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About The Washington news. (Washington, Ga.) 1821-183? | View Entire Issue (July 31, 1824)
Stale of things at Washington . M'ehave just learntfrorn a source, in which we place the greatest reli an *e, that the President has pro Doomed his/mai decision in relation to the suspending of Mr. Crawford from the Treasury. He has refu sed to do it; and refused so per# in p torily that the eager and anxious importunities with which he has been so long beset will not be re newed. As soon as he gave to the ooilition of Secretaries, &o. Btc. hi 4 ultimatum, he left the city for Loudoun. V*e learn too, with un iningled pleasure, that lie has nev er seen V, lid wards since he re turned from Illinois. Mr. Adams, it is said, requested on behalf of Edwards, permission to visit the President; but the Preside.u (to his lienor he it said,) dealitied receiv ing him. This was after the last report of the Committee—and yet the roalilion still endeavor to sus tain this fallen and degraded Mini ster. Mr. Calhoun was seea slip ping into liis lodgingsooFriday las*! We state these facts, because we believe them. We rej ice that Mr. jMonroe has taken the course which be has pursued. We rejoice at it, on his own account, as well as of that of his country. We know that the President has been led to sus pect that we were his inveterate en emies. Ue owe many obligations on this score to the sycophants a rou and him who have tried to pour p ,ison into his ears—on so many occasions. But we recollect the times when Janies Monroe was llie ••beloved >f this land;” when our heirs yearned towards him as a Virginian—as a m to eminently wor thy of ail our confidence and of all our love. We have not been his ay CophaiVs We have conduced a free pres*— We have spoken of his measures fraokiy and freely—“no thing extenuating or setting down Aught in malice.”—We have asked nothing iftiim—we have nothing to a-.k of him—l’ *r almost his last foot is on *he threshhold of power—hut we n> it wi ii a grateful feeling which we cannot fully express, we rejoice at the course he is taking. \Vn should beseeli him to act, as bis own heait would prompt him— avd may the dose of his administra tion he as happy as he could possi ble wish it. If a strong confidence in those Vrh r n he has thought worthy of his friend* ki;> has benayed ’uim into a seeming p rt/cpifi>n in their in trigue and co?rsp*racies against the fair *'■ iioe and honor of a member of bis own Cabinet, he no sooner per ceives the extent of their designs, than he nobly refuses to make the Sacrifice they denuod. He now Stan.is up<m that neutral grou and, which his former frie d* wished him to occupy during the whole of the Presidential controversy, The peo ple w;)| approve his courte, I was enough for Mr*. Crawford to co tend against ill health, against the u (tiring calumnies arid perse cution of his private and personal enemies, against the zealous and unfair opposition of the poiiii. al pa rtizans of the other candidates. But is it not too much to have also arrayed against him the talents, the i fl.:enre, the patronage and the power of all the high dignitaries of the government ( lie President ex cepied.) In comparison of the pow er ad i. llueoce of these “ Dignita ries.” the ••atoms” about the seat of government wiio bask in the sun shine >f“Court favor,” are scarce ly worthy of uotiee. What will the freemen of this country say to all this ? How strong. Jy does it speak in favor of Mr. Crawford ? I foe had been deficient in Integrity, ability ard assiduity, how promptly would his defects have been made manifest to the by some willing instrument of his associates in office, ‘ e forbear further , ommeot at present. I’he people all know how t> draw their owu conclusions.—They know their rigtus aod (hey will not he gulled into a surre der of them at the shrine of an unholy ambition. J. C. Calhoun slipping into the lodging* of Niniau fed ward a!—up holding a man, who is a blot upon the pu did escutcheon—an object of contempt to s * many virtuous i.ien .* private life. Is this the J. C. C. whose line genius, whose pre possessing maouers, whose rapid Diind, once hfigured so much for (he kept fit i?f his country ? Pity, that sa it uncommon qualities should be s.fiVteu to blasted by id starred a -*uiiiOj ‘.—Kichmond jinq. Celebration of the fourth of July in Philadelphia, The usual military parades being over, the democratic party met to getber in the very room in which the Declaration of Independence was adopted. The Democratic Press gives the following interesting account cf the ceremonies:— Thomas Forrest, now a very a ged, hut hearty, healthful citizen, dressed in a suit of plaio light drab cloth, he, who during the revolu tionary War, had commanded a re giment of Artillery which did good service, aad who has, sioie that period, more than once represent ed bis country in Congress; this ve nerable citizen presented himself to read the Declaration of Indepen dence. He made some prelimina ry remarks, which we wish, excee dmgly wish, we could give exactly as he speke heni, word for word, still more anxiously do we widt ihai we could give the tones