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EDITED BY TilO ti AN II 11 NEN. ENQ.
VOL. ill. NO. 25.
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Ticket.
FOR PRESIDENT,
MARTIN VAN BIREN.
FOR VICE-PRESIDENT,
RICHARD M. JOHNSON.
EIXCTOttIE TICKET.
THOM AS F. HEN DERSON, of Franklin.
WM. B. BI LLOCH, of Chatham.
SAMVEL GROVES, of Madison.
THOM VS H VYNES, of Baldwin.
REUBEN JORDAN, of Jones.
WILSON LUMYKIN, of Walton.
WILLIAM PENTICOST, of Jackson.
THOMAS SPALDIN G,of Mclntosh.
JAMES C. WATSON, of Muscogee. I<
WM. 15. WOFFORD, of H ibprsham.
THOM AS WOOTEN, of Wilkes.
SPEECH 67 Mil. ToTvNS,"' " j'
Os Georgia. !
Jn the House of Representatives Jl'ednes- t
day, 'day 11/A, 1836—//: Ccmniiitce oj t
the If hole on the state (J the I niuii on the I
'fortification LUI." 1
( To be continued.)
It will be my purpose to examine why it
is that these “ commanding figures” have (
appeared iu our political horizon at every
important crisis fur the last twenty-live
years, and to show, as the heavens give
unerring indications to the mariner of the
approaching storm, so w hen these “ com
manding figures” appear in our political i
horizon, the friends to our political institu
tions should prepare for the threatening'
tempest. Sir, 1 might content myself with
the expression of the great surprise I felt at
this open, undisgui-ed, and public avowal
of a conviction w hich I bad supposed, had
been the settled policy ot the honorable gen
tleman’s “ much calumniated party,” as
lie calls it, to conceal. But, coining from
him under the circumstances, gives to the
disclosure a claim of authority which no
subsequent disclaimer can impair. The A
inerican people are no longer to be misled.
They are no longer to indulge in idle spec
ulation as to the motives and designs of
the»e “ commanding figures” that appear
at every important crisis. The honorable
gentleman has avowed their connexion,
and that avowal has been made in an Amer- I
icau Congress. It has been circulated
through the Union, ami the gentleman re
joices in Lis heart that the project of the dis
tribution of the surplus revenue by the land
bill and the constitutional amendment!
“ came from those twogreat minds thatbave
so gloriously illustrated the history of their
country.”
Sir, I cannot envy the gentleman in the |
joy he feels in the contemplation of the fallen
and ruined condition of his friend. That
friend, so long as lie adhered to the prim i
plesof his own particular creed, might have
commanded the respect due to consistency ;
might have claimed homage for genius, and
admiration for firmness ; but connected as |
he has been by the gentleman from South
Carolina, with such extraordinary boasting
of joy, would deprive him of the common
charities of private friendship in his great-'
pst extremity. Sir, let no gentleman com
plain at a review of the political cour-e f
pursued by these di.sfmgui.-died Senator-,
(Messrs. Clay and Calhoun.) Should 1
nay any thing seemingly nnkiml, my answer
is, that the honorable member from South
.Carolina (Mr. Thompson) has forced that
jiecMMly on me hy the po.-itlou in which he
has placed them before this committee and
the nation. The fault is his, not mine. It.
will be fememberetf, that those great minds
who “have adorned every page of our
country’s history,” are brought before u-■
as the authors of' the only practicable plan
of disposing of the .surplus revenue. We
are said to be in imminent danger from rm
accumulation of public treasure, a circum
stance unheard of in other Government'.!
and without a parall I in tin- history of our;
own. Is it true f or it lhe as-<-ruon made
to subserve the ends of some great politi
cal movement ? I have attempted, and J
hope satisfactorily, to show that there was!
no such surplus revenue. If, sir, the laud!
r|
■ ''iH "I the Senator from Kentucky .should
i become the law of the land, you would di-I
; vide about twenty millions w ithin the short
. period from the fii-tof July to the first of
' October next, and twenty millions more hv '
i the first of April next, under certain condi
tions. How then, sir, tan any man doubt
but that your treasure would be exhausted,
that the country would be involved in it
heavy debt, n< t only divested of the means
I ofextending to our citizens adequate pro- ,
; lection, but absolutely deprived of the means
■ of meeting tin-ordinary ami vurrentexpen
: ses of the Government.’ Doesnot everv
irentleman foresee that w ith an exhausted
i Treasury, with pressing demands from the '
i south am! southwestern frontier, for the
' military arm of’ your Government, to pro
; tect your citizens from the cruel butchery
( w ith w hich they are threatened from the
i merciless savage, that the financial policy
of the G ivernment would necessarily
change .'’ Does not the Senator from Ken- |
tucky well know, that such a state ot’things
I would renew his favorite American system,
a system of which he is the reputed father;
' one that he h is watched, cherished, protec
ted, and defended w itli parental tenderness,
I from its infancy to manhood; from man- '
i hood to that wicked old age, when its de
; pravity became so appalling, that its friends
i and enemies, by common consent, gave it .
