Newspaper Page Text
Sn-Illicit! ii €l)ronidc&ocntind.
WILLIAM E. JONES & Co. AUGUSTA, Ga. SATURDAY MORNING, DECEMBER 21, !83ft. Vol. 11l No. 151
T:iR CHKONII LK AMD SRNTINEL
PUBLISHED,
D -ILY, TRI-WEEKLY, AND WEEKLY,
At No. Broad-street.
terms:
Daily paper, Ten Dollars per annum, in advance.
Tri-Weekly paper, at Six Dollars in advance or
S jven at the end of the year.
Weekly paper, Three Dollars in advance,or Four at
ilio end of year.
CHRONICLE AND SENTIiNEL.
AURCS T A .
if •
FRIDAY MORNING, DECEMBER 20.
The Mail. —Last night being failure night,
we have nothing further from Congress.
It will be seen by reference to our Milledgc
ville letter, that the hill in relation to the Central j
Bank has passed the House of Representatives, j
with amendments. Wc shall know to-morrow
whether the Senate will, or not, concur in the
amendments. We presume, however, that this
bill of abominations is destined to pass into a law
in some shape or other. General Jackson was a
great currencv tinker, but his followers in the
Legislature ol Georgia out-Herod Herod —they
out-Jackson Jackson himself. What a glorious
currency we shall have! Four or five millions of
dollars issued upon old notes, bonds and worthless
accounts as a basis! ! Just let this bill pass, md
then we shall let out upon this second Yazoo
Legislature! We shall hold back our thunder
till the fleetl is done.
“ The Southern First Class Book,” a new work
designed for the use of Schools and Academies’
in the South and West, a copy of which has been
laid on our table by the publishers in this city
Messrs. J. W. and T. S. Stoy, and T. H. Plant,
comes to us with such strong recommendations
that we cannot doubt its high value. We have
glanced through it and take great pleasure in ad
ding our testimony to that of many others already
given, that it deserves in an eminent degree the
patronage of the public of the South. Wc hope
that instructors of youth will introduce it into
immediate use in their seminaries of learning. Ii
is by Mr. M. M. Mason, principal of the Vineville
Academy at Macon Georgia, and can be had of
cither of the publishers in this city.
Robert Raymond Reid, formerly of this ci
ty, has been appointed by the President of the U.
States, Governor of the Territory of Florida, in
the place of Gov. Call, superseded.
From our Correspondent.
Milledgeville, December 17, 1839.
The Senate, on yesterday, refused to reconsi
der their passage of the bill repealing the estab
lishment of the Branch of the Bank of the State
of Georgia, in this city. The motion was lost
by a majority of 24.
The Senate refused to take up Mr. Stanford
and Mr. Alexander’s resolutions in relation to
Banks. They seem to think that they have
heat; enough on this topic, during the present
session.
They passed by a constitutional majority, the
bill to amend the 7th section of the 2d article of
the constitution.
They also passed a bill regulating proceedings
in equity; a hill declaratory of the remedy of a
freeholder, through whose land any of the char
tered railroads may pass; and about a dozen lo
cal and private bills.
They rejected and laid upon the table for the
balance of the session, several measures which
came up daring the day.
The bill to repeal the act to restrain, prevent
and make penal the payment, tendering, &c. any
note, ticket, check, &c. as paper money.
To alter the mode of appointing Clerks of the
Court of Ordinary, in the several counties of this
State.
Amendatory of the act of 1838, authorizing
the business of banking.
Pointing out the mode of legalizing bastards i
and adopted children.
And the bill repealing several sections of the
act of 1838, authorizing the sale of scrip or
certificates of State debt.
The House of Representatives, on yesterday,
were chiefly employed in the investigation of the
contested election from Sumpter county, which
eventuated as you were last evening advised.
They rejected the bill providing for the raisin'
a permanent fund for common schools, by laxa
tion.
The bill more effectually to secure the prompt
collection of all writs of fieri facias and ca. sas.
For the relief of Constables in certain cases.
They passed the bill (with a multiplicity of
amendments) to prevent Banks from selling ex
change at a higher rate per cent, than is therein
specified.
On to-day the House passed the bill of the
Senate, extending the charter of the Central
Bank, and giving them further powers. A few
j days since I gave you a brief notice of the con
, tents of the bill. The House have slightly
I amended it, in one particular, that is now recol
lected—instead of authorizing the General As
sembly, by joint ballot, to elect the Directors, the
House have deemed it best to empower the Exec
l utive to make that selection, anil confer the ap
-1 pointment. It is perfectly plain, that the Loco
I Focos have determined upon a further emission
lof Dank bills, at all events. How very incon-
I sistent, Messrs. Editors, is this resolve, and the
I deed consequent upon it, with the boisterous de
■ nunciation of all Banks, and unqualified ridicu-
lous ’• hard protestations of these Demo
cratic Republican Bentonians,
The bill reported in relation to the Maine diffi
culty, gave rise to an exhibition of much feeling,
and was finally adopted by a vote of 141 to 43.
