what idea was espoused with the webster hayne debates

But until they shall alter it, it must stand as their will, and is equally binding on the general government and on the states. . Rachel Venter is a recent graduate of Metropolitan State University of Denver. . But the topic which became the leading feature of the whole debate and gave it an undying interest was that of nullification, in which Hayne and Webster came forth as chief antagonists. It moves vast bodies, and gives to them one and the same direction. But that was found insufficient, and inadequate to the public exigencies. If they mean merely this, then, no doubt, the public lands as well as everything else in which we have a common interest, tends to consolidation; and to this species of consolidation every true American ought to be attached; it is neither more nor less than strengthening the Union itself. . As sovereign states, each state could individually interpret the Constitution and even leave the Union altogether. And who are its enemies? . . The 1830 Webster-Hayne debate centered around the South Carolina nullification crisis of the late 1820s, but historians have largely ignored the sectional interests underpinning Webster's argument on behalf of Unionism and a transcendent nationalism. Consolidation!that perpetual cry, both of terror and delusionconsolidation! . . . I must now beg to ask, sir, whence is this supposed right of the states derived?where do they find the power to interfere with the laws of the Union? This statement, though strong, is no stronger than the strictest truth will warrant. . An accomplished politician, Hayne was an eloquent orator who enthralled his audiences. For the next several days, the men traded speeches which contemporaries of the time described as the greatest orations ever delivered in the Senate. They tell us, in the letter submitting the Constitution to the consideration of the country, that, in all our deliberations on this subject, we kept steadily in our view that which appears to us the greatest interest of every true Americanthe consolidation of our Unionin which is involved our prosperity, felicity, safety; perhaps our national existence. . I understand him to maintain, that the ultimate power of judging of the constitutional extent of its own authority, is not lodged exclusively in the general government, or any branch of it; but that, on the contrary, the states may lawfully decide for themselves, and each state for itself, whether, in a given case, the act of the general government transcends its power. . It would be equally fatal to the sovereignty and independence of the states. Webster and the northern states saw the Constitution as binding the individual states together as a single union. But the feeling is without all adequate cause, and the suspicion which exists wholly groundless. The Union to be preserved, while it suits local and temporary purposes to preserve it; and to be sundered whenever it shall be found to thwart such purposes. He tells us, we have heard much, of late, about consolidation; that it is the rallying word for all who are endeavoring to weaken the Union by adding to the power of the states. But consolidation, says the gentleman, was the very object for which the Union was formed; and in support of that opinion, he read a passage from the address of the president of the Convention[3] to Congress (which he assumes to be authority on his side of the question.) This is the sum of what I understand from him, to be the South Carolina doctrine; and the doctrine which he maintains. Read reviews from world's largest community for readers. Sir, I should fear the rebuke of no intelligent gentleman of Kentucky, were I to ask whether, if such an ordinance could have been applied to his own state, while it yet was a wilderness, and before Boone had passed the gap of the Alleghany, he does not suppose it would have contributed to the ultimate greatness of that commonwealth? . In this moment in American history, the federal government had relatively little power. . Neither side can be said to have 'won' the debate, but Webster's articulation of the Union solidified for many the role of the federal government. Inflamed and mortified at this repulse, Hayne soon returned to the assault, primed with a two-day speech, which at great length vaunted the patriotism of South Carolina and bitterly attacked New England, dwelling particularly upon her conduct during the late war. You see, to the south, the Constitution was essentially a treaty signed between sovereign states. Webster was eloquent, he was educated, he was witty, and he was a staunch defender of American liberty. Union, of itself, is considered by the disciples of this school as hardly a good. I wish to see no new powers drawn to the general government; but I confess I rejoice in whatever tends to strengthen the bond that unites us, and encourages the hope that our Union may be perpetual. Beyond that I seek not to penetrate the veil. . Religion and the Pure Principles of Morality: The American Anti-Slavery Society, Declaration of Sent Constitution of the American Anti-Slavery Society, Appeal to the Christian Women of the South, Protest in Illinois Legislature on Slavery. It was motivated by a dispute over the continued sale of western lands, an important source of revenue for the federal government. An error occurred trying to load this video. This is a delicate and sensitive point, in southern feeling; and of late years it has always been touched, and generally with effect, whenever the object has been to unite the whole South against northern men, or northern measures. . Available in hard copy and for download. Francis O. J. Smith to Secretary of State Dan Special Message to the House of Representatives, Special Message to Congress on Mexican Relations. . MTEL Speech: Public Discourse & Debate in the U.S. . Debate on the Constitutionality of the Mexican War, Letters and Journals from the Oregon Trail. The Webster-Hayne debate laid out key issues faced by the Senate in the 1820s and 1830s. succeed. His speech was indeed a powerful one of its eloquence and personality. More specifically, some of the issues facing Congress during this period included: Robert Y. Hayne served as Senator of South Carolina from 1823 to 1832. . What a commentary on the wisdom, justice, and humanity, of the Southern slave owner is presented by the example of certain benevolent associations and charitable individuals elsewhere. Excerpts from Ratification Documents of Virginia a Ratifying Conventions>New York Ratifying Convention. . Who doesn't? 