in such circumstances that no rightful authority shall exist to prohibit and punish crimes, and to enjoin and enforce the practice of justice.

THIS is a subject on which con- themselves, or be placed by others, fused and erroneous ideas prevail in various quarters, and, in some cases, threaten to work mischief. It should be universally known and admitted that the Commonwealth of Liberia is a sovereign State, having its own constitution, government, and laws, and rightfully claiming all the powers, prerogatives, and privileges essential to sovereignty. The principles and facts by which this claim is vindicated may be stated in a few words.

The duty of sustaining civil government, and obeying its righteous demands, is imposed upon all men by their Creator. Whatever authority may of right belong to the individuals of the human race, or to any of them, in respect to the form in which, or the persons by whom, civil government shall be administered, the question of its existence is not submitted to their discretion. Nor is it possible for men to place

If, therefore, any find themselves placed where no existing government has jurisdiction, it is their duty, and, therefore, their right, to make the necessary arrangements for administering justice and restraining crime by adequate penalty. And the community, thus organized, may rightfully proceed to establish laws, enforce their observance, and do all other acts essential to its own wellbeing. Such a community is a sovereign State, is authorized to perform all acts essential to sovereignty, and has a right to be recognized accordingly by all men and nations with whom it has to do.

But no acknowledgment by other nations is necessary to confer the rights of sovereignty. On the contrary, sovereignty must exist, and

manifest itself, before it can be ac- || possibly be due. As certain as it is that human beings must, from the necessity of their nature, owe allegiance to some sovereign power, so certain it is that the said commonwealth is a sovereign power to which allegiance may be due.

knowledged. These United States have been sovereign since their assumption of sovereignty in 1776, and not merely since the acknowledgment of their sovereignty by Great Britain at the end of the war of independence. Nor has it ever been usual for one State to acknowledge the sovereignty of another until it becomes expedient to establish diplomatic relations between them, or otherwise than by establishing such relations; and their establishment, when it takes place, is an implied acknowledgment of a sovereignty already existing.

Nor is its sovereignty at all impaired by the fact that, according to the constitution of that commonwealth, certain persons, who are citizens of the United States, have a voice in some of its governmental acts. The kingdom of Hanover was a sovereign State during the reigns of George IV. and William IV. of England; and yet its supreme ruler was a person residing in England, and wearing the crown of the British empire. Such was the constitution of the kingdom of Hanover that no treaty with any foreign power could be made, nor any law enacted, repealed, or amended, without the assent of a certain man who was king of England. Yet Hanover was, in no sense, a part of the British empire. No British law had any force there. No British magistrate had any authority there. In all the concerns of war and peace, the nations were as independent of each other as they are now, when Hanover has her own king residing within her own territory. In like manner, the

On these principles, independently of which no nation on earth can show its right to sovereignty, Liberia claims to be a sovereign State. Here is a territory over which no other government has or claims jurisdiction, and where there is no power but that of this commonwealth to punish any crime which may be committed. Here are men who owe no allegiance to any other government. Allegiance to the United States, from which some of them emigrated, is neither claimed by the United States nor acknowledged by them. The African governments, to which others of them once owed allegiance, are annihilated. Thus situated, owing no allegiance to commonwealth of Liberia is a soveothers, under no jurisdiction of others, they have organized the Commonwealth of Liberia; and that commonwealth is the only power on earth to which their allegiance can

reign State, though a part of its rulers are citizens and residents of the United States.

It is, therefore, wholly unnecessary to sunder the relation of the

whereas the said society have proceeded, vernment which now exists for the said under those powers, to organize the gothe purpose of establishing or per-ed and submitted to by all the residents in territory, and which has been acknowledgfecting its sovereignty. Such a mea- the said territory: And whereas it appears, sure may be, and doubtless, sooner from the foregoing facts, that the said government is as legitimate, sovereign, and or later, will be, advisable for other independent as any in the world, neither reasons; but the sovereignty of the claiming or exercising any authority withthe United States nor any one of them commonwealth is already perfect, in the said territory: And whereas it is and no additional perfection can be proper that all persons visiting or settling in the said territory should understand disconferred upon it by a change of its tinctly the position in which they stand with relation to the said government: Therefore

shall be construed to affect, alter, or ex-recognition, which it is most convetend the relations which practically exist between the government aforesaid and the

native Africans not of American descent resident within the said territory, or to curtail the authority practically exercised over said Africans by their own kings and other authorities, leaving the question of right as to such authority entirely open and unaffected by the provisions of this ordinance; so that the relations of said Africans to each other, and to the government and citizens of Maryland in Liberia, shall remain, in all respects, the same as they were before the passage of this ordinance, both in right and in fact, (de jure et de

facto.)