Mr. Chappel opposed the measure upon consti
tutional objections, in an able effort. Ho was
replied to by Messrs. Stephens and Crawford. I
was unfortunately not in that Chamber when the
debate arose, and was only apprised of it in time
to hear Mr. Chappell and the two gentlemen in
reply. Mr. Crawford was eloquent in the ex
pression of the purest and most devoted patriot
ism. Mr. Stephens also sustained his reputation,
which is quite con adorable. It is thought the
Senate will not act on this question, on account
of the very few days now to be spent in session.
The bill in relation to the citizens of Maine,
directs a quarantine of one hundred days, and
prescribes a penalty for non-compliance therewith
by the citizens of that state —it is declared to be a
penitentiary offence.
For the Chronicle 4- Sentinel.
Health of Augusta.
And the serpent cast out of his mouth, &c., &c.
Rev. c. xn.
Messrs. Editors:— The importance of the
question, What is the true cause of the preva
lence of the recent epidemic in our city? is the
only apology I oiler in requesting your attention
to the following remarks.
The Committee of Physicians attiibute the
prevalence of the fatal scourge entirely to the
200.000 feet of animal and vegetable matter con
tained in the trash wharf.
'Flic fanatical de: lers in the fiery indign ition
of God’s wrath, assure us it is a visitati >n o:'
Heaven.
I wish to examine the position of each. The
Committee say. in their reso iutions, that there are
200.000 feet of vegetable and animal matter con
tained in the trash wharf, and this is assuming
an organic character for brick bats, &c., &c., &c.,
too tedious to think of, much leis to mention.—
But to bo accommodating, let us say there are
200.000 feet of vegetable and animal mat’er in
such a stale of decomposition as to yield sulphu
retted hydrogen gas, which is supposed to ho so
very injurious to animal life. It is generally ad
mitted that steam raised from boiling water occu
pies 1800 times as much space as the water did
from which it was raised, and that the whole of
the water may he converted into steam. In the ab
sence of experiment, wc may assume the same pro
portion for our subject, and we then have 200,000
X. 1,800“ 360,000,000, say 3CO million cubic
feet. We do not know, precisely, the tempera
ture required t ) produce gas from : uch a heap of
rubbish, hut we may safely calculate on its pro
duction from the Ist of April to the 31stof Octo
ber, a period of two hundred and fourteen days,
and then 361) million _ 1,682,242 cubic feet of
214
gas produced per diem. 100 inches atmospheric
air weighs 30 J grains, and 100 inches sulphuret
ted Hydrogen weighs 36,006 grains; therefore the
hitter is heaviei than common air, and has a ten
dency to fall rather than rise from the situation
in which it is generated. The banks of the river
during the summer, presented a facade of about
39 feet, ..ear the trash wharf, and the river is
about 600 feet wide, wc have therefore a column
of atmospheric air presenting a sectional area of
39 X 600“ 23,100 feet, and if we suppose the
average velocity of the air to be equal to one foot
per second, we have m 34 hours 86,400 seconds,
and hence 86,400 X 23,400 = 20,217,600,000
cubic feel of atmospheric air passing within the
limits ol the banks ol the river per diem. The
proportion of sulphuretted hydrogen to common
air consequently stands thus 1.088.243 , or rc .
■20,217,600,000
duced to a lower expression, about one foot sul
phuretted hydrogen to 12018 common air. Du
pytron states that 1-800 killed a bird, and that it
was necessary to reduce the proportion to 1-100
to prevent death. According to Chancier, 1-250
v ill kill the strongest horse, -ml 1-265 ought to
kill a man. Yet it is ascertained by experiment
; on the sewers of Paris, that a man could work
without inconvenience in 1-100, and that the
men constantly breathed 25 to 90 thousandths of
this gas. These figures and sac’s show that the
Committee have assumed a cause entirely too
local.
“ Right” isl remember right—in your Wed
nesday’s paper exhibits an excellent specimen of
Christian feeling.—l' is both amusing and curi
ous to trace such ideas to their true motive, hid
-1 den as it is in the devious intricacies of a human
heart. The gambler solves a doubt by a bet,
but the ignorant enthusiast in the shape of cant
ing steamers, &c. &c. refers such matters to God
am' the Devil—reason is out of the question here.
The tar was not all burnt, the feather renovator
lives in Centre street. —“Right” may be able to
concatenate this singular concatenation of ideas.
I may have a few remarks for the Committee
when I have seen their report.
Yellow Fever.
Augusta, Decen her 14, 1839.
Correspondence i if the Charleston Courier.
Washington, December 15.
The House adjourned last night, at 9 o’clock,
after six ineffectual hallotings for Speaker. On
the sixth ballot, Mr, Jones had 39; Mr. Hell, 21 ;
Mr. Dawson, (who had requested his friends not
to vote for him.) 1 ; Mr. Pickens, 4; Mr. Lewis,
1 79 ; Mr. Hunter 63 ; Mr. Lincoln, 11 ; .Scatter
ing, 10. The South Carolina Delegation hold
the balance and there are four or five of them,
who will not vote for John W. Jones, or any
“Proclamation, Force-bill, Submission man.”
The Whigs are uniting upon Hunter, of Va., a
• j Sub-Treasury Whig. The South Carolina Gen-
tlemen above referred to will ultimately vote for !
