Washington sentinel., 1855-07-21
Letter from MIR. Chapman 40 Governor
Gardner.
SPRINGFIELD, June II, 1855.

oPklNGFlELD, June III, loJ5.
E have the honor TO acknowledge the
cept oi your Excellency's commission appoint
ing Itc 10 the Office Of Commissioner for the county
OF llampden, under the act entitled SAN act to
protect the rights and liberties of the people of the
| Commonwealth Of Massa chusetts," passed by the
Legislature at their late session.
/ deem II my duty to inform your Excellency
that have for many years held, and still con-
tinue TO hold, the Office of Commissioner of the
Circuit Court of the United States; and it being
an office which, in my opinion, il is proper and
honorable for any good citizen of Massachusetts
| to hold, and il being convenient and useful TO the
public that there should be such magistrate re-
siding IN this place, ! did not resign the office
within ten days after the passage Of the act above
reierredgto, nor have |, at present. any intention
| to do so.
| have carefully read the act, and beg leave to
call the attention of your Excellency to the thir-
teenth and fourteenth sections, which are as fol-
| lows:
SEC, 10. No person who holds any office un-
der the laws of the United States which qualities
hm to issue any warrant other process, or to
| grantan certificate under the acts of Congress
named in the ninth section of this act, or to serve
the same, shall at the same time hold any Office
OF honor, trust, or emoument under the laws of
| this Commonwealth.
| SEC. Ia. Any person holding any judicial office
| under the Constitution or laws of this Common
wealth, who shall continue for ten days after the
passage of this act to hold the office of United
States Commissioner, or any office under the laws
| OF the United States which qualities him to issue
any warrant or other process, or grant any certi-
| hcate under the acts of Congress named in the
ninth section of this act, shall be deemed to have
violated good behavior, to have given reason for
a loss of public confidence, and furnished sufi-
| cient ground either for impeachment or removal
| by address,"
| Thus by the act itself under which have had
| the honor to receive your Excellency's commits
sion am declared to be disqualified to hold any
| office of honor, trust, or emolument, under the
laws of this Commonwealth; to have violated
good behavior; to have given reason for loss of
public confidence, and furnished sufficient ground
either for impeachment removal by address
from the Office of Justice of the Peace, which
also hold. While am sincerely grateful to your
Excellency and honorable Council for the conf
dence in my integrity which the commission ex-
presses, my duty to the appointing power, as well
as to the public and to myself seems to me to re-
quire that should not accept an office under a
law of such character.
Even If il were in my power to remove any OBJ
lection to my appointment by resignation of
the Office of Commissioner Of the United States
Court at this late day, could not, with my pre-
sent views Of duty, do any act which would imply
| an obligation to regard this law as valid | am
| under the obligation of oath to support the
Constitution of the United States and the Con-
| stituton of Massachusetts, and this act papably
| and grossly violates both. Its obvious purpose
is to nullify law of the United States Its
| most important provisions cannot be enforced
without direct conflict with the courts and
officers of the United States; and, in of such
collision, the citizen of Massachusetts who obeys
| this law can have no immunity from punishment
under the laws of the United States except by n
revolutionary movement which shall PROSTATE
fha Init al,
monwealth. Neither my views Of duty nor nv
| inclinatiens will lead me to engage in any such
proceeding, nor to encourage any of my fellow
citizens to do so.
Nor do believe that the intelligent and can
did citizens of Massachusetts, or Of the United
States generally, feel any sentiment of respect
towards notification in any of its FORMS In
whatever shape it has appeared, and in whatever
part of the Union, it has been ridiculous and
| contemplate. The idea of remaining in the
Union, swearing to support its Constitution, and
enjoying the benefit of its laws so far as they are
agreeable to us, and at the same time nulliiying
those which displease us, can find no place in
the mind OF any honorable man. Every patriotic
citizen of Massachusetts, to whom the honor of
her name is dear will blush to think of her as the
hindmost follower of her lame and unsuccessful
predecessors in this disreputable path If an oc-
casion shall arise, if it has indeed already
arisen, when it is our duty to resist the aggres-
for the exigency in manly way, such as shall
be in accordance with the high character that
Massachusetts, has always maintained in her de-
votion to liberty and right and trust shall not
be behind any of her citizens in sustaining her
cause But such exigency cannot be met,
such duty cannot be discharged by the enact
ment Of petty annoyances to be thrown in the
way of the United States courts while admins
tering the law; by prescribing penalties for obe-
dience to the laws of the United States, which,
even if the courts of Massachusetts would un-
dertake to enforce them, could be easily avoided
by appeal to the courts of the United States;
nor by requiring of the citizens of Massachusetts
the performance OF acts which expose them TO
punishment under the laws of the United States
and furnishing no adequate force to protect them
from such punishment; and those artful poll
ticians who have wheedled the Legislature into
the enactment of such provisions deserve the
| severest apprehension.
The act is entitled "An act to protect the
rights and liberties Of the people Of the Common
wealth of Massachusetts," yet the most that il
attempts TO do in relation TO their rights and
liberties is to violate them. The unconstitutional
provisions indicated by your Excellency in your
veto Of the BILL and in the letter Of the Attorney
General which accompanied il, are clearly of
| this character. Those who think to protect our
rights and liberties by violating the Constitution
which secures them but poorly qualified for
| the trust of protecting them, aud do not repre-
sent the intelligence, the wisdom, or the patri-
otism of the Commonwealth.
Where the act does not absolutely violate the
rights of the people by unconstitutional provi-
sions il attempts TO embarrass them. Every citi-
zen has the right 10 avail himself of the laws Of
the United States when occasion requires; and in
every week and almost every day that passes
some Of our citizens have occasion TO avail them
selves Of these laws through the agency of the
United States Commissioner. Yet this act seeks
TO deter every citizen from holding this Office,
while at the same time il does not contemplate
secession, but Processes to exist under allegiance
TO the United States, and was voted for by those
who had sworn such allegiance. If the Commits
sioner holds office under the government of the
State, il proposes to punish him by an unconsti-
tutional removal; but if he holds no such office
it assails him with rude vituperation. II il could
by these means prevent every citizen Of the State
from holding the Office of Commissioner, the only
effect would be to compel the Circuit Court TO
select these officers elsewhere; to cmbarrass the
people of this State in the prosecution and de-
fense of very important legal rights, and to leave
many criminals TO escape from justice.
Without noticing all the Objectionable features
nf this / hpU leavc IN rnention ono which