Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1836-03-10
WHOLE NO. $40.

III, TUlS PROVISION was fDStFItN, Tor u cOuIu
have no other assgnable purpose. Now. to
control the expenditure, Congress must not
only prescribe the object. but limit the amount
to be expended upon ii; otherwise, and il
Congress only prescribes the object, but does
not limit the amount Ia DO expended upon II,
il is the Executive who controls the expend-
ture. and not the Congress-. Now, to pre-
scribe the object, and to limit the amount Of
expenditure upon II, Is to make specific sp-
preparation. The two things are IDENTICAL
Then, as certainly as that the Constitution
did intend the Congress to have the control
of the public expenditure, (which nobody dis
puies or doubts) it did intend specific appro-
prations, and none other.
/ deem it no slight evidence Of the correct
ness Of the Interpretation which makes the
constitution to require specific appropriations,
that it falls in with all our prepossessions OH
the subject, all our habtuai Impressions, all
our received opinions; and this as well Of those
who approved as Of those who disapproved Of
the three millions appropriation. 1t 10 a
common, q received and accredited article of
constitutional faith. THIS has been apparent
through the whole Of this debate; for those
gentlemen who hove defended this three mill
lion appropriation have labored hard to make
out this appropriation to be specific, or to find
omewbcre in some part Of our history Of ap-
preparations some precedent that would give
some countenance to the generality Of this,
clearly evincing that they felt the prinla facie
case to be against them the common impress
sion to be against them; the tide of precedents
to be against them; in a word, that they had
the laboring oar in the case. Now, this
could not have been so If their previous and
habitual opinions had been that general ap-
propriations were constitutional.
!, am aware that, in justice j ought to make
one gentleman an exception to the generall-
~ Of my statement. ] mean the honorable
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Brown.)
! confess that he seemed TO be wholly unem-
| barrasseJ by the difficulties which had somueii
embarrassed all the other speakers OF tho
same side Of the House. He had short aud
easy way with the dissentcrs. He told us
: that an appropriation, when passed, became
law, and the money to be drawn would then
be drawn out Of the Treasury in consequence
Of an appropriation made by law. So, and
according to him, there could be and there
=, can be no such thing as unconstitutional ap-
: pro2riaticn; for every appropriation, when
z passed, becomes a law, and, therefore, &C
{ cordng to him, becomes constitutional.
, The honorable gentleman from Pennsyl-
r vania (Mr. Buchanan seemed to think it pru.
r dent to be little cautious how he answered
t TO the inter.ogatory put to him by my friend
from Delaware (Mr. Clayton,) as to the gen.
eral appropristoDs-The honorable gentle
} man looked about him carefully, on al sides;
he seemed to see dilemma ahead, and that
an indiscreet answer might involve him in
straits where, with Scylla on one side and
Charybd on the other, he might peradven-
! ture get foundered. The honorable gentle
man was too wary to commit himself by =
categorical answer. But, If the same inter-
rogatory had been pnt to the honorable gen.
: tleman from North Carolina, ! do not see
how it could have embarrassed him in tho
least, or how any interrogatofy of the sort
i could. Suppose an appropriation OF twenty
millions, 10 a gross sum, for the use of the
: Government for the current year. and SUI
pose he were asked, would that appropriation
be constitutional? His prompt and unhesita-
ting answer ! should expect to be: ~ Undoubt-
edly; for, when passed, it would become a
law, and would be therefore constitutional"
i admit the gentleman to be an exception
to the generality Of the statements ] have
made, and that he holds the singular opinion,
that general appropriations are constltutionali
and he holds it, too, for reason as singular,
as it appears to me, as the opinion ITSELF
Though all others, so far as ] know, hold
|, that the law referred to in the Constitution
, means some law passed previously to the ap-
preparation, or, at least, independently ct the
appropriation, he holds it to be the Identical
r law made by the appropriation.
D., mind disposed to dependency. ON view
Of the falling fortunes Of our free Republic,
would be apt to draw gloomy presage from
one peculiar feature Of this debate. 1t has
been made the occasion by the honorable
:, mover Of the resolutions, unprovoked to do II,
nnnec cessarily to make an attack upon the de-
tenders of the Constitution; and to make thoir
act to prevent and preventing violation oS
the Constitution crime against the country.
/. He professed his object to be TO arraign them
before the bar Of the country, on this crini-
, nal charge; and he spoke with confidence Of
their anticipated condemnation. In the
. great contest that is going on here, and has
!, long been going on between lawless power
!, on the one side and constitutional power OF
!. the other; and, after so many triumphs OF the
: former over the latter, perhaps he is not ex-
trayapant nor wild in his expectation Of
, another. in this appeal TO the People. This
\ attempt to make The defence Of the Constitu-
/. ton a crime against the country, which be-
fore has been repeatedly made, and with too
much success, consider as one smong tho
!, many sicky symptoms Of our expiring liber-
ties, and of the rapid approaches Of death :"
: our free Government We have lived to see,
and have seen il, in this very case, noble
! sentiment Of devotion to the Const'tntion-a
: sentiment that would have done honor TO No.
, man virtue in the best days OF Rome; and
} which, in better days OF this Republic, wouio
!, have found an echo in every American DO
\ so,n. denounced o. a sentiment little short OF
. treason TO the country, And ,he denune,aucn
: received with tempest OF sPplsuse-I WI
4 not. for am not permitted to say where, ont
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