Hunter, if the Jones party will not go for Lewis. ;
1 here are some half dozen Jones men, who nev
er will vote for Lewis, as they now say, of rouse- }
quenco Mr. Hunter will be elected, perhaps, on
the second Ballot on Monday. This will ho an
opposition triumph. It will give the Whigs the
organization of the House, and no doubt, will
prevent the passage of the Sub Treasury, at this
or the next session in any form.
In the Democratic caucus, Mr. Jones had 50
votes; Dixon H. Lewis, 49. Two members who
were for Lewis being accidentally out of the room
when the vote was taken—and very few of the
State Rights’ Democrats present.
One consequence of the election of Hunter, it
is thought, will he the immediate admission of j
the Jersey excluded Whig members. They will '
demand to be sworn, and Hunter, it is said, will i
administer the oath to them. If Kcmpshall gels |
here, to-rnorrow, they will perhaps, ho admitted, :
any how.
Ohio.— The legislature of this state convened I
at Columbus on the 2d instant. General M
Laughlin was elected Speaker of the Senate, by a j
unanimous vole, and Mr. M’Nulty, editor of an
agrarian newspaper, was chosen clerk. In the
House of Representatives, Thomas J. Buchanan
was chosen Speiker, and Mr. Dimick, another
agrarian editor, was chosen to the clerkship.
The great and glorious work of reform was
commenced on the first day of the session, and
Ohio came within one vote of having abundant
means of re-establishing her credit, and negotia
ting as many loans in Europe as she pleases. A
motion was made to save the state seventy-five ,
cents per diem, by abolishing the office of page, |
or messenger-buy to the House. An animated i
debate ensued upon the proposition. Mr. Jen- I
kins, who wished the place abolished, said lie )
preferred to carry his propositions to the chair
himself. Mr. Flood declared that should the
page ho dispensed with, he would support a mo
tion to dispense with the sergeant at arms, and
for the members to lake turns in making fires and
sweeping the hall. Jenkins, to test the question,
called for the ayes and nocs. They stood 34 to
34, and so the question for re-appointing the mes
senger, was declared lost by the Speaker. Some
one then discovered that the Speaker had not vo
ted, and insisted on having his name called, which
after debate on the question of order was done.
He voted aye, so the question was carried—and
the people ofOhio are again to be saddled with
the expense of a messenger boy, and must look
out for hard times.— N. Y. Com. Adv.
Correspondence of the New Orleans Bulletin.
City of Austin, (Texas,) Nov. 22, 1839.
The Congress of this Republic convened in I
this city on Monday the 11th inst. A quorum
being present, they immediately proceeded to the
election of the ordinary officers, and afterwards
to the transaction of the regular business, for
which they had convened. Among the most im
portant subjects which have been introduced thus
far, is a hill imposing a tax of one thousand dol
lars on all persons retailing intoxicating liquors
in less quantities than a quart This hill was
introduced into the Senate by Dr. Francis Moore,
the fearless and independent editor of the Tele
graph. It has passed that body unanimously,
and a similar triumph is anticipated for it in the
House of Representatives. Thus you sec that
the temperance reform is making progress even
in the Land of the Single Star.
The Rev. Amos Roark, of the Cumberland
Presbyterian Church, was elected C-haploin to the
Senate, and Rev. John Haynie, of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, Chaplain to the House of
Representatives.
The accommodations at tne public houses in
this city are much better than was anticipated.
Two excellent Hotels are kept, one by Messrs.
Spicer & Clark, and the other by Mr. R. Bul
lock. Both of these houses are conducted strict
ly on temperance principles. No bar is kept, nor
is any intoxicating liquors furnished at either
house.
This city is beautifully situated in a picturesque
country, at the foot of the Cordilleras Mountains,
about 120 miles from the coast. It is on the
Colorado river, and it is thought the stream will
he navigable to this point by steamboats.—No
produce having been raised this high up, there
lias been no inducements offered thus far for
commercial enterprise.
The city was laid off in May last, the first sale
of lots occurred in August. It now contains a
population of 1,500. A Sabbath Scnoo! was or
ganized Ist of September, and has ever since been
in successful operation. A Presbyterian Church
was organized on Sabbath, 13th of October, and
a Methodist Church on the next Sabbath there
after. The city is improving with astonishing j
rapidity in every respect. It is intended to make
it the “seat of science and the residence of the !
muses.”
A subscription, to which is appended a consid- !
erahle amount of money, has already been raised I
for the erection of a Presbyterian Church and
seminary of learning.
The Mexican trade is already quite important
at this place. It is the nearest town oi any im
portance next to the San Antonio, to the upper
settlements of the Mexicans on the Rio Del Norte.
Large numbers of mules and horses and also of
Dcef cattle, are brought to this market by Mexi
cans, and here exchanged for goods of various de
scriptions. Lands in the vicinity of Austin arc
; much in demand, and are daily rising in value,
i It will he a very desirable place for a summer re
sidence for the wealthy planters on the coast.
