Foreign correspondent & Georgia express. (Athens, Ga.) 1809-1811, September 09, 1809, Image 1
voi. n.) ATHENS, GEORGIA: PRINTED BY ALEXANDER M'DONNELL, SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER $, 1305. . ELECTION., NO. 11. THE power to grant pardons, to remit the whole or any part of a fentence after convidion in all caf es, except treafon or murder and cafes of impeachment, is veiled by He conftltution in the governor of ffi Kate. Yms grant c; pev/er does not extend to the colonel’s cafe, nor to that of the com mi hi - oners. If it did his excellency’s **’ friend Ohad ih” would not have 1 :-(Ti long fuhjcded to any other cfifhuiTfication than that impofei) upon, hi nr 3 by a total want of ccn. fiderice, flowing from his notorious ft (ronefly : nor wouid the colonel now be fu bjWed to the difgrace of /‘openly folic icing the A iff rage ot his fellow citizens for the foie purpofe of procuring a releafe from the deb: which he owes the Late. No, his excellency in the unbounded good of ft o( his heart $ moved by the tender chords of fympathy by which he apy-ifcutdy h'omd to':ev<ry tranfgrdlhr of the law, every viola-’ ter of the rights ar>H peace of fbcie ty, would long fince have gmci cufly pardoned the one and t draft ed the other. The power of releafing perfens from their bonds or recognizances has not been gr. ,nted to the execu tive by the conftltution, nor to any other department of the govern ment. How then it may be en quired has the legiffeture exercifed this power ? The anfwer is a plain I one jby tifurpation. The confii ftr.ion fays <c The General A fie ru by fiiali have power to make all laws and ordinances which they fhall de :n neccfiar y ar:l proper for she good of the ftate which (ball not be repugnant to this conftltution.” Again. ft The leglfiative, execu tive and judiciary departments of government (hail be diftin£t, and each department (hall be confided to a feparate body of magi ft racy $ s-.d no perfon, or collection of per fibns, being of one of th )fe depart ments, fhall exercife any power, properly attached to either of the others, r xcept in the inftar-cea here in exprefsly permitted.” The ex ceptions permitted, are that juftices of the inferior court and of the peace who fub ft an daily belong to the judiciary department, may be members of the legiftature, and the governor under certain mu&illati ons is a 1 gift mar. The legiflatufe nlfo clefts the principal edicers of ftate. From the conftituticn itap-. pears that the leg! ft a cure are co pafs laws, but not execute them. But the legifiature by fome fatality—by Jo me perverfe and perverted rea soning have attempted to draw a diftin<shon between interfering ro execute a law, and interfering to prevent the execution of a kw— r Foreign Correspondent Cd GEORGIA EXPRESS. MANX SHALL RUK T© AND FRO, AND KNOWLEDGE SHALL EE INCREASED* Upon this febfurb diftindtion alone edos this ufurped authority reft.- That the framers of our different conftitutjsns never intended that thin power fhould be veiled in the le gifia:ure or any other department of government is apparent, from their never having granted this power in any one of the conftitutiqns which have been adopted. That the le gifi-.ittire !*::■* within the hft feven years never thought it had a right to exercife that power is fairly in ferable from their never having ex t idled it before that time. The fiamers of our conftituciou in de nying this power were influenced by the moft found and irrefragable Feafons. They fuppofed it pnffible, that ©ffences again ft the ftate might be committed under circ.utnftan.ces which would juftify the exercife of the pardoning power without injury to the ftate. They fuppofed that offences committed under the influ ence of feme bidden, ftrong and vi olent iropnlfe, which was not the refuli of an abandoned and deprav ed heart, and which ftibicdted the offender to fome.enormous punifh ruenr, might under very peculiar circum fiances be pardoned without endangering the peace of fociety.— I fay the framers, of our conftku oo.o thought, that this mightpofiibly happen, bu: if v/e ere to judge of the thoughts of our worthy and merci f i chief magi ft rate, from his ali ens, v/hat they thought barely pojji ble, he thinks, happens in almc.fi every cafe, even in cafes of contempts com mined in the face of the court. But when, men bind them (elves for the performance of others, whether it be that they Ihall fell fractions, or appear and Hand their trials for horfe Healing or murder, they do not aift in a paflion or under the in fluence of any fudden, ftrong or vi olent impulfe ; and the forfeiture of their bonds does not fubject them to the lofs of life, limb, cor poral puflilhmentj or lofs of liberty. Nothing is buffered, but what they cooly, deliberately, and volunta rily undertake to fuffer, if the per fon for whom they undertake, fhould fail to do what they have undertaken that he (hall perform. la ail cafes of this nature there can be no iujuftice, no hardfhip, no op preftion. It was therefore highly improper to veft any department with an autho rity which was totally unneceflarv, and always liable to abufe. The exercife or this ufurped authority by the legfiature is gradually flap ping the ad minift ration of criminal Jaw, and when aided by the igno rance or wickednefls br our inferior courts, in bailing criminals clearly not bailable, mu ft eventually anni himte it. The mod abandoned tranfgrcffors will always obtain bail when they are admitted to that pri vilege, becaufe they will calculate upon being relcafed from their re cognizances by the legifiature.