JS. 28.
HALIFAX, JV. G FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1824.
F0L Z.
THE "FREE PRESS,"
i?y George Howard,
Is published every Friday, at
THREE DOLLARS per year,
consisting of 52 numbers, and in the
i, une proportion for 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-five cents
each continuance.
Letters addressed to the Editor
nuvAbc Jiosijiaid.
COMMUNICATIONS.
FOB, THE FREE PRESS.
jlr. Howard:
I saw a printed Address to
the People of Louisiana, by the
friends of Gen. Jackson at Or
leans. I suppose they are ap
prehensive Jackson will lose the
state of Louisiana: they admit
that Clay is the favorite. If he
should resign, they are very ap
prehensive Crawford will get
the vote of that state; to prevent
it, as much as in them lay, the
aforementioned Address was
published, and is now circulated
in this district. After exam
ining the Address, and taking
the fustian and declamation
from it, I can discover not an
argument why Jackson should
be the President, except he com
manded the army which chasti
sed the Indians, and that he was
commander of the army that
fought the battle of New-Orleans:
not a syllable of his learn
ing, not a word of those quali-
lications necessary to make ai
civil magistrate, the chief of
which he is now aiming at.
Gen. Macomb, when he re
pulsed the British, fourteen
thousand strong, at Plattsburg,
did this nation as much service
as did the army under Jackson
at Orleans. It Provost had
penetrated to Albany with his
army, and New-York had been
blockaded by sea, would there
not have been, under the then
excitement in New-England, a
strong probability that a portion
of those states would have re
volted? Macomb drove the Bri
tish back, and the dreadful
calamity was avoided; yet no
person ever thought Gen. Ma
comb was to be made President
because he done his duty. The
people of Louisiana are French
and Spaniards, we would prefer
i he advice of other people. Mr.
Crawford has been recommen
ded by large bodies of intelligent
Americans, and we will support
him, because he has
learning,
honesty, and abilities.
He will
take care of the people's money;
he has no use for a direct tax,
stamp tax, still tax, alien laws
nor sedition laws. The Con
stitution will be preserved, and
the people live free and happy,
without war's alarms. Let Ad
ams be elected and all his fa
ther s politics and prejudices will
be brought into action. .lfyou
dect Jackson,he necessarily will
long for those scenes where he
obtained his glory wars. Let
those who wish their sons to be
slaughtered to raise the name of
Jackson with that of Napoleon,
vote for him; but those who love
peace, liberty, and security of
property, without any oppres
sive taxes, vote for Crawford.
A.
For the Free Press.
Mr. GALLATIN was a sol
dier of the Revolution; he was
a long time a Member of Con
gress, and by his efforts dethron
ed John Adams. He is accused
by the ignorant of stiring up re
bellion, when the still stax was
laid to maintain a standing army
in time of peace; b,ut does judge
Marshall say so in. his history
of that transaction? Do the pros
ecutors of Fries say so in his
trial? No. Would not Mr.
Gallatin have been prosecuted
if it had been true? He would.
Mr. Gallatin was Secretary of
the Treasury during the eight
years Mr. Jefferson was Presi
dent, with a salary of $5000
per annum. He has just resign
ed the office of Ambassador,
which he held for several years,
with a salary of $9000 per an
num. Those were offices where
great talents and much industry
were necessary. The office of
Vice-President is next to a sine
cure, and the salary is S-5000,
which Mr. Gallatin would be no
gainer by accepting. He has
been always willing to perform
any office the people conferred
on him, and if elected would
perform it, although his expen
ces will amount to the salary.
, A.
FOR TIfE FREE PRESS.
Mr. Editor:
The distinguishing character-
esticof the American people is
their ability to investigate the
merits of those who aspire to
rule over them; this qualifica
tion, connected with the unres
tricted freedom of the press, the
palladium of liberty, elevates
them in comparison with other
nations to a station proudly pre
eminent. Possessing these ad
vantages, it becomes incum-
bent on them to exercise due vi
rilonpp that thpi'p rp.il interests
may not be subverted, and their
privileges remain unfettered.
This appears to be peculiarly
necessary at the present mo
ment; a successor to our vener
able Chief Magistrate must soon
be selected, and the claims of the
individuals who are presented
for that distinguished office, are
advocated by their adherents
with a zeal and pertinacity that
clearly indicates the anxious soli
citude of the parties concerned.
An article in your last paper,
signed Cicero, urges the claims
of Mr. CRAWFORD in a man
ner that, in my estimation, re
quires a critical examination.
