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B Y GRIEVE & O R M E, State Printers.]
MILLEDGEVILLE, GEORGIA, TUESDAY, AUGUST 25, 1S40.
[NO. 32—VOL. XXI.
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_Sa.es of land and negroes, by Administrators, Executors,
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Norites for tire sale of personal property must be given
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A < i. .mice te, the debtor* and creditors -f an estate must be
ouboshed for roRTT days.
V nice that appbcatioti writhe icadctotbcCourtof Ordina-
'Vt’>r leave to sefi land, must ire pRbli*he4 for FOUR 91OST H s
Vlt business in the line of tr-SYinsi. will meet with
nrornrft rttei/tion at the RtrctmoER OSVKZ.
LK rTERsf.vE business) must be post-paid.
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aer -hanged ftom one Post Office to another, are desired, in
„'„ n . r.stanee, in mskinesec-U recwests.to inform us as well
of the iS.!fte of the Post ft fire fren which they desire it
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\ N ACT to niter the 3fi."7fh atid 12th sections of the first
article, and the 1st. 2d anti’s 1 sections of the 3d article,
nad tire y>ih ecotien-of-tiie 4th article of the Constitution of
this Ftate. . , - ,
Whereas a part of the *5a section of the 1st article of the
“Constitution is in the ■'following words, viz: The Senate
si,all he elected annually-: and a part of the 7th section of
the ,'-3t article, is in the fallowing words: The Representa
tives .shall be chosen rnnuallv ; and a part of the 12th sec-
.tir.ntif the 1-st article “is in the following words : The meeting
of tlie Genera! Assembly shall he annually ; And whereas a
cart I the'3d section of the 3d article is in the following
-words: There shall he a State's Attorney aud Solicitor ap
pointed by the Legislature and commissioned by tlie Gov-
-emon, who shall hold their office for the term of three years ;
and a part of the 15th section of the 4th article is in the fol
lowing words: The same shall be published at least six
month's previous to the next ensuing annual election, for
members of the General Assembly: And whereat tlie before
recited clauses require amendments—
Section 1- Re it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre-
aentat'Tts of the State of Georgia in General Assembly met and
it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same. That so soon as
this act shall have passed, agreeably to the requisitions of
the Constitution, the following shall be adopted in lieu of
the foregoing clauses: In the 3d section of the 1st article,
the following, to wit: The Senate shall be elected bi-annually.
after the passage of this act; the first election to take place
ou the fi-st Monday in the year one thousand eight hundred
and forty-three. In lieu of the 7th section of the 1st article,
the following: The Representatives shall be elected bi an
nually, after the passage of this act, the first election to take
place on the first Monday in October, in the year one thou
sand eigni hundred and forty three ; aud in lieu of the clause
in the 12th section of the 1st artic.e, die following : The meet
ing of the General Assembly shall be bi-annually, aftei the
^pa'ssage of this act, on the first Monday in November. And
,u lieu of the clause in the 3d section of the 3d article, the
full .wing, to wit: There shall be a State’s Attorney and So
licitor elected by the Legislature, who shall hold their office
tortile term of four years; and in lieu of the clause in the
15th section of the 4th article, the following : The same shall
be published atleast six months previous to the nex t ensuing
bi-annual election for members of tlie General Assembly;
the provisions of this act not to go into ertect until the year
one thousand eight hundred and forty-three.
Sec. 2. And be it further enacted bg the authority aforesaid.
That whenever it shall so happen that the term of office of any
<if the Judges, State’s Attorney or Solicitors, shall expire at
any time during the recess of the General Assembly, than
and in that case it shall be the duty of bis Excellency the
Governor to fill such vacancy, by appointment, until the
next General Assembly thereafter to be held, when such
vacancy shall be filled by election by the Legislature, until
the next election of Judges, Stale’s Attorney or Solicitois
shall take place.
JOSEPH DAY,
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
ROBERT M. ECHOLS,
President of the Senate.
Assented to, December 23d, 183!).
CHARLES J. McDonald, Governor.
March 31, 1840. H 6m
CGfVTKAt IS 7 > St AfiEWCV.
T33HE undersigned ofler their services as agents in the
8 renewal of Notes at the Central Bank. They will at
tend to all Notes entrusted to their oare, for the customary
lee of one dollar; ahio, to the taking out and forwarding
Grants at one dollar each.
They will also attend to the offering of Notes for discount,
nt the distribution of the Centra! Bank, advertised to com
mence on the !0th July, and all orders in regard to the dis
position of the money will be promptly attended to.
CUP Letters enclosing notes or money must be post paid.
THOMAS RAGLAND,
THO. H. HALL.
Milledgeville, June 16. 1840. 22 tf
[CP Tlie Columbus Enquirer and Sentinel and Herald,
will insert three times.
