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retaken under such process, it is made the absolute duty of the sheriff to retake them.

It is not to be supposed that, in the face of these penalties, aided by the powerful force of the country, which would doubtless be brought to sustain the state officers, either the collector could retain the custody in the first instance, or that the marshal could summon sufficient aid to retake the property pursuant to the order or other process of the court.

It is, moreover, obvious that in this conflict between the powers of the officers of the United States and the state (unless the latter be passively submitted to), the destruction to which the property of the officers of the customs would be exposed, the commission of actual violence, and the loss of lives, would be scarcely avoidable.

Under these circumstances, and the provisions of the acts of South Carolina, the execution of the laws is rendered impracticable even through the ordinary judicial tribunals of the United States. There would certainly be fewer difficulties, and less opportunity of actual collision between the officers of the United States and of the state, and the collection of the revenue would be more effectually secured-if, indeed, it can be done in any other way-by placing the customhouse beyond the immediate power of the county.

For this purpose, it might be proper to provide that whenever, by any unlawful combination or obstruction in any state, or in any port, it should become impracticable faithfully to collect the duties, the president of the United States should be authorized to alter and abolish such of the districts and ports of entry as should be necessary, and to establish the customhouse at some secure place within the same port or harbor of such state; and, in such cases, it should be the duty of the collector to reside at such place, and to detain all vessels and cargoes until the duties imposed by law be properly secured or paid in cash, deducting interest; that, in such cases, it should be unlawful to take the vessel and cargo from the custody of the proper officer of the customs, unless by process from the ordinary judicial tribunals of the United States; and that, in case of an attempt otherwise to take the property by force too great to be overcome by the officers of the customs, it should be lawful to protect the possession of the officers by the employment of the land and naval forces, and militia, under provisions similar to those authorized by the eleventh section of the act of the nineteenth of January, 1809.

This provision, however, will not shield the officers and citizens of the United States, acting under the laws, from suits and prosecutions in the tribunals of the state, which might thereafter be brought against them; nor would it protect their property from the proceeding by distress; and it may well be apprehended that it would be inefficient to insure a proper respect to the process of the constitutional tribunals, in prosecutions for offences against the United States, and to protect the authorities of the United States, whether judicial or ministerial, in the performance of their duties. It would, moreover, be inadequate to extend the protection due from the government to that portion of the people of South Carolina, against outrage and oppression of any kind, who may manifest their attachment, and yield obedience to the laws of the Union.

It may, therefore, be desirable to revive with some modifications better adapted to the occasion, the sixth section of the act of the third of March, 1815, which expired on the fourth of March, 1817, by the limitation of that of twenty-seventh of April, 1816, and to provide that in any case where

suit shall be brought against any individual in the courts of the state, for any act done under the laws of the United States, he should be author ized to remove the said cause, by petition into the circuit court of the United States, without any copy of the record, and that that court should proceed to hear and determine the same as if it had been originally instituted therein. And that in all cases of injuries to the persons or property of individuals, acting under the laws of the United States, for disobedience to the ordinance and laws of South Carolina, in performance thereof, redress may be sought in the courts of the United States. It may be expedient, also, by modifying the resolution of the third of March, 1791, to authorize the marshals to make the necessary provision for the safekeeping of prisoners committed under the authority of the United States.

Provisions less than these, consisting, as they do, for the most part, rather of a revival of the policy of former acts called for by the existing emergency, than of the introduction of any unusual or rigorous enactments, would not cause the laws of the Union to be properly respected and enforced. It is believed these would prove adequate, unless the military forces of the state of South Carolina, authorized by the act of the legislature, should be actually embodied and called out in aid of their proceedings, and of the provisions of the ordinance generally. Even in that case, however, it is believed that no more will be necessary than a few modifications of its terms to adapt the act of 1795 to the present emergency, as, by that act, the provisions of the law of 1792 were accommodated to the crisis then existing; and by conferring authority upon the president to give it operation during the session of Congress, and without the ceremony of a proclamation, whenever it shall be officially made known to him by the authority of any state, or by the courts of the United States, that, within the limits of such state, the laws of the United States will be openly opposed, and their execution obstructed by the actual employment of military force, or by any unlawful means whatsoever, too great to be otherwise overcome.