of his voice, accompanied, as they were, by ap propriate action* enforced by bis highly respectable figure and all the revolutionary associations with h filled our minds as he spoke. But of all his we despair and therefore we attempt it not. litre w-re. however, some few cloS. g remarks uttered in a lone of so much earn esiness end which made such im pression that we will give Ihem; that is we will give our recollection of the mere words; bm io truth un less you beard them i4 saw Col. Forrest whilst he uttered them, you cannot feel their lull force, “ Vly countrymen;—ought I not rather to sty my ♦ “hiid to: the chil dren of my compatriot*, the child ren of the men of the Devolution— yea, verily you are a part of that posterity, to secure whose freedom and independence, my fellow sold ins, the companions of my you*h, the friends of my riper age, fought and Id*d and died ” I saw the trait tremble io the aged of the Speaker as ht3 fathering tongue reverted to men and to things long past—to men who had descended to he grave ami to things which will live in the history of mat* forever— He quii kly passed his hand across his eyes and eonlinutuf—“Yes. my Children, (he Children of my Irie.ids and the hope of your country—you will soon he called upon to elect a Chief Magistrate to fill the seat wbi*h has beet, filled by a Wash i ff;no and aJeffit son. Take care whom you eboose ! ! Through the whole of the Revolutionary war, a mid all its perils; Father against Son—and Son against Father; Gen. Washington never proclaimed Mar tial Laio—he never put the Milita ry over the Civil Authority—or dis regarded the Writ ot Habeas Cor pus—nr the sacred rights of our Legislative Assemblies. r I hese things were never done by any of our Authorities during our Revolu tion, nor for thirty years after,” ••General Washington whs brave but humane; he always showed mercy to a fallen foe. I tell you my children, beware (he Ides of March —beware of any man who in the tide of victory would sweep away your dearest tights and trample on your constitmion—beware ot the man who has dared to do what the Father of his country never did,— Fleet no sorb man to be your Chief Magistrate—let no au< b man oeeu py the seat which has been occupi ed by Washington, the great and the good Washington. As you love the memory of your Fathers, as you would preserve your constitu tion from violation, and the ark of your political safety from unhallow ed hands, do not call su*h a man to administer that government which was achieved by virtue a;.d by val or.” RHODE ISLAND. The last Rhode Island papers contain the new constitution for that stale. Ls provisions are similar to those of other stater; the two following extracts which we re rejoice to see, are the most materi al and important.—„Vat. ddvocute The person of a debtor, where there is not strong presumption of fraud, ought not to be confined in prison, alter he shall have deliver ed up his property for the benefit of his creditors, in such manner as shall be prescribed by law. 17. \Y bereas Almighty God hath created the mind free, and ail at tempts to influence it by lempoml punishments or burthens, or by ci vil in apatitaiious, tend to baget habits of hypocrisy and meanness. and whereas a principal object of onr venerable ancestors, in their migra tion to this country, and their set tlement of this state, was, as they expressed it, to hold forth a lively experiment, that a flourishing civil state may stand, and he best main tamed with full liberty in religious concernments: We, therefore, de clare, that no man shall be com pelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or minis try whatsoever, nor enforced, re strained, molested or butthenediu his body or goods, ror disqualified from bolding any office, nor other wise suffer on account of his reli gious belief; and that all inn shall he free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in mat* ters of religmtt; and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge ••r utfeet the ivil capacities; and that <*li other religious rights and privileges of the people oft his state, as now enjoyed, shall remain iuvi olate and inviolable, 18 The enumeration of the fore* goi g rights shill not be construed to impair oor deny others retained by the people. From the Riclim md Enquh er. QUERIES. We are aware of the source from which the following queries come, Old the information on which they are founded. Without pretending io vouch for the authenticity of the fads, we deem the information so worthy of respect as to warrant their publication. We have names, Ac. iri our possession, which we do not deem it necessary to bring out. -“Then- high character induces us to lay the following before our rea det, 1. Was not Mr. John Q Adams, * ft toad to the Missouri restriction ? D*d he not declare that he ha 1 no dcubl of Congress having the con stitutional power to impose such a rt>strietio!>*and is not this well known to member of Congress from New Hampshire, a late member from Maryland, and a member of the pre* sc A Congress from Tennessee, and can any southern state support a man who entertains such opinions ? 