PUBLISHED WEDNESDAYS AND SATURDAYS BY JOHN FENNO, No. 69, HIGH-STREET, BETWEEN SECOND AND THIRD STREETS, PHILADELPHIA [No. 100, of Vol. II- j Discourses on Davila—No. 29. ( Concluded.) THE affairs of the Hugonots were in a criti cal situation. It was not doubted but that, after the death of the Prince, the Admiral would be chosen for their Chief, both because of the distinguished employments which he had held in the party, and the reputation which his prudence had acquired. After the battle of Dreux, when the Prince was made prisoner, the whole [party, with unanimous consent, had deferred to Coligni the honour of the command. But at present there were several gentlemen, who, by their birth, their riches, or their other qualities, thought themselves not his inferiors. Some of j these tore his reputation withflanders ; some de- j tested the austerity of his character, mariners and habits. Unhappy Admiral ! thy fortune however is not Angular. Merit, talents, virtues, services, of the most exalted kinds, have in all ages been forced to give way, not to family pride, for this alone would be impotent and ridiculous, but to the popular prejudice, the vulgar idolatry, or the splendor of wealth and birth, with which fa mily pride is always fortified, supported and de fended. The Admiral had 1011, by malignant ferers, his brother Dandelot and his friend Bou card: deprived of these two, the party which in terested itfelf in the grandeur and elevation of the Admiral, was considerably weakened. But Coligni surmounted all obftaclesby hisaddrefs— he began by renouncing in appearance those chi merical titles with which a vain ambition would have been fatisfied, proposing however, in fac r t, to preserve all the authority of the command. He resolved to declare Chiefs of the party and Generals of the army, Henry Prince of Navarre, and Henry Prince of Conde, lon of the dece»led Prince. During the childhood of these, the Ad miral remained neceflarily charged with the con duct and administration of all affairs of import ance. It was, among Protestants, as well as Ca tholics, in the cause of liberty as well as that of tyranny, the only means of reprefling the ambi tion and pretensions, the envy, jealousy, malig nity and perfidy of the grandees ; the only means of answering the expectations of the people, and of uniting minds which the diversity of sentiment had already very much divided. In this resolution, without demanding what he felt, he could not obtain—The Admiral intreat ed the Queen of Navarre to come to the army, reprcfenting to her that the moment was arrived for elevating the Prince her son to that degree of grandeur for which he was born, and to which she had long aspired. The Queen was not want ing in courage or fortitude : already resolved at all hazards to declare her son the head of the party, flie came with all the diligence which a stroke of so much importance required, and ap peared with the two Princes at the camp at Cog nac. Discord reigned in the army, notwithstand ing the neceflity of union and unanimity, tofuch a degree that it was on the point of disbanding. The Queen of Navarre, after having approved the views of the Admiral, aflembled the troops ; she spoke to them with a firmnefs above her sex, and exhorted all those brave warriors to conti nue constant and united, for the defence of their liberty and their religion. Sliepropofed to them for Chiefs the two young Princes, who were pre sent, and whose noble air interested the fpei'la tors ; adding, that, under the auspices of these two young shoots from the royal blood, they ought to hope for the most happy success to the just pretensions of the common cause. Thisdif courfe animated the courage of the army, who appeared no forget in an instant the chagrine caused by the loss of the battle, and by the dif fentions which had followed it. she Admiral and the Earl of Rocliefoucault were the fir It to submit, and to take an oath of fidelity to the Princes of Bourbon ; the nobility and all the offi cers did the fame, and the foldievs, with great acclamations, applauded the choice which their Generals had made of the Princes for Chiefs and protelhrs of the reformed religion. This inhuman imaginations is considered, and in human lan guage is called, Dignity ! The greatelt States man, and the greatest General of his age, must resign the command of his own army, even in the cause of religion, virtue and liberty, to two beard less boys, because they had more wealth, and better blood. Henry of Bourbon, Prince of Navarre, ?ged I S, had however a lively spirit, a great and ge Wednesday, April 15, 1791- nerous foul, and difcoveved a decided inclination for war : animated by the councils of his mother, he accepted without hesitation the command of the army, and proinifed the Hugonots, in a con cise military eloquence, to protect their religion, and to persevere in the common cause, until death or victory Ihould procure them liberty. The Prince of Conde, whose tender age permitted not to express his sentiments, marked his consent only by his gestures. Thus the Prince of Na varre, who joined to the superiority of age the prerogative of firft Prince of the Blood, became really the head of the party. In memory of this event, the Queen Jane caused medals of gold to be (truck, which represented on one fide her own bust, on the other that of her son, with this infeription—Pax certa, victoria Integra, mors ho nest a—A faj'e peace, compleat viflory, or honorable death. Coligni remains charged with the conduct of the war, by reason of the youth of the Princes— he divides his troops, and throws them into the cities which adhered to him. Ihe Duke of.An jou pursues his victory, and forms the siege of Cognac, which he is obliged however to rail'e, by the vigorous resistance of the besieged : he takes several other cities. A new army of Germans, commanded by the Duke of Deux Ponts, enters France to aflift the Hugonots. Wolfang of Ba varia, Duke of Deux Ponts, excited by the money and the promiies of the Hugonots, with the aid of the Duke of Saxony and the Count Palatine of the Rhine, at the solicitation of the Queen of England, had raised an army of 6000 infantry, and 8000 horse. In the fame army was William of Naflau, Prince of Orange, and Louis and Henry his brothers, who, after having quitted Flanders, to avoid the cruelty of the Duke of Alva, supported the interests of the Calvinifts of France, whose religion they profefled. Thisar my marches towards the Loire, takes LaChaiite, and pafles the river. The Duke of Deux Ponts dies of a fever, and is succeeded in command by Count Mansfeld. The Princes, and their Mentor the Admiral, march to meet this succour. The Duke of Anjou, for fear of being surrounded by thele two armies, retires into Liuioufin, The Hugonots, combined with their allies, follow the royal armv. A spirited at Roche-Abeille. The fterifity of the country forces the Hugonots to retire. Ihe Queen Mother comes to the camp. The resolution is taken to feperate the royal ar my, to leave the forces of the Hugonots to con sume by time : it is separated, in facft, and the Duke of Anjou retires to Roches in Touraine. CONGRESS. