public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other State.
And the Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which such
acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof.
SEC. 2. The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all privileges
and immunities of citizens in the several States.
A person charged in any State with treason, felony, or other crime,
who shall flee from justice, and be found in another State, shall, on
demand of the executive authority of the State from which he fled, be
delivered up, to be removed to the State having jurisdiction of the
crime.
No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws
thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or
regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall
be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may
be due.
SEC. 3. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but
no new State shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any
other State; nor any State be formed by the junction of two or more
States or parts of States without the consent of the Legislatures of
the States concerned, as well as of the Congress.
The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful rules
and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging
to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so
construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or any
particular State.
SEC. 4. The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union
a republican form of Government, and shall protect each of them against
invasion; and on application of the Legislature, or of the Executive
(when the Legislature can not be convened), against domestic violence.
ARTICLE V.
The Congress, whenever two-thirds of both Houses shall deem it
necessary, shall propose amendments to the Constitution, or, on the
application of the Legislatures of two-thirds of the several States,
shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either
case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this
Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three-fourths of
the several States, or by conventions in three-fourths thereof, as the
one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress;
_Provided_, that no amendment which may be made prior to the year one
thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any manner affect the first
and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article; and that
no State, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage
in the Senate.
ARTICLE VI.
All debts contracted and engagements entered into before the adoption
of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States,
under this Constitution, as under the Confederation.
This Constitution and the laws of the United States which shall be
made in pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be
made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme
law of the land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby,
any thing in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary
notwithstanding.
The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the members
of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial
officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall
be bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitution; but no
religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office
or public trust under the United States.
ARTICLE VII.
The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be sufficient
for the establishment of this Constitution between the States so
ratifying the same.
DONE in convention, by the unanimous consent of the States present,
the seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand
seven hundred and eighty-seven, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the twelfth. In Witness whereof, we have hereunto
subscribed our names.
GEO. WASHINGTON,
_Pres’t and Deputy from Virginia._
_New Hampshire._
JOHN LANGDON, NICHOLAS GILMAN.
_Massachusetts._
NATHANIEL GORHAM, RUFUS KING.
_Connecticut._
WM. SAML. JOHNSON, ROGER SHERMAN.
_New York._
ALEXANDER HAMILTON.
_New Jersey._
WIL. LIVINGSTON, DAVID BREARLEY,
WM. PATERSON, JONA. DAYTON.
_Pennsylvania._
B. FRANKLIN, THOMAS MIFFLIN,
ROBT. MORRIS, GEO. CLYMER,
THO. FITZSIMONS, JARED INGERSOLL,
JAMES WILSON, GOUV. MORRIS.
_Delaware._
GEO. READ, GUNNING BEDFORD, JUN’R,
JOHN DICKINSON, RICHARD BASSETT.
JACO. BROOM,
_Maryland._
JAMES M’HENRY, DAN. OF ST. THOS. JENIFER.
DANL. CARROLL,
_Virginia._
JOHN BLAIR, JAMES MADISON, JR.
_North Carolina._
WM. BLOUNT, RICH’D DOBBS SPAIGHT.
HU. WILLIAMSON,
_South Carolina._
J. RUTLEDGE, CHARLES COTESWORTH PINCKNEY,
CHARLES PINCKNEY, PIERCE BUTLER.
_Georgia._
WILLIAM FEW, ABR. BALDWIN.
Attest: WILLIAM JACKSON, _Secretary_.
[Illustration: THOMAS JEFFERSON.]
ARTICLES,
In addition to, and amendment of, the Constitution of
the United States of America, proposed by Congress,
and ratified by the Legislatures of the several
States, pursuant to the fifth article of the original
Constitution.
ARTICLE I.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom
of speech or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
ARTICLE II.
A well-regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free
State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be
infringed.
ARTICLE III.
No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house, without
the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be
prescribed by law.
ARTICLE IV.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers,
and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be
violated, and no warrant shall issue but upon probable cause, supported
by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be
searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
ARTICLE V.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous
crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in
cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in
actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person
be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life
or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness
against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without
due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use
without just compensation.
ARTICLE VI.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a
speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district
wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have
been previously ascertained by law and to be informed of the nature and
cause of the accusation to be confronted with the witnesses against
him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor,
and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.
ARTICLE VII.
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed
twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no
fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise reexamined in any Court of the
United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
ARTICLE VIII.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
ARTICLE IX.
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights, shall not be
construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
ARTICLE X.
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution,
nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States
respectively, or to the people.
ARTICLE XI.
The judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to
extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against
one of the United States by citizens of another State, or by citizens
or subjects of any foreign State.
ARTICLE XII.
The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot
for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not
be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves; they shall name
in their ballot the person voted for as President, and in distinct
ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make
distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and all persons
voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each,
which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the
seat of government of the United States, directed to the President
of the Senate:—The President of the Senate shall, in presence of
the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates,
and the votes shall then be counted; The person having the greatest
number of votes for President shall be the President, if such number
be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; and if no
person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest
numbers, not exceeding three, on the list of those voted for as
President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately by
ballot the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall
be taken by States, the representation from each State having one; a
quorum for this shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds
of the States, and a majority of all the States shall be necessary
to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a
President, whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before
the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall
act as President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional
disability of the President. The person having the greatest number of
votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number
be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if no
person have a majority, then, from the two highest numbers on the list,
the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the purpose
shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a
majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no
person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President, shall be
eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.
ARTICLE XIII.
“SECTION 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a
punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted,
shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their
jurisdiction.
“SECTION 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this Article by
appropriate legislation, approved February 1, 1863.”
* * * * *
The Constitution was adopted on the 17th of September, 1787, by the
convention appointed in pursuance of the Resolution of the Congress
of the Confederation, of the 21st February, 1787, and ratified by the
conventions of the several States, as follows:
By Convention of Delaware 7th December, 1787
” ” Pennsylvania 12th December, 1787
” ” New Jersey 18th December, 1787
” ” Georgia 2d January, 1788
” ” Connecticut 9th January, 1788
” ” Massachusetts 6th February, 1788
” ” Maryland 28th April, 1788
” ” South Carolina 28th May, 1788
” ” New Hampshire 21st June, 1788
” ” Virginia 26th June, 1788
” ” New York 26th July, 1788
” ” North Carolina 21st November, 1789
” ” Rhode Island 29th May, 1790
The first ten of the Amendments were proposed on the 25th September,
1789, and ratified by the constitutional number of States on the
15th December, 1791; the eleventh, on the 8th January, 1798; and the
twelfth, on the 25th September, 1804; and the thirteenth, on the ——,
186-.
WASHINGTON’S ADDRESSES.
There were not many occasions during his public career that Washington
was called upon to exercise his abilities as a writer or an orator;
but when such occasion did occur, he always acquitted himself with
a degree of perspicuity and modesty which may be said to have been
characteristic of himself alone. The addresses which follow mark, as
it were, four distinct epochs in the history of this unexampled man:
the first, when he accepted the command of the armies by which our
national independence was achieved; the second, when he surrendered
his commission, after having driven the foes of freedom from his
beloved country; the third, when he assumed the responsible duties of
President, in which office his high qualities for civil government
were as conspicuous as had been his military talents in the field; and
fourth, when he resigned his great trust and took leave of the people
in his imperishable “Farewell Address,” an inestimable legacy, which
can not be too frequently conned by every American who values his
birthright.
WASHINGTON’S ELECTION AS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF.
On the 15th of June, 1775, Washington was unanimously elected by
Congress to “command all the Continental forces raised, or to be
raised, for the defense of American liberty,” and when he appeared in
his place the next day, the President of that body acquainted him with
his election, in a well-timed address, “and requested that he should
accept of that employment;” to which Washington replied as follows:
“MR. PRESIDENT: Though I am truly sensible of the
high honor done me, in this appointment, yet I feel great
distress, from consciousness that my abilities and military
experience may not be equal to the extensive and important
trust: However, as the Congress desire it, I will enter upon
the momentous duty, and exert every power I possess in their
service, and for support of the glorious cause. I beg they
will accept my most cordial thanks for this distinguished
testimony of their approbation.
“But lest some unlucky event should happen, unfavorable
to my reputation, I beg it may be remembered, by every
gentleman in the room, that I, this day, declare, with the
utmost sincerity, I do not think myself equal to the command
I am honored with.
“As to pay, sir, I beg leave to assure the Congress,
that, as no pecuniary consideration could have tempted me
to accept this arduous employment, at the expense of my
domestic ease and happiness, I do not wish to make any
profit from it. I will keep an exact account of my expenses.
Those, I doubt not, they will discharge, and that is all I
desire.”
WASHINGTON’S RESIGNATION OF HIS COMMISSION.
The War of the Revolution having terminated auspiciously, Washington
took leave of his officers and army at New York, and repaired to
Annapolis, Md., where Congress was then in session. On the 20th of
December, 1783, he transmitted a letter to that body, apprising them
of his arrival, with the intention of resigning his commission, and
desiring to know whether it would be most agreeable to receive it in
writing or at an audience. It was immediately resolved that a public
entertainment be given him on the 22d, and that he be admitted to an
audience on the 23d, at 12 o’clock. Accordingly, he attended at that
time, and, being seated, the President informed him that Congress were
prepared to receive his communications. Whereupon he arose, and spoke
as follows:
“MR. PRESIDENT: The great events on which my
resignation depended having at length taken place, I have
now the honor of offering my sincere congratulations to
Congress, and of presenting myself before them, to surrender
into their hands the trust committed to me, and to claim the
indulgence of retiring from the service of my country.
“Happy in the confirmation of our independence and
sovereignty, and pleased with the opportunity afforded the
United States of becoming a respectable nation, I resign
with satisfaction the appointment I accepted with
diffidence: a diffidence in my abilities to accomplish
so arduous a task; which, however, was superseded by a
confidence in the rectitude of our cause, the support of the
supreme power of the Union, and the patronage of Heaven.
“The successful termination of the war has verified the
most sanguine expectations; and my gratitude for the
interposition of Providence, and the assistance I have
received from my countrymen, increases with every review of
the momentous contest.
“While I repeat my obligations to the army in general, I
should do injustice to my own feelings not to acknowledge,
in this place, the peculiar services and distinguished
merits of the gentlemen who have been attached to my
person during the war. It was impossible the choice of
confidential officers to compose my family should have been
more fortunate. Permit me, sir, to recommend, in particular,
those who have continued in the service to the present
moment, as worthy of the favorable notice and patronage of
Congress.
