Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1836-04-28

tide oil time What an appropriate
act to signalize their real estimate o
the merits they so highly extol VIVA
q glorious triumph, what a pleasing gra
LITIGATION, must this "avenging wore
expunge," thus understood and applied
afford to the Presidents
But what, in truth, is the iograal o.
the Senatel The original manuscript
journal, made out from the minutes Of
our proceedings, according to the rules
and orders ofthe Senate, read over ev-
cry morning, amended and corrected
II erroneous, and finally deposited in
our archivesl or the numerous printed
copies, made from copy furnished by
the Secretary to the public printer, dis.
trlbuted to members of Congress, TO the
federal, executive, and legislative off.
ces, the State Governments, foreign mi
nisters, universities, and public libraries
Gentlemen say the priated copy; be.
cause, forsooth, printed copy of tho
journal is received as primary evidence
in courts of justice. True, il has been
held to be so admissible; but this is on
a principle general convenience DO.
cause the printed copy is very seldom
erroneous, and its accuracy hardly ev-
er questioned or questionable and be.
cause, to require an exemplification,
or an examined sworn copy, in every
case in which such document may be
wanting for evidence, would lead to un.
necessary delays, trouble, and expense,
Bul to bring this question to plain
decisive test. Suppose the journal of
the Senate should be offered as evi.
dcnce OF any right or claim, md it
should be alleged that the printed copy
published by authority, varies from the
original manuscript journal, and this
should be made to appear from nm
of the original; which
would be respected, the printed copy
or the original manuscript journal 7
No one who has the least notion of the
law Of evidence will hesitate for the
answer. The original manuscript Jour-
nal is the evidence which the court
must respect.
The printed editions OF the constitu-
ton and laws Of the United States, pub
lished by authority, are resorted to as
evidence of the law in all courts oflus.
tice Of the Union, State and Federal.
Is il to be, therefore, inferred that the
original manuscript enrolments ofthem
are no longer of any usoi That the
laws having been made, printed, and
published by authority, there is no Ion
ger any duty to keep the the rolls of
parchment on which they are written7
That they may be effaced, mutilated,
or destroyed, or applied TO any purpo.
SEES to which they can be applicable 7
as the monks in the dark ages used the
parchments on which the Latin clas-
sizes were written, for indil.ng their
own worthless treatises Of theology.
There are two facts in the history Of
our Legislation which furnish most
apt and perfect illustration of this part
ofthe subject.
At the last session ofCongress, there
was bill that passed one House, but
was not, in fact, passed by the other !;
yet, through inadvertence, it was en-.
rolled, signed by the President of the
Senate and by the speaker of the 9th
err House, and actually approved and
signed by the President. The mistake
Gas | undefstand) was discovered be-
fore the acts of the session were print
ted and published. But suppose the
discovery had not been so timely made,
and the act had been printed and pub
lished by authority this, surely, would
not have been of force to make that
law which had received the assent OF
only one branch of the Legislature
But the truth could nowise be ascer-
tanned but by an examination Of the
journal. 1t may be said indeed, that
the truth would equally appear by an
inspection of the printed copy, as of
the manuscript original. And this
would be true enough, upon the suppo.
stion that the printed journal is an ex-
act copy of the manuscript, and capa.
BILE of being verified by comparison
with it; but if we shall assert and OK.
crcise right 10 expunge any entry
from our manuscript journal, and there
by to prevent an insertion Of il
in the printed copy, we shall take "a
way all faith, all confidence, all Ger.
tainty, from the printed journal and
if we shall establish tho doctrine, that
the original manuscript need not be
moment after the printing
and publication of it, by what possible
means shall the true history ofour pro-
ceedings be ascertainedi If the act |
have mentioned, which, though passed
by only one House was enrolled and
signed by the presiding officers of both
II n n