It is only regarded as a possible means of good; or on the other hand, as a possible means of evil. Sir, we narrow-minded people of New England do not reason thus. If these opinions be thought doubtful, they are, nevertheless, I trust, neither extraordinary nor disrespectful. Webster and the North treated it as binding the states together as a single union. South Carolinas Declaration of the Causes of Secession (1860), Jefferson Daviss Inaugural Address (1861), Documents in Detail: The Webster-Hayne Debates, Remarks in Congress on the Tariff of Abominations, Check out our collection of primary source readers. . Now, I wish to be informedhowthis state interference is to be put in practice, without violence, bloodshed, and rebellion. One of those was the Webster-Hayne debate, a series of unplanned speeches presented before the Senate between January 19th and 27th of 1830. . . To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member. But, the simple expression of this sentiment has led the gentleman, not only into a labored defense of slavery, in the abstract, and on principle, but, also, into a warm accusation against me, as having attacked the system of domestic slavery, now existing in the Southern states. Sir, as to the doctrine that the federal government is the exclusive judge of the extent as well as the limitations of its powers, it seems to be utterly subversive of the sovereignty and independence of the states. Webster-Hayne debate - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . Mr. Webster arose, and, in conclusion, said: A few words, Mr. President, on this constitutional argument, which the honorable gentleman has labored to reconstruct. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll hopefully stay awake until the end of the lesson. Whose agent is it? Speech of Senator Robert Y. Hayne of South Carolina, January 25, 1830. . . The Webster Hayne Debate - DEBETE CJK Go to these cities now, and ask the question. A state will be restrained by a sincere love of the Union. Where in these debates do we see a possible argument in defense of Constitutional secession by the states, later claimed by the Southern Confederacy before, during, and after the Civil War? . Crittenden Compromise Plan & Reception | What was the Crittenden Compromise? . Are we in that condition still? . This seemed like an Eastern spasm of jealousy at the progress of the West. The great debate, which culminated in Hayne's encounter with Webster, came about in a somewhat casual way. I understand the gentleman to maintain, that, without revolution, without civil commotion, without rebellion, a remedy for supposed abuse and transgression of the powers of the general government lies in a direct appeal to the interference of the state governments. . I understand him to insist, that if the exigency of the case, in the opinion of any state government, require it, such state government may, by its own sovereign authority, annul an act of the general government, which it deems plainly and palpably unconstitutional. The Curious Case of Evangelist Pat Robertson | Winter Watch . The Webster-Hayne Debate: Defining Nationhood in the Early American Robert Young Hayne | American politician | Britannica . And, therefore, I cannot but feel regret at the expression of such opinions as the gentleman has avowed; because I think their obvious tendency is to weaken the bond of our connection. . Webster's articulation of the concept of the Union went on to shape American attitudes about the federal government. . This leads us to inquire into the origin of this government, and the source of its power. The people were not satisfied with it, and undertook to establish a better. He must cut it with his sword. Which of the following statements best represents the desires of the Northern states during the debate of Missouri statehood? Lincoln-Douglas Debates History & Significance | What Was the Lincoln-Douglas Debate? By the time it ended nine days later, the focus had shifted to the vastly more cosmic concerns of slavery and the nature of the federal Union. And what has been the consequence? . This leads, sir, to the real and wide difference, in political opinion, between the honorable gentleman and myself. These verses recount the first occurrence of slavery. But I do not understand the doctrine now contended for to be that which, for the sake of distinctness, we may call the right of revolution. These irreconcilable views of national supremacy and state sovereignty framed the constitutional struggle that led to Civil War thirty years later. Gloomy and downcast of late, Massachusetts men walked the avenue as though the fife and drum were before them. It is the servant of four-and-twenty masters, of different wills and different purposes, and yet bound to obey all. Sir, if we are, then vain will be our attempt to maintain the Constitution under which we sit. This absurdity (for it seems no less) arises from a misconception as to the origin of this government and its true character. In January 1830, a debate on the nature of sovereignty in the American federal union occurred in the United States Senate between Senators Daniel Webster of Massachusetts and Robert Hayne of South Carolina. All regulated governments, all free governments, have been broken up by similar disinterested and well-disposed interference! . Our Core Document Collection allows students to read history in the words of those who made it. Correct answers: 2 question: Which of the following is the best definition of a hypothesis? Noah grew a vineyard, got drunk on wine and lay naked. Sir, I may be singularperhaps I stand alone here in the opinion, but it is one I have long entertained, that one of the greatest safeguards of liberty is a jealous watchfulness on the part of the people, over the collection and expenditure of the public moneya watchfulness that can only be secured where the money is drawn by taxation directly from the pockets of the people. Robert Young Hayne, (born Nov. 10, 1791, Colleton District, S.C., U.S.died Sept. 24, 1839, Asheville, N.C.), American lawyer, political leader, and spokesman for the South, best-remembered for his debate with Daniel Webster (1830), in which he set forth a doctrine of nullification. They had burst forth from arguments about a decision by Connecticut Senator Samuel Foote. The action, the drama, the suspensewho needs the movies? . In many respects, his speech betrays the mentality of Massachusetts conservatives seeking to regain national leadership and advance their particular ideas about the nation. Between January and May 1830, twenty-one of the forty-eight senators delivered a staggering sixty-five speeches on the nature of the Union. Sir, the very chief end, the main design, for which the whole Constitution was framed and adopted, was to establish a government that should not be obliged to act through state agency, or depend on state opinion and state discretion. But his standpoint was purely local and sectional. Sir, I am one of those who believe that the very life of our system is the independence of the states, and that there is no evil more to be deprecated than the consolidation of this government. . I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. The