organization, is a merely _pro tempore_ affair with those who choose to
act with it for the time being. The gross number of these secret votes,
or what purports to be their gross number, in different localities, is
occasionally published. Whether these reports are accurate or not, we
have no means of knowing. It is generally supposed that great frauds are
often committed in depositing them. They are understood to be received
and counted by certain men, who are themselves appointed for that
purpose by the same secret process by which all other officers and
agents of the band are selected. According to the reports of these
receivers of votes (for whose accuracy or honesty, however, I cannot
vouch), and according to my best knowledge of the whole number of male
persons "in my district," who (it is supposed) were permitted to vote,
it would appear that one-half, two-thirds or three-fourths actually did
vote. Who the men were, individually, who cast these votes, I have no
knowledge, for the whole thing was done secretly. But of the secret
votes thus given for what they call a "member of Congress," the
receivers reported that I had a majority, or at least a larger number
than any other one person. And it is only by virtue of such a
designation that I am now here to act in concert with other persons
similarly selected in other parts of the country. It is understood among
those who sent me here, that all the persons so selected, will, on
coming together at the City of Washington, take an oath in each other's
presence "to support the Constitution of the United States." By this is
meant a certain paper that was drawn up eighty years ago. It was never
signed by anybody, and apparently has no obligation, and never had any
obligation, as a contract. In fact, few persons ever read it, and
doubtless much the largest number of those who voted for me and the
others, never even saw it, or now pretend to know what it means.
Nevertheless, it is often spoken of in the country as "the Constitution
of the United States"; and for some reason or another, the men who sent
me here, seem to expect that I, and all with whom I act, will swear to
carry this Constitution into effect. I am therefore ready to take this
oath, and to co-operate with all others, similarly selected, who are
ready to take the same oath.
This is the most that any member of Congress can say in proof that he
has any constituency; that he represents anybody; that his oath "to
support the Constitution," _is given to anybody_, or pledges his faith
to _anybody_. He has no open, written, or other authentic evidence,
such as is required in all other cases, that he was ever appointed the
agent or representative of anybody. He has no written power of attorney
from any single individual. He has no such legal knowledge as is
required in all other cases, by which he can identify a single one of
those who pretend to have appointed him to represent them.
Of course his oath, professedly given to them, "to support the
Constitution," is, on general principles of law and reason, an oath
given to nobody. It pledges his faith to nobody. If he fails to fulfil
his oath, not a single person can come forward, and say to him, you have
betrayed me, or broken faith with me.
No one can come forward and say to him: I appointed you my attorney to
act for me. I required you to swear that, as my attorney, you would
support the Constitution. You promised me that you would do so; and now
you have forfeited the oath you gave to me. No single individual can say
this.
No open, avowed, or responsible association, or body of men, can come
forward and say to him: We appointed you our attorney, to act for us. We
required you to swear that, as our attorney, you would support the
Constitution. You promised us that you would do so; and now you have
forfeited the oath you gave to us.
No open, avowed, or responsible association, or body of men, can say
this to him; because there is no such association or body of men in
existence. If any one should assert that there is such an association,
let him prove, if he can, who compose it. Let him produce, if he can,
any open, written, or other authentic contract, signed or agreed to by
these men; forming themselves into an association; making themselves
known as such to the world; appointing him as their agent; and making
themselves individually, or as an association, responsible for his acts,
done by their authority. Until all this can be shown, no one can say
that, in any legitimate sense, there is any such association; or that he
is their agent; or that he ever gave his oath to them; or ever pledged
his faith to them.
On general principles of law and reason, it would be a sufficient answer
for him to say, to all individuals, and all pretended associations of
individuals, who should accuse him of a breach of faith to them:
I never knew you. Where is your evidence that you, either individually
or collectively, ever appointed me your attorney? that you ever required
me to swear to you, that, as your attorney, I would support the
Constitution? or that I have now broken any faith I ever pledged to you?
You may, or you may not, be members of that secret band of robbers and
murderers, who act in secret; appoint their agents by a secret ballot;
who keep themselves individually unknown even to the agents they thus
appoint; and who, therefore, cannot claim that they have any agents; or
that any of their pretended agents ever gave his oath, or pledged his
faith, to them. I repudiate you altogether. My oath was given to others,
with whom you have nothing to do; or it was idle wind, given only to the
idle winds. Begone!