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AVGUSTA ■
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GEORGIA I
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BV X. S. HANNON. | a
, 1 111
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(PT In this paper the Laws of the United {Stales j
are published. .
r-- —itutaiii!? |
D* .
TO THE EDITOR OF THE AUOUBTA
CHRONICLE & OKiMKIIA ADVERTISER.
J\lJledgevillc , 2d Scplembr./ s 1(122. 1
Sin,— i
That fame spirit, which prompts .
A faction in this Slate, the rude assaults ,
of whi' h, even lh*i administration of the .
General Government (one individual ex- ' t
ceptod) c annul escape ; everou the alert (
to render any political occurrence sub
servient hs far as possible to its ambitious
object", having seized upon the circum
stance Stale Executive appointment
to till a vacancy, and exhibited the sub
ject to the public by gross misrepresenta
tion and exaggeration in colors only adapt
ed to ilsown utijnst purposes, has induced
me to lay before the public, a correct, cir
cumstantial, authentic statement ol the
transaction, with necessary remarks.
You will do an act of impartial justice
and much oblige me by publishing it en
tire if possible, in your paper; ono
reason for the request, is, that the Edi
torain this place, will only publish it by
Sicfeemcal, another, that as this affair
as been noticed by the presses in Au
gusta and Savannah, it is necessary that
the antidote (truth) should accompany
the poison (falsehood.)
Messrs. Camnk Sc Hines;
The manner in which you have thought
it to be your imperious duly to represent
to the Public, what you term an expose
of the facts, and circumstances attending
a recent appointment by the Kxecutive
to fil) a vacancy, renders it necessary,
having a duo regard to public opinion, to
lay before that Public a correct state
ment of the transaction, which may not j
only be relied on as coming from the best |
authority, but 1 will add, can and will be ,
proven when necessary. I
It appears then, that on or about Ihe (
llth.lnly, Abner Hammond, Secretary of |
Slate, left the Seal of Government with- ;
out the kn wledge or consent of the Go
vernor ; that on the 12th of August the ,
public hii-mess could no longer proceed (
lu the Secretary of Stale’s ofiice legally: ,
On the morning of that day Governor ,
Clark was iiilbrmcd that Thomas 11.,
Craw lord (a young man whom Col. ,
Hammond had left in his oilier) was act- •
tag as Deputy Secretary of State, or ,
sigiiiuwCol. Hammond’s name to Grants (
ol Land; &c.—upon which the Governor ,
directed Majcr Wood, one of the Sccre- ,
taries <ofthe executive Department, to )
tjf go and see upon what authority ho, Craw- j
ford, was acting; hr acc rdhigly went i
•L and returned with a written Power of At- i
* torney, which the Colonel had given for j
the purpose ; upon : wlii-h tho Laws and ,
Resolutions of the different Legislatures ,
ojtbe Slate were examined, to see if ,
there was any such authority given, but .
noun qould ho fi uu !. Mr. Clayton, the
Treasurer, a id Mr. Bozeman, the Comp
troller General, were asked if they knew ,
of any authority for such a course of pro
cedure? they both replied that they did
not. Mr. Clayton walked out ol the Office,
Mr. Bozeman remained, when the Go
vernor eu pored ofhim, if lie knew when
Col. Hammond was expected to return?
He replied that he did not, and said, that
he supposed it t • lie very uiicert do, us
Mr. Crawford hud informed him (hat
there had been a letter received from the
Colon. I at St. Mary’s and that he (poke
of going from thence to St Augustine.
Others, ai vvell as .Mr. 110/emau, have
heard Mr. Crawford say that Col. Ham
mond spoke of going to St. Augustine,
and if he did he. expected lie would not
return until some time in Ociober. The
Governor immediately sent for Mr.
Crawford to cornu into tlic Executive Of
fice, and upon his doing so, he was in- ,
formed by the Governor, that he under-
Stood that tie, Mr. Crawford, was acting l
ii* Deputy Secretary of State, and re- ,
quested him to show the authority (or >
Col. Hammond making such appointment. '
Mr. Crawford replied that he did not ,
’ know that there was any authority, but |
that hr was authorized by Col. Hammond
to art. The Governor then told him '
that there was no such authority, and (
that he forbid his acting and signing his ,
name as Dnmly Secretary of Stale, <
Mr. Crawford was then asked by the Go
vernor, when Col. Hammond was ex- i
j reeled back ? He replied, aliout the .
first September ; after which Mr.
