Kambrian
Confederation
Government
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Articles of Conferation |
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| Confederation, in political terminology, a union of sovereign states each of which is free to act independently. It is distinguished from a federation, in which the individual states are subordinate to the central government.
The Kambrian Confederacy is dedicated to the 10 articles of confederation as drafted and approved in the 7th Cycle, 1484. |
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| I | The Style of this confederacy shall be the Kambrian
Confederation.
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| II | Each demesne retains its sovereignty, freedom and independence, and every power, jurisdiction and right, which is not by this confederation expressly delegated to the Kambrian Confederacy, in Parliament assembled.
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| III | The said demesnes hereby severally enter into a firm league of friendship with each other, for their common defense, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to assist each other, against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account of religion, sovereignty, or trade.
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| IV | The better to secure and perpetuate mutual friendship and intercourse among the people of the different demesnes in this union, the free inhabitants of each of these demesnes, shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of free citizens in the several demesnes; and the people of each demesne shall have free ingress and regress to and from any other demesne, and shall enjoy therein all the privileges of trade and commerce, subject to the same duties, impositions and restrictions as the inhabitants thereof respectively. Full faith and credit shall be given in each of these demesnes to the records, acts and judicial proceedings of the courts and magistrates of every other demesne.
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| V | For the more convenient management of the general interests of the Kambrian Confederacy, delegates shall be annually appointed in such manner as the legislature of each demesne shall direct, to meet in Parliament in the First Cycle, in every year, with a power reserved to each demesne, to recall its delegates, or any of them, at any time within the year, and to send others in their stead, for the remainder of the Year. In determining questions in the Kambrian Confederacy, in Parliament assembled, each demesne shall have one vote.
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| VI | No Demesne, without the consent of the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, shall send any embassy to, or receive any embassy from, or enter into any conference, agreement, alliance or treaty with any Nation, Empire or Demesne; nor shall any person holding any office of profit or trust under the Demesnes, or any of them, accept any present, emolument, office or title of any kind whatever from any Nation, Empire or foreign Demesne; nor shall the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, or any of them, grant any title of nobility. No two or more Demesnes shall enter into any treaty, confederation or alliance whatever between them, without the consent of the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, specifying accurately the purposes for which the same is to be entered into, and how long it shall continue. No Demesne shall lay any imposts or duties, which may interfere with any stipulations in treaties, entered into by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, with any Nation, Empire or Demesne, in pursuance of any treaties already proposed by Parliament. No vessel of war shall be kept up in time of peace by any Demesne, except such number only, as shall be deemed necessary by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, for the defense of such Demesne, or its trade; nor shall any body of forces be kept up by any Demesne in time of peace, except such number only, as in the judgement of the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, shall be deemed requisite to garrison the forts necessary for the defense of such Demesne; but every Demesne shall always keep up a well-regulated and disciplined militia, sufficiently armed and accoutered, and shall provide and constantly have ready for use, in public stores, a due number of filed pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, ammunition and camp equipage. No Demesne shall engage in any war without the consent of the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, unless such Demesne be actually invaded by enemies, or shall have received certain advice of a resolution being formed by some nation of Indians to invade such Demesne, and the danger is so imminent as not to admit of a delay till the Demesnes in Parliament assembled can be consulted; nor shall any Demesne grant commissions to any ships or vessels of war, nor letters of marque or reprisal, except it be after a declaration of war by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, and then only against the Nationdom or Demesne and the subjects thereof, against which war has been so declared, and under such regulations as shall be established by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, unless such Demesne be infested by pirates, in which case vessels of war may be fitted out for that occasion, and kept so long as the danger shall continue, or until the Demesnes in Parliament assembled shall determine otherwise.
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| VII | When land forces are raised by any Demesne for the common defense, all officers of or under the rank of
tashik, shall be appointed by the legislature of each Demesne respectively, by whom such forces shall be raised, or in such manner as such Demesne shall direct, and all vacancies shall be filled up by the Demesne which first made the appointment.
