OF

MR. NORVELL, OF MICHIGAN,

ON THE

BILL OF MR. CRITTENDEN TO PREVENT THE INTERFERENCE

OF CERTAIN

FEDERAL OFFICERS IN ELECTIONS.

DELIVERED IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES, FEBRUARY 1839)

WASHINGTON:

PRINTED BY BLAIR AND RIVES.

1839.

SPEECH.

In Senate, February 16, 1839-On the bill of Mr. | movably confirmed; but in regard to individuals or CRITTENDEN to prevent the interference of certain parties, other than as they came recommended by Federal officers in elections. character and conduct, he was impartial, unfetMr. NORVELL rose and said: Before I pro-tered, and independent. But, after all, what ceed, Mr. President, to present my views of the bill is the worth of a victory, if the enemy are alnow under consideration, I desire to perform an lowed to possess THE SPOILS? Of what conseact of justice to my Whig friends on the other side quence is it who are masters of the field, so of the Senate, and to a distinguished statesman of long as the vanquished retain their possessions? the Republican party, once a member of this body. The battle between the great political parties It was the misfortune of that eminent statesman, in had been fought at the ballot boxes again and vindicating the removals and appointments made again, and constant defeat had embittered and by President Jackson, to utter the sentiment, that exasperated the disappointed competitors. They "to the victor belong the spoils." For that doc-beheld, for a long series of years, the honors and trine he has received the unqualified denunciations emoluments of office, the pride of place and of the Opposition; and his party friends have shared dignity of station, held by their political adversaan equal degree of condemnation for confirming, ries, until the reproach of being a Democrat was by their policy, the principle which he avowed. considered as impassable a barrier to public staMy purpose now is to show that Governor Marcy tion as the want of moral character or intellectual is not entitled to the credit of first proclaiming this ability." "The judicial department, the most staas the rule of political warfare; that its origin is to ble and the most efficient in its operation, was, be traced to a Whig source, and its example and from the chief justice to the crier of the court, practice to the Federal party of Massachusetts. In wholly in Federal hands. As a consequence of the second volume of the Life of Elbridge Gerry, this, the bar, with hardly sufficient exception to be written by James T. Austin, now the able Whig | noticed, added all the force of professional characAttorney General of that State, and the biographer ter to the Federal cause. The literature of the of Mr. Gerry, I find these passages:

State, so far as it had official form, was under the Mr. Gerry entered upon the office of Governor same control. Colleges and learned societies of Massachusetts twenty-nine years ago. At that seemed to have settled a sort of common law, that time, says his biographer, "with the directors of the honors of science would be as inappropriately political parties the long retirement of Mr. Gerry bestowed upon Democracy, as the chef d'œuvres of had given him no opportunity to become intimate. taste upon the aborigines of the country." "It had The changes which time had made in the members been the policy of the Federalists to inspire the of the different departments of the Government; opinion, and it was probably their belief, for selfhad left him almost without personal acquaintance love is exceedingly credulous of praise, that in their with them; and the desire which his party had to ranks were all the talents, and all the learning, and place his name as a candidate at their head, had all the moral character of the country; and as the itself, if there had been no other reason, rendered Romans looked upon the rest of mankind as barbahis advance to the Chief Magistracy wholly inde- rians, so they were pleased to consider their fellowpendent of all conditions, stipulations and expec- citizens, on the Democratic side, as little better than tancies. In his own political sentiments, matured the Goths and Vandals, into whose power had unas they were by time and experience, he was im-fortunately fallen the heritage of the State."

the dawning Whig and Conservative coalition to meet on common ground, and to prosecute the war against us without the danger of agitation and discord among the allied leaders of Opposition.

The Senator from Massachusetts [Mr. WEBSTER]] and the division of the spoils deferred until the inquires from what book I have read these pas-power of parcelling them out shall have been comsages; and asks whether I do not know that Governor pletely attained And, sir, I am much mistaken, Gerry belonged to my party, and was turned out if the bill before us be not a measure devised to enable in one year? If the Senator had not been inattentive, he would have heard it distinctly announced, that the book which I have just laid down was the biography of Elbridge Gerry, written by James T. Austin, the present attorney general of Massachusetts. It is the production of a modern Whig, sir, now in the enjoyment of "the spoils" of Federal victory. He it is, and not Governor Marcy, who first proclaimed "the spoils" doctrine, and demanded what was the value of a triumph, if the vanquished were suffered "to retain their possessions?" He was describing the practice of the Federal party when in power, their proscription from office of every Democratic Republican, and their strict adherence to the principle, that "to the victor belong the spoils." Sir, I do know that Governor Gerry was of my party. He was not dismissed in one year. He was re-elected. He acted in a spirit of liberality and conciliation towards his opponents during his first term. He deviated from that course in his second.

This Government, Mr. President, has been in operation fifty years. It has rarely transcended its limited powers. When it has gone beyond its constitutional boundaries, it has been brought back to its Republican tack. It has not interfered with the right of suffrage, which belongs exclusively to the States. The elective franchise, the liberty of speech and of the press, have been left to their regulation. The General Government, except during the short reign of terror in the days of Federal phrensy, acting in the spirit of its chartered grant of power, has abstained from invading any of the reserved rights of the States. The abuses committed at elections by public officers, during the administration of the elder Adams, goaded Mr. Jefferson into the utterance of impressive animadversions upon their conduct. He admonished those of his appointment against the imitation of the example which had been set them. He warned them of the consequences which would result from the pursuit of such a course of interference in the State elections. The distinguished leaders of the Republican opposition to the administration of the younger Adams directed public attention to the corrupting influence of Executive patronage, through the medium of officers of Executive appointment, upon the elections of the country. President Jackson considered it his duty to denounce the practice of bringing the influence of Executive patronage to bear upon the freedom and purity of the elective franchise. But, sir, did Mr. Jefferson ever contemplate the passage of a law to prohibit public officers from freely expressing their opinions upon all political questions, which they might think proper to discuss? Did he propose any thing, as a remedy for the evil, more than the exertion of a moral influence, the menace of Executive displeasure, to restrain the A conjuncture of this sort is now before our public officers from improper interference in eleceyes. We see secessions here, and in some of tions? Did the report of the Senator from Missouthe States, from the great Republican party of the ri, the speech of the Senator from Pennsylvania, the country. We see a coalition formed and forming inaugural address of President Jackson, the report in the midst of us, to subvert the present Republi- of the Senator from South Carolina, propose to can Administration. We see party names extin- check that interference by fines and perpetual disguished, the agitation of discordant principles abilities? Sir, in the most exasperated state of feelhushed into profound silence, the ulterior views of ing against the outrages perpetrated by a few pubrival chieftains suppressed from public observation, lic officers at popular elections, it never entered the

