Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1828-1831, 1829-11-13

ter division ofthe State coutaius no peculiar
OF property on which tax could be laid that woni5
not ence. equ m me west. Ii that were true,
would prevent the East If IL should have tho po,yo,
from laying larger duties upon property in the
,han upon the very same species in the East, What
$40 prevent the East, If It should keep the power,
from drawing mojic circle around it's own terrific.
res over which the taSgat hercr should never pass,
ihcre Is nothing to prevent this but sense OF us-
acc, 1.-THE still small voice OF conscience" which
would speak with much OBJECT to the greater num-
Der as to the smaller. You may say tina, the op-
preston OF such measure would be too ou,rnrrous
To be attempted bu: it is certainly not m, re so than
'iFS assessment OF Il tax, which, IN namc is unyer
SAL while In fact its weight would fall entirely ON
single section of the Stote.
IL appears further, not only that the basis Of tax
ntiOn aud population might By possbiiit lead IN the
result OF a very small and nconsiderabe minority 8
Gctt'ng the whole power of the government into
their hands; but the reasoning by which gentlemen
have been persuaded to adopt that basis would prove
II were of any force, that the most unimportan mi
minority might have the right the lust title To that
power IL Is conceded that line of distinction CEN
be drawn between minorities of different sizes -
Well then, suppose the ship owners, who are many
OF them extremely wealthy, were TO say we possess
peculiar species of valuable proper tv which
no ear;ly power has n right TO take from u.s. but
which nevertheless may be taken from u.s. unless we
haze the prevailing influence in the councils of the
republic; because we may be taxed without others
being affected by the tax. WHAT answer could we
give them? Could we saw YOU arc too small n mi
nority? They would tell draw the line of de-
marcaton; they would say to US this circumstances
adds weight to our arguments. for the smaller the
minority the more likely il is to be oppressed and
you have no moro right TO iivure and wrong a small
number than large one. The owners Of town lots
on other town property, in Richmond. Norfolk g.
other towns, might set up the clam by priority
OF reasoning; might many her classes Of peope
Thus we should behold the spectacle of n thousan nd
discordart Interests rising up and warning for supr
macy against each other, like the Dragons teeth
sown by Cadmus But though small section of
the State can have no right to demand without the
consent OF the remaining sections the supreme now
er IN the commonwealth, il has unquesiionablv
right 10 withdraw from n government il diskes and
10 make stipuations with it In the present case
me majority, ought 10 yield perfect protection to the
minoryt AMI no more, and this may be done by
granting 1t the predominrnce IN ihe Senate. We
are told that the upper House must always Weld To
the lower. we allow that 1t has commonly done
so, because IT was right for it do So IL has sur
rendered because II believed the lower house N he
the trucst index of the will of the constituents of the
Senate; coming more directly from the body of the
people than the latter branch of the Legislatur,
But if the Senate deleg ated for the very pur
pose OF resisting the cncroachmonts of the house of
reprcscntativcs-f the Senate should 90 forth from
the lowlands of the East, while the other house
should come from the mountains of the West there
could then be-no just cnriss, ~ bumbly apprchcnd
to fear similar result
1t probable that if the basis proposed by the
Eastern members were TO be adopted no great evil
would grow out OF II at this time; but we hone that
the Convention Is engaged, not in the puny effort to
frame a constitution. which may endure for only a
teetng moment, but that it is filed with the lofty
the sublime aspiration, to devise form of govern
ment which may stand unatered and uuhurt for
countless ages, amidst the rise and fa and other vi
cssltndes of surrounding empires 1t should therefore
not be swayed by temporary considerations "IfI were
10 s"ect' say SIbbon, that period of he world in
which the condition OF mankind was most bonnv and
Prosperous would take hat which Elapsed between
the downfall of Domitlan and the accession of Com
modus. but the form Of Government which under
the regnS OF NerVa, Trojan, Adrian aud the An
TONNES, produced such unexampled happiness. wne on
the whole, deep and dreadful curse upon the Ro.
ni1uS RUSTICUS.