Such is not my theory. Nullification
and secession, so often confounded, are, indeed, antagonistic
principles. Nullification is a remedy which it is sought to
apply within the Union, and against the agent of the States. It
is only to be justified when the agent has violated his
constitutional obligations, and a State, assuming to judge for
itself, denies the right of the agent thus to act, and appeals
to the other States of the Union for a decision; but, when the
States themselves and when the people of the States have so
acted as to convince us that they will not regard our
constitutional rights, then, and then for the first time, arises
the doctrine of secession in its practical application.
"A great man who now reposes with his fathers, and who has often
been arraigned for a want of fealty to the Union, advocated the
doctrine of nullification because it preserved the Union. It was
because of his deep-seated attachment to the Union--his
determination to find some remedy for existing ills short of a
severance of the ties which bound South Carolina to the other
States--that Mr. Calhoun advocated the doctrine of
nullification, which he proclaimed to be peaceful, to be within
the limits of State power, not to disturb the Union, but only to
be a means of bringing the agent before the tribunal of the
States for their judgment.
Pages:
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362