No Treason

48 Pages·2012·0.24 MB·English

It is perfectly evident, therefore, that neither such voting,
norsuchpaymentoftaxes,asactuallytakesplace,provesany-
body’sconsent,orobligation,tosupporttheConstitution.Con-
sequently we have no evidence at all that the Constitution is No Treason
bindinguponanybody,orthatanybodyisunderanycontract
orobligationwhatevertosupportit.Andnobodyisunderany
obligationtosupportit.
Lysander Spooner
IV
Theconstitutionnotonlybindsnobodynow,butitneverdid
bind anybody. It never bound anybody, because it was never
agreedtobyanybodyinsuchamannerastomakeit,ongen-
eralprinciplesoflawandreason,bindinguponhim.
Itisageneralprincipleoflawandreason,thatawrittenin-
strument binds no one until he has signed it. This principle is
so inflexible a one, that even though a man is unable to write
his name, he must still “make his mark,” before he is bound
by a written contract. This custom was established ages ago,
when few men could write their names; when a clerk — that
is, a man who could write — was so rare and valuable a per-
son,thatevenifhewereguiltyofhighcrimes,hewasentitled
to pardon, on the ground that the public could not afford to
losehisservices.Evenatthattime,awrittencontractmustbe
signed;andmenwhocouldnotwrite,either“madetheirmark,”
orsignedtheircontractsbystampingtheirsealsuponwaxaf-
fixedtotheparchmentonwhichtheircontractswerewritten.
Hence the custom of affixing seals, that has continued to this
time.
Thelawsholds,andreasondeclares,thatifawritteninstru-
mentisnotsigned,thepresumptionmustbethatthepartyto
beboundbyit,didnotchoosetosignit,ortobindhimselfby
it. And law and reason both give him until the last moment,
1870
inwhichtodecidewhetherhewillsignit,ornot.Neitherlaw
48
For this reason, whoever desires liberty, should under-
standthesevitalfacts,viz.:1.Thateverymanwhoputs
moneyintothehandsofa“government”(socalled),puts
intoitshandsaswordwhichwillbeusedagainsthim,to
extort more money from him, and also to keep him in
subjection to its arbitrary will. 2. That those who will
take his money, without his consent, in the first place,
willuseitforhisfurtherrobberyandenslavement,ifhe
presumestoresisttheirdemandsinthefuture.3.Thatit
is a perfect absurdity to suppose that any body of men
wouldevertakeaman’smoneywithouthisconsent,for
anysuchobjectastheyprofesstotakeitfor,viz.,thatof
protectinghim;forwhyshouldtheywishtoprotecthim,
ifhedoesnotwishthemtodoso?Tosupposethatthey
would do so, is just as absurd as it would be to suppose
thattheywouldtakehismoneywithouthisconsent,for
the purpose of buying food or clothing for him, when
he did not want it. 4. If a man wants “protection,” he is
competenttomakehisownbargainsforit;andnobody
has any occasion to rob him, in order to “protect” him
against his will. 5. That the only security men can have
for their political liberty, consists in their keeping their
moneyintheirownpockets,untiltheyhaveassurances,
perfectly satisfactory to themselves, that it will be used
as they wish it to be used, for their benefit, and not for
theirinjury.6.Thatnogovernment,socalled,canreason-
ablybetrustedforamoment,orreasonablybesupposed
to have honest purposes in view, any longer than it de-
pendswhollyuponvoluntarysupport.
These facts are all so vital and so self-evident, that it can-
not reasonably be supposed that any one will voluntarily pay
money to a “government,” for the purpose of securing its pro-
tection, unless he first make an explicit and purely voluntary
contractwithitforthatpurpose.