“I consider it an indispensable duty to close this last
act of my official life by commending the interests of our
dearest country to the protection of Almighty God, and those
who have the superintendence of them to his holy keeping.
“Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire from
the great theater of action, and bidding an affectionate
farewell to this august body, under whose orders I have so
long acted, I here offer my commission, and take my leave of
all the employments of public life.”
WASHINGTON’S INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
In accordance with previous arrangements, General Washington met
Congress in New York, on the 30th of April, 1789, for the purpose of
being inaugurated as the first President of the United States. The oath
of office having been administered by the Chancellor of the State of
New York, in presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, the
President delivered the following Inaugural Address:
“_Fellow-citizens of the Senate and of the House of Representatives_:
“Among the vicissitudes incident to life, no event could
have filled me with greater anxieties than that of which the
notification was transmitted by your order, and received
on the 14th day of the present month. On the one hand, I
was summoned by my country, whose voice I can never hear
but with veneration and love, from a retreat which I had
chosen with the fondest predilection, and, in my flattering
hopes, with an immutable decision, as the asylum of my
declining years—a retreat which was rendered every day more
necessary, as well as more dear to me, by the addition of
habit to inclination, and of frequent interruptions in my
health, to the gradual waste committed on it by time. On the
other hand, the magnitude and difficulty of the trust to
which the voice of my country called me, being sufficient to
awaken, in the wisest and most experienced of her citizens,
a distrustful scrutiny into his qualifications, could not
but overwhelm with despondency one who, inheriting inferior
endowments from nature, and unpracticed in the duties of
civil administration, ought to be peculiarly conscious of
his own deficiencies. In this conflict of emotion, all I
dare aver is, that it has been my faithful study to collect
my duty from a just appreciation of every circumstance
by which it might be affected. All I dare hope is, that
if, in executing this task, I have been too much swayed
by a grateful remembrance of former instances, or by an
affectionate sensibility to this transcendent proof of
the confidence of my fellow-citizens, and have thence too
little consulted my incapacity as well as disinclination
for the weighty and untried cares before me, my error
will be palliated by the motives which misled me, and its
consequences be judged by my country, with some share of the
partiality in which they originated.
“Such being the impressions under which I have, in obedience
to the public summons, repaired to the present station, it
would be peculiarly improper to omit, in this first official
act, my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who
rules over the universe—who presides in the councils of
nations—and whose providential aids can supply every
human defect, that his benediction may consecrate to
the liberties and happiness of the people of the United
States—a government instituted by themselves for these
essential purposes—and may enable every instrument employed
in its administration to execute with success the functions
allotted to his charge. In tendering this homage to the
Great Author of every public and private good, I assure
myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my
own; nor those of my fellow-citizens at large, less than
either. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore
the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more
than the people of the United States. Every step by which
they have advanced to the character of an independent
nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of
providential agency; and in the important revolution just
accomplished in the system of their united government, the
tranquil deliberations, and voluntary consent of so many
distinct communities, from which the event has resulted, can
not be compared with the means by which most governments
have been established without some return of pious
gratitude, along with an humble anticipation of the future
blessings which the past seem to presage. These reflections,
arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves
too strongly on my mind to be suppressed. You will join
with me, I trust, in thinking that there are none under
the influence of which the proceedings of a new and free
government can more auspiciously commence.
“By the article establishing the executive department, it
is made the duty of the President ‘to recommend to your
consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and
expedient.’ The circumstances under which I now meet you,
will acquit me from not entering into that subject farther
than to refer to the great constitutional charter under
which you are assembled, and which, in defining your powers,
designates the objects to which your attention is to be
given. It will be more consistent with those circumstances,
and far more congenial with the feelings which actuate me,
to substitute, in place of a recommendation of particular
measures, the tribute that is due to the talents, the
rectitude, and the patriotism which adorn the characters
selected to devise and adopt them. In these honorable
qualifications I behold the surest pledges that as, on one
side, no local prejudices or attachments, no separate views,
nor party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and
equal eye which ought to watch over this great assemblage
of communities and interests; so, on another, that the
foundations of our national policy will be laid in the
pure and immutable principles of private morality; and the
preëminence of free government be exemplified by all the
attributes which can win the affections of its citizens,
and command the respect of the world. I dwell on this
prospect with every satisfaction which an ardent love
for my country can inspire; since there is no truth more
thoroughly established than that there exists in the economy
and course of nature an indissoluble union between virtue
and happiness—between duty and advantage—between the
genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy and the
solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity; since we
ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of
Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards
the eternal rules of order and right, which Heaven itself
has ordained; and since the preservation of the sacred
fire of liberty and the destiny of the republican model
of government are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as
finally, staked on the experiment intrusted to the hands of
the American people.
“Besides the ordinary objects submitted to your care, it
will remain with your judgment to decide how far an exercise
of the occasional power delegated by the fifth article
of the Constitution is rendered expedient at the present
juncture by the nature of objections which have been urged
against the system, or by the degree of inquietude which
has given birth to them. Instead of undertaking particular
recommendations on this subject, in which I could be guided
by no lights derived from official opportunities, I shall
again give way to my entire confidence in your discernment
and pursuit of the public good; for, I assure myself, that
while you carefully avoid every alteration which might
endanger the benefits of an united and effective government,
or which ought to await the future lessons of experience, a
reverence for the characteristic rights of freemen, and a
regard for the public harmony, will sufficiently influence
your deliberations on the question, how far the former can
be more impregnably fortified, or the latter be safely and
advantageously promoted.
“To the preceding observations I have one to add,
which will be most properly addressed to the House of
Representatives. It concerns myself, and will, therefore,
be as brief as possible: When I was first honored with a
call into the service of my country, then on the eve of an
arduous struggle for its liberties, the light in which I
contemplated my duty required that I should renounce every
pecuniary compensation. From this resolution I have in no
instance departed, and, being still under the impressions
which produced it, I must decline, as inapplicable to
myself, any share in the personal emoluments which may be
indispensably included in a permanent provision for the
executive department, and must accordingly pray that the
pecuniary estimates for the station in which I am placed
may, during my continuance in it, be limited to such actual
expenditures as the public good may be thought to require.
“Having thus imparted to you my sentiments, as they have
been awakened by the occasion which brings us together,
I shall take my present leave, but not without resorting
once more to the benign Parent of the human race, in humble
supplication, that since he has been pleased to favor
the American people with opportunities for deliberating
in perfect tranquillity, and dispositions for deciding
with unparalleled unanimity on a form of government for
the security of their Union and the advancement of their
happiness, so his Divine blessing may be equally conspicuous
in the enlarged views, the temperate consultations, and the
wise measures, on which the success of this government must
depend.”
WASHINGTON’S FAREWELL ADDRESS.
_Friends and Fellow-Citizens_:
The period for a new election of a citizen to administer the Executive
Government of the United States being not far distant, and the time
actually arrived when your thoughts must be employed in designating the
person who is to be clothed with that important trust, it appears to
me proper, especially as it may conduce to a more distinct expression
of the public voice, that I should now apprise you of the resolution I
have formed, to decline being considered among the number of those out
of whom a choice is to be made.
I beg you, at the same time, to do me the justice to be assured that
this resolution has not been taken without a strict regard to all the
considerations appertaining to the relation which binds a dutiful
citizen to his country; and that, in withdrawing the tender of service,
which silence in my situation might imply, I am influenced by no
diminution of zeal for your future interest; no deficiency of grateful
respect for your past kindness, but am supported by a full conviction
that the step is compatible with both.
The acceptance of, and continuance hitherto in, the office to which
your suffrages have twice called me, have been a uniform sacrifice
of inclination to the opinion of duty, and to a deference for what
appeared to be your desire. I constantly hoped that it would have
been much earlier in my power, consistently with motives which I was
not at liberty to disregard, to return to that retirement from which
I had been reluctantly drawn. The strength of my inclination to do
this, previous to the last election, had even led to the preparation
of an address to declare it to you; but mature reflection on the then
perplexed and critical posture of our affairs with foreign nations, and
the unanimous advice of persons entitled to my confidence, impelled me
to abandon the idea.
I rejoice that the state of your concerns, external as well as
internal, no longer renders the pursuit of inclination incompatible
with the sentiment of duty or propriety; and am persuaded, whatever
partiality may be retained for my services, that, in the present
circumstances of our country, you will not disapprove my determination
to retire.
The impressions with which I undertook the arduous trust were
explained on the proper occasion. In the discharge of this trust, I
will only say that I have with good intentions contributed toward the
organization and administration of the Government the best exertions
of which a very fallible judgment was capable. Not unconscious in the
outset of the inferiority of my qualifications, experience, in my own
eyes—perhaps still more in the eyes of others—has strengthened the
motives to diffidence of myself; and every day the increasing weight
of years admonishes me more and more, that the shade of retirement
is as necessary to me as it will be welcome. Satisfied that if any
circumstances have given peculiar value to my services, they were
temporary, I have the consolation to believe that, while choice and
prudence invite me to quit the political scene, patriotism does not
forbid it.
In looking forward to the moment which is intended to terminate the
career of my public life, my feelings do not permit me to suspend the
deep acknowledgment of that debt of gratitude which I owe to my beloved
country for the many honors it has conferred upon me; still more for
the steadfast confidence with which it has supported me; and for the
opportunities I have thence enjoyed of manifesting my inviolable
attachment, by services faithful and persevering, though in usefulness
unequal to my zeal. If benefits have resulted to our country from
these services, let it always be remembered to your praise, and as an
instructive example in our annals that, under circumstances in which
the passions, agitated in every direction, were liable to mislead;
amid appearances sometimes dubious, vicissitudes of fortune often
discouraging; in situations in which, not unfrequently, want of success
has countenanced the spirit of criticism—the constancy of your support
was the essential prop of the efforts, and a guarantee of the plans,
by which they were effected. Profoundly penetrated with this idea, I
shall carry it with me to my grave, as a strong incitement to unceasing
vows, that Heaven may continue to you the choicest tokens of its
beneficence; that your union and brotherly affection may be perpetual;
that the free Constitution, which is the work of your hands, may be
sacredly maintained; that its administration, in every department,
may be stamped with wisdom and virtue; that, in fine, the happiness
of the people of these States, under the auspices of liberty, may be
made complete by so careful a preservation and so prudent a use of this
blessing as will acquire to them the glory of recommending it to the
applause, the affection, and the adoption of every nation which is yet
a stranger to it.