Crawford left the office, and for the spore
of an hour or more declined doing any bu
t-ines*, in consequence of the directions ,
given him by the Executive. In litis
time George R. Clayton, Treasurer,
vreat to the Office of ttie Secretary of
State and immediately on his leaving it, ;
My. Crawford called to General Benia' \
»niu Cleveland, for whom he had refused !
to do business in the aforesaid interim,
stud who was then in die yard of the
ktitellouie, and told him to come in and
he would do lut business, and which was
accordingly done, by him the said Craw
ford, signing aGrapt, “ Thomas H. Craw
ford for Abner Hammond, Secretary of
Stale:” Immediately after which the
Governor passed an order, appointing Si
mon Whitaker, Esquire, Secretary of
Stalg, to fill,the vacancy,occasioned by
the absence of Abner Hammond, Esquire,
and directed Mr. Wood logo and inform
Mr. Whitakerof it that evening, and to
request him to come in early next morn
ing, if ho should accept the appointment.
accordingly came, when the Gover
nor informed him of all the circumstances
which had led to his consid ring the office
vffcant, and appointing him, And said to
Mr. Whitaker, it would lie discretionary
with himself whether to hold the office
until tlic meeting of the Legislature,
or until Col. Hammond returned, but
that he should prefer his resigning it on
his return ; and that lie wished him, Mr.
Whitaker, to continue young Crawford
and the other youth with him in the ol
fice : (o which Mr. Whitaker replied,
that he thought that Col. Hammond
should have attended to the duties of the
office while he had it, but that he should
have no objection to continuing the young
men in office. Mr. Whitaker then gave
bond, with security, for the faithful per
formance of ihe duties ol the olfice ; upon
which the nathe of otfics were adminis
tered to him by the Executive, after
which the Governor walked with him in
to the Secretary of Slate’s office, and in
formed young Crawford that he had ap
pointed Mr. Whitaker Secretary of Slate,
and that he presumed that he would con
tinue him and Ihe other young man in the
ofljpe ;on which Mr. Whitaker said that
he would, or that he should have no ob
jection. Crawford left the office, after
asking the Governor how loir., he had ap
pointed Mr. Whitaker for, and being an
swered, that was not material to him,
and that it was understood between Mr.
Whitaker and himself. The Governor
then returned to the Executive Olfice,
and Mr. Whitaker proceeded to the dis
charge of the duties of his office, in sign*
ing Grants, Sic. Not long afterward# the
Governor going up t° *be Penitentiary,
and returning to the Slate House, observ
ed young Crawford go into the law office
of Seaborn Jones, after whi<h he return
ed to the Secretary of Stale’s office, and
attempted, as tho Governor was informed
by Mr. Whitaker, to transact business a
gain as Secretary of Slate um’er Coi.
Hammond, but was prevented by Mr.
Whitaker ; and he refused to give up the
key ofthc office, which it was presumed
tic had takb.u away, as it was missing out
of the lock. The Governor then told
Mr. Whitaker he had better get a war
nuit against him for his rudeness towards
him in the olfice and for taking away the
key of the office door; Mr. W hitaker
Wont off, and after some time returned
and said that the magistrate found some
difficulty in issuing a warrant, lie was
then directed to have the lock taken off
and another pul on that bad a key. Soon
afterwards Mr. Wadlow, a carpenter,
came into tho Executive Office and said,
that nmn Crawford would not let him
take the lock off to put another ou; upon
which the Governor directed one of Lis
Secretaries, Mr. Burch, to go and have
the lock put on the door, and the key giv
en Mr. Whitaker. Some short lime af
terwards a considerable noise being heard
in the Secretary of State’s office, the Go
vernor came in and enquired what was
tho cause of it, and was informed that
when Mr. Burch took hold of the door, to
have tlie new lock put on, Crawford laid
hold of him to prevent it, and a scuffle
ensued between them. The Governor
then directed Mr. Wadlow, to take oil'
the lock, put toe other ou and give the
key to Mr. Whitaker, which was accord
ingly done without further interruption.