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3. Not knowing who the particular individuals are, who
callthemselves“thegovernment,”thetaxpayerdoesnot
knowwhomhepayshistaxesto.Allheknowsisthata
mancomestohim,representinghimselftobetheagent
Contents
of“thegovernment”—thatis,theagentofasecretband
ofrobbersandmurderers,whohavetakentothemselves
thetitleof“thegovernment,”andhavedeterminedtokill
everybody who refuses to give them whatever money NumberOne 5
theydemand. To save his life, he gives up his money to Introductory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
this agent. But as this agent does not make his princi- I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
palsindividuallyknowntothetaxpayer,thelatter,after II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
hehasgivenuphismoney,knowsnomorewhoare“the III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
government”—thatis,whoweretherobbers—thanhe IV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
didbefore.Tosay,therefore,thatbygivinguphismoney
NumberTwo:TheConstitution 17
totheiragent,heenteredintoavoluntarycontractwith
I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
them, that he pledges himself to obey them, to support
II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
them,andtogivethemwhatevermoneytheyshouldde-
III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
mandofhiminthefuture,issimplyridiculous.
IV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
4. All political power, so called, rests practically upon this V. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
matter of money. Any number of scoundrels, having VI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
money enough to start with, can establish themselves VII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
as a “government”; because, with money, they can hire VIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
soldiers, and with soldiers extort more money; and IX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
also compel general obedience to their will. It is with X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
government, as Caesar said it was in war, that money XI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
and soldiers mutually supported each other; that with
money he could hire soldiers, and with soldiers extort NumberSix:TheConstitutionofNoAuthority 32
money. So these villains, who call themselves govern- I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
ments,wellunderstandthattheirpowerrestsprimarily II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
upon money. With money they can hire soldiers, and III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
with soldiers extort money. And, when their authority IV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
isdenied,thefirstusetheyalwaysmakeofmoney,isto V. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
hiresoldierstokillorsubdueallwhorefusethemmore VI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
money. VII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
46 3
VIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 otherssimilarlydisposed.Seethattheworkofmurderis
IX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 thoroughlydone;thatwemayhavenofurthertroubleof
X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 this kind hereafter. When these traitors shall have thus
XI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 been taught our strength and our determination, they
XII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 willbegoodloyalcitizensformanyyears,andpaytheir
XIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 taxeswithoutawhyorawherefore.
XIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
It is under such compulsion as this that taxes, so called,
XV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
are paid. And how much proof the payment of taxes af-
XVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
fords, that the people consent to “support the govern-
XVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
ment,”itneedsnofurtherargumenttoshow.
XVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
XIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 2. Still another reason why the payment of taxes implies
Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 noconsent,orpledge,tosupportthegovernment,isthat
Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 thetaxpayerdoesnotknow,andhasnomeansofknow-
ing,whotheparticularindividualsarewhocompose“the
government.” To him “the government” is a myth, an
abstraction, an incorporeality, with which he can make
no contract, and to which he can give no consent, and
makenopledge.Heknowsitonlythroughitspretended
agents.“Thegovernment”itselfheneversees.Heknows
indeed,bycommonreport,thatcertainpersons,ofacer-
tain age, are permitted to vote; and thus to make them-
selvespartsof,or(iftheychoose)opponentsof,thegov-
ernment, for the time being. But who of them do thus
vote, and especially how each one votes (whether so as
to aid or oppose the government), he does not know;
thevotingbeingalldonesecretly(bysecretballot).Who,
therefore,practicallycompose“thegovernment,”forthe
time being, he has no means of knowing. Of course he
canmakenocontractwiththem,givethemnoconsent,
and make them no pledge. Of necessity, therefore, his
paying taxes to them implies, on his part, no contract,
consent,orpledgetosupportthem—thatis,tosupport
“thegovernment,”ortheConstitution.
