Newspapers / The Carolina Republican (Lincolnton, … / July 6, 1849, edition 1 / Page 1
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CM tub Ckaottxi mtr tJH.CAJi, OFFICE -NE AH 'THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CIIURCII, tlNCOLNTON.i-t A A A TV" t t . I i A T Ti -Tl;7niMrT-TFhTr. TF0 A T T, be k)u m , - . jtjoa I Ltnc on the Ucalli of ex - ; lrcfidcnt l'oJ ' ' - it joajt s. rtAic A "Jl ' tii jpcc out frota iu pU ia li ikj, A 5utrfiui Lu fIla ta Lji Ll&2t of rs- Tita Lkl'iw lit priTt Ut tlra dojTj ia Lli ft ,t . 1 , ; , f la lis a Tc3cm( vLr lis CamUr- Ill tjia i cfisclk4 with ecli ciijbtj fiisoe JIaI Gktj cr Country HiU La&l down ta Jz'tirt ia tic txul cf iht irate ao4 tie free, , - (To ttia fvrcter frca ucto :- career wu all iiiJ, IU UorcU r TTLa ti race cf tie f jremewt i scarcf Ijr 5 Ugaa ; - ,'''.. i 1 AsJ ti fger of Clorjr 2iAlJ poi&t to its ' ' I txa' ,: At ti grrciKJt ia Jtart, bet tie ctjuil ia Ci&. iil; ml Baem Yltti locmj tip ia th fight, Iie ' mHr lUxe i3"ti laxkow of Lil4 Ui pAt cf tie DocaUloj ticir Win CiSimlx ort)Wt with rxrtr of ': , TTlud the rvet urns of Fnr4jca it our Wii!-; lie IroaJ watt ; of Emjire rolls op & Lit tie tle: TVill new Suit, HVe new sUrs, oa the horixesj iLiil tilae. 1 .... t-ai? hiU Le Ingiter cmiltsoaed tiia tiiae f TW lullw kit' gTTe lij KJta doa io - hi rare, Where Memory tlH wir ti tarf 00 hi fc IreJMt, j Axi tic soft wiiJj of suaimer sigh o'er h's rrjw , " Ia tit oa Tecartt where th Ccralcr- f" WAiai.xfftoT CtTT, Juoc 20, 1919. Frisa tie Waihtaton Ucioa. Mr ToIU. W haI reserteii f w ar-Iri tle nxbn- eh!r dstr ef pTTrbz a sued act sketch of i rt .fm .iwu .iw xrted and noUmtlr decease the nation ! v wr. m m w mm www a z MW .mn but we hve been anficimtol ia part ia the taak whkh we had appropria- tsi Mn. Ur h tL tJLiwin fu!l .n.t arjtieaticsiftch which we find in the W ?nl.1 f rvmoved to the neighbor tynr-s. ad whkh we tale p!r,arc iaj of Carlisle, m Pen tt-t Iran u, and thence traaifcmngtooarwlomns. Thi admirabU 1 the weern froat.er of North Carolina, sketch triori the life ef 3lr. Polk A-wn to ! fe lh coramenccrocnt of the the comaewvmcut of hU admiuistratioo, ia revolutionary war. ome of the Polk fami Jlarch, We reserve to ourselves the h were hocorbly distinguished ia that event- Bc!aBch.nly oSee of aketehing the eventful i &? On the 10th of May, 175, aa i gl rio4 rneasu ei of that administration, enasequeutly more thaa twelve months ante whxh but few day a we coosidentiou- ! to1" .of ly proaouaced lobe ihl mmi brilliant which ht.4th ofJV,,7i6, mW-T lisVaced our anaaJ. W have had a fall tabitanL. of Mecklenburg em . j publicly cj-rtcnity cf ttadvinr the whole character emselves from their allegiance to "J'tK Pnl hr arn hi.o the UnUsh crown, and insued a formal mam- c early evert day fr four years, amid all tho 'cares of coee wbea ubrously enjigea la cics'deria and concocting those great mca s;rrs wiich have' ex cited the astonish meat tl scimlrailoa of tie wrrll and we do c t hiitaU to, pronounce him one of the at!til sUUsmea, tf not the aKest, whom we hare evtr kaswa. He had all the element cf a .azaa. He had that strong Cora tr.'pa Sense wi'eh pprnachc it high oh jeet calmly an! crccpreheasively, regard it ia sll its t: fits, sad traces it remotest con qsrce ia the germ itself. He took hi crcrvi aocmrdlng to tie democratie principle with which he had beg been deeply imbued, ar. J 5xed his eye upon the frood of bis coon try "alaae.'.'Il. iwa his high ofSce to at tain toil" end by pile mean. Ha vv::jf nd cp his d-xisicn, he had th mv t-u to adhere to hi measures. The ela-5,-. -rs cf tie crprfition in or out of Coogres cJ tie liander cf the pre, and even il.:.r perraac -'C and rcmon.eance, could t t tiake him from hi purpose. '. No man reversed . hita. " Oa the contrary, tech wa i::a c!aro' f hi vkws, and such the cfhls eitracter, a he went 00 stead i- 1t b tie raih which h had marked oat for thai evea his aaxkms and doubling frl .J.i V tr jrrcucnuT ia.pirca wim acw f -'-ry, as a crcicasea soperKsniy 04 u jifr'ent. Alcrg with these tltmeara of xrii ct:: ptaitrsi-5, Mr. Ftlk eombiaed u---'r cf ti h:gh aal rarest cpalitie of a mi.-i: iit magnanimity cciaracUr wiL-Lc- wrccrs, aad do jasisoe rrea vn, 13 ecezsj. , W tare iota Mr Folk tried la ttr.