CENTRAL BANK OF GEORGIA.
Milledgeville, 11th June, 1840.
R ESOLVED, That a distribution of seven hundred and
, fifty thousand dollars be made among the several coun
ties of this State, to be loaned on accommodation notes, which
may be offered for discount on the days and in the order
stated in the foilwing table, viz :
County.
Thursday
Amount.
16fit July.
County.
Amount.
Appling;,
$2,372
Catniien,
5,606
Baker,"
3.013
Campbell,
5,912
Baldwin,
7,183
Carroll,
5.104
Bibb,
10,136
Cass.
8,251
Brvan,
2,904
Chatham,
21,354
Bulloch,
3,836
Cherokee,
5,598
Burke,
12,521
Chattooga,
4,224
Butts,
6.106
Clarke,
11,403
Cobb.
Tliurxdav
7,540
30th July.
Dooly,
4,991
Columbia,
11,069
Early,
4,953
Coweta,
11,534
Effingham,
2.775
Crawford,
8.712
Elbert,
12,479
Decatur,
5,546
Emanuel,
3,621
DeKalb,
13,196
Fayette,
7,513
Dade,
1,119
Floyd,
4,224
Forsyth,
Thursday,2
6,359
Ofh Attgust.
Gwinnett.
13,495
Franklin,
11.650
Habersham,
9,972
Gilmer,
1,990
Hall,
9,881
Glynn,
3,899
Hancock,
10.099
Greene,
11,349
Harris,
Heard,
Henry,
Houston,
Irwin,
Lee,
Liberty,
Lincoln,
J-owndes,
Lumpkin,
Macon,
Madison,
Thursday, 3d September.
14,863 Jackson,
5,602 J as per,
14,762 Jefferson,
13,177 Jones.
2,182 Laurens.
Thursday, 17th September.
3,510 Marion,
6,812 McIntosh,
6,178 Meriwether,
5,849 Monroe,
7,592 Montgomery,
5,417 Morgan,
5,613
Thursday, 1st October.
13,962
12,040
6,087
10,473
6.035
5,179
5,266
16,122
15,594
2,521
9.877
Murrav, 4,051 Pike, 10,191
Muscogee, 17.641 Pulaski, 5,399
Newton, 13,795 Putnam, 11,507
Oglethorpe, 11,691 Rabun, 2,494
Paulding, 2.981 Randolph, 7,137
Thursday, 15th October.
Richmond, 13,875 I Tattnall, 2,949
Soriven. 5,132 ] Telfair, 3,147
Stewart, 11,463 I Thomas, 6.591
Sumter, 4.982 | Troup, 16,624
Talbot, 15,84 4 1 Twiggs, 8,827
Taliaferro, 5,006 | Union, 2,935
Thursday, 29th October.
Upson. 14.957 j Washington, 10,806
Walker, 5,484 Wavne, 1.704
.Walton, 11.984 j Wilkes, 11.235
Ware, 2,598 1 Wilkinson, 7,653
Warren, 11,140 |
GENERAL REGULATIONS.
The law requires that the money appropriated to each
county shall be loaned only to the citizens of such counties
respectively, anil that the endorsers, as well as the makers
of notes, shall be residents ol the county. The Boaid will
therefore require in eacu case a certificate of residence, both
of tin-makers and endorsers; which maybe signed by any
civil officer of the county, But if the money appropriated
to the counties respectively, shall not be applied for and
loaned within thirty days from the offering days above speci-
fi. d, then the above requirement of the law in relation to the
residence of endorses ceases; and alter that time a certificate
ol residence of the maker only, will be required.
Ail notes must be made payable at the Central Bank of
Georgia, three hundred and sixty days after date, and must
have two or more good endorsers.
Every note presented for discount must be accompanied with a
written affidavit qf the maker, in which he shall state that the note
offered is for the only use and benefit of him, the maker, and not
for the use, benefit, err interest, of any other person, or persons
whatsoever; winch afidarit shall be certified by a magistrate or
other officer legally authorised to administer said oath. ,
Certificates of the taxable property of the makers and en
dorsers of the notts offered, will be regarded as the best ev
idence of their solvency.
No note will be discounted having on it the name of any
person indebted to the State, either as principal or security,
which debt is due and unsettled ; or who is the maker of or
endorser on, any note or bill heretofore discounted by tlie
Central Bank, and which is past due and unattended to.
No note will beteceived for discount after tlie hour of nine
o'clock, A. M. of the days above specified.
The proceeds of the discounted notes will be paid to tlie
check of (lie last endorser only.
By order of the Board of Directors.
A. M. NISBET, Cash'r.
June 16. 22 tf
POLITICAL.
EXTRACTS FROM A PAMPHLET ENTITLED
GENERAL HARRISON IN CONGRESS.
