The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-02-19

assumes an air Of infinite candor every sees that
he has drawn up his statement with lawyers art,
with particular view to make the worst possible i'm
presson in regard TO me. Ii he had been preparing
an Indictment he could not have arranged his mate
rials more artfully The advocate is seen in the est-
mony of the oifaess. Understanding that Mr. Boris
had applied to him for testimony, and knowing the
character of his mind and the state of his feelings to-
wards me, | was anxious TO know what he would
prove, in order that might have an opportunity to
refresh his memory and correct his errors, II he
should commit any For that purpose, requested
Joseph Mayo, Esq, Of Richmond, to obtain from him
the substance of his testimony but he refused TO gue
IL. Mr. Mayo certifes as follows;
FEBRUARY IL, 1912.
son the morning of the 9th Of this month, called
on Mr.. Philip Harrison, and said TO him that Judge
Upshur had requested me to call on him and say TO
him that he had heard that Mr.. Bottss charge made
in Congress was to be sustained by Mr.. Harrson's
statement and that, act Of justice to him, the
Judge asked TO be furnished with copy of it. Mr.
Harrison expressed some surprise that Judge Upshur
should So soon have heard of his having furnished
statement and remarked that he supposed one
knew it but Mr.. Bolts, and asked how the Judge
heard it. replied did not know, but that he had
He said he could not furnish copy of the statement
as was made by letter and he had not retained
copy. then asked him if he would make state
ment of the substance of it, He replied that he would
rather not, that he had doubt il would be seen in
the papers of Monday Then Mr.. Harrison said that
all communication between himself and Judge Up
Il JAMES MAYO"
The temper here displayed cannot be mistaken
His surprise that had heard of his purpose, shows
that he meant to do his work in secret, and his de-
mand that all my communications with him should be
in writing evnces a consciousness that he acting
with hostile feelings And yet, when last saw him
there was nothing Of this in his manner! What re-
: spect attach to witness who tesiifes all
side, and refuses to be Intercepted the other He
affects great reluctance 10 have his certificate pub
shed and beUs Al ma not be ca N he
avoided and yet every sees that he prepared ii
for that very purpose 1t was fol that purpose only
that II desired, and he kneu MdtH lrouid be pub
ished and the precise time phen expected TO be
j published, .forhe so informed Mr.. Mayo. He was
asked for his evidence iouching particular CONFER
sdtioh on board steamboat, and he has, unasked,
and Of his accord spoken of many others, one Of
which he acknowledges have been strictly private
He is what the lawyers call suin ioitness one
who is eager to 90 beyond the point TO which he is
inerogaed He himself knows the effect of this
He is not entitled to speak Of my political opinions,
f because it impossible 10 make him comprehend them.
Many very amusing proofs Of this have been afforded
to the gentlemen of williamsburg He is a Fede-
ralist ultra even beyond ordinary ultraism He has
grown old with set of fixed ideas, which it is i'm
possible to unsettle He thinks all State Rights doc
trines abominable and denounces them with most I'M
peral scorn He announces his own dogmas, er ca
thedrd and is utterly impatient of all contradiction
He himself informs that he runs away from all
such discussions when he is at liberty to do SO, and
|
he cannot fly. Modification is, in his view not only
dsunion but something not far short OF reason and
his anathemas against it are given forth with solemn
pomp and an authoritative emphasis, absolutely ire
sistible His acquaintance will not be at a loss to
recognize the truth OF this picture
Such is the attitude and character of the witness.
Let us see what he has proved,
Admit, for the present, (and have sort of OBJ
lection that it should be considered that politi-
cal conversation ,pas held the deck of steamboat
| md ~ hntb Mr. Ham Mr. no
, present. MIR HARRIsoN himself saws that he heard
only the beginning of it, and retired of the way,
not To hear either its progress its conclusion
MIR. HARRisoN knows as lawyer, that testimony of
this sort would be worthless before any Jury in the
country Indeed, they would not be permitted TO
hear it So that far from having prored the case,
MIR. HARRsoN has not, in any just sense of the term,
even given epdence tending to prove it, And yet at-
ter the lapse of six years, he undertakes to give from
memory alone, not only the effect, but the general
tenor and course of whole argument, of which he
admits that he heard only small partM
As to what Judge Barbour said 10 Nh Harrison, it is
rather too much to call on to his opinions
thus delivered at second hand. In the excited times
referred TO there few in Virginia of any
note who did not hold that State had right to in
terpose, in some form other, to arrest nconsti-
o,ai legislation on the part Of the Federal Govern
men They differed to the form of such inerposi-
ton and they all agreed that nothing short of an ex-
IRENE would justify it in amy form Judge Bar
bour, in common with many other distinguished men,
my obscure and limited sphere, the ground that
notification was the rightful remedy. wrote Sc
ries of essays under the signature Of Locke to prove
that notification was not only justified, but
tempidted by the celebrated resolutions of 1898 and
1893, commonly called Madison's resolutions and
these the creed of all State rights that
day. As supplement to the essays of Locke"
J wrote others under the signature of NAPIER to
prove that secession could not be the rghtful remedy
because it necessarily broke the Union and that nuhca
ton ,rds the righfu remedy because it necessarily
PRESCRIBED the Union commended that there was no
power to force State out of the Union against her
A consent and that she had right to refuse obedience
to unconstitutional laws without FORGETTING her right
! to the benefits of the Union. This doctrine Judge
Barbour resisted and conended that notification
cessary placed the MULTIPLYING State out of the Union.
know therefore, that he considered me dsunon-
ist, precisely as considered him one not in ceiling,
nor in wish, nor in design, but from the necessary
tendency Of his principles If, therefore, any such
conversation as is spoken Of was ever held at all, null
LITIGATION was the doctrine advocated by me--a doc
trne to which Mr. Harrison cannot be made to listen
long enough to learn what it is, This the famil-
lar topic in all political circles at that dayt
What Judge Barbour himself thought of me, as
late 1910, will appear from the short extract which
publish from letter from his nephew John :. Bar
bour Esq. in the following words
Extract of letter from j. s. Barbour, Esq, to the
t Hon p. Upshur, dated
FEBRUARY 5 1912.
4
(Judge Barbour your name became the subject con-
yersation with Judge Field, Judge Barbour, and my
self at his house, and on that occasion his language
of you was marked with the highest commendations
!, But any such conversation held at all
: The Hon. William Smith, to whom Mr.. Bolts APP
y piled prove it, does not recollec it Edmund Chris
; tain Esq, referred to by Mr. Harrison having been
' prescott, does not rccollect il re Nicholas Esq re-
etred to by Mr. Harrison does not recoect il these
the only witnesses referred to having been pre-
sent, and one of them confirms Mr. Harrison See
! then letters, (Appcndix A.
Now am perfectly willing that it should be taken
: as true that conversation tcds held, and that MIR.
Bolts bore part in it, have never denied the posi-.
u sbility of this. But il certainly not very wonder
z f,l M shonI hava f,rnottcn II sinc. MI smith