The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1836-03-25

ErA4tAENN MA4A NANNA sAsCAAs " Ah&hC MAC
SenzAe. ahieh Vas plainly desigued and
that for the most obvious purposes. % Be
the most permanent body in The Gosern-
meni. in effect and in practice The most
huelualing. transient and unstable.
The Senate. constructed on the fede.
rsiiVe principle. 10 represent the soFs.
reignlies Of the states. which. from the
nature Of sovereignty. are eOequsl. Is 50
essential In their existence and preserya
lion. that il The Senate were abolished
from the systematic ather branches Of
the Government. both Of which are ma
iinnal in their character. remaining IN full
forest is hard 10 imagine how the
State Governments. or any Thing more
than the forms Of them. could long en-.
dune. Aud xhaleEer tends 10 diminish
the weight Of the Senate In the system.
must tend In impair. IN exactly the same
proportion. the state soEereignties them
selves. and Ia general consolidation of
them all Int0 one empire. The fedora
tive Senate. representing lhe States. vas
designed As the balance Of the system--
as 4 check OF Ihe popular branch Of the
Legislature. and on the Executive, both
Of which are almost entirely naiiOaal in
ihrir eonsIiIutinn-and. On matters Of Inn
pOrlanl and permanent interest. IL n .
check tha: can very rarely operate for
longer time than NAV suffice 10 mature
the Judgment Of the people on sober dis
passionate reHeclI0n. The Senate can
not. il it would, counteraci The permanent
will. the deliberate settled judgment Of
the nation. The House Of Represents
tlyes. elected fnr two years, representing
the people immediately. and therefore
more exactly representing their opinions
and wishes for the iimebeing, and more apt
also 10 represent their passions, is in that
way endued with power and influence
which the shoriness Of its term Of ofnce
hardly suffices to counleryail. The Pre-
sidenI, elected for four wears. clothed
with all the powers necessary for the
Executive Of Government charged with
the foreign relations Of the nation, with
his veto on the acts II the Legislature.
and the whole patronage Of Government
in his hands. j. lar more than the equal IN
power ~ either branch ofihe Legislature.
and, On the opinion ol MANY. more pow.
erfuI thar both combined. His very uni.
" 10 principle of strength. The only
means of making the Senate co-oidInale
with the nlher departments. was that
which has been resertpd ln: namely. to
make II more permanent and hence u
was, that the senalorisl term at office was
made three times Is long as that of the
representatives, aud half as long sgainas
that Of the President. Ii the senatorial
term If Office be reduced. the power of
its chick IN the national branches OF the
Government will be proportIonalI' lm-
paired; il i, be made tn derend on the
pleasure 1t the stale legislatures, lhe check
will be almost sHnlhIlaled: and the state
soserrIgniies must share its fate. and he
impaired or annihIla,ed With II. To the.
therefore. II seems that the state govern.
ments would commn an lmprudent act. il
they should consent to shorten the term
OF the senatorial office: and suicidal one,
if they should establish the principle, in
theory or in practice. that their Senators
shall hold their Offices only during plea
sure.
But whether these views are wise or
not, all will agree that The tenure of the
senatorial Office. being for term Of six
years fixed by the constitution. is not nov,
and was not designed to be, dependent
on the pleasure Of the state legislatures,
and can be nowise auihori,atively made
so but by an amendment 0f the cOnstilu
ton Of the United States. perfected &C
cordlng to the provisions Of the 9Th srli
Gle: and that such an amendment would
work a vital change ln the whole consti.
tuition Of the federal government, and in
the relations between that and the stale
governments. II tie doeuine which ihe
General Assembly nov asserts. and which
it calls upon me W give my aid TO es.
sablish by setting the example Of c"nforn-
ing with il, shall become generally pre-
vslen! in the other states Of the Union as
we'll as Virginia, then will that vital
rhange he Wrought in our institutions as
effectually as II could he b. an amend.
nent Uf the Constitution, AID this by
means the most irregular and the most
contrary that can well he conceived to
the cautious spirit OF the provision for fu
ture amendments.
The dnctrlne is. that Senator 10 Con
gress is buund In yield implicit obedience
Ia any instruction whirh the State I.egls
Ialure that elected him may give him. or
to resign--no matter how plainly uncon.
su:ulInnal. no matter how base and cri>
miual the act which he is enioined 10
perGnrm may b. in his own .juigmeat-
that he has no right To exercise his own
judgment at all, or consult his own con-
sriruce: he is not. in this case, a moral
agent; he has no alternative but to obey