In discussing the qualifications of the Whig
Candidate tor the Piesidenry, his merits as a
Pioneer of the West, us a Soldier in the Wars
of the two first generations of the United
States, and as an able Negotiator and kind
Father to the Indians, have been so much
dwelt upon, thatthe People generally are hard
ly sufficiently aware of William Henry Harri
son’s title to their respect and esteem in his
moie recent career as a Civilian and Legisla
tor.
Upon the early public service of General
Harrison, from the time of his entry into the
Army under General Wayne, up to the close
of his service in the war of 1812, we place a
high arid just value. His experience in Indian
and civilized war, his familiar knowledge of
the interests of the West, and his intimate ac
quaintance with the Indian character, are of
no mean consequence in a general estimate of
his recommendations for the Presidency, be
cause his information and experience in these
respects must qualify him, in a degree une
qualled by any man now living, for the dis
charge of the Executive functions which de
pend on practical knowledge of those great in
terests.
But, had General Harrison “ never set a
squadron in the field,” and were he as igno
rant of the Indian character as he is practically
otherwise, evidence enough-is to he found in
his services and recorded opinions as a Civi
lian and Legislator, to recommend him to
hearty and cordial support by those w’lio would
pay comparatively little respect to mere sol
diership as a qualification for the Chief Mag
istracy of the Nation.
Before entering upon the brief notice which
we propose to ourselves of some of the inci
dents of General Harrison’s civil life since the
war of 1812, let us glance at two circumstances
in his education, the influence of which is per
ceptible in leading traits of his public charac
ter.
In the first place, though not old enough to
have been a sage of the Revolution, he is the son
of a distinguished sage of the Revolution in the
midst of which he was born, and in the course
of which his mind was trained and disciplined.
! The results of this circumstance are to be
found in his elevated sense of the moral as
| well as political character of that Revolution,
and his high appreciation of the gratitude due
to the memory of its authors, and to all, down
I to the humblest, dead or living, of those who
j were actors in it.
j In the second place, General Harrison, with
a taste which may be said to have been native
to the air which he first breathed, ripened by
his young admiration of the heroic virtues of
th" first great men of the Revolution, has read
history profoundly. He is familiar with the
annals of the ancient Republics, and to their
study and reminiscences lie retains much of
the early attachment of a classic student.—
With the Anglo-Saxon history he is not less
intimately acquainted, nor less accustomed at
need to draw upon its resources.
The dominant influence of these two cir
cumstances in General Harrison’s early life is
visibly impressed on his speeches, his writings
and his actions. Through the history of his
own times he may be traced by his repeated
evidences of devotion to the cause of liberty,
bis admiration of high achievement, his ardent
patriotism, and his great esteem for that virtue
in others.
The following sentiment of the great En
glish moralist, on the occasion of his visit to
the classic ground of the Hebrides, may be
said to be almost the ruling passion of the sol
dier of Tippecanoe :
“ Far from me and my friends be such frigid philosophy
as tuny conduct us indifferent and unmoved over unv
ground which has been dignified by wisdom, bravery, or
virtue. That man is little to be envied, whose patriotism
would not gain (nice upon the plain of Marathon, or whose
piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of Iona.”
Following witli usthe track of General Har-
I rison’s Legislative career, the reader will not
i fail to perceive, from the beginning to the end
of it, the application of these preliminary ob
servations.
General Harrison took his seat as a member
I of the House of Representatives on the open-
I mg of the Second Session of the Fourteenth
‘ Congress, (December 2, 1816.) On the 3d, the
Annual Message of the President was receiv
ed ; on the 4th of the month the President’s
I Message was dissected, and on the 5th the
committees upon its various subjects were an -
j nounced, of one of which (on the suhject of
the Militia) General Harrison was appointed
chairman.
On the next day, being the first day after the
j organization of the House, General Harrison
j moved the following resolution, in which the
reader will perceive the germ of the provision
afterwards made for the surviving officers and
soldiers of the Revolutionary war:
“ Resolved, That the Military Committee be instructed
to report a bill providing by law for the relief of such of
the officers and soldiers who, having faithfully served in
the armies of the United State*, are now in distressed cir
cumstance*, and who, not having received wounds or disa
bilities whilst in actuul service, are excluded from the ben
efits of the pension laws.”
On presenting this resolution General Har
rison said : “ It had been his intention to offer
with this resolution some observations upon
the matter to the House : but, understanding
that this course was not considered wholly
proper on originating a motion, lie should re
serve his remarks for another stage of the busi
ness. He ditl so with the less reluctance,
since any remarks he should have made would
have been with a view to enlist the feelings of
the House, and he felt, on reflection, convinc
ed that such remarks must be wholly unneces
sary on this occasion, and that the heart oj
every American would heat in unison with the
object he had in view. He had made the reso
lution as broad as possible, that it might afford
to the committee a choice ot the var.ous modes
<>f accomplishing the object proposed to be
committed to them.”