In closing this communication, I should do injustice to my own feelings not to express my confident reliance upon the disposition of each department of the government to perform its duty, and co-operate in all measures necessary in the present emergency.

The crisis undoubtedly invokes the fidelity of the patriot and the sagacity of the statesman, not more in removing such portion of the public burden as may be necessary, than in preserving the good order of society, and in the maintenance of well-regulated liberty.

While a forbearing spirit may, and I trust will, be exercised toward the errors of our brethren in a particular quarter, duty to the rest of the Union demands that open and organized resistance to the laws should not be executed with impunity.

The rich inheritance bequeathed by our fathers has devolved upon us the sacred obligation of preserving it by the same virtues which conducted them through the eventful scenes of the revolution, and ultimately crowned their struggle with the noblest model of civil institutions. They bequeathed to us a government of laws, and a federal Union founded upon the great principle of popular representation. After a successful experiment of forty-four years, at a moment when the government and the Union are the objects of the hopes of the friends of civil liberty throughout the world, and in the midst of public and individual prosperity unexampled in his

tory, we are called upon to decide whether these laws possess any force, and that Union the means of self-preservation. The decision of this question by an enlightened and patriotic people can not be doubtful. For myself, fellow-citizens, devoutly relying upon that kind Providence which has hitherto watched over our destinies, and actuated by a profound reverence for those institutions I have so much cause to love, and for the American people, whose partiality honored me with their highest trust, I have determined to spare no effort to discharge the duty which in this conjuncture is devolved upon me. That a similar spirit will actuate the representatives of the American people is not to be questioned; and I fervently pray that the Great Ruler of nations may so guide your deliberations, and our joint measures, as that they may prove salutary examples, not only to the present, but to future times; and solemnly proclaim that the constitution and the laws are supreme, and the Union indissoluble.

SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS.

Fellow-Citizens :—

MARCH 4, 1833.

THE will of the American people, expressed through their unsolicited suffrages, calls me before you to pass through the solemnities preparatory to taking upon myself the duties of president of the United States for another term. For their approbation of my public conduct, through a period which has not been without its difficulties, and for this renewed expression of their confidence in my good intentions, I am at a loss for terms adequate to the expression of my gratitude. It shall be displayed to the extent of my humble abilities, in continued efforts so to administer the government, as to preserve their liberty and promote their happiness.

So many events have occurred within the last four years, which have necessarily called forth, sometimes under circumstances the most delicate and painful, my views of the principles and policy which ought to be pursued by the general government, that I need, on this occasion, but allude to a few leading considerations connected with some of them.

The foreign policy adopted by our government soon after the formation of our present constitution, and very generally pursued by successive administrations, has been crowned with almost complete success, and has elevated our character among the nations of the earth. To do justice to all, and to submit to wrong from none, has been, during my administration, its governing maxim: and so happy have been its results, that we are not only at peace with all the world, but have few causes of controversy, and those of minor importance, remaining unadjusted.

In the domestic policy of this government, there are two objects which especially deserve the attention of the people and their representatives, and which have been, and will continue to be, the subjects of my unceasing solicitude. They are, the preservation of the rights of the several states, and the integrity of the Union.

These great objects are necessarily connected, and can only be attained by an enlightened exercise of the powers of each within its appropriate sphere, in conformity to the public will constitutionally expressed. To.

this end, it becomes the duty of all to yield a ready and patriotic submission to the laws constitutionally enacted, and thereby promote and strengthen a proper confidence in those institutions of the several states and of the United States, which the people themselves have ordained for their own government.

