1 99 C5M38 MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL COURT SENATE REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES SENATE.. ..No. 12. EPOR OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE OF THE SENATE UPON THR LATE RESOLUTIONS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA. Uoston : DUTTON AND WENTWORTH, PRINTERS TO THE STATE Nos. 1 and 4, Exchange Street. issi'." Commontoralti) of IN SENATE, JANUARY 18, 1831. Ordered that Messrs. EVERETT, STEARNS, FOWLER, GRAY, M'KAY, DEARBORN, AND PHILLIPS, be a Committee to inquire into the expediency of an expression of opinion by this General Court Upon the right of a State to extend its jurisdiction over the persons and territory of Indian tribes within its lim- its, whose personal and territorial independence of the authority of the State within the limits of which they are situated are expressly guarantied to them in formal trea- ties by the United States : Upon the right of a State to request of and enjoin upon its Executive officers to. disregard any and every mandate and process that has been or shall be served upon them, purporting to proceed from the Chief Justice, 1S4S759 or any Associate Justice of the United States, for the purpose of arresting the execution of the criminal laws of such State : and Upon the duty which would devolve upon the Gov- ernment of the United States, should any State extend its jurisdiction in the manner aforesaid, or lay such in- junctions upon its Executive officers : Nj$l ,0.4 .V ;i r ;:;, And Report thereon to this Board. Attest, CHARLES CALHOUN, Clerk. REPORT The Committee appointed to inquire into the expedi- ency of an expression of opinion hy this General Court, upon the right of a State to extend its juris- diction over the persons and territory of Indian tribes within its limits, whose personal and territorial independence of the authority of the State within the limits of which they are situated, are expressly guaran- tied to them in formal treaties by the United States : upon the right of a State to request of, and en- join upon its executive officers to disregard any and every process and mandate purporting to issue from the Chief Justice or any associate Justice of the Su- preme Court of the United States, for the purpose of arresting the execution of the criminal laws of such State : and upon the duty which would devolve upon the Government of the United States, should any State extend its jurisdiction in the manner aforesaid, or lay such injunctions upon its executive officers : beg leave respectfully to submit the following REPORT. IN considering the subject referred to them, the Com- mittee have deemed it their duty to inquire, in the first place, whether there are any circumstances in the pres- ent situation of the country, which render it expedient at this particular time for the General Court to express an opinion upon the points specified in the order of the Senate : and they believe, that such circumstances are in fact to be found in the recent resolutions of the gov- ernment of the State of Georgia, respecting the extent of the powers of the Supreme Court of the United States, which have grown out of the relations existing between that State and the Cherokee Indians. These Indians occupy a territory situated in part within the limits of the State of Georgia. The boun- daries of this territory are distinctly defined in various treaties with the United States, and the same treaties expressly guaranty to the Cherokees, their personal and territorial independence of the authority of those States or any of them within these boundaries. By the first treaty concluded at Hopewell on the 28th of November 1785, a boundary line is drawn between the territory of the Cherokees and that of the contigu- ous States : and it is agreed between the parties, that ' if any citizen of the United States attempt to settle on any of the lands within this boundary, he shall forfeit the protection of the United States, and be given up to the Indians to be punished or not as they may think proper.' By the second treaty concluded at Holston on the 2d of July 1791, and of course after the adoption of the present Constitution of the United States, a part of the territory secured to the Cherokees by the treaty of Hopewell is ceded to the United States : a new boundary is fixed : and in the seventh article, the Uni- ted States ' solemnly guaranty to the Cherokee nation all their lands not ceded by the treaty.' It is also express- ly stipulated by the sixth article of the same treaty, that * no citizen of the United States shall attempt to hunt on the lands of the Cherokees, and that no such citizen shall go into the Cherokee country without a passport from the Governor of a State or territory or such other person as the President of the United States may au- thorize to grant the same.' In both these treaties the Cherokees are positively recognised in terms as a na- tion, and in the treaty of Holston they are also nega- tively recognised as not being under the jurisdiction of any State. The eleventh article declares, that * if any citi- zen or inhabitant of the United States shall go into any town, settlement or territory belonging to the Chero- kees ; and shall there commit ^any crime upon or tres- pass against the person or property of any peaceable and friendly Indian or Indians, which if committed within the jurisdiction of any State, or within the juris- diction of either of the said districts, against a citizen or any white inhabitant thereof would be punishable by the laws of such State or district, such offender or of- fenders, shall be subject to the same punishment, and shall be proceeded against in the same manner as if the offence had been committed within the jurisdiction of the State or District, to which he or they may be- long against a citizen or white inhabitant.' The leading stipulations contained in these two trea- ties have been