-zs i-icatkc, bet tali all tie rock irrv rf t.t!t;sca kHH tie sterns - I . "" ' ' .' . - . e ; "' . I - ... . i- .,' r i- .4- , - . - ., , . . t: - ' " - ft 9 'I 1-11- J . JUL' I w lf.!l wmmm - -"'I.' ' .11 I I " " - , . , . . i . - . i - , - , - . . - . ftjflf iK KOTUWO JIUT. IS NOT RrOHT STOMIT XO'Tlh TIUTIS WaQSa.TbcWt. ' '" mm rt:nk. I - - , " ; ; : z -xiiLt - - - . - .VOLUME I. cf part t mnUt the Tiriotm ijoeti whkh he - had to meet, ia ware or ia war. greater hoth ia iaterat anJ vmriety thaa has proba Wj oceared to juxjr oaher I'remident, he oerer ht that clearer of spirit aaJ equanimity of temper which the ccasioo required. It was thus that he comaonfcalcd conCJeuce to his frteoda, comauoded freqaeoUr the rtfpctt of hi enemies, and confirmed the Eroprjetj of hi course hj the hrDUancy of is Aaccess. We haTe uniform lj expressed these opiaioas of Mr. Folk's abilities, and of the raloe-of his admiabtratioa; and we see on occxtioa to withhold them now that this distinguished man is no more, when our mo tives cannot be assailed, nor. Flattery snothe the doll, cold ear of death." Would that his precious life could hare been spared hunger to his country! Would that be could hare had a more extended op portunity of enjoying the reminiscences of ti past, and the gratitude of the' people! And, above all, would that the cherished partner of his bosom, who had been bound to him for so many year who had shared all his fortunes and all bis snncathica wlk superior mind had enabled her to aa&bt his owa judgement, and to throw mich a tender and exquisite grace around the oc to which he had been elevated by the toice of hi country, could hare been spared the inexpressible pain of this early, fated separation. But we ' must not murmur against the dispensations of Froridencc; and religion will descend, with heeling on its wings, to socth the sorrows of the friends whom he left behind him. The public voice is already expressing the sincere respect which is felt for his mem ory. I"ublie honors will be awarded to the deceased patriot Prwidont; and orators will not Le wanting to do full justice to his mer its, and amng them those who were person ally and best acquaint! with him who in timately understood his 11 hole character, and the whole scope of his glorious administration. BIOGRAPIUCAL SKETCH or JAMES KNOX POLK, Lito President of the United Stites. JacKs Kn"x Folk, the eleventh President cf the United Stales, was tho eldest of ten children, and was U rn on the 2d of Novem ber, 1793, in Mcckknburg county, North Crohn. His ancestor, (whose original name, Pollock, bas, by obtkms transit, assumed it prcmnt form.) emigrated in the early part of the eighteenth century, from I re Una. The family traces their decent from Robert Polk, who was born and mar ried ia Ireland: his wife Magd.den Tusker, was the heiress of Mowning I (ill. They had six sous and two daughters; Robert Polk, the progenitor of. James Kooz Polk, was the cfth son; he married a Miss Gullet, and removed to America Ktckicl Polk, the grandfather of James K. Polk, was one of h U sons. The Polk family settled in Soracrest county, oa toe eastern snore ox .Uarviaox, wner' m m . . onbeirdccendants sUIl sojourn. Ucmg on7 atra.. 0I. olc m H "S were eall.d the democratic family hwacb of the f-uuly from which the v fcaa j The Presi- icsxo 01 loaepcuueuce, iu m uxs vi uituuj eloquence, similar to some of the expressions ia the declaration) of the American Congress adopted more than a year afterward. Ccd ooci Thomas Polk, the prime mover ia this act of noble daring, and one of the signers of this first dedaratioa, of independence, was the ereat unde of the I "resident, and the family is also connected with the Alexan der, chairman and secretary of the meeting whkh adopted the declaration, as well as with Dr. Epbraim Brevard, the author of the de claration itoelf. The lather of James. K. Polk was a far mer of unassuming pretensions, but enter prising character. Thrown upon his own resource in early life, he became the archi tect of hi owa fortunes. He was a warm supporter of Mr. Jefferson, and through life a &rm mod uadeviatiog democrat Ia the autuma of 1606 be removed, with hi family af ten children, from the home stead in North Carolina, to Tennessee, where he waa one of the pioneers of the fertile val ley of Duck river, a branch of the Comber land, then a wilderness, but now the most flourishing and populous portion of the State, la, this region the subject of this sketch re sided oDtithis election to the presidency; so that he may be said Bte rally to hare grown1 with it growth, and strengthened with ita strength. Of course, ia the infancy of ita etlement, the pportaitie for instruction could not be great. Notwithstanding this disadvantage, and the still more formidable