— When the ftate wants an agent (incie fla&ion- fellers for inftance) any man will be able to obtain fe curity becaufe the fecurity will ex pikfl to he relieved from their fecu rityihip. Thus will the bands by which the fociety is bound and knit together, be gradually deftroyed, myd rhe corn enmity be thrown into a ftate of anarchy and confufton. —- Thus while the legifkture ought to be employed in deviling and puffing whole fome laws, they are engaged in undei mining the authority of chofe already in exiftence, by facili tating the ef’eape of criminals; and while the governor ought to be round executing the laws e'e firength cning the hands of the judges to ena ble the. a to be a ter ror to evil doers and a prnife to them ‘that do well , he is engaged in attempting to bring them into djrepute by remitting ai med all the Jentences which they im pofs, even in cafes which a fie lJ the ve ry extfience of the courts , even ih cafs of contempts committed m the face of the court. 1 ins ftate of things cannot, will not continue long. FRANKLIN. NEW* YORK, August iS. It will be feen by our extra cl 5 from Lloyd’s lift, that American veffels continued to pour into the different ports of England, where the markets foi their cargoes were bad indeed, hardly any thing bring ing more than firft ccft. Captain Clark, however, informs, that about the time of his failings the markers were getting better, and fornc arti cles had fold r.t advanced prices, owing to an apprehenfion that our government would renew the nen intercourfe in conftqumce of the objection to Mr. EtfkineT arrange ment. There was a*fo a great de mand for American veflels, to con vey troops, &c. to accompany the new expedition which was on the eve of departure from England.— A temporary embargo was expedit ed, to continue till after the failing of the expedition, in which cafe, American vefiTs nearly ready fur fea will meet with detention. London, June iS. It is confidently reported, that the earl of Chatham is to be the commander in chief of the expedi tion now pieparing to fail. Rupert ftates, that an infurreftion has broken out at St. Peterfburg. A number of the nobility and men cf influence, it is faid, have men aced the emperor with depofidon, urdefs he cemented to order the re~ aim of die troops which were marching againft Auftria; and a! Cos immediately negociate a peace with Great Britain. That there is no intention on the part of the French and Ducclj go vernments to relax in the execution of their fevers commercial decrees, even at the prefent critical moment, which might fuggeft moderation and forbearance, is fti vvn by the following anfwer, \vh> h was recent ly given in Holland, to a petition for leave ro difeharge ( me Ameri can fhips : The Dlre&or PubH:| Con cerns on the River informs that, in conformity with Ms lVfaie/L„. ty’s orders, his petition uHching the American fliips, cannot be com plied with. That although it ar fi dts his majefty to be under the needfity of obftrudling commerce, in order to avoid greater inconve niencts, he cannot revoke the ex ifting orders. All American iTips, laden with goods, which are allow ed to be imported, will be admit ted •, but fhould their cargoes con fift of colonial produce, though thev Ihould even come from Dutch co lonies, they muft be depofited in the king’s v/are houfes until pr-a:e takes place, or wait the event of more favorable circurnftanees oc times,—June 20.” July 2. —Portuguefe papers to the 7ch ultimo are received. The Intelligence the bring ; s in general not very important. They ftate, however, that a vefiel had arrived at IJfbon, the captain of which re ported that an ijifurregion had ta ken place at Genoa, and chat the Grnoefe had put ali the French to death. A gentleman who left Holland cq Tuefday Lft, arrived in town yef terday. He dates, that before ho left Amftcrdam a great ferment prevailed in the public mir.d, that tLe people feerfied inclined to op pofe the rncaiures of their govern ment, and an account, faid to have been received that r.n infurreblic n having broke out in Fiandev;, greatly tend'd coaug near and keep alive that Ufa it of dlfobedience wWich was liule fiiort cf open re volt. This morning the government received, by one of our croTe , arrived at Harwich from the D::rc;i coaft, inidligeace of (xtraor .i nary exertions rriakirg by k’ng Louis to raife and embody ail perform ca pable of military fervice. This force, when celTcled, was 10 be marched to the frontiers of Weft phaiia, where, it war. not concealed, the firuation ot his brother Jerome had become very perilou:. A fet ter from Rotterdam dated or* the c vening or the °,6:h ultimo,Ta;s- —• cf i-. ih exp.-6 <-d :(;;*• the kHg o? Weflpha’ia has, in ccnfequence cl 2 genera? cbm motion among his mb j'-dis, by this time raken re.’ in Frankfo c, the inhaLl'ans c; v/hfeh city, arc evm apefive f f m hqftile vlft: from ’ ’ p f rs ” L/ettcrs we: - mce./.mimm Am- (No. 68.