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? To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member. Expert Answers. Though Webster made an impassioned argument, the political, social, and economic traditions of New England informed his ideas about the threatened nation. At the time of the debate, Webster was serving his term as Senator of Massachusetts. Then, in January of 1830, a senator from Connecticut introduced a proposal to the Senate stating that the federal government should stop surveying the lands west of the Mississippi River. 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? The theory that the states' may vote against unfair laws. The debate, which took place between January 19th and January 27th, 1830, encapsulated the major issues facing the newly founded United States in the 1820s and 1830s; the balance of power between the federal and state governments, the development of the democratic process, and the growing tension between Northern and Southern states. On that system, Carolina has no more interest in a canal in Ohio than in Mexico. But still, throughout American history, several debates have captured the nation's attention in a way that would make even Hollywood jealous. They will also better understand the debate's political context. Record of the Organization and Proceedings of The Massachusetts Lawmakers Investigate Working Condit State (Colonial) Legislatures>Massachusetts State Legislature. . It is the servant of four-and-twenty masters, of different wills and different purposes, and yet bound to obey all. 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. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. The people were not satisfied with it, and undertook to establish a better. In fact, Webster's definition of the Constitution as for the People, by the People, and answerable to the People would go on to form one of the most enduring ideas about American democracy. The Virginia Resolution asserted that when the federal government undertook the deliberate, palpable, and dangerous exercise of powers not granted to it in the constitution, states had the right and duty to interpose their authority to prevent this evil. . I supposed, that on this point, no two gentlemen in the Senate could entertain different opinions. . . Speech of Senator Robert Y. Hayne of South Carolina, January 25, 1830. . Hayne launched his confident javelin at the New England States. It was plenary then, and never having been surrendered, must be plenary now. . Webster realized that if the social, political, and economic elite of Massachusetts and the Northeast were to once again lay claim to national leadership, he had to justify New England's previous history of sectionalism within a framework of nationalistic progression. Crittenden Compromise Plan & Reception | What was the Crittenden Compromise? The gentleman has made an eloquent appeal to our hearts in favor of union. First, New England was vindicated. lessons in math, English, science, history, and more. I know that there are some persons in the part of the country from which the honorable member comes, who habitually speak of the Union in terms of indifference, or even of disparagement. Nor those other words of delusion and folly,liberty first, and union afterwardsbut everywhere, spread all over in characters of living light, blazing on all its ample folds, as they float over the sea and over the land, and in every wind under the whole Heavens, that other sentiment, dear to every true American heartliberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable! Webster-Hayne Debate book. The people of the United States have declared that this Constitution shall be the Supreme Law. Sir, when gentlemen speak of the effects of a common fund, belonging to all the states, as having a tendency to consolidation, what do they mean? . That's what was happening out West. . The United States, under the Constitution and federal government, was a single, unified nation, not a coalition of sovereign states. It was of a partizan and censorious character and drew nearly all the chief senators out. In The Webster-Hayne Debate, Christopher Childers examines the context of the debate between Daniel Webster of Massachusetts and his Senate colleague Robert S. Hayne of South Carolina in January 1830.Readers will finish the book with a clear idea of the reason Webster's "Reply" became so influential in its own day. . When my eyes shall be turned to behold, for the last time, the sun in Heaven, may I not see him shining on the broken and dishonored fragments of a once glorious Union; on states dissevered, discordant, belligerent; on a land rent with civil feuds, or drenched, it may be, in fraternal blood! When, however, the gentleman proceeded to contrast the state of Ohio with Kentucky, to the disadvantage of the latter, I listened to him with regret. Webster's articulation of the concept of the Union went on to shape American attitudes about the federal government. In January 1830, a debate on the nature of sovereignty in the America. Robert Young Hayne spent more than two decades in elected offices, including mayor of Charleston, member of South Carolina's legislature, attorney general, and then governor of the state. Our Core Document Collection allows students to read history in the words of those who made it. Go to these cities now, and ask the question. The Destiny of America, Speech at the Dedication o An Address. They will not destroy it, they will not impair itthey will only save, they will only preserve, they will only strengthen it! . It is observable enough, that the doctrine for which the honorable gentleman contends, leads him to the necessity of maintaining, not only that this general government is the creature of the states, but that it is the creature of each of the states severally; so that each may assert the power, for itself, of determining whether it acts within the limits of its authority. One was through protective tariffs, high taxes on imports and exports. The impression which has gone abroad, of the weakness of the South, as connected with the slave question, exposes us to such constant attacks, has done us so much injury, and is calculated