In the history of parties in England, we have memorable examples of the secession of leaders from their early friends, and the formation of alliances with ancient political adversaries. A cordial union for the common object, the destruction of the existing administration, has always naturally followed. On such occasions, the necessity of breaking down all party names, in order to form a strong body in opposition, has generally been well understood, and urged with mutual ardor and vigor. Ulterior views, and the division of spoils between the new allies, have been postponed until the common enemy has been vanquished. Party spirit, the agitation of variant principles, as between the different members of the coalition, have been deprecated; and measures which might bring them into common concert have been devised, and supported with zeal, until the compact has been consolidated, and capable of moving on with perfect union and harmony.

stronger

find the

the

mind of a Republican statesman, till the present to greater vigilance, to more zeal, to still more ani day, to pass penal and proscriptive laws mated exertions, the citizen who witnesses and disfor their prevention and punishment. It approves of any such misconduct. In the was reserved for these enlightened days, increased ardor of the contest, in the these times of Opposition purity, to suggest the ex-excitement of opposition, the people traordinary enactments proposed in the bill now be-appropriate remedy for the evil, aij 3 fore the Senate. The model for this measure, Mr. ballot box vindicates their rights, as well as President, has been sought and discovered in Bri-public décency, from any outrage which may have tish history. It has been drawn from the ancient been perpetrated upon them. Besides, sir, the of code of omnipotent British parliamentary law. fice-holder may safely be left to the office-seeker in Principle for principle, word for word, letter for the conflict of elections. He who is in pursuit of letter, the glorious model has been faithfully tran- a favorite object, exerts more energy for its attainscribed. Sir, there is no measure of proscription,ment, than its possessor does to retain it. This is there is no attack upon the freedom of individual opi-an universal principle of human nature. The Senion, there is nó degree of punishment, which may nator from Kentucky is mistaken in supposing that not find its precedent in British history, in the the office-seekers are on the same side with the ofreigns of the queens and kings in which the Sena-ice-holders. To a partial extent, his position on tor from Kentucky has so industriously hunted up this point is true: but the great mass of aspirants the prototype of his bill. If, says this bill, in effect, for office, of those who are active in its pursuit, your public officer expresses an opinion, remove him are in the opposition. The Senator must rememfrom office. If he mingles with his fellow-citi- ber the outery with which these walls resounded, zens, and exercises his constitutional right to tell during the whole administration of General Jackthem what he thinks of men or measures, of this son, against the removals and appointments made candidate or that candidate for their suffrages, fine by that administration. That cutery, sir, was him, and imprison him until he can pay the fine. echoed and re-echoed from the Atlantic to the If he advances an argument to his fellow-country-Mississippi, from the lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. men; if he pursuades or dissuades him, cut off his The removals were declared to be offensive to pubhead, sir; disable him from ever holding another lic purity, to the patriotism and justice of the counpublic office. You will find precedents for all these try, and to the spirit of the Constitution. things in British history, in the profligate reigns of "victims" of this policy, as they were feelingly demale tyrants, and of female tyrants, too, in the scribed, excited the warmest sympathies of Senafast-anchored isle. tors over the way. They were treated as martyrs Sir, what is the mischief of which the Senator to their principles and independence, and received from Kentucky [Mr. CRITTENDEN] complains; and with open arms into the ranks of the Opposition. what the remedy which his bill suggests for that The removals were denounced as all wrong! The mischief? The evil is "the interference of certain incumbents were entitled to a life estate in their Federal officers in elections." Well, sir, I unre-places, unless they had failed in the fulfilment of servedly admit that partial abuses have been com-their official duties. Such then was the Whig docmitted in this way. I admit that partial evils trine. The principle that "to the victors belong spring from this source. But in this, as in the the spoils," was pronunced to be odious in the sight other affairs of human life, "all partial evil's uni- of God and man. Every term of obloquy versal good." As a matter of propriety and deco-was heaped upon the new appointments. The rum, from feelings of self respect and respect to maledictions of the pure disciples of political public opinion, as representatives of the character | Whig religion, were poured forth upon every new and diguity of their Government, your public off-man brought into office by General Jackson. The cers are morally bound to speak and to act, at all great power of this body was frequently invoked times, with decoram and due regard to their fellow-to veto the Presidential nominations. Well, sir, a citizens. They are bound to abstain from noise stranger in this Republican land might suppose and brawling in political contests. Some of them from these facts, and from the speech of the Senamay occasionally fail in these proper observances.tor from Kentucky, that no office-seekers were to When they do so fail, the correction of the evil is be found among the Opposition; that its members found in public opinion. That invariably con- were too pure to seek or accept of station; that not demns them. That counteracts, with effect, the a patriot among them would deign to take an oftransgressions of the public officer. That excites fice, from which any friend of the Administration

The