Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1812-08-10

one thing which is bad and another which is
a great deal worse. Augustus Caesar com
mitted many horrid murders yet nobody
compares him with his successor Tiberius.-
Just so, the zvi2 and pleasure Of The g0Dern-
'aent, though hateful in theory, and worse in
practice, bears no more proportion to the ic-
rocity of the mob, than the bubbling of tea
kettle to the cataract Of Niagara.
We proceed with Judge Tucker. !" Ac-
cordingly, when it was discovered that the
constitution of the United States had not pro-
yided any barrieragainst the possible encroach-
ments of the government thereby to be estab-
lished, great complaints were made OF the
omission, and most of the states instructed
their representatives to obtain an amendment
In that respect /; aud so sensible was the first
congress of the general prevalence Of this
sentiment throughout America, that in their
first sesSionthey proposed an amendment, since
adopted by all the states Maryland among the
rest and made a part of the constitution !;
6 that congress shall make no law abridging
Z" the freedom of speech, or of the hress. =
And our state bill of rights declares, I" that the
g freedom Qfthe fress is one OF the great bull
" warks of liberty, and cannot be restrained
"but by desfotic governments And so te-
nacious of this right was the convention of
Virginia, by which the constitution of the u
nited States was ratified, that they farther
declared, as an article Of the bill of rights
then agreed to, &c that the heotle haze a right
C to the freedom of speech, and OF zvriting and
!" Publishing their sentiments; that the free
Sc dom Of tie fre8s is one of the greatest bull
{" warks of liberty, and ought nor to be uiolat-
" ed" Nay, so reasonably Jealous were they
Of the Possibility Of this declaration being DIS.
regarded, as not forming part of the consti-
tuition, at that time, that the following decla-
ration is inserted in, and forms part Of the
instrument of ratification, viz. *****--- &C that
" among other essential rights, the liberty Of
e conscience, and OF the hresS, cannot be can
E" ccHcd, abridged, restrained or modified, by
any authority OF the United States
And yet, (ho1resco referens) there are to be
found in the United States-nay, in the state
Of Virginia,-that state which has employed
SO many precautions, and erected SO many bar
riers for the protection of this inestimable pri-
vilege from all encroachmcnt and invasion,
either by the state, or the general government,
tic, as openly, and unblushingly, to Justify the
recent tolerated extinction of the freedom OF
The press in neighboring state, and the sub
sequent murder of its brave and patriotic sup
porters and defenders, by a lawless, terocious
and infuriated mob Quis talia tando tenn
heret tacrynlia'
One would suppose that the frightful term
g opposition to government was an express
sion assumed by the federal party, and never
contemplated, or dreamed OF by our kind and
loving neighbors the democrats Our constr
tuition, it is true, has told us that even so re-
splendently digni6ed body as 6 congress
shall make no iazu a5ridgmg the freedom Of
aheech OF. of ne press" Now what is the
grave Interpretation put upon this passage by
that learned and crudite Dir. of laws the editor
Of the National Inteligencer Why nothing
more than this that what congress have not
the power TO medde with, mob may Tor
his transatlantic quill has been lndustriously
employed to mitigate the enormities of the
Baltimore riot. Probably this reverend ex-
FOUNDER Of law, deGuces this conclusion from
another provision of the constitution, viz that
" the powers not delegated to the u S by the
constitution, nor prohibited by 1t to the states
are reserved to the states respectively, or TO
tie teohle" Now he may argue as congress
are not authorized by the constitution to pass
an act to pull down house, destroy types
and commit ortrages by which life is endan-
gered, or forbidden the states SO to act that
power legally devolves upon the great oody
Of the people. The provision in the consltu-
ton was intended to authorize riots, and when
a press becomes obnoxious to the party IN
power, that must be the signal tor pulling II
down. As the law may admit question whe-
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