1 out, that it should be buried in the compro
, mise, there to remain until the bidding of’
I some master spirit should call it forth ?
And, sir, has not that time now arrived?
And is not the disgusting scene presented
to our view, that he who would have felt
himself dishonored (Mr. Calhoun,) to have
done the charitable office of pall-bearer to
the lifeless course of the American system,
jis now to be seen in our political horizon,
(associated w ith-Mr. Clay, bidding this spir
■' it of discord ascend, that they may con
jointly welcome its coming ? Should that
system be again renewed, no matter by w hat
■ means, as the settled policy of this Goverti
i inent, the first day it shall be proclaimed,
' would be the last day of this Union. Sir,
I it is not my habit to think or speak unkind
ly of the motives of others ; but thorough
ly am I convinced, that it’ die projects ci'
| those distinguished Senators should suc
ceed, the effect would be first to overwhelm
the Government by a national debt, then to
agitate the people, and finally to convulse
1 this nation from one border to the other.
And if to avert such direful results, 1 should I
be driven to the necessity of presenting facts I
showing that the Senators from Kentucky
and South Carolina are each pursuing a
course disastrous to the best interests of the
people of’ these Slates, and alone calculated
to advance their own ambitious projects in
any after contest that may arise, 1 shall feel,
sir, that 1 have discharged the highest ob
ligation I owe the institutions of the coun
try, to my own conscience, and to my con
stituents. How instructive the example
furnished its 1 How replete the life and his
tory of’ these great men of usefid admoni
tion to the aspiring ambition that but too
often lies deeply buried, but not dead, in the 1
bosom of the disappointed politician 1 Sir,
the Senator from South Carolina rose with
a lustre commanding the admiration of all.
With genius unsurpassed by any, with the
confidence of the people, generous and con
fiding, his first movement was such as
became the proud sou! and elevated patriot
’ ism of tin American statesman. Tluu
, move, just 24 years ago, was on the side of
his country. At that gloomy period, when
British outrage upon the commerce and
rights of our citizens left no alternative but
the resistance that became a free people, of
a submission to flagrant injustice that w ould
| have dishonored us before the world, the
friend of the gentleman from South Caroli
na was seen to take his stand in the midst
lof the patriot statesmen of that day; ami
with a spirit truly American, with eloquence
i almost unsurpassed, with the powers of bis
i great mmd, urged on his countrymen to a
vigorous, manly, bold resistance to foreign
j aggression. Sir, a recollection of this pe
riod should never be forgotten by the friends
;of the gentleman from South Carolina. It
j may yet serve to teach him, great as he is in
' mind, rapid as was his march to distinctioii
! and station, that there is a vast difference
: between devotion to his country and devo
tion to himself. It may serve to admonish
him that tlier ■ exists in this Union an A
• merican feeling not less ready to pay hom
age to public service, than to arrest the
wild progress of iufuriated passion and in
; ordinate ambition ; that whilst it will honor
j the one, it will assuredly rebuke and punish :
i the other.
But, sir, to pursue this “ commanding fi- !
giire,” the friend of the honorable gentle- ;
man from South Carolina, we find him both i
advocating am! voting for the tariffof 1816. j
I Whatever apology the peculiar condition of;
the maiiufiir-mrmg interest at that day fur- j
i nislit d for the vote lie then gave, 1 appre-I
lend none will pretend to deny that in this!
’act was planted th.’.- principles of that fatal}
! Am-.rican sysi.eni that grew so rapidlv, and *
■ exercised stud; alarming i ■'im-m e over the I
industry ami products of labor, tlr.t the fir
mest patriot ■ and mpst devoted friends to
the Federal Government could but look to
th.- gathering storm with feelings of the
mint anxious concern. In the winter of
; 1828, th'’L'-gi ,limre of South Carolina,
entered their protest again t the tariff, a pa
per uniformly ascribed lotlie pen of .Mr.
Calhoun, ami containing this distinct an
nunciation as to the relative powers <>f the
i Stales ami Fcileral Government: “The
Gi.tieral Govcrmneiit is one ol’specifie pow
ers, mid it can rightlully exercise only the
; powers expressly granted, and those that
! may be necr- sary and [.roper to carry them
I into effect, all others Leim reserved e?.prcss
;ly to the State-, or to the people.” Thu)
I this is a lair exponent of the doctrines of
Soiitli Carolina in 18.28, i not conjectural,
but is part <>l the recorded history of x our
i legi-lalion ; ami that the documeui contain- I
1 ing this doctrine has Le.ti uniformly a.-cri- !
