Northern star, and Warren and Bristol gazette. [volume] (Warren [R.I.]) 1826-1830, 1826-05-13

lnal and the appellate, was intended and
expected by the constitution. The con.
stltntion does not make n Judge Of :he
Supreme Court. Nex csficio. Il JnNgc Of
the Inferiour Courts. 1ic may be made
so by special apportmeDt'and commiss-
ion but he is not SO ex o!ticio. The
contrary construction and practice M
der it, is one that ose day 1r,y give rise
to questions that may involve co1.e-
Guences it were much better to avoid.
Vt may do well enough as long as indi-
|, viduals alone IRE concerned. But q
time may come, (God forbid that it
Should come,, when combinations Of
men under the conivance or counte-
nance Of state or states shall resist the
execution of the laws and shail defend
themselves, or be defended, on the
ground that the lnleriour Courts have
I no constitutional power.te enforce them
1t is easy to conceive how this mightin-
volve the government. in difficulties Of
| the most embarrassing nature;it is not
necessary to point them out, they will
suggest themselves 10 every refiecting
mind. Is il adviseable to leave the
country exposed TO this possible dan
ger! 1t may be said that tihis danger
may be prevented by special appoint
meat and commission of the Judges Of
;, the Supreme Cour, as Judges of the In
ferior Courts.
But the honorable gentleman from
Ncw. York tells US that the system of'!o-
cal courts for the exercise of the orig
inai Jurisdiction, wii!'be unpopular p
He says this on conjectrre merely, anil
against all the probabilities Of the thing
!i.is SO to be judged # by com parasou
with the present system 'rses he IN
tena to Fay that the present system is
SO very popular tia, any change CT it
wonld b. unpopular Cnc would think
from his own accolnt, it was not very
popular with him at least, t at least
a, was but a necessary evil. / hope it
>; think it more popular with 9th
ers, but | do not think it so very pop
iular but that change for the better
would be borne with. and without pro-
ducns any particular cnmholion.
| 1t will, AS l said, be Judged Of al
! together by comparison, aad that must
be in favour Of separate courts foe tbs
exercise of the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
! That plan is better in Itself; it's bet.
ter fur the present it is all better for
the future; so obviously so, that i.
speaks it own preference and speaks it
10 every mind. | venture to coWec-
ture, (aud have as good right to
conjecture as the gentleman and better
grounds | thnk) that tAese Courts
would become the most popular courts
J in this Couniy--the m"st popular with
the suitors, the most popular with the
bar, the most popular with the people.
These courts woull. be the means Of
making the national judiciary the ma
tionai idvourite as well as the national
pride. The gentleman ina, alluded to
"a similar system, that was once adopt
cd, aud soon after laid aside 4; and
hence infers, that The system itself is
unpopular. The inference is incor-
rect; the men who made that system,
4 made it unpopular, and nothing else.
II was not the thing itself, as beng bad
I in itself, that caused it to he laid aside
it was the supposed calculation OF the
thing; it was tie POLITICAL effect Of the
thing that was the cause. .
! 1t was made by party going out
Of POWER, aud 10 secmre in their hands
(as was believed by the party coming
INTO power) the Whole judiciary power
of tire country, to be welded Tor their
rown political purposes and the sys-'
tenn was broken down to frustrate this
calculation, and to wrest this power
out of their hands - The ostenstle OBJ
lection, it is true, was to the thing IT.
self, but as it could not be shown to be
bad, the thing was s'iymatised it was
called by many bad names among
others, by the name of the midnight
Judiciary ; and the bid name raised
1 hue and cry against it, and not the de-
merits of the system itself. 1t was
deemed reason enough by the trium-
plant party, that it was presented to
them by the defeated party, retiring
from pJwcr. lIemcmber it was said
on the occasion, Timco Danaos ct
dona terentes,'" the designs, the wilcs
Of tine Greeks were ieared,and the pres
ent was rejected.
But I speak from knowltdgc, in
large distric,,oi country-trom inior-
marion, as to much larger, aud fran
belief. as to the whole country, when |
say, that these courts, as courts. by all
the suitors to them, by all the bar con-
nected with them, were esteemed by
lar the most popular federal courts