oae of a painful aJEToctjoo, from which, after year of suffering, h wa finally relieved by a targkaj CfWatioo, he acquired the ele tatots of a S1 English tdaeatioa, Appre- XiINCOLNTON, bending: that his constitution had been too much impaired to permit the confinement of study, his father determined, much, bow ever, against the will of the son, to make him a commercial man j and, with this view, placed him with merchant. . .1 He remained a few week in a situation adverse to his wishes, and incompatible with his taste. Finslly, his earnest appeal suc ceeded in overcoming the resistance of his lather, and in July, I0I0, Le was placed, first under the cere of the Rev. Dr. Hender son, and subsequently at the academy of .M unrecsborouch, i Tennessee, ' .then under the direction of Mr. Samuel P. Black, justly ee!ebraUd in that region as a classical teacher. 1 In the Autumn of 1815 he en tered the university of North Carolina, having in less two tnsn years ana a naii tnrouguiy prepared himself to commence hi collegiate course, being then in the twentieth year of his sge. Mr Polk career at the university was distinguished. At each semi-annual exami nation he bore away the first honor, and finally graduated in 1818,, with the highest distinction of his class, and with the reputa tion of being the first scholar in both the mathematics and classes. Of the former science he was passionately fond, though equally distinguished as a linguist Ilis course at college was marked by the same ossmuiiy ana siuaious application wuicn have since distinguished him. His ambition to excel was equalled by his perseverance alone; in proof of which, it is said that he never missed a recitation, nor omitted the punctilious performance of any duty. Ha bits of close application at college are apt to be demised by those who pride themselves on brilliancy of mind, as if they were incom patible. This is a melacholy mistake. Geni us has ever been defined the faculty of apprecia tion The latter is, at least something better and m rc available. 80 carefully has Mr. Polk avoided the pedantry of classical display, (which is the false taste of our day and coun try) as almost to hide the acquisitions which distinguished his early career. His prefer ence for the useful and substantial, indica ted by his youthful passion for the mathe matics, has made him select a style of elo cution which would perhaps be deemed too p!aTn by the admirers of flashy declamation. From the university he returned to Ten nessee, with health impaired by application, and in thj beginning of the year 1819 com menced the sfudv of the law f mat proression which has furnished nine of the eleven Pres idents of the United States) in the office of the late Felix Grundy, for many years a representative and senator of Tennessee in Congress, under whoso auspices he was ad mitted to the bar, at the close of 1820. He commenced his professional career in the cmnty of Maury with great advantages, de rived from the connexion of bis family with its erly settlement. His warmest friends were tho sharers of his father a early priva tions and difficulties, and the associates of his own youth. But his success was due to his per ma 1 qualities still more than to ex trinsic advantages. A republican in habits as well as iu principles, depending for the maintenance of his dignity upon the esteem of others, and not upon his own assump tion, his manners conciliated the general gnod-will. The confidence of his friends was justified by the result His thorough aca demical education, bis accurate knowledge of the law, his readiness and resources in debate, his unwearied application to business, secured him at once full employment, and in less than a year he was already a leading practitioner. Mr. Polk continued to devote some years exclusively to the prosecution of his profes sion, with a progressive augmentation or re putation, and the more solid reward by which it is accom pained. In 1823, he en tered upon the stormy career of polities, be ing chosen to represent his county in the State legislature, by a heavy majority over the former incumbent, but not without for midable opposition. He was for two succes sive years a member of that body, where his ability ia debate and talent for business at once gave him reputation. . The early per sonal and political friend of General Jackson, be was one of those who, in the session of 1823 '24, called that distinguished man from bis retirement, by electing him to the Senate of the United States. In August, 1825, being