This page has errors The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page.
0 / 75
l ' j" . - . . . .. . . , ' ' ' i ' ; ' J " ' ' I '' '"''r:' f''.nt, i .,-TT" . ' - LIBERTY.... THE CONSTITUTION. ..!uNION. . v . . , . ' ,-- N THTTT rT?5 NEWBERN, VEINE SI AY, MARCH 21, 1832. VOL. XV. J3TO. 788. , PUBI.ISlflED . BY THOMAS WATSON. ri ' 1 m onmim navable in advance K2Wb SnSed (but at the dis crnSStor) until all arrearages have been Pa1 Remittance, by mail will be guarantied: by the Editor. . ' CORRESPONDENCE. From the! Albany Argus. icr of the Rppvhlican Members of the New York Legislature, to Die President. Albany, February 9, 1832. To Ilk xcellcncy Andrew Jackson, : President of the United Slatps : Sir: The undersigned in the performance of dntv with which they have been charged iiv the republican members of the Legislature j of the State OI iew iurK,-iiavi: uu; uuuwj t" transmit herewith, the proceedings of a mbet- V 11 I In f li r orirrkl n f" tric Sfflffl Oil in0" nClU- UlUU III M. vajmui j man .ywv. the 3d instant In doing so, they cannot re- trairi the expression of th strong feelings oi indignation with which they view the act to which those proceedings refer. j A "reat majority of the citizens of this State haveiven repeated evidences ofthe high esti mation in which they hare held your adminis tration of the affairs of the nation. The inflex ible integrity which has marked every act of vour public life the irnore than military cour se, with which theresponsibilities of your high elation have licenassumed, and the consjant regard manifested by you to the purity of jthe Constitution, hqlve strengthened their attach- ! 1 A 'L I ment to your person ana your-governinem; sum f licv have not been regardless of the manner in which-the splendid career of a military life,has been followed by the many signal blessings which your civil administration, has bestowed upon our country. - This State witnessed with pride, the selection of Mr. Van Buren by your Excellency as rour Secretary of State : Our citizens had given re peated evidences of their confidence in hiip. With the watchfulness becoming a free people, they had regarded his conduct in the various sta tions to which he had been called, by the con stituted authorities of the State. They had uitnessedhis attachment under all tircumstan iCo to the principles of the democracy of ( the '"country, and they ha'd then recently evincedj the extent of their confidence, by elevating him to hp hisrhest office within their gift. Thevfelt that your Excellency's removal of him to a. wi der sphere was an act of justice due to hU ca pacity, honesty and: fidelity to the constitution, and to the character of this State and the feel ings of its people. They cheerfully acquiesced inlhat removal and freely surrendered their most distinguished Ifellow-eitizen to vour call; be cause they rcccognised in.it additional ccinfir , nation of the liigh hopes they hacfimbibeil of tlje character: of your atistration. They rtff with undissembled pleasure, his rljorts to aid your Excellency in your successful attempt to restore the government to its-purity j and when his withdrawal from his high station to which your partiality had exalted him, became necessary for the preservation of your peace against the attacks of those who were alike en emies to your person and principles,! they be held in your continued confidence in him irre fragable proof, that no combination could ?lose ihe eyes of your Excellency to the cause ol your ountry, and no personal consideration?, arrest vmir c (Vtis or t ie .coramon weuare. muv saw, that amid the assaults made upon your 1 iuciples.by unfaithful servants, the honbr of our country was not lost to your view,: ana tiif.y felt, that the same ardent patriotism, which had been manifested on the wfitlls of Nef Or leans, had been brought into the administration of the government. They saw and felt j this, in the' -effort made by your Excellency, tb ac quire, by frank and honest negotiation, thai for 'which we had' warred with Great Britain; which had been Abandoned if not surrendered by subtle diplomacy; and upon which youf Ex cellency, at least, had riot been silent. The people of this whole coilntry, felt indeed that their confidence in your Excellency was not displaced, for they saw and knew that nocon Mderattons of a private nature could for a mo ment affect your ardent desire to promote the ommon w eal. j I ; It h true they were aware that there were citizens in this Union, who ..could justify and participate in this surrender of "free trade and saUor's rights who, could ." Calculate the val "cof the Union ," and who could laugh at our calamities in a period of war and general dis tress. But they could not believe thatlsuch feelings could sway any branch of our hitherto unsullied government, . and least ; of all,? that they would ever dare combine to impede the attempt of your JGxcellency, to secure; that br our country, for which we had expended i iBiiiions ot our moneys and for which thousands of our citizens had laid down their lives, j Yoyr Excellency has ever appreciated the leejings of the people of this country, and it rill not now be; difficult for you to judge of those which pervade this whole community. against an act unprecedented in the annals of our country; which has impaired the hitherto (ulted character of our National Seriate hith has insulted a State that yields to! none attachment to the Union ; and which has di rectly attacked an administration that is founded in the affections of the people. 