Here, perhaps, I ought to stop; but a solicitude for your welfare,
which can not end but with my life, and the apprehension of danger
natural to that solicitude, urge me, on an occasion like the
present, to offer to your solemn contemplation, and to recommend to
your frequent review, some sentiments which are the result of much
reflection, of no inconsiderable observation, and which appear to me
all-important to the permanency of our felicity as a people. These
will be afforded to you with the more freedom, as you can only see in
them the disinterested warnings of a parting friend, who can possibly
have no personal motive to bias his counsel; nor can I forget, as an
encouragement to it, your indulgent reception of my sentiments on a
former and not dissimilar occasion.
Interwoven as is the love of liberty with every ligament of your
hearts, no recommendation of mine is necessary to fortify or confirm
the attachment.
The unity of government which constitutes you one people, is also now
dear to you. It is justly so; for it is a main pillar in the edifice
of your real independence—the support of your tranquillity at home,
your peace abroad, of your safety, of your prosperity, of that very
liberty which you so highly prize. But as it is easy to foresee that,
from different causes and from different quarters, much pains will be
taken, many artifices employed, to weaken in your minds the conviction
of this truth; as this is the point in your political fortress
against which the batteries of internal and external enemies will be
most constantly and actively (though often covertly and insidiously)
directed, it is of infinite moment that you should properly estimate
the immense value of your National Union to your collective and
individual happiness; that you should cherish a cordial, habitual, and
immovable attachment to it; accustoming yourselves to think and speak
of it as of the palladium of your political safety and prosperity;
watching for its preservation with jealous anxiety; discountenancing
whatever may suggest even a suspicion that it can, in any event, be
abandoned; and indignantly frowning upon the first dawning of every
attempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest, or to
enfeeble the sacred ties which now link together the various parts.
For this you have every inducement of sympathy and interest. Citizens
by birth or choice, of a common country, that country has a right
to concentrate your affections. The name of _American_, which
belongs to you in your national capacity, must always exalt the just
pride of patriotism, more than any appellation derived from local
discriminations. With slight shades of difference, you have the same
religion, manners, habits, and political principles. You have, in a
common cause, fought and triumphed together; the independence and
liberty you possess are the work of joint counsels and joint efforts—of
common dangers, sufferings and successes.
But these considerations, however powerfully they address themselves
to your sensibility, are greatly outweighed by those which apply more
immediately to your interest; here every portion of our country finds
the most commanding motives for carefully guarding and preserving the
union of the whole.
The North, in an unrestrained intercourse with the South, protected
by the equal laws of a common government, finds, in the productions
of the latter, great additional resources of maritime and commercial
enterprise, and precious materials of manufacturing industry. The
South, in the same intercourse, benefiting by the agency of the North,
sees its agriculture grow and its commerce expand. Turning partly into
its own channels the seamen of the North, it finds its particular
navigation invigorated; and while it contributes, in different ways,
to nourish and increase the general mass of the national navigation,
it looks forward to the protection of a maritime strength to which
itself is unequally adapted. The East, in like intercourse with the
West, already finds—and in the progressive improvement of interior
communication by land and water, will more and more find—a valuable
vent for the commodities which it brings from abroad or manufactures at
home. The West derives from the East supplies requisite to its growth
and comfort; and what is, perhaps, of still greater consequence, it
must, of necessity, owe the secure enjoyment of indispensable outlets
for its own productions, to the weight, influence, and the future
maritime strength of the Atlantic side of the Union, directed by an
indissoluble community of interest as one nation. Any other tenure by
which the West can hold this essential advantage, whether derived from
its own separate strength, or from an apostate and unnatural connection
with any foreign power, must be intrinsically precarious.
While, then, every part of our country thus feels an immediate and
particular interest in UNION, all the parts combined can not fail
to find, in the united mass of means and efforts, greater strength,
greater resource, proportionately greater security from external
danger, a less frequent interruption of their peace by foreign nations;
and what is of inestimable value, they must derive from union an
exemption from those broils and wars between themselves, which so
frequently afflict neighboring countries, not tied together by the
same government; which their own rivalship alone would be sufficient
to produce, but which opposite foreign alliances, attachments, and
intrigues would stimulate and embitter. Hence, likewise, they will
avoid the necessity of those overgrown military establishments, which,
under any form of government, are inauspicious to liberty, and which
are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty; in
this sense it is that your union ought to be considered as a main prop
of your liberty, and that the love of the one ought to endear to you
the preservation of the other.
These considerations speak a persuasive language to every reflecting
and virtuous mind, and exhibit the continuance of the Union as a
primary object of patriotic desire. Is there a doubt, whether a common
government can embrace so large a sphere? Let experience solve it.
To listen to mere speculation, in such a case, were criminal. We are
authorized to hope, that a proper organization of the whole, with
the auxiliary agency of governments for the respective subdivisions,
will afford a happy issue to the experiment. It is well worth a fair
and full experiment. With such powerful and obvious motives to Union,
affecting all parts of our country, while experience shall not have
demonstrated its impracticability, there will always be reason to
distrust the patriotism of those who, in any quarter, may endeavor to
weaken its bands.
In contemplating the causes which may disturb our Union, it occurs, as
a matter of serious concern, that any ground should have been furnished
for characterizing parties by geographical discriminations—Northern
and Southern, Atlantic and Western—whence designing men may endeavor
to excite a belief that there is a real difference of local interests
and views. One of the expedients of party to acquire influence within
particular districts, is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other
districts. You can not shield yourself too much against the jealousies
and heart-burnings which spring from these misrepresentations; they
tend to render alien to each other those who ought to be bound together
by fraternal affection. The inhabitants of our western country have
lately had a useful lesson on this head; they have seen in the
negotiation of the Executive, and in the unanimous ratification by the
Senate, of the treaty with Spain, and in the universal satisfaction
at that event throughout the United States, a decisive proof how
unfounded were the suspicions propagated among them of a policy in the
General Government, and in the Atlantic States, unfriendly to their
interests in regard to the Mississippi; they have been witnesses to
the formation of two treaties—that with Great Britain, and that with
Spain—which secure to them every thing they could desire in respect to
our foreign relations, toward confirming their prosperity. Will it not
be their wisdom to rely for the preservation of these advantages on the
Union by which they were procured? Will they not henceforth be deaf
to those advisers, if such there be, who would sever them from their
brethren, and connect them with aliens?
To the efficacy and permanency of your Union, a Government for the
whole is indispensable. No alliance, however strict between the parts,
can be an adequate substitute; they must inevitably experience the
infractions and interruptions which all alliances, in all time, have
experienced. Sensible of this momentous truth, you have improved upon
your first essay, by the adoption of a Constitution of Government
better calculated than your former for an intimate Union, and for the
efficacious management of your common concerns. This Government, the
offspring of our own choice, uninfluenced and unawed, adopted upon
full investigation and mature deliberation, completely free in its
principles, in the distribution of its powers, uniting security with
energy, and containing within itself a provision for its own amendment,
has a just claim to your confidence and your support. Respect its
authority, compliance with its laws, acquiescence in its measures, are
duties enjoined by the fundamental maxims of true liberty. The basis of
our political systems, is the right of the people to make and to alter
their constitutions of Government; but the Constitution which at any
time exists, till changed by an explicit and authentic act of the whole
people, is sacredly obligatory upon all. The very idea of the power and
the right of the people to establish Government, presupposes the duty
of every individual to obey the established Government.
All obstructions to the execution of the laws, all combinations and
associations, under whatever plausible character, with the real design
to direct, control, counteract, or awe the regular deliberation
and action of the constituted authorities, are destructive to this
fundamental principle, and of fatal tendency. They serve to organize
faction, to give it an artificial and extraordinary force, to put in
the place of the delegated will of the nation the will of a party,
often a small but artful and enterprising minority of the community;
and, according to the alternate triumphs of different parties, to
make the public administration the mirror of the ill-concerted and
incongruous projects of faction, rather than the organ of consistent
and wholesome plans, digested by common counsels, and modified by
mutual interests.
However combinations and associations of the above description may now
and then answer popular ends, they are likely, in the course of time
and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and
unprincipled men, will be enabled to subvert the power of the people,
and to usurp for themselves the reins of Government; destroying,
afterward, the very engines which had lifted them to unjust dominion.
Toward the preservation of your Government, and the permanency of
your present happy state, it is requisite, not only that you steadily
discountenance irregular oppositions, to its acknowledged authority,
but also that you resist, with care, the spirit of innovation upon
its principles, however specious the pretexts. One method of assault
may be to effect, in the forms’ Constitution, alterations which will
impair the energy of the system, and thus to undermine what can not be
directly overthrown. In all the changes to which you may be invited,
remember that time and habit are at least as necessary to fix the
true character of Governments as of other human institutions; that
experience is the surest standard by which to test the real tendency of
the existing constitution of a country; that facility in changes, upon
the credit of mere hypothesis and opinion, exposes to perpetual change,
from the endless variety of hypothesis and opinion; and remember,
especially, that for the efficient management of your common interests,
in a country so extensive as ours, a Government of as much vigor as
is consistent with the perfect security of liberty, is indispensable.
Liberty itself will find in such a Government, with powers properly
distributed and adjusted, its surest guardian. It is, indeed, little
else than a name, where the Government is too feeble to withstand the
enterprises of faction, to confine each member of the society within
the limits prescribed by the laws, and to maintain all in the secure
and tranquil enjoyment of the rights of person and property.
I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the State,
with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical
discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn
you, in the most solemn manner, against the baneful effects of the
spirit of party generally.
This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having
its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under
different shapes, in all Governments, more or less stifled, controlled,
or repressed; but in those of the popular form it is seen in its
greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy.
The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the
spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which, in different
ages and countries, has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is
itself a frightful despotism. But this leads, at length, to a more
formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which
result, gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose
in the absolute power of an individual; and, sooner or later, the
chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than
his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own
elevation on the ruins of public liberty.
Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind, (which,
nevertheless, ought not to be entirely out of sight,) the common and
continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it
the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it.
It serves always to distract the public counsels, and enfeeble the
public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded
jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosities of one part
against another; foments, occasionally, riot and insurrection. It opens
the door to foreign influence and corruption, which find a facilitated
access to the Government itself, through the channels of party
passions. Thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to
the policy and will of another.
There is an opinion that parties, in free countries, are useful checks
upon the administration of the Government, and serve to keep alive
the spirit of liberty. This, within certain limits, is probably true;
and in Governments of a monarchical cast, patriotism may look with
indulgence, if not with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those
of the popular character, in Governments purely elective, it is a
spirit not to be encouraged. From their natural tendency, it is certain
there will always be enough of that spirit for every salutary purpose.
And there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be, by
force of public opinion, to mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be
quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a
flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.