then in his thir tieth year, 31 r. Polk was chosen to repre sent his district in Congress, and took his scat in the national council in December following. He brought with him those funda- mental principles 10 wmcu uu um suucreu through all the mutations of party. From his early youth he was a democratie republi can of the strictest sect. He has ever re garded the constitution of the United States a an instrument of specific and limited powers, and ho was found in opposition to every measure that aimed to consolodate federal power, or to detract from the digni ty and fegitiOjnyto.f auctions of the State Go vernment. He signalized hi hostility to the doctrine of those who held to a more liberal construction of the constitution, in all their mode. He 41 way refused- his assW to tha appropriation of money by the federal government for what he deemed the uncon stitutional purpose of constructing works of internal improvement within the States. He took ground earlv against the constitu tionalitv as well as the expediency of a na- ; eJULY- fe, 1S49.' I tlenal Uai and in August 189, conse- quenuy aeTcral months before the appearance of General J ackson's first message, announc edthen .'his opinions in a published letter to bis constituents. He has ever been 'oppos ed to a tariff for protection, and was, at all times, the strenuous advocate of a reduction of the revenue to the economical wants of the government Entertaining those opin ions, and altering Congress, as he did at the first .session after the election of John Quin cy Adams to the presidency, he promptly took hisatand against the doctrinesdevelop ed ro the luessage of that Chief Magistrate, and was, daring the continuance of -his ad-njini&tratii-M, resolutely opposed to it lead ing measure , When Jlr. Polk entered Congress, he was with one or two exceptions, the junior mem ber of that body. . His first speech was in favor Of a proposition to amend the constitu tion in such manner as to prevent' the choice of President of. the United States from de volving on Congress in any event This speech at once attracted public attention by the force of its reasoning, the copiousness of its research, and the spirit of indignation with reference to the then recent election by Congress by whkh it was animated. At the session, . the subject of 'the Panama 1 was brought before Congress, and the project was opposed by Mr. Polk, who strenuously protested against the doctrine of the friends of the administration, that as the President and Senate are the treaty-making power, the House 01 lvepresentatives cannot deli be rate -upon nor refuse the appropriations necessary to carry them . into effect. The views of Mr. Polk he embodied in a series of resolutions, which reproduced in a tangible shape the doctrines on this question of the republican party of 1 798. The first of these resolutions declares ' that it is the 'consti tutional right and the duty of the House of Representatives, when called upon for ap propriations to defray the expenses of foreign missions, to deliberate on the expediency 01 such missions, and to determine and act thereon; as in their judgment may seem most conducive to the public good. From this time, Mr. Polk s history be came inseparably -interwoven with that ot the House. He was prominently connected with every important question, and upon every one took the boldest democratic ground: He continued to oppose the administration Mr. Adams until its termination ; and m tk wU.L -ua of Ueneral " jacK-1 son's terms he was one of its leading sup porters, and at times, and on certain ques tions of paramount importance, its chief re liance. In December, 1827, Mr. Polk was placed on the Committee of Foreign Affairs, and some time after, as chairman of a select committee, he made a report on the surplus revenue, denying the constitutional power of Congress to collect from the people, for dis tribution, a surplus beyond the wante of the government and maintaining that the reve- nue 6houId be reduced to tne exigencies 01 the public service. In 1830, he defend ed the act of General Jackson in placing his veto on the Maysville road bill, , and thus checking the system of internal improve ment by the general government which had been entered upon by (Jongress. In December, 1832, Mr. Polk was trans ferred to the Committee of Ways and Means, and that session presented the report of the minority, of-that committee with regard to certain charges against the United States Bank this minority report presenting eon- elusion