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DEBATES IN CONGRESS. j
!>' fur. House of Repbkskktativjss. Jan. 24. ,
1
DEBATE ON THE TARIFF. 1
REMARKS OF MR. WILDE, OF GEORGI A,. I
Mr WILDE begged permission, before, he proceeded, '
to * correct a misapprehension which might naturally -
ari=e from an observation of the honorable gentleman
from Massachusetts, [Mr. Appleton,] respecting himselt. _
That gentleman iud referred to the Journals of the 14th •
Congress, to tax him [Mr. W.] with inconsistency in
•voting against a proposition to reduce the duty on brown 1
-sugar from three and a half to tvyo or two and a It:If *
cents. The price of the article was then from sixteen
to nineteen cents, and the duty he voted for, as a revenue
duty, was ticenty per cent. The honorable gentleman
could have found a more just and recent cause ol com- 1
plaint against him. As a member of the Committee of r
Ways and Means, at this very session, he had voted for |
reporting a hill, in which the same article, now valued at
about five cents, was proposed to he charged with a duty
«f two cents, or forty per cent. His apology was to be 1
feuad in his unwillingness, by sudden changes, to ruin i
large bodies of men—in his attachment to tUe union, <■
the harmony, and the happiness ot his whole country.
Which was strongest, his love ot Peace, or the gentle- *
man’s love of Justice? This sample of their fabrics 1
would enable the committee to determine. 8
A short time sinoe, he had urged the observance of a (
sound legislative rule—majorities vote, minorities talk. 1
It raight°seem, as sometimes happens to better men <
than himself, there, waa some slight disagreement be
tween .precept and example. In reality it was not so.
lie hail the ready justification of a politician’s alibi- a
■change of circumstances. He had been in the majority,
•and he voted :he i cun la the minority, and he talked.— >
Properly understood, and a proper understanding, was 1
'.indisnensablc in all things. He was perfectly consis- t
tent.’ Yes. sir! said Mr. W., we were m a majority; f
it was not contested. We arc in a minority. How .
does it happen ? Has our majority thawed away under I
the melting breath of executive pleasure ? Has it bee. <
dispersed, like a nullifying mob, by the President a proc
lamation? Have we been routed by the Siamese twin- '
logic of the gentlcqien Irotn Connecticut, [.Messrs, Ells
worth and Huntington] or the more powerful! lungs ot •
the gentleman from Pennsylvania ? [Mr. McKennan.] I
The inquirv may not be uninteresting to a portion of the 1
people of the United States. If the motion of the gen- |
lleman from Connecticut [Mr. Huntington] prevails, this i
bill is defeated. In the present temper of the commit- '
tee, it must prevail. In the Committee of the \V hole on i
the state of the Union, we cannot have tire ayes and
noes. We.cannot catch the eols in the gill-net: and as i
the people of the South will be unable to imagine why i
such concessions, as they thought were offered, should
be refused, ‘he felt it to be liis duty to assist their inqui- ]
ries.
He considered this, in effect, a proposition to continue i
the present tariff; tor the' purpose of carrying on the <
war against South Carolina. The merits of the contra- i
versy were best summed up by the pithy saying of an i
eastern manufacturer —of what use is the Union without <
the tariff? and what good will the tariff do us without 1
the Union? The proposition to the South, then, is this:
“ You shall pay taxes for the conquest of South Caroh. i
na .” Now, sir, said Mr. W., I put it to your candor to £
eay if we are to fight for manufactures, whether tlje i
manufacturers ought not to pay the expenses of the *
war? •So far as his voice went, they should do so. He! I
would not vote a man a musket for any such purpose.. £
But there was something still more extraordinary. 1n« 1
high tariff party of tha North and East say they pay an t
equal, or greater portion of these taxes ; and they only ‘
ask for the poor privilege oi being allowed to tax them - \
selves fo r the protection of their own industry ! Ana so,
■ir, they mean to fight qs for the right to tax themselves, t
and insist that, in justice, we must pay the cost ot the .
campaign 1 Compared with this, Dr. 1 rauklhis 1 rench
man with ins poker, was mild and reasonable. Mr. W. j
aaid he put this proposition, not Carolina, she i
had decided ; but he put it to Virgin®? to North Carolina. <
Who says she sleeps when liberty is in danger and Aa. !
thaufiel Macon lives ? He put it to Georgia, to Alabama, i
to Mississippi, to Tennessee, to Kentucky. All had an 1
interest in the question ; and lie reminded all, “3 uares I
agitur paries cuvi proximo ardet ." South Carolina i
.ays she will endure 'his system no longer. If you m- i
.fat on ruining the concern by your dishonesty and ex
travagance. she asks leave t« withdraw from the part- ,
nership. You say she shall slay and be ruined; and
she won’t, you ask tor to help yon to blow her brains out
O, most holy Union', which must bo preserved by c > in n o ‘
and bayonets ! Happy Republic ! by thh grace of God
and gunpowder, one and indivisible ! Shall *' e P ot liejd
our bulletins like revolutionary France, when- 111 an ec
stucy of affection for all mankind, she proclaimed ra.\-
te unity or DEATH 1 May we not say with her poet, the
keenness of whose epigrams nothing can equal, but tne
instrument which would have rewarded him had he been .
discovered? —
“O. lebel age, quand I’homme dit a I’homme,
4 * Soyons freres! ou je t assomine. i
He begged pardon of the House for his bad French; at
least his bad pronunciation of it. If they knew under
what circumstances his little knowledge of the language
was acquired, they would excuse him. He would not
venture to translate, mindful of the proverb ;• but a free
version, adapted to the times, might read,
“ O ' blessed age ! when loving Senates vote,
“ Let us be brothers ! or I'll cut your throat!
Aye, sir, redress is refused—secession is denied—
oppression is continued—and the sword of the Federal
Executive is to be flung in the scale of the Federal Ju
diciary ! Discordant concord and perpetual union, are
proclaimed by sound of trumpet, and upon pain of death.
Perpetual union! on such terms, it is the Dutrh innkeep
er’s universal peace! When the amiable enthusiast,
whose memory Paul and Virginia would preserve when
his philanthropic visions were forgotten, published his
proposal for pacifying the world, mine host seized on the
idea for a new sign. It was inscribed, indeed, “A la
paix universelle but the design was —a churchyard!
Such was nbt the peace of the peacemakers to whom
the benediction was given. It was not the peace of God,
or the peace of treedom ; it was the peace of those de
scribed by Tacitus : -
“ Solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellent.”
But it is said, what other course than coercion is
left us? South Carolina has nullifled all tariff laws,
whether for revenue or protection. If we pass this bill,
will she not nullify it also? Will it satisfy her ? Mr.