4 45
Go to A_____ B_____, and say to him that “the govern-
ment” has need of money to meet the expenses of pro-
tectinghimandhisproperty.Ifhepresumestosaythat
hehasnevercontractedwithustoprotecthim,andthat
Number One
he wants none of our protection, say to him that that
is our business, and not his; that we choose to protect
him, whether he desires us to do so or not; and that we
demand pay, too, for protecting him. If he dares to in- Introductory
quirewhotheindividualsare,whohavethustakenupon
themselves the title of “the government,” and who as- Thequestionoftreasonisdistinctfromthatofslavery;and
sumetoprotecthim,anddemandpaymentofhim,with- is the same that it would have been, if free States, instead of
outhishavingevermadeanycontractwiththem,sayto slaveStates,hadseceded.
him that that, too, is our business, and not his; that we OnthepartoftheNorth,thewarwascarriedon,nottoliber-
donotchoosetomakeourselvesindividuallyknownto ateslaves,butbyagovernmentthathadalwayspervertedand
him; that we have secretly (by secret ballot) appointed violated the Constitution, to keep the slaves in bondage; and
you our agent to give him notice of our demands, and, was still willing to do so, if the slaveholders could be thereby
if he complies with them, to give him, in our name, a inducedtostayintheUnion.
receiptthatwillprotecthimagainstanysimilardemand The principle, on which the war was waged by the North,
forthepresentyear.Ifherefusestocomply,seizeandsell wassimplythis:Thatmenmayrightfullybecompelledtosub-
enoughofhispropertytopaynotonlyourdemands,but mitto,andsupport,agovernmentthattheydonotwant;and
allyourownexpensesandtroublebeside.Ifheresiststhe that resistance, on their part, makes them traitors and crimi-
seizureofhisproperty,calluponthebystanderstohelp nals.
you (doubtless some of them will prove to be members Noprinciple,thatispossibletobenamed,canbemoreself-
ofourband.)If,indefendinghisproperty,heshouldkill evidentlyfalsethanthis;ormoreself-evidentlyfataltoallpo-
any of our band who are assisting you, capture him at litical freedom. Yet it triumphed in the field, and is now as-
allhazards;chargehim(inoneofourcourts)withmur- sumedtobeestablished.Ifitreallybeestablished,thenumber
der; convict him, and hang him. If he should call upon of slaves, instead of having been diminished by the war, has
his neighbors, or any others who, like him, may be dis- been greatly increased; for a man, thus subjected to a govern-
posed to resist our demands, and they should come in ment that he does not want, is a slave. And there is no differ-
largenumberstohisassistance,cryoutthattheyareall ence,inprinciple—butonlyindegree—betweenpoliticaland
rebels and traitors; that “our country” is in danger; call chattel slavery. The former, no less than the latter, denies a
uponthecommanderofourhiredmurderers;tellhimto man’sownershipofhimselfandtheproductsofhislabor;and
quell the rebellion and “save the country,” cost what it asserts that other men may own him, and dispose of him and
may. Tell him to kill all who resist, though they should hisproperty,fortheiruses,andattheirpleasure.
behundredsofthousands;andthusstriketerrorintoall
44 5
Previoustothewar,thereweresomegroundsforsayingthat that he intends to use it for your own benefit. He does
— in theory, at least, if not in practice — our government was not pretend to be anything but a robber. He has not ac-
a free one; that it rested on consent. But nothing of that kind quiredimpudenceenoughtoprofesstobemerelya“pro-
canbesaidnow,iftheprincipleonwhichthewarwascarried tector,”andthathetakesmen’smoneyagainsttheirwill,
onbytheNorth,isirrevocablyestablished. merely to enable him to “protect” those infatuated trav-
IfthatprinciplebenottheprincipleoftheConstitution,the ellers, who feel perfectly able to protect themselves, or
factshouldbeknown.IfitbetheprincipleoftheConstitution, do not appreciate his peculiar system of protection. He
theConstitutionitselfshouldbeatonceoverthrown. istoosensibleamantomakesuchprofessionsasthese.
