Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1834-01-07
THE GAZETTE.
MR.. CLAY'S SPEECH
On the Remorat Of the Deposites.
[coNclupEp.l

Before | proceed TO conSideIdlioh VI -.
Report of the Secretary of the treasury a ad.
the second resolution, wish TO anuclpate -, Go 20
answer an objection, which may be maui e. ~
the adoption Of the first. 1t may De uigeu ,,''.s
the Senate being, in certain contiliSenssy J,
court of impeachment, ought not " $50
question which it may be calico upon ~ 49,, ~ c.,
iudicially But, by the ConSututon .no 80
,te has three characters, legislative, executive,
and ;ndicial It's ordinary, and by faf It's most
;n,nortant character, is that OF Its beng COM
nopent part of the Legislative Department
6nlv three or four cases, since the establishment
of the Government, Chat is, during peIlosu u
near half a century, have occurred, IN VIM ny.
il was necessary that the Senate shouio al N -
n indcial tribunal the least important u an &c &c
characters Now it would be most ST. diiSo, =,
whom ire constitutional powers were dsSdii0u, -
,onld not assert and vindlcate tleil, oeoou'e,
nv nossibility it might be required 10 act do
oon rt of Justice The first resolution asserts,
only, that the President has assumed .n1 oot
c;Ss IF . mower over the public treasury not
,rr.nted nv the Constitution and laws. IL Is ST.
Tent as TO motive; and, without the quo oatnto-
the deliberate purpose OF uSurpaton-the no.
ident would not be liable TO impeachment Du'
if concurrence of all the elements De hecessar :
ry to make out charge OF wiiiui tloia as. +S
the Constitution, does any one peleVe tlat tliu
president will now be impeached! ana shall
we silently sit by and see ourselves Stflpt ol
one of the most essential or our leSlSiduVo Po"
orc and the exercise OF II asSunieo ny tno
president. to whom it is not delegated, without
effort 70 maintain IL because, against I'LL H'i,lidh
orohabltv he NAV be hereafter impeached!
The Report of the Secretary OF the treasury,
IN the first nara graph, commences with HIS
statement of the fact He says" RGre aT rec:
ed, that the deposites of the money OF lhe Cili-
ted States shall not be made IN tne DahA vi 'H ~.
JTn;ted states If this assertion IS regarded III
onv other than a mere formal sense, 1t is not
tr,;e The Secretary may have been the lisuu-
ment the clerk the autOmaton IN whose name
tho order was issued; but the measure was tiie''
of the President, by whose authority OF COM
mand the order was given; and OF TINS we nave
the highest and most authentlc eVldehCe' lne
president has told the world that the measure
was his own; and that he took 1t upon ms own
responsibility. And he has eXonerated MS Ca
b;net. from all responsibility abouti it. The Sc
cretarv ought to have frankly disclosed all the
circumstances of the case, and told the IutL,
the whole truth, and nothing but the TRUTH IL
no had done So he would have informed Con-
oress that the removal had been decided by the
President on the 18th of September last that
itbad been announced to the pubic on the Zoth;
and that Mr.. Duane remained IN once until the
Dad. He would have informed Congress tiidt
this important measure was decided before lie
entered into his new Office, and was the cause
of his appointment. es, sir; the present sec
retarv stood by, witness to the struggle IN the
mind of his predecessor, between his attach
,nent to the President and his duty TO the coun-
trv. saw him dismissed from office because ne
wonld not violate his conscientious oohgatonS,
and came into Mr.. Duane'S place, TO 90 what
he could not honorably, and would not perform
A son of one of the fathers OF democracy, py an
Administration, protesting to be democratic, was
avnelled from office, and his place supplied by
gentleman who, throughout his whole career,
Tas been uniformly opposed to democracy! "A
gentleman who, at another epoch OF the Repuo
liz when it was threatened with civil war; ana
a dissolution of the Union, voted, (aithough
resident of a slave State,) in the Legislature OF
MARYLAND, against the admission OF missouri
INTO the Union, without a restriction lncompat-
BILE with her rights as a member OF the coined
eracv. Mr. Duane was dismissed because the
solemn convictions OF his duty would not anoW
him 10 conform to the Presidents VIII; because
his logic did not bring his mmd 10 the same CON
clnsions with those of the logic OF venerable
old gentleman, inhabiting white house not dis
tant from the Capitol; because his watch Here
MIR G. held up his own. did not keep time with
that Of the President. He was dismissed unuer
that detestable system of prescription, Tor opln"
IONS sake which has finally dared to lntrude
itself into the Halls OF Congress- system uh-
dor which three unoffending clerks, the fathers
of families. the husbands of wives, dependent
on Them for support without the slightest impu-
tation of delinquency, have been recently I'M
tremendously discharged, and driven out 10
beggary, by man, himself the SUBSTITUTE VI
meritorious officer, who has not been IN thlS cl-
tv a period equal to one monthly revolution OF
the moon! tell our Secretary, (said Mr.. q,
raising his voice. that, if he touch single hair
Of the head of any one of the clerks OF the Sc
nate. q am sure he is not disposed to do IT'D on
account of his opinions, political or religious, If
no other member of the Senate does IT. VIII
instantly submit resolution for his own dismis-
sion Loud applause IN the Gallery.
The Secretary ought to have communicated
all these things; he oughtto have stated that the
Cabinet was divided two and two, and one of
/, the members equally divided with himself on
the question willing to be put into either scale.
He ought to have given full account OF this,
the most important act OF Executive authorlty
since the origin of the Government; he should
have stated with what unsulied honor his pre-
decessor retired from office, and on what de-
grading conditions he accepted his vacant place.
when momentous proceeding like this, vary
ing the constitutional distribution OF the powers
of the Legislative and Executive departments,
was resolved on, the ministers, against whose
cbO haU