Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1818-02-18

gentlemen in that house imagined mat IL
did not affect their partieular districts
they should feel disposed to reject rs he
| ~ould tell them that it was the duty ot
congress to give the power back again to
the states, and not keep it in their peck
! els, or withhold it from those states 10
| whose veil being it was neces,ary.-And
here Mr.. Hopkinson reminded Tie house
of the many difficulties that had arisen
and were every day arising trnm congress
having neglected to occupy all Tire judi
cial ground granted by the constitution !;
the consequence of which was, he sald,
that the states began to deny the authors
| ty of congress, which they never would
have done il It had at once taken pos.
session of the constitutional grounds as
signed to it.
Mr.. II. then proceeded to show flat,
from various CONT adictory acts on the
part OF the states respecting insolyent
debtors, 4 confusion aud variety of mis-
chiefs had arisen, which the 1ct now pro-
posed alone Coad settle. The continu
anCe Of the union vas held to be all i'm.
! portant; and he affirmed that nothing
was more necessary to the accomplish
ment of that than to give TO all our com
mercial laws the mos perfect uniformity.
If policy then demanded this, was no,
the demand rendered more Operative
by the consideration that the practice Of
other countries conspired with reason
and experience to enfcrce it ? In other
cases prudence was d relief from the ne
cessity Of such provisions. But the mer-
chant was continually subject to casual.
ties. He must cease to be a merchant,
or trust his possessions to the winds and
the world, BY these risks Of the mer-
chant the county was enriched, and
therefore he had particular claims on the
indulgence and protecting care of the
country. Thee were, he said, at tho
moment he was speaking, 10000 per.Ons
in the union rendered useless and inca
pahle Of providing for t.eir families OF
paying their creditors, BY being hamper
ed with debts, which, under such circum-
! stances, they never could be enabled to
pay. The newspapers would show the
great mass OF distress in the country
Between S and 1000 were annually dis
! charged under the state inso,vent laws.
Those were chiefly men in trade, who,
by their spirit Of enterprise, had largely
benefited the couatry. The country
was enriched and the treasury was filled
by thei- Efforts, but they themselves were
ruined.
Mr.. Hopkinson here gave a circum.
stantial account of the nature IF tie
frauds that had been committed, we're
daily committing. ard were INCREASING
under the state insolyeht laws, Hhich |
apprehenJ are too well known aaG too Sc.
verely felt by the public TO require re-
petition in this place; and he Showed not
! only the injustice but impoIicy of them in
:. ong co'ors, drawing contrast between
those laws and the bankrupt act now pro.
posed-those made no difference between
the prodisal and gambler on the one
hand, and on the other the merchant who
lost hi: all by the hand Of Heaven siaking
Of a vessel. Under the law now proposed
the gambler could take no ben, Gt-under
, the former the debtors subsequen, ear
nings were left subject to the creditor
by this act the debtor would be free on
giving up his present property-by the
former tie debtor was by fraud and per-
Jury enabled to rob his creditors-by this
bill he must give up every thing, not to
favored creditors, but alike to all. lie
said that he had hin sell seen from leo to
200 discharged in day, ten being at
once upon the book swearDg-and SO
hopeless were the creditors Of ever get
ung cent that they did not make an eI-
fort for the uurpase. He revealed some