CIVIL GOVERNMENT. 2/ 



the sword, and of such manly exercises as became the son of an Admiral 

 of England, had experienced the conviction that God dwells in the inner 

 conscience, and come to believe all men equal before Jehovah's throne. 

 He was in high favor with the King and Duke. His renunciation of 

 proffered honors, coupled with sincere humility, as well as the accept- 

 ance of a tract of wilderness peopled by Savages in discharge of a Royal 

 debt, won for him such love as Charles was capable of bearing toward any 

 subject. His absolute sincerity and non-resistance equally commended 

 him to James, who was as true to his word plighted to men as he was 

 shameless in its breach toward the opposite sex. Penn believed in pop- 

 ular governments. "You shall be governed by laws of your own mak- 

 ing," he wrote to the settlers in his new territory of Pennsylvania. He 

 resisted the temptation to exercise the great powers of a Ruler abundant- 

 ly conferred by the Court with the noble resolution, ' ' I purpose for the 

 matters of liberty that which is extraordinary, to leave myself and my 

 successors no power of doing mischief" 



Under the great elm on the banks of the Delaware he entered into 

 indissoluble treaty with the Indians, saying: " I will not call you chil- 

 dren, for parents sometimes chide their children too severely, nor brothers, 

 for brothers differ. We are all one flesh and blood." And the red men, 

 deeply touched by the testimony of equality, pledged themselves, "We 

 will live in love with William Penn and his children as long as the sun 

 and moon shall endure." 



No act proved of greater value than this of the Duke's calling Penn 

 into private consultation upon the course to be pursued with the colonies. 

 The advice could be easily anticipated. The Duke adopted Penn's coun- 

 sel, and the Colonies were now to have liberty acknowledged if not vet 

 I)racticed. Dongan appointed to inaugurate the new policy called a Gen- 

 eral Assembly, composed of delegates chosen by the freeholders, and on 

 the 17th of October, 1683, its sessions began. On the 30th of October 

 the Great Charter of liberties and privileges received the approval of the 

 Governor and Council. On the ist of November, among the twelve 

 Counties created by the Assembly, this of Suffolk came into being. This 

 great Charter of liberties and privileges consummated the hopes and 

 prayers of our forefathers. It recognized the People as the power in leg- 

 islation. It opened with the grand avowal, " For the better establishing 

 the government of this Province of New York, and that justice and right 

 may be equally done to all persons within the same," and then declared, 

 " Be it enacted. That the Supreme legislative authority under His Majes- 

 ty and His Royal Highness, James, Duke of York and Albany, Lord Pro- 

 prietor of the said Province, shall forever be and reside in a Governor, 

 Council, and the People met in General Assembly." 



Thus was constituted a Representative body to which the people could 

 forever appeal for redress of wrongs and administering of right. Through 

 all the vicissitudes of authority the recognition of the people as the great 

 power in legislation, has never been lost in this State from that time. It 

 has been embodied in our Constitutions and borne down through these 

 two centuries in entire integrity, and to-day the enacting clause of every 

 statute of our Legislature presents it in the form— 



"The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and As- 

 sembly, do enact — " 



The Duke ascending the throne refused to confirm the charter, assert- 