Tfi'ESDAV WOfiOO&VjfrELY 5,
lied to Mr. Calhoun, was never denied, so 1
lar as I know ami believe. Anil 1 max
add, that in my poor opinion, language ]
cannot be tomid conveying with greater
precision amt more absolute accuracy the ,
true theory o( our Federal and State
Governments, than the quotation 1 hate;
made.
Sir, this was the settled and well establish-'
ed doctrine ot South Carolina j
and particularly of Mr. ' ’allioini, up to and
until alter -May, 1830. It was about that
unlortumite period, when disclosures were
made by .Mr Crawford to Genera] Jack
son ol a particular course pursued by Mr.
Ualhotiii whilst a member of Air. .Monroe’s
cabinet, in relation to the conduct of Gene- :
ral Jackson in the Seminole campaign. 1
The opinion 1 entertain of Air. Crawford’s
conduct in making a disclosure of the eabi-l
net secrets, is not called for ; but 1 may j
say —ami in thus expressing myself, if I
am capable of expressing one sincere setiti- ■
n-ent, it proceeds from my heart—that 1
have always regretted, that I deeply deplore, I
that unnecessary, uncalled for, and most
unhappy rupture, which was the conse
quence of the communications of Air. Craw - i
ford. From that fatal period, every move
ment, every political act of Air. Calhoun,
has been characterized by a display of via- ■
dictive feeling, alike dangerous to himself'
and to his country. Mark, sir, in the short'
period that intervened between his breach'
w ith Gen. Jael.son anil the issuing of’ his
famous “expose,” the rapid progress, the'
wide extended and alarming range of dis-i
content, that pervaded every portion oi’tl.e
south, where his inlluence could be exerted ;
but, above all, mite the doctrine asserted
and maintained in that expose. No longer
did w<‘ hear the line doctrine in relation to
the Federal and State authorities, as asser- j
ted by the Legislature of South Carolina '
in 1828. It was then the fashionable, the
received, the cherished doctrine, that each
State was vvitb'm itself absolutely sovereign
and independent, and he who could not
subscribe to this faith was, at home and a
broad, denounced as a vile “ submission-;
ist,” cither incapable of millerstanding, or I
otherwise too timid to assert, his rights.
Sir, is it not strange that Air. Calhoun, with
acknowledged powers of intellect, whose
life, almost from boyhood, had been devo
ted to the public service, whose habit of
study am! pursuit of business had led him !
to a thorough ami intimate acquaintance,
not only with the constitution and the prac
tices ot the Government created by that
constitution, but w ith the opinions of all
those apostles ol liberty, whose writings!
am! principles have been the boast of all
true patriots, and honored by the heartfelt;
gratitude of millions of freemen, should all
this time have been groping in the dark, ami
never have discovered until after his rup-|
lure with Gem Jackson, the true princi
ples of the constitution, the true relation;
between the r ederal ami State Govern
nents ?
Look, sir, at the course of events in a
certain portion of the south, from Al;.y, !
1830, to the summer of 1832. The people
.hat had once been quiet, happy, and con
ented, devoted to the Union, devoted to the
fistitutions of the country, suddenly assu
ning an attitude alarming to the integrity,'
the peace and happiness of the w hole nation,
i must not say what master spirit directed
the storm. It is a part ol the history of
your country, k rom discontent to remon
strance, from t einonstrance, w hole regiments
were armed, organized, and prepared to
march at a moments warning to assert in a
most ‘ peaceful ami constitutional manner,”
the uucoiistittitioimlity of the tarifi’ law.
A es, sir, it was then the motto oft lie party, al- >
tached to the interest of Air. Calhoun, in
South Carolina, “ millions lor defence—not
one cent for protection.” All this, not un
til tiller that latal feud between Al r. Calhoun
ami General Jackson, in which collision,
hope, and expectation long cherished for the
first office in this nation, suddenly vanished,
ami this “ commanding figure,” in reced
ing from his position with his party cotil l
but behold the rising form ofanother greater
than himself, (Mr. \:m Buren.) This was
more than the proud spirit and feverish as
pirations ol the distinguished Senator from
South Carolina conkl endure. From that;
moment he resolved that It should be sooner
written ol him, “ that he was,” than he;
should live unavenged for his sudden and
unexpected reverse in the tide of fortune.
