ho ^1 "°. * * V .K* HO * • 1 • < o^ • * ~V r^ * "&n CV * JAA 83 //I, *t : ^o" HOft . ;* «k JO. o S ADDRESS ©TT T7IS ^JEKSTNISTBATZOlf STA2TOIKU COMKl'fTi^r TO THEIR FEIJ,OW-CmZEXS OF LN DIANA Xv a meeting of the Administration Central Committer, in tin'. town of Salem, in April last, a Standing Committee was appointed *o address their fe.U0w-citi7.en3 at large on the various subjects brought into discussion during the Presidential canvass, and to aid 6i disusing correct information among the body of the people. This Standing Committee, fellow-citizens, now has the honor ta address you. Unwilling to add to the excitement already too preva- lent in the public mind, by connecting the presidential question with our State elections, we purposely abstained from addressing you until those elections were over. By adopting this course, we conceived a better opportunity would be afforded you of conferring your suffrage* en merit, independent of party, and the still more important advan- tage attained of securing for the Presidential election your undivided attention. In performing the duty to which we have been called, we shall ad- dress your understandings, and not your passions. We shall ad- vance no assertions but what are fonnded on facts indisputably esta- blished; and so far as the limits of our address will permit, we shall refer you to the documents and authorities on which we rely. We jmnll invoke, a dispassionate attention to your own interests, as india fplublv connected and identified with those of a great nation of repub- lican freemen, and ask. you to confer your suffrages and repose your •onfidence, where experience has demonstrated that vou may do »» with safety. In relation to the controversy now pending bcfjrc the American people, there is one fact so universal and omnipresent to our feeling* and senses, that neither the art nor the bobbins of oar* adversaries «an gainsay or resist it: — we mean the universal prosperity and hap- piness of the people. This state of things alone, which existed with out alloy, until the recent incendiary proceedings in the South, (which we shall have occasion to notice) to a rational and reflecting mind, would be an ample refutation of nine tenths of the charges urged against those, who for the last three years have administered the government. It is a good general rule to judge of the adminis- tration of a government from the condition of the people. "If we •ee them obedient to the laws, prosperous in their industry, r<>r> tented at home and respected abroad, ire. max) reasonably prthumt that their affairs are conducted bv men of experience, abilities, and virtue." If this principle, which has the sanction of a great name, be applied tothcgeneral condition of the United States, how trium- phant will be the vindication of our rulers! In what favored e manry of Indiana? [s the husbandman who cultivates his farm and lives on the honest product of his labor, dissatisfied with the govern- ment that protects him? Is the grateful settler on public lands, whose freehold and home have been secured to him by the liberality of the administration, disgusted with his benefactor? Oh no! tbra MT proceeds from disappointed aspirants, from hungry and ravenous office-seekers! from men who more than three years ago. before the administration had performed a single public act, declared, "they should be put down though they were as pure as the angels that stand around the throne of God." Yes, fellow-cit'r/.ens, these are the men who reiterate the cry of bargain, men who have bargained and com- bined with eacli other to put down the administration right or wrung. Of this bargain and combination you have had abundant evidence in the unceasing malediction of our best and most distinguished public men, in the constant and systematic plan of perverting and misrepre- senting the character and conduct of our chief magistrate, and in the malignant and unparalleled persecution of the Secretary of State. As to evidence of any other bargain, we have never seen it. Our adver- saries have been challenged and defied to produce it. They have wholly failed — and the only evidence of this party catch-word "bar- gain", consists in the just and faithful administration of the govern- ment. If such be the result of bargains among our public men; if they will bargain with each other to do- their duty, to promote our in- terests, to advance the cause of domestic industry and internal im- provement, and we get the benefit of the contract, God forbid that we should object to any such bargain! From what other quarter has this denunciation, not only of the President, but of the government at large, originated? And where does it now rage with malignant fury? Not among the grain-growing states — not among the immense majority of our fellow-( iti/.ens where free labour is encouraged and rewarded. No, fellow-citizens, it springs from the avaricious nabob of the South: from the owner of some fifties or hundreds of human beings, who is maddened to des- peration at the encouragement of manufactures and of whits labor. who fears that by the growth and prosperity of freemen, the value it slaves may be depreciated, and who seems willing to raise the stand- ard of rebellion and civil war, to keep up the price-, ot his crops and his negroes! You were told in the administration address of January last, that the people of the South were deliberately opposed to that policwanil those interests which you-have uniformly regarded as essential to your prosperity, and you were cautioned against supporting a man (or the Presidency who was, and is, mainly relied upon by the slave- holders of theSouth as their champion, to break down, not simply .Adams and £Uj, but the whole system o( potter whittb has Ji* k* object the independence of our country, and the growth and ad- vancement of the west. We then referred you to the def.-larfttion* of Gov. Giles of Virginia, and the resolution's of the legislature of" South Carolina declaring all Tariff laws for the protection of domes- tic manufactures, and all appropriations for internal improvements to be unconstitutional. Yet we never dreamed of the extent, or the violence which this Southern opposition has recently assumed. Wet never imagined that members of Congress, that Governors and Judg- es could be found who would advocate resistance to the laws of the union, and because they were out-voted by the people's representa- tives constitutionally assembled,madly threaten todissolve the unicn. "We never expected in our day to hear a member of Congress pro- claim to his constituents, that because they failed in shaping a vot« uf the national representatives agreeably to their wishes, that, "they were tenfold more insulted, more injured, more disgraced and eon- icmned by the majority of Congress,, than our forefathers were at th« breaking out of the Revolution; that the people of the South wtw represented in theory but not in fact.''' 9 For fear we should be suspected of exaggerating the language and proceedings of our Southern brethren in reference to the tariff, we f hall