The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-09-19

s. se SouHis' kneW tnat their nrit point Was'
net directly by the counter authority of the
iupresne court; they have implicitly if not e3-
prSisly admitted Il; hence they have been ~
dnced 10, the Fifty of taking the bold and
difficult ground that the psfiage which | have
read Is e1;raiudiciai-a mere OTTER dit!,s,;i.
} ney have /aidt this but they have not a,te,upt-
ed 10 Nrfu II. Give me leave to flew that II is
'ot an oti!er G:7am that it is not e..,a;u9iei.
al; but that it is diree adjudication of
point Immediately before them. The cou,t
made no formal dlvifion of the fuhieG 1t di
Twded 'tielf. The arreh OF Bollnan and Swart
Hout At New-Or'eans, and the flSf that they
mad not been pTe!ent at any afcmb'age of the
traitors III arms, were notorious and admitted.
l ne cafe neceiarily prefented TO he court three
iitinet qneilions: l. Are theft men leagued
IN any trsaionable corfpiracy: 2. Is the fact f
their being ieaeued with it, Efficient, Of i,felf,
10 inphcate them IN the guilt of any overt act
of that treafon ? or is it neceiTiry that they
'hon'd actually have borne a part in that over,
aci 5 has there been IN overt act ?-Now If
Inc court had tc;n iatisRed thar there had hsen
an ose't act, aud that thefe men were leagued t.
the conipiracy which produced IL. ftilI il would
ave remained diitinSt and fubflantive auction
whether their abicnce from the overt a;e and
toeir having no immediate hand in it, did no,
aicnarge the m from the contttutjonal guilt of
| ieVying war; tor although leagurd in the con.
ipfacY, and although there might have been An
Overt att, thsfc men wonld have hee, innocent
hspre'cncc ut the overt ACT vas neceiIary 70 make
tnen guilty. The queRion then of prcferce or
aoiencc, WAS queRion really preiened by the
Gale OF HOLMAN and Swarjwout il was ore
important to The decihon of that cafe ; and the
court I'M king il 10 did coniider and decide it
u'e'' oPpoht'"n TO the principle contend.
edior on the other Iiie.
| Here, flr, having he &c 81, r.,
court on my fde, might fafely difmifs the cen
'ieman,s irtt point. But MIR. Randolph feems
20 th'nk 1t doubtful whether you ought to be
| oouho og that authority; even admitting il to
DC d reRu ar Judicial deter mination of this uueC
"oh tor he MADE very pathetic and afTe Citing
apoRrophe 10 the litua,ion in which Won rouId
be placed, if you differed from this opinion of
me inPrcme court. ! can dfcern nothiRg very
,'ag'ca IN your htuation "a principle of law.
'o'emh'y adJudged by the fupreme court, be.
comes, aPprshend, the law of the land all
.ne inferior courts of the U. S. are bound by it.
lay that they are not bound by it, is to diff
organize the whole judiciary fyaem, TO con.
round the dItinetions and grades of the courts.
10 oaMHi a!Icertainty and liability from the law,
aNo 10 deitroy all uniformity of deciGon. II
you, mrs, ht''ng as "a circuit court are not bound
| W the adJuoications of the fupreme court in
| inns cafe, neither would any other circuit cour,
IN the union he bound by it: and the rcfu.t
| might be and certainly would be that what
Woua DC. trsaion IN one circuit would not be
.'e1,on IN another and a man might be hung
" .nniylVania for an act againlt the u. S. in
winch he would he held perfectly innocent in
Virginia thus treaion againit the u. S. would
N.il be untitled and flut.uating, and the obiet9
OF the contribution in defining it would he d T.
appointed and defeated. Itruit that we are no,
prepared TO ruth into this wild diforder and
contuhon but that we fha t,mperatelv and
regularly conform to the DEGREES of that parent
court, OF which this is mere branch, until
hoie DEGREES hall be changed by the fame
nigh authority which created them.
| but initead ofrepohng on the authority of that
,ec'ion, ietvs go further, and let us indulge
| me gentlemen with the enquiry whether thar
deciiion is in conformity with the connitation of
'as U: States and the laws of England
In interpreting the contribution let us apply
10 1t to the eentiemen's own principles: the
rules OF reaton and Of moral right.
That law ihouid be 70 confirmed as TO adj
vance the remedy and reprrfs the mitchell is
| not more a ruie of Common law than a princi.
pie OF reafon: and in reaion, it applies to penal
as Wei as remedial laws: 70 ALTO, the common
law maX'm that law, as well AZ covenant.
mould be 70 confirmed as that it's ohiset NAV IA
Their prevail than perth, is one of the planet
dIctHtea OF common ienfc.-Appiy thcie princi-
pies TO the contribution. Gent emen have f,d
thar It's Object was to prevent the people from
being harl'!lsd by arbitrary and conRru6 Give
trcaion. But It's ohjet;, prefume, was not to
declare that there WAS no fuch crime. II GER
i7luly did not mean TO encourage treafoD. II
meant TO recognize the exiGence of the crime
and TO provide for its puuinIment. The fame
hner''es OF the people which required that The
offence Mould be defined, crcumfcyibed and
limited, required alto that ii fhou!d be certain.
" and deeply puni9Ied: and the framsrs of the
conaltution, informed ty the examples of
Greece ana Rome, and forsfeeng that the IL
belties Of this republic, might, one Jdv or
Other, be feizcd by the daring ambition Of iour
dome flc ufarper, have given peculiar inDor.
tance and lolemnity to the crime by engraftinc
1t upon the contribution. But thew have done
this in vain, if The conitiuclion commended for
on the other iide is to prevail. iii. reonires
actual pTeieDce at the fcere of the afIen,blayr
10 involve man in the guilt oftreaion, how "a.
~ will It be for the principal traitor to avow
this guilt and efcape punifhment forever? He
may iecretiy wander like demon of darkDer.
from one end of the continent to the other
he may pour potion into the fmple and unfuf.
peet'ng minds of his oountrymen he NAV &C.
dnce them into love OF his perfon NAV con
ns q them in his plots; attach them to his plo
~ he may prepare the whole nechaniCu of
the itupSndous and dtGrueive engine and mt
II IN motion; let the reit be done by his aoer,s
let him keep himic6 only from the fcene of the
dHemb1ge or the immediate fpot ofba,tlc. and
he IS innocent in law, while thofs whom he bas
deuded are to iufter the death of traitors. Is