1 The State of New York, Sir, is capable in itself, of avenging the indignity, thus offered ,0 its character, In ;the person of its favorite son. p,u1t we 6hould be unmindful of our du ,y if we failed in the expression of our sym K, ith your Excellency's feelings of mor tmcation, at" this! degradation of the country j,0" haTc loved so well. Yet be assured, Sir, aud i e is a deeming spirit in the people, Q that those whom we have the honor !to re- ' artienlIy desire an opportunity of cx- administration, which has exalted the charac ter .of our country, which has restored the pu rity of the government and has shed abroad upon the whole nation the continued blessings of peace and prosperity, In the fervent hope, that your Excellency may yet be spared many years to bless and adorn the; only free nation upon earth, we re main Your sincere friends, and Very humble servants, N. P. TALLMADGE, THOMAS ARMSTRONG, LEVI BEARDSLEY, JOHN F. HUBBARD. J. V. EDMONDS, CHAS. L. LIVINGSTON, G. OSTRANDER, J. W. WILLIAMSON, PETER WOOD, I ED. HOWELL, E. LITCHFIELD, WM. SEYMOUR, AARON REMER, JAS. HUGHSTON, WM. H. ANGEL, THE PRESIDENT'S REPLY. Washington, February 23, 1832. Gentlemen: I have had the honor to receive your letter of the 9th inst. inclosing the resolu tions passed "at a meeting of the republican members of the Legislature of New York" on the rejection by the Senate of the United States of the nomination of Martin Van Buren, as Min ister to England. I am profoundly grateful for the approbation which that distinguished body of my republican fellow citizens of New York have, on that oc casion, been pleased to express of the passed administration of the affairs placed in my charge by the people of the United States, and for their generous offers of continued confidence and support, Conscious of the rectitude of my in tentions, my reliance in all the vicissitudes of mv public life has been noon the virtue and ! nntrirttUmnfan p.nlifrht.pnftd nnnnlo. Thpir orpn-1 erous support has been mv shield and mv star, ) in limes past: the zealous performance of j the arduous military duties allotted to me, though crowned with success, was sought to be male a ground of reproach; and this manifesta tion on the part of my, fellow citizens of the great State of New York, assures me that ser vices not Jes faithful in the civil administra tion will not be less successfully defended. When such reliance fails the public servant, public liberty will be in danger; for if thepco pie become insensible to indignities offered to ; those, who, with pure intentions, devote them- ! selves to the advancement of the' safety and I happiness of the country, public virtue will wholly abandon the trade, to continue the ap cease to be respected, and public trusts will be i plication, it was proper to meet the objection sought for other rewards than those of patriot ism. I cannot withhold my entire concurrence with the republican members of the legislature in thcir .high estimation of their eminent fellow citizen, whom they have so generously come forward to sustain. To this I will add the as surance of my undiminished respect for his gi-cat public and private worth, and my full ! during the continance of an administration in confidence in the integrity of his character. j office, nothing should be done to embarrass In calling him to the Department of State j the Executive intercourse in its foreign policy, from the exalted station he then occupied by ! unless upon a conviction that it is erroneous, the suffrages of the people of his native State, ) A thorough change in the administration, I wa3 not influenced more by his acknowledg- j 'however, raises up othr authorities of equal ed talents and public services, than by the; dignity, and equally entitled to respect: and general wish and expectation of the Republican j an Pen adoption of a different course implies Prfv thrnrifflinut iIip llninn Tb t .m al 5 1 ! 