The resolution thus moved, having been
modified on the suggestion of an experienced
member of the House so as to leave it, accord
ing to usage, discretionary with the committee
to report by bill or otherwise, was agreed to
without opposition.
Though nothing definitive in reference to
this suhject was done at this Session of Con
gress, (the two Houses having their hands full
of other business of more immediate urgency,)
it is plainly evident that it was this proposition
which led the way to the provision for the sur
vivors of the Revolutionaty war; a measure
which circles the fame of this Republic with
a glory the ancient Republics could not boast
of, by exhibiting to the world the most beau
tiful example on record of a nation’s gratti-
tude.
It was not until the following Session of
Congress that the first act on the subject was
passed. At the opening of that Session, Mr.
Monroe, who also had veneration for the piin-
ciples and actors of the Revolution strongly
impressed upon his character—not the less
: strongly from his having been himself person-
i ally associated with its trials and its perils—in
troduced the subject to Congress in the follow
ing appropriate and touching terms, following
very neatly, the reader will perceive, the lan-
1 guage of General Harrison’s proposition at the
j preceding Session of Congress :
“ In contemplating the happy situation of
the United States, our attention is drawn, with
peculiar interest, to the surviving officers and
soldiers of our Revolutionary army, who so
eminently contributed, by their services, to
lay its foundation. Most of those very meri
torious citizens have paid the debt of nature,
and gone to repose. It is believed that,
among the survivors, there are some not pro
vided for by existing laws, who are reduced to
indigence, and even to real distress. These
men have a claim on the gratitude of their
country, and it will do honor to their country
to provide for them. The lapse of a few
years more, and the opportunity will he forev
er lost. Indeed, so long already has been the
interval, that the number to be benefited by
any provision which may be made, will not he
great.”
Of the select committee to which this part
of the message was referred, General Harri
son would doubtless have been made chair
man, but that General Bloomfield, much his
his senior in years and in date of service, a sol
dier of the Revolution, (as well as of the war
of 1812,) had come into Congress as a Repre
sentative from New Jersey, and it was almost
a matter of course that the matter should he
placed in his charge. With him were associ
ated other Revolutionary worthies, Colonel
Tallmadge, of Connecticut, an experienced
officer of the Revolution, (also senior to Gen
eral Harrison,) being next on the committee.
This committee was not long in deliberating
upon the measure ; for on the 12th of the same
month in which it was appointed, the commit
tee reported a bill to provide, again almost in
the teims of General Harrison’s original pro
position, for the relief of such officers and sol
diers (and sailors) who have faithfully served,
&c., and are now ‘‘in reduced circumstances
in life.”
In the discussion of this bill Gen. Harrison
took an active part, advocating, however, a
just discrimination between actual service and
the merely being mustered in the army with
out serving any'length of time. Sustaining
this discrimination, he opposed an amendment
proposing to allow the proposed pension to
“ every officer or soldier who served in any
manner during the Revolutionary war, and
now surviving,” arguing it as follows •
“ The amendment now proposed, he s:nd, went too fur.
because it would embrace every one who bad sbou]deri d
a musket, even for an hour, during the Revolutionary war.
As to those who had seen seiious service, so fur from hav
ing a claim to the meed of liberality, the amendment
would be but a measure of justice, as no bounty hud been
accorded to them. Persons, however, covered with scars
and borne down bv length of service in those days, ought
not to be confounded with those who had been called out
for an hour or a day. Seme of the militia, he thought
were as trell entitled to this pensi n as any regulars. >>f
whom tlie Jersey militia might he particularly mentioned.
But he wished to have the operation of the bill limited to
such as should have served six months or more.”
This hill passed the House of Representa
tives before Christmas day, showing ;r marvel
lous despatch of business in the House of Rep
resentatives, in comparison with the usage in
the same body at the present day, and, what
is still more rental kahle, the yeas and nays
were not even called upon its passage. Such
was the good feeling then prevailing among
the Members of the House, that the majority
would not expose to invidious imputation, by
requiring a record of their names, those whose
objections to the details of the bill might have
induced them to vote against it.
The bill which passed the House so prompt
ly, did not so readily obtain the assent of the
Senate; but it finally passed that body towards
the end of February following, (yeas 23, nays
S,) and now stands on the statue-book as the
act of March 15, 1818, entitled “ An act to
provide for certain persons engaged in ihe land
and naval service of the United States in the
Revolutionary war.”
A few days after the transmission of this bill
to the Senate, Gen. Harrison submitted the
following resolution :
“ Resolved, That a committee he appointed jointly with
such committee ns mnv be appointed on the part of the
Senate, to consider and report wlu.t measures it may he
proper to adopt to npmifest the public respect for the
memory of Gen. Thaddeus Kosciusko, formerly an offi
cer in the service of the United States, and the uniform
and distinguished friend of Liberty and the Rights of man.”