W. said he had no authority to speak for South Carolina.
If he could say it would be satisfactory, he should be
cautious of doing so. For that very reason it might be
unsatisfactory to others. This was one of the instances
in which Foatenelle’s maxim applied ; if you have your
handful of truth, do not open more than your little finger.
Thus much was certain. The bill by no means con
cedes all that Carolina claims as a matter of strict right;
but it may present terms which, for the sake of harmony,
she would accept. At all events, it suspends the oper
ation of her ordinance, if we pass it. Oivthis point there
seetpad t 0 him to be an erroneous impression. No
thing could be clearer, than, if any law passes, the con
venrion must be called again; and in the mean time the
law’ operates. If the law afforded even reasonable hope of a
return to juster councils, could it be doubted that South
. Carolina would pause? Upon the passage of this bill,
or one similar in principle, depended he believed, the
peace and integrity of the Union If it was lost, he re
peated. the people of the South should know how, why,
and by whose fault it was lost. If the responsibility
rested on their representatives, they would hold them
. If nn others, they would learn to
SjkSSSSSb J id preukded friend,. How
was the present measure brought forward ? Mr. W
adverted to the President’s message at the beginning ot
Congress, recommending, in strong and pla.iri_lerrna, a
modification of the tariff. Has he, asked Mr. W., at any
time advanced other opinions ? Has he esoteric and ex
oteric doctrines ? \Vas.any gentleman authorized to say
the President did not desire the passage ot this bill, or
at this time ? ,He would yield the floorfof such a sen
tinqent. No. There was every indication that he de
sired "it should pass—that it should pass at this session
speedily—at once.
Nejct in its official importance, on questions of reve
*ae, was the opinion of the Secretary of the Treasury
This was well known from his annua! report, arid hii
to ? Tiadottor*. traditore.
K “v
communications with the Committee of V\ ays and
Means and the Committee on Manufacture* He spoke
of public and official transactions, not of conversations,
secret or confidential. There were noite such. If
there had been, he trusted he knew better what wa~ due
to the sanctity of social intercourse, than to violate it
voluntarily. Nor would his vanity, if he had been the
depositary of a State secret, the first, and.no doubt, the
last he would have been trusted with, have induced
him to hint at the important and mysterious character of
hts-chargc. He'lspo'ke of matters open and avowed ;of
things authorized to be communicated, and, in slat
ed to the House by the chairman of the Committee on
Manufactures, [Mr. Hoffman.] ,He was warranted,
then, fin saying that the bill had the approbation of the
Secretary of the Treasury ; that it, would give the ne
cessary amount of revenue, without, in his opinion,
leaving any inordinate excess, or destroying the m&iju.
facturers. The character of the Secretary was a guar
anty that whatever he uttered he behoved. He [Mr. W.]
was no eulogist; but when he had occasion to speak of
any man, he would do equal and exact justice. No!
he retracted that expression; equal and exact justice '
was beyond the power of man. But he would do his
Iriends a little loss than what he thought justice, that he
might not flatter them through partiality; and his ad
versaries somewhat metre, that he might not censure
them from prejudice. Whatever else the Secretary
was, he did net want civil courage. On that floor, where
Mr.. W. had known him best, his opinions, right or
wrong, were always boldly avowed and manfully de.
fended. Had he changed since then ? Would any one
assert it ? Was there any one there who would hazard
the assertion, that Louis McLane ever wore two faces,
uttered a falsehood, or betrayed a friend ? There could
not he attributed to him, therefore, any more than to the
President, two sets of opinions, private and public.
Who-else was tlrere, then, whose views of this mat
ter could be supposed to cxercisef a material influence on
the fate ot the bill? The Vice President elect? Is :
not he, too, -said to be in favor of a reduction of duties j
to the revenue standard ? Is not tfte, too desirous that a
bill should pass for that purpose, at this session ? We
have the strongest trssurancesthat it is so. But the age
is sceptical, and demands proofs. The position of this
gentleman is in many respects critical, and full of diffi
culties. Far be it from me to add to his embarrassment.
But at this time, anti on this subject, there can be no fal
tering, His past conduct in relation to it is not clear |
from ambiguity. The temptations that beset him ar#
strong. What then ? Truly, 'great men are ever great
est in the crisis of their fate. Noble and generous spi
rits rise with the danger, and are equal to the emergen
cy. In this he is confidently affirmed to be with us;
but I warn some of his friend* who have been with us,
but are with us no longer, that the best evidence, per
haps the only evidence, which the South will accept of
his sincerity, is their votes. To them, then, I appeal ;
to them I address myself. Os what use is it to speak
to the high tariff men of the House ?—the opponents ol
the administration, and yet the advocates of coercion.
Their choice is made—their sanguinary purpose uttered.
To whom, then, but to our political friends shall we
look in the day of trial ? Where else shall we ask
aid 7 where else can we find hope ? To them I turn,
not to exhort, I have no vocation ; not to lecture, I am
no professor; but to expostulate, as friend with friend.
Until recently we stood in the same ranks, fighting the
same battles, struggling the same adversaries, acknow
ledging the same leaders. It they now waver in their
faith or courage, may we not, without offence, entreat
thf.n to stand by as iu this our last great danger ? Is
it not due to them, as well as to eursclve*, that our
thoughts of each other should be expressed frankly, but
not bitterly ? If we have come to the pointy at whicn
we can no longer net together, without the violation ot
some duty, or the abandonment ot some principle, let
the fact be avowed and the motive admitted. '1 bus, and
thus only, if we must separate, can both escape re
proach, and hereafter neither can complain ot being de
serted or betrayed. J invite them, then, to examine the
strength and weakness -of their own position. The cir
cumstances under which the bill came forward, had al
ready been adverted te. All the auspices, whether of
men or days, were happy ; all the omens favorable. Who
coulld be better fitted for a work of conciliation than his
honourable friend frem New-York ? [Mr. Verplanck.]
Where could we look for so much zeal, tempered by *o
much prudence, and, above all, for sincerity unsullied by
a doubt? The very sun shone forth upon his bill at the
moment of its first reading; and, in its earlier stages, it
was borne along by triumphant majorities, composed in
part of the very gentleman to whom I now especially
address myself. By whom is this destructive motion
made ? By an avowed advocate of the high tariff and
restrictive system ; by an ardent opponent of the present
administration ; by a determined adversary of the fa
vourite and leading politician of New-York.
By whom is it supported ? By the mriat resolute and
unwavering enemies ot State rights, the doctrines of
Jefferson, and the republican school of politics.