The settlements arc daily extending on every
side of the city of Austin. Already a town has
been laid out, called the city of.San Halm.4o miles
above Austin, on the Colorado river, which,from
its location in an exceedingly fertile country, and
at the point where the great national road from
Kianiches on the Red river to the Rio Del Norte
crosses the Colorado, it is thought will he “no |
mean city.” The enterprising proprietor of this i
town. Col. J. Jarman, generously offers to donate :
lots to all persons who make permanent locations ,
and immediate improvements. Squares have
been reserved for churches and literary institu
tions. Several merchants, farmers and garden
ers might do well to locate at the city of San
Saha as soon as practicable.
Remarks of Mr. NTSBF/V, of Georgia, upon the
New Jersey Election question, in the Rouce of
Representatives, Re, ’nicer Qlh, 1639.
Mr. Ni suet, of Georgia, said hnl I lie importance
of ihe principles invoked in this debate was ins
apology (or I lie remarks be was about lo present to
the consideration of the House. In the imorgan
ized state of the body, (said Mi N. Jit appear, .o
\ be noce-sary that those who nndresc yos, >l.
I Chairman, should exhibit unquestioned authority lo
j speak. lam one of the delegates from Geoi-no,
I sir. I mention this fact, not because I claim lor my
1 .State any paramount excellence, but because 1 aril 1
solicitous ; hat she should declare sere die position I
; she oi copies Strangers as are most of iter rrern
i bersinlhis Hall, it would seem well enough that |
the be announced. I peak, then, by authority of
i one of the sovereign Stales of the confederacy. I
| exhibit to you, sir, as my colleague did a few days t
since, the evidence of her will. 1 hold in my hand
the eommissiot of her Governor, with the great
seal of the Stale appended. The seal speaks i f
her sovcr< ignly—ii aiinouiines me one of her Repre
sentatives. Upon its face is the escutcheon of the
Stale Her Boltons Wisdom, Justice ami Modera
tion And, although what. I may say, sir, may not
be stamped with much wisdom, yet 1 trust it will
no characterized by justice and moderation.
An honomltlo gentleman asked, the other day,
■“Where will the Stale of Georgia stand upon this
question 7” He was pleased lo say the magnani
mous State of Georgia. Me made the inquiry with
pride, as 1 thought, in the character of the Stale
1 am sure 1 fell mi honest pride in hearing my nohle
Stale thus tusignateil. The inquiry, sir, thrilled
through my spirit. Twill tell you, sir; Will tell
the gentleman Iron) Maryland where she stands.
She stands where her state rights politicians have
planted her in limes gone by—she stands upon the
ramparts ot the Constitution. She stands where
she stood when you, sir, administered the Federal
Government; when her own great Troup resisted
successfully Federal bayonets bristling upon her
borders, and Federal usurpation assaihng her rights
She stands- win re she stood when one of her most
eloquent sons, now a high officer in the Govern
ment, announced upon this floor, that "he was
ready fur trial." She stands now, am) I trust will
ever stond,,the defender of ihe rights of the Stales
guaranteed to them under the Federal Constitution.
i’nss.ng: over the merely ii cidente, question now
more immediately before the ILiuse, I shall proceed
to consider those points of controversy which have
been s , much canvassed. From the State of New
Jersey, then, it has been announced to ns by the
Clerk, that there are two sets of applicants for the
right and honor of representing her in the Congress
of the United Stales. Fsn claimants for five seals
in this 'lull. Both of these contending New Jet
sey delegations have laid upon- the table of the
Cleik evidence of elections. One of them exhibit
the commission ol the Governor of New Jersey,
under the seal of the Stale; the other Ims evidence
which has not been read, but which, wo are toldy,
establishes the fact that they did receive the major
ity of votes pulled by the freemen of. New Jersey
This slate of facts, sir, involves, to my mind, two
inquiries
First, what is Ihe legal and constitutional rule hy
which, in this stage of the House, the rights of tho. e
conflicting claimants to the tumor of representing
New Jersey shall.be determined ?
Second, whatis the mode of-action to bo adopt
ed in making thru rule ope-ntive? Upon nn inqui
ry Hindu of you, sir, the other day, you, ns Chair
man of this body, determined that those delegates
from New Jersey, holding tho evidence of election
according to the Constitution of Ihe United Slates
and the laws of New Jersey, should vote-upon a
question then depending. You thus pronounced a
rule hy which not.only the right of the claimants
lo seam in (Ins Mull should be ascertained ■ but also
one hy which tliis-liouse should regulate its action.
1 agree with yon, sir, that this is tho only safe rule-
The nropositiontatrue,legally,constitutionally true,
and is in accordance with the principles of Govern
ment winch I have been taught, to honor and tevere
In the mode ot applying this rule I shall differ with
you. The CoEstitunon of the Uuion is m this
ease paramount,.authoritative and commanding ; it,
siienks in thevoice of injunction. By that instru
ment. it is provided that,tho States shall hy law pro
scribe tho tim-s place and manner of holding elec
tions for meml »rs of the Congtess of ihe U. Stales.
It also providers for a power in the Congress of the
United States to alter by its own legislation the
time, place anifJnnanner of electing Representatives.
