Selections: Report Of The Committee Of The House Of Represen...

i Tli f Béféct cotnmittee to wliom Was referrrd (lie pctitibn of tundry lopnl votéis of the Stató of Michigan, uskincr t'he leLislature fti tnkc ihe ncrcssnry attion fur nmending tlie constitutinu ofthis State by expunging frqrñ ihe t-ecnnd article thcrcof, the word "wbite' and tliua ; t-ecuro lo all the ciiizens of the State, irrespcctive oí colorj cqual política! rirh(s beir leave to report that tliey have had The mnttcr j under considerntion, ahd have coiné to the i : conclusión that the object Föuglit by the pe! tilionérs is just and riplit; anti thev would therelbre recomrhehd the adoption uVa joint! resolution to that r0l-ct. ín arrivingat líos cono]lISpn, j-onr corn] miltee have endenvoié'd tb freo tíieinselves ; from all unreasonable projndires nnd pz-epos' seseed opinions, and toconsider tlic question, : as it i?, divcsted of every thing of a party or ' social charocier. They hnvb hot been nnbíndful of thefabt tiiat'a different víeív oftliis niafler is fenlertoined by some, and for that: reason wiey wouJu mention some of tlie urgj guments wliich seem to support tlic conclusión ; :it whicli tljcy have nnived. Yonr committee j do not by any meah's proposo goinr jnto a iabored argument to prove whni is To ílictii a eelt' evident prnpo-itlon, but vill sinply throw out a few gcneru! hintsj and leave tlie matter fbr the consirjerntion of tlie Housp. We are of' the numberof t!io.cc who bëhcrc tlint repubücnn inf-titiitiohe. LcEcd upon the principies of goverrment, tlie entire fieedom Of man - and a perfect equnlity ofpolitical and i personal riglits, is the only true sysfern öf liu - tnan govcrinnent-tlifit nll politica! dislinclions tending to ealt or depress ahy portiou pi the liühian faniilj are vrbnj and i Jy iinjusi. and that every man shnuld in liis polilical rig-lits, sland upen a pc rf vel fevcl uijj liis 'ellow rnan.They belicve furt lirrj thát cVery man, let his cbndilion br 'fcbm plexiqn bc wliat it mny. ivho is Lovernrd by tlie lawe, and nssists in fonin.ninihg t'ieir snprcmacy in nny conimu nity, t-hould bnve a voirc in deciding wfmt iliofe lawsehoiild bn. These are principies which will not be dispiited by ony friend o rcpublican freedom. Tliey are in tact Ihe foundation on uliich all republicnn institutions arebused. If this poskion cannot be mniir taint'd, tlien republicnn institutions must feil, as tliey l:nve no otber foundation. RepubHcanism or democracy recopnisss no politicnl distinctions bet wee" man and man, t ncitlier Luilds up nor pulls down. It is an exact rule of political riglit. It nietes out - qual and exact justice to all mm. All stand upon even grouml. and nre measured by the same standard?. It knows no difference between tlie Iearr.ed ond the unleariicd - the high and the low - Ihe rich nml the poor - theAsiatic, A frican, European or Americnn. 1 is a. principie which evefy Where atsuerts the righl of tvery man, of the human race lo govern himself. It follows. Ihen, th.it every irjffïnLcmen' vpon, or i'iaht wiikluld from any portion of tbecitizens of a state, isan invasión upon the and inherent rightsuf man, nnd strikes at the very root of democratie insiitutions. Hovv stnnds the case in our own State?- Do all ts citizens enjoy the right of self-government? Do all poiscss equal poütical priv ïleges? Does every man who ie governrd by th lau'P, nnd whö n-sists in cnhinlainiog Iheni, have a voicc in who hall enactthem? Are any of our cilizens tuxvd who are not repiescntod? These quesiionp, (oxeept the last,) n.tist be answered in Ihe negative. A porüon of the people of this State do not enjoy the right of self-government, oqurtl poütical privileges are denied thein, they are compelled to be rulcd by )aws whicli Ihey have had no voioe in ennctina". And Ihnj are taxnl, but they are nol rrprrsented. We must all admit tliat these distinctioii9 m the political riphts of our cituens Jire not warronted by, or in uny marnier based upon, the principies of republicanim; we must eek in a differrnt field and on another foundiilion, for the orijrin of these distinctions. They will be found i.i their priinitivc state, riing upon the La.