For what purpose ? To destroy the bill. The ob
jer.t is no: concealed ; on the contrary- it is distinctly an
nounced. When I said to the gentleman from Connecti
cut, [Mr. Huntington] the other day, that, -according to
his argument, the bill would not give us revenue enough,
and his motion went to reduce it still more, he the
force of the objection. What was his reply ? “True,
but the gentleman from Georgia must be aware that the
motion, if successful, will be followed up by others to
raise other duties, and thereby to get the increase of re
venue required.” In plain terms, tea and coffee must be
made free, that wool and woollens and cottons may b*
subjected to prohibitive duties. The gentlemen to whom
this appeal is made, hold the fate of the bill in their
hands. If this motion succeeds, and it will succeed if
they support it, the bill is lost. Will they bear with me
while I hazard some conjectures on the consequences ?
I have no gift of prophecy. I possess no powers, and
employ no instruments of divination, other than such as
are* common to every one of ordinary sagacity ; but what
trill be, must spring from what is, just as what is must
have procceeded from what has been. To transmute
the cast into the future, is the true alchymy of intellect.
I -'ns see what we can extract from the alembick.
The first aid least evil which may proceed from the
defeat of this erasure, if the blow comes from the quar
ttwhW.Sre...n, it. will be .0 throw the power of
settling this vexed question into other hands. Is this an
imaginary danger? What says the horoscope ? Are
there no starry impending planetary con
junction or opnosition, boding *vl«to the great and little
politicians of the North ? May not Hesper regain the as
cendant? In phrase less mystical, iw « not a law o
power that majorities divide, and minorities coim.uje.tt
the North and East coalesce to support the principles
of the proclamation, may not the South and West, fa
whom they are less acceptable and familiar, unite to re
sist them? And what can be fairer or more natural ? If
the gianf and magician conspire, how can they be de
feated but by nullification and Old Harry? Peace is a
gilt too precious to be rejected, come from what hands it
mav. The country must be saved, let who will save it.
A civil war must be prevented, whoever is pacificator.
The power is in the hands of my friends. It is the first
wish of my heart that they should use it. I invoke them
to do so. ’ I entreat them by every motive of fellowship,
of party, of patriotism, of humanity! But if they refuse;
if their destiny is written; if even party spirit loses some
thing of its influence by an unnatural alliance with reason
and justice; still, I repeat, the country must be saved,
and let the honor be his to whom the honor shall be due.
Have our friends considered how they and their leaders,
and their constituents, must feel in such a new coalition
as their votes will throw them into ? Once’ more, 1 be
seech them to pause, if the part they must take is not
already fixed, the company they must keep already cho
sen Once more, I remind them, that, if they involve
this country in a civil war, the administration, sooner or
later will have for its adversaries the whole South, its
oldest and most steadfast friends, and for its ne w allies
those who have pursued it with the bitterest ridicule and
the deadliest enmity. Before they throw themselves
into this false position, I invite them to review with me
the arguments which are used to seduce them from their
republican principles, their party attachments, and their
southern brethren. . , ... ,
We have heard that we must not submit to be bullied
by a single State. We must not legislate with a sword
over our heads. We will not be dictated to by South
Carolina! Against listening to these miserable sugges
tions of false pride, we were cautioned by my friend
from New York [Mr. Verflange] m language so ele
gam and touching, that nothing can be taken from, no
thing added to it, without injury.
In family quarrels the best heads and hearts are ever
ready to make the greatest allowance for errors ofjudg
i mem and infirmities of temper. Stickling on points of
i ceremony in such cases, is ridiculous. nen erl =• *
r to domestic broils, the etiquette is that, fixed in otner oa
ses, by old Frederick of Prussia, the grea es
f goes-firsi.” But bad motives will be imputed to us. *
i shall be said to have yielded to our fears. An vv a
y course of conduct can we pursue, to which bad motives
cannot be imputed ? Bad motives have been imputed to
y me, Mr. Chairman, to you, and to every bodj else. Is
r that to be a reason for neglecting our duty ? Then we
i. must never do any thing. The very course gentlemen
>. are pursuing to escape the imputation of bad motives,
_ will expose them to that very imputation.
For example ; an extract of a letter was pointed out to
him the other day in a newspaper, which stated, “ it is
r. also said that Judge Marcy has written to the Van Biiren
is members of Congress that they, must stick to the exis
ting tariff’, and oppose any reduction of duties until Cal
houn shall he aafftoroughly down a» to prevent all dan-
I ger of his politics! resurrection. After that is done, it
J ismtimated that something might be yielded to South
Carolina.”
Now he [Mr. W.] did not believe that Judge Marcy
had ever written such a letter. He had 100 good an o
pinion of his prudence. He had no idea the Vice Presi
dent elect'had ever authorized any one to write such a
letter. But the father-in-law of Judge Marcy is under
stood to exercise a great influence over the political of I
New York, to have a very deep interest in wool and to
be utterly opposed to any reduction of duly on it/ Jud<*e
Marcy and the Vide President elect are intimate and coTi- i
fidenffal friends. The worl^ applies with little discrim- I
inarion the maxim, “- nosrdtUr a sociis and, putting all •
these things together, it is easy so impute bad motives,
and to suppose that one man Speaks the opinions of an- j
other. Now, the" truth no doubt is, that the gentleman "j
in question [Air. Knower] does entertain an opinion tififii- i
vorable to a modification of the tariff, at .present. He -
may hare expressed that opinion to his political friend-s, j
ns he has a perfect right to do. Neither Judge Marcy I
nor tiie Vice President elect are'in the slightest degree j
responsible for it: and the opinion itself may,be perfect- 1
ly honest. Yet, after all, such is the unchafitabieness
of the world, that when men have a personal interest in
maintaining certain very honest opinions, the honesty of j 1
such opinions is thought to be a scruple less than stan- ■
dard fineness. The popular notion of honesty was best ! !
expressed by a builesqne toast which the remembered. 1
Some years ago, some one, he forgot at the moment who, I
had bean toasted as “ the man who dares be honest in 1
the worst of times. ” A wag of Boston—where, by the '
bye, they manufacture the best toasts, if toasts are not 1
their best manufacture—wrote a ludicrous account of 1
an abolition festival, where Cassar or Cuffy were thus
made to Travesty that sentiment: “De man ;—who dare 1
be lioness when he git nothin by him.” That, sir, [said 1
Mr. W.] is the only honesty which wins universal ere- j *
flence. A failure to observe it was the great mistake of
a distinguished gentleman from the West, who, eight 1
years ago, had-occasion to give a vote in that House for *
President, and who afterwards became (Secretary of *
Slate under the Presidency of the gentleman for whom 1
he voted. In that vote the person receiving it might bo '
equally free Irom the slightest censure. Mr. W. be
lieved they were so. Neither did he mean to be under
stood as saying that in consequence of that vote the gen
tinman referred to got any thing. He was not one of
those who argue “ post hoc, ergo, propter hoc." He had 1
not joined the vulgar clamor: but that the fact ot his '
taking office had been successfully though wrongfully
appealed to as implicating the purity of his motives, ad
mitted of no doubt. His honesty had been assailed, be
cause it did not appear to be unprofitable. Who, then,
can expec tto escape censure if tiiey profit by their hon- '
csty ? He adverted to these things, not to wound the
feelings and much less the reputation of any human be
ing. For all the distinguished names of his country he
cherished an habitual fondness. Me felt he had an in.