utterly adverse to the institution whieh had been the subject of inquiry. The course of Sir. Polk arrayed against him the friends of the bank, and they held a meeting at Nashville to denounce his re port. His re-election to Congress was op posed ; but, after. violent contest, Mr. Polk was re-elected by a majority of more than three thousand. In September, 1833, Presi dent Jackson determined upon the removal of the publio deposites from the Bank of the United States. This measure, which caused great excitement throughout the country, was carried into effect in October following ; and at the subsequent session of Congress, it was the leading subject of discussion. In the Senate, the President was censured for the measure; but he was sustained in the House of Representatives. On this occasion, Mr. Polk, as chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means, vindicated the Presi dent's measure : and by his coolness, promp titude, and skill, carried through the resola- tiona of the committee relating to the bank and the deposites, and sustaining the admi nistration ; after which the cause of the bank was abandoned in Congress. Towards the close of the memorable ses sion of 1834, Mr. Speaker Stevenson resign ed the chair as well as his seat in the House. The majority of the democratic partyprefer red Mr. Poli as bis successor; but in conse quence of a division in its ranks, the opposi tion united with the democratic friends of John Bell, of Tennessee,; and thereby suc ceededf in electing that gentleman, then a professed friend, but since a decided oppo nent, of .the President and hia measures, Mr. Folk's defeat produce n,o change in his course. . He remained faithful to his party, and assiduous, in, the performance of his ar duous duties. -T7 V ; In December, 1835, Mr. Polk was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, and again chosen to thai station in 1837,' at the extra session held in the first year of Mr. jTSTUMBER. 30. Van Buren s administration. The duties of Speaker were discharged by him during five sessions with ability, at 'a time when party feelings ran high in the House, and in the beginning unusual difficulties were - thrown in his way by the animosity of his political opponents. During the first session in which he presided, more appeals were mken' fi 6m his decision than had occurred in the whole period .since the origin of the government ; put he was uniformly sustained by the House, including many of his adversaries. Notwith standing the violence' with which he had been assailed, Congress passed, at the close of the session, in March, 1837, a unanimous vote of thanks to its presiding officer, from whom it separated with the kindest feelings. In the; twenty-fifth Congress, over which he presided as Speaker, at three j sessions, com mencing in September, 1837, and ending in March, 1839, parties were more nearly bal anced, (Mr. Polk's majority as Speaker be ing only eight,) and the most exciting ques-' tions were agitated during the whole period. At the close of the term, Mr. Elmore, of South Carolina, moved "that the thanks of the House be presented to the Hon. James K. Polk, for the able, impartial, and digni fied manner in which he has presided over its deliberations, and performed the arduous and important duties of the chair." On this resolution a long and excited debate arose, which was-terminated by the previous ques tion whin the resolution was adopted by 94 in the affirmative, to 57 iu the negative; but few of the opposition members concurring in the vote of approval. Few public men have pursued a firmer or more consistent course than Mr. Polk, in ad hering to the democratic party, in every vi cissitude. In 1835, when all of his collea gues, of the Tennessee delegation, in the' House -of Representatives, determined to support Judge White, of that State, as the successor to General Jackson, for the presi dency he incurred the hazard of losing his popularity throughout the State, by avow ing his unalterable purpose not to separate from the great body of the democratic party, in the presidential election. He, therefore, became identified with the friends of Mn Van Buren, in Tennessee, in 1836, when Judge White received the vote of that State by a popular majority of over nine thousand. After a service of fourteen years in Con gress, Mr. Polk, in 1839, declined are-election from the district which had so long sus- xarueu omi. ne was iuen xaaeu. up orw friends of the Administration iu Tennessee, as a candidate for governor