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c fay, frcrfi
j£f ti i rw iD \ fmb fraclj
fi,; iff if ) pi oil: front what
\h** is kcn place. The Cou
ykr and the 'J imes seem to
' think, that al! 11. t l'e cabinets
y in the cit fire of fonie
i n.:lull to iee the French
rati. a p'-n sLed. Tbefe Ca
/iW»t’is ate not so execrably
lool.fh. The PraflianCabi
net, for indance, is con ft
i]e» ing, not how it fliall go
to work to gratify the hatred
oi England, but how it shall
go to work to fortify it
< P against Austria. —lr the
F qnch people remain al
t»chet. to Ffapoleon, nothing
that the coalition can do will
hurt him ; and I think there
are aen dunces to one, that
the o-alition u ill he divided
in lets than three months.
Doe.- the reader fuppofc that
cur power by sea is no object
of j iiouly v itb any of the
Aim ? Does he imagine,
ti': i they would be content
to brave us vdih all that
power in our hands, and
Without a riral too? There
n;.:y be men who think this, j
tiur national pride and pie- !
itwintion make us look upon ‘
ounelves as swallowing up, |
of light, all tlie carts and
Confide ration of the world.
1 .V, whoever thinks thus,
Will find nimfelf egregiously '
mi fia ken. • •
CONGRESS.
Hove of Representatives.
TuVs. h , Masch 3
YaZ-OC CLAITyIS.
The biii i-otii tile Senate for
co ipcrdaong certain claim
au .v io lands"in the Missis
sippi territory, was taken
up, anti, having been once
read, the question was dated,
shall the bill be read a second
lime ?
A motion was made to lay
the lame on the table, but,
at the earned suggestion oi
Mr. bisk of Vermont , and Mr.
hattitno'e of Mississippi, was
w *lhdra yen.
Mr Tioup of Geo. refe as
he oblerved, with very great
r s 1 ucl a nee, to move to reject
a bill co* mg from the other
bs.incu or the Lygifliture,
It vft'ub not his d.f r »oiition to
tr at with ciiitlpedt what
Codies from that body ; nor,
viol Id he do 1«i in any case,
but tor om or two corifide
f.i.io'ss either thutthcn.ea
iuie idelf was founded in
corviij.» ion, o: trial it was
«i!C* ' itiiutional. it was tor
the ft i f t thtfe grounds,
ts if it v .. $ founded m cot
iuj i.iv that tie u ifiied this
bill fcj.diec’. lie did not
o eart •« be uoderftood as
laying to art tl eiiKafure now
I > Uv t t it Houle Cvas i in
i':, \. itlv ionuiied in cor
. {A
.* >1 ), "l>v*t that' c.rup
\t u vu’ the loun c oi the
t!: on, to w uch it idates
'( j Mil i rope led to give
gluons b‘ acies of iand
u v*ay ci coil. '<fvimfc to
* 4
j certain persons usually call
!ed Yazoo claimants. How
I would pnfterity be able to
account for the appearance
] of this transaction, should it
receive the sanction of Con
s grefs ? The Legislature oi
1 Georgia originally fold the
I land in quefton for 500,000
dollars j the United btates
shortly afterwards pu chal-
S ed it for 1,250,000 dollars
j and it is now proposed to
j give 5,000,000 acres of land
equal to more than 5.030,00 c
dollars to the Yazoo cliain
ants to compromise their
claim. Pofierity mu ft f>y
that we ourielves have been
corrupted to consent to such
a barter of principle ; that
thcle Yazoo claimants like
j the Goods of Milton, car
| tied mountains in their
hands, and menacing yon
with claims to the amount
of fifty millions of acres,
under the deofion of the
supreme Court, carried eve
ry thing before them. As
luck would have it, Mr.