The panegyrical strains that are
so profusely scattered through
his production, will no doubt be
duly appreciated; as however,
he has adduced specified claims
in support of his favorite, which
may perhaps have some weight
with our citizens, I deem it ne
cessary to strjp them of the glare
and tinsel in which they are en
shrouded, and exhibit them in
the nakedness of truth to the
public.
Cicero's hyperbolical descrip
tion of Mr. C.'s management
of the Treasury department is
marvellous in the extreme: after
describing the "chaos and con
fusion," in which, the monied
concerns of this country has been
involved during the last six
years, and stating that Mr C.
"had to steer thro' this rough
ocean cf embarrassments, of
bankruptcies,and insolvencies,"
he concludes as follows:
"You have been told by the late
President of the U. S. Bank, that
whilst that institution acting with
the utmost caution and under the
guidance of sonic of our ablest men,
has lost at least 5 or 10 per cent,
upon its capital, Mr. Crawford ac
ting alone and unassisted, has not
lost to the U. S. more than 2 per
cent, and a good deal of this is in
such a train as to be recovered for
the government."
Was this 2 per cent, lost on
the capital of the government,
on the collection of the revenue,
or cn what? Cicero's produc
tion leaves us in the dark in
this respect: the recent investi
gation of the conduct of the Se
cretary dispels the mystery, and
wc find that the 2 percent, loss
arose not from the collection of
debts due the government, nor
from the revenue, but from Mr.
C.'s "great disposition to suffer
the people to do as they please,"
by which means the money ac
tually collected by the public
Receivers for goverment lands
was deposited in insolvent
banks, by direction pf the Se
crctary of the Treasury "alo?ie
and unassisted," in some in
stances in direct violation of
existing laws, which resulted in
a loss to the people of about half
a million of dollars, and which
had no reference whatever to
the transactions of the U. S.
Bank. The management of the
Treasury department requires
more industry than talent; and,
J notwithstanding this writer s
j fanciful description, is not so
I important in its nature nor of
j that variegated cast particularly
I calculated to nualifv or entitle
j an individual to the Presidency.
The editors of the National In
telligencer, whose official station
as public printers afford a better
opportunity to estimate the du
ties of this effice, give the fol
lowing description, which we
may suppose is not underrated,
as they are zealous supporters pf
Mi-. C?s pretensions:
"The administration of the Trea
sury in time of peace is nccessarily
almost' entirely barren of incident
and attraction: it presents a dry
routine of duties, which, however
necessary to be performed, do not,
when best executed, afford eclat,
or elicit popular applause."
The "magnanimity" display
ed by Mr. Crawford in giving
way to the pretensions of Mr.
Mpnroe in 1816, is also pro
duced by Cicero as evidence of
his "possessing higher claims to
this office than any other can
didate." As I have noticed
this circumstance in a previous
communication, I shall now pass
it with the single remark, that
after the publication of Mr. C.'s
sentiments,theWashington City
Gczette, the only paper which
advocated his claims at that
place, said, that it was author
iscd to state that nothing in that
letter was intended to convey
the idea that Mr. C. would not
permit his name to be used, but
that he would yield to the de
temination of his friends. If
there is any magnanimity dis
played in retiring from a con
test, after a person is fairly beat
en, Mr. C. is certainly entitled
to credit for his conduct on that
occasion. !
Mr. Crawford's management'
of theTreasury department, con
nected with his "magnanimous"
conduct in 1816, is relied on by
Cicero to supnort him in the
assertion that "he has clearly
proven to you that upon the
score of qualifications Mr. C.
is equal if not superior to any
of his competitors:" of this, fellow-citizens,
you are to be the
judges. Desirous, however, that
the people may become iully
acquainted with the peculiar
qualifications of Mr. C. I will
notice a conspicuous feature in
his political career, which has es
caped the penetration of Cicero,
& which is decidedly indicative
of the boasted "originality of
thought and vigor of intellect
of this "wise and able states-
man
In one of his Reports
to Congress Mr. Crawford re
commended the intermarria
ges of our citizens with the In
dians, as the most effectual
mode of civilizing the savages.
Feeling inadequate to do justice
to this original proposition, I
shall take the liberty to intro
duce the opinions, of the able
editor of the Philadelphia De
mocratic Press on this subject,
whose sagacity and penetration
will not be questioned, seeing
he now advocates the claims of
Mr. C.