to oppose Newton Cannon, who was then governor of the State, and supported by thewhig party for re election. After an animated canvass, during which Mr. Polk visited the different counties of that extensive State and addressed tho peo ple on the political topics of the day, the election took place in August, 1839, and re sulted in a majority for Mr. Polk of more than 2,500 over Governor Cannon. At the ensuing session of the legislature Governor Polk was nominated by that body for Vice President of the United States, to be placed on the ticket with Mr. Van Buren. He was afterwards nominated for the same office in several other States, but at the election of 18-40 he received one electoral vote only j w-r -V. 1 11 - ' I ior vice rresiaenti'jwnica was given yw of the electors in Virginia. Having served as governor of Tennessee for the constitutional term of two years, Mr. Polk was a candidate for re-election in Au gust, 1841. . His prospect was unpromising, as the State in 1840 showed a whig majority of 12,000 at the presidential election. The result was the defeat of Mr. Polk, and the election of James C. Jones, the whig candi date, as governor, by a majority of 3,224. Mr. Polk, there fore, retired from public life at the expiration of his executive term. Two years after, in 1843, he was again a can didate for the executive chair, in opposition to Gov. Jones; but he was the second time defeated, and the whig condidate re-elected by a majority of 3,833. From October, 1841, until his elevation I to the highest office of the Union, Mr. Polk remained in private life not, however, an I inert, spectator of--k wildai--oWed drama of politics. Happy in the conhdence of his immediate neighbors, and" his numer ous political friends throughout the State, in the affections of a charming family, and in the ardent friendship of Andrew Jackson, he had determined to withdraw himself from the anxieties and labors of public life. But the voice of the democracy of Tennessee for bade the gratification of his wishes; as we have seen, he- was repeatedly summoned to stand forward aa it representative for gov ernor of the State, and he yielded to the sum mons, whatever might have been the pros pects of success, j ; j - - . Mr. Polk did not conceal his opinions, on political subjects when called upon by. his fellow-citizens to express them Those who differed from him had no difficulty in ascer taining the fact of the difference. . ? On. the 29th of.may, 1844, Mr. Polk, re ceived the nomination of ;:the '.Democratic; National Convention assembled a Bakimore for President of the United States. . -To- thi high office he was elected in the fall of the same year by the people of the United States, and his maioritv over Mrv Cla v. - the whig candidate, as expressed through the electoral colleges, in December,' I844,was J5. The votes of the presidential elector were for Jamea K. Polk 170; fr Henry Clay XQ5 - Advertisemtnis will be inserted in the'Carolin Republican. aMbe uauai rates that i$l a square tfor tbefirst three iaertiona, and twenty-five rruia . '. for each -continuance. " J -.r.'s ; - : Pogf masters and ther.reepoB&itile persons are authorized to net as oo agent, and may, retain .10 er eent of all money received and transmitted l us fur papers and advertisements.. , THE CAROLINA REPUBLICAN. Is published Every Frtdaj".Mornino." George M. Dallas waselected Yice President by the same majority over Theodore Freling huysen. The rotes were counted in the House of Representatives on the 10th of Februarj, 1815.' .rr , ' In person," President Poflc was of middle stature, with a Toil angular brow, and a; sr quick, penetrating eye. The expression of his countenance was t grave 'but its seno s cast was often relieved by a peculiarly plea sant smile, indicative of the amenity of his disposition. His private life, which had .. ever been upright and pure, secured to him , the esteem aud friendship of all who had the advantage of his acquaintance. . He married 1 a lady in Tennessee, who is a member of t he ' Presbyterian church, and well ciuallified. bv . her virtues and iaccoiuplishmeuts equally to adorn the Girdles" of private life, or the ' station to "which she had been called:,. They . had no children. ' , ' ; ' Mr. polk, at the time of his death, was 54 years 7 months and 13 days old, For the North Carolina Standard. , v TO THE PEOPLE OF-NORTH CAROLINA. .1 Fellow-Citizens : This is the age of revolutions and of progress. . Europo is throwing off the shackles of antiquated ideas, which have bound