Upon The Constitution, Upon The Pre-existing Legal

Here, Again, As I Conceive, Gentlemen Forget That This Government Is A Republican One, Resting Exclusively In The Intelligence And Virtue Of The People.

The Right Of Petition Is An Old Undoubted Household Right Of The Blood Of England, Which Runs In Our Veins.

I Maintain That The House Is Bound By The Constitution To Receive The Petitions; After Which, It Will Take Such Method Of Deciding Upon Them As Reason And Principle Shall Dictate.

When We Fled From The Oppressions Of Kings And Parliaments In Europe, To Found This Great Republic In America, We Brought With Us The Laws And The Liberties, Which Formed A Part Of Our Heritage As Britons.

The Right Of Petition, I Have Said, Was Not Conferred On The People By The Constitution, But Was A Pre-existing Right, Reserved By The People Out Of The Grants Of Power Made To Congress.