quence; that the principle and construction contended for by sundry of the State Legislatures, that the General Government is the exclusive judge of the extent of the powers delegated to it, stop nothing short of absolute despotism; since the discretion of those who administer the Government, and not the Constitution, would be the measure of their powers. That the several States who formed that instrument, being sovereign and independent, have the unquestionable right to judge of its infraction, and that a nullification by those sovereignties, of all unauthorized acts done under color of that instrument, is the rightful remedy; that this Commonwealth does upon the most deliberate reconsideration declare, that the said Alien and Sedition Laws are, in their opinion, palpable violations of the Constitution; and however cheerfully it may be disposed to surrender its opinion to a majority of its sister States in matters of ordinary or doubtful policy, yet, in momentous regulations like the present, which so vitally wound the best rights of the citizen, it would consider a silent acquiescence as highly criminal; that although this Commonwealth, as a party to the federal compact, will bow to the laws of the Union, yet it does at the same time declare, that it will not now, nor ever hereafter, cease to oppose in a constitutional manner, every attempt, from what quarter soever offered, to violate that compact. And, finally, in order that no pretexts or arguments may be drawn from a supposed acquiescence on the part of this Commonwealth in the constitutionality of the laws, and be thereby used as precedents for similar future violations of the federal compact, this Commonwealth does now enter against them its Solemn Protest."

This piece of utter folly and absolute falsity in theory and practice was agreed to unanimously in the House on the 14th of November, 1799, and a few days. afterwards, on the 22d, the Senate concurred. It is difficult to believe that the men of the "Commonwealth" who enacted this farce were, in the remotest degree, sincere in their statement as to an "annihilation of the State Governments and the erection upon their ruins of a general consolidated government," or, indeed, as to any of all the other falsities and follies of these resolutions, which only served to put

a blot on the history of the State which time can

never erase.

It will be observed that the expression "nullification by those sovereignties, of all unauthorized acts done under color of that instrument, is the rightful remedy," often attributed to Mr. Jefferson's resolutions of 1798, is found in this silly and mean performance of November, 1799, which Mr. Jefferson did not write, and for which it may be claimed, but not without doubt, that he was not responsible. Even Mr. Madison in the defensive work of the retrospective third of his life was not able to make it clear that Mr. Jefferson was not the instigator of the supplemental Kentucky resolution of 1799; and hence truly, as was held, the author of the nullification proceedings of 1832, and the final result of the nullification and State Sovereignty dogmas of 1861.

In a letter to Joseph C. Cabell, May 31, 1830, Mr. Madison wrote:

"You will see in Vol. III, page 429, of Mr. Jefferson's corre spondence, a letter to W. C. Nicholas, proving that he had nothing to do with the Kentucky resolutions of 1799, in which the word 'nullification' is found. The resolutions of that State in 1798, which were drawn by him, and have been republished with the proceedings of Virginia, do not contain that or any equivalent word."

But Mr. Jefferson's resolutions do contain the words: "will concur in declaring these acts void and of no force."

Again on the 10th of September, 1830, Mr. Madison wrote to Edward Everett :

"DEAR SIR,-Since my letter, in which I expressed a belief that there was no ground for supposing that the Kentucky Resolutions of 1799, in which the term 'nullification' appears, were

drawn by Mr. Jefferson, I infer from a manuscript paper containing the term just noticed, that although he probably had no agency in the draft, nor even any knowledge of it at the time, yet that the term was borrowed from that source. It may not be safe, therefore, to rely on his letter to Mr. W. C. Nicholas, printed in his Memoir and Correspondence, as a proof that he had no connection with, or responsibility for, the use of such a term on such an occasion. Still, I believe that he did not attach to it the idea of a constitutional right in the sense of South Carolina, but that of a natural one in cases justly appealing to it."

The Virginia Resolutions of 1798, written by Mr. Madison, at the instigation of Mr. Jefferson, were passed in the Lower House of the Legislature on the 21st of December, 1798, and agreed to by the Senate on the 24th.

And on the 4th of January, 1799, the House passed the following additional resolutions, with which the Senate concurred six days later, and which were also written by Mr. Madison, who had got himself elected a member of the Legislature for the ignoble purpose of defending the resolutions of the former year:

"Resolved, That the General Assembly of Virginia will cooperate with the authorities of the United States in maintaining the independence, Union, and Constitution thereof, against the hostilities or intrigues of all foreign Powers whatsoever; and that although differences of opinion do exist in relation to internal and domestic measures, yet the charge that there is a party in this Commonwealth under the influence of any foreign power is unfounded and calumnious.

"Resolved, That the General Assembly do (does), and will always, behold with indignation, depredations on our commerce, insults on our citizens, impressments of our seamen, or any other injuries committed on the people or Government of the United States by foreign nations.

66

Resolved, That our security from invasion and the force of our militia render a standing army unnecessary; that the policy

of the United States forbids a war of aggression; that our whole reliance ought to be on ourselves; and, therefore, that while we will repel invasion at every hazard, we shall deplore and deprecate the evils of war for any other cause.

"Resolved, That a copy of the foregoing resolutions be sent to each of the Senators and Representatives of this State in Congress."

CHAPTER XVIII.

BEGINNING OF THE LONG ERA OF DEMOCRATIC ADMINISTRATION-MR. JEFFERSON'S INAUGURATION.

IN

N the majority of old newspapers and other such doubtful sources of information in this line at that early day it may be found narrated with great uniformity, where any mention is made, that on the 4th. of March, 1801, Mr. Jefferson "rode on horseback to the Capital without a single guard or even servant in his train, dismounted without assistance, and hitched the bridle of his horse to the palisades," and then entering the Senate chamber went through the ceremony of being inaugurated President. This had the true republican (Democratic) ring about it. It was the first object lesson from the new political luminary. It showed the country and the "Anglomen" and "monocrats" the way things should be in the Republic, and also said in plain terms "we have the man at last who is able and willing to put to shame all this monarchic, Federalistic pomp and folly." That was the way Mr. Jefferson would do it. That was it to appear that he would do it. That was the way his extreme republican friends wanted it to appear. It would look so well in history in that way. There was something so original, off-hand, daring, and democratic about it. And so it went into history, and has been so handed down unmodified ever since.

the way he wanted