- RHODE ISLA D HISTORY P L'ULIH/f.O s v IO HIIn: I :' J. _ \ ~ () III ':; r OKI C'.\L ~ oC lr T Y ;~ I'O W t:R STR [E T, I'RO VIIJE' l"f.~ , R HODE ISLA. NIl \ '01., 'I J.\ :-;U .\KY, 14S0 xo. I JF..vx PI ERRE BI..\;";UI ,\RO'S B.\LL()():\ FlOlI! ~ w'K,dcut ill rh,' l'ro,·id,'n(T (; a ' ~ tI ~ of .- \pril 'I, 17" h R, L 11 S, t.n..a,'" (s.... invidc fr"nl co, ... ) I SS L'tD Ql' ARTJ.RLI' A T ""((HI/HSCl , IUfO/)" I SL AS/) R H U 1) E I S L ..\ N D II 1 s T () R IC ..\L S OC l ET Y II. «." A"" 1.111. Uo " ,-, . /'" ,id, ,,' 1I0w ,"" W. ..... ll_'U .~. 1'"".,,,•• \1. R A "" "" . ~ " h .' ~ H I' Il . S"c> " "'_" Wu.'.' ''' ( i. It " ..." ,., /) """" ( ;" ,-" ,"" I' .\1"""",. 1.,1,,",,"" RHOD E I SLAND r h, II h" d, 1,1"" d 11" ,,,,;, . 1 S,,,;f/., Q."um" "" ,np"",,b'IJlj fM 'h, ,I"t"""." '" th, "1"""'" "I ,,,",,,1,.,,,... HI S TOR Y L HJLf: U F CO.\ T /;'S TS I Jf.. ,.'" I',Ht I< E ih ..,:-,aI\Rll', B vt.r.oov { :O\TI VOL. (j J..\ :'oi L'AR Y, 1950 xo. From a ..... ,>t>,k"t in tl... Plo,-iu.." n ' G"~ttrf, Apr'il 'I, 17'11, "l li t: [)O'UI R F. AEL LIO ),' ,\,,1> T il E F E l>F.I<\ L C U"iSTlTl'TlO"i b~ Chilrk s O. Ler ch,', J r. T HE DORR REBELLlO:\' .\;';1> T H E <> FEIlERAL COKSTITUTIO:-: I'u, tn';l ill o jl by J uh n :\..\ rnuld by C H,\ RLf.S O . L f.l I C HF., JR.· ,U I" !'LlCIT in the ent ire co urse of the Dorr Rebellion is a series of TilE i'.\ Tl< OL 0;'- :\., uI< ., n.\".:TT Rw 11774· 76 ) II Ext racn-d and tran"' rilwd by W illiam G. ROl·lh r questio ns hoth philosophical and lega l. The Dorr movement, as has Wriw'n ~ n d ~ nll o t~ t " d n ~ Clark"'n .\ . Coll im , 3rJ been clearly shown in the pages of this journ al, was a broad popula r E. ~ F" II OI' '' I:\ S ca use which exemplified the literal int erpreta tion of natural rights Cra}'on draw ing " and popular sovereignty: opposed to it was a gro up whi ch sought Ill.'. T ROl: 8 I F frorn (h,' Pro.-id,·nn ' (,',,;rll r , AVril 9, 1796 the san ction of legitima cy as justification for its actions. Beyond th e I{ F.C E :-'T P rer.rc..\ T1""S 24 local area of cc ntrovcrsv these ma tte rs \HTe brought into the sphere :-;f.. w~- N oTF,S 25 of consti tutio nal interpretation through their connection with the ,\""l: .. \ r.. .\l u :l'I .\<-, 27 "gua rantee clause" of the Constitution of the United Sta tes, wh ich rR.c..\ ~ I!" u" ~ R EI'O l<T 3ll provides that :"T he United States sha ll g ua ra ntee to ewry State in Boo " R n 'ln\ 32 this Union a republican form of go\Trmllent."1 Both parties to the L E{ : T l" " F ~ . Im id.· Back CO,,"I IR42 controversy sought Federal support and in the cou rse of the :"if:W :\1 E\lIH .. " ~ Back Cover dispute m uch light was thrown upon this relatively obscure portion of our federal charter. Alth ough the ma tter failed to elicit a ny specific JE,\ :"i I' IEH.I{E HL,\:s.:ClIAH.D 'S IHLLOON action from washington as a result of the a pplication of the ,guaran­ te-e, it provided the pretext for a thorough examination of the altcrna­ T h.. /' ro vjdr " re ( ; ,H f.T T E 0/ A p,jl ~I. I i'lfi, (I",i.., ,m "d" ...liumrnl It'hic h read, rive courses of action and for a d efin ite interpretation of this pa rt of (I' (allau',,, " .\1r. RL.4SCIfAUD , .., pnl/ullr i"/orm. Ih.. Ladiu a" d C r nllr"", ,, the Constitut ion th at was to endure substantiallv unch anged to the o{ Provid..,,,,r H . IJIIl I h.. propou..' Iv nhjbir 10 p"blir r·i..u', prt>vi dr d ,I suffic irn r S" bso i pl ion ca" br "bluinrd I" ,ift",)' Ih.. f:~ I) r n u . " ipl..ndid 8.H.I.00 ,"" . presen t da y, 10 u'hic h "' il/ bf III/'Uhfd "" i",,,,n,,.. I'A UACIlU Tf.', an d a H'n kr l u'ilh lin .·j"im"IJ. Th .· /'"",r h" r.. ",,,/ R", J. ~ I ,dll. III " re 'I"in DiMa" o i" Ihr .4jr, h Although th e gua rantee had figur ed prom inently in several impor• ,f..larhrd / 'om Ih.. [l" I/" " n. ""d dnu"d;n~, ,,..,'/1 I""d Ih...h.i", ali i" S,,/..,)' tant constitutional crises prior to 1842 , they had all bern aspect!' of r h.. Ball",,,, ",ill 0,"",...1, ""d, di5Ch"r,~i"..