Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1845-10-16

test Of the Commonwealth Of Massachusetts,, a.
gainst the laws of South Carolina, under which,
colored citizens of Massachusetts are arrested
board her ships in the harbors Of South Carolina,
Imprisoned in the ails Of that State, and sold into
perpetual slavery, in default of their commanders
to give bonds to redeem them and to pay the ex-
pense of their detenlion-al which Massachusetts
asserts is in violation of that clause of the Cons.i
tuition of the United States, which declares that
the citizens of each State shall be entitled to all
privileges and immuntes of citizens in the several
States"
TO protect her citizens from the execution Of
these laws, Massachusetts commissioned one Of her
most distinguished citizens to proceed to South
Carolina for the purpose Of nstitutlng such pro-
cess as should bring the question of the constu.
uOnaty OF these proceedings before Inc Supreme
Court OF the United States. 1t is a matter Of his
tory, that the agent, on appearing in South Caro-
lima, for the purpose Of executing commission
thus looking to peaceful and orderly appeal to the
appropriate Judicial tribunal, was driven away by
threats of personal violence Of a mob and that
subsequently,, the Legislature sanctioned the act of
the mob by making an order"to eXpel" the agent
from the State. Against this, also, Massachusetts
protests
have received from the Governor Of South Car
olina, the proceedings referred to- of the legisIa
ture of that State ] have also received from abe
Governors of the States Of Arkansas and Alaba-
ma resolutions Of the legislatures Of those States,
approving the outrage committed on the agent of
Massachusetts; and from the Governor Of Connec-
tcut, resolutions Of the legislature OF that State,
declaring that the act of South Carolina is"a pal
pabe and dangerous violation OF the national
compact" | shall hereafter transmit these papers,
with others various subjects, received from the
Executives of other States for the use of tue Gen
eral Assembly.
have made this special reference to the procee-
dings of South Carolina, for the purpose OF bring
ing them into immediate connection with the KIN
dred subject TO which have, at some length, nyl-
| ted your attention, and OF submitting tn you the
propriey and duty Of full consideration of these
extraordinary proceedings, and an expression OF
the sense entertained by the General Assembly OF
this Stote, of their character and tendency. IT
would seem evident that the Union cannot be MAIN
tanned, if peaceable attempts appeal to The APP
propriate judicial tribunal Tor the settlement of great
constitutional questions, involving the relative
rights of tie States, 10 be put down by mob
violence and the added sanction of legislative au-
] thority.
1t Is worthy of remark, that upon an attempt BY
South CaroliBa to enforce the same laws against .
culored British subjects and the remOnstrance. of
the British governmental that of the United States,
South Carolina deslsed and yet she vigorously en-
forces them against one Of her sister States, and
adds the extreme agyravation of rudely expefing
from her territory an agent Of that State, rather
than allow him a residence long enough to perfect.
the process of submitting the question of difference
Several of the Slave States, it is understood have
laws on this subject similar to those of South Car
DINA. Their enforcement in Louisiana induced
the Legislature of Massachusetts to send an agent .
to that State for the purpose of lnstulng similar.
process, who also driven from the State by
threats of mob violence.
If slavery cannot exist without the protection
which such an exemption from constitutional law
will give it, then 1t is evident that slavery and the
constitution are at rrecorcable variaice Massa-
chuses has iorborne to retallate and conented her
self for thepresent, with solemn protest and appeal
to the world and impartial posterty, against these
acts. But it is unreasonable 10 suppose that there.
will be no limit to iorbearahce; or that the Union
can always Withstand the power Of such attempts TO
rend it usunder
The question of protection to labor, in it's other
wise ruInous competition with the starved and
cheapened labor of other countries continues to
be one Of undimnished interest. Indeed its inter-
est has increased, efforts to give ascendency to
free trade principles have become more active and
systematic. OF the existence of such activity and
system, we have but too conclusive evidence, in
all the indications, official and semi official of the
new administration. 1t is given out in ways not to
be misunderstood, THAT the head of the financial
department is industrousy engaged in maturnga
plan for reducing the tariff to the revenue stan:
dard." What that standard is in the opinion of the
school OF political economists to which the Secreta-
ry belongs, may be gathered from very elabor-
ATE report OF ule OF w avs ana Means,
of the House of Representatives at the first ses-
sion of the 2Sth Congress, in which it declar-
ed, that
g Every duty is to be considered and is properly
denominated, revenue duty, the rate OF which
yields the largest amount of revenue from the iur-
portation of the article upon which it is imposed;
and every duty to be considered and is properly
denominated, protective duty, the'rate of which
is so high as to diminish the amount of revenue
derived from the mportations of the article. upon
which it is imposed, and the rates of which require
to be reduced, to increase the revenue. And when
given'amount of revenue is desired to be raised
upon any given article of importation, the coma
mittee regard the loCest rate Of diHy which will
effect the result, The true and legitimate repenue
duiy" The committee add" The protection af-
forded under a revenue tariff thus defined, they
would denominate incidental. The protection al
forded by protective tariff according to the same
definition is direct and positive-uperates to dmin-
ish destroy the revenue, and constitutes an ex-
ercise of the power to lay and collect duties, en-
tirely indefensible in principle and policy"
1t thus appears that direct and positive protec-
that is protection which has the effect to d.
minish from any given article, is entirely
ndelensible in principle and policy"-,he only al
lowable protection being that which is "ipiden-
tal' to duy-that is, incidental to that :
duty which, without any reference to protection
will yield 1.-THE largest amount OF revenue from the
importations of the article upon which 1t is impose
edh
The mere statement of this doctrine is sufficient
TO show that it strikes fatal blow at the principle
of protection because that rate of duty can obyi-
ously furnish no stable protection, which is made
TO depend, not on the degree of protection it will
furnish but on the amount of revenue it will yield
since it is well known that rate of duty ona
given article, which will yield little no prutec-
ton, may be the very rate which will yield sthe .
most revenue. There is not protected interest in
the country, that can stand single year. under the.
application of such principle as this.
The true principle may be thus stated-A tariff
which, while it SHALL in the aggregate of It's dl-
ties, yield the amount, and no more than the a.
mount needed for the treasury shall be so adjusted,
in it's details as to throw so much of that aggre-
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