Nothing more on the subject occurred
until the Ifilh of August, Iti2‘2. Itisper
tineut here, however, to observe, that
when the difficulty first presented itself,
and the Governor revolved in his mind
tho measures to he adopted to prevent an
entire suspension of the legal Executive
administration of tlic Government, he at
first thought of appointing the young man
Crawford to fill the vacancy, until the
return of Col. Hathmond j but when he
reflected upon the importance of tho of
fice; tire possibility, by death, of Col.
Hammond never returning, tire youth,
inexperience, and apparent unfitness of
the young man, to hold an office of such
high trust, ho declined the idea, and ap
pointed Mr. Whitaker, nevertheless re
questing him, as ha" been before mention
ed, to continue Crawford in the office,
which being proposed to h>m by Mr.
Whitaker, Ire replied that he did not know
what to do ; Ilu was told he might tie in
dulged in time to think of it : ho left the
office, say ing that he would return lu a
short lime and let Mr. Whitaker kno’w
his determination. He arcoidingly re
turned and told Mr. Whitaker that lie
could not accept: that tit' had taken legal
advice, and must hold to the office. He
was told by Mr. Whitaker, that would
not do, inasmuch as the Governor had
appointed him Secretary of the Slate,
and lie, was in possession of the office, and
that he Mr. Crawford, could do nothing
more in the office but as a clerk, if he
chose.
On Mond iv, the 19lh August, Col.
Hammond, with a cane in his hand, ac
companied by a large train of persons,
went into the office of the Secretary of
the State. As he entered the door, Mr.
Whitaker rose and said, “ How do you
do, Col. Hammond?” The Colonel pop
ped hi? cane down on Ihe floor, and asked
by what authority, Whitaker was in the
office? Whitaker replied by saying,
“ Under an Executive appointment.”
The Col. then said, “ God damn the Exe
cutive!—who gave him the authority?
I order you out bf tliis Office.”—Mr.
U hitaker said, he should not go out.
The Colonel h aving called on witnesses,
turned to Whitaker and said, “ You
damn’d insignificant rascal, I order you
<”jt of this office instantaneously.”—
Whitaker answered again that he should
not go, and resumed his seat. The per
sons present were called by Col. Ham
mond to bear w itness of Whitaker’s vio
lence, as he termed it : lie then went
immediately to tlic Executive Olfice, ac
companied by Thomas 11. Crawford and
several others; (and here a scene was
displayed w Inch may perhaps tie consi
dered a? unparalleled for forbearance on
I the one part, and Cor insolent audacity on
i |* le ether. The Editors of (he Journal,
in their authentic statements barely ob
serve, harsh needs ensued :—they un
derstand the advantageous effect ofshades
1 i« their colouring, and painting, and not
i withstanding their minuteness in other
■ particulars of their invention, the pub
■ lie are left to determine, as they can,
f what occurred on that occasion, or by
whom the harsh words were used. If
shame had any share in the suppression
F of the fact, it was so far commendable ;
but justice always requires the whole
truth.) The Governor, being seated in
the Executive chair, spoke to Col. Ham
mond and asked him to take a scat, point
ing to a chair. He, Col. H. however did
not comply ; but advanced near to the
Governor, and (in an angry and threat
ening tone) addressed him in the follow
ing manner:—
By what authority, sir, have you tak
en my office from me and given it to ano
ther ?
Tkc Governor. —By the authority which
I possess as Executive of the State.
Col. Hammond. —You have no such au
thority. i
The Governor, —That is not for you to
decide.
Col. Hammond. —l could go and take
it as you liave done, but I dm not dispos
ed to follow your evil example, you
damn'd rascal.
The Governor. —Leave the room, sir,
1 will not be abused in my office; and (ris
ing from his seat turned round to a table
behind him, picked up bis cane) said,
go out of the room ; leave the office this
instant.
Col. Hammond —(retiring)—I will let
you know you damn'd rascal, you are
too insignificant.
The main question arising from a con
sideration ol these facts is, “ Had a va
cancy as contemplated in the 9th Sec. 2d
Article of the Constitution, occurred in
the office of the Secretary of Slate ?”
The words of that Sec lion are as follows:
“ When any office shall become vacant
“ by death, resignation or otherwise, the
“ Governor shall have power to fill such
“ vacancy,” ic.