11 0 separation of the different nart nf thp orn- and succss which distinguished his admin-I istratiort of the duties ot that Department, have expediency or impractibility of previous de fully justified the selection. . mands imply any want of respect for those I owe it to the late Secretary of State, my- j wno ma have maintained them, self, and to the American people, on this occa-1 T defend .the claims or pretensions, as they sion to state, that as far as is known to me, he j had been indiscriminately called, on either hatf no participation whatever in the occurren- ; side, in the previous correspondence, which ces relative to myself and the second officer of; had been for a time urged by the late adminis the government, or in the dissolution of the i tration, would have been to defend what that late Cabinet; and that there is no ground for j administration, by waiving them, had admitted imputing to him the having advised those re- i to he untenable ; and if that which had been by morals from office which, in the discharge of I them conceded to be inexpedient, could not my constitutional fuuetions, itwas deemed pro- ! be sustained as proper, I perceive nothing de per to make. During his continuance in the j rogatory, and surely nothing wrong, in con Cabinet, his exertions were directed to produce i ducting the negotiation upon the common and harmony among. its members; and he uniform- established principle, that in a change of ad ly endearored Jo sustain his colleagues. His ministration there may be a corresponding final resignation was a sacrifice of official sta- j change in the policy and counsels oi the go tion to what he deemed the best interests of i vernment. This principle exists, and is acted the country. Mr. McLanc, our then Minister at London, having previously asked permission to return, it was my own anxious desire to commit the important points remaining open in our rela tions with Great Britain, to a successor in whose peculiar fitness and capacity I had equal confidence: and to my selection, Mr. Van Buren yielded a reluctant assent. In urging upon him that sacrifice, I did not doubt that I was doing the best for the country, and acting in coincidence with the public wish ; and it certainly could riot have been anticipated that, in the manner of successfully c6nducting and terminating an important and complex nego tiation, which had previously received the sanc tion of both Houses of Congress, there would have been found motives for embarrassing the executive action and for interrupting an impor tant foreign negotiation. I can never be led to doubt, that, in the. in structions under which that negotiation relative to the trade with the British Wrest Indies was conducted and successfully concluded, the peo ple of the United States will find nothing either derogatory to the national dignity and honor, or improper for such an occasion. Those parts of the instructions which have been used to justify the rejection of Mr. Van Buren s nomination by the Senate of the Uni ted States, proceeded from my own suggestion : were the result of my own deliberate investi gation and reflection ; and now,' as when they were dictated, appear to me to be entirely pro per and consonant to my public duty 1 I fell, gentlemen, that I am incapable oftarr mshmg the pride or dignity of that country, whose glory, both in the field and in the civil administration, ithasbeenmy object to elevate: and I feel assured that the exalted attitude! which the American people maintain abroad, and the prosperity with which they are blessed at home, fully attest that their honor and happiness have been unsullied in my hands. , A participation in the trade with the British j West India Islands, upon terms mutually satis ; factory to the United States and Great Britain, had been an object of constant solicitude with our government from its origin. During the long and vexatious history of this subject, va rious propositions had been made with but par tial success; and in the administration of my immediate predecessor, more than one attempt to adjust it had ended in a total interruption of the trade. The acknowledged importance of this branch of trade ; the influence it was believed to have had in the elections which terminated in jthe change of the administration, and the general expectation on the part of the people, that re newed efiorts, on frank and decisive grounds; might be successfully made to recover it, impo sed upon me the duty of undertaking the task. Recently, however, Great Britain hail more than once declined renewing the negotiation, and placed her refusal upon objections which she thought proper to take, to the manner of our previous negotiation, and to claims which had at various times been made upon the part ot our government. The American Government, notwithstanding, continued its ettorts to obtain a participation in the trade. It waived the claims at first in sisted upon, as welbas the objection to the im position by Great Britain of higher duties upon the produce of the Unjted States, when impor t ed into the West Indies, than upon the produce of her own possessions, which objection had been taken in 1819 in a despatch of the then