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| VIII | All charges of war, and all other expenses that shall be incurred for the common defense or general welfare, and allowed by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, shall be defrayed out of a common treasury, which shall be supplied by the several Demesnes in proportion to the value of all land within each Demesne, granted or surveyed for any person, as such land and the buildings and improvements thereon shall be estimated according to such mode as the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, shall from time to time direct and appoint. The taxes for paying that proportion shall be laid and levied by the authority and direction of the legislatures of the several Demesnes within the time agreed upon by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled.
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| IX | The Demesnes in Parliament assembled, shall have the sole and exclusive right and power of determining on peace and war, except in the cases mentioned in the sixth article -- of sending and receiving ambassadors -- entering into treaties and alliances, provided that no treaty of commerce shall be made whereby the legislative power of the respective Demesnes shall be restrained from imposing such imposts and duties on foreigners, as their own people are subjected to, or from prohibiting the exportation or importation of any species of goods or commodities whatsoever -- of establishing rules for deciding in all cases, what captures on land or water shall be legal, and in what manner prizes taken by land or naval forces in the service of the Demesnes shall be divided or appropriated -- of granting letters of marque and reprisal in times of peace -- appointing courts for the trial of piracies and felonies commited on the high seas and establishing courts for receiving and determining finally appeals in all cases of captures, provided that no member of Parliament shall be appointed a judge of any of the said courts. The Demesnes in Parliament assembled shall also be the last resort on appeal in all disputes and differences now subsisting or that hereafter may arise between two or more Demesnes concerning boundary, jurisdiction or any other causes whatever; which authority shall always be exercised in the manner following. Whenever the legislative or executive authority or lawful agent of any Demesne in controversy with another shall present a petition to Parliament stating the matter in question and praying for a hearing, notice thereof shall be given by order of Parliament to the legislative or executive authority of the other Demesne in controversy, and a day assigned for the appearance of the parties by their lawful agents, who shall then be directed to appoint by joint consent, commissioners or judges to constitute a court for hearing and determining the matter in question: but if they cannot agree, Parliament shall name three persons out of each of the Demesnes, and from the list of such persons each party shall alternately strike out one, the petitioners beginning, until the number shall be reduced to thirteen; and from that number not less than seven, nor more than nine names as Parliament shall direct, shall in the presence of Parliament be drawn out by lot, and the persons whose names shall be so drawn or any five of them, shall be commissioners or judges, to hear and finally determine the controversy, so always as a major part of the judges who shall hear the cause shall agree in the determination: and if either party shall neglect to attend at the day appointed, without showing reasons, which Parliament shall judge sufficient, or being present shall refuse to strike, the Parliament shall proceed to nominate three persons out of each Demesne, and the secretary of Parliament shall strike in behalf of such party absent or refusing; and the judgement and sentence of the court to be appointed, in the manner before prescribed, shall be final and conclusive; and if any of the parties shall refuse to submit to the authority of such court, or to appear or defend their claim or cause, the court shall nevertheless proceed to pronounce sentence, or judgment, which shall in like manner be final and decisive, the judgment or sentence and other proceedings being in either case transmitted to Parliament, and lodged among the acts of Parliament for the security of the parties concerned: provided that every commissioner, before he sits in judgment, shall take an oath to be administered by one of the judges of the supreme or superior court of the Demesne, where the cause shall be tried, 'well and truly to hear and determine the matter in question, according to the best of his judgement, without favor, affection or hope of reward': provided also, that no Demesne shall be deprived of territory for the benefit of the Demesnes. All controversies concerning the private right of soil claimed under different grants of two or more Demesnes, whose jurisdictions as they may respect such lands, and the Demesnes which passed such grants are adjusted, the said grants or either of them being at the same time claimed to have originated antecedent to such settlement of jurisdiction, shall on the petition of either party to the Parliament of the Demesnes, be finally determined as near as may be in the same manner as is before presecribed for deciding