Standard of union. (Milledgeville, Ga.) 183?-18??, July 05, 1836, Image 1

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EDITED BY TilO ti AN II 11 NEN. ENQ. VOL. ill. NO. 25. . (, -X , . t ‘S' . I CSi-'K 'tanbavo of 33 Y :e.. If.. iU)..B (IW.N, Publisher (/>// Authority,) of the Laus of the ' nifcd States: Ollicc on Greene Street, nearly oppo site the Market, Imuci! eveiy Tuesday morning,at 83 per annum No subscription taken for less than a year, and no paper discontinued, but at the option of [ tho publisher, until all arrearages are paid. Advertisemests conspicuously inserted at the i msuul rates —those not limited when handed in, will bu inserted ’till forbid, and charged accord ingly. Cll \NGE GE DIRECTION. We desire such of our subscribers as may at ! nny time w l-h the direction of their papers chan- . ged from one Post Office to another, to inform I us, in till rates, of the place to which they had I been previously sent; as the mere order to for watd them to a different office, places it almost I witof our power, tocomply,because we have no means of ascertaiuing'tbe office from which they I are ordered to he changed, but a search through our whole subscription Book, containing se vend thousand names. POSTAGE. It is a standing rule with this office, as well as all others, that the postage of all letters and communications to the Editor or Proprietor, must be paid. We repeat it again,—and re- I quest all persons having occasion to address us upon business connected in any way with the establishment, to hear it in mind. Persons wishing to become subscribers to the Standard ofl’nion, are particularly requested to give their attention to this; or they will not have the pa per fortcardcd them. Union, ZJcinorratic Iltpublietni 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