And in nil cates where the laws of a Sta e pro
scribing the l ime, plnconnd manner of electing her
Rep r esentativi«i have not been repealed hy Con
gress, those laws are as obligatory upon all tho
departments aft be-Suite nnd Federal Governments
ns (ho Constitution itself. By fading lo exercise
the repealing'power, Congress and the Constitu
tion do ncliailly.confirm, adopt nnd ratify those
laws. The right of.tho Stale lo onaa them and
to have then-enforced become,-, thus ns perfect ns
any other right secured to her hy the constitutional
grant or prohibition.- The right of selecting her
own Repretianlaiives, nnd that, too, in her own
•wav, is n Si ’koroign right, wliioti yon, sir, and,l
and all othrraare bound by all the sanctions of the
Federal compact to respect. You will observe,
sir, that the Stales are clothed with power lo de
termine ihc manner of electing. The manner ol
eles-lir.g, sin;must mean the form of certifying nnd
eeramissior-.mg.the elect when tho polls are closed,
ns well as c-tlrer things If, then the laws of New
Jersey do declare that the result of her Congres
sional elect oris shall he declared, published and
ascertained by the commission of Iter Governor,
under the great seal of the Stale, such commission,
so authonlinalcil, is ns ol ligatory upon ns, upon
all, ns any provision whatever of the Federal ( (in
stitution. ft;, therefore, follows lo my mind dc
monstraly true, that you were rigid when yon an
nounced to-the I louse I lint those who have the ev
idence ol election according to the Constitution and
laws of New Jersey are entitled to si. ami vole up
on lids flooruntil the i louse is fully organized, and
the equity ol the polls of New Jersey have- been
ascertained hy die committee of the House
But, Mr. Ghnii-rnun. lids rule being conceded,
there must, ho some plan of action hy which it. may
become pitniically availtmle; otherwise it is hut.
na ideal abstraction —a name without power—n
judgdmenti without n process or a ministerial agent,
We are not men,sir,spell hound with constitution
al fanatic ism. We a r. practical men. diir sys
tem ol government is eminently practical; its pro
visions-; are designed tiir use—not lor admiral ion
for deification The system must work, and thin
far, sit, inthomain, it Ims wirked well, h was
contended in die outset, of this debate that the
Clerk,the then agent, was bound to respect the
Governor's ennimifsion, and proceed at once to live
call of thorn* men yrbo held it. 8o thought i But
it will not surely be asserted that he had then the
power of authoritative control over ibis matter,
ami that them was no power in the 1 louse lo object
W the judgment he might, pronounce You, sir.n
seems to me,occupy to the House, the same rela
tive position that the Clerk occupied hi fore your
nomination to the chair. You are both but. the
mere agents of tbe body who (host lo use you, act
ing only by .derived authority—having in your
selves, Ivy virtue ol your appointments, no inherent
or legal ability to determine conclusively anything.
Would it be contended fora moment that the agent
has u power greater than his principal—that, sitting
as you do in the very presence ol those who ap
pointed you, yon can bind them irreversibly by your
determinations-? Surely not. The Clerk did make
a decision, or rather declined lo call any of the
claimants from New Jersey—thus in fool rejecting
the whole.
Il was said that be wr.s bound im[eriously, by
bis oat of office, by the Constitution ami laws, to
proceed with the call of the Jersey Whigs He
thought differently, ami upon that though' he act
ed. What, then, sir, is tohedone? bland still?
We did stand still, and rather ignommonsly still.
We presented a sirange spectacle—the vast ma
chinery of Government of this great empire block
ed by the decistot ol an anomalous officer, for
whom no powers have been claimed but those mere,
ly ministerial. Was not this the lime at which ihe
voice of die Constitution became hut a creatin',-, ol
the mind > According lo the opinion of those who
deny lo die House the power of acling. were not
Ihe Constitution and la .vs then silent,—not in arms,
but in />•<!'e, spent ? Iho Clerk refused even to
pm a vole, and hy ihis lelusnl all the departments
of Government are at rest, lor there is in fact no
Government- whilst a co-ordinate department denies
to itself even the power of preliminary organiza
tion. So, sir, yon determined that tli»se who held
Ihe Governnt « commissions should vote Was
your decision imperatively controlling ? Von pro
nounced, as 1 bvlirve n coiislilullona) Irolli But,
sir, under jinn- decision, you yourself, wbh a
powor above one beyond ihe House, pronounced
udament under the Constitution and laws; or you
clothed yo: richer”, upon a divis on of the House,
with authority lo determine who did in far,’ hold
the evidence ol eb etiou from N'-w Jersey. Ftoru
you decision an appeal was taken, and die House,
a- 1 believe rightfully, look die matter into its own
hands.
But he power ’o determine at all in the ease De
fine ns .s denied. It is assorted dial no mm has n
rigid to question here the eomrnlsskrm of a Gover
nor of a sovereign State given in conformity wiih
her laws. Sir, 1 admit the latter proposition, hut 1
contend that there must rest somewhere a power to
judge and determine who dues, in fact, hold the com
mission of Jersey's Governor, given in conformity
with: Jersey's laws. And I hold that those who
present themselves here ns the uncontented Repre
sentatives of the Stales tire el,idled with that (tow
er; and that, so tar ns this election is concerned,
tins is the only power w ith which they are elsllied.
