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HALIFAX, JV. a FRIDAY, JULY 9, 1824?.
VOL I.
THE "FREE PRESS,"
By George Howard,
Is published every Friday, at
THREE DOLLARS per year
consisting of 52 numbers, and in the
fame proportion tor a shorter pe
riod. Subscribers at liberty to dis
continue at any time, on paying ar
rearages.
Advertisements inserted at fifty
cents per square, or less, for the
first insertion, and twenty-live cents
each continuance.
Letters addressed to the Editor
must be; ost fiaid.
COMMUN1CATIOJCS.
roil the rr.EE pkess.
' speak net to disprove what Bru
tus spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do
know." Shaksfieare.
Mr. Editor:
It has truly been observed.,
that "most of the difference of
opinion which exists in the
world, arises from the want of
agreemcnt, as to the meaning
of terms and of propositions.
This remark was forcibly Called
forcibly i
to my mind, on reading the ob
servations, in your last paper,
under the signature of free
dom's Friend.
As it contains two distinct
propositions, I will notice them
in the order in which they
stand. The first is t
"Rely on it, he who votes direct
ly, or indirectly, for any one who
voted for that measure, (the tariff
bill.) is himself a supporter of that
measure."
far from me be the
at-
tempt to justify the conduct of
any person wno aavocaieo. inat
mil in ffnvt mnnnnr iV rr 41.
win. ah iccy iijuuiivi iiui
fel
low-citizens, should I have ob
truded myself before you on this
occasion, but for the maxim
,:that truth should prevail, tho'
the heavens and the earth be
shaken.5' And since, in this
case, if we cannot applaud, vctte bcauidcalofa "judicious"
must condemn, let us examine nf)P
it carefully and dispassionate!,
and cast our censure on the
most culpable. Instead of suf
fering our attention to be artfully
directed to the West, and to re
probating the conduct of a West
ern Representative, who acted in j
accordance with the known and
expressed wishes of his consti
tuents; let us draw a little near
er home, and inquire whether
our Representatives have been
zealous and faithful" in the dis
charge of their duty.
It has always been a leading
principle with the Executive of
tne united States, that in form
ing an administration the four
great sections of our country
should, if practicable, be as e
qually represented in the cabi
net, as in the Halls of Congress.
The South has been particular
ly favored by the present Execu
tive: one of the Departments be
ing repeatedly offered to citi
zens of the West, and as often
declined, was tendered to, and
accepted by, a Southern citizen.
Thus favored in the cabinet, and
presenting in the national coun
cils a display of talent seldom
equalled and never surpassed,
how mortifying to our feelings
to witness the passage of a bill
so peculiarly oppressive on this
section of the country: how
must that feeling be increased
by the reflection, that an indi
vidual to whom we looked for
the protection of our dearest
rights, has been so far forgetful
of himself, and of the people he
so wilfully misrepresents, as not
only to recommend, but repeat
edly to urge the passage of a
bill, against which their united
voices were raised in loud and
repeated murmurs.
That WM. II. CRAWFORD
has acted in this manner, the
following extracts from his
Treasury Reports, cannot fail to
convince the most sceptical:
In 1S21 J2 genera I revi
sion and correction of the du
ties imposed upon foreign mer
chandize seem to be required."
in 1822" is believed to
be expedient that the revenue
should be increased. This
may be conveniently effected
by a judicious revision of the
Tariff. 17
In 1823 "71 however, it
be deemed advisable to give in
creased extension or activity
to the navy, or to end in ob
jects of internal improvement,
it is believed that such addi
tional ?neans as may be re-
Iguired, may be obtained bij a
judicious revision of the Ta
riff. Such a measure" "would
he advantageous to the reve
nue, salutary to commerce,
and beneficial to the manu
factures of the country."
And yet, fellow citizens, with
these facts staring us in the
face, we are gravely told that
Mr. Crawford is opposed to the
present Tariff, and that he mere
ly wanted a judicious revision
of the one previously in exist
ence
This subterfuge will not
nvnil Vipm T Toot- txrVir, l-,;0
warm friend and ardent support-
ihc National Inielligchccr,
7
says:
"It may be fairly presum
ed, now, that the Tariff is set
tled for many years, and it is
a subject of congratulation,
that, being settled, the revision
. litis armrnrirhpri an rirnrht fn
We are lurther told that he is
a moderate laritt man. As
early as 1818, the amount of du
ties on a great many articles
was specifically recommended
by Mr. Crawford; most of which
equalled, and some exceeded
the present rates. I will no
tice one article in particular, as
it is only used in the South
"On Cotton-bagging, 6 cents
per yard." The present act
has fixed the rate at 3 cents
per yard.