torest in them all as an American citizen. Whoever
tarnished their lustre, robbed him of a portion of his
birthright. The matters he referred to were mentioned
in no spirit of censoriousness or unkindness, but as to
pics of philosophical argument and speculation. They
might serve to show gentlemen that the fear of having ;
bad motives imputed to them, was no safe rule of ac
tion ; for, in the instance alluded to, the distinguished
citizen upon whom such motives were, no doubt untru
ly, supposed to operate, was at first disposed to decline
coming into the administration. his friends per
suaded him that such a refusal would be attributed to
the timidity of an evil conscience, and their importuni
ties exposed him, through the feat of danger, to the Ve
ry danger they feared.
But, sir, continued Mr. W-, if it were possible that
any friend of the Vice President elect could entertain Or
inculcate such a course as the letfer-writer mentions,
nothing could be at once more ignoble and more impoli
tic. Even Sylla saved his country before he chastised
his enemies; and was one as much better than Sylla, as
Sylla was greater than him, urged to remember his petty
interests and animosities when the republic was in dan.
ger? Sir, the recent experience of the New-York
statesman’s opponents might teach Ins friends this salu
tary lesson. Never seem to persecute a depressed ad
versary, if you do not wish to raise him above you.
But it will be urged.no doubt, that the Vice President
elect ought not to be identified with the gentlemen to
whom these considerations were suggested, nor they
with him. They were not his men, nor any one else’s
men. They were their own men. Undoubtedly- He
intimated nothing to the contrary. But, unhappily
again, *• circumstance, that unspiritual God,” bore testi
mony againt them, and, however hard it might be, the
rule of political judgment was the rule of the prize
court. Circumstanstial evidence outweighed positive i '
asseverations. The rule was harsh—oftentimes unjust;
but it was the rule of the world, and the world alone
could alter it. Unfortunately, these gentlemen were all’
well known as partisans. He traced no gentleman thro
ayes andnoes ; but unless his memory deceived him up
on every test question of party, they were faithful to
their colors, far beyond himself. The Bank of the CJiu
ted States, the Choctaw reservations, the breach of pri
vilege, the Wiscasset collector, all proved their perfect
orthodoxy; and could they who subscribed the- whole
thii ty-nine articles boggle at the first question-in the
catechism ? Where is party discipline more perfect
than in New York ? Have they not punished my friend
[Mr. Verplanck] with the ostracism for a breach of it?
And if all honorable duty is forbidden, ought lie not to
be proud of his punishment?
We have often been reminded of the power of the
Uniied States. To what purpose ?' Is the mere gift of
strength a using it ? Can it make, right, or
legalize oppression ? “ Power without wisdom,” says
the Poet, “is but armed injustice.” Either he says tru
ly, or we should apostrophize the sword with Devereux.*
“ God, law, and priest, and prophet of the strong I”
Power enables its possessor to be magnanimous.
The weak can never yield with so good a grace. Is
the best part of the possession the only one we are nev
er to use ?
Besides, is the concession made to South Carolina
alone ? Are there not five or six other States which
have suffered long,-and who stilVentreat without threat,
ening? What is the argument as to them ? We cannot
fake off your burthens until we chastise South Cardjina.
May they not answer very reasonably, relieve us first
and chastise her afterwards. But if you insist on chas
tising her first, and keeping on our burthens until it is ef
fected, when are we to be relieved? A gentleman of
much experience, who thinks South Carolina ought to be
quelled, [Mr. Adams] is said to have estimated the
cost of the conquest at ten millions, and the annual loss
to the revenue during the operation at three. When
South Carolina is chastised, we, who are Invited to as
sist jn correcting her, will fiqd ourselves sharers in her
punishmdht. Tea and coffee may continue free, but the
duties on the Protected articles will increase. Having
warred for taxeC-, we shall pay taxes for the war.
But if we submit tc? one State, we must to another .
first, one will nullify, and then a second ; and if we
yield to each of their demands, what is left ot the Gov.
ernment will not be worth having—it will become con
temptible from its weakness. The strength ot Govern
ment is in the .affection of its citizens. M-as France
ever stronger than in the days of the republic ? Does
history show any example of people rebelling agal- nst *
Government which did not oppress them ? Has South
Carolina no cause of complaint? The whole South says
she has. Seven States complain that they are oppress
ed. The President himself, in his message, admits the
fact. Yet we must give them not redress, but chastise
ment, lest, hereafter, other States should nullify without
cause. A Government, professing to be founded on
reason, desires to consolidate its empire by steel. It
claims to derive all its just powers from the consent.-of
the governed, yet seeks to eke out its authority by a lit
tle gentle force. Why and whence the revival of all
this clamor for a strong Government ? Is not the Govern,
ment which lasted Thomas Jefferson through the em
bargo, and Tames Madison through the war, strong
enough for any President ? Do we not know the origin,
the progress, and the defeat of that sect in politics,
whose favorite object it was to establish a strong G >v
ernment ? That sect the republicans of New York and
Pennsylvania resisted, and at last overthrew. Are they
about to be converted to the rejected heresy ? more fed
ral than federalism ?—aye, arch federal ? Let me avail
myself of the authority of the great apostle of republi
canism—he who wrote the political gospel of American
independence. “ A Government held together by the
bands of reason only, requires much compromise of opin
ion ; that things even salutary, should not be crammed
down the throats of dissenting brethren, especially
when they may be put into a lorm to be swallowed ; and
that a great deal of indulgence is necessary to strength
en habits of harmony and fraternity.”? Sir, he was
right, [said Mr. W.] Government, to use a comparison
which would come home to the business of some ofrhis
Pennsylvania friends—Government is like iron : tough
est when.softest.. If you harden it to make it stronger,
i it becomes
• Even arbitrary monarchs find their beat support in
the affections of their subjects,. There is but one way
i to make “ taxation no tyranny.” It is that recomcaend--
, ed by old Burleigh to Elizabeth—“. win men’s hearts,
and you have their hands and their purses.”
j The violence and precipitation of South Carolina
s
3 * Devereux, book 3, chap. 3, p. 180.
k t Memoir and Correspondence of Thomas Jefferson,
vol. 4, p. 392. Letter to Edward Livingston, 4th April,
I 1824. ’ '
have been objected to. If she is wrong in her resis
tance to the tariff, however moderate she might be, she
would be wrong still. If she be right, she will not
cease to be right on account of her violence. One of
the strongest political discourses he ever heard was de
livered on that floor fey an honorable gentleman from
Virginia, [Mr. Randolph] from the text, “the kingdom
of heaven suffcretli violence, and the violent take it by
force.” That speech had more effect than any one cir
cumstance, except the battle of New Orleans, in making
Andrew Jackson President of the.-Unitetf States.
