Portland gazette and Maine advertiser., 1814-12-26

cefors, and how ought you to exsrcile
the conltitutional power Of rafting armies!
By voluntary enliitment of perions capa-
BILE of contra6ting, for enliltment is only
contract. Congrefs has power Z" To
provide for organizing, arming and diff
ciplining the militia, and for governing
luch part of them, as may be employed
in the fervice of the United States, re.
fcrving to the itates respectively the ap-
pointment of the officers, and the author
ity of training the militia according to
the djcipfae prefcribed BY congrefs "
Alto, "to provide for calling forth the
militia to execute the laws of the nation,
fupprefs infurre0ions, and repel inva
fions." And when called into actual fer
vice of the United States, the Preldens
fhall be the commander in chief thereof
Now, Sir, congrefs has already pahed
laws for Organizing the militia into divi-
fions, brigades, regiments, battalions and
companies, and they have been organized
accordingly ALTO, for arming the mill
tia, and which you have partially execu
ted And for fome of the other purpO
fes mentioned in the contribution. They
are then, ir, by your contribution and
laws, and they were fuch in moll of the
itates before the contribution was adopt
ed, or your laws enacted, an independ-
ent, organized, armed and difciplincd
corps, in the REFLECTIVE itates. with an
independent commander in chief over
each And, Sir, Congreis car now ap
proach them in no other form, nor
through any other channel, than that
of this independent commander any
law, or laws of congreis to the contr-Iy
notwithitanding.
Now, Sir. what do your two frlf bills
contemplate. That from the Senate,
which is drawn with great art, and may
be abuied to the WORT Of Purpoles, does
indeed call upon the executives of the
eates, for their REFLECTIVE quotas of the
militia required but after that we hear
no more of the fate authority. The tc-
cond fiction divides the whole militia
into as many claiies as ths.e are fold
iers required from each itate, ordering
each clals to furnilh one : the third fec
ton directs the commander of companies
what perlons to enrol, * to uiake their
returns to the adjutant General of the
United States; he is to fend his orders
10 the commanders OF brigades, and thefe
again to commanders of regimeats, who
are to iilae their orders to commanders
of companies, and they to fec the draft
made. and thefc Rate officers over
whom you have no legal control, till cal
led into your feTvice, are to be fined, i'm
prifoned and Gathered, il they do not
obey your illegal mandates and all this
without conful,ing their coni.irutional
commanders in chief. Now, fir, it is
very certain, ina, il they do obey thofe
mandates, they will be liable to fine aud
imprisonment under the itate laws ; you
therefore, place them between two fires
And thus the poor militia officers are to
be cue up. whether they obey OF difobcy.
But, Gr, the conicnption bill of the
houle is iliil more deitructive OF our mi
iitia j, goes, Sir. to disbaud the whole;
10 melt IL down TO one common MATS |;
and odt of this chaos makes up little fqads
Of twenty Eve, each Of which is uLder
lervere penalties, TO iurnifh man during
the war for the regular army If Gr, you
have right thus to take twenty. filth,
you may take the whole, and convert the
whole militia into tanding or regular
army, under the commano of your Pref
ident. Thus completely annihha,ing the
!tate iovereignties. The great miliake is
FIR, that you undertake to command the
militia before they are according to the
continution, called into the actual fcrvice
of the United States. To illultra.e my
meaning, iuppole the cafe of two indie
pendent commands under your laws,
where one, in case of neceiity, is requi
red to iupport the other take if you
pleatc, the cafe of Gen. lizard aud Gen.
Brown The latter has occaiion for a
thoufand men from the command OF the
former according to the bill from the
Senate, Brown calls upon lizard for tina.
number, but leait lizard ihould not COM
piy, he directs lizards tubordinatc officers