Furthermore, having taken your money, he leaves you,
asyouwishhimtodo.Hedoesnotpersistinfollowing
I
youontheroad,againstyourwill;assumingtobeyour
rightful “sovereign,” on account of the “protection” he
Notwithstanding all the proclamations we have made to
affordsyou.Hedoesnotkeep“protecting”you,bycom-
mankind, within the last ninety years, that our government
mandingyoutobowdownandservehim;byrequiring
rests on consent, and that that was the rightful basis on
youtodothis,andforbiddingyoutodothat;byrobbing
whichanygovernmentcouldrest,thelatewarhaspractically
youofmoremoneyasoftenashefindsitforhisinterest
demonstrated that our government rests upon force — as
or pleasure to do so; and by branding you as a rebel, a
muchsoasanygovernmentthateverexisted.
traitor,andanenemytoyourcountry,andshootingyou
The North has thus virtually said to the world: It was all
downwithoutmercy,ifyoudisputehisauthority,orre-
very well to prate of consent, so long as the objects to be ac-
sist his demands. He is too much of a gentleman to be
complishedweretoliberateourselvesfromourconnexionwith
guilty of such impostures, and insults, and villanies as
England,andalsotocoaxascatteredandjealouspeopleintoa
these. In short, he does not, in addition to robbing you,
great national union; but now that those purposes have been
attempttomakeyoueitherhisdupeorhisslave.
accomplished,andthepoweroftheNorthhasbecomeconsol-
idated,itissufficientforus—asforallgovernments—simply The proceedings of those robbers and murderers, who
tosay:Ourpowerisourright. callthemselves“thegovernment,”aredirectlytheoppo-
In proportion to her wealth and population, the North has siteoftheseofthesinglehighwayman.
probably expended more money and blood to maintain her
Inthefirstplace,theydonot,likehim,makethemselves
power over an unwilling people, than any other government
individually known; or, consequently, take upon them-
everdid.Andinherestimation,itisapparentlythechiefglory
selvespersonallytheresponsibilityoftheiracts.Onthe
ofhersuccess,andanadequatecompensationforallherown
contrary,theysecretly(bysecretballot)designatesome
losses, and an ample justification for all her devastation and
one of their number to commit the robbery in their be-
carnage of the South, that all pretence of any necessity for
half, while they keep themselves practically concealed.
consent to the perpetuity or power of government, is (as she
Theysaytothepersonthusdesignated:
thinks) forever expunged from the minds of the people. In
6 43
class who have some appreciation of the evils of government, short, the North exults beyond measure in the proof she has
buteitherdonotseehowtogetridofthem,ordonotchoose given,thatagovernment,professedlyrestingonconsent,will
to so far sacrifice their private interests as to give themselves expend more life and treasure in crushing dissent, than any
seriouslyandearnestlytotheworkofmakingachange. government,openlyfoundedonforce,haseverdone.
Andsheclaimsthatshehasdoneallthisinbehalfofliberty!
In behalf of free government! In behalf of the principle that
III
governmentshouldrestonconsent!
IfthesuccessorsofRogerWilliams,withinahundredyears
Thepaymentoftaxes,beingcompulsory,ofcoursefurnishes
aftertheirStatehadbeenfoundedupontheprincipleoffreere-
no evidence that any one voluntarily supports the Constitu-
ligioustoleration,andwhentheBaptistshadbecomestrongon
tion.
thecreditofthatprinciple,hadtakentoburninghereticswitha
1. It is true that the theory of our Constitution is, that all furyneverseenbeforeamongmen;andhadtheyfinallygloried
taxesarepaidvoluntarily;thatourgovernmentisamu- inhavingthussuppressedallquestionofthetruthoftheState
tualinsurancecompany,voluntarilyenteredintobythe religion; and had they further claimed to have done all this
peoplewitheachother;thatthateachmanmakesafree inbehalfoffreedomofconscience,theinconsistencybetween
and purely voluntary contract with all others who are professionandconductwouldscarcelyhavebeengreaterthan
parties to the Constitution, to pay so much money for thatoftheNorth,incarryingonsuchawarasshehasdone,to
somuchprotection,thesameashedoeswithanyother compelmentoliveunderandsupportagovernmentthatthey
insurancecompany;andthatheisjustasfreenottobe did not want; and in then claiming that she did it in behalf of
protected, and not to pay tax, as he is to pay a tax, and theoftheprinciplethatgovernmentshouldrestonconsent.