2 Is not a coalition forming be tween Messrs, Jackson, Adams and Calhoun, by which it is to be ar ranged that withio a short time, Gen, Jackson is to resign his pre tensions to ihe Presidency to Mr. Attains* and Is to eome in as Vice President ; and Mr. Calhoun is to fill some distinguished post under tils amalgamated administration, probably as Secretary of State, wiiich is to make him heir apparent t< the Presidency at ‘he end of eight years ? 3. Hoes not the combination formed between the Adams and Calhoun papers at Washington, and iheir,late united movements as to Ninian Edwards, strongly support the truth of the hypothesis stated in the second query ? 4. Are (He people prepared to permit the United States to be di vided into provinces as was done by Caesar, Crasstis and Pnmpey, or themselves to be transferred like cattle to any aspiring or ambitious leader who may claim a right to dispose of them according to his will and pleasure ? 3. Will the great stale of Penn sylvania suffer her support to be transferred to Mr. Adams once an acknowledged federalist, and a vio lent opponent of those great repub lics - principles, which she has uni f rmlv aid strenuously supported? Will she, or will New York, sanc tion the amalgamating policy, which estimates political principle as noth ing—and men as every thing ? These are solemn enquiries which the people af *be United States will have to decide. We give the warn ing. We are induced to believe that the events will take place to which these enquiries lead. May (he people be on the watch to defeat combinations, which however they may promote individual aggrandize ment will be destructive to their happiness and subversive of their liberties. From the Columbians. C ) Telescope. MH. LOW HIE, Os this gentleman I know nothing, but what I have learned from what has lately transpired in reference to his dispute with Mr. Monroe and Gen. Jackson, His conduct anti his character may on former occa sions, for ought I know, be liable to severe censure. In his own state, or io oongrtst. he may be a bate in triguer, devoid of truth, honor and integrity. On these points, know* ing nothing I can say nothing; But in regard to his late dispute with Mr. Monroe and Gen. Jack son, I have formed a decided opin ion in his favor. In him I see what will always excite, in my mind, and in every generous bosom, a warm interest : a man dealt most unfairly by, misrepresented, attacked most foully, in hi reputation, and borne down by great names and the weight of o filial authority. As his char acter is supposed to have been hith erto good, and as, in this instance, I see that he has been most basely injured : I cannot but feel for him that sympathy which is always ex cited in every honest heart at see ing an ho .est man overwhelmed by superior force—“a great man strug gling ’mid tlie storm of fate.” Uis character is his alt: all to him, and al! to his children. It is all that he has to be proud of; and all the patrimony he has for his posterity. If that be destroyed, then every thing is lost both to him aud them. What are the charges against him ? That he has told a wilful, de liberate falsehood, in stating that Mr. Monroe read to him General Jackson’s private, confidential let ter; and thru he has done so with the base, malicious motive of injur ing the latter. I say he has done neither the one nor the other, and that th sc who say he did, must either have wilfully done him iojus ti< e or very superficially examined the facts. First then : he has told no false hood. Mr. Monroe did read the letter to him. The first thing that strikes the blind id the internal evidence of the thing itself; that “evidence that eannot lie/* Gen Jackson in his correspondence calls his letters con fidential. Mr. Mouroe, in bis re plies, treats them as confidential. They were known to no one else than those two. Unless one or the other of these two communicated their contents to sotne one else, how could any one else know that they ever existed 9 Now, it is not p* etend ed that Gen. Jackson ever made such a communication, fie denies it. fie still insists they were con fidential, How thru in the name of Heaven could Mr. Lowrie know of their existence , much less their contents, unless Mr. Monroe read (hem ? The tiling speaks for itself. A “hild may understand it. Bui M>. Roberts, Mr. Lacock, Mr. Ruggh‘9 and Mr. Thomas all say that Mr MoorOe read them to them also. Where, then, is the im probability that he was equally communicative to Mr. Lowrie ? These gentlemen also state that Mr. Fiodlay Stated, io 1821, that Mr. Monroe read them to him and Mr. Lowrie together. It is true this gentleman’s recollection m w (that he finds great oames against him) fails him on this point. But why did he state the faet otherwise in 1821, if he and Mr. Lowrie had not heard the letter read ? It is not a little confirmatory of Mr. Lowrie's statement, that he did not 9tate that the letter was tread to him alone, but in company with Mr. Findlay. If he had been dis posed to statea falsehood, he would have said “no one was present but myself and Mr. Monroe.’ 