The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-01-12

been coined by the several branch ofthe nted
States since their establishment; d. What amount
of copper has been purchased from individuals for the
purposes OF the branch minis and What deiaca-
ti0n II any, has been committed by officers OF the
branch minis of,he United States.
THE CASE OF THE BRIO CREOLE
The following resolution, submitted yesterday by
Mr. CALHOUN, was taken up for consideration, viz
Resolved, That the President be requested to COM
municate to the Senate copy Of the protest OF the
officers and crew of the brig Creole, on her passage
from Richmond to New Orleans, should any such
have been received, or any authenticated account
which may have been received, OF the murder oil
passenger board, and the woundng Of the captain
and others, by the slaves board the same and OF
the occurrences which afterwards took place, paruc-
ularly after the vessel taken into Nassau, New
Providence; and also 10 inform the Senate II In his
opinion II can be done consistently with the public
interest," what step has been taken by the Executive
in reference to the transaction, having for It's object
the punishment of the guilty, the redress OF the
wrong done TO citizens and the indgnity offered
to the American flag
The resolution having been read,
Mr. PORTER moved that the word ''saves' be
stricken out, and that the word 'persons" be sub
stituted
Mr. CALHOUN hoped that the Senator would
assign reason for the motion
Mr. PORTER observed, that the reason was sim
tuition of the United States
Mr. CALHOUN said that il was word known 10
the Constitution but il il the intention Of the
Senator to deny justice to the Southern States, he
wished it to be distinctly understood, and II there
was such another individual in this body, they ought
to know it. That he might test the question, he
would call for the yeas and nays on the amend
ment
The yeas and nays having been ordered
Mi. BERRlEN said that before the question was
H..
South Carolina hid described certain individuals in
he character in which they existed under the Constr
tuition and the laws Of the country. Whether the
term Slaves found place in the Constitution, was
not the question, and he hoped tina, no controversy
| would arse to the rights guaranteed by that in
srument those who held this description ofproper
ty Whenever a motion made TO strike out that
which correctly described he was induced 10 in.
quIe, what was the object of such motion But, II
II was the object of any gentleman, to dsafrln the
character gwen to certain property IN the resolution,
| he was prepared to meet the question in becoming
manner.
Mr. PORTER remarked that he believed the word
slaves not used in the Constitution, and that
the trainers of that instrument had been careful in
| avoiding the adoption of the term. The Senate
would recollect that such motion as he had made
was nothing novel in the legislation of Congress, and
| he would ak gentlemen to look at the Constitution
ITSELF which spoke of per ons held to service or la
| Dor" He solemnly disclaimed any such purpose as
was attributed to him by the Senator from Georgia
and by the Senator from South Carolina his main
object in suggesting this amendment was merely to
conform to the Constitution which he had conscien
tously sworn to support. He was utterly incapable
of comprehending why an inference should be drawn
from his remarks that he hostile to the rights OF
the slave States called with regard to their proper
ty. Such an imputation resulted from forced con-
stracon and he would say that his object was
to place this thing in decorous position, far his
| humble efforts was concerned, especially it may
| a co
ment Of Great Britain.
! Mr. CALHOUN would observe that they were in
the habit of making of wordsin resolutions adopt
ed by the Senate which were not to be found in
the Constitution and, would the Senator from Mich
gan take the ground assumed by the Government Of
| Great Britain, that these slaves were persons anG
would he connive with that power He regretted
that ancestors were fastidous with regard &c
| the certain rights guaranteed in the Constitution
The word slaves," instead of 'persons held to
vice labor ought to have been asserted manful
ly and boldly He would take this occasion to state
that there had lately been manifested in the United
States blood-thirsty disposition upon this subject
and it was but the other night that they received
the resolutions of a meeting held in Williamsburg
Kings county, New York, which justified the whole
course of the murderers on board of the Creole
asserted that they were prepared to take sides upoI
the question and but recently in religious paper
\ New York, an article appeared justfying the murder
and piracy, and comparing the murderers to Genera
Washington He had seen another article, extract
ed from abolition paper in Maine and inserted in
| the Journal of Commerce, upon the same subject
lie named this that the South might be ON its guard
| and all he now wanted was to see what Senator wal
prepared to take ground with foreign power upor
| this great and momentous. question.
| Mr.. PRESTON hoped that the amendment would
not prevail He always had regretted that the franz
ers OF the Constitution did not make of the term
slavery; !" for, it was evasion and circumlocu-
ton insignificant in itself; the word ought to have
bean eli In, all III,
ceedings they should meet the question distinctly and
call things by their right names and this should be
done manfuly! The slaves spoken of in the resol-
ton were slaves and not persons, either in English
| or in law the very idea of which excluded "per-
| sons"
| MIR. KING had not supposed that any Senator from
any State of the Union would have made such mo-
| ton as that of the Senator from Michigan. They
could not shut their eyes to the fact that there were
miserable, contemplate, and wretched fanatics in the
country, endeavorng to embarrass the Government
invade the rights of the South and if they could have
their own way, destroy the Government itself He,
too, regretted that the word SLAVES" had not been
put into the Constitution Of the United States and
he astonished that any Senator should not have
considered the position in which he placed himself by
offering such an amendment as that which had been
| proposed, especially, when by doing, he sided
with foreign power against the rights of the peo-
pie Of the South. He hoped that the Senator would
| soon understand that he had placed himself in n
wrong position, and he trusted that the people of
Michigan would not Justify the proceeding. The
Senator ought to have reflected long before he
brought his amendment to the view of the Senate
and he hoped that he would stand alone, and marked,
as the only man who questioned the right of the
South TO hold their slaves right which should,
when threatened be maintained against the civil
lied world. He did not believe, however, that any
respectable portion of the country was disposed to
take sides with Great Britain in this matter; if So
he should come to the conclusion that the days of the
Re IN red = md fIay,
tinuc to meet as they now did, from the North and
the South from the East and the West for purposes
of national legislation But they had their rights
and would maintain them at every hazard whether
they should be invaded at home or from abroad
MIR. PORTER would again remark that the word
persons" which ne had adopted, from the Con-
sttuton ITSELF and had been used in the legislative
acts of Congress. But all at once il had been found