In this proposition the ruling passion of the
mover, his enthusiastic admiration of the prin
ciples of the Revolution, and his zeal in behalf
of liberty in general, and of the rights of man,
are plainly developed.
[We omit hero Geo. Harrison’s excellent speech in sup.
port of tlie resolution, having published it previously.]
It does not at all detract from the merit of
this admirable eulogium on the character of
the gallant and true-hearted Pole, that Gen.
Harrison did not succeed in his motion. It
appeared, when the matter came to be exatn^
ined, that the proposed proceeding was against
precedent, Congress having theretofore, in the
case of native officers of equal rank to Kosci
usko, declined adopting similar measures,
when proposed. But the Speech is on record,
and no one can deprive its author of the merit
of a production, of which any living orator
might well be proud.
[We omit also the extracts relative t<> the organization
of tlie Militia, being too voluminous for our limits ]
We will here insert one of Gen. Harrison’s
short speeches in Congress, which we met
with in looking through the history of the
closing days of the session of 1817-’1S, and
which we copy because altogether character
istic of him.
ISIS, April IS.—Gen. Harrison renewed a
motion which had been made to sit to-morrow
(Sunday)—next day having been fixed as the
dav for ending the session. This motion be
ing objected, to by a member from Connecti
cut, Gen. H. replied : “ although he could not
pretend to be as well acquainted with the
Scriptures as the gentleman from Connecticut,
he must have entirely misunderstood the prin
ciples of the Christian Religion if the propo
sition he had made could not be defended on
that ground alone. It would he recollected
that he had suggested this course when the
bill for the relief of the venerable Revolution
ary patriot, Stark, was under discussion this
morning, and had proposed to devote the
Sunday session exclusively to business of that
description. The bill, long since reported,
for the relief of the widows and orphans of
able to the People as it would be honorable to
their Representatives. It would evince a
disinterestedness and magnanimity which
could not fall to produce the most happy ef-
the officers and soldiers who fell in the late fects, and finally fix the compensation at the
war, was not acted upon. The Pension bill j sum which their disinterested judgments
had been suspended in the Senate for the j should deem right. Beinw satisfied that it
want of time to examine it; and Mr. H. said I was a question to be determined rather by
that a great number of individuals would suffer | feeling than argument, he would sav no mote,
all the calamities of extreme poverty, if these I but submit a resolution to recommit the bill,
bills were not passed Mr. H. said lie was j w ith instructions to amend it, so far as to fix
not willing to constrain the conscience of any the compensation for the present Congress at
person; the gentleman from Connecticut j six dollars, and for the ensuing Congresse u «.
might, if he pleased, absent himself from the j eight dollars.”
House. But for my part, (said Mr. H.) I can
| not conceive that a more acceptable sacrifice
can be offered to Heaven on the Sabbath than
I that which would dry up the tears of the wid-
i ow and the orphan, and provide the means of
i comfort and support for the aged and maimed
soldiets who have spent their vigor and shed
their blood in defen.ee of the liberties tf their
i country. This was his religion, and he hoped
j the motion w’ould prevail.”
; The three sessions during which Gen.Har-
; rison sat in the House of Representatives, be-
‘ ginning with December, 1-816, and ending
| with March, 1819, were distinguished by more
I freedom from party influence, more delibera-
; tion, and more exclusive reference to the pub
lic interest and the public good, than any
within our recollection. They embraced the
last session of Congress under Mr. Madison’s
administration, and the two first under that of
Mr. Monroe. The consequence of tlie rela
tive freedom from party influence was the
comparative absence of Executive influence.
The spoils doctrine then had never been heard
of, much less practised upon, in the General
Government. Not then, nor for several years
afterwards, had a hiss ever been heard within
the walls of the Capitol, either from floor or
gallery. Yet if, at that day, any Senator or
Representative had ventured to announce in
debate such a sentiment, in reference to our
political contests, as that “ to the victors belong
the spoils of the enemy,” he would have
• “ Heard
“ On all sides, from innumerable tongues,
“ A dismal universal hiss, the sound
“ Of public scorn.”
So far from the Executive will being then
the law for Congress, as we know (and as by
their present intolerable sufferings this whole
people now feel) has since been the case, at
the very first session of Mr. Monroe’s Admin
istration, the House of Representatives came
in direct, though friendly conflict with the
The motion to recommit, &c. was lost, how
ever, by a large majority ;• and the bill was
passed as it stood (applying to the existing
Congress) by yeas 109, nays 60 ; Gen. Harri
son voting in the negative.
To follow the chronological order of Gen.