here give you copious extracts of said proceedings, copied from their own papers, and published in Niles* Register. Extract from an address of sundry citizens of Colleton district, to the peopk of the State of South Carolina. — From Tsiles' Register, June 28. "What course is left to us to pursue? Our northern and western brethren are not, cannot, be ignorant of the operation of the system they advocate, or of the powers they claim for the general government. They full well know, h«~ «ause like us they must feel, that it lifts them to prosperity, while it sinks us into ruin. "We have done by words all that words can do. To talk more must be a dullard's refuge. "What course is left to us to pursue' If we have the common pride of mew,, er the determination of freemen, we must rfsisf the imposition of this tariff. We stand committed. To be stationary is impossible. We must either retro- grade in dishonor and in shame, and receive the contempt and scorn of our bre> ihren, superadded to our wrongs, and their system of oppression, strengthened by our toleration; or we must, "by opposing, endihem." To the very Inst vote in CongTess, we have kept this drc anted alternative from our minds, still cling»- ingtothe vain hope, that some kindred feeling, some sense of constitutional jus- tice, some spirit of forbearance and compromise, such as influenced our father* when acting together, and the trainers of the constitution, would rescue tre from this bitter emergency. But it has come, and we may not shriuk in moot- ing it. •'In advising an attitude of open resistance to the laws of the. union, we deem it due to the occasion, and that we may not be misunderstood, distinctly, but briefly to state without argument, our constitutional faith. For it is not enough that imposts laid for the protection of domestic manufactures are oppressive and transfer in their operation millions of our property to northern capitalists. If we have given our bond, let them take our blood. Those who resist thes« imposts, must deem them unconstitutional, and the principle in abandoned by the payment of one cent, as much as ten million*." Extracts from the Georgia Journal: "These then are the blessings of the 'American Svstem,' in only one pfU* ; *»- vlar branch of it. Well might Col. Ilayne say of it, that 'it would grind 5r. McDufBe, that i't is l cn abominable nkeme^fla- galised p.\i>tJer' — 'es;up$n Mr. McDufiie said, it was more than obvious tiiat such a representation could have conduced to no other end, than that of exasperating the spirit of hostility and oppression already existing, by the irritation which the opposition of this inefficient mi- nority, might, from time to time, be irif sistably provoked to set up. The truth of this, sa'id Mr. McDufiie, was manifested by the very fact that if our repre- sentatives in congress dared to confront and refute the folly and wickedness oi our enemies, it made them as eager again to subdue and annihilate us. Il was for the southern people to determine how long they would bear this, and in what manner they would resist it; but he was sure it would have been better for the south if they had no representatives this last winter at Washington. It would have been better for their representatives to have quit the capitol, and have come home; for remaining there was only bearding and provoking the lion. He was sure that if an angel had come down from heaven, that no truth, no argument, even from his bps,would have prevailed with a set of men despr rately bent on their own aggrandizement — upon the ruin of the south. They had the power, and power never heard argument. To reason with a tyrant was but to provoke his wrath and draw down his vengeance. What could sixty memhers from the south do'.' They would have been silent, and thereby supplicate the fell foe, by their meek- ness', but it became impossible any longer to listen to the insults heaped upon us, as they thus portioned off' our wealth among the majority; and at last, when human nature could no longer suffer in silence, our complaints were styled insolence and threats. It was to this dreadful extremity that our national coun- cils had come." Mr. McUuffie spoke nearly two hours, and it is impossible for us to describe the deep feeling with which his speech was received. Shouts and applause ftaquHitly interrupted the speaker. He ended by hoping that the citizens of \>ulh Carolina would appear on tin U.'i of July, clothed in homespun, the manu- facture of the south.— Nilcs Ileg. July 19. You here find George McDuffie chairman of the committee of ways and means — a leading member of the house, and sworn friend of General Jackson — publicly assorting that 4, the people of the south are tenfold more insulted, more injured, more disgraced, and more tontemtied, than were our forefathers by Great Britain, at the break- ing out of the Revolution." What is this, fellow citizens, more or less than an invitation to resist the authority of the Union, and set up for themselves! Mark, we entreat you, another of his asser- tions: "The south is represented in theory, but not in fact." It is an old proverb, and a very just one, that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. The. gentlemen of the south have always manifested great sensibility and irritation, whenever their representation has been alluded to; particularly, if any politi- cal reasoner has been blunt and candid enough to speak of it as ex- travagant and overcharged; as being more numerous than on prin- ciples of justice and equality they were entitled to. But here is a congressman from the south, who boldly throws down the glove, and challenges the nation to redress the wrongs of his countrymen, or civil war will be the consequence. Two years ago the same gentle- man was enlisted heart and soul, in an effort to change the constitu- tion of the United States. lie now declares the South to be repre- sented in theory but not in fact. These bold and extravagant de- clarations, proceeding from a public source, and stamped as K-were with official authority, will be regarded as a sufficient justification for examining the correctness of Mr. McDuffie's assertions. And fel- low-citizens, what will be your feelings of. indignation against this incendiary of the South, when you find that this man, who has thus thrown a fire-brand into the sacred temple of our union, is a Repre- sentative of a State which has at this very moment four representa- tives on the floor of Congress more than her white population would authorize? By the census of 1820, South Carolina had a sdave pop- ulation of 265.000 souls. The constitution of the United States contains a provision which this very state and her southern sisters insisted upon inserting in that instrument as an indispensable condi- tion of their uniting in the federal compact, by which 66,666 slaves became and were politically equivalent to -10,000 free whites. And yet this man complains of n&t being represented! There are now, fellow-citizens, on the floor of Congress, twenty-four representatives who are created and hold their seats