Aluch has been said in the course of this debate about
nullification. On that doctrine he had once expressed
an opinion, of which he had nothing to retract, nothing
to. explain. Nullification could do little harm but for
the help of the tariff. It reminded him of a spying,
which he would quote for the gentlemen from Connecti
cut, [Messrs. Ellsworth and Huntington] who had quo
. ted him : “ the devil would not do so much mischief if
,tt were not for tiie witches.”* Tne -gentlemen had been
pleased to extract from a certain letter of his, such
parts as they thought made-in favor cf their argument;
and they referred to them with much praise, and some
triumph. One advantage that letter at least procured
him—some slight credit for candor and fair dealing, and
a reputation for courage enough to tell the truth. But if
he was a good witness for the East, he was for the South
also. His testimony, if it was worth any thing, must be
taken altogether. If it would be good to show the ori
gin of the restrictive system, it would be good to prove
the deeply-seated,.all-pervading discontent of the South
ern States. It would avail as testimony that Union and
the present protective duties are incompatible. We
must choose between them.
The gentlemen from Connecticut, [Messrs. Hunting,
ton and Ellsworth] had recommended to his attention
part of his own letter. There were other parts which
he would recommend to theirs. 4f his memory served
him, he had there said, too many would be found in every
country to flatter aßdiinflatne the inclinations of whom,
or whatsoever may be sovereign; comparatively few to
argue with the masters of votes or legions. For the
reason, then, that if he were the representative of a m*m
ufacturing district, addressing at that crisis implicit be
lievers in the beneficent magic of the restrictive policy,
lie should attempt to mitigate their zeal and confidence;
for the same reason, appealing to those who werg con
vinced of its malignant influence, it was hisduty to soothe,
if possible, their just indignation. Unless this course of
conduct was pursued by all who aspired to be thought
honest and dispassionate, must not alienation spread and
become incurable ? Do not the gentlemen from Con
necticut, continued Mr. W., aspire to be thought honest
and dispassionate ? If they do, let them anwer me this
question. The gentlemen have praised“-havc they tin.
itated me ?
With respect to the character of the right to secede,
and the circumstances and limitations under which it
could be exercised, this was not the time todiscuss them.
II e would say but a word. Unless there were instances i]
in which a State could say to her associates, “ Non in j
haic feedera venimus,'” disguise it as we will, this is a
great consolidated Government; and if, for maintaining
her construction of the compact through her courts and
juries, she is to be sabred and bayoneted, it is a dlspo-
TISM.
Last session we were told, “if Carelina will go, let
her go?” We were told “we could not drive her out of
the Union.” Now we must cut the throats of her citi
zens if she will not remain!
On this head, he could not avoid citing an apt passage
from the declaration & protest'drawn up by Mr. Jefferson,
with the intention of being submitted to the Legislature
of Virginia.?
“ Whilst the General Assembly thus declares the
rights retained by the States, rights which they have
never yielded, and which this State will never volunta
rily yield, they do not mean to raise the bannerol dis
affection or of separation from their sister stales, co
purties with themselves to this compact. They know
and value too highly the blessings of their Union as to
foreign nations and questions arising among themselves,
to consider every infraction as to be met uy actual rc.
sistance. They respect too affectionately tire opinions
of those possessing the same rights under the same in
strument, to make every difference of construction a
ground of immediate rupture. They would indeed con
sider such a rupture as among the greatest calamities
wtiiclf could befall them ; but not the greatest. There
is yet one greater —submission to a Government of un
limited powers. It is only when the hope of avoiding
this shall become absolutely desperate, that further Ibr
bearance could not be indulged Should a majority of
the co-parties, therefore, contrary to the expectation &.
hope of this assembly, prefer at this time, acquiescence
in these assumptions of power by the federal member
of the Government, we will be patient, and suffer much
under the confidence that time, ere it be too late, will
prove to them also the bitter consequences in ,which
that usurpation will involve us all. In the mean while,
we will breast with them rather than separate from them
every misfortune, save that only of Jiving under a Go
vorninVnt of unlimited Dowers.”!
A quarter of a century before, the patriarch had held
similar language; “ I thought something essentially ne
cessary to be said in order to avoid the inference of ac
quiescence; that a resolution or declaration should be
passed, 1. answering the reasonings of such of the
States as have ventured into the field of reason, and
that of the committee of Congress, taking some notice
too of those States who have either not ausweted at all,
or answered without reasoning; 2. making firm protes
tation against the precedent and principle, and reserving
the right to make this palpable violation of the federal
compact the ground ot doing in future whatever we
might now rightfully do, should repetitions of these and
other violations of the compact render it expedient; 3.
expressing, in affectionate and conciliatory language, our
warm attachment to union with our sister States, and to
the instrument and principles by which we are. united ;
that we are willing to sacrifice to this every thing but
the rights of self-government in those important points
which we have never yielded, and in which alone we see
liberty, safety, and happiness ; that not at all disposed io
make every measure of error or of wrong a cause of
scission, we are willing to look on witii indulgence, and
to wait with patience till those passions and delusions
shall have passed over, which the Federal Governme./t
have artfully excited to cover its own abuses and con
ceal its designs, fully confident that the good sense of
the American people, and their attachment to those ve
ry rights which we are now vindicating, will, before it
shall be too late, rally with us round the true principles
of our federal compact. This was only meant to give a
general idea of the complexion and topics of such an in
strument. Mr. M. who came, as had been proposed,
does not concur in the resercation proposed alone; and
from this I recede readily, not only in deference to his
judgment, but because, as we should never think of sep
aration, but for repeated and enormous violations, so
these, when they occur, will be cause enough of them-
* V, __
further development of these ideas was to be found
in his letter to Mr. Giles, from which Mr. W. begged
leave to read a couple of passages. “I see as you do,
and with the deepest affliction, the rapid strides with
which the federal branch of our government is advanc
ing towards the usurpation of all the rights reserved to
the states, and the consolidation in itself ot all powers,
foreign and domestic; and that too, by constructions
which, if legitimate, leave no limits to their power.