This i* the tribunal to judge of that one fan—lo
declare imd record its judgment, and, when pro
nounced, the judgment is final. What, sir, if the
tribunal determi-.e wrongfully ? Suppose it does
not pronout.ee in favor ot right and law? Why,
sir, those who thus wrongfully determine—who in
fract the Constitution,, and disfranchise a sovereign
State, are amenable to conscience, to God, to the
Union, and to mankind. Such, sir, I understood
your opinion to he the o'her day, when yon so ear
nestly exhorted the House to organize Such
seems lo have been your opinion when, at the lost
session ol Congress, yon offered a lesoluliou lo
meet the contingency which has now occurred.
This opinion came to us with the sanction of your
great age and g-ent character. Yon spake ns one
having authority. It is the opinion of one, around'
whoso venernhls head cluster thickly the laurels of
polities and literature For one, I believed the opin
ion correct
1 do not claim lor the House in its inorganic slate
(denary powers over this contested election It
cannot go behind the. evidence upon your table.—
It cannot pirrgj! the N. Jersey (Kills. When organ
ized, by the • '(institution it,is made thejudge of the
elections, returns, nnd' qualifications ot its own
memtters. Then, sir, it can sift the polls, rectify
ull mistakes, nrd enforce, in fact, tho voice of the
voting power. This has been demonstrated hy spy
oral gentlemen, but hy none with more conclusive
force than hy my friend and colleague (Mr. Coop
er ) Who are we? The Representatives of the
People* elected under the Constitution of tho Union
mid the laws of the States Irom whence we comt.
By Stale and constitutional mandate we aro here,
‘and, when our rights to- seals are not questioned,
1 wo are, in truth, the House of Representatives,
clothed with all (lowers necessary to lull and Haul
organization. The Constitution declares (lint the
House ol Representatives shall lie composed of
members elected by the several States, &e. And,
hy constitutional presumption, wc are elected when
no one questions it. Think you l lint the Consul u
tion, or rather, Us framers, .contemplated for one mo
ment the assemblage of a mob, claiming to be the
House of Represeruaiives? No more so than il
contemplated any other act of rebellion or of usur
pation The Constitution further provides that the
Congress shall assemble, &e. Its language is man
datory. Its command is to assemble, and ex vi. ter
mini to organize. How, assemble ns-an organized
body ? No,for that is an impractnbility. That
would be to assume, most absurdly, tliat to be done,
which wo are commanded to assemble lor the pur
p >so of doing. In nil tho sessions of both Houses
of Congress there is a point ol lime intervening be
tween the assembling nnd tho organizing oft u-bo
dy. Thai is the lime being. There is also a stale)
of political being, in which we live and are vital for
certain purposes, but aro still the inorganic embryo
ol full maturity. Much is our present stale. In
tins slate we must proceed lo throw off our chrys
alis nliiibiites. Otherwise we are doomed to per
petual embryo—else we shall remain forever in
choate, and shall continue throughout all lime in
transitu. The truth is, sir, disguiso ii as we may,
unless wo have tho power ol organization, the Gov
ernment is dissolved. One ul the things lo ho done,
and which is necessary to organization, is lo do
tormino who, in cose of conflicting claims, are en
titled to sit; or, in other words, who, in loot, have
the highest and best pilma facie evidence of being
elected, according to tho Constitution ami laws
of the State from which they come. Do you not
perceive,sir, inasmuch as we can do nothing—can
discharge none of our appropriate duties until or
ganization -that therefore, wo are necessarily
clothed with power to organize ? It seems to fol
low ns n matter of course. The law being silent us
to the manner of organization, wo are left lo take
such courses us enlightened reason, drawing bur
conclusion from the Constitution hy neco snry in
ference, may suggest. Wo ave not yet a House for
the usual amt great objects oi our assembling. We
can receive no Message from the Executive. We
can bold n« intercourse with tho Senate Wo can
organize no committees, and cannot perform u sin
gle act of legislation. At tliu threshold siunits the
obligation to organize. We must do so by elect
ing tin officer described in the Constitution as
Speaker- We dare not-sir, deprive the Stale of N.
Jersey of her right, co-equal with that, of Georgia,
or any other State,to vole in the election of that
officer We have no power thus to disfranchise
Ic-r. Hence, before thuloffieer is elected, we must
determine that somebody does in fact, for the time
being, represent her. From the Stale ol Pennsyl
vania, I understand, there are two gentlemen
claiming seats in this Hull, both bringing with
them the commission ol a Governor of that Slate,
mi ler her great seal. This is a ease not of fancy,
but of fact. Upon this case wo shall bo compelled
to net, and that too before the House is organized.
Upon the assumption of gentlemen, t hat no vole,
no act can be laid by us, when the commission of
n Governor with the seal of tho State appended is
presented, both llicsegeutiemen inusteumein. Ii
is n requirement of the Constitution, say they.—
Now t he Constitution in the ease put commands us
n neb in favor of the one as the other .of these gen
tlemen. What shall he done ? Exclude both ?