"And be it further enacted, ordained, and declared, That all free colored persons, emigrants from the United States of America, who shall have subscribed the aforesaid declaration to support the aforesaid constitution, and all natives of Africa who shall be permitted by the governor and council to subscribe the said declaration, and shall actually subscribe the same, and

all descendants of either of the said classes

born in the territory aforesaid, shall be deemed citizens of Maryland in Liberia.

nient to state historically.

The first emigrants to Liberia went out from this country with the avowed intention of founding a free,

sovereign, and independent State. Most modern colonists have commenced their new settlements with the intention of forming an appendage to some parent State, under whose authority they acted. This enterprise was undertaken on different principles, and for a different

purpose.

It was rather like the

founding of Carthage, which was a Tyrian colony, but never, that we know, subject to Tyre. Those men left our shores for that purpose, with the perfect knowledge and express approbation of the government of the United States. That government even facilitated their emigration by

"And be it further enacted, ordained, and declared, That the Maryland State Colonization Society hold all their rights, both of government and property, in Africa, in trust, to be administered according to the best judgment of said society, for the bene-paying in advance for work to be fit of those persons who now are, or hereafter may be, citizens of Maryland in Liberia, in their collective capacity, and will so continue to hold and administer the same until they shall withdraw their agents, and yield the government wholly into the hands of the people of the said territory.

"And be it further declared, That no person or persons in America has or have, or ought to have, any beneficial interest in the government or property aforesaid; but that the same is, and of right ought to be, held and administered exclusively for the

purposes aforesaid."

It is known that this ordinance was drawn up by some of the most eminent jurists in the United States. Its principles are as applicable to the commonwealth of Liberia, as to the younger republic to which it directly refers. The older republic has also some additional claims to

done by them after their arrival. The sanction of the United States to Liberian sovereignty, therefore, was given in advance, and needs not to be repeated. The approbation of the United States government was also expressed, from time to time, by placing in Liberia Africans whom it had rescued from the hands of slave traders, or who had been landed unlawfully upon our coasts; and also by instructing its naval officers on the coast of Africa to afford aid and protection to the settlement.

The emigrants, before embarking, freely gave their express assent to the government under which they

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residing in the United States.

That constitution has since been amended; but the amendments were not considered as binding till they had received the deliberate assent of the people of Liberia. And it still rests on their assent. Whenever the people of that commonwealth shall see fit to adopt another amendment, and deprive the Colonization Society of all share in its govern

and the Society has no power to prevent them.

were about to place themselves; but | been provided for by that part of the reports which reached the United government of the commonwealth States soon appeared to indicate that a change was desirable; and, in June, 1824, the Rev. R. R. Gurley was sent out," duly commissioned," both by the government of the United States and the Colonization Society, to examine the condition of the settlement, and empowered to make such temporary arrangements for the security of the public interests and the government of the establishment as circumstances might, in his judgment, it is in their power to do it, ment, require."* After arriving at Monrovia, and after full consultations with Mr. Ashmun, agent of the Society, and with the emigrants themselves, a change in the form of government was thought advisable. A new constitution was, therefore, drawn up, read, and explained to the assembled people, and received their unanimous assent and oaths of fidelity. That constitution provided that, in order to its permanent validity, it should receive the assent of the Colonization Society; and that assent was, in due time, formally given. Here was every thing that can be supposed to be necessary to the validity of such a transaction. Here was a people freely and intelligently adopting a constitution for their own government. Here was whatever authority the United States could have in such a case present to sanction the deed. And, finally, here is the ratification which had

Life of Ashmun, pp. 207, 215, 246.

The government of the United States has officially declared that it regards the sovereignty of Liberia, thus originating, as legitimate, and as rightfully entitled to the respect of civilized nations; that it approves of the course of that commonwealth in exercising "all the powers of an independent community;" and that the treaties of the commonwealth with the native princes, whether of trade or otherwise, ought to be respected; that the tacit assent of all nations for twenty-two years, in its acquisitions of territory by treaty and exercise of other sovereign powers, should be conclusive in its favor;† that Liberia is not "a private enterprise, like that of an individual trader," but is entitled to acquire jurisdiction over territory by treaty; "to act as an independent political community; and, as such, to en

Mr. Upshur to Mr. Fox, Sept. 25, 1843.