It is important, likewise, that the habits of thinking, in a
free country, should inspire caution in those intrusted with its
administration to confine themselves within their respective
constitutional spheres, avoiding in the exercise of one department, to
encroach upon another. The spirit of encroachment tends to consolidate
the powers of all the departments in one, and thus to create, whatever
the form of Government, a real despotism. A just estimate of that love
of power, and proneness to abuse it which predominates in the human
heart, is sufficient to satisfy us of the truth of this position. The
necessity of reciprocal checks in the exercise of political power,
by dividing and distributing it into different depositories, and
constituting each the guardian of public weal, against invasions by
the others, has been evinced by experiments, ancient and modern, some
of them in our own country, and under our own eyes. To preserve them
must be as necessary as to institute them. If, in the opinion of the
people, the distribution or modification of the constitutional powers
be, in any particular, wrong, let it be corrected by an amendment in
the way which the Constitution designates. But let there be no change
by usurpation; for though this, in one instance, may be the instrument
of good, it is the customary weapon by which free Governments are
destroyed. The precedent must always greatly overbalance, in permanent
evil, any partial or transient benefit which the use can, at any time,
yield.
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity,
religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that
man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these
great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties
of men and citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man,
ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all
their connections with private and public felicity. Let it simply be
asked, Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life,
if the sense of religious obligation _desert_ the oaths which are the
instruments of investigation in the courts of justice? And let us
with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained
without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined
education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both
forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of
religious principles.
It is substantially true, that virtue or morality is a necessary
spring of popular Government. The rule, indeed, extends with more or
less force to every species of free Government. Who, that is a sincere
friend to it, can look with indifference upon attempts to shake the
foundation of the fabric?
Promote, then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for the
general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a
Government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public
opinion should be enlightened.
As a very important source of strength and security, cherish public
credit. One method to preserve it is to use it as sparingly as
possible; avoiding occasions of expense by cultivating peace, but
remembering also that timely disbursements, to prepare for danger,
frequently prevent much greater disbursements to repel it; avoiding,
likewise, the accumulation of debt, not only by shunning occasion of
expense, but by vigorous exertions in time of peace to discharge the
debts which unavoidable wars may have occasioned, not ungenerously
throwing upon posterity the burden which we ourselves ought to bear.
The execution of these maxims belong to your representatives, but it
is necessary that public opinion should coöperate. To facilitate to
them the performance of their duty, it is essential that you should
practically bear in mind, that toward the payment of debts there must
be revenue; that to have revenue there must be taxes; that no taxes
can be devised which are not more or less inconvenient and unpleasant;
that the intrinsic embarrassment inseparable from the selection of
the proper objects (which is always a choice of difficulties) ought
to be a decisive motive for a candid construction of the conduct of
the Government in making it, and for a spirit of acquiescence in the
measures for obtaining revenue, which the public exigencies may at that
time dictate.
Observe good faith and justice toward all nations; cultivate peace and
harmony with all; religion and morality enjoin this conduct: and can
it be that good policy does not equally enjoin it? It will be worthy
of a free, enlightened, and, at no distant period, a great nation,
to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people
always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence. Who can doubt
that, in the course of time and things, the fruits of such a plan
would richly repay any temporary advantages which might be lost by a
steady adherence to it? Can it be that Providence has not connected
the permanent felicity of a nation with its virtue? The experiment, at
least, is recommended by every sentiment which ennobles human nature.
Alas! is it to be rendered impossible by its vices?
In the execution of such a plan, nothing is more essential than
that permanent inveterate antipathies against particular nations,
and passionate attachment for others, should be excluded; and that,
in place of them, just and amicable feelings toward all should be
cultivated. The nation which indulges toward another an habitual
hatred, or an habitual fondness, is, in some degree, a slave. It is a
slave to its animosity or its affection, either of which is sufficient
to lead it astray from its duty and its interest. Antipathy in one
nation against another, disposes each more readily to offer insult and
injury, to lay hold of slight causes of umbrage, and to be haughty and
intractable when accidental or trifling occasions of dispute occur.
Hence frequent collisions, obstinate, envenomed, and bloody contests.
The nation, prompted by ill-will and resentment, sometimes impels to
war the Government contrary to the best calculations of policy. The
Government sometimes participates in the national propensity, and
adopts, through passion, what reason would reject; at other times it
makes the animosity of the nation subservient to projects of hostility,
instigated by pride, ambition, and other sinister and pernicious
motives. The peace often, sometimes perhaps the liberty, of nations has
been the victim.
So, likewise, a passionate attachment of one nation to another produces
a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation, facilitating the
illusion of an imaginary common interest, in cases where no real common
interest exists, and infusing into one the enmities of the other,
betrays the former into a participation in the quarrels and wars of the
latter, without adequate inducement or justification. It leads also
to concessions to the favorite nation of privileges denied to others,
which is apt doubly to injure the nation making the concessions; by
unnecessarily parting with what ought to have been retained, and by
exciting jealousy, ill-will, and a disposition to retaliate in the
parties from whom equal privileges are withheld; and it gives to
ambitious, corrupted, or deluded citizens (who devote themselves to the
favorite nation) facility to betray, or sacrifice the interest of their
own country, without odium, sometimes even with popularity; gilding
with the appearance of virtuous sense of obligation, a commendable
deference for public opinion, or a laudable zeal for public good the
base or foolish compliances of ambition, corruption, or infatuation.
[Illustration: JAMES MADISON.]
As avenues to foreign influence, in innumerable ways, such attachments
are particularly alarming to the truly enlightened and independent
patriot. How many opportunities do they afford to tamper with domestic
factions, to practice the art of seduction, to mislead public opinion,
to influence or awe the public councils! Such an attachment of a small
or weak, toward a great and powerful nation, dooms the former to be the
satellite of the latter.
Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure you to
believe me, fellow-citizens) the jealousy of a free people ought to be
_constantly_ awake; since history and experience prove that foreign
influence is one of the most baneful foes of Republican Government. But
that jealousy, to be useful, must be impartial, else it becomes the
instrument of the very influence to be avoided, instead of a defense
against it. Excessive partiality for one foreign nation, and excessive
dislike for another, cause those whom they actuate to see danger only
on one side, and serve to veil, and even second the arts of influence
on the other. Real patriots, who may resist the intrigues of the
favorite, are liable to become suspected and odious; while its tools
and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people to surrender
their interests.
The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations, is,
in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little
political connection as possible. So far as we have already formed
engagements, let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. Here let us
stop.
Europe has a set of primary interests, which to us have none, or a very
remote relation. Hence she must be engaged in frequent controversies,
the causes of which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence,
therefore, it must be unwise in us to implicate ourselves, by
artificial ties, in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics, or the
ordinary combinations and collisions of her friendships or enmities.
Our detached and distant situation invites and enables us to pursue
a different course. If we remain one people, under an efficient
Government, the period is not far off when we may defy material
injury from external annoyance; when we may take such an attitude
as will cause the neutrality we may at any time resolve upon, to
be scrupulously respected; when belligerent nations, under the
impossibility of making acquisitions upon us, will not lightly hazard
the giving us provocation; when we may choose peace or war, as our
interest, guided by justice, shall counsel.
Why forego the advantages of such a peculiar situation? Why quit our
own to stand upon foreign ground? Why, by interweaving our destiny with
that of any part of Europe, entangle our peace and prosperity in the
toils of European ambition, rivalship, interest, humor, or caprice?
It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any
portion of the foreign world; so far, I mean, as we are now at liberty
to do it; for let me not be understood as capable of patronizing
infidelity to existing engagements. I hold the maxim no less applicable
to public than to private affairs, that honesty is always the best
policy. I repeat it, therefore, let those engagements be observed in
their genuine sense. But, in my opinion, it is unnecessary, and would
be unwise to extend them.
Taking care always to keep ourselves, by suitable establishments, on
a respectable defensive posture, we may safely trust to temporary
alliances for extraordinary emergencies.
Harmony and a liberal intercourse with all nations, are recommended
by policy, humanity, and interest. But even our commercial policy
should hold an equal and impartial hand; neither seeking nor granting
exclusive favors or preferences; consulting the natural course of
things; diffusing and diversifying, by gentle means, the streams of
commerce, but forcing nothing; establishing, with powers so disposed,
in order to give trade a stable course, to define the rights of our
merchants, and to enable the Government to support conventional rules
of intercourse, the best that present circumstances and mutual opinions
will permit, but temporary, and liable to be, from time to time,
abandoned or varied, as experience and circumstances shall dictate;
constantly keeping in view, that it is folly in one nation to look for
disinterested favors from another; that it must pay, with a portion
of its independence, for whatever it may accept under that character;
that by such acceptance it may place itself in the condition of having
given equivalents for nominal favors, and yet of being reproached with
ingratitude for not giving more. There can be no greater error than to
expect, or calculate upon, real favors from nation to nation. It is
an illusion which experience must cure, which a just pride ought to
discard.
In offering to you, my countrymen, these counsels of an old and
affectionate friend, I dare not hope they will make the strong and
lasting impression I could wish—that they will control the usual
current of the passions, or prevent our nation from running the course
which has hitherto marked the destiny of nations—but if I may even
flatter myself that they may be productive of some partial benefit,
some occasional good, that they may now and then recur to moderate
the fury of party spirit, to warn against the mischief of foreign
intrigues, to guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism,
this hope will be a full recompense for the solicitude for your welfare
by which they have been dictated.
How far, in the discharge of my official duties, I have been guided
by the principles which have been delineated, the public records, and
other evidences of my conduct, must witness to you and the world. To
myself the assurance of my own conscience is, that I have at least
believed myself to be guided by them.
In relation to this still subsisting war in Europe, my proclamation of
the 22d of April, 1793, is the index to my plan. Sanctioned by your
approving voice, and by that of your Representatives in both Houses
of Congress, the spirit of that measure has continually governed me,
uninfluenced by any attempts to deter or divert me from it.
After deliberate examination, with the aid of the best lights I
could obtain, I was well satisfied that our country, under all the
circumstances of the case, had a right to take—and was bound in duty
and interest to take—a neutral position. Having taken it, I determined,
as far as should depend upon me, to maintain it with moderation,
perseverance, and firmness.
The considerations which respect the right to hold this conduct, it is
not necessary on this occasion to detail. I will only observe that,
according to my understanding of the matter, that right, so far from
being denied by any of the belligerent powers, has been virtually
admitted by all.
The duty of holding a neutral conduct may be inferred, without any
thing more, from the obligation which justice and humanity impose
on every nation, in cases in which it is free to act, to maintain
inviolate the relations of peace and amity toward other nations.
