merce and that among the States, as they are all 1824. given in the same sentence. If the power of regulating the two latter be exclusive, so must it be she has gone much farther, and acted on the collector and officers of the customs. (1 Laws of Va. p. 238. s. 4.) The collector, or other proper officer of the customs, is thereby charged and directed not to suffer any vessel to clear from his office, unless the master, &c. shall produce inspection notes or certificates, &c. and make oath that he has no lumber on board, but what is entered on his manifest. To this exercise of power, equal to that of Congress itself, I probably shall be told, that Congress has, in the collection laws, directed the collectors to pay regard to the inspection laws of the respective States. That is at least an admission that they are rightfully made; but the answer is entirely insufficient; for the first act of the United States, directing this, was passed the 2d of March, 1799, and the act of Virginia, that I have last referred to, was passed the 26th of December, 1792. In like manner, the laws of the same State give a forfeiture of uninspected tobacco, about to be exported, and similar duties are imposed on the master and collector. (1 Laws of Va. p. 263. s. 27. p. 269. s. 45. p. 271. s. 49.) This law was also passed in November, 1792. Connecticut, too, gives a forfeiture of unsur veyed tobacco; (1 Laws of Conn. p. 395. s. 13.) and, as to provisions, it also enacts a penalty against the master, and imposes a duty on the collector. (p. 397. s. 20. p. 303. s. 11. p. 407. s. 3.) Several of those inspection acts regulate as to the importation of articles, equally with their exportation. The New-York act, relative to the inspection of sole leather, expressly says, "Whe ther such leather be manufactured within the same, or imported or brought into it from any place whatsoever.” (2 N. R. L. p. 340. s. 3.) In Maryland, the act for the inspection of salted provisions, exported and imported from and to Baltimore, relates to beef, pork and fish "imported into the said town, from any part of this State, or any one of the United States, or from any foreign port whatever." (2 Laws of Maryland, p. 3. s. 5.) Sec. 6 relates to the size, quality, and make of all imported beef and pork barrels. This act, it is true, was passed in 1786, before the adoption of the constitution. If the power of Congress, howVOL. IX. 16 Gibbons V. Ogden. 1824. with the former. And yet every State, whose situation places it in communication or contiguity with Indian tribes, has thought fit, and, indeed, Gibbous V. Ogden. ever, was exclusive, it should then have ceased to operate. But Gibbons found it necessary, by acts of their own Legisla- 1824. tures, to regulate their trade with the Indians, the laws of Congress not only not exhausting, but not even adequately reaching the subject. It now seems incontrovertibly established, that the States have a concurrent right to legislate on matters of foreign trade, or of that between the States; and a concurrent right to prohibit the exportation or importation of articles of merchandise. If they can do that, even as to the articles themselves, to which the power of Congress expressly relates, and if the right to regulate shipping be only impliedly given to Congress, by the general power to regulate commerce, and only so far as they are instruments of that commerce, why cannot a State, that has a concurrent right, within its own sphere, (and that not by implication, but directly, and as the result of its sovereign power, unabridged and unaltered by the constitution,) over all ships or vessels within, or coming within, its jurisdiction, prohibit the entry of any particular kind of vessels within its waters, subject lying to or grounded at any wharf in Boston, under pain of confiscation and pecuniary penalty. More extensive examinations would produce a much greater variety of regulations of foreign commerce, and that between the States, made by State Legislatures; but only one more instance need be added, not indeed coming under any of the preceding heads. In Virginia, the act laying taxes for the support of government, passed in January, 1799, prohibits unlicensed merchants from selling, by wholesale or retail, goods of foreign growth or manufacture, on land, or on board of any vessel. (1 Laws of Va. p. 386. s. 2.) The same law has been renewed, from time to time, and it probably exists at this day. V. Ogden. 1824. always to be controlled by the contradictory and Gibbons paramount regulations of Congress, made within the sphere of its powers. V. Ogden. This leads to the consideration of an argument that has been frequently urged on this subject. It is said, that if a State has a right to prohibit the navigation of its waters to steam boats, it has an equal right to prohibit the same ñavigation to row boats or sailing vessels; and the extravagance of this position, it is supposed, sufficiently refutes the assertion of a more limited right. First, there is an error in the statement of our claim. We do not prohibit the navigation of our waters to steam boats; we only prohibit them, while in our waters, from using steam as the means of their propulsion. Every steam boat which ventures on the ocean, carries and uses sails; and they can, without difficulty, be adapted to every steam boat. Such a vessel, therefore, may, without objection, load in a different State, or foreign port, and come, by means of steam, to the verge of our waters; there is no difficulty opposed to its coming up, with its full cargo, to our custom house, entering, discharging, reloading, and departing, provided that, for the short space of time while it may be in our waters, it employs the only things that any other vessel can employ for entering and departing, and with which it is or may be amply provided-sails and ears. That is the extent of what is very inconsiderately called our extravagant claim. Let us now examine the argument itself, and to test its soundness, let us apply it to other cases. A State has no right to prohibit the use of narrow wheeled wagons for the transportation of merchandise on 1824.. Gibbons V. Ogden. |