The daily gazette., 1883-06-27
MR.. BAYARD,S ADDRESS.
.ioontInued ltpm IIrst page. ]

s,otute books, have been also passed "upon
,he nretext aud senblance'' that It was both
GOOD and beneficial TO the citizens in gen
eral, though private pfo6t 70 some. And to-
day do we not hear arguments openly made
of the right of "private Proatn 20 procure
LEGISLATION ia its own interest, In the
ttsemblance" that public benefit may indi-
rectly ensuei th4i1 51p sssH T1f
Abuses of law and the law-Enalring power
viii creep In under any form Of govern
,nent. and In the ranks OF that profession
that makes law its study and the spirit Of
Justice enshrined In law its guide, we must
look chiefly for the advocacy OF reform and
repeaj that will check the growth Of undue
advantage. and regulate aud restrain the ra-
nacity of corporate and commercial greed,
Whatever may be the form OF lts approach or
the disguise it may assume
constantly recurring danger TO liberty
AGAINST which the influences Of the legal
nrolession should be steadily opposed, is the
li.position of rulens In times Of public
danger aud excitement 10 resort to
irregular expedients In order possibly to
avert for the moment some threatening dan
Ger, and this at the expense Of violating the
great principles iof iifFee g0ve snTnent; and
nm, indful of the FepsaDeA Admonitlon Of
history sthat civil, pdGe tlikS every other
that calls In the aid OF an silly sarohger than
itself. perishes in the assistaneaitt receives"
And thereis always In such seasons well
meaning class Of etiEeAs, the vislonaries Of
politics, phiianthrophic 10 their Intentions
and emotional in their natures, who are
always ready to act upon the rule that II
thing be right IN the abstract or right In
thelI eyes, 1t is just and proper IL should be
done ''"ilt ~
This amiable but really dangerous class of
people either forget or never b We realized
that crude ''unconnected truths are In the
world of practice what falsehoOds are In
theory" III g.
such minds chafe against the restraints Of
laws, written constitutions and the prihei
ples Of regulated liberty, and are disciples
and advocates of some "higheP law }" which
is in truth no law at all, bat q nebblous and
eyasiye reflection oftheir roWnintolefant wills.
Speaking Of such persons John lden
said pretending religion and the laws of
God, is to set all things lo'se when man
has no mind 10 do omethlag he oughtto
do by his contract with man, then he gets
text and interprets it 90 he pleases, and so
thinks to get loose. - 81 hi' H"'
These benevolent law breakers are often
( mes men of cultivated intellect and Ell
gaging address, but on that account more
dangerous to good government than those
who add the odiousness Of fraud and bru-
talitv.to their breaches of the regulations of
society. FOT, Ms NuOhbc Huoiy bulus Law
is not the offspring Of the will at ell, 1t is
the at ,olute justice of the state enlightened
by tn, perfect reason o the State"
1t would not be difficult to trace the
causes of some dangerous aud virulent sore
In the body politic, Sapping the moral
health and long endangering the political
safety OF a natioi., to some legislative exp
dent, some unwarFanted exercise OF power
impatie tly and weakly adopted by those
"a sfifIt ha al fric of
ernment ia a season of danger, a sn ap-
parent benefit, und plea, "Poa do . great
right, do little wrong, ,"but which was In
reality dangerous violation of some essen
tal principle Of wisel government, the
wounds OF which are 80 slow TO heal, and
are moreover mischieVous % precedents.
And many error by the same example it3
viii rush into the State.
Ihave high authority, perhaps the best,
for chasing the act Of 1859 making the
notes of the Government of the United
States legal tender, among such uDwise
and mischevons expedients, adopted in q
season of popular excitemsrt and distress,
and which failed in its patriotic Cbjeat even
at the time Of issue, and In the language Of
Chief Justice Chase (hims' If their chief ad
vocate, if not the authOr) speaking In 1870
FIR the Supreme Court In the fell light of
experience. ... b.. 518i
'The apparent benefit is q delusion, and
the necessity imaginary. y Iu their
legitimate use the notes are hurt, not helped
by being made legal tender, the legal ten
der quality is only valuable for the purposes
of dishonesty Every honest purpose Is
answered as well aud better without 1t.
I'VE have no hesitation theEeforeli iu deelaF-
ing our conviction that the making of these
notes legal tender was not > neEessary or
proper means to the carrying on Of the war,
or the exercise OF any express power Of the
government. :" 4
The magnanimity Of this excellent mAa In
thus prououncing an adverse Judgment of
teii-correction upon his own prior action, 10
TO be commended as an example not to law
yers only, but to all men. -A
We can recall the passonAtei and unjust
impugmnent of the motives of those mem
bers OF the legal profession, some Of them
members of the judiciary, ec4use-- they
pleaded and protested against euch tfans'
eendeuce of constitutional authority by
Congress, irrespective of ts manifest viola
ton of the canons of sound finance.
Well do remember the logical opiuioG
delivered on the same. subject (diSsentiente1
in the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, by
That illustrious, learned and upEight lawyer
Chief justice bharswood, whose life of use
iulness and honor has just closed ,--aud how
The passions of the hour beat 6gaiDst the
rock of his reputation, because OF his faith
inl and courageous adherence to the limita
lions and land-marks OF Unconstitutional power
How few thinking men to-daysfbf to con
cur in the jugments of Sharswood ant
Chase, and deplone the vicious principle o
hnance, and dangerous stretch of authority
which are contained IN the claim of suct
absolutely Unlimited power of any aeci
dental majority in Congress, over all con
tracts, public and private, destructive of al
standards of value, impairipg tie obliga
tlons OF all contracts, by changing wholly
Their consideration and the values In which
They were intended TO be measured.
That the cost of the war was enormousll
Increased by its adoption, cannot be doubted
and this was attested by the food of take
and the mountain OF debt standing whel
The war clOeed;-but, who shall tell ant
now shall we eyer calculate the pecuniary
aud heavier still, the moral damage TO citi
zens in their private dealings, Of the adop
ton of the Auctuating and deprecated stan
dard OF value, which, as Chief Jnstica Chas
said, was "only valuable for the purpose
OF dishonesty -
The virus Of the act is not yet extermi
mated and still fingers in the veins of ou
currency. 1t is still lurking menace :
The permanent financial security OF op
people. 1t continues to furnish 70 Ignol
atee and Demagogism texts and pretext
Tor assaults upon property, and gives hOpe
70 the class who are ever ready to repu
date or ''readiust" public obligations II
us pray that it may soon receive its coupe
grace by decisfon Of our court ofs last resort