Portland gazette and Maine advertiser. (Portland, Me.) 1805-1818, 1808-06-20

| United oates, promptly and efte6tu-
! ally to maintain with other nations
It's equal rights, and TO defend that
independence 70 gloriouly won, and
which cannot but be conGdcred by
every friend Of his country, and OF
rationale freedom, as the ark Of our
political ialyaieas-
| The inh5Rtants of this State from
ITS earlieft efHabiifhment, accufomed
to relort to the ocean, as fource
ef profit and employment, (" and de-
lighting in that commerce, which
returns the gold and luxuries of eve
~ nation, for their raw materials"
we cannot but con6der an interdic-
ton from it, by a permanent law Of
! the United States, as great and ie-
rions Calamity.
A; the call Of their country, in its
hour of danger, the Citizens of Maj
fachuietts ever have been, and ever
will be ready cheerfulIy to offer up
their lives and fortunes but con-
Gdering the principles of equality as
the BATS of the Union, they cannot
bur vicw, with ferrous apprehension,
the interdiaion, for an unlimited
time, of nearly the whole commerce
of the country, nor view, without
regret, the novel, and as we be-
lieve" unconstitutional modes in
which part Of the coating trade
Till remaining, is alone permitted to
be proiccuted. Totally adverle as
are all our habits and inititutions to
the granting fPecial indulgenCies in
commerce to individuals, the Sen
ate cannot but ohlerve with concern,
the efabliihment Of an inquihtorial
tribunal in our country, to deter
mine, among our citizens, who are,
and who are not entitled to conf
denee Jas they believe the mott
rigid obleryance Of the laws, might
have been enforced more ef-6tually,
by meafures infinitely lefs ofenGve
to the feelings, or rePugnaut to the
rights of the people.
The Frequent experience of Older
countries having demonstrated, that
mantle Of plauGbility may eaGly b
thrown over the mott dangerous IN
novations in government, il efpeciaii
" behoves the citizens of the United
States, and thole to whom they have
committed the guardianfhip of their
rights, leduloufy to watch, that in.
novations erroneous in principle, but
in their early progreIs not immedi-
ately opprellive in practice, ihoud
not pats unnoticed, and BE- fuiFered,
by the accumulation of precedents
to attain the weight of prefcriptioh.
The Senate agree with your Ex
cel'encv in the extreme danger Of
political foreign alliances, they fhould
only be refortrd to III cafes Of the
mott Urgent necefity-a nation can
alone be fccure when 1t can rely on
the virtue, the patriotifm and the
'trcrgth Of its own citizens and it
IS to be lamented, that in the prelent
tate of the world, a nation appears
to be r.fpec,ed only in the proportion
il which il is powerful -ihe events
Of the recent and prelent periods full
| ly verify this truth, it is therefore
with great fatisfaction the Senate
learn from the communication Of
| your Excellency, that the Govern
ment of the United States is rafting
forces for the protection of the I'm
| ion.
We are fully fenlible that for our
interna! defence, we mutt rely Under
the favor OF heaven, upon the militia
of the country, and the Senate arc
happy to believe that the militia Of
Manachufetts is inferior to that Of
no other fate in the union too
much attention cannot however be
given to this important fafeguard Of
our nation; il can alone be rendet-
ed fuffic;ently effective, by a high
degree of difcipline, and by engraf,-
ing on the minds Of the citizens while
on military duty, the habits and feel
ings of the folder thefe can alone
rcfult from the efxblilhment of due
degree of obedience and fubordina-
ton to their fnperiors in office, and
a conviction on the minds of the lat
ter, that in the legal and faithful diff