Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1808-03-25
NUMBER II.
GENTLEMEN.

1 l.
Your protest deserves farther notice. 1t
is for your good, that you should know wha,
the people think of it and of its authors
what we think of the clearness of your heads
and the purity of your principles. 1t will
be salutary to YOU, also, 10 know a little
more of the people, on whom it is your plea
sure to be making experiments.
! How lily your precepts and your practice
agree on the subject of caucUssing, and to
wha' undignihed> shifts and Measurements of
( fact, you have been driven in order to dis
criminate your own cases from that which
| you denounce, has been already shewn w
! have seen, also, of what elastic materials
you have deemed your oatlE as members of
I Congress TO be formed. Blu this subject de =
! serves to be considered farther Asa part
of our public servants, it is important for us
to understand whether your moral and poll
ticai principles be, even vet, firmly and per-
manently fixed, or whether they are still
upon the same sliding and slippery founda-
ton rs heretofore
AS the grounds ofyourprotcst against the
late caucus, you tell us hat caucus, COM
posed of members of Congress, is "in d.
rect hostility 7vith the flrincihIes ofthe con-
stftHtiou;" that it is ga gross assumhtiou
ofho7cer not delegated by The beohLe - if
this be true, it is, to our plain judgments, as
clear as light, that such a caucus is a cri-
mnal assemblage, and that every member
OF Congress who enters it, commits PERU
ry IN doing so. This conclusion cannot pos
sibiy be avoided by any man, unless he is
prepared to maintain the paradox, that to
assume power not delegated by the consti.
tuition, and to act in direct hostili to that
constitution, is to support it. But let us
hear you: awe do not say that consul
tation among the members of Congress res
pectng the "persons to be recommended as
candidates for the two highest Offices in the
union, may not in some e.rtraOrCfnarv cri-
SIS be frOher." You do not Although such
a consultation would be "in direct hoStiEtv
7vith tie constitution" would be g u gross
assumption offo7ver nor delegated ~ the
feohie )" although it would, in fact, involve
the commission of perjury, you do not say
but there are cases in which such a consul.
tation would be froher : not merely e.rcu-
sable, but hrohe,' This is You stern repub
licanism which is to bend to no circumstan
ces ! But let us see what is your notion of
the ertraordiHarV crisis, which is to sane
tify an infraction of the contribution and reh.
der even perjury proper: The iederalisls
"presented strong phalanx, and either to
"succeed at all or TO prevent them from
"placing the candidate for the Vice.Presi-
" dency in the Presidential chair, it was
necessary to exert the combined efforts
d" of the whole republican party" Very
lwell then, whenever we wish a triumph
over an obnoxious party, it is perfectly pro.
perto infringe the constitution, nay, to COM
nit perjury in order 70 carry our point
This IS the puritan creed, on which YOU
have acted the beautiful system of politi-
ca. morality by which you profess to be 90
verned and which you publicly preach 10
the people of the u. States is this intel
lectual blindness, or moral dcpravity2 1t is
both for depravity OILY could have given
birth 20 such principles, and blindness only
would have blazoned them 10 the world
Are YOU the men to vaPour about Yazoo spe-
culatOns and dishOlorable compacts with
fraud and corruption In what do You diff
fer from the Georgia legislature which pas
sed that abominabe law? They violated
their oaths, for money; and YOU, 1t seems,
have done ii, for power.
But why are you not in caucus, gentle
men for the very crisis has arrived which,
according to your principles, would rendei
it proper. There 5 a party which is iJst
as obnoxions TO YOU as ever The federal par
~ was, and which VIC bclIcy- you wish,
most fcrventlv wish 90 auWihiate. lt is che
republican party, 20 the head ~ which is
the present administration 7; viii be in
vain fsr sou 60 deny this. Il is not in your
] protest only that we look for the evidence
Of IL; it is 30 your conduct on the floor Of