renewed and confirmed under certain variations, not affecting their substance, by fourteen others of subsequent date. The third in order was an article, in addition to the treaty of Holston, agreed upon at Philadelphia, on the 17th of February, 1792 ; and the fourth was concluded at the same place on the 26th of June, 1794. This treaty confirms that of Holston * to 8 all intents and purposes, as well in respect to the boun- daries therein mentioned, as in all other respects what- ever.' By the fifth treaty concluded at Tellico on Cher- okee ground, on the 2d of October 1798, a part of the territory secured to theCherokees by the treaty of Hol- ston is ceded to the United States : another boundary is defined : and in the sixth article the United States en- gage to ' continue the guaranty of the remainder of their country forever as made and continued in former treaties.' The sixth treaty, which was an informal compact made on the 2d of October 1803, and not sub- mitted to the Senate for ratification : the seventh, which was concluded at Tellico on the 4th of October of the next year : the eighth, concluded at the same place on the 25th of October 1805: the ninth, also concluded at the same place two days afterwards : the tenth, concluded at Washington on the 7th of January 1806: the eleventh, which was an informal compact made at the Chickasaw Old Fields on the 4th of Septem- ber 1807, and not submitted to the Senate for ratifica- tion : the twelfth and thirteenth, both of which were concluded at Washington on the 22d of March 1810, and the fourteenth, which was concluded at the Chick- asaw Council House on the 14th of September of the same year renew and confirm the stipulations of the first treaties without any variations material to the pur- pose of the present inquiry. The fifteenth treaty, which was made at the Cherokee Agency on the 8th of July 1817, and the sixteenth and last, which was concluded at Washington on the 29th of February 1819, are ac- companied by preambles which state respectively among the objects which the parties had in view in making them, those of enabling the Cherokees ' to establish 9 fixed laws and a regular government,' and to maintain and preserve their national existence. The fourteenth and fifteenth of these treaties were negotiated on the part of the United States by their present Chief Magis- trate, and the sixteenth by the present Vice-Presi- dent. From this rapid view of the treaties successively con- cluded between the United States and the Cherokee Indians, it appears that the United States have repeat- edly, and in the most solemn manner recognised the Cherokeesas a nation ; guarantied to them the excluisve possession of and jurisdiction over the territory marked cut in these treaties; declared that they were not with- in the jurisdiction of any State ; stipulated that citizens of the United States should not settle on their territory or enter it without a passport; and finally stated as one of the objects of these arrangements, the establish- ment by the Cherokees of fixed laws, and a regular government, and the preservation by them of their na- tional existence. It appears, farther, from the official accounts of the proceedings of the government of the state of Georgia, that an act was passed by that Government on the 21st of December 1828, for the purpose of extending the ju- risdiction of the State over that part of the territory of the Cherokee Indians which falls within the limits of Georgia, and over the persons of the Cherokees inhabit- ing the same. By the terms of this act, the laws, usages and customs heretofore established among the Cherokees are declared to be null and void ; their persons are made subject to such laws and regulations as the Government of Georgia may hereafter prescribe, and their territory is an- nexed to the four contiguous counties of that State. This "I 10 law took effect from and after the 1st of June 1830, and the state of Georgia has exercised in various instances the authority conferred by it ; particularly in the case of George Tassels, a Cherokee Indian, who was executed on the 24th of last December for a crime committed within the jurisdiction of the Cherokees, and without that of Georgia, as defined and understood before the passage of the abovementioned act. It appears to be admitted by the authorities of Georgia that the tenor of the abovementioned act is at variance with that of the treaties between the United States and the Cherokee Indians. When the Cherokee, George Tas- sels, to whose case the Committee have just alluded, was brought before one of the courts of Georgia to answer to the indictment on which he has since been convicted, he filed a plea to the jurisdiction of the Court, and the Judge presiding in Hall County, where the case was tried, re- served the question for the opinion of the Judges in Convention. As this is the highest judicial authority in the State, their opinion must be received as an official exposition, through the proper department of the Gov- ernment, of the reasons which are supposed by the State to justify the measure in question. The Judges com- mence by explaining at some length their understanding of the character of the relations between the State of Georgia and the Cherokees, independently of any posi- tive treaties, and then proceed to consider the effect of the treaties in the following terms. " If any obstacle exist to the extension of the jurisdic- tion of the State over the territory now in possession of the Cherokee Indians, it must be sought for in the trea- ties which have been negotiated between these Indians and the United States. But here a preliminary question 11 is presented. Are the Indian tribes within the limits of the United States legal objects of the treaty-making power ? It is presumed not. It seems to be self-evident, that communities which have been determined not to be objects of a declaration of war cannot be the