-iá of arisloCracy, side by side and drawinnf tlieir support from the snme soiirce with property qu;ilifirntions liereditani privileges and tlic divine righls of kinjrs. Tliesc ore fome of the ideas whicli hnvc prescited themselves to the mindá cif yonr committee,and they are unable to seenny rea son why the red man or the black mnn," vvlio becomes a citizen of our Siate and who comes undrr the pptration of ú liw?, nnd oSáistp ir maintaining tlieir aupremacy, should be deniei tlie right of suffrage. Some may, perha5, ima peine Ihat t he rig-Jit of suffrage ouglit not to be extended to the colored man, beeunse si very ]a njaintuined m pomo of the states of the Union. Siich pnrsons feem to have a kind of confusrd and indi-íinite notion thnt there must be some corjnexion between froe suffroge jn the free state of Michigan and domestic sin very in the búvereign sta', es of the South. IIow or iii úliát way this connexion exists, or why the free and enlighiened peojile of Michigan phouli oppress a portion of their citizens und withnk from them'tlioir most saerrd tiihts,for no bet ter reason than that some other s ates d í ) so h tlieir citizen-s ve cnnnot conceivr. It is i barbarity ond nn injtisticc wiiicii tlie democracy of Michigan oiight to disdaiu to ex ercise upon an nofíensive and powerless peo pie. With the qnestion of slaven', we conpide Ihat we have n:thing to do, and in considering this matter, we qre not bound to know thnt t oxists on the fnrë öf the earth. There is not and camiot bo any nrcessnrv connexion bet ween the two qitetion ánd even iftliere wns t woüld look rather ont of pjace for the people of Michigan to volunlcer to perpe'uate opresión tmtil the jeiaVe t'atësj at least by their vnited examplp, invite iis tb do po. We presume it to be known to tliis House, fhat in the sin ve state of Norlh Curolinn, suffrogC, thonglj not fiee, is cqualsofara rrgurds color. In that sfnte the riek white man and the rich black mnn enjoy tho right of votimj, vvllile the poorof ecry color areiiii. lij . Agrin it 5 argnod bv -corfie llint íht? red tnán, lliough be becotncs a cilifeén of our Stnie nnt] nbknowledgbs allegiance to its Jaws, om) performe nll the 'dtitiei of n ciiizcu. yet tliat ht sliould not be nllowcd to particípate in the right bfèuffrn&ei And Why? Befcrfltóe that sóme (not all; f them, or prfhaps thoir forefathers, miplit have fougjit opainst the United Stiltes fluring the Jsle vvnr of 1312. 'J'Iip satne arpnment vóu!d prevent the cxfeBbion of that right to any nativo of the Bri:ish Is!p?. This arpn.-ncnt, (fit hiay be called nn ar pumenl) likc the latt, is purcly imnginary. - It has no fomi(l;itiin ei;hcr in reaolt,íx edien cy or riglitj and is tidvanced, probably, in the enlire absence ofanything beller. In conclusión, t!)écoinni:ttee wouid eiïpress the hope that this question mny be exninined carefuüy, candidly üii'l fmely by 11. and that a decisión wiíl bc luul, wlich will not be unworlhy of the free urmoerncy of Micliipon. - Thiá is not a pnrty qnestifii, btit one of principie, and lies at tl.fi very root of onr ineñtlitions. Let us lay uside pnity prrjudices and inconsistent and contnuüctory theorirs, and let us act opon t'iis nmt'r.r lile men of principie, who knowinp the principies of democracy dare to mainliun thenij leuvinrr ristoerncv of eVery shade, o be suj'porletl by those vvhü ilnbibe its principie?.