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- * paper:, figned with his name, the purport of winch is to ex culpate Mr. Burr from the char ges brought againfl him. In this letter he fays, “ When about to return from “ Wafhingron, two or three iC members of congrefs of the fe <f deral parry fpoke to me of “ their views as to the dedion (t of a prefldenr, defiring me 4( to conveife with Mr. Burr, (C on the fubjed, and to rfeertain <c whether he •Would enter into “ terms. On my return to fc New* York I called on col. “Burr, and communicated the t( above to him. He expli “ citly declined the explanation, tc and did neither propofe nor Cf agree to any terms.” How nearly is human cunning allied to folly ! The animals to whom nature has given the fa culty we call cunning , knows always when to ufe it, and ufc it wifely i but when man de scends to cunning he blunders and betrays. Mr. Ogden's letter is intend ed to exculpate Mr. Burr from the charges of intriguing to ob tain the prefidency and the | letter that he (Ogden) writes for this purpofe is dired evi- i dencc againil his paity in con grefs, that they intrigued with Burr, to obtain him for pre fidenr, and imployed him (Og den ) for the purpofe. To I'ave Aaron he betrayes Mofes , and turns informer againfl the golden calf. ' Jc is but of little importance t.o the world to know if Mr. Burr lifiened to an intriguing propofol, but it is of great im portance to the confiTutents to know if their reprefentatives in congrefs made one. The ear can commit no crime, but the tongue may ; and therefore, the right policy is to drop Mr. Durr tS being only the hearer, and Hired the whole charge againfl the federal fadion in congrefs as theadive original culprit, or, if the priefls will have leripture for ir, as.the ferpent that beguil ed Eve. The plot of the intrigue was to make Mr. Burr prefident on the private condition of his a greemg to, and entering into, terms with them, that is, with the propofers. Had then this ciedion been made, the coun try, knowing nothing of this private and illegal tranadion, would have fuppofed, for who could have fuppofed otherwife, that it had a prcfident according to the form?, principles, and intentions of the confiitution. fuch thing. Every form, principle, and intention of the contention would have been x lolatcd; rnc, in fit ad of a pre sent, it would have had a mute, a fort of image hand-bound and tongue-tied, the dupe and fiavc of a party, placed on the thea tre of the United States and ad ing the farce of president. It is of little importance, in a conflituiional fenfe, to know what the terms to be propofed might be, becaiife any terms other than thofc which the con ilitution preferibes to a prcfident is criminal. Neither do 1 lie how Mr. Burr, or any per ion, put in the fame condition, could have taken the oath preferibed by the confiitution to aprcfident, which is, “ 1 do Jolemnly/wear, “ (or affirm) that I will faith <( fully execute the office cf preft “ dent cf the United States , and “ will to the heft cf my ability ts prefer vc y protebl and defend i{ the confiitution of the United “ States ” I low, I afk, could fuch a per fi>n have taken fuch an oath, knowing at the fame time that’ he had entered into the presi dency on terms unknown in the confiitution and private, and which would deprive him of the freedom and power of ad inf as prefidcnt of the United o » States, agreeably to hrs confluu tional oath ? Mr. Burr, by not agreeing to terms, lias efcapcd the danger to which they expo fed him, and the perjury that would have fol lowed, and alfo the punlfhment annexed thereto. Had he ac cepted the prefidency on terms unknown in the confiitution and private, and had the tranfodion afterwards tranfpired (which it mofl probably would, for ro guery is a thing difficult to con ceal) it would have produced a fenfation in the country too vio lent to be quieted and too juft to be refilled ; and in any cafe the eledion nuifl have been void. But what are we to think of thofc members of congrefs, who having taken an oath of the fame conflinational import as the oath of the prefidcnt, violate that each by tampering to obtain a prefident on private condi tions. If this is not fedition againfl the confiitution and the country, it is difficult to define what fedition in a reprefentative can be. Say not that this (latcment of the cafe is the efired of perfonal or party refentment. No. It is the c fled o ffincere concern that fuch corruption, of which this is but a Tarn pic, fhould, in the Ihort fpacc of a few years, have crept into a country that had the fairdt opportunity, that pro vidence ever gave within the knowledge of hiflorv, of mak mg inelf an illufinous exam ple to the World. What the terms were, or were to be, it is probable, we fnali never know; or what is more probable, that feigned ones, if any, will be given. But from the condud of the party fince that time, we may conclude, that no taxes would have been taken off, that the clamor for war would have been kept up, new expences in curred, and taxes and offices in crcafed in confequence; and among the articles of a private nature that the t leaders in this fe ditious traffic were to flipulate with the mock prefident for lu crative appointments far them fclvcs. But if thofe