objects of the treaty-making power. But it may be answered, that the President and Senate have determined that the In- dians are the proper objects of the treaty-making power, and that treaties have actually been made with them. This is admitted. But it may be safely contended, that a construction put by the President and Senate on that part of the Constitution which grants the treaty-making power, is not entitled to as much weight as a construc- tion placed upon other parts of the Constitution by all the departments of the Government, inconsistent with that placed upon the treaty-making power by only two of the departments which had concurred in that con- struction. But for the sake of investigating the subject more fully, let it for the present be taken for granted that the Indian tribes are the proper objects of the trea- ty-making power. The rights and the relations of those tribes had been unalterably fixed long before the treaty- making power created by the Constitution of the United States existed ; and it was not competent for that pow- er, when rightfully exercised, to alter or change those rights or relations. The right of the Indians to the soil on which they lived was that of occupancy only, the fee being vested in the State of Georgia. Any attempt to change the right of occupancy into a fee would have invaded the seizin in fee declared to be vested in Geor- gia by the Supreme Court of the United States, and would have been null and void. Again ; The rela- tion existing between the Cherokee Indians and the 12 State of Georgia was that of pupilage. No treaty be- tween the United States and the Cherokees could change that relation, and confer upon them the power of independent self-government. If there are any clau- ses in any of the compacts between the United States and the Cherokee Indians (miscalled treaties) which give to those Indians the right of independent self-gov- ernment, they are simply null and void, and ought not to be permitted to throw any obstacle in the way of the operation of the act of Georgia, extending her jurisdic- tion over the territory in the occupancy of the Cherokee Indians." The Committee infer from these expressions in the opinion of the Convention of Judges ; 1st, That the act of Georgia extending her jurisdic- tion over the territory of the Cherokee Indians, and the persons inhabiting the same, is admitted to be in con- travention of the treaties between those Indians and the United States. 2d, That it is admitted, that the treaties of which this act is in contravention were negotiated, concluded and ratified by the treaty-making power of the United States in the form prescribed by the Constitution. 3d, That in the opinion of the Judges, these treaties are unconstitutional, and not binding upon the State of Georgia : first, because the Indians with whom they were concluded are not proper objects of the treaty- making power ; and, secondly, because the United Slates, were not competent by any rightful exercise of the treaty-making power to change the relations pre- viously existing between the Cherokees and the State of Georgia. The Committee forbear to comment upon the singu- 13 lar position in which the State of Georgia may be thought to have placed herself before the world, when she claims to be exempt from the obligations of a com- pact to which she was a party, which was concluded in perfect freedom and good faith, with a full understand- ing on both sides of the circumstances of the case, which has been faithfully executed by the other contracting party, and from which she has derived important advan- tages, on account of some alleged informality in the instrument in which it is embodied. The comity which belongs to the intercourse of every kind between the States renders it the duty of the Committee, as it is their pleasure, to suppose that Georgia can have had no in- tention in any of her proceedings, but to render substan- tial justice to all parties affected by them, according to her understanding of law and justice ; and that any ir- regularities by which they may have been marked have been the consequence of involuntary error in her political agents. Nor do the Committee deem it a part of their duty to examine upon this occasion the validity of the objections made by the Convention of Judges, to the treaties between the United States and the Cherokees. All cases in law and equity arising under the constitu- tion, the laws of the United States, and the treaties made under their authority, are expressly declared by the Constitution to come within the reach of the judi- cial power of the United States. It is admitted by the Judges that the treaties with the Cherokees were con- cluded in the usual way by the treaty-making power un- der the authority of the United States; and any question that may be raised concerning their validity or effect, can of course, only be settled in conformity to the terms of the Constitution by the Federal Courts. It 14 belongs to those Courts to decide upon the validity of the exceptions taken by the convention of Judges to the form of these treaties ; and the Committee deem it unnecessary to anticipate the opinion of the competent tribunal upon this subject, which will doubtless be given at one time or another. The proceedings of the State of Georgia subsequent to the delivery by the Conven- tion of the opinion which has just been cited, are those which, if any, appear to call for an expression of the opinion of the General Court. It seems, in fact, that while the highest Judicial au- thority of the State of Georgia admits that the act ex- tending her jurisdiction over the persons and territory of the Cherokee Indians is in contravention of the treaties between those Indians and the United States, the Legislature of the State publicly denies the compe- tency of the Courts of the United States to decide upon the validity of the objections made by the Judges to the constitutionality