Mr. Clay went on to say that it was not his purpose to go, at this time, into a discussion of the subject generally. He had thought of the bankrupt act as a measure, which came recommended to congress, not only by all considerations of justice, of humanity, and benevolence, but recommended no less by the appalling condition of the country. If, among all the other distresses, discontents, and disorders, which every where prevailed to so alarming an extent, this legislature should now slam the door in the faces of those unfortunate men, who had at length hoped to be liberated from irretrievable embarrassment, by the beneficent operations of this law, it would produce such a state of excitement, distress, disorder, and despair, from one end of the land to the other, that no man could foresee, or even conjecture, the consequences.

But he could not terminate the brief remarks with which he had deemed it proper to accompany the presentation of these petitions and memorials, without adverting, for a moment, to a circumstance which had a personal relation to himself. The senate would do him the justice to admit, that he rarely introduced any thing of that description on their notice; never, indeed, unless under a sense of unavoidable necessity. An intimation had recently appeared in some of the public prints of the day, that the movement now in progress in the other wing of the capitol, towards a repeal of the bankrupt law, had originated with him, (Mr. Clay.) He disdained to enter upon any thing like a defence, against a charge so base and dishonorable, and one so entirely contrary to the entire tenor of his whole public life. It might, with equal probability, or evidence, have been asserted that he was the author or prompter of the proposal of a gentleman near him, to repeal the distribution law. He held the insinuation in profound contempt and scorn.

A single remark he must be permitted, in reference to the delegation in the other house, from his own state. At the last session, every member of that delegation, with one solitary exception, had voted against the passage of the bankrupt bill; and even that single advocate of the bill, on his return to his own district, found so great and general a dissatisfaction with the provisions of the bill, that he had, on the present occasion, felt it his duty to give such a vote, as he presumed it would appear that he had this day given in that body, on the question of repeal. But it seemed, notwithstanding these known facts, that Mr. Clay was to be held responsible for the votes of all the representatives in the other house, from his state, on that question. But those who imagined that Kentuckians were made of so supple, servile stuff, as to take their public course in legislation, from the dictation of any man, had yet to learn their true character. Those gentlemen had as good a right to dictate Mr. Clay's course, as he had to dictate

theirs. The representatives from Kentucky, in either house of congress, had enough of manly independence, to judge and to act for themselves, and to vote as their own individual views of duty should prompt them. But this accusation, base and despicable as it was in itself, had, notwithstanding, assumed such a shape as to render it Mr. Clay's duty to bring it to the notice of the senate; and he felt very sure that it was only necessary for him to bring it home to the bosom of every senator, to have it promptly, instantaneously rejected and repelled, as utterly groundless. For whatever might have been their difference of sentiment-and no man regretted more than he did, that it should have been his misfortune to differ in opinion from any portion of the gentlemen of that chamber- he was satisfied that all, both friends and foes, would, with one voice, do him the justice to say, that, whatever might have been the errors of his head, he had, at least, sought to live, as he hoped to die, an HONEST MAN― honest in his public, as in his private life.

ON THE AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION

RESPECTING THE VETO POWER.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES, JANUARY 24, 1842.

[THE frequent use of the veto power, by presidents Jackson and Tyler, by which very important bills passed by congress had been defeated, to the detriment of the public interests, induced Mr. Člay, before resigning his seat in the senate, to propose an amendment of the constitution, limiting the power of the president in this respect, on which subject he addressed the senate as follows. There were also two other resolutions submitted by Mr. Clay, having in view the same object—namely, the reduction of executive power within proper limits; first, that no senator or representative should be appointed to any office under the United States during the term for which he was elected; second, the secretary of the treasury to be chosen by congress.]

WHATEVER, said Mr. Clay, might be the ultimate fate of the amendment which had just been read, or of the two other kindred amendments which he had the honor of offering at the same time with it, he should at least enjoy the consciousness of having discharged his duty in their presentation. He must regret, indeed, that the duty of presenting and of advocating their adoption by the senate, had not devolved upon abler and more skilful hands; still, however, he considered the measure as one he was bound in conscience to present in his place, for the action of this body.

Nor had the performance of this duty been prompted, as some might suppose, and as had been suggested in certain quarters, by any recent exercise of the power to which the resolution has reference; yet, he was free to confess, that although the subject was one which had long been in his mind, and on which he had thought much and deeply for years past, the course of recent events had certainly not tended to weaken, if it had not added much to the strength of his impressions on the general subject. As far back as seven years ago, a worthy and lamented friend of his, from Maryland, now no more, had, in concert with himself, presented a proposition, the object of which had been to modify, and further to restrain the exercise by the executive, of this veto power. The drafting of the resolution, its presentation, and even the observations with which it was to be accompanied, all had been subjects of joint consultation and consideration between himself and that

gentleman. He adverted to this fact for no other purpose than to repel the idea, if it were entertained in the mind of any who now heard him, that the amendment now under consideration, and the others which accompanied it, had been suggested by recent occurrences. As far back as June, 1840, on one of the most solemn occasions in which he had ever been called to address a popular assembly-he alluded to the time when he enjoyed the opportunity of addressing the friends of his youth, and the people of his native county of Hanover, on the subject of the duties to be looked for at the hands of the new whig administration, which was expected to come into power, in consequence of the glorious and universal triumph of the whig party at the then approaching election―he Lad placed emphatically, and in front of them all, that which formed the subject of the present resolution. After speaking of the veto power generally, and more particularly of its exercise by a late president of the United States, the speech proceeded to say:

