Weekly national intelligencer., 1848-11-04

from its constitutional character into instrument
of Executive usurpation.
OF the tpenty-four vetoes by the Jackson dy-
nasty, it is not TOO much to say that not single
one of them can abide the tests propounded by the
authors Of the Federalist, and by Presidents WASH
INcToN, JEFFERSON, and MADISON. The new veto
system rests ON other and very different principles.
These principles were foreshadowed in President
JAcKsoN's inaugural address, in which he claimed
the powers .. TO execute The lacs of the United
States" /" TO manage their recenue" and "to COM
mand their forces y three powers, of which the
last only is given by the Constitution TO the Pres-
dent, and of which the union in one man makes
him monarch. "The obvious definition" (says
the great historian Of the Roman Empire,) "the OBJ
vious definition of MONARCHY seems to be that
of State in which single person. by ,ohatso-
ever name he may be distinguished, is entrusted
with the execution of the laws, the management
of the revenue and the command Of the army"
Decline and Fail, ch. 3, j. 95 The true nature
and practical character OF the claims put for.
ward in the inaugural were soon manifested by
successful arrogations, in vetoes, protests, DC.
Of legislative and judicial power, by pretensions
to initiate legislation, by obstructng the enact
ment Of laws, by nullifying them when enact
ed, and by the assumption (ventured, by way OF
appeal from the Constitution to the stump " that
the President is the direct representative Of the
American People, The system commenced by
Old Hickory has been rapidly pushed onward by the
martial genius of Young Hickory. Practically
claiming for the Executive the war-making power,
on that usurpaton and in his quality of conqueror
he has founded the right Of giving constitutions to
provinces, of managing their revenue" Of send
ing pro-consus to govern them, &c. And, in re-
gard to the fountain from which these royal prero
gatives are made to flow, Gen. CAss, the Baltimore
nominee for the Presidency, the appointed success
sor of the two Hickories, the protege Of the
self-styled Democratic" party, has told the couR-
try that " the constitutional management Of the
war belonged to the President. CONGRESS- could
neither gire him the power to carry ON the car
nor controtthat oar."-C See Gen. Cass's speech,
January %, ls47.
No man, whom party zeal has not made stone
blind, can fail to see that the exercise Of the Exc
cutive power by the Jackson dynasty, the princ
plies on which such exercise of it is defended, and
the consequences even thus far which haze follow
ed, all tend to convert our Government into
that worst of kingy politics, Elective Monar-
chy The impunity of Executive aggressions has
engendered correspondent servility. In President
JAcKsoNs time were told by one Of his official
organs that he was g BORN TO COMMAND" and an
other press in his interest dared to call the Amer-
can People his suBJEcrs."* And such has been
the progress of courtly aduation that President
Polk is, it seems, more august parsonage than
even President JAcKsoN.t
Almost one generation of men has passed away
since the American Republic first made ac-
quanted with the system Of the ONE-MAN Power,
introduced by pretended Democracy, made up Of
Executive dictation, arbitrary vetoes and other
rogatons of high prerogative power and transfer
ring the allegiance of its partisans from the Const
tuition of the United States TO the Platforms of
Rump and Rucker conventions. Should this mon
strous system be permitted to live longer, and be-
come aggravated, as il would be, by sufferancc, no
prophet needs tell us what, at the end Of another
generation, will be the position of the model Re-
public. Shall this unnatural state of things con-
tinue! To this question the Wing party answers,
through their virtuous leader, as he did when ask
ed, in one of his campaigns, whether the staff
horses should be allowed to fare better than the
other horses, mo-. TAYLOR" The Bald.
more Convention, its Platform, and its nominee,
Gen. CAss, all answer YES. The Court Journal,
indeed, appalled, by the odiousness of the system,
has published one hundred one good one would
dol reasons why the People of the United States
should vote for Lewis Cass,' &C., Of which the
18Th is, /" He is opposed to the veto power-unless
" to prevent the violation of the Constitution, and
ITO avoid hasty legislation" This is Gen. TAy-
LoR's ground on the question; but rather queery
taken for Gen. CAss, in the teeth of the Platform,
in which is lauded the veto power in general and
in which is pronounced the funeral eulogy of Pre-
sident Polk, who had exerted in the unconstit,-
tonal spirit Of his dynasty; in the teeth of Gen.
CAss's " firm" and cordial" adhesion to the Plat
form in the teeth Of his declaration, at Cleveland,
that the Administration OF his " illusrious prede-
ccssor" is to be the polar star Of his own, if he
should ever have one and in the teeth, too, OF the
notes every day struck by the organ itself in the
same key. No: the 18th reason is all CANNON.
As surely as ZACHARY TAYLOR is against the ONE
MAN system, SO surely is the nominee Of the Balti-
more or Commander Convention for il. This po.
sition, whatever may be his private judgment on