words which follow. In such an abstract manner there is no government on earth wise and powerful enough to regulate commerce. The framers of the constitution were not the men guilty of such a folly. Still party has taken hold of this provision to make capital out of it. Partisans have inferred from those words, to regulate commerce," that the power of Congress to regulate commerce, is unlimited.

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This clause, namely, the duty of Congress to regulate the commerce between the confederated states, is the main source of our internal commercial liberty, one of the greatest boons of our confederation, and the very cause of the wonderfully fast-spreading culture of the land, because no state can enact constitutionally laws levying taxes upon trade, as the states do in Germany, although confederated, and as the Dutch and Swiss republics did, and the latter perhaps still do. Bloody revolutions have been the result of such commercial checks and burdens, guarantied by this clause of our noble constitution, which so endears our Union to the solid mass of the people, and which renders it a desirable home for all industrious men. What feelings would take the place of this love of our country, should the industry of the Boston merchant be checked by custom lines around every state? should Louisiana have power to tax New York city, and the state of New York New Orleans? This most precious liberty of commerce, for which fanatics and factionists care little, is the result of the clause giving Congress the right to regulate commerce among the several states. Further, in consequence of this proviso, neither our own states nor foreign governments can meddle with our Indian tribes. Without a good deal of fanciful reading and cavil this clause can not be misunderstood.

Fancy delights in considering human society as one family. It is so in abstraction, but not in reality, which shows that it is composed of different races, and these are divided into different independent nations, represented by peculiar governments, acting like persons, that is, taking good care of their self. No person, no family, can exist otherwise. It is much the same with nations as such. But if this is done according to the law of mutuality, the essence of justice, expressed by the Christian sentence, Do unto others as you wish they may do unto you, persons and nations will exist co-ordinately and comfortably together. To preserve this

comfort, persons and nations must be on their guard against trespassers and trespassing. Suppose a European nation and their government were much more depending upon the commerce with our nation than we upon theirs, and their government opposed to • ours in theory and practice, then this law of mutuality and due regard to ourself and comfort, imperatively require to regulate this intercourse from our side so that we should not strengthen by it the hostile force and attitude of the foreign government, in order* to avoid our own national suicide. This, to balance right, requires wise, delicate, and resolute statesmanship.

LETTER IX.

Naturalization and Bankruptcy Laws. - Foreigners. · Declaration of Intention to become a Citizen. Congress, and State-citizenship Laws.

- Credit.

Congress

Family Suffrage. — American Woman's Influence. not true to their duty. - Legislation of the several States on Bankruptcy Suppletive. France. — Germany. - President Buchanan's Message on a Congressional Bankruptcy Law. - Congressional Committee report against it. Denies the Power of Congress.

WE come now to the "foreigners." Congress further has the power :

"4. To establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States."

For the sake of brevity, two business objects have been inclosed in this clause, which have nothing in common. The second sentence concerning bankruptcies would never have found a place in the constitution, if Congress were indeed the regulator of commerce, because as such this body could make as many laws concerning bankruptcies, banks, drafts, commercial partnerships, protests, exchange, discount, as it pleased, incidentally to the foregoing clause. Aliens must be Americanized. The colonies were a creation of immigration; that immigration from Europe would fill the vast regions of the United States, was foreseen by the sagacious framers of the constitution. To give uniformity to this national business, Congress was empowered to legislate upon it.

Hence, the naturalization laws, by which, of course, were excluded titles, orders of nobility, allegiance to foreign governments or princes, and a certain time fixed, five years' residence in the country, temporary business absence not included, and required a declaration of the intention to become a citizen, etc. State legislatures have altered the time of five years, and reduced it, in regard to voting, to one year and less, producing a kind of conflict with the laws of Congress, which has become a bone of party contention.