Troup laid, this was one i
! of the mutt plained cases in 1
j the world. Either the Ya
j zoo claimants have or they
I have not a claim. If they j
have no claim, you have no j
fight to eompenlate them j
for a claim they have not. I; j
they have a claim for fifty j
1 millions, will you takeadvan- j
tags of your iuperior power
to do injustice to these i<n.
potent individuals ? If they
have a claim at all, they
have a claim to the whole,
and becomes you to give it
them, and fay no more a
bout it. Mr. T. adverted j
to the notorious fraudulent
character of the Yazoo aft,
and the bribes which were
proved to have been given
to and accepted by every
member of the Legifl tore
who voted font, one only ex
cepted. It was contended, he
j knew, thattheprefem claim
I ants had purclnfed without
knowledge of the fraud, &
were therefore not liable to
its c mfrqnences. The quel
don, however, turned on the
validity of the \azoo act or
1795. U the prelem claim
•ants had any claim, it was
| a claim deiived from the 01 i
jginal granites; if thole gran
-1 ices had a just claim, or any
. claim, it was derived under
the corrupt att of 1795 : if
the lecond purchalers had no
claim, it was because the
grantees had none. Was it;
not plain, then, he alked, j
that the question turned on
, the validity or invalidity of
the act of 1795 ? If Congress
fliuuld dctennine that a tine
! did veii in the grantees un- ,
der that adl, they would de- |
termine that it Was compe- l
tent to the corrupt Repre
! Dntatives of a vir.uous Pco
j pi , uiiutr the influence or
| the molt detestable bribery
j ai d corruption, to bartei
j awuV tiicir rights ! Was tf;h
' boule prepared to i u.cf.io j
! iuc * l a P‘hici|de ; iD called »
upon the majority of the
houie to recoiled how they
came into power. The peo
ple had become alarmed left
purity of Republican prin
ciples ftiould be contamina
ted, and the present majority
came into power under the
well grounded expectation
that they would preserve the
principles of the government
pure Sc uncorrupted. Could
it be laid that they had done
to, if they elfahiifhcJ a prin
ciple like this ? This gov
ernment was f unded exclu
sively on the balls of virtue
and morality, if fueft ads
as this Were to paf>, theje
foundations v/i a! j be broken
U P» overturned, uprooted 6c
deitroyed, and with them
the bed hopes of u an fore
ver biaaed. Is i.»ch'a prin«
tip-1; Ihould be eftabiiftnjd
as Dc had defended, theft
could not longer be' in the
community either virtue or
morality. Mr. T. he t er»
! tered into an argument/iive
| and legal view ol the lu/jeCt.
! He ui f Jr; to, k to prow that
cue tlature ot Gteorgia
liad no power to di/poie of
the , ui»hc territory ; that
\ even it they had tly power,
I they had not tiie power to
difpoieof it fraudulently and
conupjiy i that it by fraud
ulent anu corrupt tale they
could transfer a right to the
land, the claimants, having
notice of tiie/fraud, weie
partid w enmitis —they had
pure d ot, the grantees
with their ey/s open - y they
were not inudeent but guilty
purchasers, aid were not en
j titled to the,-mtei ference of
congiels in their behalf.—
Ihe hit petition he hap
pen teo t)y \ riojs arguments
drawn ‘torf; :he nature ol the
case, by ,iae authority of
iiurUtnar; li, Grotius, Puf
fendoii.f 4' others publicilts,
ail tend g to this point,
that tu; power of dilnolii)'*
or the public domain re bed
with the people, unlefs‘ex
prel- ly delegated. This doc
trine icc. giuzM by the
constitution oi tne United
States, in wm n the power
oi dilpclal of Inch property
was given to congieh, and
in tiie comfitutions of several
oi the dates the power of the
pcoptt on this head was ex
prelsiy recognized in so many
words. It might be said, he
added, that instances might
he cited in which the State
; Legiftatures had aftumed this
[ p->wer without express grant
iroui tlie people ; but in all
tucli instances the Legiila
lUres so adting had been guil
ty or a flagrant and flagitious
i breach of trust, Upon the
I whole, he concluded his ar
-1 gument on this point, by
! observing that the Legiili- I
lure oi Georgia which pre
tended to fell the land plain
ly, cbvioufly, and demon
itratively, no eonftitutional
| power to do fj. Hut, fup
| pole they had such a power :
could thev ij leli tiie land
*
i
!