Harrison’s votes and speeches in Congress,
would rather confuse them than make them
intelligible. We take up the subjects, there
fore, in the consideration of which he took
any part, as they most conveniently come to
hand.
The proceedings of Maj. Gen. Jackson, in
his campaign against the Seminole Indians,
attracted a great deal of attention, and oc
cupied much of the attention of Congress,
whilst - General Harrison was a member of
the House of Representatives. During the
debate upon the Report of the Military Com
mittee, (disapproving the proceedings in the
trial and execution of the foreign agents, Ar-
buthnot and Am bl ister,) on the 3d of Febru
ary, General Harrison commenced his great
speech on the general subject of the Seminole
war—a speech distinguished by candor; by
respect for the freedom of inquiry ; by a jeal
ous regaid for the general power of Congress
to examine and correct abuses in every bVancli
of the Government, military as well as civil;
by a thorough knowledge of the laws and cus
toms of waiv and a full recognition of the
limitation as well as the extent of the power
and discretion of Military Commanders when
in the field. To republish the whole speech
here would Hat serve to enhance the estima
tion of Gen. Harrison’s abilities in the minds
of the present generation ; but would occupy
mote space than we can possibly devote to it.
We cannot however, deny ourselves the
pleasure of making the following extract from
1 the opening of the speech, containing avindi-
I cation of the l ight of the House of Represen-
r , . . , . . tatives over the subject, in which we find the
President on several important points; one of i -j t of libertv an ^ the theory of our Rep-
vybich vyas relative to the power of appropna- r e Sentative Republican system nobly virnli-
ting money tor internal improvements by
General Govermenl; another, the expediency
of immediate recognition of the independence \
of the Spanish Provinces of S. America, then in
astate of revolution, &c.; on both which points
the House, under the lead of Mr. Clay (then
Speaker) took ground opposite to the opinion
of the President, without separating from him,
or withdrawing from him any part of the con
fidence to which he was really entitled, or of
the constitutional support due to his Admin
istration. In those days members of Congress
could differ in opinion, and aigue their differ
ences stoutly too, not only without quarrelling,
but even liking one another the better for it.
Nor was it considered any disrespect, much
less any failure of duty, to the President,
among his best friends in Congress, for them
to entertain and express views differing from
his on great questions of public policy.
In the absence of Executive influence, in
those days, however, theie was another influ
ence which had irresistible power. It was tlie
influence of the will of the sovereign People,
which, when expressed, Congress were ac- < ther l l ie public force lias been directed, and
“ Before he proceeded to discuss the two
resolutions which had principally engaged the
attention of the gentlemen who had preceded
him in the debate, he asked to be permitted
to make a few observations in reply to those
who had denied the right of the House to pass
these resolutions.
“ Several gentlemen, said Mr. H., have dis
tinctly declared that the House could pass no
resolution which either directly or indirectly
would censure the conduct of a military offi
cer. It is not necessary to give an opinion as
to the power of direet censure ; no one has, I
believe, thought of sueh a thing in the present
case. But I must confess, Mr. Chairman, that
I did not expect to hear the other opinion
maintained on this floor. What, sir! the im
mediate Representatives of the People, to
whom the army and revenue belong, have no
right to enter into an- investigation to ascer
tain whether they have or have not been em
ployed in a maimer warranted by law ! Whe-
customed implicitly and promptly to obey.
The most remarkable instance, in our an
nals, of this submissive deference to public"
opinion, is to be found in the history of theCom-
pensation Law, as it was called. That act
changed the inode of commuting theper diem
pay of Members of both Houses of Congress,
to a salary to each member of fifteen hundred
dollars a year. The people took offence at.
Members voting themselves salaries, and re
sented their doing so as keenly, and rebuked
it as effectively, as though members of Con
gress had never before received, nor ever been
entitled to, compensation from the Treasury
for their services in any form. The most pop
ular among the supporters of the law scaicely
escaped the effects of their displeasure ; and
when Congress came together, at the session
at which Gen. Harrison took his seat as a
Representative from Ohio, no time was lost in
repealing the obnoxious law.
L^pon that bill, Gen. Harrison, who had
come fresh from the People, (having been
elected to fill a vacancy,) took the popular side
of the question, and strenuously opposed the
increase of theper diem allowance (proposed
to be incorporated in the repealing bill) from
six to eight dollars; which for that session
was defeated, and a bill passed simply repeal
ing the act of the preceding session.
