Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1836-03-10

;, h.,.o to any instruction. which tho State LogauTes
tha elected him nay s've OF 49, bic Re Gu
inn /, -m be, in his 0nt Judgment nc HAS Nv
10 exercise his own judgment ALL consult his own consc.cace
he not in this case moral Ggcu he has 10 alternative o'' u
obey or ressa. ,,, = i ,..u,rd in tho preamble
TO the Gcnrru Assembly, which you nave '
mi ted thu. The issi sss IT tns't v; psy ahs L
istiuentto aid the DUTY OF the reie"1"a't
obey rsiH from which infer that the Gc"rrl ASSEMBLY, sup
poui hat this doctrine has been asserted more nun oss
urc only tina. ,s peculiar octra' ever was asses
do not know Which, where, what OCCASION "a' user
eJ ccnuuly not u.scsd nor intended to b. INSERTED,
in The preamble and resouos, noped Dy ie Genea i'scp
ru my hands, without assistance rom any
o whatever un drawn up u. but too well
rlirs it, vaue; yet rrccnt aI careful revue" OF ~ ~"
niu the ropoiun. ,.r. asserted nnI therefore,
lu. nal desirou HAT my present opinions anu COLI
du. shall !,e tested by them.
ss e-oluons hrn which The conclusions resulting from
the reasoning OF the pcubc expressly deciat that The l"sc
which State Legislature! have right 10 give he Hena
tors Congress, which the boumrn duty II" tho Senators
10 obey nrh onIy AZ "eae not I'll" Senate! 10 e1Hm %
uon OF the Constitution Il" M uct % moral an,
expressly stated in the preamble THAT Saic instruct II. sena
o !" give ,. i"s eaV cue Of the kid nus. s,an
peculiar HAT hc poptety OF o
pu,o mus, be y the OF the injustice, the
of mischief anL the prudence OF resistance The a'ea
tive here proposed 10 the Senator not G0saa%fe ~ W.
obedience Or determined by the considerations ny
which nil resistance the authority OF government must ever be de-
trrrni 'ri.'
Here Mr. Leigh admits thai the resolutions Of 1872
meant what Mr.. Giles only asserted MIR. Leigh then
condemned Mr. Giles. But has MIR. L. ever SAID SO
much against the Right Mr. l.. has recently expressed!
II the Right of Instruction be indeed not IN the nature
of command, bu merely addressed 10 the Senators
dScrctiOn if he be alone and either obey or re-
SYST Mr. l.. contends, not obey or resign what
becomes of this great and vital Right in our free lnstItu-
tons, Is it not idle and ridiculous to talk OF 1t as
Right if this is to become the received doctrine Of
country: Let the manly and eloquent Recanatlon OF
John tiooe which rcpublish in this paper, give the
~ -
Blu, again, let us see what our present Senator under
stands by Instruction, when he says that lie adhcies TO
the doctrine OF the Resolutions OF lol2:
Here the General Assembly has instructed TO 90 that which
in conscience would be crime, aud VI
Of moral ,upude cannot obey without crime; und
inic vital blow the Constitution because would
b. lnowcIby lar serious an mevou to both
and government than tcu obedience
the instruction. h hen upon me- OF obo
denee or es's'ante: an alternative Which would be painful enough
shall mention in the sequel.