i
i t:ie state fraudulently and
corruptly? No,certainly. It
was an univeifal rule, that
iraud and corruption vitiate
every act, invalidate every
grant, buppoie any instru
ment of trust contained a
declaration that the powers
therein given (hould be fair
ly executed, or that thecon
ftituticn of any community
were to contain a clause that
the Legislature of the State
fhotild not fraudulently or
i corruptly fell the property
of the state, would not inch
proviiions be ridiculous and
absurd ? Certainly, and they
would be lo because the idea
of guilty transfer ot; coirupt
right conflicted with the laws
of God and Man. Nay, lie
would fay more—the great
God of Heaven could not
convey the right to do a cor
rupt and fraudulent adt, be
cause it would be i neon fift
een t with hUdivineattributes,
and therefore a power im
poiuble to be conferred.— !
And yet thisLegiflature were I
called upon to do what is !
net within the power of the
Almighty, to fandtify cor
ruption. The ties between
the representative & his coa
ftitutnrs are landered when
he is corrupted A Repre
ientative Bouy therefore was
ob Ho illy incapable of bind
ing its constituents by the
palHge of a notoriously cor
rupt adt.
But admitting for argument*,
sake, *!iths giantces under 'his
corrupt net C 'uid convey a ti le
ignorant purchasers ; \«t, Mr. T.
con cubed that the claimants, hav.
iag notice before purchase ot the
I f:*ud, became p?? tics thereto; and
i that, :n tiie eye of law and q <ity,
ne her Congre s nor any other tri
bunal were bound to recogn.'Z 1
t'.ieir claims. To establish this po
snon, 1»- adduced many fact* and
1 a gutneota, of which the following
1 w <r« the mo*t premia nt ; '1 he
| ttivial price given -o-ihe j.roperty,
tha i> io say, sivc hundred thousand
dollars for hltv mil ions of arreo of
land, which wuiot itsslf so&ciem
to have alarmed and dc erred ho
nest purchaser*; me rapid succes
sion of event* which followed the
p ssagr- of that, act in the s ate of
G;o< gia, p i;tending a rcvoloti a—-
ti« j pcopie in a ferment, Go Jack
sou, on who.e cha"a;ter Mr. T
p ouoanccd a very animated cuio
giom, cail«d from the Senate at
PhiUdelpllia by the commotion of
the tim=i, a man who threatened to
( disclose t‘ie corruption murdered
ia his h ust, and these eve ts pre.
s. n.'cd to he public through all tiie
j papers, even at Boston in the midst
of thi;«e purchaiers ; the public
av-ssage cf Gan. Washing'on to
Co igicsn announcing tn* ttannac.
tion, wh >s» warning vo ca v/*h on
tha; neca ion no mene h-itded bv ,
( these ciiimauts than ins parting
’ addre.a iu> since been ; the form
of die deed conveying ;h.-se laada
1 rr' in the grameea to th.- present
da man s, in which there was not
only an absence of general warran
ty of tiile, bui an express clause
ofsecuriug ;be grantees fioai all
f jtuie regponsibih y on account
thert-01, i o these proof-, Mr. T.
S"pe;a<l lcd a stat* meet of iufor.
• uution il« ri «a from a g„nileroan
I w’ho Ind io.) / been a member of
j this H >u»e from Aia sa husttts I
W - converseot *viii» j k >h circum
stances of the by th pe- |
sent ciaunai.t-, tnat they k* ew all
the ciicuins.ancea oi tiie purcha c '
as well and as soon at the gran ei s.
lie conclude I, trieref re, »h«t H e
present cla manis atood In t u k , ne
rcla iOU id- gta.j-cwd, ai.v. » n
I
|
I i
)
I. no bipher ch'nii on the comm..;
i ty. Mr. T. th;:n adverted to *"
otner point*. It would b; Conr
djd . h. believe,l. for i, h, iC
: 8,,d -Isewhore. thu the faith of.?
government was pledged to ih e
propriaiioo of these hve '»;i! U)fu ?c
acres to satisfy these claims -j ?