~ ils j/uid, '~Iwrn IQ rh" "lInh. S"b ­ ,rtipli(ln Pllp"" "';1/ b.. opn'fd 1/1 JI " S"b;n·s. <lr rhr PO!I-O lfiu . ""d 111 ,\1,. th e broad i.<,SIl C of slaverv. An ti-slavery Co ngressmen called slaver v W ha ler', Bm.A·S I,,' r, Ihis :I / l r " lO(ln . ""d ronlin,u 01''''' unlil T ur. d,,)" nr"I.'· unrcpublican an d asked th e invocation of the guarantee against those Jran Pin ... fJI",,,h,,, d . "'ho i" u Tlrd Ihi! ud,· ... liu".e >!1 i n Ih.. G IH'TT f. In'.' 0"" 0/ th.. moJ! ultb,,,r,,,j '1/I1"fl.~ ~'/fly fI""''' ''',IJ, h i 178,; h ~ mad.. Ih.. "ul • .....,"'"· i,,t,· I'rof,·.sor ..nd {"h ~irTll~ n of In" dq ,..nrnr nl of politica l . r i,·nn·, balloo" oflS,i"g "f t h~ f;,,~ / i , h C h"",,~I. 0" J""u,,,J' 'I, 17fl'I, '"~ Phi/" delphia, h, K nux C olk !!T, Ga l... burg, Illino i•. m"d.. Ih.. lirJl b"l!oo" "uo,' ill . ~ ",oiu" '.-\ rt ir k IV, s,·et ion 4, claw;". I . I I ",,",M I,e iflrnol;"~ '0 ~,,,,,, ....ht/hn '" ""I Ihp II Mn l1 t,'<I, 11(/,,,,lIy ml1d, i/l 1'10llid, ,,u , /or jubuqurnr ;""0 o/Ih~ r ; 17. LT T t ' IT"oll flO ,u o,d o/Ih~ ~"r "I , 2 T he Dorr Rebel/ion and the Federal Constitution [January 1950J T he DOrT Rebellion and the Federal Constitution 3 Mates whic h pro tected it ;2 th e Sout her n forces defended th e republi­ rule had th e virt ue of easy comprehensibility, and as early as th is canism of the institution." The abolitionists saw in Co ngress th e right date it is d ear that th e "suffragists" were planning to ignore the 10 define a republican form and to resha pe state govern ments to con­ cha rte r government and to proceed extra-lega lly. Appeal" to th e fonn to that sta ndard :" o pposed to that position was the contention guarantee clause. and hence for Fed eral support, wen: clearly fore. that the esta blished government in a state was rep ublican and that shadowed. Xot so simple was the posit ion of th e cha rter govern ment. the (Xlwer of the Federal gove rn ment ....-as lim ited to a preservation As the crisis deepened after the adoption of th e Dorr cons titution, of th at govemmem against violent overthrow.f The Do rr crisis was Governor King's appea ls to Washin.ltton were based upon the legit­ the first time that a consideration of the philosophic q uestion of a ~ mac yo f h is regime. The identification of legitimacy with republica n­ republican fonn and the legal question of the amount of power con­ L",," was founded u pon the M adisonian doctrine that the govern ments ferred by the guarantee was free of the highly emotional overtones under wh ich the sta tes had entered the Union were per se republica n :" of the slavery issue. Thus the clause received a greater degree of since Rhode Islan d had not changed its government since enteri ng dispassionate analysis and a fuller consideranon than had heretofore the Union. Kin g had ample aut hority for insisting upon th e repub­ been the case. Added to th is was the fact that all thr ee branches of lica nism of his government. Such bein g the case, Ki ng maintained tht' Federal government were brought into the matter, an d each that the protection of th e national power should be thrown over it thus consciously set precedents that were to endure . instead of the D O TT group. From th ese conflicting views of the nat ure From the poi nt of view of constitutional interp retation, the poi nts of a republican fonn stemmed the whole tra in of events, The Presi­ a t i",,,uc in the Dorr Rebd lion were three: first, the nature of the dent. Co ngress, and th e Suprem e Court were all called upon to pro. republica n fonn of govern ment guaranteed by the Constitution ; nounce upon the matter.