In examiningand determining the ques
tion proposed, it becomes proper to con
sider,
‘ 1st —The general powers of the Execu
tive by the Constitution, to enable
him to administer the government:
2ndly—Tlie nature and intention of
the Secretary of Slate’s office, its
connexion with, and dependence on
the Executive; and
drdly—W hether the duties of the Se
cretary of State can be legally per
formed by Deputy ?
The duties required of the Governor as
expressed in his oath of office, in lbs sth
Sec. 2d Article of the Constitution, are, to
execute faithfully the office of Governor
1 of the Stale of Georgia, and to preserve,
protect, and defend the said State, and to
> cause justice to be executed, in mercy,
i therein according to the constitution and
■ laws thereof. The (Jth Sec. ol the same
I article of the constitution declares him
to be commander iu chief of the Army
and Navy of ibis State and of the Militia
thereof. To enable the Executive to
perforin the several duties above requir
ed, all the subordinate offices known to
the constitution, were created, and among
others, that of the Secretary of Slate.
The constitution, in declaring the above
to be the general duties of the Gover
nor, -bows that, by the constitution, he
is vested with the several powers neces
sary to enable him to discharge those du
ties. Besides these, the Executive is in
vested by the constitution with certain
other powers specifically set forth in the
constitution, but iu their use & applica
tion, they also may be not improperly
termed general powers, such as his
power to grant pardons, reprieves, ami
to remit sentences, &c. &c.
In the offic e of Secretary of State, all
the Acts and Resolutions of the Legisla
ture are deposited ; all grants for lands
within this State are made out and re
corded ; commissions for officers, both
civil and military, are prepared and re
corded ; the Great Seal of the State is
there deposited. The Secretary of Stale
is the proper officer lo furnish copies from
the several records in his office. By the
13th Sec. 2d Article of the Constitution,
the Executive office and the office of the
Secretary of State, are connected ; the
words of that section are, “ The Great
“ Seal of (he State shall bo deposited in
“ the office of the Secretary of State and
“ shall not be affixed to any instrument
“ of writing but by order of 1 lie Gover
“ nor or General Assembly,” kc. kc.
In obedience to orders from the Gover
nor, the Secretary of State prepares
commissions. The Secretary cannot use
the Great Seal in the recess of the Legis
lature, but by .order of the Governor,
and yet, strange to tell, “ The Deputy
Editor'" of tho Southern Recorder will i
have it, that the Governor and Secreta- i
ry of State are two “ officers, separate i
“ and independent of each other.”— i
Were it true, as this Recorder of ah- I
surdities alleges, that these two “ officers '
are separate and independent of each
other,” then the Secretary of State would ]
be able, at his will and pleasure, to stop i
1 the proceedings of the Government. It
1 would then be in vain, that the constitu
i tion has declared that the Great Seal shall
i not be affixed to any instrument of -writ- i
ing but by order of the Governor. How
idle would it then appear iu the framers
of the constitution, to have called the
Governor Commander in Chief of the
Militia, if he is.not clothed with autho- ;
rily sufficient to organize and bring them i
into the field? How can they be called
into the field but by means of officers du
ly commissioned ? and how are officers to
be commissioned, if the Secretary of i
Stale should refuse to obey the orders of i
the Governor. i
'l'he Governor might then issue an or- (
der to the Secretary of State, in cast of (
emergency ; the Secretary might absent i
him«elffrom bis office, whether for health, 1
pleasure or profit, is quite immaterial, or I
he might flatly refuse to obey the order— <
(he object of it is defeated ; and thus, on I
the supposition, that the Secretary is in- i
dependent of, and not subject to the or- «
ders of the Governor, we readily see I
how the administration of the govern- I
meat may be, at any time, suspended. 1
The great interests of the people may be i
sacrificed ! and so what ?—Merely to ; t
gratify the whim, caprice, or pleasure of <
tlie Secretary of Slate; a strange absur- j
dity indeed !! C
The Secretary of State is elected by the <
Representatives of the people; but for I
what ?—To do the business of the people, i
Yes; and without any exception, he is i
better paid for his services, than anyofli- t
cer in the State. During.the three last I
quarters of tlie present political year, I
commencing on the first Monday iu No- :
1 rember, 1821, and ending on the first j
Monday in August, 1822, the Secretary
of State has, lor services rendered, in
cluding his salary, draw n from the pub
lic T casury, upwards of four thousand
dollars. The fees paid by individuals
during the same time for business done iu
bis office, may be fairly estimated at from
three to five hundred dollars. Is it then
right or reasonable to say, that it was in
tended by the constitution, that an officer,
having so much important business com
mitted to his charge, and being so libe
rally paid by the people for his services,
should attend or not attend lo the duties
of his office, just as might beat suit his
convenience ? Surely the people will not
quietly consent to be gulled and imposed
on iu this way.