beprotected. This astonishing absurdity and self-contradiction are to be
accountedforonlybysupposing,eitherthatthelustsoffame,
But this theory of our government is wholly different
and power, and money, have made her utterly blind to, or ut-
from the practical fact. The fact is that the government,
terlyrecklessof,heinconsistencyandenormityofherconduct;
likeahighwayman,saystoaman:Yourmoney,oryour
or that she has never even understood what was implied in a
life.”Andmany,ifnotmost,taxesarepaidunderthecom-
government’srestingonconsent.Perhapsthislastexplanation
pulsionofthatthreat.
isthetrueone.Incharitytohumannature,itistobehopedthat
The government does not, indeed, waylay a man in a
itis.
lonely place, spring upon him from the roadside, and,
holding a pistol to his head, proceed to rifle his pock-
II
ets. But the robbery is none the less a robbery on that
account;anditisfarmoredastardlyandshameful.
What,then,isimpliedinagovernment’srestingonconsent?
The highwayman takes solely upon himself the respon-
If it be said that the consent of the strongest party, in a na-
sibility, danger, and crime of his own act. He does not
tion, is all that is necessary to justify the establishment of a
pretendthathehasanyrightfulclaimtoyourmoney,or
42 7
governmentthatshallhaveauthorityovertheweakerparty,it government is practically carried on by means of such
may be answered that the most despotic governments in the voting,onlyprovesthatthereisamongusasecretband
world rest upon that very principle, viz: the consent of the of robbers, tyrants, and murderers, whose purpose is to
strongest party. These governments are formed simply by the rob,enslave,and,sofarasnecessarytoaccomplishtheir
consentoragreementofthestrongestparty,thattheywillact purposes,murder,therestofthepeople.Thesimplefact
in concert in subjecting the weaker party to their dominion. of the existence of such a band does nothing towards
Andthedespotism,andtyranny,andinjusticeofthesegovern- provingthat“thepeopleoftheUnitedStates,”oranyone
mentsconsistinthatveryfact.Oratleastthatisthefirststep ofthem,voluntarilysupportstheConstitution.
intheirtyranny;anecessarypreliminarytoalltheoppressions
thataretofollow. For all the reasons that have now been given, voting fur-
Ifitbesaidthattheconsentofthemostnumerousparty,ina nishes no legal evidence as to who the particular individuals
nation,issufficienttojustifytheestablishmentoftheirpower are(ifthereareany),whovoluntarilysupporttheConstitution.
overthelessnumerousparty,itmaybeanswered: Itthereforefurnishesnolegalevidencethatanybodysupports
First. That two men have no more natural right to exercise itvoluntarily.
any kind of authority over one, than one has to exercise So far, therefore, as voting is concerned, the Constitution,
the same authority over two. A man’s natural rights are his legallyspeaking,hasnosupportersatall.
own, against the whole world; and any infringement of them And,asamatteroffact,thereisnottheslightestprobability
is equally a crime, whether committed by one man, or by that the Constitution has a single bona fide supporter in the
millions; whether committed by one man, calling himself a country.Thatistosay,thereisnottheslightestprobabilitythat
robber, (or by any other name indicating his true character,) there is a single man in the country, who both understands
orbymillions,callingthemselvesagovernment. what the Constitution really is, and sincerely supports it for
Second.Itwouldbeabsurdforthemostnumerouspartyto whatitreallyis.