The inducements of interest, for observing that conduct, will best be
referred to your own reflections and experience. With me, a predominant
motive has been to endeavor to gain time to our country to settle
and mature its yet recent institutions, and to progress, without
interruption, to that degree of strength and consistency which is
necessary to give it, humanly speaking, the command of its own fortunes.
Though in reviewing the incidents of my administration, I am
unconscious of intentional error, I am, nevertheless, too sensible of
my defects not to think it probable that I may have committed many
errors. Whatever they may be, I fervently beseech the Almighty to
avert or mitigate the evils to which they may tend. I shall also carry
with me the hope, that my country will never cease to view them with
indulgence; and that, after forty-five years of my life dedicated to
its service with an upright zeal, the faults of incompetent abilities
will be consigned to oblivion, as myself must soon be to the mansions
of rest.
Relying on its kindness in this, as in other things, and actuated by
that fervent love toward it which is so natural to a man who views
in it the native soil of himself and his progenitors, I anticipate,
with pleasing expectation, that retreat in which I promise myself to
realize, without alloy, the sweet enjoyment of partaking, in the midst
of my fellow-citizens, the benign influence of good laws under a free
Government—the ever-favorite object of my heart—and the happy reward,
as I trust, of our mutual cares, labors, and dangers.
GEORGE WASHINGTON.
UNITED STATES, 17th September, 1796.
MISSOURI COMPROMISE OF 1820.
When Missouri applied for admission into the Union, a proposition
was started in Congress to prohibit the introduction of slavery into
the new State. This had the effect of arraying the South against the
North—the slaveholding against the non-slaveholding States—and the
whole subject of slavery became the exciting topic of debate throughout
the country. The question was finally settled by a _Compromise_, which
tolerated slavery in Missouri, but otherwise prohibited it in all the
territory of the United States north and west of the northern limits of
Arkansas.
As the principle then settled has often since been the prolific source
of much sectional controversy and angry debate, and as it is desirable
that every one should be familiar with the _real_ provisions of the
act by which Missouri was admitted, we have concluded to insert here
so much of the law as is necessary to a full understanding of the
subject. All the sections, except the following, relate entirely to the
formation of the Missouri territory, in the usual form of territorial
bills:
“SEC. 8. That in all that territory ceded by France to the United
States, under the name of Louisiana, which lies north of thirty-six
degrees and thirty minutes north latitude, not included within the
limits of the State contemplated by this act, slavery and involuntary
servitude, otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the
parties shall be duly convicted, shall be, and is hereby, forever
prohibited. _Provided always_, That any person escaping into the
same, from whom labor or service is lawfully claimed, in any State or
Territory of the United States, such fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed
and conveyed to the person claiming his or her labor or service as
aforesaid.”
FUGITIVE SLAVE LAW OF 1850.
An Act to amend, and supplementary to, the Act entitled,
“An Act respecting Fugitives from Justice, and persons
escaping from the Service of their Masters,” and
approved February 12, 1793.
_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled_, That the persons who have
been, or may hereafter be, appointed Commissioners, in virtue of any
Act of Congress, by the Circuit Courts of the United States, and who,
in consequence of such appointment, are authorized to exercise the
powers that any justice of the peace, or other magistrate of any of
the United States, may exercise in respect to offenders for any crime
or offense against the United States, by arresting, imprisoning, or
bailing the same, under, and by virtue of, the thirty-third section
of the act of the twenty-fourth of September, seventeen hundred and
eighty-nine, entitled, “An Act to establish the judicial courts of the
United States,” shall be, and are hereby, authorized and required to
exercise and discharge all the powers and duties conferred by this Act.
SEC. 2. That the Superior Court of each organized Territory of the
United States shall have the same power to appoint Commissioners to
take acknowledgments of bail and affidavits, and to take depositions
of witnesses in civil causes, which is now possessed by the Circuit
Court of the United States; and all Commissioners who shall hereafter
be appointed for such purposes by the Superior Court of any organized
Territory of the United States shall possess all the powers, and
exercise all the duties, conferred by law upon the Commissioners
appointed by the Circuit Courts of the United States for similar
purposes, and shall moreover exercise and discharge all the powers and
duties conferred by this Act.
SEC. 3. That the Circuit Courts of the United States, and the Superior
Courts of each organized territory of the United States, shall, from
time to time, enlarge the number of Commissioners with a view to afford
reasonable facilities to reclaim fugitives from labor, and to the
prompt discharge of the duties imposed by this Act.
SEC. 4. That the Commissioners above named shall have concurrent
jurisdiction with the Judges of the Circuit and District Courts of
the United States, in their respective circuits and districts within
the several States, and the Judges of the Superior Courts of the
territories severally and collectively; in term time and vacation; and
shall grant certificates to such claimants, upon satisfactory proof
being made, with authority to take and remove such fugitives from
service or labor, under the restrictions herein contained, to the State
or Territory from which such persons may have escaped or fled.
SEC. 5. That it shall be the duty of all marshals and deputy marshals
to obey and execute all warrants and precepts issued under the
provisions of this act when to them directed; and should any marshal
or deputy marshal refuse to receive such warrant, or other process,
when tendered, or to use all proper means diligently to execute the
same, he shall, on conviction thereof, be fined in the sum of one
thousand dollars, to the use of such claimant, on the motion of such
claimant, by the Circuit or District Court for the district of such
marshal; and after the arrest of such fugitive, by such marshal or
his deputy, or while at any time in his custody, under the provisions
of this act, should such fugitive escape, whether with or without the
assent of such marshal or his deputy, such marshal shall be liable, on
his official bond, to be prosecuted, for the benefit of such claimant,
for the full value of the service or labor of said fugitive in the
State, Territory, or district whence he escaped; and, the better to
enable said Commissioners, when thus appointed, to execute their
duties faithfully and efficiently, in conformity with the requirements
of the Constitution of the United States, and of this Act, they are
hereby authorized and empowered, within their counties respectively,
to appoint, in writing under their hands, any one or more suitable
persons, from time to time, to execute all such warrants and other
process as may be issued by them in the lawful performance of their
respective duties; with authority to such Commissioners, or the persons
to be appointed by them, to execute process as aforesaid, to summon and
call to their aid the bystanders, or _posse commitatus_ of the proper
county, when necessary to insure a faithful observance of the clause
of the Constitution referred to, in conformity with the provisions of
this Act; and all good citizens are commanded to aid and assist in the
prompt and efficient execution of this law whenever their services may
be required, as aforesaid, for that purpose; and said warrants shall
run, and be executed by said officers, anywhere in the State within
which they are issued.
SEC. 6. That when a person held to service or labor in any State or
Territory of the United States has heretofore or shall hereafter escape
into another State or Territory of the United States, the person or
persons to whom such service or labor may be due, or his, her, or their
agent or attorney, duly authorized by power of attorney, in writing
acknowledged and certified under the seal of some legal officer or
Court of the State or Territory in which the same may be executed, may
pursue and reclaim such fugitive person, either by procuring a warrant
from some one of the Courts, Judges, or Commissioners aforesaid, of
the proper circuit, district, or county, for the apprehension of such
fugitive from service or labor, or by seizing and arresting such
fugitive where the same can be done without process, and by taking or
causing such person to be taken forthwith before such Court, Judge, or
Commissioner, whose duty it shall be to hear and determine the case of
such claimant in a summary manner; and, upon satisfactory proof being
made, by deposition or affidavit in writing, to be taken and certified
by such Court, Judge, or Commissioner, or by other satisfactory
testimony, duly taken and certified by some Court, Magistrate, Justice
of the Peace, or other legal officer authorized to administer an oath
and take depositions under the laws of the State or Territory from
which such person owing service or labor may have escaped, with a
certificate of such magistracy, or other authority as aforesaid, with
the seal of the proper Court or officer thereto attached, which seal
shall be sufficient to establish the competency of the proof, and with
proof, also by affidavit, of the identity of the person whose service
or labor is claimed to be due as aforesaid, that the person so arrested
does in fact owe service or labor to the person or persons claiming him
or her, in the State or Territory from which such fugitive may have
escaped as aforesaid, and that said person escaped, to make out and
deliver to said claimant, his or her agent or attorney, a certificate
setting forth the substantial facts as to the service or labor due
from such fugitive to the claimant, and of his or her escape from the
State or Territory in which such service or labor was due to the State
or Territory in which he or she was arrested, with authority to such
claimant, or his or her agent or attorney, to use such reasonable force
and restraint as may be necessary, under the circumstances of the case,
to take and remove such fugitive person back to the State or Territory
whence he or she may have escaped as aforesaid. In no trial or hearing
under this Act shall the testimony of such alleged fugitive be admitted
in evidence; and the certificates in this and the first [fourth]
section mentioned shall be conclusive of the right of the person or
persons in whose favor granted to remove such fugitive to the State
or Territory from which he escaped, and shall prevent all molestation
of such person or persons by any process issued by any Court, Judge,
Magistrate, or other person whomsoever.
SEC. 7. That any person who shall knowingly and willingly obstruct,
hinder, or prevent such claimant, his agent or attorney, or any person
or persons lawfully assisting him, her, or them, from arresting such
a fugitive from service or labor, either with or without process as
aforesaid, or shall rescue or attempt to rescue such fugitive from
service or labor from the custody of such claimant, his or her agent or
attorney, or other person or persons lawfully assisting as aforesaid,
when so arrested pursuant to the authority herein given and declared,
or shall aid, abet, or assist such person so owing service or labor as
aforesaid, directly or indirectly, to escape from such claimant, his
agent or attorney, or other person or persons legally authorized as
aforesaid; or shall harbor or conceal such fugitive so as to prevent
the discovery and arrest of such person, after notice or knowledge
of the fact that such person was a fugitive from service or labor as
aforesaid, shall, for either of said offenses, be subject to a fine
not exceeding one thousand dollars, and imprisonment not exceeding
six months, by indictment and conviction before the District Court
of the United States for the district in which such offense may have
been committed, or before the proper court of criminal jurisdiction,
if committed within any one of the organized Territories of the United
States, and shall moreover forfeit and pay, by way of civil damages
to the party injured by such illegal conduct, the sum of one thousand
dollars for each fugitive so lost as aforesaid, to be recovered as
aforesaid, to be recovered by action of debt in any of the District
or Territorial Courts aforesaid, within whose jurisdiction the said
offense may have been committed.
