rds itself acquire.

The language used in the clause, the arrangement and combination of
the powers, and the somewhat unusual phraseology it uses, when it
speaks of the political power to be exercised in the government of the
territory, all indicate the design and meaning of the clause to be
such as we have mentioned. It does not speak of _any_ territory, nor
of _Territories_, but uses language which, according to its legitimate
meaning, points to a particular thing. The power is given in relation
only to _the_ territory of the United States--that is, to a territory
then in existence, and then known or claimed as the territory of the
United States. It begins its enumeration of powers by that of
disposing, in other words, making sale of the lands, or raising money
from them, which, as we have already said, was the main object of the
cession, and which is accordingly the first thing provided for in the
article. It then gives the power which was necessarily associated with
the disposition and sale of the lands--that is, the power of making
needful rules and regulations respecting the territory. And whatever
construction may now be given to these words, every one, we think,
must admit that they are not the words usually employed by statesmen
in giving supreme power of legislation. They are certainly very unlike
the words used in the power granted to legislate over territory which
the new Government might afterwards itself obtain by cession from a
State, either for its seat of Government, or for forts, magazines,
arsenals, dock yards, and other needful buildings.

And the same power of making needful rules respecting the territory
is, in precisely the same language, applied to the _other_ property
belonging to the United States--associating the power over the
territory in this respect with the power over movable or personal
property--that is, the ships, arms, and munitions of war, which then
belonged in common to the State sovereignties. And it will hardly be
said, that this power, in relation to the last-mentioned objects, was
deemed necessary to be thus specially given to the new Government, in
order to authorize it to make needful rules and regulations respecting
the ships it might itself build, or arms and munitions of war it might
itself manufacture or provide for the public service.

No one, it is believed, would think a moment of deriving the power of
Congress to make needful rules and regulations in relation to pro