entirely and exclusively in con- sequence of the live stock or black property held in these United States. Does it belong to these men, tb charge us. who have conce- ded to them this extravagant privilege, with not allowing them tl rights? After giving them a surplus weight in the councils <>f '!;< nation equal to the whole of Pennsylvania, and greater than all the states aorta of the Ohio combined, is there any justice or decency in their complaints? Is it for them to threaten to tear down the con- stitution? anil when fairly out-voted, the 24 surplus representatn ! to the contrary notwithstanding, to threaten us with civil war? Wlmt wottkl this great Southern Patriot, tlii* a«ao»der of dier.on- tfitution, have us dp, to a^commodata his notions of actual repre^ sentation? A representation of three-fifth* of the slaves is merely u theortiicai.' f He Would of course have his negro property set on x level wiih white freemen, and allowed a full vote, man for man. If that should not be sufficient to enable him to out-vote the grain grow* tug states, he will be reduced to the necessity of proposing another amendment to the constitution, by which the vote of. the slave-holder in Congress shall count two, while that of a non-slaveholder counts only one ! But suppose the major part of the population of the South disap- firove, as we trust in God they do, of the outrageous and treasonable anguage of Mr. McDuffic and the Colleton district; still the coolest and most moderate of them, with Mr. Crawford at their head, are publicly pledged to put down the tariff. They denounce it as un- constitutional; they proscribe it as unjust; they are resorting to eve- ry expedient to deter or drive us from a system of policy which w« regard as vitally essential to our prosperity. Meetings are called fh various parts of the country- resolutions are proposed and adopt- ed with great unanimity, to withhold from us their trade, to lay pro- hibitory taxes on the mules, horses, hogs, and cattle of the west, and some of their flaming patriots are so charitable and courteous a9 to proclaim in their meetings, that "the Iienip of Kentucky is bcttar fitted to make cravats for the Kentuckians, than covers for their cot- ton." Yet these are. the men whom it is seriously proposed we should unite with heart ami hand in making a President. These are the men who publicly proclaim that the election of General Jack- son as President of the United States, would be the greatest blessing and benefaction they could desire or possess! Yes, fellow-citizens, it becomes you to engrave deeply in your me- mories, that, the sworn enemies pf the Tariff and Internal Improve- ments, the Hamilton*, the McDuffies, the Gileses, of the South, are all leagued together in a general conspiracy to pull down the present administration, and to plant the standard of Jackson upon its ruins! Such are the principles, and such the conduct of the leading poli- ticians of the South. Let us leave them for a few moments, and take a glance at Tennessee. Let us enquire what are her feeling* and wishes, and what have been her votes in relation to the tariff and internal improvements? Let us ask, what probability is afford- ed, what rational prospect is presented to us if we unite with her in making a President, that these cardinal interests of ours, will be fostered and protected? "We shewed you last January, by extracts from the Journals of Congress, that she had uniformly voted with the South against every tariff law that had for its object the encouragement of domestic man- ufactures; and that her votes against the woollens bill were unani- mous. But one solitary vote of General Jackson in favor of the tariff in 1824, is claimed by his friends aB demonstration unanswerable, that he is, at least in principle, on our side of these weighty questions; and perhaps the desire of convincing Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, tkhut Tennessee would go hand in hand with us in making a Presi- 9 dent, may have induced lier to vote with us on ithe latetarMK I'.v •K-tly t!,c contrary; no such good news for us. Every vote lromTen> n'essee in the House of Representatives was given against the hue thrift". Whilst Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana* Illinois*, and Missouri* %verf unanimous for it, Tennessee \yn& unanimous against it. is not this - , fellow -citizens-, a fresh demonstration of what we told yoa last January, that Tennessee* notwithstanding n< raphieal po- sition, i ■■■, in her feelings, her wishes, her habits-, and her votes* in ■strict alliance with the South? Sri far, then, as the prominent friends of one of the candidates fur the Presidency Tfcave disclosed their feelings and views of policy, they are directly at war with your sense of your own interests* This single feet, fastened and rivetted upon, us by reiterated demonswa- tion, is of itself sufficient to induce reasonable find prudent men to pause, and seriously inquire, whether they do not. wantonly risque their beat interests by uniting with their open and avowed enemies in electing a chief magistral - : Surely, fellow-citi/m.-. it is unnecessary to inform you thai man- kind lOVfethoir friends and hate their enemies. Of this prevailing trait in the hit-man character, no mm has afforded more convincing evidence than Gen. J&< ks-,i;. Hence w>> entertain no doubt that if a large majority of nis friends and supporters are anti-tariff* and anti- improvement in their politics, such will be the character of his ad- ministration. What think you of the motives of the leading politi- cians of the South in supporting General Jackson? Personal attach- ment? Men of srnse in electing a President look beyond this con- sideration, which by the law of necessity is limited to a small circle of individuals. No! the Southern gentlemen care no more for Gen. Jackson personally, than they do for Mr. Adams. They however regard the one as an instrument for promoting their personal aggran- dizement or sectional policy, whilst from the other they have little to hope or expect on these heads. The men of the South act con- sistently with their views (erroneoos we believe them) of their own interests. But what shall we say of the fool-hardiness of western ?ne«, who, with all the preceding facts staring them in the face, per- sist in supporting Gen. Jackson on the ground and expectation oi his continuing the policy of the present administration? To call itgiv- ing up a certainty for an uncertainty, to say that is it throwing aw a y the substance to grasp at the shadow, are but feeble and inadequate expressions of the stupidity and folly of such conduct. In the preceding remarks, we have assumed the fact, or rather wr'J have not disturbed the supposition, that Mr. Adams and Gen; Jacr. > son were candidate* for the Presidency, wath equal pretension!: .