Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1840-02-28

ne womb present any petltlOn from MS con.
stituents. that should be couched in respect.
ful language. He considered the rights Of
the South % sacred as his own personal
property. Yet If some Of the Loco Foco
Agrarans in the city of New York should
send him petition praying for a general
division OF property, his own included, he
would present it. 1t would be no insult to
him. One thing he knew. they would not
get much from him in these sorry Loco
Foco times. The Senate had formerly
settled the question, with regard to these
abolition petitions, by laying the motion to
receive on the table, and he was disposed
to submit to that decision. In the first
Congress several petitions praying Congress
to abolish slavery IN the States, were re.
cleveland referred to committee Of which
Mr. M adson was chairman, and he reported
that Congress had no power to grant the
prayer of the petitions. and that ended the
matter. And 40 it might be now, if the
Senate would pursue the same course. But
when the question was brought up in de-
bato. and Senators denied the right Of pc
titition, he would be one to raise his voice
against that denial, on all occasions,as long
as he held seat in that body. II had been
said by one Senator, that the people were
the masters, and that Senators were their
servants, and therefore there could be no
right of petition from the master to the
slave. He thought it was Unnecessary for
the Senator to introduce his flmsy meta.
physics into this body. Every man could
see through such arguments, and expose
their baseless character. No, Sir, said
he. these are not petitions from the master
to the siaue--they are petitions from the
people 10 their representatives, to whom
they have given power to grant their re.
quests. They were petitions for redress
of what they consider public grievances
and if the Senator from South Carolina
desired to make abolltionists by thousands.
let him deny the right of petion. But il
they would do as Madison did, receive
the petitions, and tell the people they had
no power to grant their requests, no Sc
rious consequences would ensue. This
would satisfy and quiet the North. and
relieve the fears Of the South. The Sen.
ator from North Carolina, he said, had
endeavored to prove that the Federal party
as ne called it, in New York, were abo
l,ionss. and that tho Democratic party.
Chat is, his owe party) had always been
he true friends eff The South. Why, said
hei' may admit of question which is the
Democratic party at this day. He would
tell that Senator, that in his opinion, the
true Democratic party was now in the
ascendency in the Empire State, and the
real Federal party had been put down; and
be would warrant them the Democratic
party would not interfere with Southern
rights. Yes, said he. the Democratic party
in New York is now in the ascendency,
and the old Federal blue light party, and
their doctrines of high Executive concen'
trating power. have ben put down-and he
appeared in the Senate as the representa-
tive of the Democratic Republican party.
The people Of The Empire State had deter,
mined to exerminate these old Fedora doc
rrlnes, and he believed that on the 4th OF
March. i84l, the good work would be
completed.
Mr.. Buchanan of Pa, said he considered
this a most unprofi able discussion. All
the Senate wanted was peace on this sub.
ject. He moved to lay the motion 10 re
celve the petition, under consideration. on
the table thus cutting off further debate.
Mr. Webster was then on the floor, and
at the request of several Senators. Mr..
Buchanan finally consented to withdraw
his motion.
Mr.. Webster said he should not have
risen to speak on this subject, but for the
singular opinions advanced by the Senator
from South Carolina. in relation to the
t,,,o IL
RI ght sacred and undeniable. and he felt
called upon 10 saw a few words in defence
of his views. The Senator's notions. he
added were very peculiar. He said that
our representative form of government
superseded, in great degree, the neces'
sity of the right Of petitions. This was
very singular that our fathers should have
( taken so much pains to procure an amend
ment to the constitution, after It had been
adopted, making provision for the security
OF this right of petition, ifit was suppressed
ed and rendered less necessary under our
form OF government than under other forms
This amendment was in the nature Of a
positive prohibitions 1t declares that Con
gress shall make no lao abridglOg the right
of potion Now bow could the Senator
arrive at the conclusion tnat there was
any thing in our form Of government wch
rendered the right Of petition useless, The
trainers of the constitlOn had guarded this
right with peculiar care. A representative
government was, in truth, the only gov
eminent under which the right of petition
was good for anything. Under monarchy
the people might crawl up to the footstool
of power. and ask for 'avors they had
courts Of request, and offices of request,
about the thrones of the old world to re-.
celve these petitions but the monarch
paid little regard to the requests Of the
people. The Senator said the right of
petition was superseded in representative
government. by establishing the right Of
instruction, the ballot box, and the iree-
dom Of elections. All said Mr.. Webster,
| won't trust these frall fabrics will hold
on TO the constitutional provision, which
establishes the right of petition, and let