No, for thou tin- key stone of the arch is disfranch
ised. Admit both ? No, (or then the great Slate
will have one in--re Representatives than the Con
stitution given her. The alternative left is lor the
members present, cons Muting a quorum ol the
whole House, w hose seals are unconle.-ood, lo de
termine Will, Ii (iltlnse commissions and which of
their seals is, in truth, according lo the laws of
Pennsylvania V\ hat J demand is,that the very
same determination lie made in r< Ini ion to (ho con
tested seals of tho N- J-delegation. Which, sir, of
these claimants, lias the evidence, prirna facie in its
character,nfelection? This is tho only inqiiny
which we have now the power to make, and hut
we have this power I have endeavored to show
The most plausihlouhjection which I have beard
made lo tins view of the subject is, that it will al
ways be in ihe power of parlies, by capricious ob
jeclions/to tile seals of u quorum of the w hole
House, to preveni its organization. It bus sir, more
ofspeciousitess than of force. In answer, I say,
that an extreme possibility is no well-founded ob
jection lo any course ol reasoning. The supposi
tion piesents a case when the Govarnmenl would
be in the act of revolution. Against such u possi
bility neither law, constitutions, nor religion, can
wholly guard. The case might ocelli; so also,
then, might arise a Cromwell in our midst, lo dis
solve ihe Congress of the Union oy military force,
lint thai such a ease will occur, belli (lie restraints
ol law —i he moral souse of the People—the loveot
liberty, the strongest passion of tho American Peo
ple—urid the holy sanctions ol Clirisiianily, do, and
will, L trust, through the ages limi n.e to come, for
bid.
Then, sir, the mode of action is forties House to
declare and register Ihe judgment of the Constilu
tun and the law, W iien pronounced, it needs no
further enforcement. It stands self-executed. For
who shall deny—who modify, win reverse it ?
Upon this House lulls ihe stern mandate of the Con
stilution Upon this House falls tho sovereign re
quirement ol N. J- Upon diis House-State Rights
principles make their equitable requisitions. Is
the Constitution maudaioiy to you, sir, lo admit the
Whig delegation from N Jerxey ? So is it lo Iho
House Are its requirements obligatory, a cord
ing to the reasoning ol ihe gentleman, upon the
Clerk? 8o are they upon the House. And,whilst
1 maintain the positions here assumed, lat the
same time assert and enlor'e the principles which
my colleagues nnd others have promulgated.
Mr. Chat man, whilst 1 assert the rignt of N.J,
to he heard bv her vole in this House, 1 do nor
mean to he undoes end as admit ring that eiuieir set
of applicants can vole in their own ease. Turn is
the only question upon which N. J cannot he
heard. To me, common, sen o, which is an in
stinct of onr nature, denn-s to all persons the privi
lego of wring in a i ase wlc-re their personal or re
present.itive rights are concerned. The queuion is
as to the right of A and Bto vote. And uoes it not
involve an absurdity upon that question to permit
A and B to vote, and thus adjudicate their own
privileges ? U surely does
'The rules of the liouse which w« have adopted,
and nil parliamentary usage#, ho far a1 am inform
ed, include them. It matters not that they present
themselres in a representative character, for it is
their rights as such that are to be di torminrd.
Much,sir, has been said m ihm debate about the
sovereign rights of the People. It is claimed that
the will ol the people of N. J shall prevail. Yes,
sir, let it prevail. How prevail? Through llu
agency of her organic law—and bore no otherwise.
They have spoken through no other voice. They
have not spoken in their primary elementary char
acter They have held no convention. 1 listen;
but 1 hear not the rattling thunders ot popular sev
ereignly. The Jews of old. heard'llie artillery
w hich pealed around (lie summit us .Sinai, and tile
sound ol a trumpet waxing louder ond louder ; but
in all this »troy heard mil the Godhead, it spake in
the still small voice.
So, sir it is only in the still small, yet clear and
steady voice of the law, that I can hear upon this
floor the speaking of New lersey. The organized
forms of government do express the popular will ;
the People have made them tlieir organs. The
law softie State and the Const ilntmn of the Union
aro the leal mini h which the People themselves have
placed upon their elementary soveieignty, uml are
so to bo respected until they are repealed or modi
fied. I do not assert that Ihe great seal us New
Jersey is tho depository of her sovereignty —that
the acts of her Governor make him sovereign—but
these acts and that seal are ilio ovi.tenon and the
oxpiesamn of the sovereign will Suppose, sir,that
lie who, with unsurpassed ability, represents in the
Senate of the United States the descendants ol your
own heroic pilgrim ancestry, should there exhibit
the authoritative sent of (Massachusetts and the
commission of the Governor, who would there
venture to assert thai ho came not in tho name of a
sovereign State ? Or, if lie who in I lint body rep
resents alike the genius, and virtue, and sovereign
ty of Carolina, should at her bar exhibit the seal of
that State, “always prepared, in mind and means,”
adorned with its cliivalnc palmetto blazonry, would
the. o he one there so bold as to deny hint entrance?
So no one here, I trust, will deny those delegates
having the highest evidence to enter and sit as the
Representatives of Now Jersey.
Mr. Chairman,! am unlike the distinguished gen
tleman from South Carolina, who addressed you
the other day, born insensible to fear. I fear ma
ny things. I fear to do wrong ; but Ido not fear
the trammels of party, or the vengeance of the
popular will. In the discharge of duty, the Peop'e
will scarcely hold me a lit subjec t for their wrath.