>'i the score of merit, talents, and capacity, to administer the govern- ment. Whether this be a fact, or even a remote approximation fo it is for you, fellow-citizeus, to judge; and we presume your minds, like ours, will be influenced by evidence. When a man asks of his countrymen the high office of presiding over a nation of freemen, when he aspires to the loftiest station that man can occupy or men bestow, it is not only natural and proper, but itis the imperative duty of the constituent of this high office to es IS 10 ine with unsparing scrutiny his character and qualifications. The vessel of stale, freighted with the destinies of millions of freemen, must not and cannot be committed to any other than a pilot of con- summate skill, experience, and integrity. To take a commander of such a vessel, on such a voyage upon trust, without a rigorous inves- tigation of capacity and integrity, would indicate a degree of mad- ne-s and folly, for which we hive no name. Does the office ef President of the United States call for talents of the highest order, for extensive political and diplomatic acquire- ments, for long experience in public affairs, for habits of industry, for" coolness, patience, and equanimity, for a disciplined temper, for devoted patriotism, for unblemished morals? Which of the candi- dates answers this description? A brief history of their respective lives will enable r ; s to judge* Mr. Adams has been in the public service of his country for a pe- riod of thirty-five years. Selected at the early age of 07 by the Fa- ther of his country, who was pre-eminently distinguished for his judgment of men, he was appointed ambassador to Holland, and had the good fortune to realize the high expectations, and to enjoy the entire confidence of Gen. Washington, who, in 1796, appointed him Minister to Lisbon. So strong was the interest which General Washington felt in retaining Mr. John Q. Adams in the service, that after bis father, the elder Adams, had been elected to the Presiden- cy, Gen. Washington addressed him a letter, expressing "a hope that no over delicacy on his part would operate to withhold from his son merited promotion," adding "that in his opinion he was the most "valuablapublic man we then had abroad in the service of the coun- try." He was afterwards appointed minister to Berlin. In 1802, he returned home, and in 1803, he was elected to the Senate of the United States, the duties of which station he discharged until the spring of 1808, when his constituents disapproving of the vote he had given in favor of the Embargo, he resigned his seat for the ex- press purpose of giving them an opportunity to elect a successor who could represent their feelings without doing violence to his own sense of duty. Id 1809 Mr. Madison appointed him minister to Russia? and in'iSIS he was associated with Messrs. Gallatin and Bayard to negotiate a peace with Great Britain. He was afterwards appoint- ed Minister to Loudon, where he continued until 1817, when Mr Monroe, with the approbation of Gen. Jackson, appointed him Sec- retary of State, the arduous duties of which office he discharged With narivalled ability for eight years. For the last three years ind ^ half, he has been our chief magistrate. In all these, various em ployments, he has uniformly met and answered the high expectations of his country, and completely justified the confidence reposed in him five and thirty years ago by the Father of his Country. The first charge of official misconduct or aegtect of duty is yet to be estab- lished against ivm. He is the avowed friend and patron of the Ame- rica!' System. He has been tried and not found wanting. Gen.' Jackson is about the same age of Mr. Adams, and has been first and last pretty extensively engaged in public life. There is however this difference between "them-* that the employment in which II Gan. Jackson has obtained any d< gree of reputation has been i.iUUa* rij and not ct'vtV. "He was, like Air. Adams, bried to I - hi of the law, a profession best calculated to improve the fa< which civil employments require. But (he history of his public in these employments, is told in a few lines on a single page of his Biography.-('SteeJ57ctffln's life of Jackson.) He filled successively for very short period $, the office of Member of the Tennessee State Convention, Representative and Senator in Congress, Judge of the Supreme Court in Tennessee, and Senator again in Congress. H< •was ample opportunity for distinction, if he possessed the talent, taste, and application suited to civil eminence. But he resigned three of these stations, and passed through them all, acknowledging his unfitness in two instances, manifestly feeling it in all, and leaving no trace behind which stamps his qualifications above mediocrity." But we beg pardon for seeming to hurry over the civil career of General Jackson. We must retrace our steps. There, was one vote given by the General while a representative in Congress, which dis- tinguishes him, and ought to be remembered. General Washington was about retiring from the Presidency. He had composed and pub- lished his farewell address, a legacy rich in those principles and pa- ternal counsels, on which depend the dearest interests of the coun- try, indeed its very existence. The house of representatives, anx- ious to express their gratitude for his services, their veneration for his character, and respect for his administration, drew up an address, in which was the following clause: "May you long enjoy that liber- ty which is so dear to you, and to which your name will ever be dear: may your own virtues and a nation's prayers obtain the happiest sun- shine for the decline of your days, and the choicest of future bless- ings. For our country's sake, for the sake of republican liberty, it is OUR EARNEST WISH THAT YOVR EXAMPLE MAY BE THE GUIDE OF YOUR. successors, and thus after being the ornament and safeguard to the present age, becc-.u the patrimony of our descendants''' A motion to strike out this clause from the address was made and supported by Mr. Giles of Virginia, and Mr. Livingston of N. York, now of Louisiana, two devoted frieads of Gen. Jackson. The motion was lost by a large majority, eleven members only voting to strike it out. Among these we find inscribed the name of Andrew Jackson, who thus declared his disapprobation of the measures of Washington, and his wish that his example might not be followed by succeeding Presidents. Fellow-citizens, are you prepared to make this man the successor of the immortal Washington? It is with great reluctance that we enter upon a scrutiny of the life and conduct of General Jackson. We are well aware that for his military services^ he merits, as he has received, a .copious tribute of the nation's gratitude. We have on all occasions liberally ac- corded him the meed of honor .due to meritorious and successful ef- forts in repelling the enemies of his country. The laurels won by him and his brave, companions on the 8ih of January, might have bloomed ami flourished in perpetual verdure, had he not sought to entwine them with the cipic wreath, winch alone befits the brow of *Jie accomplished statesman. He has asked at our hands more than 12 we can afford to give* He has asked ///atf which justice to ourselvw * demands we should inquire whether lie be