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VOL. I.)
ATHENS, GEORGIA : PRINTED BY M'DONNELL HARRIS. SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 1809.
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OF THE
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The following Gentlemen are autho
rized to receive SubfcripTims for this
Paper :—
Clarksbcrtf —Port-Matter.
Jejferfon— Gen. B. Harris.
Watkinh'dls —S. B. Jenkins, efq.
and M . Edward B >nd.
Lexington —Reft Matter, & Capt.
Warkir.s.
Oglethorpe —Mr. Simurtt Shields,
and Wiiiiam Lumpkins, E:q.
Walnut Grove —Mr. Lee Adkins.
Go'fe-p:)::d —Mr. H. T. Woody.
G) eone shorn ’ —Car>r. T. Dawfon.
Spar*a —D ;ftor W. Terrell.
Warrcnicn — !*• >ft- Matter.
Poweltcn —Pott- Matter.
Mil’edgeviile — Thorpas Mobnger
and James Bozeman, Efqrs.
hatonton —Chriftopher B. Strong,
Efq.
Elbertov, —Col. Wm. Ch’flom.
Petersburg —Alex. Pope, Efq. Zc
Doft. Watkirs.
Vienn I—S.1 —S. B. Shields, Efq.
Wilkes —David Terrell, Eiq. Sc
Deft ;r Bibb.
Lincoln —Capta’n N. Allen, and
Cap . John Hughes. ‘
Louifmlle —MefT. Day & Whee
ler.
Augufla —J. S. Walker, Efq. &
Deft r Snru. it.
Waynesboro* —Col. John Davies.
Sanderfville —Mr. Wm. IvLMur
ray.
Savannah —Mr. H. H. Moun
ger, a,)| Mr. A. W. Scribner.*
it O N G R E S S.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTA
TIVES.
December 13.
Mr. Troup faid, he was extreme
ly happy to agree in one thing with
the honorable gentleman who has
jail fat down, that the fouthern had
not (uttered lefs by the operation
of the embargo than the eaftern
flares; but when in differing from the
gen deman from Mafia ehufetrs (Mr.
Qjine) on a point of (till greater’
importance he was alfo compelled
to differ from the hon. gentleman
from Virginia ; he did fo with the
deepeft regret. It has been faid
by He geudeman from Maflachu
fetts, (obferved Mr. TANARUS.) that for
the tail 11 months the country has
Juffered by this fyftem of embargo,
the extreme ofdifg r ace and humil
iation, and the gentiemac from Vir-
GEORGIA EXPRESS.
MANY SHALL RUN TO AND FRO, AND KNOWLEDGE SHALL BE INCREASED.
ginia has called it a meafure of de
grading fubmifiion. Sir, it is not
a meafure of fubmifiion \ it is a
meafure of refittance, and of the
moft formidable refittance. What
ever may have been the ofcjeft of
the Executive in recommending the
embargo, it has ever been fupporc
ed by me as a meafure of coercion,
as a meattfre of juftifhble retalia
tion. I contend that it is not fub
mifiion. Acquiescence in the or
ders and decrees ; fubmifiion to
feizure and condemnation, would
be fubmifiion to all intents and pur
ports ; but that meafure which
keeps at home the fhips and pro
perty which our enemies leek to
capture on the high fc3s is not fub
nvfliofc, but refittance, and the gen
tleman from Mafiachufetts will find
it fo to his forrew. Commerce, fir,
is the life-blood of England ; is
the foundation of her wealth, her
profperity and her maritime gran
deur. But the gentleman fays we
have retired from the highway of
nations and left our great rival free
to navigate vt. True—we have re
tired from the ocean ; we have left
our rival free to navigate ; but very
little more than between port and
port of her own dominions. We
have given the finifhing ftroke to
her exclusion -from the commerce
of the whole civilized world—ttie
has not one tittle of it left other
than wi.at you yourfelvea wc:ttd
have if your embargo were railed
to-morrow, and your committee
have told you what that is—a ican
ty, contemptible commerce of
7,000,000 of dollars. Ehghnd
loft when France fliut
the continent again!! her—fhe loft
o,ocO;oco by tbe occiufi >n of
you.* own, ports, and nothing of trade
is left her but that which <fns mav
drive with the native powers of
Afia and Africa, with Sweden, and
precarioufiy With Spain, Portugal
and their pofieffions. No more
then of railing the embargo to carry
on commerce, when .without a
facrifLe of independence, without a
ddhonorable fubmifiion to the or
ders of council we cannot carry on
more than 7,000,000 of commerce.
1 know ic is laid that the people
of the fouthern ftates are the ene
mies of foreign trade, thattheif fpi
ritand intereft are anti-commercial.
Sir, in this fentiment which is it.elf
without formation, nav without e
ven the fhadow of foundation is ro
be fought that jealoufy which has
given rife to lb many evils, and
from which fuch ferious evtts are
yet to be apprehended—but fir it is
a mean, pitiful, contemptible jeal
oufy. The fouthern ftates are not
the enemies of commerce—
how can st be faid of a people who
raife 70,000,000 of pounds of cot
ton, and for which they have not a
home market for 10,000,000, that
they are the enemies of commerce !
No fir, they have from the begin
ning of your government <0 the
prtlent day facrificed as much to
the profperity of commerce as any
people of the union; they have
been at all times as ready to go to
war for commerce-—on the attack
of the Chtfapcak© they were even
more forward to go to war for the
honor and and gnity of the flag than
the people of the eaftern ftates.