SEC. 8. That the marshals, their deputies, and the clerks of the said
District and Territorial Courts, shall be paid for their services the
like fees as may be allowed to them for similar services in other
cases; and where such services are rendered exclusively in the arrest,
custody, and delivery of the fugitive to the claimant, his or her agent
or attorney, or where such supposed fugitive may be discharged out of
custody for the want of sufficient proof as aforesaid, then such fees
are to be paid in the whole by such claimant, his agent or attorney;
and in all cases where the proceedings are before a Commissioner, he
shall be entitled to a fee of ten dollars in full for his services in
each case, upon the delivery of the said certificate to the claimant,
his or her agent or attorney; or a fee of five dollars in cases where
the proof shall not, in the opinion of such Commissioner, warrant such
certificate and delivery, inclusive of all services incident to such
arrest and examination, to be paid in either case by the claimant,
his or her agent or attorney. The person or persons authorized to
execute the process to be issued by such Commissioner for the arrest
and detention of fugitives from service or labor as aforesaid shall
also be entitled to a fee of five dollars each for each person he or
they may arrest and take before any such Commissioner, as aforesaid,
at the instance and request of such claimant, with such other fees
as may be deemed reasonable by such Commissioners for such other
additional services as may be necessarily performed by him or them,
such as attending at the examination, keeping the fugitive in custody,
providing him with food and lodging during his detention and until
the final determination of such Commissioner; and, in general, for
performing such other duties as may be required by such claimant, his
or her attorney or agent, or Commissioner in the premises. Such fees to
be made up in conformity with the fees usually charged by the officers
of the courts of justice within the proper district or county, as near
as may be practicable, and paid by such claimants, their agents or
attorneys, whether such supposed fugitives from service or labor be
ordered to be delivered to such claimants by the final determination of
such Commissioner or not.
SEC. 9. That, upon affidavit made by the claimant of such fugitive,
his agent or attorney, after such certificate has been issued, that he
has reason to apprehend that such fugitive will be rescued by force
from his or her possession before he can be taken beyond the limits
of the State in which the arrest is made, it shall be the duty of the
officer making the arrest to retain such fugitive in his custody, and
to remove him to the State whence he fled, and there to deliver him to
said claimant, his agent or attorney. And, to this end, the officer
aforesaid is hereby authorized and required to employ so many persons
as he may deem necessary to overcome such force, and to retain them in
his service so long as circumstances may require. The said officer and
his assistants, while so employed, to receive the same compensation
and to be allowed the same expenses as are now allowed by law for
transportation of criminals, to be certified by the Judge of the
district within which the arrest is made, and paid out of the treasury
of the United States.
SEC. 10. That when any person held to service or labor in any State or
Territory, or in the District of Columbia, shall escape therefrom,
the party to whom such service or labor may be due, his, her, or
their agent or attorney, may apply to any court of record therein, or
Judge thereof in vacation, and make satisfactory proof to such court,
or Judge in vacation, of the escape aforesaid, and that the person
escaping owed service or labor to such party. Whereupon the court
shall cause a record to be made of the matters so proved, and also a
general description of the person so escaping, with such convenient
certainty as may be; and a transcript of such record authenticated
by the attestation of the clerk and of the seal of the said court,
being produced in any other State, Territory, or District in which
the person so escaping may be found, and, being exhibited to any
Judge, Commissioner, or other officer authorized by the law of the
United States to cause persons escaping from service or labor to
be delivered up, shall be held and taken to be full and conclusive
evidence of the fact of the escape, and that the service or labor of
the person escaping is due to the party in such record mentioned.
And upon the production, by the said party, of other and further
evidence, if necessary, either oral or by affidavit, in addition to
what is contained in the said record of the identity of the person
escaping, he or she shall be delivered up to the claimant. And the
said Court, Commissioner, Judge, or other person authorized by this
Act to grant certificates to claimants of fugitives, shall, upon
the production of the record and other evidences aforesaid, grant
to such claimant a certificate of his right to take any such person
identified and proved to be owing service or labor as aforesaid, which
shall authorize such claimant to seize or arrest and transport such
person to the State or Territory from which he escaped: _Provided_,
That nothing herein contained shall be construed as requiring the
production of a transcript of such record as evidence as aforesaid.
But, in its absence, the claim shall be heard and determined upon other
satisfactory proofs competent in law.
_Approved September 18, 1850._
[The above law was repealed by the 38th Congress, 1864.]
KANSAS AND NEBRASKA ACT OF 1854.
An Act to Organize the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas.
_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled_, That all that part of the
territory of the United States included within the following limits,
except such portions thereof as are hereinafter expressly exempted
from the operations of this Act, to wit: beginning at a point on the
Missouri River where the fortieth parallel of north latitude crosses
the same; thence west on said parallel to the east boundary of the
Territory of Utah on the summit of the Rocky Mountains; thence on
said summit northward to the forty-ninth parallel of north latitude;
thence east on said parallel to the western boundary of the Territory
of Minnesota; thence southward on said boundary to the Missouri River;
thence down the main channel of said river to the place of beginning,
be, and the same is hereby, created into a temporary government by
the name of the Territory of Nebraska; and when admitted as a State
or States, the said Territory, or any portion of the same, shall be
received into the Union with or without slavery, as their Constitution
may prescribe at the time of their admission: _Provided_, That nothing
in this Act contained shall be construed to inhibit the Government
of the United States from dividing said Territory into two or more
Territories, in such manner and at such times as Congress shall deem
convenient and proper, or from attaching any portion of said Territory
to any other State or Territory of the United States: _Provided,
further_, That nothing in this Act contained shall be construed to
impair the rights of person or property now pertaining to the Indians
in said Territory, so long as such rights shall remain unextinguished
by treaty between the United States and such Indians, or to include any
Territory which, by treaty with any Indian tribe, is not, without the
consent of said tribe, to be included within the Territorial limits or
jurisdiction of any State or Territory; but all such Territory shall be
excepted out of the boundaries, and constitute no part of the Territory
of Nebraska, until said tribe shall signify their assent to the
President of the United States to be included within the said Territory
of Nebraska, or to affect the authority of the Government of the United
States to make any regulations respecting such Indians, their lands,
property or other rights, by treaty, law, or otherwise, which it would
have been competent to the Government to make if this Act had never
passed.
SEC. 2. That the executive power and authority in and over said
Territory of Nebraska shall be vested in a Governor, who shall hold
his office for four years, and until his successor shall be appointed
and qualified, unless sooner removed by the President of the United
States. The Governor shall reside within said Territory, and shall be
commander-in-chief of the militia thereof. He may grant pardons and
respites for offenses against the laws of said Territory, and reprieves
for offenses against the laws of the United States, until the decision
of the President can be made known thereon; he shall commission all
officers who shall be appointed to office under the laws of the said
Territory, and shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.
SEC. 3. That there shall be a Secretary of said Territory, who shall
reside therein, and hold his office for five years, unless sooner
removed by the President of the United States; he shall record and
preserve all the laws and proceedings of the Legislative Assembly
hereinafter constituted, and all the acts and proceedings of the
Governor in his executive department; he shall transmit one copy of the
laws and journals of the Legislative Assembly within thirty days after
the end of each session, and one copy of the executive proceedings and
official correspondence semi-annually, on the first days of January
and July in each year, to the President of the United States, and two
copies of the laws to the President of the Senate and to the Speaker
of the House of Representatives, to be deposited in the libraries of
Congress; and, in case of the death, removal, resignation, or absence
of the Governor from the Territory, the Secretary shall be, and he is
hereby duly authorized and required to execute and perform all the
powers and duties of the Governor during such vacancy or absence, or
until another Governor shall be duly appointed and qualified to fill
such vacancy.
SEC. 4. That the legislative power and authority of said Territory
shall be vested in the Governor and a Legislative Assembly. The
Legislative Assembly shall consist of a Council and House of
Representatives. The Council shall consist of thirteen members, having
the qualifications of voters, as hereinafter prescribed, whose term of
service shall continue two years. The House of Representatives shall,
at its first session, consist of twenty-six members, possessing the
same qualifications as prescribed for members of the Council, and whose
term of service shall continue one year. The number of Representatives
may be increased by the Legislative Assembly, from time to time, in
proportion to the increase of qualified voters: _Provided_, That the
whole number shall never exceed thirty-nine; an apportionment shall
be made as nearly equal as practicable, among the several counties
or districts, for the election of the Council and Representatives,
giving each section of the Territory representation in the ratio of
its qualified voters as nearly as may be. And the members of the
Council and of the House of Representatives shall reside in, and be
inhabitants of, the district or county, or counties, for which they may
be elected respectively. Previous to the first election, the Governor
shall cause a census or enumeration of the inhabitants and qualified
voters of the several counties and districts of the Territory, to
be taken by such persons and in such mode as the Governor shall
designate and appoint; and the persons so appointed shall receive a
reasonable compensation therefor. And the first election shall be
held at such times and places, and be conducted in such manner, both
as to the persons who shall superintend such election and the returns
thereof, as the Governor shall appoint and direct; and he shall at
the same time declare the number of members of the Council and House
of Representatives to which each of the counties or districts shall
be entitled under this Act. The persons having the highest number
of legal votes in each of said Council districts for members of the
Council, shall be declared by the Governor to be duly elected to the
Council; and the persons having the highest number of legal votes for
the House of Representatives, shall be declared by the Governor to be
duly elected members of said House: _Provided_, That, in case two or
more persons voted for shall have an equal number of votes, and in case
a vacancy shall otherwise occur in either branch of the Legislative
Assembly, the Governor shall order a new election; and the persons
thus elected to the Legislative Assembly shall meet at such place and
on such day as the Governor shall appoint; but thereafter, the time,
place, and manner of holding and conducting all elections by the
people, and the apportioning the representation in the several counties
or districts to the Council and House of Representatives, according to
the number of qualified voters, shall be prescribed by law, as well as
the day of the commencement of the regular sessions of the Legislative
Assembly: _Provided_, That no session in any one year shall exceed the
term of forty days, except the first session, which may continue sixty
days.
SEC. 5. That every free white male inhabitant, above the age of
twenty-one years, who shall be an actual resident of said Territory,
and shall possess the qualifications hereinafter prescribed, shall be
entitled to vote at the first election, and shall be eligible to any
office within the said Territory; but the qualifications of voters, and
of holding office, at all subsequent elections, shall be such as shall
be prescribed by the Legislative Assembly: _Provided_, That the right
of suffrage and of holding office shall be exercised only by citizens
of the United States and those who shall have declared on oath their
intention to become such, and shall have taken an oath to support the
Constitution of the United States and the provisions of this act: _And
provided, further_, That no officer, soldier, seaman, or marine, or
other person in the army or navy of the United States, or attached to
troops in the service of the United States, shall be allowed to vote or
hold office in said Territory, by reason of being on service therein.