to produce such infinite mischiefs, that I embrace the occasion presented by the remarks of the gentleman from Massachusetts, to declare that we are ready to meet the question promptly and fearlessly. We could not send them back to the shores from whence their fathers had been taken; their numbers forbade the thought, even if we did not know that their condition here is infinitely preferable to what it possibly could be among the barren sands and savage tribes of Africa; and it was wholly irreconcilable with all our notions of humanity to tear asunder the tender ties which they had formed among us, to gratify the feelings of a false philanthropy. It develops the gentlemans whole political system; and its answer expounds mine. . She has worked as a university writing consultant for over three years. No hanging over the abyss of disunion, no weighing of the chances, no doubting as to what the Constitution was worth, no placing of liberty before Union, but "liberty and union, now and forever, one and inseparable." If these opinions be thought doubtful, they are, nevertheless, I trust, neither extraordinary nor disrespectful. . This would have been the case even if no positive provision to that effect had been inserted in that instrument. Hayne maintained that the states retained the authority to nullify federal law, Webster that federal law expressed the will of the American people and could not be nullified by a minority of the people in a state. Sir, I have had some opportunities of making comparisons between the condition of the free Negroes of the North and the slaves of the South, and the comparison has left not only an indelible impression of the superior advantages of the latter, but has gone far to reconcile me to slavery itself. The states cannot now make war; they cannot contract alliances; they cannot make, each for itself, separate regulations of commerce; they cannot lay imposts; they cannot coin money. Southern ships and Southern sailors were not the instruments of bringing slaves to the shores of America, nor did our merchants reap the profits of that accursed traffic.. It has been said that Hayne was Calhoun's sword and buckler and that he returned to the contest refreshed each morning by nightly communions with the Vice-President, drawing auxiliary supplies from the well-stored arsenal of his powerful and subtle mind. Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819) | Case, Significance & Summary. I know, full well, that it is, and has been, the settled policy of some persons in the South, for years, to represent the people of the North as disposed to interfere with them, in their own exclusive and peculiar concerns. Let us look at the historical facts. Speech of Senator Daniel Webster of Massachusetts, January 26 and 27, 1830. The honorable gentleman from Massachusetts [Senator Daniel Webster] has gone out of his way to pass a high eulogium on the state of Ohio. Web hardcover $30.00 paperback $17.00 kindle nook book ibook. But the gentleman apprehends that this will make the Union a rope of sand. Sir, I have shown that it is a power indispensably necessary to the preservation of the constitutional rights of the states, and of the people. Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you I would strengthen the ties that hold us together. Let us look at his probablemodus operandi. we find the most opposite and irreconcilable opinions between the two parties which I have before described. Webster-Hayne Debate 1830, an unplanned series of speeches in the Senate, during which Robert Hayne of South Carolina interpreted the Constitution as little more than a treaty between sovereign states, and Daniel Webster expressed the concept of the United States as one nation. Connecticut and other northeastern states were worried about the pace of growth and wanted to slow this down. The heated speeches were unplanned and stemmed from the debate over a resolution by Connecticut Senator Samuel A. He entered the Senate on that memorable day with a slow and stately step and took his seat as though unconscious of the loud buzz of expectant interest with which the crowded auditory greeted his appearance. The Webster-Hayne debate, which again was just one section of this greater discussion in the Senate, is traditionally considered to have begun when South Carolina senator Robert Y. Hayne stood to argue against Connecticut's proposal, accusing the northeastern states of trying to stall development of the West so that southern agricultural interests couldn't expand. It would enable Congress and the Executive to exercise a control over states, as well as over great interests in the country, nay, even over corporations and individualsutterly destructive of the purity, and fatal to the duration of our institutions. He describes fully that old state of things then existing. . 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. There was an end to all apprehension. Allow me to say, as a preliminary remark, that I call this the South Carolina doctrine, only because the gentleman himself has so denominated it. 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. . Foot calling for the temporary suspension of further land surveying until land already on the market was sold (to effectively stop the introduction of new lands onto the market). This government, sir, is the independent offspring of the popular will. . Daniel webster (ma) and sen. Hayne of . The Revelation on Celestial Marriage: Trouble Amon Hon. I'm imagining that your answer is probably 'I do.' . to expose them to the temptations inseparable from the direction and control of a fund which might be enlarged or diminished almost at pleasure, without imposing burthens upon the people? . The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions Add Song of the Spinners from the Lowell Offering. He accused them of a desire to check the growth of the West in the interests of protection. Religious Views: Letter to the Editor of the Illin Democratic Party Platform 1860 (Douglas Faction), (Northern) Democratic Party Platform Committee. Senator Foote, of Connecticut, submitted a proposition inquiring into the expediency of limiting the sales of public lands to those already in the market. 