of those treaties ; or, as the Committee understand the resolution, to interfere in any way with the course of justice as administered in the Courts of Georgia at least in criminal cases. After the Chero- kee Tassels had been convicted on the indictment found against him in one of these Courts, he represented to the Supreme Court of the United States in the ordinary legal way, that the judgment passed upon him was er- roneous on account of a defect of jurisdiction in the Court. The Chief Justice granted in consequence a writ of error, by which the case was removed into the Supreme Court of the United States ; and addressed to the Governor of Georgia a summons in the customary form, by which the State was cited to appear and an- swer to the complaint of the plaintiff in error. The 15 summons was immediately transmitted by the Governor to the Legislature, which was in session at the time, and which adopted on the same day on which the mes- sage was received, the following preamble and resolu- tions. " Whereas it appears by a communication made by his Excellency the Governor to the General Assembly, that the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States has sanctioned a writ of error, and cited the State of Georgia, through her Chief Magistrate, to appear before the Supreme Court of the United States to defend said State against said writ of error, at the in- stance of one George Tassels, recently convicted in Hall Superior Court. Be it therefore Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives, that they view with feelings of deep regret the interference by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, in the administra- tion of the criminal laws of this State, and that such interference is a flagrant violation of her right. Resolved further, that his Excellency the Governor be, and he and every other officer of this State, is here- by requested and enjoined to disregard any and every mandate and process that has been or shall be served upon him or them, purporting to proceed from the Chief Justice or any associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States for the purpose of arresting the execution of any of the criminal laws of this State. Resolved further, that his Excellency the Governor be, and he is hereby authorised and required, with all the force and means placed at his command by the consti- tution and laws of this State, to resist and repel any and 16 every invasion from whatever quarter, upon the admin- istration of the criminal laws of this State. Resolved, that the State of Georgia will never so far comprornit her sovereignty, as an independent State, as to become a party to the case sought to be made before the Supreme Court of the United States by the writ in question. Resolved, that his Excellency the Governor be, and he is hereby authorised, to communicate to the Sheriff of Hall county, by express, so much of the foregoing re- solutions and such orders as are necessary to ensure the full execution of the laws, in the case of George Tas- sels, convicted of murder in Hall county." Agreeably to the last Resolution, an express was de- spatched to ensure the execution of the convict, which took place accordingly at the appointed time. The Committee regret very deeply, that any consid- eration should have induced the Government of the State of Georgia to proceed to the immediate execu- tion of a capital sentence, against, the validity of which an exception had been taken in the ordinary forms of law : and sincerely wish, that that Government had employed a case of some other kind as the occasion of asserting for the first time, their views of the authority of the Courts of the United States. The Committee, however, are bound, and are certainly disposed, to be- lieve, that the Government of Georgia were actuated in this proceeding by no other motive than an earnest desire to uphold the supposed rights of the Slate : nor, if the Committee are well advised was the execu- tion of Tassels under these circumstances, in itself, a violation of law : as it appears, that from a defect in the jurisprudence of the country, a writ of error does 17 not operate, in criminal cases, to stay the execution of the original sentence. But the Committee find in the resolutions adopted by the State of Georgia, principles which are now, as they believe, promulgated for the first time on the au- thority of a State, and which are fitted to excite the very serious attention of the good people of the Union. By these resolutions, the executive officers of the State are requested and ordered to disregard and resist by force the execution of any legal process that may be served upon them under the authority of the Supreme Court of the United States, for the purpose of arrest- ing the execution of any of the criminal laws of the State. But the constitution and laws of the United States give jurisdiction to the Federal Courts in all cases, whether criminal or civil, arising under the Con- stitution, the laws of the United States, and the trea- ties made under their authority, and authorize in such cases an appeal from the State to the Federal Courts ; so that these resolutions are an actual denial of the au- thority of the Federal Courts in one of the two great divisions of all the cases in which they have jurisdiction under the Constitution and laws ; and amount in prin- ciple to a denial of the right of the Federal Courts to interfere in any way with the course of justice as ad- ministered in the Courts of the State. The practical application of these principles, how- ever honestly they may be entertained by the authori- ties of the State of Georgia, would produce a direct conflict between her executive officers and those of the United States ; or in other words, a civil war : and the promulgation of them on the high responsibility of the Legislature of one of the States, presents, in the 3 18 opinion of the Committee, a case of a new