SEC. 6. That the legislative power of the Territory shall extend to all
rightful subjects of legislation consistent with the Constitution of
the United States and the provisions of this Act; but no law shall be
passed interfering with the primary disposal of the soil; no tax shall
be imposed upon the property of the United States; nor shall the lands
or other property of non-residents be taxed higher than the lands or
other property of residents. Every bill which shall have passed the
Council and House of Representatives of said Territory, shall, before
it become a law, be presented to the Governor of the Territory; if he
approve, he shall sign it; but if not, he shall return it, with his
objections, to the House in which it originated, who shall enter the
objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it.
If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of that House shall agree
to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to
the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if
approved by two-thirds of that House, it shall become a law. But in all
such cases the votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and
nays, to be entered on the journal of each House respectively. If any
bill shall not be returned by the Governor within three days (Sundays
excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be
a law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Assembly, by
adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.
SEC. 7. That all township, district, and county officers, not herein
otherwise provided for, shall be appointed or elected, as the case may
be, in such manner as shall be provided by the Governor and Legislative
Assembly of the Territory of Nebraska. The Governor shall nominate,
and, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council,
appoint all officers not herein otherwise provided for; and in the
first instance the Governor alone may appoint all said officers, who
shall hold their offices until the end of the first session of the
Legislative Assembly; and shall lay off the necessary districts for
members of the Council and House of Representatives, and all other
officers.
SEC. 8. That no member of the Legislative Assembly shall hold, or be
appointed to any office which may have been created, or the salary or
emoluments of which shall have been increased, while he was a member,
during the term for which he was elected, and for one year after the
expiration of such term; but this restriction shall not be applicable
to members of the first Legislative Assembly; and no person holding a
commission or appointment under the United States, except postmasters,
shall be a member of the Legislative Assembly, or shall hold any office
under the government of said Territory.
SEC. 9. That the judicial power of said Territory shall be vested in
a Supreme Court, District Courts, Probate Courts, and in Justices of
the Peace. The Supreme Court shall consist of a Chief Justice and two
Associate Justices, any two of whom shall constitute a quorum, and
who shall hold a term at the seat of government of said Territory
annually, and they shall hold their offices during the period of four
years, and until their successors shall be appointed and qualified.
The said Territory shall be divided into three judicial districts,
and a District Court shall be held in each of said districts by one
of the Justices of the Supreme Court, at such times and places as
may be prescribed by law; and the said Judges shall, after their
appointments, respectively reside in the district which be assigned
them. The jurisdiction of the several courts herein provided for—both
appellate and original—and that of the Probate Courts and of Justices
of the Peace, shall be limited by law: _Provided_, That Justices of the
Peace shall not have jurisdiction of the matter in controversy when the
title or boundaries of lands may be in dispute, or where the debt or
sum claimed shall exceed one hundred dollars; and the said Supreme and
District Courts, respectively, shall possess chancery as well as common
law jurisdiction. Each District Court, or the judge thereof, shall
appoint its clerk, who shall also be the register in chancery, and
shall keep his office at the place where the Court may be held. Writs
of error, bills of exception, and appeals, shall be allowed in all
cases from the final decisions of said District Courts to the Supreme
Court, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law; but in no
case removed to the Supreme Court shall trial by jury be allowed by
said Court. The Supreme Court, or the Justices thereof, shall appoint
its own clerk, and every clerk shall hold his office at the pleasure
of the Court for which he shall have been appointed. Writs of error
and appeals from the final decision of said Supreme Court shall be
allowed, and may be taken to the Supreme Court of the United States
in the same manner and under the same regulations as from the Circuit
Courts of the United States, where the value of the property, or the
amount in controversy, to be ascertained by the oath or affirmation of
either party, or other competent witness, shall exceed one thousand
dollars; except only that in all cases involving title to slaves, the
said writs of error or appeals shall be allowed and decided by the said
Supreme Court, without regard to the value of the matter, property, or
title in controversy; and except also that a writ of error or appeal
shall also be allowed to the Supreme Court of the United States, from
the decisions of the said Supreme Court created by this act, or of any
judge thereof, or of the District Courts created by this Act, or of any
judge thereof, upon any writ of _habeas corpus_, involving the question
of personal freedom: _Provided_, That nothing herein contained shall
be construed to apply to or affect provisions of the “Act respecting
fugitives from justice, and persons escaping from the service of their
masters,” (approved February 12, 1793,) and the “Act to amend and
supplementary to the aforesaid Act,” (approved September 18, 1850;)
and each of the said District Courts shall have and exercise the same
jurisdiction in all cases arising under the Constitution and laws of
the United States as is vested in the Circuit and District Courts of
the United States; and the said Supreme and District Courts of the said
Territory, and the respective judges thereof, shall and may grant writs
of _habeas corpus_ in all cases in which the same are granted by the
judges of the United States in the District of Columbia; and the first
six days of every term of said courts, or so much thereof as shall be
necessary, shall be appropriated to the trial of causes arising under
the said Constitution and laws; and writs of error and appeal in all
such cases shall be made to the Supreme Court of said Territory, the
same as in other cases. The said clerk shall receive, in all such
cases, the same fees which the clerks of the District Courts of Utah
Territory now receive for similar services.
SEC. 10. That the provisions of an Act entitled “an Act respecting
fugitives from justice, and persons escaping from the service of their
masters,” (approved February 12, 1793,) and the provisions of the Act
entitled “an Act to amend, and supplementary to the aforesaid Act,”
(approved September 18, 1850,) be, and the same are hereby, declared to
extend to and be in full force within the limits of said Territory of
Nebraska.
SEC. 11. That there shall be appointed an attorney for said Territory,
who shall continue in office for four years, and until his successor
shall be appointed and qualified, unless sooner removed by the
President, and who shall receive the same fees and salary as the
attorney of the United States for the present Territory of Utah. There
shall also be a marshal for the Territory appointed, who shall hold
his office for four years, and until his successor shall be appointed
and qualified, unless sooner removed by the President, and who shall
execute all processes issuing from the said courts when exercising
their jurisdiction as Circuit and District Courts of the United States;
he shall perform the duties, be subject to the same regulations and
penalties, and be entitled to the same fees as the marshal of the
District Court of the United States for the present Territory of Utah,
and shall, in addition, be paid two hundred dollars annually as a
compensation for extra services.
SEC. 12. That the Governor, Secretary, Chief Justice, and Associate
Justices, Attorney, and Marshal, shall be nominated, and—by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate—appointed by the President of
the United States. The Governor and Secretary, to be appointed as
aforesaid, shall, before they act as such, respectively take an oath
or affirmation before the District Judge or some Justice of the Peace
in the limits of said Territory, duly authorized to administer oaths
and affirmations by the laws now in force therein, or before the
Chief Justice or some Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the
United States, to support the Constitution of the United States, and
faithfully discharge the duties of their respective offices, which said
oaths, when so taken, shall be certified by the person by whom the same
shall have been taken; and such certificates shall be received and
recorded by the said Secretary among the executive proceedings; and the
Chief Justice, and Associate Justices, and all other civil officers
in said Territory, before they act as such, shall take a like oath or
affirmation before the said Governor or Secretary, or some Judge or
Justice of the Peace of the Territory, who may be duly commissioned
and qualified, which said oath or affirmation shall be certified and
transmitted by the person taking the same to the Secretary, to be by
him recorded as aforesaid; and afterward, the like oath or affirmation
shall be taken, certified, and recorded in such manner and form as
may be prescribed by law. The Governor shall receive an annual salary
of two thousand five hundred dollars. The Chief Justice and Associate
Justices shall receive an annual salary of two thousand dollars. The
Secretary shall receive an annual salary of two thousand dollars. The
said salaries shall be paid quarter-yearly, from the dates of the
respective appointments, at the treasury of the United States; but
no such payment shall be made until said officers shall have entered
upon the duties of their respective appointments. The members of the
Legislative Assembly shall be entitled to receive three dollars each
per day during their attendance at the sessions thereof, and three
dollars each for every twenty miles’ travel in going to and returning
from the said sessions, estimated according to the nearest usually
traveled route; and an additional allowance of three dollars shall be
paid to the presiding officer of each House for each day he shall so
preside. And a chief clerk, one assistant clerk, a sergeant-at-arms,
and door-keeper may be chosen for each House; and the chief clerk
shall receive four dollars per day, and the said other officers three
dollars per day, during the session of the Legislative Assembly; but
no other officer shall be paid by the United States: _Provided_, That
there shall be but one session of the Legislature annually, unless,
on an extraordinary occasion, the Governor shall think proper to call
the Legislature together. There shall be appropriated, annually, the
usual sum, to be expended by the Governor, to defray the contingent
expenses of the Territory, including the salary of a Clerk of the
Executive Department; and there shall also be appropriated, annually,
a sufficient sum, to be expended by the Secretary of the Territory,
and upon an estimate to be made by the Secretary of the Treasury of
the United States, to defray the expenses of the Legislative Assembly,
the printing of the laws, and other incidental expenses; and the
Governor and Secretary of the Territory shall, in the disbursement of
all moneys intrusted to them, be governed solely by the instructions
of the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, and shall,
semi-annually, account to the said Secretary for the manner in which
the aforesaid moneys shall have been expended; and no expenditure
shall be made by said Legislative Assembly for objects not specially
authorized by the Acts of Congress making the appropriations, nor
beyond the sums thus appropriated for such objects.
SEC. 13. That the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Nebraska
shall hold its first session at such time and place in said Territory
as the Governor thereof shall appoint and direct; and at said first
session, or as soon thereafter as they shall deem expedient, the
Governor and Legislative Assembly shall proceed to locate and establish
the seat of government for said Territory at such place as they may
deem eligible; which place, however, shall thereafter be subject to be
changed by the said Governor and Legislative Assembly.
SEC. 14. That a delegate to the House of Representatives of the United
States, to serve for the term of two years, who shall be a citizen of
the United States, may be elected by the voters qualified to elect
members of the Legislative Assembly, who shall be entitled to the same
rights and privileges as are exercised and enjoyed by the delegates
from the several other Territories of the United States to the said
House of Representatives; but the delegate first elected shall hold
his seat only during the term of the Congress to which he shall be
elected. The first election shall be held at such time and places,
and be conducted in such manner as the Governor shall appoint and
direct; and at all subsequent elections the times, places, and manner
of holding the elections shall be prescribed by law. The person having
the greatest number of votes shall be declared by the Governor to be
duly elected, and a certificate thereof shall be given accordingly.