Secretary of State. A participation in the trade with the British V est India Islands could not have been, at any i . i it . -t i uine nemanuea as a right; any more than in that to the British European Ports. In the posture of 4ffairs already adverted to, therefore, the Executive could ask nothing more than to be permitted to engage in it upon the-Jerms as sented to by his preuecessor, and which were the same as those previously offered by Great Britain herself. Even these had been denied to the late administration, and for reasons ari sing from the views entertained by the British Government of our conduct in thepast nego tiations. It was foreseen that this iefusal might be re- peaieu, ana on tne same grounds. W hen it be rather than cuiue me uuiy oi me executive, disappoint the expectations of the people, and to tne past acts ol the American administra-. tion, which objection, as had been foreseen, was actually made, and for some time insisted upon. It is undoubtedly the duty of all to sustain, by an undivided and patriotic front, the ac tion of the constituted authorities towards for eign nations; and this duty, requires, that vernment: nor does an adminissioTiJof the in- upon, in the diplomatic and public transactions of all nations. The fact of its existence in the recent change of the administration of the Ame rican government, was as notorious as the circuj ation of the American press could make it ; and while its influence upon the policy of foreign nations was i both natural and reasonable, it was proper, according to my sense ofduty, frankly to avow it, if the interests of the peo ple of the United States should so require. Such was tfio motive, and such and nothing more, is the true import of the instructions tak en as a whole, which I directed to be given to ) our minister at London, and which neither ex- pressed nor implied condemnation of the gov eminent of the United States, nor of the late administration, further than had been implied by their own acts and admissions. I could not reconcile it to my sense of pub lic duty, or of national dignity, that the U nited States should suffer continued injury or injustice, because, a former administration had insisted upon terms which it had subse quently waived, or had failed seasonably to aecept an offer which it had afterwards been willing to embrace. The conduct of previous administrations was not to be discussed either for censure or defence ; and only in case " the ; " "omission of this governnfent to accept of -tne terms proposed wfteB neretotore oBcr - tRrmslnmnftspH when heretolore otfer- "ed," should "be urged as an objection '. 3 acredly reserved by "," it wa. made the duSy of the minister! he b.e d" n " 'hSt citizen-that "to make the British government sensible of. n8t,iU"?rin hit own defence? The Se- .injustice and inexped.ency of such i .InJt.tf.. .omMo. "course." . ! . maintained that silence which it is now Both the right and the propriety 6f sctting!""" the'" President to break; lest up the past acts of previous administrations to j .... k.(.v,nii'wrfa. making di justify the exclusion of the United States from a trade allowed to all other, nations, was distinctly denied; and the instructions au thorized the minister to state that such a course towards the United States under ex isting circumstances, would be unjust in it- "self, and could not fail to excite the deepest "sensibility the tone of ieeling which a course so unwise and untenable is calculated to produce, would doubtless be greatly ag gravated by the consciousness that . Great "Britain has, by orders in council, opened UCI luiumai pons to Kussia ana .trance, notwithstanding a similar omission on their "part to accept the terms offered by the act uic uiu juiy, io;" he was told that 'he could not press this view of the subject "too earnestly ufon the consideration of the "British minstry;" and the prejudicial influ ence of a course on the part of the British go vernment so unwise and unjust upon the fu ture relations of the two countries, were clear ly announced in the declaration that "it has "bearings and relation that reach beyond the "immediate question under discussion." If the British government should decline an arrangement "on the ground of a change of opinion, or in order to promote her own in terests," a prompt avowal of that purpose was demanded; but if they should not be prepared to take that ground, "but suffer themselves to desire that the United States should, in ex piation of supposed past encroachments, be driven to the necessity of retracing their le gislative steps without knowledge of its effect and wholly dependent upon the indulgence of Great Britain," they were to be made sensi ble of the impracticability of that course, and to be taught to expect such measures on our part as wrould vindicate our national interest and honor. To announce distinctly to Great Britain that