and alarm- ing character. And this case appears to the Committee to be still more serious than it otherwise would be, in consequence of the apparent disposition of the Executive department of the Government of the United States, to counte- nance the extraordinary pretensions and principles that are now advanced by the State of Georgia. The Con- stitution makes it the duty of the President to ' take care that the laws are faithfully executed,' and the treaties between the United States and the Cherokees, were they even as defective in form as the convention of the Judges of Georgia appear to suppose them, are still among the laws of the land, until they are pronounced to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States. The President is therefore bound by the constitution and his oath of office, to take care that they are faithfully executed. But it appears from the tenor of the official communications made by his order through the Department of War to the Cherokees, that he has refused to enforce in favor of the .Cherokees the provisions of the treaties which guaranty to them the undisturbed possession of their territory, and an ex- emption from the jurisdiction of the United States or of any State. The preamble to the treaty which was negotiated at the Cherokee Agency on the 8th of July 1807, by the President himself (as the Committee have already remarked) expressly specifies as one of the objects of the arrangement, that of enabling the Cher- okees to establish fixed laws and a regular government ; and the preamble to the treaty of 1819 distinctly states as one of its objects, that of enabling the Cherokees to preserve their national existence. But the Secretary of War, in a letter addressed by order of the President to a delegation of the Cherokee Indians and dated at the Department of War, April 18th 1829, informs them, that their right to the enjoyment of a separate govern- ment within the limits of their territory as denned by the treaties cannot be admitted. It appears indeed, that instead cf employing the army of the United States to enforce the faithful execution of the treaties, which he was bound to do if the circumstances of the case required it, the President has actually, at the spe- cial request of the authorities of Georgia, withdrawn from the Cherokee territory the troops which were sta- tioned there before, and thus facilitated, instead of op- posing, the extension of jurisdiction by that State. In the same communication, the Secretary of War informs the delegation, by order of the President, that were it even true that the State of Georgia ' cannot and ought not to claim the exercise of the power of extend- ing her jurisdiction over the Cherokee territory,' the President would still decline to interfere, from an ap- prehension, that ' if he should interfere, and Georgia should persist in her claim, the consequences might be injurious to the United States, and ruinous to the Cher- okees. 5 The Committee entertain for the President of the United States the respect which is due to the person in- vested by the choice of his fellow-citizens with the Chief Magistracy of this great republic ; and sincerely wish, that he may add the glory of a successful admin- istration of the political affairs of the Union, to that which he so justly acquired in its military defence du- ring the last war. But they are compelled to say, that he has, in their opinion, proceeded on erroneous views of 20 duty in declining to enforce the existing treaties in fa- vor of the Cherokees ; and that the intimation convey- ed in the letter of the Secretary of War, that it would be dangerous to the United States to attempt to enforce these treaties against the opposition of Georgia is de- rogatory to the honor of the country. Such being the facts, which were probably in the view of the Senate in ordering the inquiry referred to the Committee, the question arises, whether it be ex- pedient for the General Court to express an opinion upon the principles involved in the Resolutions of the State of Georgia, and the communications of the ex- ecutive department of the Government of the United States, to which the committee have adverted. The Committee believe, that such an expression of opinion is not only expedient, but a duty of high and paramount importance. The practical application of the principles avowed by the State of Georgia would lead, as the Committee have already remarked, to an open conflict between the executive officers of that State and of the Union ; which however it might terminate, must necessarily pro- duce results of the most deplorable character. Either the military force of the Union will be employed to sus- tain the laws at tho expense of the public tranquillity and of much innocent blood ; or if the executive de- partment should shrink from the discharge of its duty, the integrity of the constitution will be violated in one of its most essential articles, the wholesome control which belongs to the Federal Courts in certain cases over those of the States will be destroyed, and the country will relapse into the confusion and imbecility of the old confederation. To repair these evils after they 21 have actually occurred will be, of course, beyond the reach of human power ; and to prevent, if possible, the ""* opportunity for their occurrence should be the earnest effort of every good citizen. If Georgia persist in the principles she now avows, it is apparent that the period for their practical application cannot be long de- layed. It is understood, that the Cherokee Indians have recently made an application to the Supreme Court for an injunction to restrain that State from ex- tending her jurisdiction over their territory. This ap- plication will probably bring the case to a crisis, or if it should not, some other occurrence must inevitably do so, within a short period. In the brief interval that still remains before the sword of civil war is