disputes respecting territorial jurisdiction between different Demesnes. The Demesnes in Parliament assembled shall also have the sole and exclusive right and power of regulating the alloy and value of coin struck by their own authority, or by that of the respective Demesnes -- fixing the standards of weights and measures throughout the Demesnes -- regulating the trade and managing all affairs with the Indians, not members of any of the Demesnes, provided that the legislative right of any Demesne within its own limits be not infringed or violated -- establishing or regulating post offices from one Demesne to another, throughout all the Demesnes, and exacting such postage on the papers passing through the same as may be requisite to defray the expenses of the said office -- appointing all officers of the land forces, in the service of the Demesnes, excepting regimental officers -- appointing all the officers of the naval forces, and commissioning all officers whatever in the service of the Demesnes -- making rules for the government and regulation of the said land and naval forces, and directing their operations. The Demesnes in Parliament assembled shall have authority to appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of Parliament, to be denominated 'A Committee of the Demesnes', and to consist of one delegate from each Demesne; and to appoint such other committees and civil officers as may be necessary for managing the general affairs of the Demesnes under their direction -- to appoint one of their members to preside, provided that no person be allowed to serve in the office of president more than one year in any term of three years; to ascertain the necessary sums of money to be raised for the service of the Demesnes, and to appropriate and apply the same for defraying the public expenses -- to borrow money, or emit bills on the credit of the Demesnes, transmitting every half-year to the respective Demesnes an account of the sums of money so borrowed or emitted -- to build and equip a navy -- to agree upon the number of land forces, and to make requisitions from each Demesne for its quota, in proportion to the number of white inhabitants in such Demesne; which requisition shall be binding, and thereupon the legislature of each Demesne shall appoint the regimental officers, raise the men and clothe, arm and equip them in a solid-like manner, at the expense of the Demesnes; and the officers and men so clothed, armed and equipped shall march to the place appointed, and within the time agreed on by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled. But if the Demesnes in Parliament assembled shall, on consideration of circumstances judge proper that any Demesne should not raise men, or should raise a smaller number of men than the quota thereof, such extra number shall be raised, officered, clothed, armed and equipped in the same manner as the quota of each Demesne, unless the legislature of such Demesne shall judge that such extra number cannot be safely spread out in the same, in which case they shall raise, officer, cloath, arm and equip as many of such extra number as they judge can be safely spared. And the officers and men so cloathed, armed, and equipped, shall march to the place appointed, and within the time agreed on by the Demesnes in Parliament assembled. The Demesnes in Parliament assembled shall never engage in a war, nor grant letters of marque or reprisal in time of peace, nor enter into any treaties or alliances, nor coin money, nor regulate the value thereof, nor ascertain the sums and expenses necessary for the defense and welfare of the Demesnes, or any of them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money on the credit of the Demesnes, nor appropriate money, nor agree upon the number of vessels of war, to be built or purchased, or the number of land or sea forces to be raised, nor appoint a commander in chief of the army or navy, unless nine Demesnes assent to the same: nor shall a question on any other point, except for adjourning from day to day be determined, unless by the votes of the majority of the Demesnes in Parliament assembled. The Parliament of the Demesnes shall have power to adjourn to any time within the year, and to any place within the Demesnes, so that no period of adjournment be for a longer duration than the space of six months, and shall publish the journal of their proceedings monthly, except such parts thereof relating to treaties, alliances or military operations, as in their judgment require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the delegates of each Demesne on any question shall be entered on the journal, when it is desired by any delegates of a Demesne, or any of them, at his or their request shall be furnished with a transcript of the said journal, except such parts as are above excepted, to lay before the legislatures of the several Demesnes. |
| X | The Committee of the Demesnes, or any nine of them, shall be authorized to execute, in the recess of Parliament, such of the powers of Parliament as the Demesnes in Parliament assembled, by the consent of the nine Demesnes, shall from time to time think expedient to vest them with; provided that no power be delegated to the said Committee, for the exercise of which, by the Articles of Confederation, the voice of nine Demesnes in the Parliament of the Demesnes assembled be requisite. |