we would not submit to a con tinued injustice, on the ground of any objec tion to the past conduct of the American gov ernment, whether it wTere riffht or wrong; was the tions. obvious import of the whole instruc- If the Executive had caused it to be stated to Great Britain, that finding his predecessors to have been in error, as was implied by sub sequently waiving the terms they had advoca ted, and had in expiation of those errors, abandoned the trade to the pleasure of the British government, the interests of the United States would have suffered, and their honor been reproached; but in excluding such consid erations, as inappropriate and unjust, and in clearly avowing his purpose not to submit to such treatment, he hoped to promote the inter ests of his fellow citizens, and sustain the honor and dignity of his country. In all this, gentlemen, I have the approba tion of my judgment and conscience. Act ing upon the principle, early announced, of asking nothing but what is right, and submit ting to nothing that is wrong, I asked that only of which the justice could not be denied. I asked a participation in the trade, upon terms just to the United States, and mutually ad vantageous to both countries: I directed a simple and distinct proposition, in conformi ty with these principles, to be submitted to the British governnfent; and resolving to be content with nothing less, I ultimately ar ranged the trade upon the basis of that proposi tion, without retraction, or modification or change. If the national honor had not been thought tarnished by retracing our steps, by claiming more and ultimately consenting to take less, and in fact obtaining nothing; I feel assured, that in requiring that which my pre decessors had conceded to be enough, and obtaining all that was dema-nded, my country men will see no stain upon their dignity, their pride or their honor If I required greater satisfaction than I de rive from a review of this subject, I should find it in the gratitude I feel for the success which has crowned my efforts. I shall always pos sess the gratifying recollection, that I hav not disappointed the expectations of my country men, who, under an arrangement depending for it3 poformance upon our own wisdom, are participating in a .valuable trade upon terms more advantageous than those which the illus trious Father of his Country was willing to ac cept; upon terms as favorable as those which regulate the trade under our conventions with Great Britain, and which have been sought without success from the earliest periods of our history. , I pray you, gentlemen, to present to the re publican members of the legislature of New York, and to accept for yourselves individual ly, the assurance of my highest regard and con sideration. ANDREW JACKSON The admirable reply of the President to the Republican Members of the New York Legis- lature, has tilled his enemies with consterna tion. Its plain truths and fearless tone have swept away their last hope of deceiving the people into a beliel, that the "new coalition in the Senate, were actuated in the rejection ot Mr. van Buren, by any just or patriotic mo tive. In their desperation, they seized upon the expedient of representing the letter as an attack on the Senate, and an electioneering de fence of Mr. Van Buren! WThat! has it come to this, that the Chief Magistrate of this Rebublic must maintain si lence under every injustice, and not even reply, with candor and dignity, to the respectful ad dress of the people whom he serves ? Must he be precluded from assuming the responsibility ! of his nwn art' fmm ilfir.larinfr how far tnai 'l M-i i 1 oct iinnrt oth- ! as Tr, n ; -' 11V1U . . , ret , "''JX? " 1 Dreaicated ? Must j ."harrcs . against a co-ordinate brancli of th"e government. Their speech es uttered in secret session, have been written out, "conned over, printed and sent out in newspapers and pam phlets, into every comer of the Union. None of these sensitive gentlemen then raUed their voices against the Senators for attacking a co Uiiat branch of the government ' - - -All this was, in their estimation,' rigfcVcnfl Proper but no sooner does the Chief Magis trate whom those speeches attack, write-to t committee of his fellow-citizens, a letter about as long as the shortest of them in his defence plain and dignified in its language end tone, than he is charged with an attack on the Senate ! What was the charge against the President promulgated in the Senators speeches? ' It was that he nad appointed as minister to Great' Britain, a man who had sought to destroy i the. the morality of society at home and degraded; his country abroad. Does he retort any charge upon them,? No, he contents himself with as suring his countrymen, that the charges against his minister and consequently ogainst liimselu are totally unfounded. He repels ; but he doe not attach. He shows that the attack on