Take together the decisions of the federal court, the
doctrines of the President, &, the misconstructions ot the
constitutional compact acted on by the legislature ot the
federal branch, and it is but too evident that the three
rul*f blanches of that department are in combination to
strip their colleagues, the state authority, ot the powers
reserved by them, and to exercise themselves, all func
tions, foreign and domestic. Under the power to regu
late commerce they assume indefinitely that also over
agriculture and manufactures, and call it regulation to
take the earnings of one of these branches ot industry, i
that, too, the most depressed, and put them into the
pockets of the other, the most flourishing ofall. * * *
And what is our resource for the preservation of the
constitution? Reason and argument ? You might as
well reason and argue with the marble columns encir
cling them. The representatives chosen by ourselves ?
They are joined in the combination, some from incorrect
views of Government, some from corrupt ones, suffici
ent voting together to out-number the sound parts, and
with majorities of one, two, or three, bold enough to go
forward in their defence. Arc we, then, to stand to
our arms? No I that must be the last resource, not to
be thought of until larger and greater sufferings. If
every infraction of a compact of so many parties is to
be resisted at once as a dissolution of it, none can ever
be formed which would last one year. VVe must have
patience and longer endurance, then, with our brethren
while under delusion; give them time for reflection and
experience of consequences; keep ourselves in a situa
tion to profit by the chapter of accidents ; and separate
from our companions only when the sole alternatives left
are dissolution of our union with them, or submission
a Government without limitation of powers.”^
If this bill fails, said Mr. W., I entreat our friends to
consider .what is the next step. If you will not alter,
you must be called on to enforce. The choice is be
tween this bill and another measure which must b«
« Memoir and Correspondence of Thomas Jefferson,
vol. 3, pages 428, 429. Letter to W. C. Nicholas, Sep
tember 5, 1799.
t Ibid. 1774, pages 62 and 63.
t Ibib. 1774,page5.68, 69.
! ) Ibid. vol. 4, page 421.
nameless—not for want of words to characterize it as it
deserved, but because they could not be used without n
breach ot order. He could not sav what was doing in
the other end of the capitol; but this he coulJ say--he
was present the other day at the consultation of a body
of learned physicians. The case was ode of delirium
and dtb lity brought on by ill treatment, and the remedy
proposed was the lancet and blue pills. This is the pre
scription of our political empirics. The cry is. Bleed
the Republic! Let me tell them sir, “ jrfus a medico
quam a moi'bo periculi."
it no longer admits of a doubt, the choice of our friends
must be made between coercion and conciliation. The
first will soon identify Carolina with the whole South ;
the second will unite the South against Carolina. Co.
ercion is not wise or prudent; nor always f»rtunate, even
when the disparity of strength is greatest. Austria a - ,
tempted to coerce the Swiss ; Spain to coerce the Ne
therlands ; England to coerce her North American co
lonies; and, in our days, Turkey to coerce Greece.
What was the fate of coercion 7 There has, indeed,
been one successful effort. Russia has coercud Po
land ! Is she proposed to us as an example ?
In the struggle between tha United States and a
Slate, to keep peace vi et armis, by blowing up all mal
contents, what is tiie alternative? If the State conquer,
she is out of the Union of course. If you conquer, is she
not out equally? You may reduce her to the condition
ofa subject province—you may reward with her plunder
some pro-consular Governor, for ruling her with the dcs.
potism of a master &. the wastefulness of an agent, leav
ing behind you in her bosom—
“ lininoi tale odium, et nunquam sanahile vulnus ,”
But she is a ffv.'-ru > longer! Youmay grasp a barren
sceptre, and . over a dispeopled territory ; but,
till you ex'ternii.iuiu the sons of Carolina, your domin
ion over her soil extends not beyond the points of your
bayonets. And what will you have done ? Extinguished
one star of tin constellation, and made South Carolina
“ Like the lost Pleiad seen no more below.”
Before gentlemen decide against conciliation, and in
favor of civil war, will they review the history of our
struggle with the mother country ? If they will, and arc
not struck and warned by the coincidences, they are
beyendthe power of hellebore. Let me turn their at
tention to the page before me. It contains His Majes
ty’s most, gracious speech to both Houses of Parliament,
on Wednesday, November 30,1774.
“My ■lords and gentlemen. It gives me much con- j
cern, that I am obliged, at the opening of this Parlia
ment, to inform you that a most daring spirit of resis
tance and disobedience to the law still unhappily pre
vails in-the province of Massachusetts Bay, and has, in
divers parts of it, broke forth in fresh violence of a very
criminal nature. These proceedings have been coun
tenanced and encouraged in other of my colonies, and
unwarrantable attempts have been made to obstruct the
commerce of this kingdom, by unlawful combinations.
I have taken such measures, and given such orders, as
I judged most proper and effectual for carrying into exe
cution the laws which were pvssed in the last session of
the late Parliament, for the protection and security of
the commerce of my subjects, and for the restoring and
preserving peace, order, and good government in the
province of (Massachusetts Bay ; and you may depend
upon my firm and steadfast resolution to withstand every
attempt to weaken or impair the supreme authority of
this Legislasure over all the dominions of my Grown ;
the maintenance of which, I consider as essential to the
dignity, the safety, and the welfare of the British empire;
assuring myself, that, while I act upon these principles,
1 shall never fail to receive your assistance and support.’ i
« * " « *
“My lords and gentlemen. Let me particularly re- I
commend to you, at tiffs time, to proceed with temper in
your deliberations, and with unanimity in your resolu
tions. Let my peeple, in every part of my dominions, be
taught, by your example, to have a due reverence for
the laws, and a just sense of the blessings of our excel,
lent constitution. They may he assured that, on my
part, I have nothing so much at heart, as the real pros
perity and lasting happiness of all my subjects.”
Sir, said Mr. VV. I intend to excite no additional odium
against the memory of George 111. In o«r declaration
oi independence he was indeed efi scribed as “ a Print-*,
whose character was marked by every art which msy
define a tyrant.” But he has gone to his account. His
I,itter years it had pleased Providence to visit with the
heaviest calamity that can befall a human being. With
his shade, therefore, he warred not. There was proba
bly some office form—y standard original—upon which
all such instruments were made.