1 will now proceed to consider, whe
ther the duties of the Secretary of State
can be legally performed by a Deputy.
I conceive they cannot, for the follow
ing reasons:—
1st —There is no law or resolution,
which authorizes the appointment of a
Deputy Secretary of Slate.
2dly —There is a law, the only fair
construction of which, shows, that tire
Secretary of State cannot legally ap
point a deputy. 1 refer to an act of the
Legislature passed 15th December, 1810,
Clayton’s Digest, page 643 —the third
section of which contains the following
words. “ All grants, copy grants, tesli
“ monials, or any other document or pa
“ per whatsoever, heretofore issued out of
“ the Secretary of Slate’s office, purporl
“ iug to be signed by a deputy Secretary
“ of State, shall be held and taken as le
“ gal, provided the said paper shall be
“ ascertained to be genuine,”—lt will
be at once seen, that this Act of the Le
gislature was intended for no other pur
pose and goes no further in relation to
this subject, than, to legalize the acts
performed by a Deputy Secretary ol
Slate previous to the 15th December,
1810. From the intention ol the Act
and the words of the third section, the
acts of a Deputy Secretary ol State ap
pear tn have been'considered illegal be
fore the passage of the act, and there be
ing nothing in the aettb authorize a De
puty Secretary of Stale to net thereafter,
it follows conclusively that a deputy de
rives no authority trom the act ol the 15th
December, 1810; aud'fui thermore, since
tlie passage of that Act, a Deputy Secre
tary of State has not been known as such
in this State, nor have any known at
tempts been made, to introduce one, un
til the present time.
3rdly—Reasoning from analogy we ar
rive at the satisfactory conclusion, that
the Secretary of Slate cannot appoint a
deputy until he is authorized to do so by
the Legislature. The 12th Sec. 2d Ar
ticle of the Constitution, creates the offi
ces of Secretary ol State, Treasurer and
Surveyor General. Now, by comparing
the dilfcrent clauses of the constitution
creating the offices of Judge of Ili3 Su
perior Courts, Justices of the Inferior
Courts, Solicitors General, Justices ol
the Peace, Clerks, Sheritfs, kc. kc.
with the one creating; the office of Secre
tary of State, it will be seen, that near
ly the same words are used in the crea
tion of them all, and that, in lact, they
all exist precisely on the same principle,
to wit—the mere declaration in the Con
stitution that, “ they shall exist." All
of them existing then on the same prin
ciple, it follows, that if the Secretary of
State can, without Legislative authority,
appoint a deputy, a Judge of the Superi
or Courts, or any of the officers before
mentioned, can do the same thing. It
will avail nothing against the force of
this argument, lo draw distinctions be
tween those officers, and call one a judi
cial and another a ministerial officer.
They were all created at the same mo
ment ; they all breathe the same vital
principle, and Urey all owe their being
to the same common parent—“ The
Constitution."
All proceedings pf the Legislature
touching the subject, from the formation
of the constitution to the present time,
plainly show, that they did conceive and
did determine, at different times, that no
one of the before mentioned officers could,
without legislative authority, legally ap
point a deputy, or else why did the Le
gislature, as long ago as 1799, authorize
Sheriffs lo have “ one or more deputies r”
Sec 4l!lh Section Judiciary Law of 1799,
Crawford and Marhury’s Digest, page
305. And why did the Legislature in
1817, deem it expedient and proper to
authorize clerks to appoint deputies ?
And now I ask whether it is right and
reasonable to contend, that tlie Secreta
ry of State can, without an act of the
Legislature, legally appoint a deputy to
discharge the important duties of his of
fice, when it does undeniably appear that
even a clerk could not legally appoint a
deputy, until permitted lo do so by a so
lemn act of the Legislature.—Lamar’s
Digest, page 159.