1 «rg sment, said, was unto ind •?
; because, altho’ this q ia-it.iv had
been set apart by the compact w,t.h
Georgia, and s<ib; qieatly b v | a<v
far the satisfaction of claim* on h*
whole, Congress had reserve tu
the<nselve>iii* right and the p v r
of exatTiinti.g and Jeteru*,,) ~ j
• he p**ttriston3 of these claim?., t ,
Iu support of this construction, M r *
I . adduced the Opinion of a f>r ‘
mcr committee of th s H ou .e 0 „
the auty- ct, and of Mr GalUip
*» expressed in a letter w r i:tr n j n
IdOS, in an wer to a In.ar of en.
qiiry add essed to him by Mr
Dana, cha’rntian of the committee
o.i that subject, i„ which Mr. Gal
facia s:a>es it to have been h'n
ovn opinio that the five in l|, oos
of acres would be sufficient to
coves ail actual elaims,aat! to make
reasonable compensation f Qr a |[
claims derived or preieud-sd to be
dcived from G~otgia : tto d j eavrJ j$
m iheir power t 0 compromise,
Without p edging the government
, to compromise the claims, if 0 a a
*"‘l vi«. w * different, cou-se should
|b; thought proper. V/b tt was the
! ica .on these claimants, if tltev- Ju c i
I been deceived by the grantees, had
| ot permed the obvioa* course of
8° ,n K to the origin*! vendors,
tor repayment of their purchase
money, interest k costs ? iieca.isc
,he > had precluded thnnadves by
dteir own act-, and refused t 0
leaa than the penalty of the bond.
After reading a few docatneuis
from the volume in print on the
subject of -his claim, in illustration
of hia remark*, Mr. T. concluded
by b itfly remarking, being ured,
wearied out and disgusted with ihe
subject, on the argument that tha
Supreme Court bad dscidid against
Uiv United States. Although a
decision of this kind might have
been surreptitiously obtained, the
Aiepresentauve* of the People
ought to do their du y to them.
itiV'.s and to the gowd People of
the United Sia.c«, anu the rehicdy
m this case was obviously is ihsif
power.
New York, March 4.
A letter to the Editor of the A!.
bane Argus, dated on Wednesday,
at Pltitsburgb, says ;
“ On Monday, Gfn. Wilkinson
feceived intelligence, that the eot’*’
my were advancing from 'he wss r ,
'oOO O strong. The iniaotrv and
some compamea of artillery and
dragoons, iaunrtdia’eiy m.iiched
to meet them, and the troopr at
Burlington were ordered here- —
Ihe troops proceed'd 11 or 15
mils*, when finding the enemy
had turned back, they returned
to this place It appears the ene
my have been at Malone, and car*
r:ed off 5 or 600* barrels of pre *
visions, left there in conirq 'fries
of a person’s neglecting to b i g
ihein on according to contract—
They burnt the stare arsenal sc
Malone, and destroyed some p'i
vato property, n.osily betoogmg
to setleis.”
• A gentleman from the army states, that (
j cniy So barrel* were taken by the enemy.
Grand Lodge of Georgia.
March 5, I
Resolved, That those Lodjre* fl
that R-e two or ir ore ) ear, ,n fl
rears shall nut on orb - H
St. Join the Evangelic, the 24 » ■
December next, pay up such a;- ■
tva's, shall be strucken off thi b 1 V
of Lodge* } their charters ■
1 iir,g them to give degrees > r > * I
( soory be revoked from that d»r» ■
aud they declared no lougff r ■>
1 g:: lar I.odges j that D->tifi * * K.
,’hereofbe published in a.l m fc’ I
zettes of ihe state, I
Extract from the minute a,
D. D. Williacrrs,
[«B3] Grand Sec eUr^f
\ /L\