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PAPERS OF Mrn-sIBEAU BuoNAPARTE LAMAR
defined, approved and ratified by a whole community. But what would it avail a people, fellow citizens, though they embody in their constitution the wisest provisions and the most salutary doctrines, if they should be wanting in the necessary firmness and patriotism to respect and obey them. It is obvious that the advantages of such a system must rest upon a faithful compliance of all parties with the • terms of the compact. If the people at large and the different departments of government shall adhere with fidelity to its letter and its spirit, the nation will be able to preserve its freedom, happi- ness and independence. But if, on the contrary, either the people or the public functionaries, unmindful of their obligations to its authority, shall suffer themselves to be hurried by the violence of baleful passions, or be seduced by the selfish suggestions of a tem- porary and narro-w-minded policy into a violation of its solemn iiijunctions, the inevitable consequences will be, the loss of public credit, the destruction of private confidence, and the subversion of all order, morality and safety. How important it is, then, to shield and protect the sacred charter of our liberties, alike from all encroachments, whether made by the people themselves or by those entrusted with official station. There is a proneness in the nature of man to overleap the bar [rier] s that stand in the way of his [selfish] desires. As individuals, we are restr [ain] ed from the viola- tion of the laws, by the fear of punishment; but as communities, we have nothing to withhold us from an infringement of the constitu- tion, except that high morality and honest pride w [hil ch make the virtuous and enlightened bosom feel that its country's · [hon] or is its own. Hence I esteem it the first duty of a patriot, and the [hi] ghest evidence of his patriotism, to cherish and respect the con- stitution of his country. :Nor can I concieve of a more dangerous enemy to liberty than the popular chief who shall discard its author- ity under the hollow pretext that he is acting for the good of the people. No reasons of state policy, nor pretended exigencies, can iustify its violation. Under any and all circumstances its infraction is more dangerous than treason, and its dethronement is the death of liberty. Let me then invoke the people of -Texas to stand by their constitution. Let us offer no violence to its precepts and restric- tions. Let us bow to the supremacy of its authority. Let it be our cloud by day and our pillar of fire by night. Having every confidence in the disposition and the ability of the country to su [st] ain itself from all invasions of its enemies, and fully satisfied that the Executive will meet with the hearty co-opera- tion of an enlightened and patriotic people, in whatever may b~ necessary for the preservation of national integrity and honor, it only remains for me to pledge myself, under the solemn requirements of the constitution, to a faithful fulfilment of my official duties.
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