Having now considered the subject as
proposed, and shown under the third and
last divisions of it, that the duties of the
Secretary of State cannot be legally per
formed by deputy ; and it appearing from
the facts that the Secretary was himself
absent, and it being uncertain at what
time be would return; and moreover, it
being impossible for the public business to
progress, legally, without a Secretary ol
Slate ; it appears that a vacancy, such
as contemplated in the constitution, had
occurred on the 12th day of August,
1822.
It is admitted that this vacancy had
been occasioned “ otherwise ” than by
death or resignation; but by whom was
it to be determined whether the office was 1
really vacant? and what occurrences i
other than death or resignation could oc- i
cdsion a vacancy ? The constitution being i
silent in regard to these questions, (lie ’
last one depends then entirely on thena- 1
lure of the office, and the circumstances i
of the particular case, and both must,
from the necessity of the thing, be deter
mined by the Executive, and no one 1
else ; as he is the only person authorized <
to fill the vacancy. The power to de- (
termine, is incidental (o, and united with 1
the power to fill, and these two powers (
must remain united in the same person I
until separated by an alteration of the (
constitution. (
All that has been said on the subject
of Mr. Burch’s ai ling for the Comptroller s
General, amounts, in substance, to no- I
thing. He never did undertake lo per- t
form lor that office any act which was I
intended or needful to be preserved, and i
thereafter used as evidence. No law can s
be found rendering it essential to the va- 1
lidity ol a giant, that his name should t
appeaion.it. II is name for several years 1
j»»t, never has been entered on a grant, t
until, since the last session of the Legis
lature. Neither is it required bylaw,
nor is it essential to the validity cf a grant,
that the Treasurer’s name should be on
it. The law requires every applicant
! lor a grant to pay into the Treasury a
I given sum before it issues, and the only
reason why the Treasurer’s name is
on it, is to show the Governor, that the
fee required by law has been paid; so
that in truth, his name and that of the
Comptroller-General’s on grants, add no
thing to, their validity, and might be dis
pensed with entirely, without injury to
the grantee. Not so with the name of
the Secretary of State ; the Act of 1810,
before refer red to, settling the question,
if it were not before settled, whether his
name on a grant is essentially necessary
toils validity.
But it has been roundly asserted, that
! all the State House Officers have been in
the habit of acting by Deputy, and An
thony Porter and Edward Cary, Esquires,
have been named as individuals, each
having had the whole weight of the gov
ernment on his shoulders at different
times. In the first place, this assertion
is false in point of fact; —and in the se
cond, admitting it to be true, an illegal
act committed yesterday, is surely no
justification of the commission of the like
illegal aclto-day. Thepresent. Surveyor
General has, at different limes, been in
office for nearly twenty years, and he
never did authorize any one to act as De
puty Surveyor General.
That Mr. Porter, Mr. Cary, and
others, have receipted on grants and en
tered them for the Treasurer and Comp
troller General, and done like duties for
them, will not he denied. But lam well
convinced, that no one in capacity of de
puty ever did stand in theirstead, author
ized to discharge any and every duty re
quired of them- Did an execution
against a defaulting Tax Collector ever
issue from either of those offices signed
by a deputy? If ever one did, I fancy it
would puzzle even that sagacious head of
tlie Recorder, with alibis law and con
stitution, to conyjncea court that such ex
ecution was legal and valid. Suppose
the Treasurer and Comptroller were to
allow a report signed by a deputy to go
from their olfices to the Legislature, what
would be the language of the Legisla
ture to them? It would be, “Gentle
“ men, you were elected by us to do
“ business for the people; we committed
“ to your charge an important trust, not
“ to be transferred nor assigned to ano
“ thcr; your duly is a personal one; —
“ we never did authorize you to do your
“ official duly by deputy; you will there
fore be pleased to retire without fur
“ ther ceremony. If we cannot find
“ others willing to give their personal
“ attention to the business of the public,
“ we will then call for you and Jmurde
“ puties.”