And never did man prosecute with more
unrelenting zeal the idol of his ambition
than Mr. Calhoun. Sir, with w hat perfect
lat ility he abandons one system ofpi iticiples,
and adopts others ; to-day denouncing the
principles ol the protecting system —to-mor-
row, greeting with a hearty welcome the;
friends, nay more, the father of that system :
to-day the able ami eloquent advocate on
the floor o( Congress of the rights of minor- !
ities; but yesterday, at home in the bosom of
his community, crushing beneath the iron !
baud ol de-potistn the most sacred of all the
rights ol minorities —the rights ol'tvo/.'.v/r.'.vv. I
Such, ?>lr.-. Chairman, i,-. st brief histci ', (
ol the ex r ntl'ul period between May, 1f.1t),;
and the action of Congress in 1833, in which
the Senators from Kentricky and South Car
olina played that part w hich drew forth the I
eulogy of the lion, gentleman, (Air. Thbmp- '
son.) And, sir, I ask this committee and the j
nation, w hat was the respective parts of each, '
and the credit due them, for the settlement!
of that deeply absorbing questions? Will!
tlits committee relme, or w ill the nation re-I
fuse, to hear the testimony furnished I
tit tint important crisis bv the Seim-;
atois from Kentucky mid South Carolina ?
I .et it. not be forgotten that the broad ground !
assumed in the whole cont: oversy in the
south, in which Air. Calhoun took the lead
on one side, wtt ■, that a tariff of’pi-otectimi v. as
unconstitutional, and that the act of 1832'
was for the avowed pitri.oi of protection to '
our own manufactures,as well as for revenue,
and, therefore, imcomtitiit’miial, null ;md|
void, and of no binding inlluence upon the!
Our
people of the States. The Senator from
Kentucky. (Air. Clay,) uniformly maintain
ed the reverse of this doctrine. And, sir,
it was with principles so directly opposite,
that the two great statesmen, anil, in the
language of the honorable gentleman from
; South Carolina, (.Mr. Thompson,) “those
I two great minds which have for the last
twenty-live years so gloriously illustrated
the history of their country,” took their
position in the Senate ol the United States
for the purpose of settling this great ques
tion. Now, sir, arises an important inquiry,
that every man in ttitfd States should
understand: what was thecourse that con
sistency demanded of each of these great
minds, on this great occasion ? Would it
occur to any that, for the [mrpose of settling
this question, there would be a total aban
donment of all principle on the one side,
and no sacrifice of principle on the other ?
I low was a compromise to be effected be
tween such talented and incorruptible j atri
ots ? Wliy sir, from this position of the
Senator from South Carolina, “ that millions
for defence, but not one cent for protection,”
one would have supposed his object would
have been to have pursued, as far as possi
ble, his principles, for, if t:ue to himself, and
the principle of protectioi was preserved in
the compromise bill, the obligation of his
oath, as a Senator of the United States, would
have constrained him to have voted against
ail measures not authorized by, or in viola
tion of that instrument. But, sir, the re
maining inquiry is, did Ur. Calhoun vote
lor the "tariff act of 1833 ? And docs that
act contain the priucipe of protection?
That he did vote for the bill, the Journals
establish. That it does contain the princi
ple of protection is as fully and distinctly
admitted Ly the act itself as if it had been
written in so many words on the face of
the bill. But I w ill not stop tbeproof at this.
1 w ill introduce the testimony of Air ’Clay,
which will appear from the following por
tion of bis speech, delivered at the same time
ami on the same memora jie occasion of the
compromise. Air. Clay says, “ pass this
bill, traiiquilizing the coantry. restore con
fidence and affection in the Union, and I
am willing to go home to Ashland, and re
nounce public lite 11,ri ver.” The Senator
from Kentucky must Lure been quiet sin
cere, when, fur the sake of p;i>siitg the tariff,
lie would abandon public life forever. The
bill passed, and bow Air. C ay has i t Bounc
ed public service, let tl.e Journals of the
Senate speak.
It may he that he has kept this promise
to the spirit, by confining Lis action to what
be may coiisitleFprivate, rather than “ pub
lic service,” Eul, sir, iam quiet sure lie
never felt a deeper com et u in the success
of any’ measure than iu that es the bill he
was then adv ocating; and therefore hi
reasons, the motives tliatoperated upon him,
and the important disclosure he made, urg
ed with ail his transcendent powers of per
suasion, are entitled to very grave consid
eration in settling the pretentions of differ
ent gentlemen for the project that was to
restore the just rights of the south and the
north, and to tranqtiitize the public mind.
Alr. Clay says in his speecb,2£!h February,
1833, on the tariff, “The friends of free
trade insist that duties should be laid in re
ference to revenue alone. The friends of
America industry say that another-, if not
paramount, object’ in laying them, sliou’d
be to diminish the consumption ol foreign,
and increase lliat of domestic products. On
this point the parties divide, and between
these tw o opposite opinions, a reconciliation
is to be elicclcd, if it can be accomplished.
The bill assumes, as a basis, adequate pro
tection for nineyears, and less bey mid that
time.”