Let every individual, espe
cially the farmer and agricultu
rist, as they desire to thrive by
their industry, and to subsist
honestly and comfortably; as
they value plenty and the bless
ings that flow from it; as they
wish for the increase of nation
al prosperity and individual
happiness; and as theyYegard the
welfare of the present and fu
ture generations, ponder well
this subject, and act according
to the dictates of their own
judgments.
We will now notice the se
cond proposition, which is as
follows:
"And in the first place I will
make this assertion, that should
the character of an individual af
ford evidence of violence or immo
rality, that there would be reason
to apprehend clanger by placing in
to the hands of its possessor, the
liberties of a nation, is a proposi
tion to which all rational men will
readily subscribe. That General
JACKSON has, or does, possess
such a character, his warmest
friends cannot conscientiously denv
, Violence and immorality are
certainly very indifferent pass
ports to public favor; and should
an individual possess these qual
ties, no person could be justi
fied in advocating his claims to
preferment, in either a civil or
military capacity. That Gen.
JACKSON possesses such a
character, his friends "consci
entiously deny:" and where
can we apply for testimony so
well, when people are divided
in opinion about the character
of a public officer, as to our
national archives, and the repo
sitories of documents; in these
none can be mistaken, and they
afford ample materials to justify
us in saying, that his energetic
conduct, mistaken for violence,
has not only been exerted in de
fending the liberties of his coun-1
try, and in promoting the hap-!
piness and welfare of the people1
committed to his care, but that
it has been approved by a vast
majority in our national coun
cils. But these will not answer
the object of most of our politi
cal writers: the "say so" of
some, and the hypercritical
comments of others, are pointed
to as sources of authentic intel
ligence, while public documents
are abandoned or forgotten.
Do we require further illus
tration on this point? Some of
our worthy and respectable citi
zens are fearful of trusting this
violent man at the head of the
courtly and complaisant gentry
at Washington; yet, should an
attempt be made on the liber
ties of our country, by the des
pots of Europe, (which is not
altogether impossible, however!
calm the political horizon mavl
be at present."! and it would i
appear necessary to raise an ar
my of 100,000 men, even these
prudent jjoliticiansjxvould wil
lingly place the violent Jackson
at its head, and not apprehend
any danger from the abuse of
'power.' And, no doubt, would
again act the grateful part so
well described by the poet:
"When war and dangers come about,
And all is trembling, fear and doubt,
XA''ii -.ii i,: . c.
v iiLdu ims veteran iiom repose
To meet and fight his country's foes.
But when the battle's strife is ended
I hat country which his sword de
fended,
Shall bid the hero in retirement go,
And twine their favors on another's
'brow
Mr. Editor, when plain facts,
and plain reasonings upon them,
are clearly laid before the peo
ple, they are as competent judg
es of them, and understand their
real interest as well as persons
of more knowledge and better
education. That they may read,
rellect, and decide for them
selves, is the sincere wish of
your humble servant,
Halifax.
FOREIGN
PORTUGAL.
We gave in our last a brief
sketch of an explosion at Lis
bon, which created for the time
much consternation, but which
soon subsided. Some of the
papers intimate that the affair
grew out of a drunken frolic,
but we have been able to find
no good foundation for this sin
gular movement. A thousand
rumors were afloat upon the
subject, at least 999 of which
must be incorrect. It seems
that white the King was shut
up, and that when the Corps Di
plomatique demanded admis
sion to him, M. Hyde de Ncu
ville declared that Europe only
acknowledged the king. His
firmness succeeded, and an Aid-de-Camp
of the prince introdu
ced the Corps Diplomatique to
the king, who declared that
what was going on was un
known to him, and was not
done by his orders; and that his
son was about to arrive. In
fact, Don Miguel soon arrived,
knelt down, kissed his father's
hand, and declared to the am
bassadors and ministers that a
conspiracy against his life had
been discovered; that he had
been obliged to take the mea
sures he had taken to prevent it;
that if the Corps Diplomatique
had been stopped for an instant,
it was because he feared some
mischievous persons might en
ter the palace under their pro
tection; and that he now came
to receive his majesty's com
mands. News was received in Lon
don, on the 22d May, the pur
port of which was, that the
King of Portugal had been re
stored to the full possession of
all his authority, and that the
prince had been compelled, not
only to resign the command of
the troops, but to withdraw him
self from Court.