9 He would not have furnished the evi dence by which bis mis-*taiement could have been so easily detected, if he had been guilty of one. Another circumstance U that bis narration.of the facts which led to the reading of this letter, was nat ural at the time. They led to the disclosure. He and Mr. Find lay both stated in 1821, that the appoiatmeut of a federalist to an office io Pennsylvania, induced them to remonstrate with the President on the impolicy of such appoint ments ; and that Mr. Monroe, in bis justification, quoted to them the advice he had received from Gen. Jackson. Now, this io the usual course of things, is perfectly natur al. And these circumstances are true, for even Mr. Fiodlay admits that both ho and Mr. Lowrie did re monstrate against that appointment and that policy, aud Mr, Momroe does not pretend to deny it. But it is said that Mr, Lowrie is not to be believed because be stated tha the letter, as read to him, re commended to him to choose for bis cabinet two federalists and two re publicans; whereas the letter did, in reality, only recommend the se lection of the cabinet without regard to party , It is substantially the tame. The difference is a inrio quibble. The principle is the same* whether one federalist wa9 chosen* without regard to party, or two. But lam willing tog* further. I Imre no doubt the tetter was read to Mr. Lowrie in the terms he stated. Geo Jackson states that Mr. Mo.iroo denied to him that he ever read to Mr. Lnwric, or to any other person, any such letter (one recom mending the appoint meat of two federalists and two republicans) or any letter from Gen. Jackson. I believe no one doubts that ho did read (he letter. I think I have shewn that he did, as conclusively as that two and two moke four. And as that letter was confidential , Mr. Mouroe stands convicted oftw** things ;of befruy ; ng conjidence ad of stating what is not true. The man who would be capable of this would be capable of reading the let ter to Mr. Lowrie in the terms lie says it was read. Mr. Lowrie does rot pretend that he read the letter, but says that Mr. Monroe read it to him. The other gentlemen say the Same was done to them. Has Mr. Lowrie been guilty of betraying confidence. Bth he and Mr. Findlay at the time ♦ and when there could he uo motive with either to injure Gen. Jackson, for he was then no candidate* staled that the letter Wa9 not comiiiimioated to them as confidential, The other gentlemen state that it was read to them in the same way. On Mr* Monroe, who knew the letter was confidential, this charge exclusively rests. The second question is, did Mr* Lowrie make this statement with the malicious intent to injure Gcn Jackson ? The answer is easy. When did he make it ? in IS?L V/as General Jackson then dreamt of as a candidate. No! How theta could he have intended to injure him ? I-* what point of vievf, now, has lilr. L. done wrong. A nominaliuo Ufa certain federalist for an f ffioe in Mr L.s’ state is made m 1821, He remonstrates with the President. The President tells him, “ i have? been advised by Gen. Jackson to make such appointment 8 ” Mr. L. goes home. His constituents call upon him to know how he suf fered such an appointment to ho made He states what Mr. Monroo told him. Gen. Jackson is net yet a candidate. When he afterwards eomes forward, the people of Penn sylvania recollect what they have heard. They enquire of Mr L w rie whether what they have heard is true. He tells them it Is. To have done otherwise would have been to give his former declarations the lie. Was this to injure Gen. Jackson ? It was to save his own reputation. Mr Kremer, a warm friend of Gen. J. calls on Mr. L. He gives him the same statement. Mr. K. then calls on Mr. Monroe. Does Mr. M. then say, “ I will have no thing to say in this business, it is an electioneering affair ?” No. He authorizes Mr. K. to say, upon his authority that Mr. L.s* statement i& wholly false. Great God ! what was the situs* tion of Mr. Lowrie ! Who that has the least spark of honor, the least regard for reputation, but eao in a moment eaoceive ail the agonies of his situation ? He had stated what was true; he had done it obviously without malice; he bad betrayed no confidence; and yet his state ments are flatly contradicted upon such high authority. Was he to lie quiet ? Was he to suffer his own and his children’s fame to be torn from him without a murmur, with out an effort, however high in sta tion the despoiler might be ? No* The humblest citizen of this repub lic has as much right to defend his reputation, as the most distinguish ed man among us: and I hope it has not reached that length yet,(al though it is fast verging to it) that office shall protect a wrong done, Mr. Lowrie’s course under such a weight of influence was marked with a temperance and prudence worthy of a belter fate. He calls upon Mr. Fiudlay. Mr. Findlay*a memory fails him. He calls upon Mr. Monroe to do his character jus tice. Mr. M. replies that he will have nothing to say in the affair. This is the Mr Mouroe woo had au thorised Mr. Kremer flatly to coo tradiet Mr. L.s’ statement in tho public papers. Yet he will have no* thing to say in the affair ! He calls upon Gen. Jackson, who replies I never wrote stick a letter. Thus circumstanced, abaudoned