The federal constitution, and the laws of Congress in this respect, seem to have operated well, while state legislation has led to voting abuses, especially in consequence of the general suffrage law. Viewing emigration, and its political consequences, from a simple natural social standing-point, we must be inclined to admit that the establishing of a family, and home, is the universal beginning of the real exercise of citizen rights, and presumptively qualifies better than a law can do to voting. If a naturalization law could start from this natural basis, the matter would be easily set right, and state interference prevented. I admit that the voting by families is yet unpopular, but if American women would look into the matter, and insist upon such a voting law, it would soon be carried, and prove to be one of the greatest social political improvements of the time, and remain for ever popular; for it is just, necessary, natural, and common sense, as the family state itself, while the general suffrage law is a mere arbitrary measure. The second part of this clause attributes to Congress the care for a general bankrupt law.

The framers of the constitution were well aware of the immense importance of the confederation in regard to the expansion of industry and commerce. They knew further, that commerce without credit is impossible, and that credit will degenerate into swindling, and lose its moral force without the support of uniform stringent laws. The idea of having throughout the Union a general law on the subject of bankruptcy, sprung up from a true, honest, and statesmanlike appreciation of the confederation. To such an appreciation, however, Congress never has come, never has aspired. This assemblage is far from answering to its true constitutional purpose. Very few of its members take the constitution for their rule of action. Thus Congress has tried repeat

edly to enact a uniform bankruptcy law, but it always failed, so that this clause, thus far, is not exhausted by legislative action. The state legislatures have supplied this deficiency, which, of course, produces a variety of systems where uniformity is desirable. In South Carolina, executors of estates have a right to help themselves if they have claims against them before all other creditors; they can pay any creditor they please, according to the dignity of the debt; a man dying, or failing, may there prefer one creditor to another, etc. If now a citizen of another state is not aware of this anomalous state of things, and belongs not to the dignified creditors, he will suffer losses, while a uniform congressional law should protect him from such.

The opinion is at present adopted that this grant is not an exclusive one, and that thus the state legislatures may enact bankrupt laws which would be unconstitutional if this clause should be exclusive. But this seems to be not true, for if this opinion be right, all other grants in this clause would be as little exclusive, for they are all made in the same manner and tenor. The fact is,

Congress has had, up to this time, no good will, or energy enough to establish a uniform bankruptcy law, therefore, the state legislatures were obliged to supply the deficiency temporarily. As soon as Congress would enact one, then all state laws in this regard would cease to be valid.

You see how much work is still left for us by this noble constitution. If the prevalent, virulent and speculative party spirit will pervade Congress longer, it will never be wholly executed.

France, with thirty-five million inhabitants, has a uniform law on this subject; and I observe that there was, in 1857, a convention sitting in Germany to make one. No doubt that our constitution has suggested the idea. So I hope it will be now soon realized, for the benefit of the public and unfortunate honest debtors at home.

President Buchanan having, in his first annual message to Congress, suggested the necessity of enacting a uniform general bankruptcy law, Congress appointed a committee, who reported that the subject, especially with reference to banks, belonged to the states to legislate upon. This may have been satisfactory to this committee, but is adverse to the constitution, and something

like insubordination or revolution. A business intrusted wisely by the people to Congress, can not, by their agents, be intrusted to the states without causing confusion and anarchy.

LETTER X.

Coining Money. Its Value. Standard of Weights and Measures. Mints. -Assay Offices. - Decimal Coinage. - Counterfeiting. - Punishment. Post-Offices. Post-Roads. Roman Custom. - Mail Lines.

Competition. Internal Improvement Policy.

WE glide from power to power, or business to business. Congress has the power :

"5. To coin money, regulate the value thereof and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures."

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The subjects of this provision are truly national, and thus justly belonging to Congress. For a general commercial intercourse, a certain standard medium of exchange is indispensable to represent property. Mankind have adopted for this purpose the most valuable metals, gold and silver, having an intrinsic standard value, not affected by laws or art. To legalize this standard, and coin. and mint, accordingly, money, is the business of Congress. Consequently, Congress has erected mints, assay offices, etc.

Justice requires uniform laws for standard weights and measures, and even international arrangements for a mundane uniformity in such things.

That Congress has not succeeded until lately to make the national legal decimal coinage exclusive, proves that upon the circulation of money, usage exercises a more powerful influence than laws.

Within these few words lies the trust of the national monetary affairs. It is not fair, from the side of the state governments to circumvene this proviso by allowing associations to fabricate paper money, which is actually like coining.

"6. To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States."