“ The friends of protection say to their
opponents, weave willing to take a lease of
nineyears uithlhe low* chapter of accidents
beyond Unit period, including the chance of
war, the restoration of concord and along
w ith it a conviction common to all, of the
utility of protection ; and in consideration
of it, if in 18 12 none of these considerations
shall hare been realized, we are willing to
submit as long as Congress shall think pro
per, to a inaximumrate of twenty percent,
with a power of discrimination below it, cash
duties, home valuations, and a liberal list of
free articles lor the benefit of the rminttfac
luring interest.” Air. Clay in the same
speech, says: “ That it is far from the ob
ject ot those who support this bill to abau
done or surrender the policy of protecting
American industry. Its protection or en
couragement may' be accomplished in vari
ous ways.” And then proceeds to point
out the different modes of protection ; and
finally, Air. Clay uses this emphatic lan
guage :
‘•Now, Air. President, before the asser
tion is made that the bill surrenders the
protective policy, gentlemen should under
stand perfectly what it does not. as well as
what it does propose.” This is the testimo
ny of Mr. Clay to two points, important in
themselves fully establishing the fact that the
act of 1833 w as supported by the friends of
the American system ; but upon the broad
ground that the bill recognized and fully
asserted the principal of absolute adequate
protection for nine years, and secondly,
carried with it lhe long chapter of accidents
beyond Ilia!, period.
I'jiv, these opinions were made in argu
ment ; were they ever denied? Did the
Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Cal
houn,) rise in his place, and deny that the
bill contained the principles against which
he hail rallied the South ? Yes, sir, not
rallied merely, Jiut had urged them on un
til their feelings were lashed into such ex
citement, by the repeated denunciation of
the * ppression and iineonstitiitiouality of
the tarifi, that law, order and Government
were on the verge of ruin. Ami yet Mr.
Calhoun liimseii believing, as he Las pro
fessed to believe, that the tariff of 1832,
with the same principles in 1833, was a
gtiinsi the constitnt’mii, not only votes for i
the act of 1823, hut says: When the
Senator from Kentucky fir. t introduced
the bill he, (Mr. C.,) then said that lie ap
proved of l\\eprintipie, and that bethought
no satisfactory adjustment could take place
but on time—time to afford the manufac
tures to accommodate their business to the
change which must follow the adjustment ol
the duties. He still lemaiued of the same
opinion.” Sir, it should be well understood
and distinctly known, the part that these
“ great minds” played, not only at the
compromise, but before. The one, the au
thor ol a system lhe other, first its advocate,
then its enemy ; and finally, when he had
a personal difficulty with the {’resident of
the United States, and saw and felt that he
no longer deserved or could safely calculate
on the support of the entire party attached
to the administration, he avails h'miseifof
lhe discontent prevailing on the subject of
the tariff in the south, asserts its unconsli
lutioimlity, prepares the minds of his con
stituents to resist the enforcement of the
law w ithin the limits of bis State, peaceably
il they could, but forcibly if necessary ;
and then, in the face of the world, meets
Mr. Clay in tlieSenate, Air. Clay tfia'intain
iug boldly the bill was for adequate protec
tion fur nine years, with a long chapter oj
accidents, and Air. Calhoun responding.
»»l.ea tlieJSenatorTrotn Kentucky first intro
duced the bill, he (Air. C.) then said “ /ha/
he approved if the principle." I leave
these facts to speaks for themselves. If
any man on earth requires more proof to
establish upon these “ two great mind,”
political judging, political intrigue, for pur
poses ol the most unholy ambition, he need
not expect to find it in the review oi’tl.e life
of political men, men who slam! pre-emi
nent for ability and who weigh lhe eli'ect of
every movement before it is taken. Look,
s;r, at the great prize for which “these
great minds and commanding figures”
have been running. AVhy, 1 need not here
repeat, what every intelligent citizen of
the Union knows, that it is nothing more
nor less than the Executive seat that has
operated upon ami directed every political
movement of their lives ; and so powerful
has been the (.■harm, that one of the gentle
men has made two indifferent runs before
the people; the other was announced as be
ing- ready to make a trial, but was discover
ed not to have siitlicient strength to slur!.
And, sir, can it be a matter of surprise that
true, to their purpose, each in his own
way taking his course: every considera
tion ol the public interest, safety, and hap
piness, is to y ield to their purpose, or in
conformity w ith their settled plan of opera
tion, they will crush and destroy' whatever
obstacle Le it man or be it principle, tiiat
may interpose the slightest obstacle to their
ttaainmeut of this object ?
I shall not, Mr. Chairman, add much
more to what 1 have said iu relation to the
political course of the gentlemen who were
presented to the committee as the authors
of the only practicable phin ol disposing of
the public revenue. 1 have shown enough
to deter any prudent man from following
their lead on this subject. But there is yet
more to be said, calculated to shed addition
al suspicion upon the whole fcplacejto prove
that the opinion of one of tl:e gentleman
(Ah’. Calhoun.) lias underwent a rapid ami
extraordinary change since the time of the
compromise; about that time Air. Calhoun
thus expressed himself : “ there is another
aspect in which this subject may be viewed.