"I appeal to the innate goodness
of your heart, addressing President
Madison, and 1 ask ot you, did
you ever know, in the whole com
pass of private or political life, a
proposal so disgustingly demoraliz
ing; I want words to express my
proiound abhorrence cf such a pro
position, and I should shudder at
the official importance given to it,
if I did not feel perfectly secure in
its utter impracticability. No!
Mr. Secretary CRAWFORD may
stand forth the unieelmg, the un
blushing advocate of bribery and
'Jiroatitutton, but he will find his hi
thy proposals treated with the ex
ccrations they deserve, by those
whom he marks out as the victims
of his flagrant want of sense, and
his unnatural vant oj taste.
The "strenuous exertions made
by intriguers & office hunters,"
so much dreaded by Cicero,
having become apparent as noon
day to the people will receive
merited treatment; and should
the election unfortunately go
to the House of Representatives,
they can certainly be more ef-
fetually counteracted by that bo
dy in the public performance of
a constitutional duty, than by a
small unauthorised minority
composed of about one fourth
of their number, "who met to
gether in an innocent way,"
not to defeat the machinations
of "intriguers and office-hun
ters," but for the purpose of
giving thejr favorite an undue
advantage over. his competitors.
I do not feel disposed to inves
tigate the general merits of Cau
cusing: in this instance it is re
duced to the simple proposition,
Shall the majority govern? If
so, by retraining trom it they
have unequivocally condemned
the practice, and shown to the
world that however expedient
it might have proven in its adop
tion, experience has fully test
ed its inutility. Our venerable
Senator Nathaniel Macon, who
has been emphatically styled
the Cato of Republicanism,
when this subject was introduc
ed in the senate last winter, said,
"I was, about twenty years past,
taken in by a Caucus and said
I would not attend another."
Here we ,see, that however in
nocent a Caucus may be, the!
individuals who attend it may !
not, perhaps, be entirely free
from the influence of "intriguers
and office-hunters." The j?so-i
pie will readily determine
whether the majority orjninori
ty are entitled to the epithet of
a "new and aspiring set of poli
ticians," and which is most like
ly to be controlled by mdivid-
uals deserving
the
distinguish-
ins: armellations oi
"intrjguers
and office-hunters."
Cicero has been equally un
fortunate in characterizing "men
whose favorite policy it is to
erect U. S. Banks, to appropri
ate money towards opening
roads and canals, &c." as
"wolves in sheep's clothing."
He must have forgotten, or ima
gined that the people have for-
gotten, that Mr. Crawford, in
1811, voted ivith all the fede
ralists in the Senate in favor of
the renewal of the Charter of
the old U. S. Bank,and that in his
last Annual Treasury Report to
Congress he recommended a re
vision of the Tariff, as it might,
perhaps, be deemed advisable
"to aid in objects of internal
improvement."
Great stress is also laid by Ci
cero upon the National Nomi
nation, asfye is pleased to term
the unauthorised expression of
opinion of a few individuals .
unauthorized, I say, by the Con
stitution, by the nation, by tho
national representation, by the
party to which they profess to
belong, and which has not even
the merit of being sanctioned
by precedent. The Constitu
tion does not contain a sentence
that by implication or construc
tion would authorise such a
meeting. The people never de
legated the power to their re
presentatives to anticipate the
choice of the nation. The fun
damental principle of Republi
can governments is, that the
majority shall govern: a major
ity composed of three-fourths of
the national representation dis
countenanced that proceeding.
A large majority of the party, to
which they profess to belong,
objected to the measure. Anoj
it is not sanctioned by prece
dent, for in every other instance
a majority of the Congressional
members attended. And yet,
God save the mark ! this is term
ed a NATIONAL NOMINATION ! !
Fellow-citizens, the superior
qualifications ascribed to Mr.
Crawford, are not evidenced in
our records, nor can they be sub
stantiated by facts of public no
toriety; his elevation to the dis
tinguished station he now occu
pies, can be principally attribu
ted to the apathy of the South,
in suffering publi attention to
be directed to him as a man of
superior attainments, while the
modest merit of a Macon, a
Lowndes, and a Cheves, were
suffered to remain in compara
tive obscurity. In his political
life Mr. C. has not exhibited
any distinguishing traits of char
acter in a legislative, diplomatic,
or financial capacity: as a sena
tor he uniformly opposed the
leading measures of the Repub
lican party. His mission to
France was a mere sinecure, as
we were on amicable terms with
that nation. The abuses which
had crept into the Wtr depart
ment during the war, were suf
fered to continue under his ad
ministration, and he left it in
the utmost confusion, as has been
fully evidenced in the improve
ments made by his successor,
and the reduction of almost one
half in the expenses. His cor.