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SATURDAY, Feb. 7. The BANK BILL under conjideration, MR. GERRY's Speech concluded. THE third rule of the Judge relative to the " fubieift matter" of a law, it is unneceflary to apply, because the members agree in then ideas relative to the meaning of the terms taxes, duties, loans, &c. The fourth rule which relates " to effects and confluences" is important ; and here the learned Tud<re observes that" as to effedls and confe rences, the rule is where the words bear none, or a very absurd fignification if literally under stood we must a little deviate from the received fenfeof them." I" the present cafe the gentle men in the oppofitioii generally, as well as the gentleman firft up from Virginia, give the whole clause by which Congress are authorized to make all laws neceflary and proper, &c no meaning whatever ; for they fay the former Con- | cress had the fame power under the confedera don without this clause as the present Congress have with it. The federahft is quoted on this occasion, but although the author of n ed great ingenuity, this part of his performance I co S „fider as a political heresy His dodtr.ne in deed", was calculated to lull the confcicnce. o. those who differed in opinion with lum at tnat time, and havii'g acconiphflied his object, he. 813 [Whole No. 204.] probably desirous that it may die with the oppo sition itfelf. The rule in this cafe fays, that where the words bear no fignification we must de viate a little, and as this deviation cannot be made by giving the words less than 110 meaning, it mult be made by a more liberal conitrnctiou than is given by gentlemen in the opposition. Thus their artillery is turned on thenifelves, for their own interpretation is an argument againlt itfelf. The last rule mentioned relates to the spirit and reason of the law, and the Judge is of opin ion " that the most universal and effectual wny of discovering the true meaning of a law when the words are dubious,is by considering the rea son and spirit of it, or the cause which moved the legislature to enaift it." The causes which pro duced the conftiiution were an iniperfe<ft union, want of public and private j lift ice, internal com motions, a defencelefs community, neglect of the public welfare and danger to our liberties.— These are known to be the causes not only by the preamble of the constitution, but also from our own knowledge ol the history of the times that preceded the eftabliflnnent of it If these weighty causes produced the constitution, and it not only gives power for removing them, but al so authorizes Congress to make all laws liecefiary and proper for carrying these powers into effedt: shall we listen to assertions that these words have no meaning and that this constitution has 110 c more energy than the old ? Shall we thus un nerve the government, leave the union, as it was under the confederation, defencelefs against a banditti of Creek Indians, and thus relinquifii the protection of its citizens ? Or fliall we, by a candid and liberal confirmation of the powers ex prefTed in the constitution, promote the great and important objects thereof? Each member mult determine for liimfelf ; I fliall without he sitation cliufe the latter and leave the people and States to determine whether or not I am pursuing their true intereft.—lf it is enquired where we are to draw the line of a liberal coriftrucftion, I would also enquire, where the line of restriction is to be drawn ? The interpretation of the con stitution, like the prerogative of a sovereign, may be abused ; but from hence the disuse of either cannot be inferred. In the exercise of prerogative the minister is- refponlible for his ad vice to his sovereign, and the members of either House are responsible to their constituents for their conduct in construing the constitution. We a<-t at our peril : if our conduct is directed to the attainment of the great objects of government, it will be approved and not otherwise ; but this cannot operate as a reason to prevent our dis charging the trusts reposed in us. Let us now compare the different modes of reasoning on this fubjed:, and determine which is right, for both cannot be. The gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Madiftm) has urged the dangerous tendency of a liberal confirmation ; but which is most dangerous a liberal or a deftrußhe interpretation ?—The li berty we have taken in interpreting the constitu tion, weconceive to be afceffary, and it cannot be denied to be u/eful in attainingthe objects of it: but whilst he denies us this liberty he grants to himfelf a right to annul part, and a very impor tant part of the constitution. The fame princi ple that will authorise a deftrudtioti of part will authorise the deftrutfion of the whole of the con stitution, and if gentlemen havea right to make such rules, they bave an equal right to make others for enlarging the powers of the coimitu tion, and indeed of forming a defpotifin. Thus, if we take the gentleman for our pilot, we fha'.l be wrecked on the reef which he cantions us to avoid. iin.. The gentleman has referred us to the ialt ai ticle of the amendment proposed to the constitu tion by Congress, which provides, that the pow ers not delegated to Congress or prohibited to the states shall reft in them or the people: And the qneftion is; what powers are delegated?— 'l)oes the gentleman conceive that such only are delegated as are exfirejfed? If so, hemull admit, that'our whole code of laws is unconlhtutional. This he disavows and yields to the iieceHity oi interpretation, which, by a fair and candid ap plication of established rules of conftrurtion to the constitution, authorizes, as has been fliewn, the meafurc under consideration. The ufuge of Congress Ims also been referred to • and il we look at the> arts under the ex.i.- iuf constitution. we (hall find they are general.y tit&o
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