We al) remember how early' the question of
lhe surplus revenue began to agitate tire
country. Al a very' early period, a Sena
tor from New Jersey, (Air. Dickerson,)
presented his scheme forprqpbsing ol it by
distributing it among the Slates. The first
message ol tiie President recommended a
similar project, which was followed up by
a movement on the part of the Legislature
ci New York,and I believe some of the other
States. The public, attention was aroused the
scheme scrutinized ; its gross unconslit til ion
tilily anil injustice and its dangerous ten
dency, its tendency to absorb the power
c.i i-dctw oj the States, were clearly perceived
and denounced ; the denunciation was too
deep to be resisted, and the scheme was a
bamloned.” This is the language this the de
liberately formed and expressed opinion of
Mr. Calhoun, on the subject of the distribu
tion of the surplus revenue, w ithin the short
pel iod ol t aree years. And could any gen
tleman believe, that now, at this moment in
the face of this recorded opinion, he has
introduced, is advocating and urging, an
amendment of the constitution for the avow
ed [mrpose of establishing the very scheme
which he said “ bad been scriiliiiized, its
dangerous tentlewy,\ti tendenry to absorb
\\w power and existence of the States, clear
ly perceived and denounced," and so strong
that denunciation, that the scheme had been
abandoned ? One ol tw o conclusions is
irresistibly forced upon tho mind, either
that there is some splendid project to be ae
( ompashed, lav orable to the views of him
self ami Mr. Clay, or else, if it has been an
: onest i I'atige ol opinion, he is an uncer
tain, unsafe, vassdatimg pilot, not ( O [ )e
trusted in a tempest—utiJer any aspect of
lhe case, lie stands contradicted. Ami
whether the opinions then expressed, or now
entertained, are t regulate his action on
the subject, is bey oml the reach of human
wi.uhmi. Then, sir, let not the honorable
gentleman rom South Carolina array this
“commanding figure” ami “great mind,”
as one worthy to lead in the accomplish
meutof this project, which I firmly believe 11
w ould absorb the power and existence of lhe
States;” mid believing that to be inevitable
effect, 1 shall for that reason and others, re
sist sa far as 1 can any measure from any and
every quarter, the effect of which would be
so (hsastrons to the existence of the States.
Allow me, Mr Chairman, to notice one oth
‘ r coiLsiduruiitui arising* out o|’ the rhinarks '
ol the honorable member I'roin South Caro-I
limi. It has been a contested point with!
some portion of tin people of the South, as j
to whom was entitled the credit of settling]
the tarifi question, on the. principles (.('the!
compromise. I have haard it said hy some
that the honor of that settlement belonged
to the party of the Senator from South Caro
[ Una, and upon that Senators course; Sir
i I am not ambitious of claiming the honor
j lor any friend. There is no principle in
i ike famous c itnprorni.se that is better than
the act of 1832. it is true, that it is modi
i ftcation, some reduction ; yet it contains
i some features of a most hateful contrivance
(and so artifully adjusted, for the interest ol
the manufacturer, that with many practical
men it is believed to be as fax arable as the
actol 1832. But, sir, be the credit great
;or small, it is neither due to Air. Clay or
| Air. Calhoun, and to that point 1 will a
i gain refer to the testimony of Air Clay as
given to the nation, in his speech of 35th
ol I’eduary, 1833. Air. Clay addressed
“•_? Senate as follows: “Air. President, 1
want *U?"b e'r 11V M ('*
motives which have prompted me to offer
this measure. 1 repeat what I said on t! e
introduction of it, that they are first to pre
serve manufacturing interest and secondly,
;to quiet the country. I believe the Atneri
' can system to be in the greatest danger,
, and i believe it can be placed on a better
; and safer ibutidaiiou al this session than al
; the next. 1 heard, with surprise, my friend
! from Ivlassachusetls say that had occUred
within the last six months to increase, its
hazard. 1 entreat him to review that opin
ion. Its correct ? is the issue ol the nu
merous elections, including that of the high
est officer of the Government nothing ?
,Is Ins deviation in his proclamation, that
the burdens of the South ought to i;e re
lieved, uoih’ni.!' ? is the introduction of the
bill In thy House of Rep. during this
; session, sanctioned by the bead of the Trea
sury and the administratiois prostrating
the greater part of the maaul’actures of lite
country nothing.”
“It is well known that the majority of
the dominant party is adverse to the tariff'.
There are many lionoralile exceptions, the
Senate) from New Jersey (Mr. Dickerson)
among them. But for the exertions of lhe
other party, the taritt’would have been long
{ since sacrificed. Now let us look at the"
; composition of the tw o branches of Con-j
I gress ;it lhe next session. In this bodv we |
; lose three friends of the protective policy, I
without being sure of gaining one. Hi re, ;
'judging from the present appearances, we
I shall at the next session be in the minority,
i In the House, il is notorious that there is a
! considerable accession to the number'oflhe
. dominant party. How, then, I ask, is the
j system to be sustained against numbers,
against the w hole w eight of the-administra-i
i lion?”
i Air. Chairman, if the declarations of Air. !