SPAIN.
The general amnesty has at
length been published in Spain.
The principal exceptions are:
The chiefs of the military insur
rection of the Isle of Leon: the
mpmhprs of thn Cnrtps who nm.
nln'morl fhorlMti
king at Seville; the chiefs of
military insurrections in differ
ent parts of Spain, &c. the as
sassins of Venueza, the judges
of Elio, and the authors of the
massacres in the prisons of Gre
nada. The London Times
speaks of this decree as "a some
thing called we should pre
sume by the rule of contrariety
an amnesty, addressed by the
clement rerdinand of Spain to
his subjects. It is sometimes
said, foolishly we think, that
the exceptions prove the rule;
but in this case, certainly, the
exceptions prove that there is
no rule, for there is nothing but
exceptions. All are pardoned
except every body. That is the
rule and exceptions in six
words." It is said that the
councils of the Holy Alliance
have produced this amnesty.
If so, the same councils will be
most wisely exerted, both for
Ferdinand and Europe, in con
vincing him that what were
once the possessions of Spain
across the Atlantic, are no long
er so; and never again can be
come so. We say never; and
we say it upon adequate grounds.
TURKEY.
Nothing certain is known as
to the intentions of the Pacha
of Egypt, and conjecture itself
seems to be puzzled. The ac
count of the great conflagration
at Cairo is confirmed, and it is
stated in some eastern letters
that the fire was set by design,
bv the Pacha himself, that, un
der pretext of recruiting his fi
nances and his stores, he migrht
vcuse rnmseit with a good!
.. i i
grace from taking apart against
Greece. Another view of the
subject, however, is given in a
letter from Constantinople, 0f
the 9th of April, in which, after
mentioning the departure of a
part of the fleet, 3t is said that
the fleet is only going to ther
islands of the Archipelago; and
that the Morea and Idra are gi
ven up to Mahomet AH Pacha,
to put down in the best way he
can. It is also stated that the
Pacha's son, Ibrahim Pacha,
leaves Egypt with a regular
force this season. , It is then ad
ded, and if true it is a very im
portant feature in this intelli
gence that "they have hopes to
treat with the Greeks, allowing
them to govern themselves, on
paying an annual tribute. They
expect the Greeks will have
confidence enough to treat with
the Pacha of Egypt with the
Porte they do not seem inclined
to treat at all- and they are all
in the right."
SOUTH AMERICA.
Perit.-A letter, dated Guay
aquil, March 18, says: "I left
Lima in the hands of the Span
iards. They entered the city,
3000 strong, on the 26th ult.
the handful of patriot soldiers
retreated before them. All was
quiet, foreign property was re
spected, and no excesses com
mitted. What will be the e
ventof these things it is impos
sible to say. . The Spanish army
is formidable; but if Bolivar has
time to get his troops from Ve
nezuela, he will be successful
but should the Spanish army
press hard upon him before the
reinforcement arrives, he will
be compelled to retreat.
Lima is now blocdaked by
Admiral Guise. Business will
be entirely suspended so long
as the Spaniards have the com-
mand on shore. Many voyages
will be destroyed in conse
quence, as there is no other mar
ket of importance on the coast
for the consumption of provi
sions." The writer of the letter sub
sequently on his journey from
Lima to Callao, was attacked by
fourteen or fifteen robbers, who
wounded and robbed him, but
some officers providentially
came up and rescued him from
the hands of the assassins.
ENGLAND.
The English Court. Tha
Kingr of England latelv held a
splendid drawing-room, at the
urn paiace oi at. James, ana it
being the first that had occurred
for several years, it was most
numerouslv attended. We ob
serve the American Minister
enumerated among the compa
nv. but not his ladv. To r;VP.
some idea to those of our fair
countrywomen, who mav rpr-
haps occasionallv be temnf pH to
admire in fancy the finerv of
such pageants, we have made
two extracts from the court cir
cular (which, including the de
tailed description of the ladies
dresses, occupies some. 10 col
umns of the London Courier)
relative to the disasters of this
famous fete.
The first relates to occurren
ces in the royal palace, and al
most in the royal presence, the
second to out door scenes.
"The company continued to