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360 ON THE RISE, PROGRESS, ETC.not be there asked which lias been asked here, viz. Fromwhom is this constitution to cornel The answer to the question itself is simple.From the sovereign power. In monarchies, therefore, from the princes. In republics, from thepeople or their representatives.The only difficulty whichattends it has arisen from an attempt to apply the notionswhich the writers above-named entertained on the origin ofstates, to the presenttime. An application of which theyno means admit. All those writers suppose a " statewill byof nature/' out of which men advanced into civil society;but in none of the countries which desire the establishmentof a constitution, does such a state exist. In every one ofthem there is an existent sovereign: from whom but himought these new institutions to proceed ? It is only by assuming, with Rousseau, that even in monarchies there is adormant sovereigntyof the people, which may upon anyoccasion be awakened and become active, that this rightcan be denied.But although, according to our views, both expediencyand justice require that these new institutions should proceed from the existing authority, yet this by no means impliesthat the prince may not be assisted in planning themby a body of advisers, even though that body should bepopularly constituted. This much, however, I believe to benecessary for the maintenance of the monarchical principle,viz. that such a body should have the power of advising, andthat only.Experience of recent date has shown the consequences ofgreater concessions the;universal acceptance of a constitution by the voice of the people can never be any thing butan empty form, and the regular establishment of itby thestatesmay be easily shown to bring greater dangers than aconcession of itby the sovereign.Were it possible, within the German confederation alone,to come to an agreement on the boundary line which shouldbe drawn, under the new constitutions, between the rightsofthe prince and of the states, were the points which we havestipulated for above assumed as matters of course, the restwould consist chiefly of local modifications, which couldeasily be determined by common consent 11[At the congress of Vienna it \vas provided that representative constitu-