; Clay are authority on any question, and 1
■am sure none will pretend to deny it, lie
I has placed, the whole question o. the reduc-
I lion of the tarifi’on a footing the mo.-t llat-
I tering to the administration-. Yes, sir, it
w as the unremitting efforts of the President ;
; to arouse the people in every quarter oflhe
I Union to a proper view of the rights of all,
' that had a moral influence upon public
| opinion, irresistible, ami tending directly to
bring into Congress those representatives
; who would give efficient aid to his mlminis
traticn in carrv ing out his opinions in rela-!
lion to the tarffl’. Unfortunately for the I
i country, when the strength of the adminis
tration was nearly, if not quite, snffi< i mt, i
:to carry the fne.isure reported from the
■ head of the Treasury Deparlmetit, aim.-a- |
sure, which Air. Clay says, would have I
prostrated the greater part < f the maun- j
! faaluring interests, Mr. Clay.and Air. Cal- |
liotin conceived the project of forming an
; alliance, and instead of Air. Calhoun’s ad
vocating the principles of the bill reported
. from the Treasury Department, lie prefers
i io unite with Air. Clay in his project, there
! by deserting the interest of the South for
I the noble and patriotic motive of depriving
! the administration of the credit of settling
this great and fearful question. Bitt, for
I tunately for the age and the country, Air.
Clay has placed it fairly before the world,
and the honor will be, as it should be, a
vvarded to the faithful anti deserving.
There is, Mr. Chairman, one other con
nexion in which I desire to notice these
“commanding figures.” 1 cannot hut look
back to the commencement of this Coii
; gress, when expectation deep and inUm>e
pervaded every part of our country on the
! subject of our relations with France; nor
can I suppress the feei’mgof surprise I have
i always felt that Air. Calhoun and Air.
j Clay, who so triumphantly maintained in
[ the councils of their country, the honor of
[the nation in 1812, should, al this day, be
I willing, through the person of the Chief
Alagislrate, to inflict a stain upon our na
tional escuti Leon by withholding from the,
Executive that aid he had ai right to expect
; from every patriot, when the honor of the
country was involved. Tlie man in this
nation that would for one moment hesitate,
[when the absurd pretensioniis put up by a ;
foreign power, that for langjuige used in a !
conjinunicrtfion to Congress, they have a |
right to demand explanations as a condi
tion to the performance of a; treaty stipula
tion, most have lost till that e’evalvd, ar
! dent, and patriotic devotion for the honor
laud 'character of the nation that would
; characteri.’.e the num w ho, in the hour of
j peril, would-be on the side of his country, j
I Air. Chairman, having siibwn the present
i condition of your 'i'reasuify, its probable
[condition for the next two or three years,
i (to say nothing of the rapid decreiise that
must suddenly ensue under the operation of
[ the tarifi', that hangs suspended for years,
yielding up but a tenth per annum until the
appointed period, when it; suddenly falls
six tenths ot’ the excess ove.- twenty per
eenl within six months,) having shown the
causes that will most certainly produce a
decrease for the years ol’ 1836 and ’7, and
perhaps, foraltcryeai’s ; haying shown th.e
revenue from imports as vyell as from
sale of public lauds; and haying also slmvv n
the part now plating by
ky e. e. £<.<tinrvfccx
no. ass.
mg figmes ’ and “great minds” in relation
to the revenue, 1 slndl now call the atten
tion ol the committee to the argument of
the honorable member from Tennessee,
with a view to prove that it
must have been his < j.inion, so far from
tin re being a surplus revenue, that if the
sjs.em of public defence, as recommended
oy the President and the Leads of the De
partments, should become the policy of the
nation, ymir resources would be exhausti ttj
and the lm:-.ij<-;yl operations of the Goveiu
mtntchanged.
T lie honorable member from Tennessee,
in bis printed speech, says, “The first in
evitable result ol this poljcv, (alluding to
the system of defence now under conside
ration) fi itskdl be sanctioned by Congress;
will be the introduction, in a short period,
ot an inCreuH-il ami oppressive system ot
taxation-?’ "Mrno tfimCuawje member fur
ttier -says, “That the pYWlrrtaucrs tnc m«i<i
in such a rapid state of exhaustion, that ve
ry soon we shall find our revenue from this
(planer reduced to a million or less.”