"The first, and, in my opinion, the most important object which should engage the serious attention of a new administration, is that of circumscribing the executive power, and throwing around it such limitations and safeguards as will render it no longer dangerous to the public liberties.

Whatever is the work of man, necessarily partakes of his imperfections; and it was not to be expected, that, with all the acknowledged wisdom and virtues of the framers of our constitution, they could have sent forth a plan of government so free from all defect, and so full of guarantees, that it should not, in the conflict of embittered parties, and of excited passions, be perverted and misinterpreted. Misconceptions, or erroneous constructions of the powers granted in the constitution, would probably have occurred, after the lapse of many years, in seasons of entire calm, and with a regular and temperate administration of the government; but, during the last twelve years, the machine, driven by a reckless charioteer, with frightful impetuosity, has been greatly jarred and jolted, and it needs careful examination, and thorough repair.

With this view, therefore, to the fundamental character of the government itself, and especially of the executive branch, it seems to me that, either by amendments of the constitution, when they are necessary, or by remedial legislation, when the object falls within the scope of the powers of congress, there should be,

First, a provision to render a person ineligible to the office of president of the United States after a service of one term. Much observation and deliberate reflection have satisfied me, that too much of the time, the thoughts, and the exertions of the incumbent are occupied, during his first term, in securing his reclection. The public business. consequently, suffers; and measures are proposed or executed with less regard to the general prosperity, than to their influence upon the approaching election. If the limitation to one term existed, the president would be exclusively devoted to the discharge of his public duties; and he would endeavor to signalize his adminis tration by the beneficence and wisdom of its measures.

'Secondly, that the veto power should be more precisely defined, and be subjected to further limitations and qualifications.'

Thus, it would be perceived by the senate, that whatever truth or soundness there might be in the opinion which he had embodied in the resolution now submitted to the senate, it was an opinion long since deliberately formed and expressed, and one which had often since been considered and reviewed, unprompted by any of those recent occurrences to which it might otherwise have been supposed to owe its origin.

The particular amendment now before the senate, for its con

sideration, and to which he should speak before he more briefly adverted to the others which accompanied it, was that which related to the veto power. And while on this subject of redeeming the pledge which was, in some sort, given by him as one of the humblest members of that party which had not long since so signally triumphed, he hoped the senate would allow him, in all truth and sincerity, to say, that he desired to see a party, when it came into power, redeem the pledges and fulfil the promises it made when out of power, and not exhibit that disgraceful spectacle so often witnessed in the political history of other nations, of professing one set of principles, and employing them as a means towards getting into power, and then, when successful in obtaining their wishes, turn round, forget all they had said and promised, and go on to administer the government just as their predecessors had done. He could assure gentlemen, that, on the questions of restraining and limiting executive power, on the necessity of an economical administration of the government, on regulating the dismissing power of the president, on securing a fair and just responsibility in all the departments; in a word, on every great question of national policy to which the party to which he considered himself as belonging were pledged to the people, and to the world; they would find him, on all occasions during the short time in which he expected to remain a member of the body, heartily ready to coöperate in carrying out into practice all they had avowed in principle.

It was his purpose to go but very briefly into the history and origin of the veto power. It was known to all to have originated in the institution of the tribunitian power, in ancient Rome; that it was seized upon, and perverted to purposes of ambition, when the empire was established under Augustus; and that it had not been finally abolished until the reign of Constantine. There could be no doubt that it had been introduced from the practice under the empire, into the monarchies of Europe, in most of which, in some form, and under some modification or other, it was now to be found. But, although it existed in the national codes, the power had not, in the case of Great Britain, been exercised for a century and a half past; and, if he was correctly informed on the subject, it had, in the French monarchy, never been exercised at all. During the memorable period of the French revolution, when a new constitution was under consideration, this subject of the veto power had been largely discussed, and had agitated the whole country. Every one must recollect how it had been turned against the unfortunate Louis XIV, who had been held up to the ridicule of the populace, under the title of 'Monsieur Veto,' as his wife, the queen, had been called Madame Veto;' and, although after much difficulty, the power had finally found a place in the constitution, not a solitary instance had occurred of its actual exercise. Under