A httie more than was faid by
mv friend from Virginia, as to the
cotrparicive operation of the em
bargo on the eaftern and fouthern
flares—compare the operation of
this mcature by its proper teft—
the only true and correft one j the
depreciation of the refpeftive fta
pLs of thofe two frftlons of the
union. Let the gentleman from
Mafiachufctts ftate to the Houfe
what has been the depreciation of
his beef, pork, filh, butter, cheefe,
onions, potatoes and cabbages, and
1 will tell him what has been the
depreciation of our great ftaples
cotton and rice. The ordinary
market price of cotton is between
18 and 22 cents j the embargo
price is from 10 to 12 j the ordi
nary price of rice is from 5 to 6
dollars j the embargo price is from
2to 3. Our people are bcfidcs in
proportion to their number mote in
debt than the people of che Eaftern
ftates.
But the gentleman from Mafia
chufetts warns us againft a perfeve
rance in the fyftem of embargo—a
perfeverance according to the gen
tleman is to be followed by open
hottility to” the laws. Sir, 1 dread
no fuch hottility ; we have no rea
fon to dread ic; it is altogether im
pcfiible that- men who are actuated
by the bafeft of human pafiions, can
make a ferious movement in a re
volution. No, fir, I infill upon it,
we have no caufe to fear the anti
embargo men of Mafiachufetts j one
brave, independent, generous yco
frtan of Mafiachufects, would drive
half a dozen fuch fellows into the
ocean. But the truth is, the gen
tleman feems to have wholly mif
taken the condition of his country
men. He told us they had fuffer
ed every thing but famine, that the
diftrefs and ruin were co-exrenfive
with the country, they could or
would not fuller longer. Yet, fir,
the gentleman was not well feared
before his colleague (Mr. Bacon)
rofe, and with equal claim to vera
city and the fame opportunity ©f
forming a correft opinion, told you
that his honorable colleague had gi
ven a very high coloring to the
pifture ; that the diftrtfTes of the
people weie by no means as great
as they were deferibed, and that if
thev were lefs profperous and fl nj
rifhing than before the embargo,
they were far, very far from that
ftate of mifery which his colleague
had reprefented.
Sir, many of thefe obfervations
have been made with extreme re-
Juftancc : they have been extorted
under circumftances which mett
give pain to every American, but
which cannot fail to kindle in him
the livelifft indignation. No man
can read without horror and difguft
in the papers of the day, the moft
treasonable and flagitious libel that
ever difgraced our country (the a
nommous publication circulated in
Newbury-Port.)
Sir, it is remarkable that w; have
been fo gradually familiarized With
Britiih outrages, and have at length
become fo completely reconciled to
the tpott extravagant excefils of
them that what, two years ago you
would have been willing to go to
war for, would now be confidticd a
matter cf too trifling importance to
merit your attention, much lefs
your refentment. Two, yea’s ags
you were willing to go to war co
limit the right of Icarch, you would
have gone to war to prohibit the
praftice of impreif nent, you would
have gone to war to overturn the
lawlefs fyftem of blockade ; you
would have gone to war for the co
lonial trade ; for the attack on the
Chefapeake j two years ago you
would have gone to war for the or
ders in council, and now that all
thefe outrages aid more than thefe
have accumulated on row head uu
. . * ‘ iv
til you arc bowed down to the
earth—you are content to beg a
lie.le commerce of England—you
tell England if fhe will be pleafed
to grant you a little trade you will
open your ports to her and (hue
them againft France. This laft,
this humiliating overture file rej-fts
with indignation—you have no
choice left, as your commut'-e has
reported, but between war and em
bargo. We cannot go to war with
one without going to war with the
other j becaufe the wrongs done by
one are. not lefs than the wrong*
.done by the o:her—unbfs indeed
you confider the fheddmg of inno
cent blood the greatefl of all pcf
fible wrongs.
I know this meafure of embargo
has been condemned, loudly con
demned j but only by men who
propofe to releat themfelves in pow
er by an appeal to the feelings and
intereft of the community. In one
part of the countiw this appeal has
been made with effeft. The ava
ricious have been corrupted, the
ignorant have been duped. In all
countries there are the avaricious
and the ignorant, and the palfion of
the one and the crrdtility of che o
ther have been wielded with fuccefs
by the anti-embargo men. Sir,
the people have been led to believe,
that a commerce could be
carried on under the orders and de
crees, when in faft no commerce
could be carried on without com
promicting the honor of tne nation.
They have been led to believe tSa:
a commerce couM be csrried oh
without hazarding Te peace of the
country,- when in faft no commerce
could be carried on without involv
ing the country in war, and v/hilft
the great objeft of the government
was to proteft commerce the em
bargo was laid to aim a deadly blow
at commerce. It is by fuch mif
rep re fen tar ions that the noi fy ene
mies of embargo out ot doors have
been deluded and corrupted. And
are thefe the people to whom wt*
are called on to turn a rcfptftful
and deferential ear. The merelt
Shy locks—men who cry out, aw a/
with your honor, your independ
ence, your neutrality—they are a’l
fluff—give me gold ! B t!Hi mer
chants, Britiih agents, and malcon
tent Americans—the deprived of
the cities, and the ignora.'juof thi
country —men who are icady tu Ac-
(*°- 35.