worthy to recite." Duty then, stern duty, compels us to declare, that the military achievements of Gen. Jackson have been so tarnished by acts of in- subordination, tyranny and oppression, as to have made it a nice and questionable point, whether we should admire the hero or detest the man. It has been an invariable practice with him to carry the exercise of power to the extreme verge of constitutionality and le- gality, and where legal power was wanting, he has ne-ver hesitated to assume it. For acts of insubordination, we refer you to his re- peated refusals to obey the orders of the President of the U. States, issued through the Secretary of War, and to his famous general or- ders, issued at Nashville in April, 1817, in which he forbids his offi- cers and troops from obeying the orders of their government unless the orders come through him. For acts of tyranny, we need only refer to his treatment of Mr. Louaillier, a Member of the legislature of Louisiana, and of Judges Hall and Lewis, wherein he plainly manifested a determination to set the civil authority at defiance, and to establish a military Dictatorship.-(See Dallas' official letter. In proof of insolence and a domineering, brow-b»ating temper* bevond all parallel, we cite you to his letter to Gov. Rabun of Ga. "Fee*, *<>, as Governor of a State, within my military district,, have no right to give a military order whiht I am in the field:" and his still more intemperate and indecent language to Mr. Fromentin, a U. S. Judge in Florida. For acts of cruelty, we refer you to the execution of John Woods and the six4,000 more at the expiration of twelve months. Dr. McNairy and Col. Erwin are among the most respectable citizens of the state of Tennessee. (See appendix.) It is further in proof that these Negroes were taken to the lower country and part of them sold, but the speculation not turning out as profitable as was expected, Gen. Jackson bought out his partners, went down to Natchez, and brought back the unsold Ne- groes to Tennessee. Evidence has also been published in the same papers, shewing one or two other v speculations by the General in the same detestable traffic ! The charge of Bnrrism is founded on and supported by the fal- lowing statement of facts. In December 1837, Judge Williams of Tennessee wrote to Mr. Kerr of Virginia a letter, of which the fol- lowing is an extract: "My dear sir: — It is madness to think of Jackson for President of the United States. This Burr matter 1 cannot be mistaken about — my eyes and ears are my witnesses. He, Jackson, offered me a commission of Captain in Burr's army, or told me I could get one, if I would accept it." This letter to Mr. Kerr excited some attention in Virginia, and* friend of Gen. Jack jon wrote to him informing him of the fact; upon which Gen. Jackson on the 23d of February 1828, addressed a let- ter to Judge Williams, (for which see Appendix) inquiring if it were true that he the Judge had given the sanction of his name to what he the General pronounced a base calumny, and demanding a prompt and frank reply. This letter appears to have been sent by a special messenger, all the way to Sparta, a distance of one hundred and odd miles from the General's residence; and from the tone and style of the letter, Gen. Jackson evidently anticipated an answer that would be satisfactory. On the 27th of* February, four days only after tl ( date of the General's letter, Judge Williams replied to him, affii m ing most positively that he, the General had told him (Williams] that he eould, if he would accept it, obtain a commission ot Captain is 14 Burr's army, and he made other statements going t« shew that Jack- son Was concerned with Burr.-^ee Appendix. Now, notwithstanding Gen. Jackson was so eager to obtain the ans\> er of Judge Williams as to send Iris nephew specially a hundred miles : Sparta for that purpose, thereby shewing his own view of the importance of the charge, yet on the receipt of the Judge's an- swer, he tiainen 1 perfectly quiet for upwards of six mom lis! It is now past the middle of September, and no effort has been made to contradh statement of Judge Williams. On the contrary, abun- dant evidence has appeared tlia ; : Jackson was concerned with Burr in forwarding his expedition, that he advanced money for him, endors- ed his bills, was his agent in purchasing boats and provisions, and in seeking to enlist men to accompany him down the Cumberland-(See Appendix.) The General himself hate sworn, and the affidavit is of record in the state of Mississippi, that Burr was indebted to him up- wards of 8500 for monies advanced and paid on his account. Gen. Coffee also made an affidavit to the same effect. Now, fellow-citizens, we request you to mark the responses made to these accusations, and to notice particularly the manner in which; ■they have been met. To the charge of Negro trading the down- right lie is first given. Afterwards finding that the f.icts proved are too strong to tolerate a denial of the charge, the act is justified "be- cause Gen. Jackson was only a security, and it is the duty of a secu- rity to take all measures to protect himself." Just so it is in refer- ence to Burr's business": the lie is first given to every assertion con- necting Gen. Jackson and Aaron Burr in the remotest manner. Gen,. Jackson himself pronounces the charge of 1 his connection with Burr a base calumny. But finding the facts m support of this calumnious charge multiplying^ finding witness after witness and letter after let- te ■, risingin judgment against him, his friends resort to the plea of justification, and plead the General's ignorance of Burr's bad inten- tions, and ins supposition that the government had sanctioned his plans! Thfe latter is a lame and clumsy excuse for a man who had been a Repre 1 senttftive>and Senator in Congress and Judge of the Supreme Court in his own State. Did not Gen. Jackson know that the gov- ernment of the United States had no power to sanction the ambitious schemes of Mr. Burr or any other daringunprineipled projector? We are however triumphantly veftred to Gen. Jackson's letter to G ■;->. Ctaiboijneof Nov. 12, 180G; in which letter the General warns "Gm . C. against Wilkinson, but says not a word of Burr. If Jack- son really wished to act like a patriot, and warn the Governor of his real danger, why not mention the head of the conspiracy at once, why name one of the subordinate agents and leave the head unnoticed? To shew that this attempt to exculpate Jackson fails, we have only •to ferhark that there is the most convincing testimony to prove, that more than a month after this letter to Gov. Claiborne was written, Burr wks an inmate at Gen. Jackson's house, that he left there after the 20th December, 1806, and was accompanied on his expedition by 8t< kelv D. Hays, a nephew of Gen. Jackson. Js it likely that Gen. Jackson would have suffered his nephew, a youth of 17, to embark 15 his fortunes with Burr, six weeks after lie had denounced this s.