plotters againfl the confiitution underflood their bounds, and they had been j plotting long enough to be maf~ j ter of it, a Angle article would j h av c comprehended every thing, ; which is, I t ’lhat the ‘prefident (thus made) ' firotdd be governed in ail cafes I wlafcever ty a private junto ap pointed ty fhavjehct. They could then through the medium of a mock prefident have negatived all bills which the party in congrefs could not havfc oppofed with fuccefs, and reduced reprefemation to a nui iity. The country has been impos ed upon, and the real culprits are but few ; and as it is nectiTa ry for the peace, harmony, and honor, of the union, to feparate the deceiver from the deceived, the betrayer from the betrayed, that men who once were friends, and that in the word of times, fhould be friends, again, it is necefTary, as a begining, that this dark biifinefs be brought to a full invefligntion. Ogden's letter is direct evidence of the fad cfcamperingtoobrain a con ditional prefident. He knows the two or three members of congrefs that commiflioned him, and they know who commiffion cd th#m. THOMAS PAINE. Federal City, Level's } Hotel, Jan, 29, 1803 J CONG RESS Of the UNITED STATES. House of Representatives. Wednejday , January 19, 1803. Mr. Mitchell called for the order of the day on the report of the cornfnirtee, on fo much of the Prefident's rnehage as re lates to Navy Yards and Docks. The houfe accordingly went into a committee of the whole, Mr. John C. Smith in the chair. The report was read the firlt refolution is as follow : Refolved that for fecuring from wade and lofs the timber and other public property in the different navy yards, and towards improving the fame for the greater difpatch of bufinefs, the Secretary of the Navy, un der the direction of the Prt fi dent of the United Stares, fhail caufe the requifite buildingsand fheds to be ertdled, and other needful repairs and improve ments to be made and that for accomplishing the fame, dollars are hereby ap propriateded, to be paid out of any monies in the treafury not otherwife appropriated. Mr. Mitchell rofe, dated concifely the grounds on which the committee had recommend ed the adoption of this refolution —and moved that the blank be filled with 50,000 dollars; which was agreed to without a diVifion ; when the quedion was taken on the refolution, which was alfo egreed to without a di viflon. The fecond refolution was then read, as follow : Refolved, that for preventing rottennefs and decay in the fhips of the navy, the Prefident of the United States be, and hereby is authorifed, to caufc a dry dock, with convenient can nais, locks, machinery, and wa ter courfcs, to be conftruded, at or near the public navy yard in the city of Washington; which dock (hill be capable of con taining twelve frigates, fhi p cf war, arm of prcUrvir.or the dry and fafcly flickered' f r r fun - fhine and rain j and for car rying tht fame into dollars be, and the fame hereby are appropriated, t 0 be' paid out of any monies in the treafu ry not otherwise appropriated. Mr. Mitchdl moved that the committer fiiould rife. The committee rofc, report ed prngrefs, and allied leave to fit again, which was granted. Tuefday , 'January 27, 1803. Mr. Grifwold prefented a memorial from eleven of the late circuit judges of the United States, reprelenting that they have been divefted by law of their judicial duties, and rcqudl ing congrcfs to define the du ties to be performed bv them, and to afllgn fomc judicial tribu nal competent to a decifion of their claim for falary. Mr. Grilwold moved a refer ence of the memorial to a felcdt committee. Mr. Gregg moved reference to the committee of claims. Mr. Randolp moved a refer ence to a committee of the whole houfe. This laft motion after debate prevailed. Mr. Randolph moved that ic be made the order of the day for that day. Mr. Grifwold moved that it be made the order fur to-mor row. Mr. Randolph's motion pre vailed. . When the houfe refolved k felf into a committee of the whole—Mr. Dawfon in the Chair. Mr. Grifwold then fubmitted two refolutions. The fii ft, to provide'by law for defining the duties of the cir cuit judges. ' The fecond, to provide by law for fubmitting to judicial decifion the right of the judges of the circuit court to compen fat ion. After debate, the committee divided on the fir ft refolution— Ayes 34. —Noes 56 —loft. And on the fecond refolution —Ayes 35 —Noes 57 —loft. Mr. Varnum then a rcfclution— that the the petition ought not to be granted, and that the petitioners have leave to withdraw their petition,—which was earned without a divifion. The committee rofe and re ported • this refolution, which was agreed to; and the yeas and nays being called for, are as follow : Yeas.—Me*Trs. Alfton, Ar cher, Bacon, Bifhop, Bowie, Brent, Brown, Butler, Cabell, Claiborne, Clay, Clopton, Con dit, Curts, Davis, Dawfon, Dick, fon, Karlv, Elmendorf, Elmer, Euftis, Gray, Gregg, Hanna, D. Heifter, I. Heifter, Helms, Hoge, Holland, Holmes, Jaclc fbn, Leib, Meriwether, Mitch ill, Moore, Mott, New, New ton, jun. Nicholfon, Randolph, jun. Smilie, Jkael Smith, J* Smith, N. Y. J. Smith, Vi rg, Jofiah Smith, S. Smith, Souti - ard, Stanford, Stanton, Ste ■- art, Talliaferro,jun. Then *'» Thompfon, A.l ngg, J* f T * Van Cortlar.dr, Vainur/s ■* *