her for centuries. ' Every ' where the masses- the people, are resuming : those rights and those privileges which the ' God of nature granted them. -Will the good people of the Oil North State lag behind the rest of the world in its onward march f Have we no antiquated abuses into which it becomes us to inquire 1 1 I believe we have. Our judiciary system needs reform ' . ' Our Judges ouyRt to be elected by the pea pie. The alarmist will cry out and tell you let us preserve the purity and integrity of our judiciary. So we say too.; To preserve its purity and maintain its integrity is our object To accomplish this purpose let us make it feel its. responsibility upon those who gave it its authority,' and over whom it ex ercises its powers.! It is a distrust of your capacity for eelf-government," to deny you . the privilege of electing your J udges. ' You vote for the: ( Chief Magistrate of the.' nation, the members of Congress, your Gov ernor, and the members of the Legislature who make your laws; are you less compc-1 tent to decide who is qualified to judge of their import? ' . ' ; ' Tpy-aaLfc . . . . nr:..;..' ; power is inherent in, and derived fromvthe people. The greatest f happiness of the greatest number is the principle by which- we are guided. .Let us carry out these pnn- ciples in practice, j Are not the people of the State interested in having good judges ? Surely, I should think so, since their lives and their property frequently depend upon their decisions. " -Would not the election be as safe iri their, , hands as in those of a Legislative Caucus ? v Do these Legislative Caucusses look always ' to merit or qualification for office r The system of log-rolling by which they frequent- -ly elect the candidates for their suffrages, is notorious. The division of one county -of the State has .eleeted a Senator- may not . the division of another elect a Judge? . Te elect the Judges for a term of years to 1 now the practice of a majority of the States of this Union. - Wherever it has been tried , it has. been found to equal, if not to surpass the most sanguine expectations of its friends; t In the State of Mississippi, the judiciary is ; ' very able, crime iapunished, and justice ad ministered with ai much impartiality as in North Carolina. ' "-, , Have not some bf our Judges acted occa' sionally quite arbitrarily and capriciously ?f Ought thi& to be the case whilst so much ; ' power is entrusted in their hands f And - , what is our remedy for the evil ? . We have none. They will tell you. impeachment i ' open to you. I will simply reply to this by; asking where is the '"example in the cbun-v try of a Judge having been removed by im ' peaehment f An . unjust, i incompetent, or. superannuated Judge may be upon the bench, i and there he rrem4ins,f while many persons -well qualified, to fill lata statlon'are excluded. This measure will no doubt be unpopular ? with those1 who hold office and some mem- bers of the barl 'This is natural. It is'a fine berth for a lawyer who wishes to retire', from the fatigues of practice. "Was the office ( constituted for this purpose?. No--it was . for the good of the people at large, and not ' of the occupant; and I-appeal to you fellow v citizens, Whigs, as . well as Democrats, aUV who have a North Carolina heart' and ' a North Carolina feelingj and who have a deep V and abiding interest ra this-qnestion, to pion f der it welL It is one - which 'rises "superior to the dictates of party. . Those now elected! to office feel as if-ihejr had a life estate in it and set aeccordfngly. -They are raised above ' the people, ! and have no feelings, nor sym-,v pathies, nor interests in eomm'on with then..",. They, consider themselves,: no doubt, the pe cnliar guardians of the honor and welfare of. the State. And have you ho interesfc'.m-it you who gaveilKfo and being you for J whose' benefit, andJnpt JTor. those of the posrt assumption of superiortty 1. not believe that y0u,"fhe bone a4 staev of the land' who create its wealth anxi.con- gtifute its strength, will much longer deslst fkom asserting your rights in this matter sessors aione, pnese TeTyompea.wjcrecousi tuted? Will ' yotlr idea,, ol independence brook this assumption of superiority ? I da -4 i 1 I. .,..1 i 1 .... - ' " - i - i?.- . , - . !"': ,. ; - ... , . ';. -' ' . I ' ' x - ; "' I - ' ' '!" I I" - ,.' ' ' .
The Carolina Republican (Lincolnton, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
July 6, 1849, edition 1
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