talkofestablishingagovernmentoverthelessnumerousparty, TheostensiblesupportersoftheConstitution,liketheosten-
unlesstheformerwerealsothestrongest,aswellasthemost sible supporters of most other governments, are made up of
numerous;foritisnottobesupposedthatthestrongestparty threeclasses,viz.:1.Knaves,anumerousandactiveclass,who
would ever submit to the rule of the weaker party, merely be- see in the government an instrument which they can use for
cause the latter were the most numerous. And as a matter of theirownaggrandizementorwealth.2.Dupes—alargeclass,
fact, it is perhaps never that governments are established by nodoubt—eachofwhom,becauseheisallowedonevoiceout
the most numerous party. They are usually, if not always, es- of millions in deciding what he may do with his own person
tablished by the less numerous party; their superior strength andhisownproperty,andbecauseheispermittedtohavethe
consistingoftheirsuperiorwealth,intelligence,andabilityto same voice in robbing, enslaving, and murdering others, that
actinconcert. others have in robbing, enslaving, and murdering himself, is
Third.OurConstitutiondoesnotprofesstohavebeenestab- stupidenoughtoimaginethatheisa“freeman,”a“sovereign”;
lishedsimplybythemajority;butby“thepeople;”theminority, thatthisis“afreegovernment”;“agovernmentofequalrights,”
asmuchasthemajority. “thebestgovernmentonearth,”andsuchlikeabsurdities.3.A
8 41
numbersofmen,wheretherecanbenolegalproofofthe Fourth.Ifourfathers,in1776,hadacknowledgedtheprinci-
intentionsofanyparticularoneofthem. plethatamajorityhadtherighttoruletheminority,weshould
never have become a nation; for they were in a small minor-
8. There being no legal proof of any man’s intentions, in
ity,ascomparedwiththosewhoclaimedtherighttoruleover
voting,wecanonlyconjecturethem.Asaconjecture,it
them.
is probable, that a very large proportion of those who
Fifth. Majorities, as such, afford no guarantees for justice.
vote,dosoonthisprinciple,viz.,thatif,byvoting,they
Theyaremenofthesamenatureasminorities.Theyhavethe
could but get the government into their own hands (or
samepassionsforfame,power,andmoney,asminorities;and
that of their friends), and use its powers against their
areliableandlikelytobeequally—perhapsmorethanequally,
opponents, they would then willingly support the Con-
becausemoreboldly—rapacious,tyrannicalandunprincipled,
stitution; but if their opponents are to have the power,
ifintrusted withpower.Thereisno morereason,then, why a
and use it against them, then they would not willingly
manshouldeithersustain,orsubmitto,theruleofthemajority,
supporttheConstitution.
thanofaminority.Majoritiesandminoritiescannotrightfully
In short, men’s voluntary support of the Constitution betakenatallintoaccountindecidingquestionsofjustice.And
is doubtless, in most cases, wholly contingent upon the all talk about them, in matters of government, is mere absur-
question whether, by means of the Constitution, they dity.Menareduncesforunitingtosustainanygovernment,or
canmakethemselvesmasters,oraretobemadeslaves. anylaws,exceptthoseinwhichtheyareallagreed.Andnoth-
ing but force and fraud compel men to sustain any other. To
Suchcontingentconsentasthatis,inlawandreason,no
say that majorities, as such, have a right to rule minorities, is
consentatall.
equivalent to saying that minorities have, and ought to have,
9. As everybody who supports the Constitution by voting norights,exceptsuchasmajoritiespleasetoallowthem.
(ifthereareanysuch)doessosecretly(bysecretballot), Sixth.Itisnotimprobablethatmanyormostoftheworstof
andinawaytoavoidallpersonalresponsibilityforthe governments—althoughestablishedbyforce,andbyafew,in
actsofhisagentsorrepresentatives,itcannotlegallyor the first place — come, in time, to be supported by a majority.
reasonablybesaidthatanybodyatallsupportstheCon- But if they do, this majority is composed, in large part, of the
stitutionbyvoting.Nomancanreasonablyorlegallybe mostignorant,superstitious,timid,dependent,servile,andcor-
saidtodosuchathingasassentto,orsupport,theCon- ruptportionsofthepeople;ofthosewhohavebeenover-awed
stitution,unlesshedoesitopenly,andinawaytomake bythepower,intelligence,wealth,andarrogance;ofthosewho
himselfpersonallyresponsiblefortheactsofhisagents, havebeendeceivedbythefrauds;andofthosewhohavebeen
solongastheyactwithinthelimitsofthepowerhedel- corruptedbytheinducements,ofthefewwhoreallyconstitute
egatestothem. the government. Such majorities, very likely, could be found
in half, perhaps nine-tenths, of all the countries on the globe.
