The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1839-02-14
INTERFERENCE OF FEDERAL Of
GERS IN ELECTIONS.

Mr.. CRITTENDEN's speech on Friday, is admitted
on all hands, TO have been highly successful and in
point OF argument, sarcasm, and eloquence COM
bned, seldom surpassed The crowded audience,
says the correspondent Of the Baltimore Patr OF who
was present. "that had listened with the most fixed
and delighted attention TO Mr.. Crittenden, were only
withheld by sense Of decorum, from open mani
festations Of applause when he finished"
AT the opening of his speech, Mr.. Crittendep,
moved to amend his bill, by substituting in place of
the proposed fine the following, as the penalty of
officers offending by interfering in elections viz:
that every person offending therein shall be forth
with removed from Office by the President of the
United States, his receiving satisfactory evidence
of said offence"
The friends o. the administration who, of course,
felt in some bound TO sustain the federal doctrines
Of Mr.. Walls report, however abominable in the
sight of the Republicans, were excessively annoyed
at the prospect of being brought down 10 an issue
upon the doctrines of MIR. Jefferson. Unlike Pro-
logue, in Midsummer Nights Dream, they all did
stand upon points" and county court techncalities,
they did also, afterwards, upon Mr.. Rives's
lutions which but recite the identical language of
Jefferson. ..t.
Mr.. Wallis speech, was like tangled chain;
nothing impaired, but all disordered."
His friends would fain have said: ......
"Gentes, perchance you wonder at this show;
But wonder on, till truth makes all things plain
This man, with lime and rough cast, doth present
Wall, that vile Wall which did the lovers sunder
And through Wallis chink, poor souls, they con-
tent
To whisper; at the which. lie, no man wonder"
On Tuesday, they thrown into confusion
still worse COMPOUNDED, by the genuine Jefersonan
doctrines and authorities presented by Senator RlvEs,
The Loco-focos manifested great repus nance at HIS
forcble logic and affected to the language of
the fathers Of American liberty. Mr.. ALLEN, Of Ohio,
who iso of the leaders of the modern democrats"
objected having Jefferson language printed They
hate his name, because they have injured his memory
and deserted his principles, Mr.. King, of Alaba-
ma, was thrown off his balance, and made reply to
a respectful question of Mr. Rives, in most dis
courteous and dictatorial tone, which we were glad
to see was duly appreciated by the high-minded Sc
nator from Virginia All the actors in the farce,
:" Wall, Moonshine," and the rest, the old reviers
of Jefferson, and the still haters of his doctrines,
were, perplexed in the extreme )" and doubled and
twisted, and resored TO all sorts of parliamentary
tricks shuttle ofthe coil which their own tergiver-
saton had enabled Mr.. Rives to daw around them
The expectants Of Office for moment seemed to
say: .....
80 wicked Wall, through whom we see no bliss;
Curst be thy stones for thus deceving us !"
1t will be observed that Mr. RIvEs resolutions are
in language quoted from Mr. Jefferson. Mr.. CRlT-
TENpEN's bill also, amended by himself only con-
templates making Mr. Jefferson's just principle on
this subject law of the land. 1t is curious TO per-
ceive how insnctivey all the old tederalists such
as Messrs. WALL, BUCHANAN, WILLIAMS, and Others
shrink from this recurrence to the first principles of
republicansm-how perinaciously they oppose
every attempt to bring the Government back to the
republican tack.