Constitutional Convention: The Great Compromise, The Webster-Hayne Debate of 1830: Summary & Issues, The History of American Presidential Debates, Jonathan Edwards and the Great Awakening: Sermons & Biography, Who Was Susan B. Anthony? The honorable gentleman from Massachusetts [Senator Daniel Webster] has gone out of his way to pass a high eulogium on the state of Ohio. Most people of the time supported a small central government and strong state governments, so the federal government was much weaker than you might have expected. His speech was indeed a powerful one of its eloquence and personality. South Carolinas Declaration of the Causes of Sece Distribution of the Slave Population by State. What was going on? . Tariff of Abominations of 1828 | What was the Significance of the Tariff of Abominations? Hayne was a great orator, filled with fiery passion and eloquent prose. This was the man to fire an aristocracy of fellow citizens ready to arm when their interests were in danger, and upon him, it devolved to advance the cause of South Carolina, break down the tariff, and fascinate the Union with the new rattlesnake theories. . The object of the Framers of the Constitution, as disclosed in that address, was not the consolidation of the government, but the consolidation of the Union. It was not to draw power from the states, in order to transfer it to a great national government, but, in the language of the Constitution itself, to form a more perfect union; and by what means? Address before the Wisconsin State Agricultural So "The Whole Affair Seems the Work of a Madman", John Brown and the Principle of Nonresistance. . What started as a debate over the Tariff of Abominations soon morphed into debates over state and federal sovereignty and liberty and disunion. But it was the honor of a caste; and the struggling bread-winners of society, the great commonalty, he little studied or understood. Webster-Hayne Debate book. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. Create your account, 15 chapters | At the time of the debate, Webster was serving his term as Senator of Massachusetts. Well, it's important to remember that the nation was still young and much different than what we think of today. . As sovereign states, each state could individually interpret the Constitution and even leave the Union altogether. . Every scheme or contrivance by which rulers are able to procure the command of money by means unknown to, unseen or unfelt by, the people, destroys this security. . . Let their last feeble and lingering glance, rather behold the gorgeous Ensign of the Republic, now known and honored throughout the earth, still full high advanced, its arms and trophies streaming in their original luster, not a stripe erased or polluted, nor a single star obscuredbearing for its motto, no such miserable interrogatory as, what is all this worth? . For the next several days, the men traded speeches which contemporaries of the time described as the greatest orations ever delivered in the Senate. . He speaks as if he were in Congress before 1789. foote wanted to stop surveying lands until they could sell the ones already looked at Visit the dark and narrow lanes, and obscure recesses, which have been assigned by common consent as the abodes of those outcasts of the worldthe free people of color. . 1824 Presidential Election, Candidates & Significance | Who Won the Election of 1824? . The Revelation on Celestial Marriage: Trouble Amon Hon. The specific issue that sparked the Webster-Hayne debate was a proposal by the state of Connecticut which said that the federal government should halt its surveying of land west of the Mississippi and focus on selling the land it had already surveyed to private citizens. Webster's "Second Reply to Hayne" was generally regarded as "the most eloquent speech ever delivered in Congress."[1]. See Genesis 9:2027. Finding our lot cast among a people, whom God had manifestly committed to our care, we did not sit down to speculate on abstract questions of theoretical liberty. Sir, I cordially respond to that appeal. Certainly, sir, I am, and ever have been of that opinion. Under that system, the legal actionthe application of law to individuals, belonged exclusively to the states. Drama, suspense, it's all there. The militia of the state will be called out to sustain the nullifying act. We will not look back to inquire whether our fathers were guiltless in introducing slaves into this country. I deem far otherwise of the Union of the states; and so did the Framers of the Constitution themselves. . On January 19, 1830, Hayne attacked the Foot Resolution and labeled the Northeasterners as selfish and unprincipled for their support of protectionism and conservative land policies. Sir, when arraigned before the bar of public opinion, on this charge of slavery, we can stand up with conscious rectitude, plead not guilty, and put ourselves upon God and our country. I spoke, sir, of the ordinance of 1787, which prohibited slavery, in all future times, northwest of the Ohio,[6] as a measure of great wisdom and foresight; and one which had been attended with highly beneficial and permanent consequences. We look upon the states, not as separated, but as united. The Commercial Greatness of the United States, Special Message to Congress (Tyler Doctrine), Estranged Labour and The Communist Manifesto, State of the Union Address Part II (1848). . He remained a Southern Unionist through his long public career and a good type of the growing class of statesman devoted to slave interests who loved the Union as it was and doted upon its compromises. MTEL Speech: Notable Debates & Speeches in U.S. History, The Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858: Summary & Significance, Psychological Research & Experimental Design, All Teacher Certification Test Prep Courses, The Significance of Daniel Webster's Argument, MTEL Speech: Principles of Argument & Debate, MTEL Speech: Understanding Persuasive Communication, MTEL Speech: Public Argument in Democratic Societies. First, New England was vindicated. Differences between Northern and Southern ideas of good governance, which eventually led to the American Civil War, were beginning to emerge. . But his calm, unperturbed manner reassured them in an instant. Connecticut's proposal was an attempt to slow the growth of the nation, control westward expansion, and bolster the federal government's revenue. . Webster-Hayne debate - Wikipedia The arena selected for a first impression was the Senate, where the arch-heretic himself presided and guided the onset with his eye. Get unlimited access to over 88,000 lessons. This means that South Carolina is essentially its own nation, Georgia is its own nation, and so on. There was no winner or loser in the Webster-Hayne debate. The speech is also known for the line Liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable, which would subsequently become the state motto of North Dakota, appearing on the state seal. Prejudice Not Natural: The American Colonization "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July? In whatever is within the proper sphere of the constitutional power of this government, we look upon the states as one.