10. Asallvotingissecret(bysecretballot),andasallsecret
Whatdotheyprove?Nothingbutthetyrannyandcorruption
governments are necessarily only secret bands of rob-
of the very governments that have reduced so large portions
bers, tyrants, and murderers, the general fact that our
ofthepeopletotheirpresentignorance,servility,degradation,
40 9
and corruption; an ignorance, servility, degradation, and cor- as to who the particular individuals are, if there are
ruption that are best illustrated in the simple fact that they any, who are willing to be taxed for the sake of voting,
dosustaingovernmentsthathavesooppressed,degraded,and we can have no legal knowledge that any particular
corruptedthem.Theydonothingtowardsprovingthatthegov- individual consents to be taxed for the sake of voting;
ernments themselves are legitimate; or that they ought to be or,consequently,consentstosupporttheConstitution.
sustained,orevenendured,bythosewhounderstandtheirtrue
5. Atnearlyallelections,votesaregivenforvariouscandi-
character.Themerefact,therefore,thatagovernmentchances
datesforthesameoffice.Thosewhovotefortheunsuc-
to be sustained by a majority, of itself proves nothing that is
cessfulcandidatescannotproperlybesaidtohavevoted
necessary to be proved, in order to know whether such gov-
tosustaintheConstitution.Theymay,withmorereason,
ernmentshouldbesustained,ornot.
besupposedtohavevoted,nottosupporttheConstitu-
Seventh.Theprinciplethatthemajorityhavearighttorule
tion,butspeciallytopreventthetyrannywhichtheyan-
the minority, practically resolves all government into a mere
ticipatethesuccessfulcandidateintendstopracticeupon
contestbetweentwobodiesofmen,astowhichofthemshall
themundercoloroftheConstitution;andthereforemay
bemasters,andwhichofthemslaves;acontest,that—however
reasonably be supposed to have voted against the Con-
bloody — can, in the nature of things, never be finally closed,
stitution itself. This supposition is the more reasonable,
solongasmanrefusestobeaslave.
inasmuch as such voting is the only mode allowed to
themofexpressingtheirdissenttotheConstitution.
III
6. Many votes are usually given for candidates who have
But to say that the consent of either the strongest party, or no prospect of success. Those who give such votes may
themostnumerousparty,inanation,issufficientjustification reasonably be supposed to have voted as they did, with
for the establishment or maintenance of a government that a special intention, not to support, but to obstruct the
shall control the whole nation, does not obviate the difficulty. executionof,theConstitution;and,therefore,againstthe
Thequestionstillremains,howcomessuchathingas“anation” Constitutionitself.
toexist?Howdomillionsofmen,scatteredoveranextensive
7. Asallthedifferentvotesaregivensecretly(bysecretbal-
territory — each gifted by nature with individual freedom; re-
lot),thereisnolegalmeansofknowing,fromthevotes
quiredbythelawofnaturetocallnoman,orbodyofmen,his
themselves, who votes for, and who votes against, the
masters; authorized by that law to seek his own happiness in
Constitution.Therefore,votingaffordsnolegalevidence
hisownway,todowhathewillwithhimselfandhisproperty,
thatanyparticularindividualsupportstheConstitution.
solongashedoesnottrespassupontheequallibertyofothers;
And where there can be no legal evidence that any par-
authorized also, by that law, to defend his own rights, and re-
ticular individual supports the Constitution, it cannot
dresshisownwrongs;andtogototheassistanceanddefence
legallybesaidthatanybodysupportsit.Itisclearlyim-
ofanyofhisfellowmenwhomaybesufferinganykindofin-
possibletohaveanylegalproofoftheintentionsoflarge
justice—howdomillionsofsuchmencometobeanation,in
10 39