My experience in public concerns, and the observation of a life somewhat advanced, confirm the opinions long since imbibed by me, that the destruction of our state governments, or the annihilation of their control over the local concerns of the people, would lead directly to revolution and anarchy, and finally to despotism and military domination. In proportion, therefore, as the general government encroaches upon the rights of the states, in the same proportion does it impair its own power and detract from its ability to fulfil the purposes of its creation. Solemnly impressed with these considerations, my countrymen will ever find me ready to exercise my constitutional powers in arresting measures which may directly or indirectly encroach upon the rights of the states, or tend to consolidate all political power in the general government. But, of equal, and indeed of incalculable importance, is the union of these states, and the sacred duty of all to contribute to its preservation by a liberal support of the general government in the exercise of its just powers. You have been wisely admonished to accustom yourselves to think and speak of the Union as of the palladium of your political safety and prosperity, watching for its preservation with jealous anxiety, discountenancing whatever may suggest even a suspicion that it can in any event be abandoned, and indignantly frowning upon the first dawning of any attempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest, or to enfeeble the sacred ties which now link together the various parts." Without union, our independence and liberty would never have been achieved-without union, they never can be maintained. Divided into twenty-four, or even a smaller number of separate communities, we shall see our internal trade burdened with numberless restraints and exactions; communication between distant points and sections obstructed, or cut off; our sons made soldiers to deluge with blood the fields they now till in peace; the mass of our people borne down and impoverished by taxes to support armies and navies; and military leaders at the head of their victorious legions becoming our lawgivers and judges. The loss of liberty, of all good government, of peace, plenty, and happiness, must inevitably follow a dissolution of the Union. In supporting it, therefore, we support all that is dear to the freeman and the philanthropist.

The time at which I stand before you is full of interest. The eyes of all nations are fixed on our republic. The event of the existing crisis will be decisive in the opinion of mankind, of the practicability of our federal system of government. Great is the stake placed in our hands; great is the responsibility which must rest upon the people of the United States. Let us realize the importance of the attitude in which we stand before the world. Let us exercise forbearance and firmness. Let us extricate our country from the dangers which surround it, and learn wisdom from the lessons they inculcate.

Deeply impressed with the truth of these observations, and under the obligation of that solemn oath which I am about to take, I shall continue to exert all my faculties to maintain the just powers of the constitution, and to transmit unimpaired to posterity the blessings of our federal union. At the same time, it will be my aim to inculcate, by my official acts, the necessity

of exercising, by the general government, those powers only that are clearly delegated; to encourage simplicity and economy in the expenditures of the government; to raise no more money from the people than may be requisite for these objects, and in a manner that will best promote the interests of all classes of the community, and of all portions of the Union. Constantly bearing in mind that, in entering into society, "individuals must give up a share of liberty to preserve the rest," it will be my desire so to discharge my duties as to foster, with our brethren in all parts of the country, a spirit of liberal concession and compromise; and, by reconciling our fellow-citizens to those partial sacrifices which they must unavoidably make, for the preservation of a greater good, to recommend our invaluable government and union to the confidence and affections of the American people.

Finally, it is my most fervent prayer, to that Almighty Being before whom I now stand, and who has kept us in his hands from the infancy of our republic to the present day, that he will so overrule all my intentions and actions, and inspire the hearts of my fellow-citizens, that we may be preserved from dangers of all kinds, and continue for ever a UNITED AND HAPPY PEOPLE.

FIFTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.

DECEMBER 3, 1833.

Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives :

On your assembling to perform the high trusts which the people of the United States have confided to you, of legislating for their common welfare, it gives me pleasure to congratulate you upon the happy condition of our beloved country. By the favor of Divine Providence, health is again restored to us; peace reigns within our borders; abundance crowns the labors of our fields; commerce and domestic industry flourish and increase; and individual happiness rewards the private virtue and enterprise of our citizens.

Our condition abroad is no less honorable than it is prosperous at home. Seeking nothing that is not right, and determined to submit to nothing that is wrong, but desiring honest friendships and liberal intercourse with all nations, the United States have gained throughout the world the confidence and respect which are due to the character of the American people, and to a policy so just, and so congenial to the spirit of their institutions.

In bringing to your notice the particular state of our foreign affairs, it affords me high gratification to inform you, that they are in a condition which promises the continuance of friendship with all nations.

With Great Britain, the interesting question of our northeastern boundary remains still undecided. A negotiation, however, upon that subject, has been renewed since the close of the last Congress, and a proposition has been submitted to the British government, with the view of establishing, in conformity with the resolution of the senate, the line designated by the treaty of 1783. Though no definitive answer has been received, it may be daily looked for, and I entertain a hope that the overture may ultimately lead to a satisfactory adjustment of this important matter.

I have the satisfaction to inform you that a negotiation, which, by desire of the house of representatives, was opened some years ago with the Brit

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