drawn, or the judiciary power of the Union prostrated at the feet of a single State, it is, in the opinion of the Committee, the duty of the friends of the Union, of the country, and of the great interests of humanity and freedom, which are deeply involved in the success of the experi- ment in government now making among us, to raise a warning voice, and endeavour to convince the State of Georgia of the unconstitutional character of her late proceedings. However slight might be the probability that any actual effect would be produced upon her coun- sels by any such interposition, it would still be expedi- ent, were there even a remote possibility of success, that the effort should be made. The people owe it to themselves to omit no measure, that holds out the slightest chance of aiding us to escape from the incalcu- lable miseries that would necessarily result from colli- sion between the General and State Governments. But the Committee are not inclined to believe that the chance of a favorable result from the measure re- 22 commended is by any means small. While they have felt it their duty to point out certain particulars in the proceedings of the authorities of Georgia, inconsistent in their opinion with the Constitution and Laws of the United States, they render at the same time full justice to the intentions and character of the persons who di- rect the councils of a sister State. Although engaged in a course of measures, which, if pursued much longer, must be in one way or another most dangerous to the welfare of the country, the Committee believe them to be actuated by no other views, than an ardent and hon- est, though mistaken zeal for the supposed rights of the State. In the spirit by which they are animated, how- ever, unfortunate may be its present direction, the Com- mittee recognize the same high and generous enthusiasm for justice and liberty which nerved the arms of our fathers in the revolutionary contest, and is always active and living in the breast of every one of their genuine descendants. And although the deportment of Georgia towards the feeble and unfortunate remnant of the natives of her soil which still remains upon it, has appeared of late to be unnecessarily severe, the Com- mittee can never believe that the present members of a community, established originally as a refuge for the poor and distressed, by a Founder, whose benevolence has been celebrated through the world, will be long in- sensible to the claims of humanity. A manly and tem- perate expression by a sister State of different views from those on which she is now acting, would, in the o- pinion of the Committee, be received by Georgia with due consideration ; and should it prove satisfactory, the same warm and lofty spirit, which leads her to proceed with excessive energy in a course which she deems cor- 23 rect, would induce her to retrace her steps without hes- itation, if she found herself in error. The hisjh idea 7 O that is now entertained in Georgia of the importance and dignity of the State Governments, must naturally induce her to receive with attention the opinions which they may offer respecting her proceedings ; and it can hardly be doubted that if a number of States should de- clare against her, she would feel herself called upon to examine very maturely the principles upon which she is acting, before she followed them into consequences still more alarming than those, into which they have alrea- dy led. For these reasons, the Committee believe, that it is expedient for the General Court to express an o- pinion upon the subjects specified in the order of the Senate, and as a form of this expression, they respect- fully submit the following Resolutions. orommontoeaitfj of In the year of our Lord One Thousand Eight Hundred and Thirty-One. Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives, that the Federal Constitution, the laws of the United States made in pursuance thereof and all treaties made under the authority of the United States, are the su- preme law of the land ; and that the Judges in every State are bound thereby, any thing in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding. Resolved, That the Judicial power of the United States extends to all cases in law and equity, arising un- der the Federal Constitution, the laws of the United States and the treaties made under their authority ; and that no State can rightfully enjoin upon its executive offi- cers to disregard or resist by force any process or man- date which may be served upon them in such cases in due form of law, by authority of the Courts of the United States. Resolved, That it is the duty of the President of the United States to take care that the Federal Constitu- tion, the laws of the United States, and the treaties made under their authority are faithfully executed, any thing in the Constitution, laws or acts of any State to the contrary notwithstanding. Resolved, That the Senators of the Commonwealth, in the present and the next Congress, be, and they here- by are requested and the Representatives instructed to use all the means in their power to preserve inviolate the public faith of the country, and to sustain the right- ful authority of the Government of the United States in all its departments. Resolved, That His Excellency the Governor be, and he hereby is requested to transmit copies of these res- olutions to the Governors of all the other States, to the end, that they may be submitted to the Legislatures of the same for their consideration ; and also to the Senators and Representatives of the Commonwealth in the present and the next Congress. All which is respectfully submitted. By Order of the Committee, A. H. EVERETT, Chairman. f UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. DWfVn LD-Urtl SMi OS; fKV 2 ZV -ICQ 071976 4 INK OEC161993 UPR 042000 1-JOV27198T APR U^Z i OIK i r\ IIDI RKD LD-URl 95!?.l JANOT'BI EB 27 Form L9-Series 4939 3 1158 00288 2370