Sir, I trust, witli at least a portion of
this Home and the people of this Union,
the warning Voice of that distinguished get)
llemmi will not be disregarded. He h..
told us what w ould be the consequence ot
that system ot defence which this adminis
ii- jtimi Zas wd rc:-oiwn.cr:dwl, v-hich no gen
tleman, so far as 1 know, has proposed; ; nii
which no friend of the measures of the Pre
sident would support. Whether it was his
policy, in imitation of the eqampleset by
the member from South Carolina, to make
a statement <>!’ the amount of public expen
ditures lor extraordinary purposes, so la-gc
that he imgiit become alarmed himself, amt.
in the office of true charily, frighten his
triends and followers, I uetither do say, noe
pretend to. alledge. Ent it may be said,,
and 1 mid ■rtai'e to maintain, that tlve-.-e in
no sysUm of public defence recommend)..;
by the President, or any portion of th •
friends of this administration, whereby as
expenditure of ten millions per annum i
proposed to be voted- as imagined by t!.<
gentleman from Tennessee.
Sir, the utmost limit, upon the largest
scheme, as proposed by any and ail the De
} pm-tments, would not far exceed one half m
the amount laid down by the gentleman.—
j If, then, I am not.mistaken in this view (d*
the case, 1 may claim the authority of th ■
gentleman’s name against the wild and dan
gerous project of distribution, as well us tic
system of defence w hich he supposes to be
acceptable to the administration, and still
save the systehr, which has been acttt. Hv
proposed by the party s'uppoi ting the ad
i ministration, from all the ‘e'ensure and oi ;
I mu, st; mmtp’tritrgly heaped upon it by iff •
' gentleman and others.
Sir, that honorable member should have
well tlelibcraled, he should have well con
sidered lhe ground he has himself so lou
m-cupied before the American people in ;v
--ler. nee to tile measures of this admimsir.
ti.nr, before he ventured forth in a ernsath
w hich 20tild only be intended to tear down
the very piinciples he Lad contributed s.
much to biti/d up. The gentleman should
have remembered that llfffe are blo’Vvs t-.»
receive, as well as to give, and that, how
ever pacific and forbearing are those tdlios
pleasure it once wtis, as it still would be, to
act with him on ad important meast.r; ..
eoiitiected with the administration of d e
Federal Government, still they have feel
ings, rights, and priiiciples, which tin .
caimot suffer to be lashed, either by an'opto
enemy or. by pretended friends.
Sir, :n the litmurable gentlemnti’s own
i'-tigtmge, 1 desire not to be misunderstci- .
belore the com,mitvee or elsewhere. Ai >
purpose is to do precisely what tlie gentle
mail Limself desired should be done : tt
answer the points he has raised, to meet the
charges he has preferred, without evasioff,
Li toe little i shall say, 1 shall aVoid s
much of the argument of the honorale
member from Tennessee as was aii'svVered,
anti most triitmphanily, in my opinion,
my esteeim d friend the honorable gemh
man from Virginia, (Mr. Garland.) Iv, id
not attempt to occupy ground taken I
inm. To do so would weaken, rather tha:
strengthen, the view presented bv that get.
tlenian. Nor do I regret that my liici.ii
from Virginia has preceded me, for his w
-I’oi-t lias left but little for me to do. A; -.
ptirp.o*e, however, will be with the utmo
'spirit ol’kindness, ami with the full cotivii
lion of my own weakness, to throw mvsei
upon the ground taken by the gentlenmii
from Tennessee, (Mr. Beil,) and with wlmt -
ever knightly grace 1 may pasScss, as ot;t
of tl the party," to receive the lance hurlet,
from his able arm; consoling myself, thm
if 1 should not be able th return the blow
1 shall at least command his respect for t
king a position so full ol’ danger to ntvsc-L
Air. Cbairntn'ii, should the opinion ente)
mined by the honorable member from Tei.
nessee be correct as to'the result of thesvs
tem of defence proposed by the administ ra-.
lion upon the revenue-oi the country, them,,
sir, liis frieml from South Carolina is wroi-.
in supposing that system a “ niiscrat
tjuaciwry, so far as regards the absorption,
of tlie revenue. Byway of illustration,
the former gentleman was show ing that the
system of public defence must be arrested.
And what, sir, was his reason? AVhv
“that although the system might be prm
in itself, ’ yet that you had not the mon.
to carry it on; while the latti r gentlema!
tells yo:t that you l 'inust distribute," b<
cause, by tin expenditure for the purpose,
of defences ol ten or twelve nitllions per an
num, you will not only not be able to ex
pend tl-.e surplus, but it will cpitiinue to at
cumulate.
Now, sir, I emmot undertake to settle,
between those two growing, if not “gre: i
minds,” which of them is correct. It inn,
be that neither is right. 1 tjfi u k ( htiv’.
.tfovi n it; bitt there is ono thing wy yj
k: ow that the gentleman frem South Car-,
olina luis told us that lie w ill go for g di.-tri
billion of the surplus; and lie has inrthev
mfurmed us, that there would bv tliirtv-fivc