We Are Laying The Foundations

Men Of New England, I Hold You To The Doctrines Of Liberty Which Ye Inherit From Your Puritan Forefathers.

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.

We Are Laying The Foundations Of A Government, Which We Hope May Outlast The Pyramids.

The Proceedings Of This House In 1790, In Reference To Petitions On The Matter Of The Slave Trade, And Of Slavery In The States, Have Been Cited. It Has Been Said That Those Petitions Were Not Received.

Upon The Constitution, Upon The Pre-existing Legal Rights Of The People, As Understood In This Country And In England, I Have Argued That This House Is Bound To Revive The Petition Under Debate.