him self has no basis in truth or in the public good i out he does not impeach those who have mad1., it. If any man of that class In the Senate or out, are wounded by the simple truths which that letter contains, let them writhe, and scow l and wither under its power. It is their own guilty consciences which make them feel it urs an attack; it is "the fiery looking for" of pub lic indignation which makes them cry out. But have these men forgotten, that Presi dent Washington when assailed on account of Jay's Treaty, in his replies to the addresses of his leliow-citizens, did not hesitate to expose his motives and indicate his policy? Have they forgotten the numberless easte rn which the elder Adams, under similar circum stances, ju jified the policy of Ids administra tion, in lefters written for publication. Have they forgotten, thatMr. Jefferson went even so far as to justify, in a similar letter or letters, the policy of removals from office, which is now one ground of attack upon Pre sident Jackson? Probably there has not been a President of the United States from "Wash ington td Jackson, who has not, in some shape , before his fellow citizens, justified particular acts on the general policy ttf his administration. None can forget the numerous and voluminous pamphlets which the Secretary of State, under the last administration, sent, under the franks of public officers, into every neighborhood of the Union. But it is charged, that the President's letter is a defence of Mr Van Buren and an election eering weapon to make him Vice President! It is a defence of thq President himself. lie hav been assailed as vitally as Mr. Van Buren. If his own defence cover also his minister ami friend, we are sure that so far from giving him pain, it will- increase the pleasure he will feel m its success. The time was when he had an, arm for his invaded country, and for the injured and oppressed, and he has a voice for them still. It is the apprehension that his coiihtry men will hear it that they will listen to il- that they will vindicate and avenge their hon est and injured public servants, -which is fil ling the manageri of tho "new coalition" with terror and dismay. They tear that tho people ! will indentify the insulted President and the injured Minister that Mordecai moy bo exal ted to the seat ol liaman. It is their fears -which give this character to the letter, not it words , . The President never wrote an etectioneerinp letter for himself. Tho gold of Peru could not tempt rum to do it now. Bnt he is not likely to be restrained from replying to the addresses of his countrymen on thisnr Anvnili. , . er subject, with dignity and candor, lest the truths he utters, may .benefit his friends, or ex asperate his enemies. Erect in the conscious ness of his own integrity, he gives facts to the. world, and leaves the consequences to God aw? (he people. 43Jobc. We lay before our readers the Correspond dence between the Republican Members of the N. York Legislature, and the President of tho U. States. The reply of General Jackson will produce a deep impression upon the public mind With a frankness and boldness which are worthy of his character, ho meets the charges thatweremadeagainstMr. VanBuren in theSer ate of the U. States. He overthrows them at once. He assumes upon himself the reponsibihty of the Instructions. He clears Mr. V. B. of the as persions which have been thrown upon his in tegrity. We say he clears him because Gen eral Jackson speaks of those'eircumstances. which fell within his own knowledge. No one who is acquainted with him, but must believe that he never would have gone before his coun try, and solemnly pledged his own honor to the truth of his statement, if he had not from ihr the best information been sincerely convinced of the uprightness of Mr. V B.'s conduct. I. He meets the allegations of Mr. Clay and his friends, vith respect to the tnstmctionsfby the solemn declaration; that thoso parts of them which "have been used to justify the rejection of Mr. Van Buren' e nomination, " proceeded from his own suggestions, arid the result of hi? own deliberate investigation and reflettt6nJ" And more than this Ho enter into the 'tea sons which induced him to direct such instruct tions to-be given and his arguments are' suffi.-i cient to show that they were "entirely nrtmi7 and consonant to his, public daty? - o !. u- f!' 11." He meets the charges which ror agninst Mr. :V. B. by the friends of Mr,CalhotinV respecting Mr. V. Barents conduct in .A. wu: : net, and his mission to London. He declares u vyvuiy , m tne presence of the American. Feb: t Pit mat so tar as is known toTiirhraTtm Van I5uren "had no participation wMever in the , ctttttue 10 nnnscir una Mr CaU noun:. . : "Or in the: dissolution of ikjc 4atciCtfo net: . . . He positively afErms, that "there is &9 -4-; ij - j J i J I i 1 " A- ' Vi'l , t ' i '.if L '.;- 1 1
