The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1826-05-04

gcrous To have the Supreme Court sta4
toned and stationary at the Seat of G1-
| vernmcnt; that tae Court will become dam
gefous 10 the government, and the Cow
! ernnont dangerous TO the Court, but that
this dagger viii not exist at all, II the Court
go the round of the Circuits, ia the recess
of Congress; and are here only about two
months during the session OF Congress; if-
they ara here only as boarders, and are
not domiciliatod here.
How these important results would he
produced by these means, the gentleman
left us TO find out by our wits. really
wish lac had favored us with short lecture
Eupac this point, and told Us the hccs tha
Isgk ISsnd the ,chsreiores of all this danger,
anTSf its prevention, the aiodus operundi.
Forone, profess myselIin want ofinstruc-
ton; amin the dark /; J am ready to cry
out, as some otus did on the Panama ques-
ton, for light; light, pray give me light it
is all enigma To me; wish the gentleman
had, and still would unriddle il /: say how it
ia, that this Judge is this harmless being,
If he ia kert rambling about the country a
part ofhis time: but ifhe is kept all the time
ut Washington, ho will 81, himself to work
AT undermining the Constitution, or Mt some
mischief or other 10 government; for the
gentlemen has not told us precisely what
the mischief is to be, and how il is that the
government, If he is at Washington all the
time, will confederate with him in this mis-
chief; but If he Is here only part OF the
time, will not have thought of the kind
and also, how the esprit do corps" ofwhich
he spoke---how that is TO depend on the To-
cality of the corps-how upon its being sta
tionary and how that is prevented by IT'S
being partly itinerary, aud partly stationa-
ry. All these hows hope the gentleman
will explain to us, if it will not give him too
much trouble. And another thing, wish
the gentleman would tell us, when and
where he made the discovery, that if We
found il so dangerous to have the Supreme
Court stationed at Washington, we sould
not station IL some where else. find no.
thing in the Constitution TO prevent il and
the law for this purpose will be just what
we please TO make it. Let the gentleman
then give us the distance at which tho Su.
preme Court may be stationed, and be safe
to the government, and from the govern
ment, and there it shall be stationed that
is, when he has proved the fact of danger
Then, so far as concerns myself, he shall
have carte blanche for fixing the place.
lie may fix il at Baltimore if he pleases:
II that Is not far enough, he may fix it at
Philadelphia; and if that is not far enough
he may fix 1t at New-York. | am apt 10
think that the gentleman would think that
safe distance, and the proper place. But
AZ the gentleman has such lar IN tinera-
ry "A an antidote to this Danger let the Sr-
preme Court be itinerant, and hold their
sessions at different places, but within
practicable distances. This think ought
to be not on account OF the genlleman's
danger, whatever that may be, but because
it would be an immense accommodation to
the country.
As to the very great powers Of tlie Su-
preme Court, taking the gentlemnn's state
mcnt in this respect for fact, as do,
would ask him, whether these powers
would be any greater by the Snpromo
Court being made stationary at Washing.
ton? Or any less by It's Judges being m.-c
to itincrnte the country? Ifnot, what sig
niics IT what their powers are as to this
question? Iftheif powers arc too great, SO
great as 10 be dangerous, that is tho fault OF
the.constitution, and the remedy is an a
mcndrhont Of the constitution; the danger
Is independent Of the Judiciary System, ard
Of every modification thereof; ia, in every
form thereof, the powers will be the same.
The gentleman complains that these pow
ers ride over the laws of the severa States
in certain cases. They do so-such is tho
constitution There 10 no help for it, so
long as the constitution remains as 1t IL.
But these powers have been exercised in
derogation ofthesc laws, and the rights ac-
quircd under them and in every instance
the Court have decided against the State
in favor Of the individual. Be IL so: il is sln-
gular that Tins should oc complained of asa
grievance, and yet made an argument for
continuing the very system under wbichit
has bcensuffcred.
There might oo some plausiblity ini.
ifthe Supreme Court had been stationary,
and all this ne happened, then to apply it
as an argumgnt in favor of a change 10 tho
itinerant sJstcm. Il might be spccjousl sly
said, thot tia grievance was owing to the
Court 5sing stationary, and to the inilu-
encc Created by t;Iat circumstance; and
thai 20 maze the Court itincrant would be
to estroy this influence. But when tho
grievance has happened under the timer
ont system, TO make the grievance an ar
gument for continuing that system, ap-
( pears to nc begging the gcntleman's par
1 don. not a little prcposterous.
The gentleman saws further, that inconl-
petent Judges may shelter their incompc-
tency from exposure in the Supreme Court
that such Judge will need only 10 say
yes, or nu: he may avoid giving any rca-
sons, and so pass in the crowd without ex-
posing himself, aud which he could not do
alone oil the Circuit. But suppose he has