At the session of 1817—’IS, a bill being be
fore the House to increase the compensation
of members of Congress from six dollars per
day to nine dollars per day, and a motion being
made (Jan. 6, 1818) to strike out “nine” and
inseit “ six” dollars as the daily compensation,
Gen. Harrison said, that “in explaining what
would otherwise appear an inconsistency in
the vote he was about to give, he was aware
that in order to preserve in Congress talents
of a proper grade, and to enable men of mode
rate property to come to Congress without
loss, a higher compensation was necessary
than had heretofore been allowed to members
of Congress. But, said he, holding as we do,
the key of the Treasury, we ought not to do
ourselves even justice, before we do it to
others whose claims are stronger, and of lon
ger standing. Whenever justice shall be
done to the sufferers in the war of the Revo
lution, and not till then, I shall be prepared to
do justice to ourselves.”
The Revolutionary Pension bill had not
then become a law, though it did pass before
the close of that session.
On the day following, (January 7,) the same
bill being on its third reading, Gen. Harrison
said :—
“ He was persuaded that the members of
the House who had voted for a compensation
beyond the ancient allowance of six dollars,
had voted under great embarrassment, pressed
as they were on the one hand by a sense of
duty and of justice, and on the cither by that
delicacy which must be felt when they were
acting as judges in their own cause. He
thought, however, that there was a mode by
which their feelings might be saved, and
which, if adopted, would be as highly accept-
the public money expended in the manner
which they have authorized! Yes, say gentle
men ; investigate if you choose; but express
no opinion which may imply censure upon
the agents of the Government. That is, if I
understand the doctrine, that you are to inves
tigate until you are at tlie point of arriving at
the only object for which investigation would
be useful, and then you are to stop. Are gen
tlemen aware of the length to which this doc
trine would carry them 1 That you might ap
propriate money and authorize an army to be
raised for the conquest of Florida, and the
Executive or a commanding General may use
them in an enterprise against Canada; and
that, in such an event, your inquiry must go
no further than to ascertain that something
Wrong has been done, but you are not to say
when or where, lest it should imply censure
on someone. The Constitution has been read
and we are asked to point out the clause
which gives the right to censure, direct or con
sequential. I cau show no such clause, but
I can show the section and the article which
gives to Congress the sole power of raising
armies, of raising a revenue, and declaring the
object in which those armies and that revenue
shall be employed ; and doea it not follow, as
a necessary consequence, that they have a
tight to satisfy themselves whether they have
or have not been so employed, and if they
find they have not, to say so I An individual
places his money and his servants at the dispo
sal of an agent to accomplish some specified
object. Has he not a right at ail times to
oblige the agent to give an account of his
conduct, and, if he finds that he has misapplied
the means that have been put into his bands,
to declare that he has done so 1 It is, sir, a
self-evident proposition.
“ But, sir, we are told that we have the
right to impeach the President. Granted.—
But could we with the least propriety, even if
it were our object, pursue that course, until we
had ascertained that he had either committed
a wrong himself, or permitted a wrong to be
done by another 1 In the present case, no
one has dreamt of such a step; the only ob
ject is to express an opinion upon the con
stitutional powers of Congress, and- the right
of this House to guard those powers from be
ing innovated upon by the other branches of
the Government. Sir, it is a sacred right,
and it should be maintained with firmness, as
one of the gieat Republican features of the
Constitution, necessary, not only for the pre
servation of liberty, but foe ordiaery correct
legislation. How, without this power to in
vestigate and to pursue the investigatio* until
the blame shall rest upon the person who de
serves it, shall the legislature be ever able to
ascertain the cause of any miscouduct in our
military and naval operations, which may pro
duce an event requiring legislative provision!
The case of General St. Clair, alluded to by
the honorable gentleman from Mississippi,
(Mr. Poindexter,) is one in point. In the fall
of 1791 a great national calamity was announ
ced by the President to Congress—the kiss of
an army. This disaster might have arisen
! from three causes ; from a combination of the
j three, or any two of them. It might have
arisen from incompetent provision of men and
money, in which case Congress would have
been to blame ; from the improper manage
ment of the Executive, or from the miscon-
1 duct of the General. If, upon the investiga-
; tion, it should appear that the means put in
, the hands of the Executive weie entirely in
adequate to the object, it followed that a more
I ample provision was to be made ; but if it ap
peared that the supply of men and money was
sufficient, then the disaster was to be attribu-
, ted to the misconduct of the Executive, or of
| the General. It followed that a repetition of
; the same appropriations was all that was re-
i quired. Now, to come at these results, a tho-
I rough investigation was necessary? but ac-
l cording to the doctrine now contended for,
j this could not be done, lest it should imply cen-
I sure upon the General. This right of inves-
j tigation has always been claimed, and never
j denied to the British House of Commons, at
j least since the expulsion of the Stuarts.—They