haze understood supposed, the cspon
sbty rests on the constituent body all the Scnato Is relieved
o" portion OF ii ta it the province OF tho constituent TO
judge anJ cuund, uni his believe md obey Can it be really
thought that the official oath OF Senator support the Consu
oa u The United States subject exception which exemp
the sus En. has cscsd him. fiu, the sanatpr ,a
ind ought 10 take the oath with mental reservations tu he will
inv 70 sy T. b. ancup TO- dotrnes t;s k;nI Which wo
sap the foundations of all public virtue The truth is, that in all
between those who authority and those whom
cxcrcissL shtiul such nutho,yas
Obedience, the sh. Of cance both puics must,
the OF things judge for cscresi and The only difference
between them: that the party sting resist. at his peril
which alone succs general determine him against resistance
who hold
the sole r. Judgment and that those whom
exercised have right 10 judge for themselves, whether they
oppressed affirm the doctrine OF passive obed
and maintained by the University Of Oxford
the reign Of James H. The commands ute constituent
the Constitution in oil moral upude Tho
the slave not bound obey and is not eNeusabs
Obey Ing the unlawful commands ol his
al the General Assembly had instructed TO give VOTE
Icun consider as at all donu especially question on
the public mind had been "nS and deliberately caecl on which
temporary fremeI but OF raso and yet re"aI4
ment OF the General Assembly, though had been eonuy 10
own"
Here we have indeed host Of conditions and qualiE
cations, sufficient to rcr away the whole Right and to
cIpungc the whole doctrine from political creed
What is this passage III lis obvious meaning, but saying
LIST. That the question which the Legislature inslrucs,
must not in the opinion Of the Senator! be Doubtful
(doubtu questionable OBSCURE nscld duJiOuS j.
and what constitutional questions can now be mooed,
in relation to which ingenious sophs like Iazewe
or Leigh may not raise doubts-2d 1t must be
which The public mind has been long and deliberately
exercised rccent wrongs or usupaons, of COURSE give
right TO inslruct-only those, which have been long
and mau!ely dwclt on by the public mnd)--3d. One
which the judgment had been formed, under no in
hucncc Of purity or temporary erctemcnt-(And pray,
what questions should they be, or when might not
tumacious Senator use such pleas The grosser the
outrage practsed upon the Constiunnlhe greater the
necessity of State ha her OF course
the excitement )-4th. question acdded alone under
dispassonae reasons-and 5th 1t must be question on
which the public mind divided and balanced. In such
General Assembly, though contrary TO his own.-Most
kind and courteous "scrvant indeed! And who is 10 |
decide each Of these categores: The Legislature who
nsructs the Senator instructed? The osener Of the
estate the Of his creation' The Master
the "Scrvant:' Is one man. and he Too their Re.
preventative and serran 10 say to 200 others, selected
for the purpose Of legislatng for whole community,
" set up my judgment and opinion against yours; aud
will determine ,chcn chat hoc this great right is
10 be exercised:
Why, in The name of wonders what would become of
the Resolutions of S and 49, by this Procrustes Stan
dard of ''Hunorabc SENATOR" Was the constitu-
tunaity Of the Alien and Scditon Laws considered 10
be doubtful case? The Fcdcralists of that day. who
far The question of Instruction Mr..
l.. himself goes did not think ii duubllul-and might
not MIR. Leigh himself for he has admitted that he |
thought the Alien Law clearly constitutional,
whatever he really thought Of the other law According
To his principle then, he would have disobeyed the instruc
ons as to the Alien Law, upon the very same grounds
lie has dsobeycd the resolutions of the present General
Assembly .-According to his extraordinary notions
sudden glarng usupation or abuse OF power qucs
ton which any doubt or excitement should exist,
which the public mind had Gaianccd or divided, can
possibly become the subject of instruction by State
Legislature TO its "grave and reverend Senators. Why,
what mockery is this of the responsibility Of the
'Serrunt' and the sorcrc gnty of the State? How
is the Right Of Instruction withered up and para |
USED in its operations This is indeed paering with
us in double sense keeping the promise to the ear,
but breaking it to our hope. Under this contracted
doctrine Of MIR. Leigh, which would efectuay ow US
to the feet Of our servants what would become Of
those checks OH which even Rufus King, and John Jay,
and Alexander Hamilton, descanled the formation Of
the Constitution? What control would the State Legs-
atures exercise their Senator'S if this heresy
prevail None. Why, scarcely any Federalist Of the
ancient school has gone further in relation 10 this
doctrne than MIR. Leigh does And yet this the man,
who talks about vlndcating the Right Of Instruction
and the authority Of the Laws" This is he, who ,cu.
the author of the Report OF lol2!
Nor is his OF refusing obedience less offensive
TO the Legislature and the People What docs he say Of
these Instructions: 1t instrucs HE to cxpunge that
which is there truly rccorded 1t instrucs "dc-
face and in manner 10 faIsifY a phhiic record