Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1832-12-13

foiaies Inc eternal principles OF natural JUSTICE ana
converts the Government into mere Legislature
lundorer OF n the governments on the face Of
the earth, the Federal Government, has the loas,
shadow Of constitutional right to cxe,elso such a
power. twas created principally, and nlmos, en-
clus',ey Tor the purpose Of protecting, improving,
and extending that very commerce, winch, for the
last ten years, all lis powers have been mos, un-
naturally and unnshieously perverted, 10 cripple
aud destroy The power Ia" regulate commerce
with foreign nations was granted, obviously, for
the preservation ct TINT commerce, The most I'M
pofant of all the duties which the Federal Govern
! nent owes To South Carolina, under the compact OF
Union, Is the protection and dc fcncc Of her foreign
commerce, against NIL the enemies by whom II may
be assaed. Aud in what manner has this duty
been discharged hllti powers of the earth, 10y
their commercial restrictions and all the pirates of
the ocean, by then la~less violence could not have
done 81 much 20 destroy on com er.e, IL has Icon
done by that very Government to winch IT'S goar
dinnshp has been coinnitied 10y the Federal Consti-
tuition.
The commerce Of South Carolina consists in
exchanging the staple productions Of her soil for
the manufactures Of Europe. 1t is a lawful com
| mefee. 1t violates the shIs of no class Of people
N any portion of the conrdcracy. It's tbs very
| comm cree therefore, which the Constitution has
ononed it upon Congress 10 encourage protect md
ie'end hy such regulations AS may be necessary 10
accomplish that object But instead Of that protcc
ton, which is the only Tie of our allegiance IT'S in
dividual citizens to the Federal Government, we
have suen II gigantic system of restrictions gradu
ally reared up, aud al length brought to fatal ma
turi,y of which it is the ayowed object aud must be
the inevitable result to swocp our commerce from
| the gieat highway OF nations, and cover our land
| with poverty and rum.
| Even the States most deeply Interested in the
maintenance OF the protecting ys,em, will admit
that 1t is the intcres, OF South Carolina tn carry on
| a commerce Of exchanges with foreign COUNTRIES
| free from restrictions, prohibory bm,hens, or IN
cumbrnnces Of any kind, We feel, and We know
that the vital interests OF the State involved IN
such commerce. Ii would be II downright insult
| to understandings 10 b. us that our interests
are not injured, deeply injured, by those prohIoilo
nv duties intended and calculated to prevent US
from obtaining the cheap manufactures OF foreign
countries for staples, and to compel us 10 receive
for them the dear manufactures of cur domestic es
tabl.shmenls or pay the penalty OF the protecting
Duties for darng to exercise one OF the most sacred
of our natural rights. What rIght, then human or
divine, have the manufacturing States for We re
gard tho Federal Government rs n mere instrument
in then hands-to prohibit S. Carolina, directly on
| iiuuGtilyt loNl SplHS W htl haih''ot "'"
exchanging the rich productions of her soil, with
out restriction or lnculnpfance, for such foreign
tcies us W i'll most coniuce TO the wealth and pros
per,ty of her citizens /, will not surely bl pre-
:ndcd--for truth and deeency equally forbid the al
| e.ation.-that in exchanging our productions for
the cheaper manufactures OF Europe, we violate u
ny right of the domestic manufacturers, bowcv
| CT gratifying II might be 10 them II we would
purchase their inferior productions al higher pr-
ces.
Upon what principle, then, con the State Of South
Carolina be calico upon to submit 10 a system
which excludes her from her natural markets. and
the manifold benefits of that enrchng commerce
| which kind and benliicent Providence has provi
ded to connect her with the family of nations, by
the bonds Of mutual INTEREST," But orc answer can
be given 10 this question i IS III gd;a tbat No
atemp, to disguise the fact, notifying as 1t must
be, that the principle 10y which South Carolina Is
thus excluded is in strict propriey o lanspa@" and
to all rational intcns and purposes, principle oil
colonial dependence and vasoalagc, IN all respects
indentlcal with ,ha, which restrained our 6,c!a-
| theirs from trading with anr manufacturing ration
Of Eulnlie other than Great Britain South Caro-
lima now bears the same relation to the n1annioctu-
ring States OF this conederacy, tfat the AnS'o
mcrcau colonies bore 10 the mother country, with
the single exception that our burhens are inconlra
rebly more oppressive than those Of onr ancestors
Our time, our pride and the occasion, equally .ot
I bid us 10 trace out the degrading analogy We
lenve that to the historian who shall record the
Judgment which an impartial posierity will pro
nolmce upon the cycntiu transactions ithls day.
Ii IS in vain that We attempt to console ourselves
by the empty and unreal mookcry four rtfrcsen-
tntion in Congress As 10 all those great and Vi
tal interests of,hc State which affected by the
protecting s, stem it would be better TINT she had
no representation in that body. 1t serses no other
nurpose but To conceal the chains which teucr our
liberties under the YAM and empty forms Ola rep
reson,atiye government. In the enactment OF the
protecting system, the majority OF Congress IS IN
street proprety of speech, an irresponsible dcspo-
tisn A very brief analyst Will render this clear
toevcry understanding What, then, VIC ask, Is
involved in the idea of political responsibility, IN
the imposition of public burthcns II clearly I'M
plies that those who impose the burthens Shoudbe
responsible to those who bear them Every repre-
sentative in Congress Should be responsible,
not only TO his own immediate constituents,
but through them and their common parci-
patton in the burhels imposed, to the constituents
of every other representative. II III the enactment
Of protecting tariff, the majority IN Congress I'M
posed upon their o4n constituents tie same
burthens Which tiey IMPOSE "to''c p''i"" "
South Carolina, that majority would ACT under
all the restraints OF political responsibility, anJ
We should have the best security winch hu
man wisdom has J ct devised againsl oppressive
Legislation.
But the fact is precisely the reverse of this.
The majority in Congress, IN imposing protecting
duties, which are utterly destructive OF the interests
, of South Carolina, no, only impose no butthens,
but actually confer enrch'ng bount'es upon their
constituents proportional to the hurihens they I'M
pose upon US. Under these circumstances, the
principle of representative responsibility, pcr'cI-