Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1815-04-05

| ritY their rights, liberty and indie Denience
| With a resolution becoming men who hav,
hearts to feel for the injuries of their coun
try, and spirit TO resent them. they Offered
to place twelve Thousand of their fellow eli
tizens at the disposal of the general govern.
ment, and directed the raising OF four thou
sand state troops. At this tine twenty five
thousand Of he militia of this state were in
| the field. Yet at such time, when but one
heart should have beaten in the breast oil
the American people, and every arm should
have been nerved in the defence of their
country, vas this convention called. and
their proceedings approved by two of our
| sister states.
| Far, very far must it have been from the
minds of the people of this country. in the
wear '76, that the state Of Massachusetts,
to revenge whose wrongs United America
stood forth ia arms and plunged her.elf IN o
a seven years war. that in the year eigh-
teen hundred aud fourteen, when the storm
OF war assailed our coast, and bowed upon
our Wes:ern frontier- that she would ha e
withheld her strength, aud would have
| shrunk from the contest.
| How different, under the same circum
| stances has been the conduct e the good
| people of this state. On hem, perhsp
more than on any other state, has rested
the burthen of the war. Orr expenses have
been great, the suiferings of our citizens Sc
we're but their spirits rose with the pressure
of the times anu manifested fort;tude n
suffering, and a herosm in danger, which
must have satisfied the enemy that their
strength was alone sufficient for the protec
ton ct their liberties and soil. They did nor
employ their time in di5couraging enlist
ments, destroying the national credit. and
in stunning the ears of the nation with
clsmor for defence, when not a single man
had been killed in their state: Nor did they
surrender without struggle part of their
territory. for the purpose of enjoying pro
frable trade with the enemy; They did not
purchase protection by doing their utmost
to Daraiyse the arm of the national govern.
| ment ; nor was the enemy induced, by the
pusillaDimity of their conduct, tn make a
discrimination in their favor in his blcckades.
no. the vAlor of our militia on the Niagara
frontier, and at Plattsburgh, had inflicted
| marks OF American vengeance upon him
which were but little calculated to conciliate
| his favor.
But however different may have been the
! conduct of some OF the Eastern states, your
! committee cannot but indulge hope, that
| there is among their citizens a redeeming
| spirit, which will sool induce them to with,
| draw their confidence from men who have
| betrayed them into so unpatriotic cause !;
! that those states which in time Of peace
| gataer the richest fruits from the Union
! will not hereafter in time OF war, refuse to
| share the burthens of their country. and
| take advantage of its distress in order to o.
| verthrow It's government
| In the amendments proposed to the Con
| stitution, your committee can discover moth
| ing Inconsistent with the late conduct ofthe
| states by whom they are recommended
! The effect of them. if adopted, would be to
| create dissen,ions among the different mem
| bers of the Union, to enfeeble the national
! government, and to tempt all nations co en-
croach upon our rights. Your Committee for.
| bear to enter into particular examination of
the merits of these amendments but they
! cannot but remark, that if the fifth. which
| requires the concurrence of two thirds of
| both houses OF Congress to declare war,
! were adopted, no nation would ever fear
J our power. Recent experience has given
\ US too much reason to apprehend, What a
| portion Of the people in the eastern section
of the Union are lost to due sense of ma.
tional honor. These, combined with others,
might put it out Of the power of governs
ment to declare war even if an insolent foe
should plumber our commerce and kidnap
cur citizens. Your committee would fur.
| Their remark, that although an amendment
| is proposed, depriviHg certain states of
| portion of their representation, in consid-
| Grafton of holding slaves, upon the ground
that it is unequal IN its operation yet no
thing is suggested in favor of equalising the
! representation in the Senate, in which the
states of Connecticut and Rhode Island are
each equally represented with this state,
! which contains four times as many as the
former, and fourteen times as many as the
| after.
| Upon considerable view Of the whole SUBJ
! ject, your committee are of opinion that as
it becomes this honorable Legislature, in
| the words of the father of his country, to
frown Indignantly upon the first dawnRg
Of any attempt to aliniate any portion of our
! sountrymen from the rest, or TO enleeble the
| sacred ties which now link together the
various parts" that it would be proper to
adopt the following resolution
RESOLVED, That the seven several pro.
positions of amendment to the Constitution
of the u. States be and the same are here.
by rejected and that his Excellency the
Governor, be requested to Communicate in
formation thereof, to the Executives Of the
several states Of the general government
BY order of the committee,
OGDEN EDWARDS, Chairman.
E,nto JL,HEc, DoH..