-.me Burr to Gov. Claiborne? Some men have been so uncharitable as to d< clare then belief that Gen. Jackson's letters to Mr. Jefferson and Gov. Claiborne were written with a view to his own eventual security, •■ .-.■ Burr's schemes should fail. Whether the y were or >not. end to say. But for fearso ne men may be so unreasonable a uJ • s trava> gant as to imitate the General himself, a d hazard a bold swee] denial of the charge of connection or asso< iation with Burr, we will just advert to the correspondence between Gen. Jackson and Gen, Adair, as published in the Lexington Reporter in 1817. tnthat cor- respondence, Gen.- Jackson himself, with move spite than prudence, had cast in Gen. Adair's teeth the charge of I '.• i n ass i • d with Burr! Gen. Adair in his reply observes: ik JV}utt\ ver were^the ■intentions of ( ol. Burr, I neitker organised troops, nor did I supqr- in lend the building of boats jor him, nor did I write co \fidenticd let- ters, recommending; him to my friends, nor '.id 1 think >'■• necessary, after his failure teas universally known, to sate myself by twining INFORMER OR STATE WITNESS." Why, we would ask, do Jackson and his friends tell two stoi on this subject!? Why do they in one breath pronounce the ch of connection with Burr a base calumny, and in/he next excuse and justify it? Truth is simple and uniform. Eithefflie General was con- nected with Burr, or he was not. If he was, why not openly avow it and assign the reason? Why call those who say he was. calumnia- tors? If he was not, then Gen. Coffee and Gen. Jackson himself have both written and sworn what is false! We have thus, in the discharge of a painful but necessary duty, exhibited to you our views of the real character of Gen. Jackson We have shewn you that his character, his temper, and his conduct, furnish but indifferent vouchers far the mild and impartial exercise of power. We have shewn you that his public life is disfigured and deformed by intemperate proceedings, by violations and insults of the civil authority, by tyranny and usurpation on the one hand, and insubordination on the other. We have shewn you that his private character is stained with speculations in the flesh and blood of his fellow-beings, and stamped with the strongest suspicions of having entertained designs unfriendly to the union. Admit for a moment with his friend?, that his subsequent good conduct has justified and redeemed his character, stdl will you choose for your chief magis- trate a man who is justly obnoxious to odious charges, and whose ; u rity has been soiled by imputations which either of you would efel dishonorable to have fastened up< ch we ntend to record, and defy the presentation ot any paper published faStf clar o the Hartford 'convention, even in the writings of the "Boston nVbel" more hostile to Republican principles and the Union than this extract from the "Mercury" on behalf of the ntuim of South Carolina. -But when we'resist, let us resist as becomes men and freemen; not eaeh •«e iftttTowo *av, and without head or concert. But let our state legislature, « a state cm, -enion, after the matuvest deliberation, take measure,, and u. SrlwUraesendon to the United States government its onmaTWi. Let 5J" hcre'bc dUtinclli fold, that cither the general government must «** iS^JSmSam o inordinate power, or the Male must recede from the comput {nTs offi h; government resolutely penbtfP the scheme ot subverts -our «n« snouiu iwig fonndat ons. let the ewernor be directed. laws, and be indemnified for disobedience to federal authoi.ties. All Mis in y be done without the spilling of one crop of blood! -There will be no necessity for firing a gun. Let 1 e Vn.ted S a .. 5 jam officers of the general government, »£•£*»• ^J^SlSS and the U . ehivalric Habtrskam of Savannah, ^ U,C ^v ro, Id not do oIIk rwwc! Ever, States, will throw up their commons, rhey •"J*** ~ g^ „; tuated Rn « man will rally round the state standard and e^ "**'• ™ ^ us! Bv wo h ^pressed, will join that standard, and make «^W££J2 on a ibjert la ral government, see the injustice of our cause; and bv a timelv change of ru- lers, congress may be probably brought to its senses, the constitution explain ed and expounded anew, the union preserved, and tbe sovereignty of the states and civil liberty hereafter placed on such an immoveable basis, as never again to be endangered by similar acts of folly and wickedness of congress! ! ! (The above is taken from Niles' Register of the 16th August.) Toasts drunk at Charleston, on the 28th June, the anniversary of the battle of Fort Sullivan: By Major J. Hamilton, jun. (the member of congress) — The event which we commemorate . — The first decisive victory of the American revolution — a proud memorial of what South Carolina was — and a cheering token of what she will be, whenever called upon to defend her rights, her interests, and her honor. By C. C. Pinkney— The battle of the 28th of June.and the tariff" of June 28 —Let iVew-England beware how she imitates the old. By Win. Carson— 1 he 30th June— The day on which forbearance and pati- ence cease to be virtuous. By Henry Rutledge— The Rattlesnake of the south : Caveant Monith warned by its rattle, let the foe beware. By the Orator— The hemp of Kentucky— better suited for cravats for Ken- iuekians and tarifrites, than for the covering of South Carolina cotton. (Taken from Niles' Register of July 26th. NO. II. THE CHARGE OF NEGRO TRADING PROVED. Extract from a letter, addressed by Col. Andrew Ervvin, to Gen. Jacks*>n t published in the Banner and Whig at Nashville, August 2, 1823. "And now, sir, it remains for me to redeem the pledge I have given to the public, to prove you a negro trader, if you dare to deny it. I consider the pub- lication of the 30th May and 11th June, in the Republican, as intended to be a flat denial on your part, of the charge, particularly the latter publication — and both evidently by your authority. It is manifest indeed you do not wish it to be believed. It has been pronoiuiced by your supporters, a calumny seriously implicating your character, and has even been called by your printers, under the impulse of a too hasty zeal, "an infamous falsehood." Yet, when a state- ment is made by those same printers, on your own authority, of the circum- stances of one transaction of the kind.enough— more than enough — is admitted, completely to sustain the charge. This has been already shown in the very conclusive and unanswerable letter of Doctor M'Nairy, which neither you nor any of your partisans have even attempted to controvert. But before I proceed with any further comments on your own admission, I will lay before you and the public, a little evidence on the subject, derived from another source. A purchase of negioes is acknowledged to have been made, in 1811, by the firm of Coleman, Greene and Jackson. The members of this firm were, Joseph Coleman, Horace Greene and yourself. I will, in the first place, present you with a statement of your partner, Mr. Horace Greene, who, you know, was in Nashville a few days since, and was seen and conversed with by a number of your warmest partisans. Why they did not procure from him an account of the