Admirable words!—in themselves a definition. And here, before closing this testimony, let me call attention to two authorities, contemporary with our fathers, which stand apart,—one English, and the other German. The first is that of Dr. Richard Price, the friend of John Adams, who very early appreciated the American Revolution, and vindicated it before the world. Here is his idea of good government, compendiously expressed:—
“Legitimate government, as opposed to oppression and tyranny, consists only in the dominion of Equal Laws made with common consent, or of men over themselves; and not in the dominion of communities over communities, or of any men over other men.”[176]
The German was none other than the great thinker, Emanuel Kant, who, in his speculations on Perpetual Peace, says, that to this end every state should be a Republic, which he defines:—
“That form of government where every citizen participates by his representatives in the exercise of the legislative power, and especially in that of deciding on the questions of peace and war.”[177]
The statement of Kant is as simple as Pure Reason, which is the title of his great work. It claims plainly for “every citizen” a share in the government, and is the deliberate conclusion furnished by this eminent philosopher, whose name, rarely quoted in politics, is an unimpeachable authority.
Such is the definition of a republican form of government, as found in the history, declarations, opinions, and public acts of the Fathers of our country, reinforced by the authority of foreign intelligence and the example of France. From this presentation of authorities not to be questioned we pass easily to another stage of the discussion, where the conclusion is the easy and irresistible sequence.
III.
Bringing these lapsed States to the touchstone, we see at once their small title to recognition as republican in form. Authentic figures are not wanting. The census of 1860 discloses the population of the States in question.