Should this House fail to accord seats to the regu
larly authenticated members from New Jersey,
there will have occurred a case of nullification re
versed. This has been held a remedy'for the States
against the Government, hut if we abrogate the
laws of New Jersey, then docs nullification appear
in its most odious form. She will then start, in her
forays upon the t onstitution, from the citadel of the
enemy ; and an unorganized branch of the Congress
of the United States, itself but a co-ordinate de
partment of the Government, will have abrogated,
in the House of-the People, the laws enacted by
the People.
I could but remark, Mr. Chairman, when you ad
dressed us on yesteiday, how studiously you avoid
ed recognising the Slates in their sovereign charac
ter—insisting on the rights of the People. And I
thought that, contrary to the laws which obtains
both in morals and physics, extremes had for once
met; and that the nationalism of your day was
much the same with the democratic dogmas of this.
MARIN E INT E L LiGENCE™'*
Savannah, December 17. *
Cleared ■ —Ship American, Holden, Liverpool;brig
Clinton, Lyon, Now York.
Arrived since our hint —Steamboats Do Itossctt,
Phil brick, Augusta; John Randolph, Lyons, do;.
Chatham, Wray, do.
Departed—’ Steamboat John Randolph, Lyons,
Augusta.
Went to sen —Brig Pandora, Gardner, Boston.
Charleston, December 19.
Arrived yesterday —lir ship Margaret Johnson,
McAuley, Belfast; line ship Niagara, Smith, New
York; brig Alpha, Thomas, Bremen.
Cleared —Ships Belvidere, McKown, Liverpool;
Palmyra, Cushing, do; C L brig Diraon, Sherwood,
New York.
Went to sea yesterday— Brig Emetine, Heath,
Boston; U L brig George, Hull, New York; line
brig Paul T. Jones, Ireland, Philadelphia.
In the offing- —Hr ship Sherbrooke, from Liver
pool.
Dr. HOLBROOK tenders his services to the
citizens of Augusta and vicinity, in the several
branches of his profession. His residence is at
No. 135, Broad street, in the western tenement ,of
the Bridge Bank. dec 3 wlf
a TO RENT, from the Ist Oct. next, a
STORE,No.24I) south-side Broad-street,
recently occupied by the late I). W. St.
John. Apply to JAMES GARDNER, Jr.
augl6 trw ts
JhmrJL TO KENT, until the Ist day of October
next, the two Wooden Stores below the
Npm Bridge Hank buildings, on Broad street.
Also, a Stable and Carriage House, with a horse
lot annexed, situated on Ellis street, next below
the dwelling of Mr. I. A. Hibler.
dec 2 trwtf JOHN W. WILDE.
MEOR RENT.—The property of the un
dersigned, on Broad, Campbell and Cen
tre Streets, on Mclntosh Street, near the
Presbyterian Church, at present occupied, by Mr.
Stockton. Apply to
McKenzie & bennoch.
July 2 wif
N. 1), The occupants of the property for the
year ensuing Ist October next, will give noi"« pay.
able quarterly, and pay for the use of the Hy
drant water.
MFOR SALE OR TO RENT,
From the Ist of October next, the two
story dwelling House, at present occupied
oy wiiaarn Glover, at Apling, Columbia county,
with two store houses, gin house, stable, (kc. The
lot contains,two acres ; the stand good for a store
or boarding house.
Also, for sale, a neat pleasant and healthy Farm,
one mile above the Quaker Springs, known as the
Patrick Place,containing eighty acres—forty acres
cleared anil under cultivation, on which is a tolera
ble good dwelling and other out buildings ; the
soil well adapted for the culture of potatoes, corn,
and the Mulberry.
Also, will he sold with or without the Farm,
four thousand Moms -Multicaulis trees at 50 cents
a tree (roots included), as lino as any raised in this
neighborhood,and expect will range from 6to 8 feet
in height oy the first of October next, well
branched. LEON P. DUGAS.
July 25 d3t&wtf
A CARIF.
Cl F. HOFFMAN (k Co. having taken one of
/ , the large new stores opposite the ruins o
j the Planters’ Hotel, one square above Mrs. C. Hoff
man’s former well known stand, respectfully invite
their friends and the public to call and examine
their large stock of India Silks, French and Swiss
Embroideries, English and German (foods, Fancy
and Millinery articles, &c. &c., which they offer
low and on good tCims, wholesale and tetail.
nov 10 trw2m
MILL PROPERTY, Arc. FOR SALE.
F| VIE subscriber offers his Mill Property on Spirit
I X Creek, adjoining lands of Whitehead, Hay
j nic, and Fox, for sale, containing about thirty live
hundred acres, on which there is a good Saw Mill,
Ike. 't here ore also two other mill seats, which
could easily be put in order. The whole would be
sold together, or it would be divided to suit pur
chasers.
Also—Eleven Lots in tlie upper part of the city*
between Greene and Ellis streets.
Should the above pr iperty not be sold at private
sale, it will be offered at the lower market house,
on thelirst Tuesday in January next.
- |dcc|lo trwtd ROBERT PHILIP,