There was another curious coincidence, which might
become more or less perfect, according to the exterior
which was given to a contemplated call for certain pa
pars. “An odd incident happened, which served to re
vive, with doable force, ail the ill temper and animosity
that had long subsisted between the Executive part oi
the government and the people, in the province of Massa
chusetts Bay. Tiffs was the accidental discovery and
publication of a number of confidential letters, which had
htxiu writtun guriny tlm course ol the unhappy disputes
with the mother country, by the then Governor and de
puty Governor of that colony, to persons in power and
office in England. The letters contained a very unfavor
able representation of the state of affairs, the temper and
disposition of the people, ana the views of their leaders,
in that province; and tended to snow not only the neces
a.tyof the most coercive measures, but even a very con
suierable change of the constitution, and system ot gov
ernment, was necessary to secure the obedience cl the
colony.”
“These letters, indeed, were in part confidential and
private; but the people of the colony insisted that they
were evidently intended to influence the conciuc. of gov.
ernment, and must, therefore, be shown to such persons
as had an interest in preserving their privileges. Upon
the death ofa gentleman, in whose possession these ic -
ters then happened to be, they, by some means whuff,
are not known, fell into the hands of the agent for me
colony isf Massachusetts Bay, who immediately trans
mit.ed them to the Assembly of that province, which
was then sitting ai Boston. Tne indignation ami animos
ity which these letters excited on the one side, and the
cot.fusion on the other, neither need nor admit of descrip,
lion.”*
How exact a cornpamon-piece would appear for this
picture, it (which God loruidl) tha correspondence ot
the government with certain individuals in South Caroli
na should be published. He hoped it never would be.
He deprecated that publication as Iraugiit with infinite
mischief. Other singular points at resemblance were
to be found in the history of those times.
“The Minister, alter having moved that the King’s
message, ot tiie 7th March, should be read, opened fits
plan for the restoration ot peace, ord.r, justice, and com
merce in the Massachusetts Bay. * * * *
Alter stating his opinions, and arguing their correctness,
the Minister proceeded: “It would be proper, there
fore, to take away from Boston the privilege via port
until his Majesty should be satisfied in these particulars,
and publicly declare in council, on a proper certificate
ot the good behavior ol the town, that he was so satisfi
ed. Until this should happen, the custom house officers,
who were now nut sale in Boston, or safe no longer than
wliile they neglected their duty, should be removed to
Salem, where they might exercise iheir Junctions.”?
Upon these arguments, leave was given to bring in the
celebrated lias!or or>rt hill, which will serve as a model
for any Chari. <• -.air bill it may be necessary to pre
pare, and the .jo, i» in opposition and support of which
are so applicable, mat gentlemen, by consulting tiie re
ports, may find their own speeches m those of Lord
North, his partisans, or his opponents, with one excep
tion—a little better English. Lord North, forexample,
is reported to have said, “ I hope that this act will not,
in any shape, require a military force to pat it in execu
tion. The rest of the colonies will not take fire at the
proper punishment inflicted on those who have disobeyed
your authority. We shall then be nearly in a situation
that all lenient measures will be at an end, if they do.
But, if we exert ourselves now with firmness and intre
pidity, it is more likely they will submit to our authority.
If the consequences of their not obeying this act are
likely to produce rebellion, those consequences belong
to them, and not to us: k is not what we have brought
on, but what they alone have occasioned. We are only
answerable that our measures are just and equitable.
Let us continue to proceed with firmness, justice, and re
solution, which, if pursued, will certainly produce tls.t
due obedience and respect to the laws ot this country,
and the security of the trade of its people, which I so
ardently wish tor.”
We all know, said Mr. W. that the bill passed. If
such a one comes to us, that coincidence, at least, will, I
trust, be wanting.
After its passage, history informs us, that “several gen
tlemen who had voted for it were nevertheless of opinion
that something of a conciliatory nature should attend
this measure of severity, and might give greater efficacy
to it. That Parliament, whilst it resented the outrages
of the American populace, ought not to be too willing to
irritate the sober part of the colonies.”
A motion was accordingly made for a repeal of the
tea duty laid in 1767. The debate upon the policy of a
repeal at that particular time, was long and earnest; the
party for the repeal strongly urging experience, which
they insisted was in their favor. That the attempt to tax
America had inflamed, the repeal had quieted, and the
new taxes had inflamed it again. The good effect of ri
gor would depend on a tincture of lenity. The lenity
* Memoirs and correspondence of Thomas Jefferscn,
vol. 4, page 419. letter 25th December, 1825, to W. B-
Gilts.
INDISTINCT PRINT
might render the rigor unnecessary. They, therefore
earnestly pressed the repeal of the noxious duty, M ft '
probable method of restoring tranquillity. How were
these arguments met ? The ministry said, “ a repeal at
that time would show such a degree of wavering and in
consistency, as wo’Jd defeat the good effects of Ihe ri
g irons plan. That Parliament ought to .show that it
would relax none of its just rights, but enforce them in a
practical way; that it was provided with means of com.
polling obedience when resisted. If this tax was r*peal
ed what answer is to be given when they demand the re.
peal of the duty on wine ”+
On these grounds the motion was regnt’ved. After
the Boston port biil, came the bill for the “ bette- regu.
iaiing government in the province of Massachusetts
Bay.” Both these memorable laws were before them.
1 ney were doubtless pattern acts for all lovers of jtrong
government; but politicians, a little bolder than ib» Brit.
Ua m *n.s:ry, would put them together. He wor.'d net
go ti. rough with them. Gentlemen curious in engines of
coercion, might perhaps have scanned them dame by
° ( ai . se * T l° bringing forward that bill. Lord North favor
e1 10 “ ouse °f Commons with a dissertation on tli e pos
co,ln^a^ I hen came the bill lor the better a: aun
istrauoii oi justice in Massachusetts Bay. That, wo,
' ,oU |\ , urnii h SJlne hintsto an American Draco. Tn?y
would be gathered up no doubt. It was on that bill that
~O Rci. L “ rre was enabled to make his proud boast: • 1
ro.otL toe tulence of America at the hazard of my
popularity there;! w 11 resist your phrenzy at the samo
iis v icie. t was then, too, he gave Ins nieniorable,
but fruitless warning. “ I know t,.e vast superiority of
your disciplined troops over the provincials: out beware
how you supply the want of discipline by desperado*
‘“‘ r ’ Sa,< -1 r - " • the.fatal dilemma ot Mr. Dunning is
exactly that presented to the South : “ resist an i we will
cut your throat; submit and we will tax you.’j'l
h rom this hasty review of councils, whose folly and
madness Could be excelled only by our own, it was grate
tul to turn to a safer, a wiser precedent—that set by
1 homas Jefferson respecting the repeal of the embargo.