j not only investigate, but they point out thein-
j dividuals who have, in their opinion, been
guilty of misconduct, and require of the King
j that they should be brought to punishment,
i [Here Mr. H. read from McAuthor’s “ Prin
ciples and Practice of Naval and Military
Court Martials,’’the-caseof Admiral Matthews,
who, in the year 1745, was, in pursuance of a
resolution of the House of Commons, brought
to trial by order of tho King, and dismissed
from the service.] The case of Admiral Mat
thews is one of a hundred that might be pro
duced of naval- and military officers being
brought to trial tn consequence of an investi
gation into their conduct commenced by the
House of Commons. And yet, sir, the House
of Commons have not, as we have, any agen-
, cy in declaring war. That is the exclusive pre-
1 rogative of the crown. But, holding the purse
strings of the nation, they claim and exercise
the power upon all occasions to satisfy them
selves that the public revenue has been expen-
, ded, and the public force directed, in the man-
, ner best calculated to secure the honor and
| intest of the nation. But, sir, the power of
j investigation, and of deciding upon the conduct
of a geneial officer, is not only important, as
a republican principle, and for correct legisla
tion, but important also, for the protection of
the officers themselves. - How often may it
j happen in time of war, thata Ministetvor even
j a President himself, may attempt t© shield
i their own misconduct by imputing undeserv-
j ed blame to a commanding general ? And
, where is he to look for protection for his fame
j and his character ? To a court of inquiry,
i designated by the very persons who are inter-
I csted to convict him ? No, sir; but in this
’ House, the immediate Representatives of- his
fellow-citizens, and the Repiesentatives, I
trust, of their virtue and their justice, as well
as their political opinions. A reference to
your journals will show an instance in which
intimations, not only against the military con
duct of a commanding general, but against his
moral character, were completely removed by
an enquiry prosecuted under the direction of
this House. Nor can I see, sir, the Jeast ob
jection that a military commander could have
: to such an investigation. - 1 must confess that
I was much surprised that the personal friends
of General Jackson should have made any
objection to having the inquiry into-.his con
duct put upon asbroad a bask as possible. I
have constantly advised the contrary course.
Perhaps some of them may say to me, limeo
, jDanaos et dona ferentes.' 1 hope not sir, for if
; Gen. Jackson’s friends are Trojans, it will, I
! believe, be manifest, before I conclude, that I
| am not altogether Greek.”
Nor will we withhold from our readers the
| peroration of this speech, an eloquent conclu
sion to to a discourse sufficient of itself to
establish his fame (though not bred a lawyer)
as a Civilian and Statesman.:
“ A Republican Government should make
uo distinctions between men, and should ne
ver relax its maxims of security for any indi- -
vidual, however distinguished.- No man should
be allowed to say that he could do that with
impunity which another could not do. If the
Father of his country were alive, and in the
administration of the Government, and had
; authorized the taking of the Spanish posts I
J would declate my disapprobation of it as rea-
1 dily as I do now. Nay, more, because the
more distinguished the individual, the more
! salutary the example. No one can tell how
. soon such an example would be beneficial.—
, General Jackson will be faithful to his country,
but I recollect that the virtues and patriotism
I of Fabius and Scipio we re soon followed bv
| the ciimes of Marius and the usurpation of
! Sylla. I am sure, sir, that it is not the inten-
! tion of any gentleman upon this floor to rob
j General Jackson of a single ray iff glorv, much
less to wound his feelings or injure his repu
tation. And, whilst I thank my friend from
Mississippi, (Mr. Poindexter,)-in the name of
those who agree with me that General Jack-
son has done wrong, I must be permitted to
decline the use of the address which he ha3
so obligingly prepared for us, and substitute
the following, as more consonant to our views
and opinions. If the resolutions pass, I would
address him thus : “ In the performance of a
sacred duty, imposed by their construction
of the Constitution, the Representatives of the
People have found it necessary to disapprove
a single act of your brilliant career; they have
done it in the full conviction that, the hero
who has guarded her rights in the= field will
bow with reverence to the civil instuutions of
his country—that he has admitted as his creed
that the character ol the soldier can never be
complete without eternal reference to the char
acter of the citizen. Your country has done
for you all that a Republic cau do for the
most favored of her sons. The age of deifi
cation is past, it was an age of tyranny and
barbarism ; the adoration of man should be
addressed to his creator alone. You have
been feasted in the Pritanes of the cities.—
Your statue shall be placed in the eapitol,
and your name be found in the songs of the
virgins. Go, gallant chief, and bear with
you the gratitude ofyour country. Go, under
the full conviction that, as her glory is identi
fied with yours, she has nothing more dear
to her but her laws—nothing more sacred but
her Constitution. Even an unintentional er
ror shall be sanctified to her service. It will
teach posterity that the Government which
could disapprove the conduct of a Marcellua
will have the fortitude to crush the vices of a
Marius.” These sentiments, sir, lead to re
sults in which all must unite. GeneralJack-
son will still live in tbe, hearts of his fellow-
citizens, and the Constitution of your country
will be immortal.”
The resolution reported by the Militarv