trans- action, will be readily seen on the perusal of the following letter. Nashville, 18/ It July, 1828. SIR — Your note enquiring of me information in relation to some negroes in which Gen. Jackson wax concerned, I have received. To give a correct view .t' the transaction, as } understood it, I must connect it with another. In the latter part of the year 1810 Captain Joseph Coleman proposed to me to join him in the purchase of some cotton and tobacco of a Mr. Bennet Smith, to which I as- P'Jntci. He stated to me that Mr. Smith would require security, which he could 19 procure. Some short time after this understanding with Capt. Coleman, he in- formed that Mr. Smith would take- no other security than General Jacksen, and that General Jackson would be such, but that he' must be placed in the light of a I\1RTNEH, in order that he might have a controlling power if he thought it necessary. The cotton and tobacco were accordingly purchased, and taken by me to New-Orleans. I placed them in the hands of Gray and Ta\ lor, then commission merchants of that place, for sale as.the property of Coleman, Greene and Jackson. The article of cotton being somewhat depressed at the time, I was advised by them to ship it round to Philadelphia. 1 left it with them, and instructed them to do so for our benefit and returned to this place. After my return in May, 1811, we purchased a number of negroes of a Mr. Epperson, for which we were to pay a part in hand— I paid one third, and un- derstood the balance was paid by Captain Coleman and Gen. Jackson. The ne- groes were taken by me to Natchez for .sale, and a part of them sold. In the. month of December (I think) of the same year, 1 received letters from Cen. Jackson, (which letters at this time are mislaid) advis'npme he had purchased out Captain Coleman in both these transactions, and offering to sell out to me at cost by securing him, or to buy me oat, and refund to me the advances which I had made. 1 thought proper to sell. In relation to the purchase of the ne- groes,althoug-h I had no understanding to the effect from either Captain Cole- man or General Jackson, I thought it probable he stood in the some situation as in the purchase of the cotton and tobacco, from the circumstance, as I then be- lieved, it was his credit ivhich enabled us t» make the purchase. Captain Coleman made the negotiation, and I made the selection. The negroes were, at the time of the transaction, at Captain Coleman's plantation, near this place, and I do not recollect that he saw them before they descended the river. I am, respectfully, HOKACE GRRENE. Tt seems then from this statement, that a partnership was formed in the year 1810, between yourself, Joseph Coleman, and Horace Greene. You was' ap- plied to, in the first place, it is true to become a security, but you insisted on be- ing placed in the light of a partner. A firm was therefore constituted under the style of "Coleman, Greene and Jackson," and in the Springof 1811, a purchase ■was made by the firm, with \ our assent, (for your printers admit that the con- tract with Epperson was signed by yourself, as well as by the other partners) for the purchase of negroes, to the amount often thousand dollars. One third of that portion of the purchase money which was required in advance, Mr. Creene expressly tells us, was paid by him, and the other two thirds, he under- stood, were paid by Cantain Coleman and General Jackson. Now sir, let us see what you yourself say, as to the payment of these two thirds. The follow- ing' is an exact copy of a memorandum, in your own hand writing, which, in connexion with the above statement of Mr. Greene, leaves no room for the slightest doubt, as to the nature of this transaction. "A. Jackson amount of proportion of cash for negroes bot. of Hichard Epper- son, £929 45. J. Coleman is to pay the note in Hank for interest on purchase of cotton from R. Smith, for $613 39, and the sum of S19H, which he is to pav, and the sum of *125 for boat makes up his proportion. A. Jackson has paid for Keel-boat $50. To Capt. Wetherall discount, this 20th of November, 1811, on the bill remitted VV. Jackson and Co. on James Jackson and Co. % 14 51; and also islG oi>. note endorsed by J. H. Smith. NOTR— provisions furnished cot- ton boat 500 lbs, pork &. flower, and meal, in all >\7 M." The above is in your hand writing. Uui sir, without dwelling longer on this point, I will call your attention, and that of the American people to the follow- ing letter from a gentlemen whose high standing is well known to tin ritums of Tennessee-ra gentleman not only above reproach in private life, but distin- guished for his public services in the legislature of the state, and the Congress ol the nation. -..'■. Lackland, June Whtl Vol. Andrew. F.rwin, S»h,— Inan«wer to yourtetter, addressed to.roeofth* 26th ult. nasi Bfiftqufp relative to what knowlvxlge I have respecting Gen. Andrew J.ulson'a b Km* ne'tfnr ninoea for profit, and his bringing n*gro« &»» KMeh«r~i» «..« Sr 1811 or 12, I understood that a Mr. Horace Greene took from Nashville * m.mber of negroes to Natchez, for sale, and that those negroe* were tmvrvperh, rf Sic late Joseph Coleman, of Nashville, 6*1. *&**> Jack** *d wd Hon,,.. Green- (yet I do not know this' of my own knowledge.) borne time after, f hnrd Gen Jackson say he went to Natchcv, or spmewhere m that country and had bro-rht sa id negroes back to Tennes.ee; and ahont that time, a Mr. Dm* more, S V. States agent for the Choctaw nation of Indian, was m tne habit ofstopping all persons travelling through s*id nation with a negro or negroes Zhn ■ not a Dassnort The General observed, that he had taken no passport. «ul on he lrmn?he was to pa* the agency, that he armed two of hi* mji res, IZenexroZen, and put them in front of his negroes and gave ^m orders /, FICH'FthEIR WAY, if necessary. He fnrther observed, hataf«endhad 11 ' , to his hand, the night before, or that morning, a good rife that when he |Sd1£e^^ ESS stance, to the best of my now recollection- lam, sir, yours respectfully, «• w #♦•****< »• ffin?Sd pXSvrif ad transactions could be brought to light, of so. erB I l wm n nowS" „r attention to .he folding extract from a letter written by vol. to a genlnan on business (not in b,»k) and dated Hermitage, March 20th, 1812. ... . * , . "Havimrto attend Wilson circuit court, it will not be in my power to be »u rtJSff&^St I am very much engaged toa^ange my busmess, *> that I can leave home on Uietrip nutf my ncgr^/or aofc Th- letter containing the above sentence is in your own hand writing and it Signed ANDREW JACKSON. . ^ some rf ^ i-^lnottiwblenr^tocoge^^tf^ Greene and same negroes P**"!** t^no her station. It is enough to show, at inv^thJvoIiSUAes^'to speak treely at that time of your being 1 * - _~.-.. rt *."!-!.• J. tually engagtd in negro traffic. NO. If. GEN JACKSON S CONNEXION WITH AARON BURR PROVED. The following letters are published by Dr. Boyd McNairy in the Nashville Banner and Whig of August lbth, 1828. GeaeralJackson to Judge Williams. Hekmitaof., FbBRruiT 23, 1H*8- MR- Having received a letter from a high minded, honorable gentleman of vftni^bof™ truth ,nd knows ho £» «*£— * £ g* \fc fe£ invention, I hear, accusing you of being concerned ill Burr » con.