Stress is attempted to be laid on a pow
er of attorney : it is nugatory—nothing
more nor less than an attempt to author
ize a Deputy to perform acts that would
be illegal; the principal having no au
thority by law to have the duties of his
office performed by Deputy, can convey
no legal power; but, for mere argu
ment’ssake, we will suppose such a course
to be pursued. The Secretary of State,
the Treasurer, the Surveyor General,
and Comptroller General, all shall ap
point their Deputies, each invested with
a Power of Attorney. One of these
heads of offices sets out to St. Marys or
Augustine to bathe iu saltwater, another
to Alabama on some land speculation,
another to the City of Washington, or to
some salubrious springs in the mountains
so the preservation of his health, for five
or six weeks, or months, or indeed dur
ing the term of his appointment; for if
the power of attorney is competent for a
day it is for any term within the limits of
his appointment—the Governor remains
at his post, surrounded, not by the heads
of' offices, tile component parts of the
Executive Department of Government,
but by a host of deputies or attorneys,
who may be known to him, as to their
qualifications or not; it was sufficient that,
they were such persons as the several
officers chose to place about him, and
suppose that he would submit to act un
der such circumstances, every act of
these deputies, which might be necessa
ry to be introduced as evidence into a
court of justice, must be accompanied by
an attested copy of the power under
which they acted. It would be an idle
waste of time, to enumerate all the ab
surdities involved in such a> idle method
of executing the office of Governor.
It is a notorious fatt, that with the 12th
of August a crisis had arrived when the
Executive Administration of he Govern
ment must cease for want of legal co
operation of the Secretary of State, or
the Governor must exercise the authori
ty vested in him by the Constitution to
guard against such a state of things, by
appointing a person to fill that office. To
have suspended the government would
have justly subjected him to censure,
greater than all the abuse so iniquilonsly
poured out against him for having dis
very charged his duty to the public; & the
same persons, iu all probability, would
have taken the lead in denunciation of
him. Among the various misrepresenta
tions and falsehoods in circulation, one is,
that the young man Crawford had not
been, as they think, duly served with a
copy of the Executive order appointing
Mr. Whitaker. It was furnished to Mr.
Whitaker, and exhibited by him to Craw
ford, who paid no attention to it. Ano
ther statement, in the Recorder, is equal
ly unture, that is, that Mr. Crajvford
informed the Governor that Col. Ham
mond was expected home daily ; all the
information he gave the Governor was
what has been already stated, when in
terrogated to that point, that Col. Ham
mond was expected to return about the
Ist September. ‘
The assertion in the Recorder, that
the Governor interfered in behalf of
Gen, Newnan in the late election of Se
cretary of State is void of truth ; nor did
he even Know that Col. Hammond was
opposed to him. The assertion, that Mr.
Crawford was threatened to be thrown
out of the house is equally unfounded in
truth.
With regard to what has been said
about the conduct of other officers, equal
ly it is sufficient to say, that
they have not in any instance impeded
the administration of the Government,
nor is it known that they have in any in
stance absented themselves for any time
from their offices without the approba
tion of the Governor; and indeed, from
the nature of the business oftheir offices,
as these remarks apply to the Comp
• troller General and the Treasurer tber
, is not that constant indispensable co-on/
, ration with the Executive, as with ih'
i office of Secretary of State. If any , )er C
■ sons have assisted them in receipting for
i fees or Grants of Lands or in checkin^
’ such receipts, or in making any entries
i their books, such a course, however im
i material they might deem it, has not been
i sanctioned by the Governor, and it i s
( presumed that no instrument issuing from
• either of their liable to be°intro
- duced as testimony, in a court of justice
i and that any of their acts therein could
f affect the validity thereof, has ever been
. signed by any person but themselves ■
, An application was made by Mr.
i ton to the Governor to sanction the am
r pointment of a person to perform the du
ties of his office. It was refused, and
. the Treasurer told, that he had best pfcr
i form them himself; and the same remark
has been made to Mr. Bozeman.
, How the Editors of the Journal have
i been able to ascertain that the Governor
and Col. Hammond were of different
, politics, State and National, is unknown;
i it was presumed that they were pretty
much the same. Although it is not
known that the Governor ever heard the
i opinion of Hammond, on politics, for
himself, however, it is well understood
that he is no nr an-woß*hippor,nor does he
i belong to any faction,
i That the Editors of the two papers iu
Milledgeville, so notedly conspicuous for
their hostilily to Governor Clark and
1 devotion to his anetnies, should have pur
sued any other than the course they have
adopted, was not to be expected. Tti
omit an opportunity to heap insults and
i contumely upon him, whether he had
acted right or wrong, would it appears
be deemed by them, a dereliction of du
ties in periously demanded of them; and
although this language may appear
strong, who, that bears in mind a recol-
I lection of the torrents of scurrilous a
buse, that issued almost incessantly last
year from their presses against him and
the three State Commissioners, who ef
fected a treaty for the lands, will pre
tend to doubt the correctness of it ? The
i tendency of their labors was to destroy
i the well-earned fame and reputation of
honorable men, whose faithful services
and successful efforts had eminently con
tributed to the prosperity of the State.
