Portland gazette and Maine advertiser., 1812-03-09


alism, and when they have had the ben
J eft of eleven years experience 10 find
K in what manner the brilliant promises
, which he and they made have been full
filled, should not th ow off The delusion
which induced them 10 support those
men, and place the affairs Of the nation
under the care Of such men as General
4 Washington had confidence in. The
misfortune Of the case, however, Is,
that passion and not reason governs too
many men and, under its Influence,
the good of the nation is forgotten in
the constant struggles TO defend par
! ", and maintain power. If the ques-
ton had not been asked and left unah-
! owercd thousand times, it might with
much propriety be put once more.
Have nor tie affairs " Ills country con-
stanfly gone 6ackzvlrd-hGUe they nor
/ necessarily deYenerated from tad 10
E0orae, since Dir. Jcferson .trSt become
President 2 But one answer can hon
estly be given 10 this question, and
therefore noae is given. If replied to
truly, it must be in the affirmative.
But an answer of that sort would strike
deep stroke al the popularity of MIR.
Jefferson, and of course al the charac-
ter OF the subordinate officers OF his
party, and therefore silence is presery.
ed as a more sure, and less hazardous
course.
The commerce of our country has
for years past been SO hampered and
restricted, 1t has been subjected to so
many hazards and difficulties al home
and abroad, that it is little better than
annihilated. The interests not only OF
the eastern and middle, but Of the SOU
thern and western States, are intimately
connected with commerce. We are
very much mistaken if at this moment,
the evils Of the " restrictive system" are
not as deeply felt in Tennessee, Ken
lucky, and Ohio, as in New-England
and New-York. What prevents the
people ofthose States from discovering
the true source of this calamity ?
When federalism was at the head of
our affairs, and commerce was free and
unobstructed, the western States,
though then much smaller in point of
numbers, found the benefit of that state
Of things. And If il were possible for
US to get back to the same situation we
were then in, perhaps no part of the
country would be more Immediately or
essentially benefited by the change
than those States. Dut the people Of
the western country cannot but know
who was the father of the " restrictive
system" They cannot but know that
the policy of the federalists always was
10 CHERISH AND PROTECT
COMMERCE. Knowing these
things, it would seem 10 follow neces-
sarily, that they must know one thing
more, and that is, that Mr.. Jefferson
has 6een their greatest enemy.
But what would excite more wonder,
If wondering would do any good, is,
that Notwithstanding all their expert
ences, and all their sufi'erings, SO great
proportion OF the people Of Massachu-
sets, still cling 10 party, whose poll
Cy has been So destructive to their in.
tcresis. Ii there is State in the u
Mon, whose existence essentially de-
ponds on commerce, Massachusetts, is
that State. Yet ia that State, the fever
Of democracy is in its highest state OF
) inflammation. The leaders Of the par
y there, make no profession of regard
10 me zOeJare Of Massachusetts,. The
J only preteXt for all the violence, rage,
and proc ipiicn, which exists, is
The national f0Acy-that Jeffersonian
policy, which We have mentioned, and
the progress Of which has fallen with
such destructive force upon that State
Now it is absolutely certain, that il
the people OF Massachusetts, would re-
EJECT, they would see and feel, that they
are guided and deluded by designing
ambitious, and unprincipled men. Il
they would take the trouble 10 examine
into their own individual interests anc
: enJovmcnls, they would be put to diff
hculty TO find in what respects they are
personally benefited by the predomi
nance OF their present rulers. The lar.
meIs, and mechanics, and merchants,
IT they will carefully survey the affairs
OF themselves and their neighbours,
Will Ind, that while all the benefits of a
change OF men and measures have fal.
len to the lot Of few noisy dema.
gogues, they have only been duped-