-p.rac. 21 •m the author.!., of a Judge Nathaniel Wiltaa* *f *•* **> J^JJJ^ that this Jud« Williams writes, when u yuuttf man, h* applied u» J«h '»»"»■ iudw i liScnhM license M * l*wycr, that you did so, but recommended to CTa. ou Conceived him to be >U of promise, to push his fortune by jo,n- S. J,, we. then in von,- house, promising he would do so, to proct.ro St n a comn^ion us captain in Hun's army. This -tory , m| t he round- fVorn the Sams Delegates; who have returned home, notwithstanding the; S£htto knoS that >ou was the first person to put Governm ' Chiboyrnc on fat, e j ml against the schemes of Burr. } l , v "'',1,,, * The records of the country contradict this statement, »>t >B well known that , re \Sed mv appointment of Judge before Col. Burr ever was m the state of T 7nTssee. ' I cannot, then, for one moment permit W*«**™JSl ^,m elevated as you are. to a seat on the judicial bench 01 Tennessee, couia SS vo „r au hoV. v to such an unfoundedWhood: Duty to myself as well S E to vou, therefore, require that I should, Without delay j£»* £° * this libel upon my character, so that you may at once declare whether you arc or are not the author of this calumny, before 1 expose ill such. tarn, and ha-. <• been, well advised of a eecre combmat.o ol i e nd wicked few in Tennessee, whose object is to slander me, but, unt.l now, I do I now believe that you, who must be so wed satisfied of ^"^S contained in the postscript of the letter referred to above as "&£****£ tuae of mv conduct since your acquaintance, wrth me, could be ^^to virtue Uto truth as to have originated and put in crculat.on so ^*^^7 With this impression I send J. W. D. S. Donelson to you With this comniuni- Wt^havbg no doubt as an honorable man, that you wiD send me u trunk aUU P 7.J P cop?^nod) ANDREW JACKSON. The Hon Nath. Williams, Judge of the Circuit Courts of Tennessee, Judge miliums' reply to General Jackson. ' Sl'AIlTA, V»b. 27, lOZtJ. •\fter coming from Gen. Jackson's letter to me, the report as stated in his ^^ank^dlny ever having written the letter spoken of by the gen- tic," who wrote Vou from Washington, but I did write a letter to a relation of mine at that tune in Richmond, The letter, if seen, would show that was designed as a confidential one. 1 do not, at this time, recollect accurately "Setter did contain; I believe though, I can remember a part ,f not he whole of what I ink-nded at the time; una 1 Will state it, as it is but just that what has been by my means privately circulated, should be publicly avowed under the necessities of the case. . , __„___ Some time after Burr had passed Nashville once or twice, to the £m emm- try before Mr. Jefferson's proclamation, m riding from (.en. Jackson ■ hou*o toKashvule, Gen. Jackson,' in reference to that conspiracy, or what was after- wards called by others a conspiracy, said tome, «tMt I could, d I would ac cei't it, obtain a commission ot captain." . Afterwards during the setting of the County Court of gunner at a time mhSSSn Anderson told me that either Burt or Adair orboth d *£*£ I Gen Jackson's house, in a room of a tavern then kept ^EdnWnd rutoher, Ren. Jackson saidtome-l think Judge Stewart was in .1 e ro - » lice srentlemen, vou will find that a . v,s,on of tne Lmted States has taiten decp g rOOt- Ton Will find that a number of the senate, and a number oi the members of "the house of representatives are deeply "^ he «"X^l"> lam not certain that the above was untamed in my private letter to »^ Nathaniel Kerr; but as I have made these statements privately, It - but )OV tten. JacktoTmay be assured (the p* iccnbal que*** Kflde) n. RWCM kel 22 more bound to Gen. Jackson than myself, for the great honor conferred by him on Khy country. (Copy) NATH. W. WILLIAMS. Gen. Andrew Jackson. Dr. McNairy then proceeds to remark as follows: "Without undertaking to say, how far the above affords evidence or reason- able cause for suspicion of an improper connexion between Gen. Jackson and Aaron Burr,I will now proceed to convince the public, that rny allusion to the knowledge < f certain transactions, the disclosure of which might not have been desirable at this critical period, was not, a3 has been asserted, entirely gratuitous and unfounded. In order to do this, I will merely furnish, at this moment, copies of two letters, the originals c f which, in the Jiand writing of General Andrew Jackson, are in my possession, and may be inspected by any g-ntleman of either party, who may wish to examine them, and who will call on me for that purpose. Copy of a letter from Gen. Andrew Jackson, dated Hkryitage, Sept. 25, 1806. Col. Purr is with me, he arrived last night — 1 would be happy you would call and see the Col. before you return — say to the Gen. O that I shall expect to see him here on to morrow with you — Would it not be well for us to do something as a mark ot attentionto the Col. Jfe has always and is still a true and trusty friend to Tennessee — If Gen. Robertson is with you when you receive this Be good enough t. say to him, that Col. Burr is in the country — I know that Gc :i R. will be happy in joining in any thing — that will tend to show a mark of re spect to the worthy visitant. With due Esteem. ANDREW JACIvSON. Copy of another letter from the same. Dear Friend — I send you live hundred dollars. It appears to me I said J would send you 1000 dollars, But when I came to myself I found there were appropriations made that I knew nothing of. This I learnt at the store, and Two Journeys to perform, and expences to be born that my recollection did not serve me with at the moment — Tomorrow when you come up arrangements shall be made, so as to accommodate as far as I can — My dear sir, do not tail to come up tomorrow, at ten o'clock I will meet you at my house — The Boats \ think you said live in number and some Pork you would furnish — these must be done against the 20th of December next but more of this tomorroy — You must set out in a verry few days, I will furnish the needful! — The cash now sent is in pait for the boates — the ballance on delivery — Either in bank bills or a Draft o.i New-Orleans the 3000 dollars being all the cash that can be furnish- ed, this must be appropriated to the best Possible advantage — and to the last shilling will be put in your way if you can furnish Boats and Pork except so much as will meet the engagements already entered into, — 1 send you twenty 20 dollar bills and ten 10 dollar bills — which I wish safe to hand, and beg of you not to fail coining up tomorrqw — I wish to start a messenger on monday a ixt — Health and respect ANDREW JACKSON. I have no intention nor disposition tc* comment on these letters. They have been drawn from me by the pertinaceons and reiterated abuse of Gen. Jack- s >n's partisans, and I leave them, in c»nnexion with other circumstances, to bt- considered and judged of by the American people. 89 W o >% /\-i^.\ Ajssik-o /.c^:^ * V ^ ' * ;•• ^ c