est of statesmen, and the noblest of men! He
paused for a moment, and, having given Mr. Garland a withering look,
he proceeded to address the multitude.

"'It was not my intention,' said he, 'to take any part in these
extraordinary proceedings. I had hoped this house would succeed in
organizing itself; that a speaker and clerk would be elected, and
that the ordinary business of legislation would be progressed in.
This is not the time or place to discuss the merits of conflicting
claimants from New Jersey. That subject belongs to the House of
Representatives, which, by the constitution, is made the ultimate
arbiter of the qualifications of its members. But what a spectacle
we here present! We degrade and disgrace our constituents and the
country. We do not and cannot organize; and why? Because the clerk
of this house--the mere clerk, whom we create, whom we employ, and
whose existence depends upon our will--usurps the _throne_, and
sets us, the representatives, the vicegerents of the whole American
people, at defiance, and holds us in contempt! And what is this
clerk of yours? Is he to suspend, by his mere negative, the
functions of government, and put an end to this Congress? He
refuses to call the roll! It is in your power to compel him to call
it, if he will not do it voluntarily.' [Here he was interrupted by
a member, who said that he was authorized to say that compulsion
could not reach the clerk, who had avowed that he would resign
rather than call the State of New Jersey.] 'Well, sir, let him
resign,' continued Mr. Adams, 'and we may possibly discover some
way by which we can get along without the aid of his all-powerful
talent, learning, and genius!

"'If we cannot organize in any other way,--if this clerk of yours
will not consent to our discharging the trust confided to us by our
constituents,--then let us imitate the example of the Virginia House
of Burgesses, which, when the colonial Governor Dinwiddie ordered it
to disperse, refused to obey the imperious and insulting mandate,
and, like men--'

"The multitude could not contain or repress their enthusiasm any
longer, but saluted the eloquent and indignant speaker, and
interrupted him with loud and deafening cheers, which seemed to
shake the capitol to its centre. The very genii of applause and
enthusiasm seemed