But their labors then proved vain—the
good sense of the people prevailed,— and
they were compelled to drink of the cup
of disappointment.
They now pounce upon the case of
Hammond with the keen avidity of fam
ished vultures, and iu imitation of their
brilliant trope, of the lamp, I would say,
let them go on rejoicing , if they can re
joice in such a feast, until satiated, they
drop off, and die spontaneously amid
the extatic sensation of their own perfect
repletion : but their object is the same it
has heretofore been—to mislead the pub
lic opinion, to deceive the people, and
further the views of a faction ; hence,
among many other things equally irrele
vant to the true merits of the transaction
under consideration, they would try to
excite, and enlist the public sympa
thy on their side, by stating that Col.
Hammond was dependant in a good de
gree upon this office for the support of his
family. If this was true, it would prove
too much—in the first place, that he
should have been more regardful of his
interest, in a proper and faithful discharge
of his public duties; and, iu the second
place, that he had been a very bad econ
omist. He was elected to this office in
the year 1811 : it is believed by those best
informed on the subject, to have been
worth not less than $3,000 any year, and
more than $6,000 per annum for several
years ; but au Average of the lowest sum,
s3,oooayear, for 11 years, would make
$33,000. If, after the receipt of such an
amount of money, he is still dependant
upon the office for the support of his fami
ly in a good degree, it would amount to
a prodigality in the management of his
affairs which few will believe. It is,
however, altogether irrelevant to the
, subject, «nd merited only to be noticed
to expose the object and fallacy cf its use.
In the Recorder, of the 271 h instant,
some Lawyer, (no offence is intended to
the faculty; I only mean some quibbling
Lawyer) in the borrowed garb of the prin
ter, like the wolf in sheep’s clothing, in
troduces himself to the public with a long
farrago—the parentage is immediately
known by the sinister features of the
offspring. He argues, that if the Gover
nor had the power, it must be general,
and! not be particularly used in putting a
Secretary of State into office, and that it
mnst -be his duty to go to every quarter
of the State (when necessary) to put all
officers into possession of their offices.
Now, if his perceptive faculties had
not been deranged, perhaps, from the
indiscriminate habit of advocating right
and wrong, so far as to blind him to truth
and the propriety of a measure, he would '
at once have seen the distinction, anu
comprehended the reasons for it—that
these officers (spoken of) throughout the
State are not like the Secretrary of state’s
office, one of the most important of the
Executive Department of Govercment,*:
by its daily co-operation, absolutejiy ne
cessary to the legal administration (here
of, and further, that the Great Seal *f
the State, the symbol of the sovereignty
of the people, the stamp of which giyet
validity abroad to the instrument which
receives its impress, is under the control
of the governor, no one dare to use it
but by the order of the Governor or
General Assembly,
When a Governor is elected, the Great.
Seal of the State is confided and deliver
ed into his hands by the Representatn «
of the people, through the President or
the Senate ; it becomes an attribute of his
authority ; it is conveyed from his hand
to the Secretary of State, to be depouteo
in that office—then, if the Governoij de--
cide that a vacancy has occurred by death,
resignation, (or otherwise) in that office,
and appoints a person to fill it to prevent
a suspension of the Executive Govern
ment, should he not deliver that seal o
the officer who is to use. it by his order ■
so, what then are the grounds of c arges
©flawless violence on the part of the Go
vernor? It may truly be answered t ie
malignity of faction. But this writer
would have advised (and naturally e
nough, as being in his line of business) *
Mandamus, or a Quo Warranto, to e
served on Col. Hammond at St. Maty 5 >
or St. Augustine, two or three hum re
miles off—the government in the interm
to be suspended or stopped. Ihe Cover
nor had no need to resort to such
to put him in possession of the Great -e
of the State, which was already under