It would be unjust and imprudent to use any other than
his own words: “ Mr. Adams called on me pending the
embargo, and while endeavors were making to obtain its
repeal, lie made some apologies for the call, on the
ground ot our not being in the habit of confidential com
munications; but that that which he had then to make in
volved, too seriously, the interest of our country, not to
overrule all other considerations with him, and make it
his duty to reveal it to myself particularly. 1 assured
him there was no occasion for any apology for his visit;
that, on the contrary, his communications would be thank
fully received, and would add a continuation the more to
my entire confidence in the rectitude and patriotism of
his conduct and principles. He spoke then ofthedissat
islaction of the eastern portion of our confederacy, with
tae restraints of the embargo then existing, and their
restlessness under it. That there was nothing which
might not be attempted to rid themselves of it. That he
had information, ot the most unquestionable certainty,
that certain citizens of the Eastern States (I think 110
named .Massachusetts particularly) were in negotiation
with agents of the British government, the object of
Wiiidi was an agreement that the New England States
should take no further part in the war then going on;
that, without formally declaring their separation from the
Lilian of the States, they should withdraw from all aid
and obedience to them ; that their navigation and com.
fierce should be free from restraint and interruption by
toe British ; that they thouid be considered and treated
by them as neutrals, and as such might conduct them*
: selves towards botn parties, and, at the close ol the war,
be at liberty to rejoin the confederacy, lie assured me
tout there was imminent danger; that the convention
would take place ; that the temptations were such as
might debauch many from tiieir fidelity to the Union ; and
that, to enable its friends to make head against it, the re
peal of the embargo was absolutely necessary. I ex
pressed a just sense ol the merit of this information, and
of the importance of the disclosure to the safety and
even the salvation of our country : and however reluctant
1 was to abandon the measure, (a measure which, per
severed in a little longer, vve had subsequent and satis,
factory assurance, would have effected its object com.
p.eteiy,) from that moment, and influenced by that infer,
mation, I saw trie necessity of abandoning it; and, in
stead ot effecting our purpose by this peaceful weapon,
we must light it out or break the Union. I then recom
mended to my triends to yield to the necessity of a re
peal of the embargo, and to endeavor to snpplv its
place by the best substitute, in which they could procure
a general concurrence.”*
Mr. Wilde was not unapprised, that, in some of these
details, the memory' ot Mr. Jefferson was inaccurate.
I he correctness ot the material part, however, remain
unirnpeached. The discontent of ihe East, and the ma.
carnations ot some leading men there, to produce a dis
solution of the Llnion, or temporary secession from it,
had been communicated to Mr. Jefferson ; and, instead
ot seeking means to punish the instigators of the resis
tance to a law of Congress, or ashing new and extraor
dinary powers to enforce it, 'dr- J- recommended a re
pea of Ihe embargo.
lius much Mr. W. thought was apparent, even from
the statement ol the distinguished gentleman referred to,
made with a view of correcting the errors of Mr. Jeffer
son’s octogenarian memory. To avoid all injustice, Mr.
W. would use his ovn language : “ It was m these let.
ters of 1808 and 1800,” says Mr. Adams, “that I men-
Honed the design oi cerui.i leaders of the federal party'
to effect a dissolution o r the Union, and the establish
ment of a northern confederacy.
1 his design had been formed in the winter of 1303-4,
immediately after, and as a consequence of the acquisi.
tioa of Louisiana. Its justifying causes to those who
entertained it were, that the annexation of Louisiana to
tae Union transcended the constitutional powers ot tha
government of the United .States. That it formed in
facta new confederacy, to which the States united by the
loimer compact, were not bound to adhenc. That it was
oppressive to the interests, and destructive to the influ
ence ol the northern section ot the confederacy ; whose
right and duty it therefore was to seceda from the new
body politic, and to constitute one of their own. This
plan was so tar matured, that the proposal had been niado
loan individual to permit himself, at the proper time, to
be placed at the head ot the military movements which
it was foreseen would be necessary for carrying it into
execution, in all tiiis there was no overt act ot tr.ason.
in tbe abstract theory ol our government, the obedience
ot the citizen is not due to an unconstitutional law. Ho
may lawfully resist its execution. It a single individual
undertakes this resistance, our constitutions, both of tlio
United States and of each separate State, have provided
a judiciary power, judges, and juries, to decide between
the individual and the legislative act which he has resist,
ed as unconstitutional. But let us suppose the ease that
legislative acts ol one or more States of this Union are
passed, conflicting with acts of Congress, and command
ing the resistance of their citizens against them, and
what else can be the result but war —civil war ! And i»
not that de facto a dissolution ol the Union, so far as the
resisting States are concerned ! And what woul Ibo
the condition of every citizen in the resisting Slates ?
Bound by the double duty of allegiance to the Union and
to the State, he would be crushed between the upper
and nether millstone, with the performance of every
civic duty converted into a enrne, and guilty of treason,
by every act of obedience to the lavv.”f
t Correspondence between Mr. Adams and several ci.
tizens of Massachusetts, Boston, 1829.
It was precisely this miserable state of things so clear,
ly and ably delineated by the gentleman from Massachu
setts, [Mr. Adams,j that he, Mr. \V. desired to avoid.
He conjured, nay, he implored, his political triends to aid
him in averting it. It they turned a -deaf ear to his
prayers, he reminded them that the Southrons were Ital
ians, not in their skies only. If they should trace up the
failure of peace to those whose cause they had been up
holding, there was danger they might adopt the despe
rate saying ot Cosmo de Medici: “ You shall read, said
he, that we are commanded to forgive our enemies ; but
i you will no where find, we are required to forgive our
friends."
Mr. VV. wished to forgive ail, or rather he wished, by
a comprehensive measure of conciliation, so to bury
every past cause of complaint, that there should be noth
ingleftto forgive. In pursuit of that just object, he ac
knowledged no friend but him who aided, he recognized,
no enemy but those who obstructed it. Whosoever, in
this hour of peril and dismay, would aid him in his holy
purpose—whosoever would even dare to speak, what the
freemen of the country thought, but had not yet uttered,
him would lie grapple to his heart with hooks of steel I
And he who thwarted him in this most cherished object
of his life, would he tear thence, though he were his
brother of the same womb, born at the same birth 1
* Annual Register, 177 C, page 64.
§ Parliamentary History, vol. 17, 1774, page 1191.
GEORGIA, Burke county.
■WjttTHEREAi Green Roberts, applies for Letters ol
V V Administration on the Estate of Graystock
Roberts, deceased.
These are therefore to cite and admonish all and sin
gular, the kindred and creditors of said deceased to be
and appear at my office within the time prescribed by
law. to file their objections (if any they have) to shew
cause why said Letters ot Administration should not be
granted.
Given under my hand at office in Waynesborough.
this 28th day of March, 1833.
93 J- G. BA DULY, Cl’k.