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. . ", What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?. Sir, we narrow-minded people of New England do not reason thus. The following states came from the territory north and west of the Ohio river: Ohio (1803), Indiana (1816), Illinois (1818), Michigan (1837), Wisconsin (1848) and Minnesota (1858). Under the circumstances then existing, I look upon this original and seasonable provision, as a real good attained. All of these ideas, however, are only parts of the main point. . . . The debates between daniel webster of massachusetts and robert hayne of south carolina gave. Address to the People of the United States, by the What are the main points of difference between Webster and Hayne, especially on the question of the nature of the Union and the Constitution? The 1830 WebsterHayne debate centered around the South Carolina nullification crisis of the late 1820s, but historians have largely ignored the sectional interests underpinning Webster's argument on behalf of Unionism and a transcendent nationalism. We are ready to make up the issue with the gentleman, as to the influence of slavery on individual and national characteron the prosperity and greatness, either of the United States, or of particular states. 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. Is it the creature of the state legislatures, or the creature of the people? Whose agent is it? Hayne maintained that the states retained the authority to nullify federal law, Webster that federal law expressed the will of the American people and could not be nullified by a minority of the people in a state. I distrust, therefore, sir, the policy of creating a great permanent national treasury, whether to be derived from public lands or from any other source. 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. New England, the Union, and the Constitution in its integrity, all were triumphantly vindicated. . Most assuredly, I need not say I differ with him, altogether and most widely, on that point. . 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. There yet remains to be performed, Mr. President, by far the most grave and important duty, which I feel to be devolved on me, by this occasion. Sir, when the gentleman provokes me to such a conflict, I meet him at the threshold. 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. The gentleman, indeed, argues that slavery, in the abstract, is no evil. I hold it to be a popular government, erected by the people; those who administer it responsible to the people; and itself capable of being amended and modified, just as the people may choose it should be. Far, indeed, in my wishes, very far distant be the day, when our associated and fraternal stripes shall be severed asunder, and when that happy constellation under which we have risen to so much renown, shall be broken up, and be seen sinking, star after star, into obscurity and night! Edited and introduced by Jason W. Stevens. To them, the more money the central government made, the stronger it became and the more it took rights away from the states to govern themselves. Nullification, Webster maintained, was a political absurdity. . Sir, there exists, moreover, a deep and settled conviction of the benefits, which result from a close connection of all the states, for purposes of mutual protection and defense. Then he began his speech, his words flowing on so completely at command that a fellow senator who heard him likened his elocution to the steady flow of molten gold. Lincoln-Douglas Debates History & Significance | What Was the Lincoln-Douglas Debate? An equally. 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? President John Quincy Adams and the Election of 1824. . Differences between Northern and Southern ideas of good governance, which eventually led to the American Civil War, were beginning to emerge. God grant that, in my day, at least, that curtain may not rise. The Confederation was, in strictness, a compact; the states, as states, were parties to it. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. . . Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. We resolved to make the best of the situation in which Providence had placed us, and to fulfil the high trust which had developed upon us as the owners of slaves, in the only way in which such a trust could be fulfilled, without spreading misery and ruin throughout the land. 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, there does not exist, on the face of the whole earth, a population so poor, so wretched, so vile, so loathsome, so utterly destitute of all the comforts, conveniences, and decencies of life, as the unfortunate blacks of Philadelphia, and New York, and Boston. Some of Webster's personal friends had felt nervous over what appeared to them too hasty a period for preparation. . The growing support for nullification was quite obvious during the days of the Jackson Administration, as events such as the Webster-Hayne Debate, Tariff of 1832, Order of Nullification, and Worcester v. Georgia all made the tension grow between the North and the South. In whatever is within the proper sphere of the constitutional power of this government, we look upon the states as one. Sir, I deprecate and deplore this tone of thinking and acting. It is one from which we are not disposed to shrink, in whatever form or under whatever circumstances it may be pressed upon us. I now proceed to show that it is perfectly safe, and will practically have no effect but to keep the federal government within the limits of the Constitution, and prevent those unwarrantable assumptions of power, which cannot fail to impair the rights of the states, and finally destroy the Union itself. Hayne was a great orator, filled with fiery passion and eloquent prose. Hayne quotes from the Virginia Resolution (1798), authored by Thomas Jefferson, to protest the Alien and Sedition Acts (1798). Sheidley, Harlow W. "The Wester-Hayne Debate: Recasting New England's Sectionalism", Virginia and Kentucky resolutions of 179899, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=WebsterHayne_debate&oldid=1135315190, This page was last edited on 23 January 2023, at 22:54. Ostend Manifesto of 1854 Overview & Purpose | What was the Ostend Manifesto? A four-speech debate between Daniel Webster of Massachusetts and Robert Hayne of South Carolina, in January 1830.

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what idea was espoused with the webster hayne debates

what idea was espoused with the webster hayne debates