That the Constitution, and all the laws of the United States which are
not locally inapplicable, shall have the same force and effect within
the said Territory of Nebraska as elsewhere within the United States,
except the eighth section of the act preparatory to the admission
of Missouri into the Union, (approved March 6, 1820,) which, being
inconsistent with the principle of non-intervention by Congress with
slavery in the States and Territories—as recognized by the legislation
of 1850, commonly called the Compromise Measures—is hereby declared
inoperative and void; it being the true intent and meaning of this act
not to legislate slavery into any Territory or State, nor to exclude
it therefrom, but to leave the people thereof perfectly free to form
and regulate their domestic institutions in their own way, subject only
to the Constitution of the United States: _Provided_, That nothing
herein contained shall be construed to revive or put in force any law
or regulation which may have existed prior to the act of March 6, 1820,
either protecting, establishing, prohibiting, or abolishing slavery.
SEC. 15. That there shall hereafter be appropriated, as has been
customary for the territorial governments, a sufficient amount, to be
expended under the direction of the said Governor of the Territory of
Nebraska, not exceeding the sums heretofore appropriated for similar
objects, for the erection of suitable public buildings at the seat
of government, and for the purchase of a library, to be kept at the
seat of government, for the use of the Governor, Legislative Assembly,
Judges of the Supreme Court, Secretary, Marshal, and Attorney of said
Territory, and such other persons, and under such regulations, as shall
be prescribed by law.
SEC. 16. That when the lands in said Territory shall be surveyed under
the direction of the Government of the United States, preparatory
to bringing the same into market, sections numbered sixteen and
thirty-six, in each township in said Territory, shall be, and the
same are hereby, reserved for the purpose of being applied to schools
in said Territory, and in the States and Territories hereafter to be
erected out of the same.
SEC. 17. That, until otherwise provided by law, the Governor of said
Territory may define the judicial districts of said Territory, and
assign the judges who may be appointed for said Territory to the
several districts; and also appoint the times and places for holding
courts in the several counties or subdivisions in each of said judicial
districts by proclamation, to be issued by him; but the Legislative
Assembly, at their first or any subsequent session, may organize,
alter, or modify such judicial districts, and assign the judges, and
alter the times and places of holding the courts, as to them shall seem
proper and convenient.
SEC. 18. That all officers to be appointed by the President, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate, for the Territory of
Nebraska, who, by virtue of the provisions of any law now existing, or
which may be enacted during the present Congress, are required to give
security for moneys that may be intrusted with them for disbursements,
shall give security, at such time and place, and in such manner as the
Secretary of Treasury may prescribe.
[Illustration: JAMES MONROE]
SEC. 19. That all that part of the territory of the United States
included within the following limits, except such portions thereof as
are hereinafter expressly exempted from the operations of this act,
to wit: beginning at a point on the western boundary of the State of
Missouri, where the thirty-seventh parallel of north latitude crosses
the same; thence west on said parallel to the eastern boundary of New
Mexico; thence north on said boundary to latitude thirty-eight; thence
following said boundary westward to the east boundary of the Territory
of Utah, on the summit of the Rocky Mountains; thence northward on
said summit to the fortieth parallel of latitude; thence east on said
parallel to the western boundary of the State of Missouri; thence south
with the western boundary of said State to the place of beginning, be,
and the same is hereby, created into a temporary government by the name
of the Territory of Kansas; and when admitted as a State or States, the
said Territory, or any portion of the same, shall be received into the
Union with or without slavery, as the Constitution may prescribe at the
time of their admission: _Provided_, That nothing in this Act contained
shall be construed to inhibit the Government of the United States from
dividing said Territory into two or more Territories, in such manner
and at such times as Congress shall deem convenient and proper, or
from attaching any portion of said Territory to any other State or
Territory of the United States: _Provided, further_, That nothing in
this Act contained shall be so construed as to impair the rights of
persons or property now pertaining to the Indians in said Territory,
so long as such rights shall remain unextinguished by treaty between
the United States and such Indians, or to include any Territory which,
by treaty with any Indian tribe, is not, without the consent of said
tribe, to be included within the territorial limits or jurisdiction of
any State or Territory; but all such territory shall be excepted out
of the boundaries, and constitute no part of the Territory of Kansas,
until said tribe shall signify their assent to the President of the
United States to be included within the said Territory of Kansas, or
to affect the authority of the Government of the United States to make
any regulation respecting such Indians, their lands, property, or
other rights, by treaty, law, or otherwise, which it would have been
competent to the government to make if this act had never passed.
[With the single exception of the location of the seat of government
for Kansas at Fort Leavenworth, provided for in section 31, the ensuing
sixteen sections, relative to the organization and government of the
Territory, are precisely similar to the sections already recited,
providing for the government of Nebraska Territory. The final section
of the act, which has a general reference to both Territories, is as
follows:]
SEC. 37. _And be it further enacted_, That all treaties, laws, and
other engagements made by the Government of the United States with
the Indian tribes inhabiting the Territories embraced within this
act, shall be faithfully and rigidly observed, notwithstanding any
thing contained in this act; and that the existing agencies and
superintendencies of said Indians be continued, with the same powers
and duties which are now prescribed by law, except that the President
of the United States may, at his discretion, change the location of the
office of superintendent.
ORDINANCE OF 1787.
IN CONGRESS, JULY 13, 1787.
An Ordinance for the government of the territory of the United States,
north-west of the river Ohio.
_Be it ordained_, by the United States in Congress assembled, that
the said Territory, for the purpose of temporary government, be one
district; subject, however, to be divided into two districts, as future
circumstances may, in the opinion of Congress, make it expedient.
_Be it ordained_, by the authority aforesaid, that the estates both
of resident and non-resident proprietors in the said Territory,
dying intestate, shall descend to, and be distributed among their
children, and the descendants of a deceased child in equal parts; the
descendants of a deceased child or grand-child, to take the share of
their deceased parent, in equal parts, among them, and where there
shall be no children or descendants, then in equal parts to the next
of kin, in equal degree; and among collaterals, the children of a
deceased brother or sister of the intestate shall have, in equal parts,
among them, their deceased parent’s share; and there shall in no case
be a distinction between kindred of the whole and half blood; saving
in all cases to the widow of the intestate her third part of the real
estate for life, and one-third part of the personal estate; and this
law relative to descents and dower shall remain in full force until
altered by the Legislature of the district. And until the Governor and
judges shall adopt laws as hereinafter mentioned, estates in the said
territory may be devised or bequeathed by wills in writing, signed and
sealed by him or her, in whom the estate may be (being of full age),
and attested by three witnesses; and real estates may be conveyed by
lease or release, or bargain and sale, signed, sealed, and delivered by
the person, being of full age, in whom the estate may, and attested by
two witnesses, provided such wills be duly proved, and such conveyances
be acknowledged, or the execution thereof duly proved, and be recorded
within one year after proper magistrates, courts, and registers shall
be appointed for that purpose, and personal property may be transferred
by delivery, saving, however, to the French and Canadian inhabitants,
and other settlers of the Kaskaskias, Saint Vincents, and the
neighboring villages, who have heretofore professed themselves citizens
of Virginia, their laws and customs now in force among them, relative
to descent and conveyance of property.
_Be it ordained_, by the authority aforesaid, that there shall be
appointed, from time to time, by Congress, a Governor, whose commission
shall continue in force for the term of three years, unless sooner
revoked by Congress; he shall reside in the district and have a
freehold estate therein, in one thousand acres of land, while in the
exercise of his office. There shall be appointed, from time to time,
by Congress, a Secretary, whose commission shall continue in force for
four years, unless sooner revoked; he shall reside therein, and have
a freehold estate therein, in five hundred acres of land, while in
the exercise of his office; it shall be his duty to keep and preserve
the acts and laws passed by the Legislature, and the public records
of the district, and the proceedings of the Governor in his executive
department, and transmit authentic copies of such acts and proceedings,
every six months, to the Secretary of Congress. There shall also be
appointed a court, to consist of three judges, any two of whom to form
a court, who shall have a common law jurisdiction, and reside in the
district, and have each therein a freehold estate in five hundred acres
of land, while in the exercise of their offices; and their commissions
shall continue in force during good behavior.
The Governor and judges, or a majority of them, shall adopt and
publish in the district such laws of the original States, criminal
and civil, as may be necessary, and best suited to the circumstances
of the district, and report them to Congress, from time to time,
which laws shall be in force in the district until the organization
of the General Assembly therein, unless disapproved by Congress; but
afterward, the Legislature shall have authority to alter them as they
shall think fit.
The Governor, for the time being, shall be commander-in-chief of the
militia, appoint and commission all officers in the same, below the
rank of general officers. All general officers shall be appointed and
commissioned by Congress.
Previous to the organization of the General Assembly, the Governor
shall appoint such magistrates and other civil officers, in each
county or township, as he shall find necessary for the preservation
of the peace and good order in the same. After the General Assembly
shall be organized, the powers and duties of magistrates and other
civil officers shall be regulated and defined by the said Assembly;
but all magistrates and other civil officers, not herein otherwise
directed, shall, during the continuance of this temporary government,
be appointed by the Governor.
For the prevention of crimes and injuries, the laws to be adopted
or made, shall have force in all parts of the district, and for the
execution of process, criminal and civil, the Governor shall make
proper divisions thereof; and shall proceed, from time to time, as
circumstances may require, to lay out the parts of the district in
which the Indian titles shall have been extinguished, into counties and
townships, subject, however, to such alterations as may hereafter be
made by the Legislature.
So soon as there shall be five thousand free male inhabitants, of full
age, in the district, upon giving proof thereof to the Governor, they
shall receive authority, with time and place, to elect representatives
from their counties or townships, to represent them in the General
Assembly; _Provided_, That for every five hundred free male inhabitants
there shall be one representative, and so on progressively with the
number of free male inhabitants, shall the right of representation
increase, until the number of representatives shall amount to
twenty-five, after which the number and proportion of representatives
shall be regulated by the Legislature; _Provided_, That no person
be eligible or qualified to act as a representative, unless he shall
have been a citizen of one of the United States three years and be
a resident in the district, or unless he shall have resided in the
district three years, and in either case shall likewise hold in
his own right, in fee simple, two hundred acres of land within the
same; _Provided_, also, that a freehold in fifty acres of land in
the district, having been a citizen of one of the States, and being
resident in the district, or the like freehold and two years’ residence
in the district, shall be necessary to qualify a man as an elector of a
representative.
The representative thus elected, shall serve for the term of two years,
and in case of the death of a representative, or removal from office,
the Governor shall issue a writ to the county or township for which he
was a member, to elect another in his stead, to serve for the residue
of the term.