New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1844-02-03

The Address of Mr.. Calhoun to his poiitl-
cal Friends and Supporters.
| have left il to you, my friends and supporters.
| through whose favorable estimate OF my quailiiIa-
tons nv name has been presented 10 the people OF
the United States for the Office OF Chief Magistrate
| 10 conduct the canvass such principles ana IN
| such manner az YOU might think best. But, III 50
| doing. did not waive my right to determine on my
| individual responsibility, what course my duty
might compel me to pursue Ultimately nor nave
been an inattenye observer OF the canvass ana 'fe
] course you have taken.
II affords me pleasure to be enabled to say, that on
all leading questions, growing out OF the canvass
heartily concurred with you, IN the GROUNDS Eou
took and especially those relating 70 Tue hode III
| which the delegates to the proposed Convention 10
| they should vote. You have in my opinion conclu-
| siyeIy shown that they should be appointed by dis
trcts and vote per capita, but your reasons as con-
1 elusive as they are, have proved IN VAN. Already
/ New York and some other States have appointed
delecates en- 0lasSe BY State Conventions, and one
State Virginia) has resolved that the votes of her
delegates shall be settled by the majority and be
counted per capita. Their course would necessarily
oyerruie that, which you have so ably supported,
should YOU go into Convention and would leave you
no alternative but to yield yours and adopt theirs,
however much you may be opposed TO II on primer
pe or to meet them on the most unequal terms
with divided against united and concentrated forces
The question is them what course under sucb CIR
| cumstances should be adopted And that question
| YOU will be compelled speedily to decide ne near
/ approach of the time for meeting OF the proposed
| Cnnyention will not admit of much longer delay
! Rnt os your course may depend in some degree on
! that which have decided TO take, deem II due to
| the relation subsistng between US, TO make mine
known to YOU without farther delay. then, alter
the most careful and deliberate survey OF the ground
have decided that cannot permit my name 10 90
before the proposed Convention, constituted as II
must now be, consistently with the principles winch
have ever guided my public conduct. My objections
are nsuperable. As ii must be constituted 1t Is re-
pugnant to all the principles on which, IN my oPnl-
ion, such Convention should be formed what
those principles are, shall now proceed prlehy 10
state. | hold them with you, that the Convention
should be so constituted, utter fully and clear,
" the voice of the people, and not that OF political
managers or offce-holders and office seekers; ana
for that purpose hold it Indispensable, that the
delegates should be appointed directly by the peo
pie or to use the language of Gen. JACKSON, should
| be fresh from the people, also hold, that the
only possible mode to effect this is for the people to
choose the delegates by districts and that they
| should vote per capita. Every other mode of APP
pointing would be controlled by political machine
cry, and place the appointments in the hands OF the
few who work it. [ object then, to the proposed
Convention, because it will not be constituted in
conformity with this fundamental article of the Re-
publican creed. The delegates to it will be ap-
pointed from of the States not by the people
in districts, but as has been stated, by State Con-
| ventons en- masse, composed OF delegates appointed
in all cases. as far as am informed by county, or
district conventions, and in cases. II not nsln-
formed, these again composed of delegates appoint
ed by still smaller divisions few interested in
| dividuals. Instead then of being directly, or fresh
from the people, the Delegates to the Baltimore
Convention will be the delegates OF delegates and
of course removed, iii all cases, at least three not
! four degrees from the people. AT each successive
remove, the voice of the people will become less full
and distinct, until at last it will be so faint aud i'm
| perfect, as not to be audible. 70 drop metaphor
hold it impossible to form scheme more perfectly
calculated to annihate the control OF the people
over the Presidential election and vest it those
| who make politics trade, and who live or expect
to live on the Government"
In this connection, object not less strongly TO
the mode in which Virginia has resolved her dele
| gates shall vote. With all due respect, must say
can imagine nothing directly in conflict with
the principles of our federal system of government,
or to use u, broader expression, the principles on
which all confederate communities have ever been
united. | hazard nothing in saying, that there Is
not an instance in our political history, from the
meeting of the first Rev dictionary Congress to the
present day. OF the delegates OF any State voting by
majority, and counting per capita; nor do believe
an instance OF the kind can be found III the history
of any confederated community. There is, indeed,
something monsrous in the idea of giving the ma
ority the right OF mpressing the vote OF the MINOR
The plain rule, that which has prevailed, and
which conforms TO the dictates OF common sense. is
that where State votes as State by a majority OF
lis delegates the votes count one, be they few or
manv or the State large small. On the contra
rv where the votes of all the delegates counted,
1hev vote Individually and independently, each for
himself counting one. And il is TO be noted, that
whenever this latter mode of voting exists among
confederate States, 1t IL III all cases founded on
compact TO which the consent of each State Is re-
Quired. In the absence of compact, the lnvarlahe
mode of vote in such States is in all cases by the
majority, their vote counting one. The course
which Virginia has resolved 10 take in violation
OF this plain and fundamental rule, and destructive
OF the foundation on which the whole structure OF
the state right doctrine is reared.
! hold IT, III the next place 10 be an Indispensable
principle, that the convention should be constitu-
ted as 10 give each State, IN the nomination OF a
candidate the same relative weight, which the con-
sutuuon secures to II III the election ofthe President,
making due allowance for It's relative parry strength
BY the election, mean the whole-the eventual
choice when II goes INTO the House OF Representa-
lives, as we'll as the primary vote in the electoral
College.
The one is as much partofthe election as the 9th
err the two make the whole. The adoption of the one
in the convention which framed the constitutions de-
pended on the adoption OF the other. Neither could
possibly be adopted alone. The two were the result
OF compromse between the larger and smaller States
after long and doubtful struggle which threatened
the loss OF the constitution itself The object of civ
ing to the smaller States equality with the larger
in the eventual choice OF the house. was to counter
poise the prepondence OF the larger the electoral
college. Without this the smaller would have voted
against the whole provision, and its rejection would
have been the consequence. Even us ii stands, Della
wareyoted againstit. denomination OF whatl state,
refer Mr. MADIsoNs report otthe proceedings OF
the convention Having stated what mean by the
election, it will require bu, few words to explain
my for the principles have laid down. They
are few and simple and rest the ground, that the
nomination is in reality the election if concurred IN
as Tar as the party concerned. 1t is so intended to